Most of us enjoy a bit of music, or rather, anime music. Though the fact may be apparent: the animusic community is not that large. Yet, more importantly, the animusic community is not solidified by any driving force(s). The aniblogosphere has nano, antennae, and just a generalized perception that it’s there. I do not think animusic has this.

So in an effort to solidify the community, this is just a request to bloggers that have, at one point or another, blogged about their love for animusic, which contains other related topics like seiyuu, j-pop, sheet music, and so forth – post your music feeds! If you have a wordpress blog this is easy, just go to your front page, click on your “music” category (or whatever it’s named), and click on the feed button in the address bar. You should get several options, the bottom one indicating the feed for the specific category.

For bloggers that host their own blogs, this might be readily available (not like I know how to implement this anyway), but Pipes temporally resolves the problem. I’m sure bloggers that hosting know how to use it…

Here is the google reader public aggregate feed I’m constructing. It is lonely! Only 11 feeds, need moar plz.

[for some reason, trying to put nano's feed into Pipes won't work]

Must resist….urge to Photoshop….words out…

Some OP’s are so good that makes you watch it over and over again. That happened several times with me with OP’s from anime such as Shikabane Hime, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Tetsuwan Birdy Decode, xxxHOLiC or Kurenai, just to name a few.

But Maria+Holic is godly. I can’t describe is using mere words, you guys have to watch it yourself (the pic above should be a good enough teaser…). After all, it’s from SHAFT, the gods of Photoshop filters…

Vids after the jump, both in HD and SD quality.

EDIT: The old videos were fixed and replaced for new ones. Unfortunely, it’s the RAW version this time.

HD Version (may take a while to load)

SD Version

←[112] There’s this nice BGM piece we hear, I’m thinking specifically of ep. 15, around 14:27.

I tried to upload my favorite bleedy rhodes patch, but it got royally fluted via conversion, and has degraded into some cheesy as hell synth crap.

AND BEHOLD, A NICE PDF SCORE FOR U.

While Toradora’s composer is Yukari Hashimoto, this piece specifically resonates with a lot of the soft, solo piano OST pieces Yuzo Hayashi did for Honey and Clover, like Dramatic transcribed for piano, which was great.

Actually my favorite part of this piece is probably the first measure. The melody hits that lower f# to harmonize the nice emin9. It’s hard to describe the quality of minor ninth chords. They have a similar “suspended” quality like that of perfect fourths, though the only interval of a fourth is with the fifth, B. Hmmm…

The subtleties of this piece blended in with the scenery too, the high parts, twinkling, a lot like stars would, in a poetic sense. The higher register sounds delicate – it’s when Taiga let’s her shield down, she cries, the viewer is treated to her memories. Ryuuji is there, ubiquitous, the dog? The piece itself is sparse, not busy, not clustered, cold, the scene was too, we suppose, as MoritaRyuuji wraps HaguTaiga in a scarf. Nor is the piece resolved. It ends in an ambiguous arpeggio of fourths and fifths, a lack of finalized thirds to accompany the hazy stars that fade in and out of sight. I guess, for Taiga, tears obstructed their light.

This is the OP. Happy song, major key.

Episode 12, the arranged the OP sing in a minor key, sad. But that’s awesome! We, of course, always hear good use of the theme song during important times in a story (last ep. of Honey & Clover, for instance), but rarely do I hear the OP song arranged in such a way. Usually it’s just stuck in there, but Satoru Kousaki takes it a bit further.

There were two little bits I didn’t add in because I’m cheap and my free notation program can’t do what it’s supposed to be -_-’ (would only anal people care about how I divided the right/left hand arpeggios?)

download the midi (piano)
download the midi (rhodes, ’cause we all love a bit of bleedy sounding rhodes

and for fun

THAT is back with another season Op’s post, but this time things are a bit different. To allow all the team to comment on the posts, we’ve dropped the rankings and we are checking each opening individually (this also avoids the issues of internal competition inside THAT. I was constantly spammed to rank the Code Geass or the Macross Frontier OP higher than the other …) We hope this new format is more enjoyable by our readers. Don’t forget, the videos are inside the SHOW links after each OP title.

[Shut Up and Explode] by [Boom Boom Satellites] – Xam’d: Lost Memories

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Extrange: This J-Rock/Electronica track has impressed me in several ways. It synchs perfectly to the animation and it’s in English which adds up to the rock style. The sequence depicts perfectly the kind of anime Xam’d is: another masterpiece of BONES. I have the song as my phone ringtone .

Impz:On the insistence of Extrange, I was force fed into this anime, but the OP is definitely catchy. It is somewhat of an Engrish song, but the style of the OP is very BONES. If you like Cowboy Bepop’s OP, you probably like this too.

Shokkeru: Yeah I agree, this song is pretty catchy. Not really the type of music that I’d listen to everyday, but regardless, it’s a pretty good song. It kind of reminds me of Speed Grapher and its OP “Girls on Film” by Duran Duran.

Crusader: Very catchy song even if it is on the Engrish side of things. Marvelously executed and not terribly filled with spoilers. A great OP for a great show. Hopefully more people will be checking this series out. I two was not a believer until comrade Extrange forced us to watch, I am definitely hooked.

Reverse Vampire: One word. EPIC.

Maipeisu: Despite being another J-rock/electronica hybrid, this OP meshes well with the opening video sequence. The TV size is likely a lot more enjoyable than the full version minus the video, which I’ll bet becomes a bit repetitive. Adds a nice balance/contrast to the some of the other music, like the weird hand-drum/acoustic guitar duet that pops up in the middle of the episodes. It’s fun following the letter’s flight in the video.

Phuzy: The video actually coordinates with the song.

Jiff: Catchy song, and I liked the video too. Would make me want to watch the show, if only I had the luxury of choice. Alas, Extrange the Xam’d evangelist has made sure everyone he talks to watches the hell out of it.

lelangir:I like the ED more…

[Seikan Hikou] by [Megumi Nakajima] – Macross Frontier

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Extrange: Well…. It’s RANKA-CHAN! But even being a song by my fav. green haired girl, the animation is weak (it was a one ep OP, afterall). But you got to love those meat buns on the last seconds.

