Final Fantasy VII is a game that is very near and dear to my heart. Being an only child, I led a rich, inner life in my youth that was heavily influenced by the sprawling, fantastical worlds of JRPGs and Final Fantasy, in particular. This game was the reason I purchased a PlayStation, for crying out loud, so believe me when I say that Nobuo Uematsu’s score is burned deep into my brain. Few things were sweeter than the sight of Cloud and company rhythmically pumping their weapons after a battle in celebration of having slain another batch of random baddies accompanied by the jauntiest victory theme you’ve ever heard. Normally, I’m fairly resistant to a cappella covers, because everyone I met in college who did a cappella made it seem like a creepy, Scientology-esque cult. However, once I heard the dulcet tones of Smooth McGroove and his pitch perfect covers of classic gaming themes, I began to change my tune. Revel in his bearded brilliance and transport yourself back to a simpler time when pixels ruled the earth.
Final Fantasy VII‘s “Victory Theme”
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney‘s “Cornered” theme
Tetris‘ “Theme A”
Street Fighter II‘s “Guile Theme”
Mega Man 2′s “Dr. Wily Stage”
Super Mario World – “Overworld Theme”
What do you think of Smooth McGroove’s covers? What theme would you like him to tackle? Let us know in the comments below or let me know on Twitter!
He is way too perfect! he has amazing hair, amazing eyes, he loves cats like me, and of course his voice is just perfect in every way. I’m listening to his F-Zero Mute City cover right now and that, MK64 Rainbow Road and Koopa Troopa Beach, and SMK Rainbow Road are my favourites by him. I think he should be one of the most popular YouTubers!
Love, love, love. I think he should take a shot at the theme from Toejam & Earl…
this is amazing! Thanks for writing this and turning me onto this dude.
I loved his “Bloody Tears” cover!
he truly is awesome
That poor cat…
I just went to Youtube and checked all of the songs from games I played. My favorites would have to be the ones from Kirby, Ace Attorney, Mega Man 2, and Tetris.
I’m actually a huge fan of Final Fantasy 7 too, but I wasn’t a big fan of his Final Fantasy 7 covers. But I would love to see (hear) him do One Winged Angel. If that were too hard, then maybe Those Chosen By The Planet. Not Who Are You, though, because that always gives me the creeps.
Smooth is great. He’s not only a very talented vocal artist, but clearly an accomplished producer and, the cherry on top, a passionate gamer from a generation of games that myself and many other cherish.
Not to be a shill, but since the article didn’t link to his Patreon page, I will. A great way to support Smooth! http://www.patreon.com/SmoothMcGroove
Smooth’s covers are awesome, whenever I notice he posted a new one, I stop everything I was doing at once to listen to it. Some of them are a bit too repetitive (Super Mario World – Overworld Theme, Castlevania – Vampire Killer) but it’s because of the original theme rather than Smooth’s work.
I hope he’ll cover some Mighty Switch Force themes!
Smooth is awesome!