Check Out This Moody Synth-Based Zelda Fan Album
Posted on February 19 2023 by Leslie Jacobson
I love remixes of music from The Legend of Zelda, and I’m always looking out for more great tunes to add to my collection. Chiptune artist Windmills at Dawn has released an EP album of three Zelda remixes, including the Dark World theme from A Link to the Past, the Great Palace theme from The Adventure of Link, and the original Legend of Zelda Dungeon theme. The album, titled Dark Times, was created with music production software Korg Gadget on Nintendo Switch and is currently available on most popular music streaming sites.
New music!
“Dark Times” – Windmills at Dawn
A small EP of covers from the Legend of Zelda series made using the Korg Gadget on Nintendo Switch.
Available now on all the usual music streaming platforms.#LegendofZelda #NintendoSwitch #korggadget pic.twitter.com/1apImenycl
— Windmills at Dawn (@WindmillsAtDawn) August 28, 2022
“Dark World” starts with a heavy bass line and picks up with a synthesizer-based melody that makes the song feel like it’s from a dark fantasy movie. The melody stays fast and exciting, and then, at about 1:45, there’s a sharp transition to an ethereal, atmospheric sound. Then, at two minutes, the energy picks back up to the end.
“Great Palace” continues the dark fantasy feel with a mix of eerie-sounding background notes layered with the main melody. I like when the bass takes over for a bit, like a quick break, then it picks up more energy with the main melody. It’s not hard to imagine the echoing halls of the Great Palace while fighting some of the toughest enemies to chew through in the Zelda series. There’s even a stress point where the main theme sounds like a siren and then mellows out toward the end, as though the final battle has finished.
“Dungeon” starts light and sets up the atmosphere of entering a dungeon, and then it kicks into overdrive with the main dungeon theme, perhaps like when you get to your first enemy of the dungeon. This one also tells a story, similar to “Great Palace,” with moments of intense melody, mimicking the almost-grinding sound of the original, and then with moments of a lighter, atmospheric feel. This also has an intense drive to the end that suddenly switches to calm. There’s even a unique sound at the end that reminds me of warping out of a dungeon.
You can listen to Dark Times on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music. You can also follow Windmills at Dawn on Twitter.
Give these a listen and tell us what you think. Do you think the songs tell their own musical stories? Will you add these to your own remix collection? Would you like to hear more from Windmills at Dawn? Let us know in the comments!
Source: Windmills at Dawn
Leslie is a mom, a cosplayer, an educator, and a fervent fan of The Legend of Zelda series. She lives in an area of the United States that reminds her of the Akkala region in the fall and Hebra the other 11 months of the year. She owns The Legend of Zelda t-shirts older than most of her students.