Impz: Do you need my opinion on Ranka’s song? Fine, I give it to you now. Listen to it right now, and replay it until you go loony.

Shokkeru: I’m not exactly as crazy about this song as my other blogmates may be, but nonetheless it’s a nice song. It is definitely cute though.

Crusader: Seikan Hikou is an awesome song, and coupled with Kawamori’s OP for his episode of troll-fu this OP wenta along way in making Episode 17 stand out more. Fufonia Ranka and dancing slug were brilliant, even if the debut of the Real second OP has been delayed for a week. Still I like the idea of changing OPs once in a while to use some other tracks and some new animation to spice things up a bit. Right now I am up for a Sheryl centric OP with “Don’t be Late.”

Reverse Vampire: Ok…WTF??

Maipeisu: I’m not so hot on the song, but the video is damned cute. Bit of a ballsy move though, considering the spectacular animation sequences in the actual meat of the episodes.

Phuzy: Nakajima Ai has a very cute yet distinctly unique voice. This op is no exception. GOOO RANKA-CHAN!!!

Jiff: I may get shot for saying this, but meh all around.

lelangir: Instantly reminded me of this song?

[Lion] by [Megumi Nakajima and May'n] – Macross Frontier

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Extrange: Great song full of energy, although it sounds a bit like DRR.

Shokkeru: Now this is a song that I could get used to. Songs like these that are full of emotion and energy are always great as OPs for mecha or any action anime. I definitely give this one a big thumbs up.

Reverse Vampire: Too busy to listen to all anime OPs. School work comes first.

Maipeisu: Strong.

lelangir: Partly sounds familiar… It’s still catchy as hell, in any case.

[Plenty of Grit] by [Megumi Hayashibara] – Slayers Revolution

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Extrange: Whoa, classic. They have chosen everything in order to give the classic feeling and to connect to the older seasons. It’s been 10 years since the previous season, afterall.

Calawain:

Shokkeru: I used to listen to Megumi’s songs all the time back in the 90s. I think it was a great choice in choosing her to sing the OP to the remake of such a classic as her music is pretty “classic” itself. It certainly gives that nostalgic feeling while listening to it.

Crusader: It brings back memories of happier times. I approve.

Reverse Vampire: Sound decent enough. Next!

Maipeisu: Finally, some good old bubblegum J-Pop! This OP kinda takes me back. Doesn’t have much in the way of substance, but its bouncy, its catchy, its Megumi Hayashibara — what more do you want?? I’ll be in the middle of the con raves banging my head to this one like any other diehard fanboy.

Jiff: With an electronic beat like that, how can I resist?

lelangir: Damn that is catchy.

[Sora] by [Hearts Grow] – Tetsuwan Birdy DECODE

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Extrange: If I had to name a OP to represent the Summer, this would be it. From the song to the animation,everything on it has a refreshing and warm feeling on it and matches the free spirit of Birdy, the main heroine.

Impz: I don’t remember much of the OP after watching the first two episodes. It’s just not memorable enough.

Calawain:

Shokkeru: Yeah, I agree that it’s pretty misleading as an OP to what is supposed to be (to the best of my knowledge) an action anime. I could be wrong of course since I haven’t watched a single episode of the darn series yet. Oh well, nice song anyways.

Crusader: I like it, simple, not too flashy, and oddly catchy. Wish there were more subs though.

Reverse Vampire:It was…okay.

Maipeisu: I’m not so hot on the video, but the song is damned cute. Just kidding. The song is simple, catchy, and fun, but the video doesn’t quite match the enthusiasm. Needless to say I like “Sora”, but I wish they had done more with the video; it kind of makes me think that the team doesn’t have a clear sense of where they are going with the animation.

Phuzy: The video is really simple and doesn’t portray the action that this series carries. The song isn’t the best either. All together it’s an okay~ op. I like the series though!

Jiff: Granted, I only saw the first episode, but I don’t remember a single person just hanging out and having a good time with friends. Worst first impression ever.

lelangir: Ehhhhh.

[Akai USAGI] by [Makura no Soshi] – Blade of the Immortal

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Extrange: Raw and violent, just like Blade of the Immortal. Makura no Soshi have a style similar to ALI PROJECT but they don’t suck, they actually sound great. And any OP with bondage on it deserves a 10.

Shokkeru: Not exactly my cup of tea. At least it’s not ALI PROJECT right? Just kidding… don’t kill me. =[

Crusader: Sort of fits the atmosphere, though the series seem to be committing bloody murder on the source material, and what is that Manji fellow doing int a modern day setting?

Reverse Vampire: Surely there's something better than this? Seriously, I don't get time to listen to all anime OPs.

Maipeisu: I would most likely never listen this sickly-sounding J-Rock track if it wasn't for Mugen. But the Mugen OP video is sooooo hardcore (especially the part where all the blades come raining down and sink into the soil), and the song clearly fits the mood, so it is inevitably a memorable listen. Actually, the lead singer has a really unique voice, which has started to grow on me quite a bit after the second episode. I might check MnS's other work out!

Jiff: Can't stand this chick's voice, but the topless chick in the vid almost made up for it.

lelangir: It was OK - kind of interesting, especially the guitar riff in the beginning. Sounds like something out of Mega Man. The visuals are very badass.

[ZERØ] by [AAA] – World Destruction

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Extrange: If only the Anime was like the OP: full of action, symbolism and killer Techno.

Impz: It is actually decently good, if you ask me. Nonetheless, it did not hold my attention at all, because it feels like some typical techno-influenced music.

Shokkeru: Kinda boring, but not bad.

Crusader: Fairly decent, if a rather odd OP.

Reverse Vampire:You’ll get addictive to the song overtime, if you’ve been watching the series like me for the entire time. For the first few episodes, probably you won’t like it but eventually you’ll grow to like it a bit.

