September 2014 Favorite Anime Composers

What makes an anime series so great to watch is also due to its soundtrack. Anything can be made better with music. It adds the extra flare needed. From my years of anime watching, I have collected a lot of soundtracks along the way. I sometimes use the composer name as a reference to predict the genre and content of the anime. Typically a well funded project would invest in a big name composer. Like for instance the JoJo series have so far picked the best composers they could to provide the soundtrack. A well shared characteristic among successful composers is the range of genres they can compose in and the different mashups of genres they can create. I want to introduce my list of favorite composers that should be respected for their talent.

Shiro Sagisu

 

Starting out on Bleach the anime, I was introduced to Shiro Sagisu. The Bleach soundtracks were very experimental and grew more complex as time passed. For pretty much each defining arc, Sagisu changed the musical style. Often times he is known for combining synthetic sounds with instrumentals. The first Bleach soundtrack had some of my favorite tracks like On the Precipice of Defeat and Requiem for the Lost Ones. However they were quite simple in composition and tracks like Raw Breath of Danger was very repetitive and predictable. The movie soundtracks started having more depth to it by incorporating an orchestra and a chorus group. Still I felt that it was short of something to bring it to the level of legendary composers. By the year 2012 when Sagisu started composing music for Magi: Labyrinth of Magic, I saw that his compositions have gotten much better. In fact I enjoyed the Magi soundtracks to the fullest. They still had their quirkiness that Sagisu exhibits in his composition and it fully utilizes his strengths of combining sounds from different cultures. The Magi soundtracks also makes use of hip hop and dance beats to give a modern twist to the soundtrack. Kind of like the old Bleach soundtracks. The opening track on the first OST, Enfin apparu!!, is played at most battle scenes of the series and eventually becomes a main theme of some sort. It is later echoed in the second OST.

Taku Iwasaki

 

 If I were to describe his style of music, I would say whimsical but Iwasaki is capable of creating suspenseful tracks as well. My most memorable soundtrack from him is Yakitate!! Japan. A lot of the music used in the anime did not end up on the soundtracks for whatever reason, but a good chunk of the important themes were included on the official release. Yakitate!! Japan has a lot of comical themes as well as jazzy sounds, swing music, and some intense moments. Iwasaki's work on Persona: Trinity Soul takes another direction. That soundtrack is dark and moody because the story itself was pretty dark and melancholy. Iwasaki's version of Der Mond zeigt mir meine eigne Gestalt is sad and eerie to listening to. If I was listening to it in a dark room, I would get chills. The combination of rap performed by Lotus Juice, rock, and strings creates a very suspenseful mood in Reverse the Destiny.

     The same chilling atmosphere is also present in the Kuroshitsuji soundtracks where the dark overtones can get pretty heavy. Moving onwards to Jormungand, it is still overall a serious soundtrack due to the subject matter. The season one soundtrack didn't leave much of an impact on me as much as the second season, but I don't think it is representative of Iwasaki's best work. I think it shines a lot more when they picked Iwasaki to compose the soundtrack for the Battle Tendency arc of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. The Battle Tendency soundtracks are very colorful to listen to as it is known for the sudden dubstep amidst orchestra and typical soundtrack music. I think it was a brave move to make since Battle Tendency was an arc filled with humor and action. Every track had its charm point and the soundtrack over all was not boring at all. The track I'm in Control is basically Joseph Joestar's theme showcasing his recklessness as well as his background in Ripple training highlighted by the exotic woodwind sounds made by either than argul or pungi. The lyrics also reflect more of Joseph's attitude when he fights his enemies.

Hiroyuki Sawano

Maou

Sengoku Basara

Many people now know him because he is the man behind the Shingeki no Kyojin soundtrack. I know him because of the j-drama, Maou. Maou's OST is emotional but with hints of uneasiness. The story is about a series of murders linking to a past murder and ultimately uncovering the truth behind it. I praise Sawano for being able to create epic sounding soundtracks. He is also the composer for my favorite Sengoku Basara and Ao no Exorcist. Sengoku Basara has a lot of dramatic themes being that the game and series is known for its over the top visuals. The soundtrack has a lot of rock mashed with strings and Japanese instruments so that it still has that samurai feel. The Shingeki no Kyojin soundtrack has a lot of themes that deal with uneasiness and pending danger in the story. The use of the chorus paired with the voices of Mika Kobayashi and Aimee Blackschleger gave a lot of impact. For one, the chorus provides the atmosphere and the individual voices give a specific character. I was pleased to know that Sawano Hiroyuki is the composer of the Aldnoah. Zero soundtrack. When I first heard the music in the trailer, my first instinct was that it sounded like Sawano's work and lo and behold, Sawano Hiroyuki. He works with the same singers I believe because I recognize their voices across different soundtracks despite putting on different names. His style is often dramatic and his lighter melodies use a lot of piano.

Hayato Matsuo

 

I only know Matsuo from the Hellsing Ultimate. Hellsing is an 18+ story with a lot of violence, profanity, and suggestive content, but I think that's what makes Hellsing such a great story. The characters come from far ends of the spectrum and screws with the audience. The Hellsing Ultimate soundtrack is also on the level of epic sounding orchestral sounds. I think Matsuo does a good job utilizing the chorus with the orchestra and it was great to know that he worked with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. Because Hellsing takes place during the era of a Nazi Germany, there's still a dated quality of the music to refer back to the past. The inclusion of electric guitars and more modern beats refer to the vampire and ghoul armies that appear in the story. Knowing that Matsuo was chosen to compose for the Phantom Blood arc of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure had my blood pumping. The first Phantom Blood soundtrack went along the lines of presenting a 19th century England whereas the second one incorporates electronic and electric guitars. The second one is more action packed so to speak. It has a lot of that Hellsing feel, but distinctly made for Phantom Blood only. There are also the gentle and sad themes for character deaths that are beautiful to listen to like Dawn and The Tale of Their Love.

Yugo Kanno

 

I recently developed a following for Yugo Kanno mainly because of the Stardust Crusaders arc of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. However he has also composed for a couple of my favorite j-dramas. Galileo and Samurai High School just to name a few. I was absolutely disappointed with Bambino!, but I liked the soundtrack. It had that nice flow to it. Too bad the drama adaptation did not. Kanno's strengths lie in covering several genres in one soundtrack and keeping it consistent. There's always something to let the listener know that it's part of a soundtrack and not just a "weird track" on the list. Stardust Crusaders takes place in several countries and it makes perfect sense to have very different sounds for various tracks. The soundtrack is very easy to listen to in my opinion and there's something to enjoy on every track. It ranges from comically upbeat to looming danger. My favorite tracks are Fire Shaman, Noble Pope/Virtuous Pope(depends on translation), and Stardust Crusaders. Yugo Kanno is also responsible for the Psycho-Pass soundtracks which are complex and wonderful to listen to. Due to subject matter, it is a dark sci-fi soundtrack. Sometimes the tracks start to sound the same. The track, Psycho-PASS, captures Psycho-Pass the best. Why do I say that? No, it's not because of the name. It creates a pull and push relationship with the listener. It gives you the setting of a futuristic society that is exciting, but at the same time very sterile.