THE GAME

Dynamite Headdy is a 2D sidescroller developed in 1994 by Treasure for the Sega Genesis~Megadrive. The game follows Headdy, a puppet on a mission to save the toy kingdom. Helped by his friends and the mysterious Heather/Fingy, he sets out to recover the Smiley Badge stolen by the evil Dark Demon King. But his archnemesis TroubleBruin/Maruyama has other plans...

Similar to a theatrical play, each level is divided into acts, each containing hidden rewards called Secret Bonus Points. Gathering these optional items is the game's greatest challenge, rewarding only those bold enough to think outside the box. And this mindset is what inspired the concept of this album.

The original game was altered quite a bit for western audiences, including increased difficulty level, removal of all story elements and change of appearance for both friends and foes. Luckily the music survived the port, safe and sound.

Nazo'2 Unit pushed the YM2612 FM-chipset to its limits in order to match the game's distinct personality. Resolutely jazzy and driven by classical influences, the soundtrack is colorful, evocative and a bit crazy. Kinda like us!

THE PROJECT

Responding to this request on the OCR boards, I took upon myself to bring Dynamite Headdy to light. It started as a fun way to experiment with ideas and learn from the challenge. Before long, people volunteered to help or were recruited, turning this one-man job into a collaborative project.

This project had a simple set of guidelines: "Have fun. Make the kind of music you enjoy. Push yourself in the process."
Musicians were free to tinker and experiment, so long as they were expanding their comfort zone in one direction or another.

It took a few years and a lot of steady work, but we're happy to share the fruits of our effort with the world. Hopefully, this little tribute is as fun to listen to as it was to create.

CREDITS

Utmost respect goes to Treasure and the sound team: Nazo2 Suzuki, Norio Hanzawa, Aki Hata, Koji Yamada and Yasuko.

Huge thanks to KyleJCrb, founder and host of Nitro Game Injection, and to BLueBeRRyKiWi for hosting the album.

Mad props to my fellow musicians, without whom this album wouldn't exist. Honored to have worked alongside all of you.

shoutout to the VGM communities of ThaSauce and OCReMix. Thanks to all the great people there who helped me grow.

Intarwebs shouts to DJAbyss500 for his neat DH playlist, Jurae818 and Ryan914 for their invaluable DH sprite sheets, T.H.B aka DHfan for his awesome and comrehensive DH guide, Wes 'Arrow' Fathauer for his masterful DH speedrun.

to all Dynamite Headdy fans, wherever you might be hiding...

DISCLAIMER

This album was created by fans, for fans and for free. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Treasure or Sega. All names, characters and music from Dynamite Headdy are the property of their rightful owners. Materials are being referenced under fair use, in an effort to honor their original creators.
All arrangements are copyright their respective authors.

Direction, artwork and web-design by Dj Mokram.
Published by KyleJCrb for KNGI Records, 2011.