Maipeisu: Ah yes, another bizarre J-rock/electronica hybrid. I’d be interested to see how many triple-As it would take to perform this live XD.

Jiff: Cool song, pretty neat vid. It really is a shame that this is the best 2 minutes in the whole show.

lelangir: Meh…

[Tomadoi Bitter Tune] by [Miran Himemiya and Chocolate Rockers] – Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu

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Extrange: Sugar song and animation, filled with cock teasers. This pleases me in several ways, some of them illegal in certain parts of the world.

Impz: I like J-pop style music, and this is just up my alley.

Crusader: Very sugary, good thing I like sweets. Not much to say other than that they know their audience. The tape, hehe.

Reverse Vampire: I want to close my ears.

Maipeisu: Again, probably wouldn’t listen to the band without the vid. But this is a fantastic OP. The video sequences covers tons of visual landscape and is synced quite nicely with the song. I love it!

Jiff: Super cute song, super cute vid!! Against all odds, I really like this one.

lelangir: I can’t stand this song.

[Issei no Koe] by [Shūhei Kita] – Natsume Yūjin-Chō

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Extrange: This is a OP to see when you are stressed out. The mellow song will relax you and make you enjoy life.

Shokkeru: Very relaxing song and it sets the tone of the show pretty well I think. Sadly it’s not a song I’d listen to much else I’d just get lazier or fall asleep.

Crusader: Oddly relaxing.

Reverse Vampire: This one, haven’t hear it yet.

Maipeisu: Bit too saccharine for even my taste. Maybe, just MAYBE I like the second half… I think?

Jiff: Maipeisu, I think you were tricked into thinking you like the second half of this because that’s the first time something actually moves. Pass on this one.

lelangir:The half cadences are killer.

[Kimi, Meguru, Boku] by [Motohiro Hata] – Itazura Na Kiss

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Extrange: Dejá Vu?

Impz: I have this as my ring tone.

Shokkeru: Nice, but not for me.

Crusader: I like it, somewhat disappointing that there was no new OP, but its still pretty solid. NIce, sweet, catchy, and bubbly. Just what every shoujo series calls for.

Reverse Vampire: Not yet.

Maipeisu: OP?? No, no, refer to —> Second ED. (By the way, is it just me, or is the video sequence, like, COMPLETELY random until the hook kicks in?)

Jiff: Simple, catchy. What more do you need?

lelangir:Good song but not WOW material.

[YOU'RE THE ONE] by [ICHIKO] – Zero no Tsukaima: Princesses no Rondo

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Impz: BAH, ICHIKO songs sound all the same, and she has this nasal tone that annoys me.

Shokkeru: AGERUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!

Crusader: Sorry it’s kind of meh to me…somewhat catchy but altogether forgettable.

Reverse Vampire: Can throw up? Thumbs down, people.

Maipeisu: FAIL.

Jiff: Her voice caused me to turn this off after only 19 seconds.

lelangir: Whitney Houston wannabe [just kidding].

[fly away] by [THYME] – Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto – Natsu no Sora

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Extrange: It’s funny, my co-bloggers go nuts with ths song, but I find it quite too bland for my taste. Maybe it’s just me…

Impz: This is definitely the best OP of the season by a long mile. Listen to it, and feel the soothing air and environment envelope you.

Calawain:

Shokkeru: I like it, but I liked the OP to TLR better (”forever we can make it”). I’m not exactly jumping over hurdles just to hear this song either.

Crusader: It’s nice and relaxing, but I am not too keen on crowning this as the best OP this season. Not yet any way.

Reverse Vampire: Did I say I’ve no time to hear it?

Maipeisu: Yah, what Impz said. This is my official theme song for the Summer of 2008.

Jiff: OK, HUGE fan of this one. I usually don’t have strong opinions about OPs for shows I don’t watch regularly, because it takes like a month or two to get into the mood. This one though, I was totally in love with on my first listen.

lelangir: Definitely a solid song (I like Beck’s more), though I’m hesitant to call it the best of summer 08.

[Thème Principal] by [KATSU] – Yakushiji Ryoko no Kaiki Jikenbo

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Extrange: I’m a sucker for jazzy tunes, and this fancies my tastes. And while I watch it, I can only think in one thing: “Hmmmmm, legs….”

Shokkeru: I guess it does its job and it fits well with the show. There’s people out there that probably likes this style of music too so I’m not gonna knock it.

Crusader: I like this one, reminds me of the Pink Panther. Not too flashy sufficiently subdued it fits the series.

Reverse Vampire: What’s more can I say when I don’t watch the series?

Maipeisu: Reminds me of one of those orchestral suites that daisy-chain all the different themes in a video game or motion picture. Can be extremely entertaining watching a group of performers glide over the musical landscapes of a work, or even listening to a recording at the end, but it feels strangely out of place as an opening theme. Maybe it doesn’t have enough coherence to make a strong impact on me. Oh yea, and all I remember from the video is legs, so…

Jiff: mmm, no thanks.

lelangir: Someone committed a heretical blasphemy when they tried to do what seems like an arrangement of Ellington’s “It Don’t Mean A Thing [...]“

[WORLD END] by [FLOW] – Code Geass R2

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Extrange: It may be FLOW, but they’ve lost some of the touch with this song. It’s unavoidable to not compare with the previous OP’s, which makes WORLD END pale due to it’s predecessors.

Impz: FLOW… I wanted to say something bad about them, but I actually like most of their rock songs. This rocks too, so I will prevent myself from making any snide remarks of CGR2.

Shokkeru: FLOW is awesome indeed, but they could have done better with this one in my opinion.

Crusaderg: I confess I preferred the first OP, but this is alright…kind of, it not my kind of music.

Reverse Vampire< At least this one sounds good. I sorta prefer the ED than the OP better. But it's still consider awesome by my standards.

