Anime Instrumentality Blog

Anime Expo 2010 in Brief: Music, Meetups, and Massive Fun

(Note: Much of my coverage of Anime Expo this year is on behalf of Original Sound Version. So over the next few days, my concert report of the May’n/Megumi Nakajima concert will be written and posted over there to accompany my report of the MELL Concert that has already been posted. The same will go for the information I gleaned out of May’n and Megumi Nakajima’s press conference. I will write shorter versions here though for people who don’t have the time to read through all the text, so you can look forward to that!)

With that out of the way, Anime Expo this year was a blast from start to finish. I started that Friday by bumbling my way into my colleague Kylaran at the Nihon Review and Benu at Anime Genesis and things just took off from there. Most of that day was spent scurrying around from one event to the next without really having much in the way of downtime, but I really wouldn’t have it any other way. Through it all, I experienced two amazing concerts, one that was just phenomenal and the other of which was just amazing, got a chance to hear what May’n and Megumi Nakajima had to say about the work they’re doing, where they’re looking to go and not go with their careers, and what they thought about their experience in coming over to America and performing before a group of Western anime fans. Needless to say, this left me drained by the time the day ended. After all, two concerts in one day? It’s a good kind of tired though and the only thing I really wish I’d done better was make sure the camera I was using had full batteries before I attended the concerts! Read the rest of this entry »

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya Original Soundtrack – Review

Tracklist and miscellaneous album information provided by VGMdb.

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Obligatory Anime Expo 2010 Schedule Post

With the July 4th weekend just hovering around the corner means yet another trip to Anime Expo with all the madness of making the schedule just tight enough so that I can maximize whatever utility there is to be had by interacting with fans, industry, and of course, meeting people who have been nothing more than internet screenames with all the personality and such encapsulated in those virtual identities. Unlike last year, the concerts this time around are actually worth going to. Also unlike last year, there will be a bit of work involved since I’m on assignment for Original Sound Version. Which effectively means that any enthusing over the concerts will be found there once the dust settles. Of course, if anyone else wants to write up a concert report for Anime Instrumentality as a guest post, do let me know!

Anyway, the plan is to hit up Friday and Saturday. Specifics? Well, here’s the plan given the schedule I have on hand: Read the rest of this entry »

Prelude to a Review – The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya Showing in Los Angeles

For the past few months, I’ve heard reports about how people who’ve watch the cam-rip of The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya absolutely loved it. I didn’t pay too much attention to the details though since I didn’t want any of it spoiled, at least, that’s the reason I told myself. In reality, I might have been just a bit burnt out from the Endless Eight debacle and was pushing that out of my memory.

When I heard that they’d have a showing in LA, I was lukewarm about it, but what the hell, I gave it a shot and, buoyed by Shadowmage’s review of the movie on the Nihon Review, hoped that it would at least be passable.

Do you remember when you watched the first episode of the second season of Haruhi and all the positive goodwill you had about the franchise just kind of gushed out and gave you that pleasant buzz that made you feel warm and fuzzy? Well, watching the movie gives the same kind of feeling, except it felt even better than that!

Without going too much into a discussion of the movie (feel free to talk about it in the comments section though!) all I’d have to say is that the experience was an amazing one. Watching the ramifications of Haruhi’s disappearance was wonderful because the calm, sober atmosphere contrasted so much with the usual level of energy and excitement that we’ve come to associate with the Haruhi franchise. It just felt wrong, and in doing so, fit the scenario perfectly!

So yes, if you want a take on the movie, just read the review I linked to above. My only disagreement is that I thought it was worthy of a 9/10, but that just might be because the high the movie gave me resulted in a euphoria that’s lasted up until now and is still going strong. It made up for Endless Eight and then some and being able to experience it in the setting of a movie theater along with other anime fans who made the trek was fantastic! Read the rest of this entry »

Durarara!! Original Soundtrack Vol. 1 – Psychedelic Dreams – Review

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