The weeb episode!
One of the biggest reasons I've never touched a boob is because of Adult Swim and Toonani. There are a lot of other reasons, by the way. Them introducing me to anime, alongside my growing interest in JRPGs, molded me into who I am. I didn't mean for this, but I really damned Japan, didn't I?
Uh...anyway, I like anime! From Dragonball Z to Cowboy Behop, I've recently rewatched Outlaw Star and YuYu Hakusho, and they hold up. I'd have long breaks here and there because of school and other stuff, but I recall recording Witch Hunter Robin and Blue Gender in middle school. High school was a total wash, but I came back afterwards because of Elfin Lied and Clannad. Other Key Studios stuff was there, too. Even in college, Angel Beats! and Rosen Maiden were my supper entertainment one summer. The amount of bagel bites and corn dogs I ate that season shortened my life by five years. Sword Art Online, Akame Ga Kill, Shakugun No Shana, (even) Attack on Titan, and so many others I've forgotten kept me and my stuffed animals on edge before bed. Nowadays, I've been rewatching old shows, but I've also thoroughly enjoyed newer ones. Ascendence of a Bookworm, Faraway Paladin, Ancient Magus Bride, Somali and the Forest Spirit, 86, Is The Order a Rabbit...
Right, uh, music. I'm talking about music. Most of those shows won't be here, but I occasionally nerd out. Their exclusion isn't a review of their soundtracks, but I don't usually pay attention to backing music. I struggle to see and am too focused on the story to retain anything on first viewing, and there's rarely a second. So what does pierce my thick skull means something. Only the best of the best on this list (and the next)!
And let's start with one that isn't on Spotify: Heaven's Not Enough. The final song that's played in the 2003 dystopian adventure anime has three notes. The synth piano plays behind everything else, and is always prominent but never boring. After a few loops, a woodwind instrument plays a melody alongside it and brings the mood even lower. Steve Contie, a name you'll see again, of New York Dolls fame, begins to sing about the folly of alternate worlds. "You think you've found it, but it loses you." "Most everything is nothing that it seems...you see the things you only want to see." And then the words become a first person event about flying and forgetting. Drums join the song as the singer states his own potential displeasure with heaven for a few verses. And then it becomes a solid rock song. At this point, it's a lengthy poem about a previous life. A life that was focused on this heaven? A heaven that didn't matter in the end. The final sentence is "heaven goodbye." The three note synth piano becomes the only thing in the song again, as it drones on for a full minute. The track is haunting and a little confusing, which is a good metaphor for Wolf's Rain. The premise is a group of wolves/boys seeking a flower girl who's supposed to lead them to Paradise. Cheza is also chased by two scientists who try to study her: Hub and his ex-wife, Cher. There's also a wolf hunter, Quent, and his dog, Blue, who interact with both groups. There's also the nobleman/main antagonist who created Cheza and his underlings, who become focal points in a world war that doesn't really matter. The plot skips between these four groups, their meetings, twists, and how the world changes. At the end of the extra OVAs, we experience the end of the world, and the final scenes are a bit strange. But I do recognize that no one gets their happy ending. Yoko Kanno will be back. Expect this entry to disappear and repeat elsewhere eventually...
"The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom. His tongue speaks judgement. Oh, how sacred. How serene. How benevolent. Oh, pure lily." What does a Latin foux church hymn have to do with Elfin Lied? Absolutely nothing! But it sure as hell sets the tone. In a show filled with blood and nudity, it's a song inspired by several bible verses that sticks out the most. Lilium is the opening theme to Elfin Lied, but it has some gravitas on the show, proper, as well. The main characters hum it once or twice, but it's never explained why they know it. The church organ inspires an idea of a benevolent being a vital part of the show, but the real MC is a woman most believe to be a devil. And her actions during the twelve episodes leads even me into agreeing. There's a lot of slaughter at the hands of Lucy. A tale of nurture vs nature at the hands of a young woman with invisible hands and cat ears doesn't really fit the opening song. But Elfin Lied is the anime that got me back into anime. I even read the manga! I don't know what to say about Lilium, but Elfin Lied is kinda important to me. Even the ending theme, Be Your Girl, doesn't fit, but is still really fun! Also, I will neither confirm nor deny that my Lucy's name stems from this Lucy.
Another pivotal track in my anime journey is about food! The closing song to CLANNAD tells the tale of a family of dongos, rice dumplings, and their unique personalities. I'd love to go into more detail about them, but I've never eaten them. I don't think I've even had a dumpling. And I can't even speak to the lyrical quality because it's in Japanese. A translation I found says they personify food, and every little dongo has a unique outlook on life. It sounds cute, which is amplified by the music. It's an adorable child's xylophone with a kawai voice over it. The instrument plays a number of melodies throughout the piece, but it's always the focus. Even the bells that start to show up don't override them. They somehow enhance them! A foux choir starts up in the second part, which makes it feel so wholesome. But why is there a tinge of melancholy behind it all? This show is filled with happiness and only happiness! Right? Anyway, everything falls away as the song ends with the one voice and that cute xylophone melody.