Maipeisu: Mediocre. After Kaidoku Funou (解読不能)” by Jinn (second OP from the first season), this is just a slap in the face. It’s a shame that such an epic series has been embellished by such uninspiring music.

lelangir: Indeed, FLOW has done better – Eureka 7’s first OP was beyond epic. This song isn’t entirely bad though. If Kaiba were technically summer 08 it’d have my vote but alas, the Slayer’s Revolution/DDR song is way too damn fun to say it’s not the best.

UPDATED 18/8

[Life goes on ~Kawabata side~] by [CHEMISTRY] – Antique Bakery

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Extrange:Remind me to spank Impz’s ass for not telling me about this Op….The Electronica Pop song reminds me of Mononoke Dance (Hakaba Kitarou OP) and it’s very catchy, and blends nicely with the cut-out scenes of our gay bakery. The OP is making me want to watch the anime…

Shokkeru: Pretty good. Pop songs are good once in a while, but I personally can’t listen to the style of music over long periods of time. Despite this, I’m willing to say that this OP has its charm and would definitely attract people to the anime. Unfortunately I still probably won’t watch it.

It makes you want to raise her skirt to see if she has a tail…

The sun is high in the sky, the beaches are full with girls in bikinis and what do I have next tome me while I lay down on my beach towel? No, it’s not another girl, it’s my portable Mp3 Player. (Actually it’s my Nintendo Ds, but I use R4 flash carts to be able to play Mp3’s….and Final Fantasy Tactics A2.)

Wherever I go, I usually take my Mp3 with me, life has too many dull moments that need to be spiced up with a soundtrack, whether it’s waiting 1 hour for your food in a restaurant or it’s during your epilation sessions. (What??? I’m Fscking European and except if you are French, hairy legs and chests aren’t manly.)

So let’s take a quick peek on what kind of music I usually listen to…

1) Anime Related

It’s not surprising that I have anime related songs, considering I’m a animeblogger…. but the amount I have is rather low. I mainly have Elfen Lied Ost with the dark mood voice, some random Haruhi character songs (and the genderbender versions too) and Gurren Lagann OST. I also have some select singles like Mononoke Dance from Hakaba Kitarou and Ash Like Snow from Gundam 00. But the best I have is Return to Zero, the OST made for the Fate/Zero novels.

2) Game Related

I have quie a collection of Mp3’s on this category, ranging from OST’s to fan remixes. Normally I have the Final Fantasy VII: Voices of the Lifestream, a fan made album of FF 7 arrangements from Overclock Remix, a very famous game remixes site. The songs are surprisingly good, even for the FF haters. Another constant presence is the OST’s of Melty Blood, the “game sequel” for Tsukihime. And let’s not forget the several Touhou albums that I have , including the IOSYS ones. Last, I also have Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII and Wild Arms XF OST’s, both games for the Psp.

3) Groups/Artists

I tend to listen to mostly all genres on this category; a bit of Linkin Park, a bit of Gnarls Barkley, etc. But I do have things I like most than others and a good deal of old groups too. For example, I usually have a album of two of Kraftwerk, Art of Noise, Joe Satriani, Queen, Avenged Sevenfold, among others. I also like Massive Attack, Daft Punk, LCD Soundsystem, Deftones and other similar bands. I got to remark 2 groups; first one is Machinae Supremacy, a SiD Metal band from Sweden which meshes metal, soundtrack and retro-style video game music impressively; the other one to be mentioned is Dj Sharpnel, known for his Speedcore style and for his sampling from pop culture films and anime. you got to love hearing Code Geass or Gundam inspired songs at 2000 bpm.

Well, this is just a sample of what I usually carry on my Mp3. And you guys, what do you have on your mp3 player?

This week is my spring break, so I flew back home to California and a couple of buddies and myself road tripped up to San Francisco for this stop on the Delicious Bump Tour ‘08. This was my second time seeing The Pillows live in concert, the first being in June of 2006 in Los Angeles. I’m no musician or critic, so don’t expect a professional review, but I am a music lover and been to my fair share of concerts and will share my thoughts on the show.

I’d never heard of this all-female J-rock/pop band before I saw the lineup for this tour, so I came in with a fresh mind and was pleasantly surprised by their performance. Their songs were a bit more pop than The Pillows, and were fairly short, but they were high energy songs. They had a lot of engrish lyrics and a thick accent so it was a bit hard to follow the lyrics at times, but I could at least generally understand the chorus =). The highlight of the performance was “Real Emotion” (I think that was the title), a harder beat that really got the crowd going. Overall, a good performance from them and I think I’ll have to check out an album or two.

Even if you’ve never heard of the name of The Pillows, I can pretty much guarantee you at least know their music as they did the soundtrack for FLCL. With the small amount of J-rock exposure I have, they are pretty much my favorite band to listen to.

In this particular performance they started their 45 minute set with “I Think I Can” and filled the rest of it with mostly songs off of the FLCL songtracks, something understandable when playing to an American audience. They did throw in a couple of songs outside of that, including “Wake Up Dodo,” “Rock’n'Roll Sinners,” and a new, unreleased song. Throughout the entire set they were able to maintain a very high level of energy, and the crowd was riding high along with them. They had a good amount of movement on stage, just enough to be rocking, but not too much as to be silly. The equipment quality and calibration was top-notch, the vocals and instruments came through clean and crisp with the right levels of volume and without any feedback like the earlier bands. I was right in the pit near the front and my ears weren’t ringing at the end of the show, a positive sign in my book.

The highlight of the show for me was the second song of the encore that finished off the performance, a slightly extended version of “Sleepy Head.” Bassist Jun Suzuki hit the hard notes of this track on a level that’s just not reachable on a studio album and set off the whole crowd. Second to that was their performance of their fan’s theme song “Little Busters.” This is when the crowd reached it’s highest volume and movement, everyone was jumping along and belting out the lyrics along with the band.

