Great Anime Music

[OL]

There was one of these a ways back I think, but like always, new topics are more fun than bumping old shit. And I didn't want to cram this stuff into the anime topic either.

Anyway, I haven't even started watching the show yet (aside from having seen the first few episodes a ways back), but I'm already a big fan of the opening theme to Armored Trooper VOTOMS. Something about it just sounds so much more easygoing than most other 80s robot shows. Maybe it's just me, but it feels like there's so much less of that common 80s cheese-factor to it. No engrish, no "metal" wailing. That stuff isn't always bad or anything, but it really helps this show's tone that it doesn't start every time with a huge ode to 80s silliness, as so many others do.

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[Rakim]

You weren't kidding about that compilation.
Definitely have to be in the mood to appreciate most of those. There are some good moments, though.

[OL]

I have problems with Trigun as a whole, but the soundtrack ain't one of them. I remember way back in high school, back when I'd only seen the first five or six episodes of the show and still thought it was the bee's knees (a simpler time), a friend of mine bought a couple of the soundtracks, and we kind of passed it around our little circle of friends so we could all burn a copy. Used to listen to this stuff all the time. I still want to learn how to play the opening theme on guitar someday. Tsuneo Imahori is fantastic (apparently he was a member of The Seatbelts on the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack; didn't know that until just now).

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[SaM_4000]

^ Man, talk about nostalgia!

I haven't seen any of Trigun for a long long time but that music instantly brings me back, so awesome. I remember there used to be a pretty cool line-up on Cartoon Network back in the day which included Trigun & Orphen, I used to think both shows were so cool...

Anyway, back on topic:

The OST in Hajime No Ippo was a big reason why it is so amazing. It really had perfect music for each and every ocassion, I would suggest listening to any track from the original series. I had such a difficult time choosing one for this post the OST really is that perfect.

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https://www.youtube.com/user/peruradis2/videos <-- link to the whole OST of the original series in case anyone is interested.

... It really is just too bad the second series was so awful...

[Rakim]

Wow Sam those are really good. That second one especially clicked with me. I'm gonna have to investigate more if the OST is this good.

[mue 26]

Yeah Trigun defo one of the best anime series soundtrack of all time. Trigun also happens to be the greatest anime of all time full stop, but I won't get into that now.

Here are a few of my favs:

Not feeling those Hajime no Ippo ones.

[OL]

Trigun also happens to be the greatest anime of all time full stop, but I won't get into that now.

Ehhhhh...
I personally think the first 5 episodes are amazing. Seriously, they're an almost perfect mix of action, comedy, and style. First episode is honestly one of my favorite individual episodes in all of anime. And sheezus, that soundtrack don't hurt one bit. If the rest of the series were able to match those golden first five, I absolutely agree that it would be among the greatest ever.
But man, the production values drop right off after that; the animated gets lazier, the character designs get worse, the stories get sillier while at the same time becoming more and more serious, while the attempts at humor become more and more out-of-place and really badly-timed. Eventually it feels like the show doesn't even know what it wants to be; it ended up feeling almost vaccuous as it kept trying to find new footing, hopping between extreme seriousness and goofy cartoonishness. I had only seen the first DVD (those first five episodes) for about a year before I got to see the rest, so I spent so much time thinking the rest of the series was going to be just as amazing. But man, it almost hurt seeing how poor it became after that.
Just like Eva, I really want so badly to like the whole show, but there's just so much keeping me from it. But y'know, subjectivity and all that.
At least the music stays excellent.

Opposite end of the spectrum, Outlaw Star is one I loved the whole way through. Strangely, as far as I remember reading, it wasn't exactly all that popular in Japan, nor was it all that big of a production from a budget standpoint. Over there, despite the comic being popular, the anime was apparently just another middle-of-the-road show taking up a time slot on tv (a late-night time slot at that; something like 1AM).
That's the kind of stuff I had always heard about its reception and production in Japan. And knowing things like that, it makes it feel really impressive to me that the soundtrack managed to have such a big, polished sound to it so often. Far as I can tell, this particular track is all legitimately orchestrated; I don't hear any trace of synth in there. Some of the stuff on the OST is genuinely big-budget film quality, and that's always struck me as really impressive for a supposedly middling production.

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I think I need to watch the show again. It's been years. Used to be a real "feel good" kind of show for me.

[SaM_4000]

Wow Sam those are really good. That second one especially clicked with me. I'm gonna have to investigate more if the OST is this good.

If you liked that track I suggest you also listen to this.

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Texhnolyze is an anime series which I have owned on box-set for quite some time now but for whatever reason I have only watched a few episodes, I just haven't been able to get into the mood to watch it. From what I have listened to of the OST on youtube it seems fairly impressive and just may get me to start watching it again.

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This topic has made me want to start watching a whole bunch of anime ...

[OL]

This topic has made me want to start watching a whole bunch of anime ...

Same here. Actually, I hadn't watched any anime in quite a while, but then talking about Cowboy Bebop being released on bluray kicked me into the mood. Now there are tons of shows I'm aching to rewatch.

I was thinking about what to post next, and I glanced over at my cd rack. Totally forgot that I even had it, but I spotted the soundtrack to FLCL on there. Tons of nostalgia attached to that. I remember it being one of the few shows I actually bothered to download fansubs for before it actually made its way to DVD in the US (only other time I did that was for the Cowboy Bebop movie).
This freakin' show blew my mind. So much content packed into every single one of its six episodes, backed up by an insane level of quality all around. It's a comedy/action show, but with so much heart and thought behind it that it actually bears repeat viewings to understand and soak it all in.
And man, that soundtrack.
I'm not usually one for engrishy, super-positive Japanese rock; there's a lot out there, and a lot of it makes me cringe. But something about the pillows' music is different. Despite its usual simplicity, there's a quiet kind of genius going on in there. I wish I could write music like this.
Seriously, I pulled this song up on the cd, and my eyes welled up a bit. Most of it is nostalgia, sure, but it's the quality of it too. So expressive, even without the vocals.
So glad I held on to that cd.
Gonna have to grab the bluray for this soon, too.

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[Sonikku]

The Pillows are in my top 5 bands all time. You guys are really killing it with the good links in here. I feel obligated to post something now.

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Detective Conan was one of my favorites from the Adult Swim block and it still has a special place in my heart, but I can't bring myself to watch it anymore because of how damn long its been going for. I wish they would end it already so catching up wouldn't feel as daunting.

[OL]

I was digging through old DVD's and pulled out my Blue Sub 6 collection. Popped it in, got an insane wave of nostalgia. Even more so when I put in the extras disc, and found that it actually had the old Toonami commercials on it. Had me smiling ear to ear.
But yeah, got to the end of an episode, and this song came up. I'd forgotten about it, but it all came flooding (lol) back immediately. Great song. I always liked the jazziness of the music in this series. Slightly different realm from Bebop, but still excellent all the same.

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[Calshot]

I became a fan of Susumu Hirasawa through his collaboration with Satoshi Kon.

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He's also done the score for the Berserk film/games (which I keep meaning to watch/play/read the manga). His live shows are also pretty crazy.

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[Raithos]

Good choices Calshot. The tracks he did for Berserk are amazing.

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[Sonikku]

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[OL]

Always been really fond of this one. One of the few cases where an entirely english theme works perfectly for an anime. Something about the tone of it is just right. Still haven't see the show all the way through though, oddly enough.

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