Good news: You can now stream one of the best parts of the Mario movie for free. (With ads, but still free.)
The Super Mario Bros. Movie came to theaters on Wednesday and its official album is available on the music streaming platforms Tidal and Spotify as of Friday. The score features Brian Tyler’s absolutely stunning orchestral arrangements of original Nintendo themes. Although the film has plenty of notable elements — like Jack Black as Bowser and Chris Pratt’s Mario voice — the music is truly a highlight, as it weaves together several generations of beloved tunes into one coherent album.
For those of you yet to see the movie, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is packed to the brim with classic Mario and Donkey Kong tracks, many created decades ago by the renowned composer Koji Kondo. The official soundtrack contains 37 songs in total, and even that feels like an underestimation, since so many of the short orchestral arrangements contain multiple references to popular songs in a single track. For example, the song “Drivin’ Me Bananas” condenses homages to both the original “DK Island Swing” and the theme from Donkey Kong Country in a song that’s less than a minute and a half long.
Those familiar with the 40-year history of Nintendo’s Mario franchise will be easily recognize all sorts of jingles and themes sprinkled throughout its varied score. But it throws a few curveballs as well. Mainly, you can listen to Jack Black, as Bowser, serenade Peach with a piano love ballad. This album doesn’t have the film’s somewhat questionable inclusion of pop hits spanning the 1970s to 1990s, so fans only get the best parts.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is in theaters now and its DVD is available for preorder at online retailers.
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