Once again, I was floored by one of the top live performances I’ve attended. The Pillows are one of those rare bands that sound better live than they do on CDs, because of their energy, enthusiasm, and stage presence. Their English may be a bit broken, but the lyrics in both languages are upbeat and delivered crisply. Many bands I’ve seen drowned themselves out in screaming or dreary lyrics, but that is not something you have to worry about with The Pillows. They don’t tour stateside often, but for those of you that live near a future tour spot, I really encourage you to go see them perform. It will be well worth your time, I assure you.

This post comes a bit late ( if your read my latest post, you know why) but I bring this Winter’s top OP’s. This season was harder than the last one since I had to rank not only the OP’s of the new animes but ALSO the new OP’s fron the long-running animes such as Gundam 00.

Even so, I managed to squeeze the list into 10 ranks. Just let me remind you I analyze not only the song quality but also the animation quality and if both of them are complementar.

Due to Youtube being a pain in the ass, you may have to use Internet Explorer to properly see all the vids.

Heyo all, I’m natsu from Neko’s Thinkbox, and I’m honored to do a small guest entry on T.H.A.T. Thank you, Extrange.

Since I haven’t watched most of the animes in this pool, I analyzed the appeal factor of each opening. So, basically, if it makes me want to watch the rest of the anime, the opening ranks higher.

10. Persona: trinity soul – [Breakin' Through] by [Shūhei Kita]

Extrange: Breakin’ Through, in spite of being a fairly nice songe, has a extremely high voice pitch and it doesn’t quite adapt to the genre of Persona: Trinity Soul. Also, some parts of the animation feel awkward due to their non-natural animation. But this comes from a guy who follows the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei series of games since the old SNES so I’m maybe a little too picky…

natsu: 7. Persona – One of the many winter anime I have not watched yet… The opening looks mysteriously confusing to me, and it doesn’t really tell me what to expect in the anime. But I do like the song quite a lot, and I think both image and sound complete each other well.

9. True Tears – [Reflectia] by [eufonius]

Extrange: Another OP made by eufonius, more known for their work on the Clannad VN. Unfortunely, the song sounds like your typical “School real life romance” anime song and the animation isn’t specially remarking.

natsu: 4. True Tears – Eufonius delivers, as always: Reflectia sounds particularly nice to me. From what the opening has to offer, it is likely that I might start watching it soon. I suddenly became so interested I almost watched one episode as I was rewatching the opening… (Then again, I was too tired to close the video.)

8. ARIA The ORIGINATION – [Spirale] by [Yui Makino]

Extrange: Ah, sweet sweet Akari….*cough,cough*, fanboyism apart, the new season of Aria brings us another beautiful song and their original OP animation each episode. But in spite of the great perfomance of Makino Yui singing Spirale, I prefer the previous seasons song than this one, so I’ve ranked lower. Although that I do it with some heavy weight in my heart… Gah, now I feel like randomly hugging cats…

natsu: 1. ARIA – I’m in heaven. I have to admit I have been on an ARIA frenzy as of lately (sorry for my lack of objectivity here), but I absolutely can’t get enough of this kind of opening. The animation changes every episode, and always shows gorgeous sceneries of Neo-Venezia. Add to it the mellow tune and beat of Spirale and the overly gentle melody sung by Makino Yui, it’s simply perfect. Whenever I hear this song, it makes me feel at ease… “Hazukashii Serifu Kinshi”!

7. Ookami to Koushinryou – [Tabi no Tochū] by [Natsumi Kiyoura]

Extrange: Natsumi Kiyoura’s voice is great on this OP and really adapts to the mellowness of the show. The animation is also nice to watch but there is something there that I can’t quite discern that doesn’t really combine with the view that the song conveys.

natsu: 5. Spice and Wolf – The song is very calm and soothing, and it is a pretty melancholic melody. It is one of the few songs that immediately made me hum along. Animation-wise, the OP is decent; the beautiful sceneries fit the tenderness of the song. However, the whole looks a bit too dramatic for what the anime actually is for now.

6. Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei – [kūsō Rumba] by [Kenji Ohtsuki and Zetsubō Shōjo-tachi]

Extrange: kūsō Rumba follows a similar formula of the 1st season OP (but instead of Bure we have Rumba…) which is funny because it’s like a parody of the prequel OP ( the whole show is filled with parodies.) Even the Op animation is extremely similar to the predecessor but lacks yuri and girls in bondage , which made it drop ranks. SZS anime is the nightmare of the OP reviewer since it changes OP and ED almost every episode. Even as I was writing this review, they changed OP’s, which I leave here as an extra vid.

natsu:6. ZSZS – Rumba rumba rumba rumba…. Oops! Fantasy Rumba sure is an interesting song, not only because of the repeating “rumba”, but also because of the pretty unusual vocals and lyrics. And as always, we are offered offers classic Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei-like randomness: body parts, intestines, muscles, ribs, etc… Abstract rumba. (3rd OP of ZSZS is hilarious, but will not rank higher in my ranking.)

Extra OP – Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei – [Lyricure Go Go!] by [Ai Nonaka, Marina Inoue and Ryōko Shintani]

5. Gunslinger Girl -Il Teatrino- [Tatta Hitotsu no Omoi] by [KOKIA]

Extrange: This is a very impressive song from KOKIA, a famous Japanesee singer who has some impressive vocal skills (she can even hold a long-tone Opera note for 30 seconds). The song has nice tune that easily gets into your head and sticks there. Now the animation is terrible. I’m not against using real life videos and pics in OP’s (Moyashimon OP – Curriculum – is a great example) but on the case of GSG2 and knowing the VERY low quality of the anime itself, I fell like the use of real life pics was just a lazy solution from the producers.

natsu: 8. GSG2 – The slideshow of images sure is an interesting concept, however it was a bit disappointing that all the pictures were real photos, and filtered to give them a watercolor-drawn feeling. However, the song makes up for that with a pretty easy and catchy tune, and it easily allows to sing along.

