Super Bell Subway (theme)

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"Super Bell Subway"
"Super Bell Subway" in Mario Kart 8
Super Bell Subway in Mario Kart 8
Image from Nintendo Music
Composed by:
Atsuko Asahi[1]
First appearance Mario Kart 8 (DLC Pack 2) (2015)
Latest appearance Mario Kart World (2025)
“The name of this course ('Ring-a-Ling Metro' in Japanese) gave me a really strong image, and I worked to create a song that you could imagine singing that title to. We wanted it to have a European metro feel, and so used vintage-sounding tones.”
Liner notes in the Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack

"Super Bell Subway"[2][1] is a musical theme composed by Atsuko Asahi for Mario Kart 8, where it plays in the race course of the same name. Much like with "Dolphin Shoals", an extended section that doubles the length of the theme plays when viewing Highlight Reels of races taking place on the course.

History[edit]

Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe[edit]

“When you actually go underground, the music suddenly shifts to a much more frantic pace, and Teppei Kawasaki really lets his slap bass run wild. It's also the first game that has featured that famous Mario underground motif recorded using live instrumentation.”
Liner notes for "Super Bell Subway (Underground)" in the Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack

Mario Kart 8 marks the first appearance of "Super Bell Subway".

An arrangement of "Super Bell Subway", titled "Super Bell Subway (Underground)" in the Nintendo Music app and on the Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack album, plays whenever the player is driving in the subway section. In this arrangement, a bass guitar plays a repeating quote of the first six notes of "Underground BGM" from Super Mario Bros. The lead melody is unmodified, but much of the other instrumentation from the original version of the theme is removed.

The liner notes for "Super Bell Subway (Underground)" denote that it is the first instance of the "Underground BGM" motif being recorded live specifically for a video game. However, Pushmo World, which featured the theme performed by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, was released a year prior to Animal Crossing × Mario Kart 8.

For both themes, a looping drum set beat is added to the instrumentation whenever the player is driving at top speed while in first place.

All four versions return for the same purposes in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Icon of an audio speaker. Super Bell Subway (Underground) - The arrangement heard in Mario Kart 8
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Icon of an audio speaker. Super Bell Subway (Frontrunning) - The remix heard in Mario Kart 8
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Icon of an audio speaker. Super Bell Subway (Underground / Frontrunning) - The remix heard in Mario Kart 8
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Mario Kart World[edit]

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In Mario Kart World, a jazz-funk arrangement of "Super Bell Subway" can play in Free Roam during the day. This arrangement incorporates some of the instrumentation from "Super Bell Subway (Underground)", including the use of its "Underground BGM" bassline. As with other arrangements of themes from Mario Kart 8, the source game listed in the pause menu is Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Gallery[edit]

List of Super Mario appearances[edit]

Games[edit]

Work System Year Type Title Credits
Mario Kart 8 Wii U 2015[a] Original "Super Bell Subway"[2] Atsuko Asahi[1]
Arrangement "Super Bell Subway (Underground)"[2] Atsuko Asahi[1]
Remixes
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Nintendo Switch 2017 Original "Super Bell Subway"[2] Atsuko Asahi[1]
Past arrangement (Mario Kart 8) "Super Bell Subway (Underground)"[2] Atsuko Asahi[1]
Past remixes (Mario Kart 8)
Mario Kart World Nintendo Switch 2 2025 Arrangement "Super Bell Subway"[3]
  1. ^ Added in DLC Pack 2 on April 23, 2015

Albums[edit]

Work Year Type Title Credits
Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack 2015 Original "Super Bell Subway" Atsuko Asahi
Past arrangement (Mario Kart 8) "Super Bell Subway (Underground)"

Other media[edit]

Work Year Type Title Credits
Nintendo Music 2024 Past arrangement (Mario Kart 8) "Super Bell Subway" Atsuko Asahi[1]
"Super Bell Subway (Underground)"

Names in other languages[edit]

"Super Bell Subway"[edit]

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese リンリンメトロ[2]
Rinrin Metoro
Ring-a-Ling Metro
Chinese (Simplified) 铃铃地铁[2]
Línglíng Dìtiě (Mandarin)
Lìhnglíng Deihtit (Cantonese)
Bell Bell Metro
Chinese (Traditional) 鈴鈴地鐵[2]
Línglíng Dìtiě (Mandarin)
Lìhnglíng Deihtit (Cantonese)
Bell Bell Metro
Dutch Mario's Metro[2] Mario's Metro
French Métro Turbo[2] Turbo Metro
German Marios Metro<[2] Mario's Metro
Italian Mariopolitana[2] "Mariosubway" (Portmanteau of "Mario" and "metropolitana" ("subway"))
Korean 슈퍼 벨 메트로[2]
Syupeo Bel Meteuro
Super Bell Metro
Polish Dzwoneczkowe Metro[3] Bell Metro
Portuguese Metro Mario[2] Mario Metro
Russian Метро Марио[2]
Metro Mario
Mario Metro
Spanish (Latin American) Metro Campana[2] Bell Metro
Spanish (European) Estación Tilín-Tolón[2] Ding-Dong Station

"Super Bell Subway (Underground)"[edit]

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese リンリンメトロ(地下)[2]
Rinrin Metoro (Chika)
Ring-a-Ling Metro (Underground)
Chinese (Simplified) 铃铃地铁(地下)[2]
Línglíng Dìtiě (dìxià) (Mandarin)
Lìhnglíng Deihtit (dìxià) (Cantonese)
Bell Bell Metro (underground)
Chinese (Traditional) 鈴鈴地鐵(地下)[2]
Línglíng Dìtiě (dìxià) (Mandarin)
Lìhnglíng Deihtit (dìxià) (Cantonese)
Bell Bell Metro (underground)
Dutch Mario's Metro (ondergronds)[2] Mario's Metro (underground)
French Métro Turbo (sous terre)[2] Turbo Metro (underground)
German Marios Metro (unterirdisch)<[2] Mario's Metro (underground)
Italian Mariopolitana (sottoterra)[2] "Mariosubway" (underground)
Korean 슈퍼 벨 메트로(지하)[2]
Syupeo Bel Meteuro (jiha)
Super Bell Metro (underground)
Portuguese Metro Mario (túnel)[2] Mario Metro (tunnel)
Russian Метро Марио (под землей)[2]
Metro Mario (pod zemley)
Mario Metro (underground)
Spanish (Latin American) Metro Campana (bajo tierra)[2] Bell Metro (underground)
Spanish (European) Estación Tilín-Tolón (bajo tierra)[2] Ding-Dong Station (underground)

References[edit]

External links[edit]