A Moon Filled Sky is the name of a song that's a common motif throughout both Ef - A Fairy Tale of Memories and Melodies. I just finished rewatching these a few days ago, so there's a good reason it's taken me a year to write this part! There are several versions played on different instruments, tempos, and moods. The common version is on a solo violin after a quick scale or two on a piano to introduce it. The piano doesn't change much, but the violin sings a charming tune. And it's definitely supposed to be lyrical. The second violin "verse" is slightly altered, but I can't pick out why, but the piano is more aggressive. The "chorus" is a bit of a duet between the two instruments. And there are only those two instruments. Quartets are overrated! But that does make it such a chill and mellow song to keep on repeat. It's played as typical background noise in the first season but takes on incredible gravitas in the second. We learn who wrote it, and that only sorta makes it worse because he's a creepy pedophile. But the song was written when its composer was in high school, so I won't blame the composition. But it also means something to his friends and the painful journey they take in life. Two of them give the track lyrics. It might be one, but my translator got lazy with the longer song. The English version, though, was created by the character with the worst life. But that doesn't hold her back from happiness! Her lyrics are about hope. "With the courage to live, the future I embrace, and the strength everyone gave me, I believe in love." Her dying words were a happy song made by her friend, so get ready to cry.
Both Moon and Ef''s OP/ED were written by TENMON. Both have several variations throughout both seasons, and they're songs of love (I think). But that's where the similarities end. Euphoric Fields/Ebullient Future sound nearly identical, and I can't tell which is which off the top of my head. Future kicks off hard before slowing down. It's a song of love, but the type of love that doesn't come easy. Fields starts slower, with the singer, Elisa, getting some time to shine before the J-pop hits. From there, the lyrics are about looking toward the future and realizing the past can't hurt anymore. "Be alive, take it!" Both songs are great representatives of the overarching plots of the seasons. Chihiro and Maya Maya finding love to overcome their deficiencies, and Yu and the creep, Kuze, are trying to overcome the pain in their past to move on and live. Honestly, on their own, the songs aren't super spectacular, but they're so startling and instant reminders of the anime they're from. They're catchy, and Elisa's thick accent adds to the charm of them. There are also Japanese and instrument only versions scattered here and there.
What's the greatest fake band in the history of the world? Detkklok! Better question: what's the best fake band for weebs? Girl Dead Monster! The distraction girls group from Angel Beats! introduced me to J-rock. Admittedly, it's not a genre I've spent much time with since 2010, but guess what I want to do! Angel Beats! is another anime that made me feel things men aren't supposed to feel, so I wanna write about it. It's a show about dead kids who aren't ready to pass on. Purgatory is high school, so maybe it's hell? Over time, all these characters you come to meet and laugh with start to slowly fade away, including the most memorable part of the show, GirlDeMo. Of all the songs I could write about here, I want to shout out Crow Song. It's the first thing we hear from them and is the catchiest. Lyrically, It's a good call to the show's premise. One day, everyone hearing the song will have to leave the plane of existence. But until then, I agree with the singer, Iwasami. Let's just rock out on our guitars! I think I'll rewatch Angel Beats! soon!
Not only is this the final song on this update, and not only is it the best in this section, but it is the best song of all time. From the godfather of lo-fi hip hop, Nujabes, comes Aruarian Dance. Sampling The Lamp is Low by the Brazilian guitarist Laurindo Almeida in 1970, Nujabes slaps a damn fun drum beat over the melody that transforms the song from a Disneyesq background song into a track that forces your attention. But it's not a violent demand. It's in the same vein as a gentle stream calls you to the majesty of nature or the warm, embracing eyes of a lover calling you home. Aruarian Dance makes you want to, well, dance. A dance that's just a smooth glide across the room to your comfy spot or a relaxing tour on a skateboard while drinking cranberry juice. Nujabes shows what the power of a drum can do while cleaning up the guitar notes that get a little lost in the original song. It's from Samurai Champloo, but it's spread across the hearts and souls of all who've listened to it and need a good reason to enjoy the company of loved ones or just time alone. I dare you to be upset or even depressed after a listen. Fun fact: the true origins of the song can be traced back to Maurice Ravel in 1890's Pavane for Dead Princess, along with some Mildred Baily along the way to really showcase it. It goes to show the power and immortality of music. Something written 124 years ago is still relevant across genres that didn't exist when it was first written and made with technology Ravel could only dream of at the time. But despite the time gaps, the original message carries on. Ravel wrote a song to call back to happier times in Spain. Baily added lyrics about a simple love, and now Nujabes uses a Brazilian's version to elicit all of that again. May we all dream the sweetest dream we will ever know.
But what's an aruarian?
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