4. Hakaba Kitaro – [Mononoke Dance] by [Denki Groove]

Extrange: Denki Groove can be considered as the guys who brought Techno Pop to Japan. Being myself a fan of electronic music (I was practicaly raised listening to Kraftwerk and Art of Noise) I maybe enjoy the song with a different view than the normal anime fan. The animation is also particulary interesting, with the retro look of the old Japanese comics and the “finale” of the OP.

natsu: 10. Hakaba Kitarou – Never heard about it. It definitely looks abstract and random. It’s like a comic strip, and the drawing style needs getting used to, but… heck, I really can’t describe such randomness! The music somewhat fuels it as well, because I can’t associate house music to it in any way. I don’t think it will make me watch more of it.

3. Shakugan no Shana II – [BLAZE] by [KOTOKO]

Extrange: It’s KOTOKO. It’s Shakugan no Shana. Both of them together means a powerful song and an animation to match it. KOTOKO’s show well her past experience of doing OP’s for anime series and OAV’s.

natsu: 2. Shakugan 2nd, 2nd OP – Instant win. I never watched Shana, but that is going to change. KOTOKO’s Blaze is great and perfectly matches the emotional and highly action-laden animation. It was quite intense, it even sent some chills down my spine. I guess I couldn’t ask for more here.

2. Hatenkou Yuugi – [Heartbreaking Romance] by [Kanako Itō]

Extrange: Another OP with a Techno Pop base, Heartbreaking Romance is ranked higher due to the perfomance of the singer, which matches well the quirkyness of the anime. The animation also conveys that oddness and adapts nicely to the beat of the song. And the fact that I hummed this song for 5 days straight…

natsu: 9. Hatenkou Yuugi – Yet another unknown series to me. The opening doesn’t seem to show a lot, only the three main characters and their weapons. Not that interesting, really. The music doesn’t appeal to me much either.

1. Gundam 00 – [Ash Like Snow] by [the brilliant green]

Extrange: Yes, you may hate the shiny ass of Gundam and the million sequels/spin-offs based on it, but Gundam 00 did it again. Ash like Snow is a song filled with energy and the animation is packed with emoness and robots blowing apart. What else you could wish from an OP?

natsu: 3. Gundam 00 2nd OP – Ash Like Snow from the brilliant green is already a step toward a more active opening song in contrast to the first opening, and I quite love the grungy guitars here. However, once again, the pace is pretty restrained and flaccid, which gives it a rather cautious feel in contrast with the action-laden animation. The animation is eye candy, and is quite inviting me to watch more.

Well, since we had a Top 12 OP post, the logical step was doing the Top 12 ED version. Endings are harder to analyze since they usually involve slower songs, making most of them similar to each other. Also since it involves the show credit roll, the animations sometimes is crappier. But this season is surprisingly good, which made me harder to compare ED’s which have very few defects.

12. Ninomiya-kun – [Furefurepponpon!] by [Mai Kadowaki & Miyuki Sawashiro]

It’s another Dancing OP/ED…. Everyone likes girls hopping around and wiggling around, don’t we?

11. Dragonaut: The Resonance – [Rain of Love] by [Yukari Fukui]

Yukari Fukiu is one of the seiyuu of Dragonaut , voicing Saki Kurata and she is also the one who sings this ED. The melodic tune matches well with the blue feeling of the animation.

10. CLANNAD – [Dango Daikazoku] by [Chata]

~Dango, dango, dango, dango daikazoku~ It’s the Dango Family, the iconic mascots from CLANNAD. This one of those tunes that get stuck in your head and you can’t forget them. The song theme is sad and cheerful at same time, which adds up to it’s charisma.

9. Genshiken 2 – [Clubhouse Sandwich] by [Yuumao]

The rank for this ED is hard to explain. At first look it looks just like any other generic Ed, but the important part is the feeling it conveys; the conversion from drawing to real life and the song by Yuumao conveys the feeling of a real anime club who was created through hardship and effort.

8. Night Wizard – [Erinyes] by [BETTA FLASH]

The strong point of this ED is the female voice singing with a great expression on the melody, specially on the 2nd half where the high notes are sung with perfection.

7. Shakugan no Shana II – [triangle] by [Mami Kawada]

The past season of Shakugan no Shana had great OP’s and ED’s and this season doesn’t stay behind. Mami Kawada gives us another great J-Pop Techno song as we are used to hear.

6. Ghost Hound – [Call My Name ~Kazenari no Oka~] by [Yucca]

Simple and gentle. This is the impression that Call My Name ~Kazenari no Oka~ leaves on you after hearing it. Even if it isnt my favorite genre, this song ened up on my Mp3 player, and I hear it whenever I wand to get some rest.

5. Kodomo no Jikan – [Hanamaru☆Sensation] by [Little Non]

Lolis. Dancing Lolis. Chibi Dancing Lolis. Chibi Dancing Lolis with neko cosplay. Do I need to say more?

4. Shion no Ou – [My dear friend] by [Teruma Aoyama]

These last 4 ED’s were the ones hardest to order, since the quality of them is very similar ( or even equal, but i didn’t wanted ex aequo places). My dear friend is a excellent song but I had to be fair and place it lower due to being the most simple animation sequence of the bunch.

3. ef -a tale of memories – [I'm here] by [Taguchi Hiroko]

I’m an avid fan of J-RPG’s, ranging from Final Fantasy to Dragon Quest and I play them since their humble origins in the old consoles like Nes and Game Boy. One of the series I followed was Wild Arms, a rpg with Wild West elements mixed with sci fi. And Wild Arms was the first thing I though when I’ve heard this op for the 1st time. The harmonica blends nicely with the song, giving it that wanderer feeling. You can grumble that the ED has almost non-existant animation but it’s just part of his personal charisma. The slow changes and the drawing look makes the viewer look with a closer eye to the main girls of ef.

