Vampire Killer (song)
From the Castlevania Wiki, the Castlevania wiki
Vampire Killer, apart from being the name of a Castlevania game, is also the name of a famous theme song of the series.
It was first used in the opening level of the original Castlevania and then in Vampire Killer (the game).
The original track is in D minor, and one loop consists of 16 bars, of which each musical sentence (4 bars) contains two nearly identical phrases of two bars each. There is heavy use of the subtonic (VII chord in minor), and the style is a "generic videogame style" that has its roots in rock music.
The track has been reused the most of any recurring music track in the Castlevania series, surpassing its more popular sibling, Bloody Tears. Some fans consider the correct usage of this track to be for late-game areas of generally higher difficulty, due partly to the usage of the track in Castlevania III, Castlevania IV, and Circle of the Moon.
(Vampire Killer Medley)
[edit] Usage
- Vampire Killer - First stage music.
- Castlevania - First stage music.
- Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse - "Deja Vu" (used for the penultimate stage that goes through the entrance hallway of Dracula's castle).
- Super Castlevania IV - Final stage, first area.
- Castlevania: Rondo of Blood and Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles - -Second stage music.
- Castlevania: Bloodlines - Bonus song.
- Castlevania: Dracula X - Second stage, which includes the entrance hallway of Dracula's castle.
- Castlevania: Symphony of the Night - There are two remixes in the Sega Saturn version of this game (Dracula X: Nocturne in the Moonlight), one labeled "goth/techno" and the other labeled "rock". They are used in areas that are not present in the PlayStation version and in the entrance hallway if playing with Richter or Maria.
- Castlevania: Lament of Innocence - It can be heard in the song "Admiration Towards the Clan" which is used for the ending credits of the game at the 1:35 mark.
- Castlevania Legends - The beginning of "Vampire Killer" is quoted at the beginning of the final battle theme.
- Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness - The tune is quoted when the player encounters Dracula's coffin on Cornell's quest.
- Castlevania Chronicles - Played in the first stage. There are four different versions of this track, corresponding to four different sound programs used to generate the music.
- Castlevania: Circle of the Moon - used in the last major castle area to be explored, the Observation Tower.
- Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance - Music for special Boss Rush mode using Simon Belmont; remixed with Castlevania III's "Clockwork" in the same track.
- Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow - Plays in the "Hidden Ruins" area, which is styled to look like the first area in the original Castlevania.
- Castlevania: Resurrection - Among the leaked soundtrack samples from this cancelled game there's a version of "Vampire Killer".
- Castlevania: Judgment - rock version ; Simon Belmont's theme ; playing during a fight with or against Simon.
Additionally, the track has been used in the following games:
- Sexy Parodius - The beginning of the Vampire Killer track is used as the opening of Stage 3B's music.
- Contra: Hard Corps - The sound test contains a track known as "Simon 1994RD", which is a remix of "Vampire Killer".
- Dance Dance Revolution Universe - Contains a Jazzy version called "Castlevania Freestylin Mix"
- Pyuu to Fuku! Jaguar: Byuu to Deru! - Contains a Dracula's Castle level song loosely based on Vampire Killer.
- GuitarFreaks & DrumMania V6 - Contains a rock version of the song
Finally, Castlevania: The Adventure contains a track called "Darkness" and used in the stage with the moving spike walls which is harmonically, rhythmically, and structurally very similar to "Vampire Killer".
