Another Taiko theme song week! And two this time. Continuing on from last week...
Densetsu no Matsuri (伝説の祭り)| Version |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiko PS2 7 | x4 (161) | x5 (245) | x6 (511) | x7 (777) |
| Taiko 10 to 0, Taiko PSP DX, Taiko Wii 1, 4 | x3 (161) | x4 (245) | x5 (511) | x7 (777) |
| Taiko 0.5 | x3 (161) | x4 (245) | x6 (511) | x7 (777) |
Taiko 10 to 0, Taiko PS2 7, Taiko PSP DX, Taiko Wii 1, 4, CD 2008
136
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denEnding movie
Bouken Hiyori was Nanadaime's opening theme, and Densetsu no Matsuri is its ending theme. It was sung by Rumi, and like its opening, is done by someone other than Don-chan's voice. It means 'legendary festival', and like its namesake, reached a legendary level of popularity among players. Could be the upbeat, happy tone of the song, could be the super-intuitive notes, could also be the fact that there wasn't a true ending theme in Taiko games since Sandaime. Whatever the case, DnM outshone Bouken Hiyori by leaps and bounds. You could say it broke out of being 'just a theme song' to being a great, well-love Namco Original.
Most console themes usually stick around for one or two arcade versions -if they made it there at all- before being removed (case in point: Kimi ni Touch and Nanairo Harmony). Densetsu no Matsuri made it into the arcade song list and stayed there even until now. The only other console theme with at least this much mileage is Mekadesu.
As mentioned earlier, Densetsu no Matsuri has extremely intuitive note clusters that just come naturally, and is one of the easier songs to FC on Oni. The number play is similar to the one in Kurenai, except this time with the number 7. It was released first on the 7th PS2 Taiko, all the total notes on all difficulties are multiples of 7 (161 on Kantan, 245 on Futsuu, 511 on Muzukashii) , the song is 7* on Oni, and it has 777 notes on that difficulty too. The song holds another record: it's the first theme song which is used for a boss battle namely in Taiko PSP DX where the Dokon Gang challenges Don and Miko-chan with this song.
Oh, and since Wii 3 has been out for about a month now, let's see its theme song!
Popcorn Parade (ポップコーン★パレード) | Version | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | x4 (137) | x4 (161) | x6 (325) | x8 (507) |
Taiko Wii 3, CD Full Combo 128 none w3opNow here's a voice we know. Definitely the Don-chan we know and love, Narahashi Miki! All the Wii theme songs are done by her. Popcorn Parade is played for the first time in the ending credit scene of Taiko Wii 3 after you earn 2000 coins playing in Taiko's first theme park, the Dream Taiko Land. A false rumor was initially spread about the song title being 'Taiko de Happy' instead, but Taiko fans smelled a rat almost immediately (mediocre and uncreative title) and was soon disproved a few days before the game's release.
Wait...earning 2000 coins? Aren't the theme songs supposed to be all unlocked at the beginning by default? The Wii Taiko games have a bad habit of putting the theme song away as an unlockable song, but if unlockable songs were kept away in a safe, Popcorn Parade would be the one song stored in an unbreakable block of steel then buried a hundred feet under the seafloor. Seriously, this is one unknown theme song. Other than being played at Taiko Wii 3's website, not even the title was known until the game's launch. In contrast, the other Wii themes, Happy de Rippa and Lalala Happiness, had their titles known from the very beginning and were unlocked after progressing through a mandatory story mode. Here, the Dream Taiko Land is an optional thing, meaning players who skip the mode entirely would never see Popcorn Parade. And 2000 coins is not easy to get.
If you do unlock Popcorn Parade however, it's a delightful and fun song with the highest giant note count in all songs on Oni difficulty (five of them) and a generous serving of 2 and 4 note clusters. It's also one difficulty star higher than the usual 7* average for theme songs.