2. You’re Under Arrest: Full Throttle – [1/2] by [Chiaki Ishikawa]

YuA (short for You’re Under Arrest) has already made a name for itself with his previous 2 seasons. And now we have the 3rd season, together with their OP and ED. 1/2 is great , but why? It’s the song, who settles well with the ED? It’s the animation, which is specially well made? No, it’s because the ED hints to the Yuri relation between Miyuki and Natsumi. And we know that Yuri is WIN.

1. Gundam 00 – [Wana] by [THE BACK HORN]

You guys will hate me, you will flame me, you will kidnap my dog and make steaks of him. But yes, Gundam 00 is 1st again. You guys got to admit, Sunrise learned (finaly) some lessons and started to suck less with their Gundam series. They have L’Arc-En-Ciel for the OP and THE BACKHORN doesn’t stay behind in quality. Wana is a rock song who make you want to revolt against the govermment, and the animation sequence helps to add that feeling. The main cast is shown in cities placed in Middle Asia, Ireland, U.K. and China, who have past stories with social conflicts. In spite of having to see Tieria Erde on the ED, in the overall it’s the best ED in this season.

I was given the link of this AMV by my girlfriend while we are chatting. I am pretty much amazed by how this person did it, and I think it’s worth at least a watch to appreciate how beautiful things can appear when a skilled anime fan does such an AMV

Now that Ghost Hound OP is known, we can make the top 12 Openings of the 2007 Autumn season (or Fall, like you Americans call it….)
I’ve got to confess, this was originaly supposed to be a Top 5, but the amount of good songs made me stretch it to Top 12.

12. Dragonaut: The Resonance – [perfect blue] by [ATSUMI]

This was the easiest one to rank: perfect blue is a mellow sog with a good tune but it doesn’t quite match with the animation, which made it plummet down the rank.

11. Genshiken 2 – [disarm dreamer] by [Aki Misato]

The first time I saw the OP i thought “Wait……Gundam???”, but then I noticed the pilot didn’t looked emo.

10. Goshuushou-sama Ninomiya-kun – [Yubikiri] by [Mai Kadowaki & Miyuki Sawashiro]

The Euro-Beat tune sang by the seiyuu Mai Kadowaki and Miyuki Sawashiro really matches well with the light humour tone of the anime.

9. Shugo Chara! – [Kokoro no Tamago] by [Buono!]

Buono!, the pop group singing this OP was made specifically for this role by Hello! Project, a japanese idol female singers conglomeration, and the first work was Kokoro no Tamago. Maybe this OP should be ranked a bit lower, but I got to admit, I am partial when it comes to chibi girls who say Yosh!, Boku and Desu.

8. You’re Under Arrest: Full Throttle – [Mighty Buddy] by [AA-CHINO]

I couldn’t find much info about AA-CHINO, only that it seems to be a recent group and the single is often misspelled as Meaty Body…Anyway that doesn’t affect the fact that the song is energetic and has some of the feeling from the past YuA OP’s. But I got to admit, my favourite OP it’s still [Boku de Arutameni] by [To Be Myself], the second OP from the 1st anime serie.

7. Rental Magica – [Sora ni Saku] by [Lisa Komine]

This is a good example of coordination: the whole song matches the anime sequence with a milimetric precision, and goes along with the flow of the action. But in spite of that, it suffers from the lack of charisma the characters have, lowering his rank some places down.

6. Shion no Ou – [LADY LOVE] by [RIZE]

RIZE (which you many know from performing in the japanese part of Live Earth) bring us what they can do best: a J-Rock song full of attitude and power. And the main character is a voiceless girl with short hair? ( Yeah, Im moe over short hair girls…)

5. Moyashimon – [Curriculum] by [Sarasa Ifu]

I’m not much into light pop songs, but this song by the rookie singer Sarasa Ifu growed on me. And the fact that the 3d animated bacteria and fungi are so fluffy and bright that you want to hug them is another reason for liking it even more.

4. Ghost Hound – [Poltergeist] by [Mayumi Kojima]

This is what made me hold the post until it came out and I didn’t regret waiting for it. The pop jazz tune has a great vibe and Mayumi Kojima’s voice really adds up to it. And jazz songs are a soft spot for me since Lupin the 3rd and Cowboy Bebop

3. Shakugan no Shana II – [JOINT] by [Mami Kawada]

If I didn’t added this OP, the rabid fans of Shana would kill me…but fortunely, Im a Shana fan too. But the OP is great even without my biased opinion. The rock song is great, the 3d animation is one of the best I’ve seen so far, the fact that it’s on HD and has Shana on a red dress with a hair ribbon…

2. ef – a tale of memories – [euphoric field] by [Tenmon feat. ELISA]

If you saw ef before, the 1st thing you notice is it’s orthodox style and that’s present to in the OP. The powerful song blends perfectly in the stylized sequence.

1. Gundam 00 – [DayBreak's Bell] by [L'Arc~En~Ciel]

This will probably be polemic, since this OP has received quite a bit of negativism around it. Mind you I’m a huge Gundam hater since Gundam Wing, which traumatized me in my tender years ( my Gundam Wing manga is serving me as a teacup holder..) But one of the reasons that made me shift my opinion was exactly this OP. L’Arc~En~Ciel brought us a song who grows on you; you may not like it the 1st times but after the 2nd listening you won’t be able to say it’s not godly. Another thing that helps is it’s the first time that a Gundam anime is on HQ, so the animation is excellent. Lastly, the characters have charisma, so you like them at first sight (except Tieria Erde, but I bet that 1) He’s just there to please the female viewers; 2nd) He’s a Trap.)

I am not sure whether any of you out there reads kinetic/visual novels but for me, the greatest anticipation for me in the year of 2007 must be the visual novel that I am yearning for. To give those who are in a bit of a loss, Narcissu Side 2nd is the prequel of Narcissu, who is centered on Setsume, a girl who is living inside a hospice waiting for her death to come. Eventually, a boy came into the picture and they decided to escape if only to experience something different rather than waiting for death. Narcissu Side 2nd is a story of Setsume with a girl who used to stay with her in the hospice, and was already in when she was around.

Now, Narcissu Side 2nd is soon on the works, and the OP has been released.

How is the OP? Gorgeous.

Tomo Kataoka, in my humble opinion, is one of the most excellent creators of stories, and has kindly presented Narcissu as a freeware for everyone to see. In March (yes, I am slow), he released the Narcissu Side 2nd OP and I have only found out about it after remembering that it is soon to be released. I am a big fan of Narcissu, for those who came to this blog way before hand when I am singing great praises of Narcissu.

For one, the OP definitely captures the most important feeling inside what is all good about Narcissu. Narcissu, despite its bittersweet ending, is a simple story about the life journey in a metaphorical way. It is not dramatic, nor is it nerve wrecking. It is that simple style in which nothing really crazy happens, yet it will capture your heart when the ending arrives.

I have no doubts that if the quality of the OP is an indication of the in-game novel quality, I can definitely get yet another good novel, with yet another beautiful song by Eufonius as the OP. I realize that the sequel of Narcissu seems to have much more of a budget compared to Narissu, and that can only bode well. I also find that the OP captured that wistful hope that runs in the vein of the first visual novel in which the beautiful road trip is a symbolization of various cliches, yet piecing up to a beautiful and seamless artwork.

Narcissu is definitely one of the best visual novels that I have read, and I did read a good amount of other visual novels to think that it’s one of the shorter, yet more meaningful novels lying around in the Internet. Considering that many visual novels are commercial, the work of Narcissu being a freely translated open source makes the quality of graphical design and storytelling even more amazing.

With that, you can get the beautiful OP in a queer compression format on the Japanese site or the MPG file in megaupload. Now, I am just going to quietly anticipate for the full version of the series to be out.

It’s speculated by Tomo that it will be out in late April, but it seems that he is somewhat busy/stalled in his work for Narcissu Side 2nd. As a mere fan, I will be quietly waiting for him to be done. I wish him and Stage Nana well.

Signed, Impz

I’m writing in to T.H.A.T Anime Idol with an entry on a particular OST that I particularly enjoy and hope to spread it around….

Anonymous is a Eroge game created by mirage soft.. I don’t know much about Eroges, but I do download their soundtracks as they have a lot of potential, one example is “Anonymous”.

Anonymous OST is based on a techno theme, as most of the BGMs in it have the techno feeling. The OP of anonymous, blood knife works to set the mood for the game and OST. It’s very upbeat, and the mysterious feel is there, syncing with the general feeling of the game itself. The synthetic sounds in the OP builds on to Ryrika’s singing, with their own life in it. Coupled with the irregular beats in the background, it has the tendency to give the listener intrigued.

Moving to the background music, all the background music is titled with only one word, for example, “Active”, “Sunny” or “Psycho”. As stated earlier, the BGMs have a techno feeling to it.

All parts of the background music is well done, the melody is well heard from the background, the bass is well used in each BGM, the electronic instrumentation suits the songs well too rhythm is well used in each ones. The back ground music seems to portray their own titles very well, for example in the track psycho, the company uses high pitched sounds with a constant weird melody to it, adding on to the melody slowly by slowly with other instruments with their own eerie feeling, the main melody being the anchor point of the entire bgm.

Another BGM from this OST I truly enjoy is the one called “ sad

Signed, Impz

It’s been almost a year since the airing of Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu. Haruhi turned out to be extremely popular worldwide and its ED song Hare Hare Yukai became no exception. Fans have been inspired to create their own renditions of the song and dance from live-action choreographing to animations using all sorts of characters. Something that could have been due to the huge fan-base are the various versions of the original song which are sung by different seiyuus from the series itself.

Many of you probably already know about these songs but, my question to you all is:
Which version of Hare Hare Yukai do you think is the best version?

So here’s my rundown of each one:

1. Original Version: (by: Hirano Aya, Chihara Minori, Goto Yuko) The version that started it all… The original sets up the stage with a particularly upbeat tone that sort of says “everything will be alright ]]> http://that.animeblogger.net/2007/04/02/blogging-idol-entry-3-hare-hare-yukai-%e2%80%93-which-one%e2%80%99s-your-favorite/feed/ 19 http://that.animeblogger.net/2006/09/10/aria-the-natural-vocal-song-collection/ http://that.animeblogger.net/2006/09/10/aria-the-natural-vocal-song-collection/#comments Sun, 10 Sep 2006 21:34:47 +0000 Impz http://that.animeblogger.net/2006/09/10/aria-the-natural-vocal-song-collection/ All thanks to Otakuism, I have stumbled around Nipponsei and found myself a paradise of OSTs. I generally loved OSTs a lot, as anime music tended to have rather good quality. For this, I decided to do a little review of this compilation of songs from Aria the Natural OST. Aria, as you know, is one of the anime that I seriously fanboy a lot. The songs are generally calming to the nerves, giving that strong feeling of tranquility and comfort that the anime brings. The songs in anime often reflected the mood which the series was aiming to portray and that airy feeling, the kind of music aimed to do what the anime does: to give you that dreamlike imaginery that makes you feel good. The cover is of Athena singing her canzone (italian for song) while the three juniors (Akari, Aika and Alice) looked on as she sang. The cover clearly portrays how the anime is taken. It is definitely a relaxing, chilling effect that Aria is trying to put forth to the audience of this OST. They are so many good songs, like how Undine portrayed that soothing, calming feeling that we all learned to relate about Aria. Dekkai Shiawase Desu was one of the most amusing songs that I had ever heard in my life. Listening to Aria doing his little cute voice and the “day kai” (really) that Alice always say is inside. It is so cute, with the “day kai, day kai”. I really loved the cute song, cos the song is in fact swimming in my head like right now. A really nice album and I love it much. There is no one song that I dislike at all. Just great Rating: A++++++ (I AM SO UNBIASED!) With that, I leave you with the back cover of the album. Ja ne ~ ]]> http://that.animeblogger.net/2006/09/10/aria-the-natural-vocal-song-collection/feed/ 20