Character-oriented pieces occupy a curious place within the realm of anime music since they’re mostly there for people who can’t seem to get enough out of simply watching their favorite characters on screen or hearing their favorite voice actors/actresses. So with that, a market for character songs comes into being which requires that most seiyuus be able to sing (thankfully, most are, which usually isn’t a problem unless you’re dealing with live concerts. See Aya Hirano.). The songs, on the other hand, pose an interesting question because it’s never quite clear how some of them succeed at adding any sort of value to the series or the character since most of it falls into the category of generic J-Pop. To me, I consider songs that bring out a facet of a certain character’s personality to be more enjoyable, and with that in mind, here are two character tracks, not necessarily from character albums, that I think do a decent job of conveying the essence of the characters themselves. As the post title suggests, these pieces succeed based on the specified criterion, so if you’re ready to see what I’ve dredged, time to dive into some of the pieces after the jump.

[See post to listen to audio]
Anime Series: Pani Poni Dash!
Track Title: Faraway Dream
Artist: Chiwa Saito
As far as pieces that convey a certain character’s mindset goes, this song does the trick. Chiwa Saito, who plays Rebecca Miyamoto from Pani Poni Dash!, conveys the essence of her character really well through the general mood of this song and the lyrics which have an amusing component to them. As soon as the music starts, the introduction’s air of introspection gives way to a lament that’s unsurprisingly self-centered if you know Becky’s general attitude towards life’s inconveniences. The way she sings this song feels as though she’s isolated and her tone straddles a line between being whiny and being wistful. That said, she doesn’t appear to be angry and is taking it in a nihilistic sort of way since she hints at the fact that part of the reason for her loneliness stems from the fact that she’s a genius and because of her implied massively superior intellect, no one really understands her. Of course, that’s a pretty big statement to make and indicates to us that it’s her haughty attitude towards everyone else that results in her being alone, but being the self-centered person she is, she isn’t going to admit that it’s her problem. So without anything else to do or anyone else to interact with, she’ll be found, gazing at the sunset while downing her glass of milk (with a sigh of satisfaction that’s adds ever so slightly to the endearing factor).

[See post to listen to audio]
Anime Series: Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei
Track Title: Buta no Gohan
Artist: Kenji Ootsuki; Yuu Kobayashi
If you’re ever looking for a piece that showcases Yuu Kobayashi’s amazing ability to sing, definitely give this song a whirl since it’s quite an experience. There’s just something about this piece that hits all the right spots in all the wrong ways with a sound that can only be described as a magnificent sort of ear rape. The piece flows chaotically from the very start with its assault of sound upon the listener. Once Yuu Kobayashi makes her entrance, her singing (if one can call it that) brings out the sort of abuse that would easily lead to a sense of despair within the listener and if you’re at all like me, it becomes really difficult to listen to this piece for too long since it’s nowhere close to being a pleasant melody that once can relax to. Not surprisingly, the brainchild behind this track and other similar pieces like “Odoru Akachan Ningen” (Welcome to the N.H.K.) is none other than Kenji Ootsuki, who uses his composition skills to capture Kaere Kimura in a way that is absolutely spot-on. Keep an ear out on the electric guitar part around the 1:50 mark which briefly serves as a nice respite before Kobayashi’s voice makes a return to bring this track back to a full circle of… music.

I’ll admit that the raison d’etre for this post is to showcase “Buta no Gohan,” and as such, might be viewed as a waste of blog space, but given my busy schedule as of late, this is the best I could do, though you may see me attempt this article again since as I mentioned, character CDs are a subject that’s definitely worth exploring (Hayate no Gotoku is an excellent example in the shameless sort of promoting and marketing that they do to promote these CDs and I’m sure the endearing characters are a big reason why). Yes, I realize that I probably could have done something like review the character CD for Yuki Morikawa (from White Album), played by Aya Hirano and if I’ve the time, I’ll probably give that album a shot sometime this week. But the big prize will be later on when Rin Ogata, played by Nana Mizuki, releases her single. That’s an album that I’m definitely looking forwards to hearing and one that will get my full attention for sure.

As promised, this post will contain a short blurb of all the music posted for Set #1 of the BGM Music Quiz. Although the track identification count is at two, I still hope that you all derived some enjoyment out of the music since that’s the secondary motive for writing that post in the first place (the primary motive is to cover for a lack of reviews). Since you’re probably dying to know which track comes from which series, the answers are as follows (along with the full version of the track in question):

Track 1
[See post to listen to audio]
Anime series: Gunslinger Girl
Track title: TEMA I
A friend of mine complained about this track appearing far too much in the series, but I’m not really sure that it’s a reason to dislike this track. In fact, as I mentioned in the comments section of the previous post, Gunslinger Girl is pretty high on my list of favorite soundtracks, maybe second or third on my all-time list. Toshihiko Sahashi’s compositions do an excellent job of conveying the European setting and the soundtrack packs a lot of variety from the mournful to the upbeat. “TEMA I,” in particular, has this melancholy violin melody that invites the listener to take a step back and see these girls’ situation for what it is. Beneath their veneer of contentment lies a rather tragic past and this piece is a solid reminder of that, which makes it perfect for its role as the main theme of the series.

Track 2
[See post to listen to audio]
Anime series: ARIA the Animation
Track title: Natsu Tayori
It’s really hard for me to not go into fanboy mode as far as ARIA goes. Not only was that franchise a delightfully amazing watch, none of the soundtracks disappointed me even though I was pretty sure that by Origination, they’d have few original tracks to sprinkle around. “Natsu Tayori” jumps out at me by bringing out Neo-Venezia’s laid-back and upbeat atmosphere that comes from a combination of the whistling and the choro-styled melody (that’s why they call themselves the Choro Club I suppose) that makes this piece so relaxing and enjoyable. Along with pieces like “Aqua,” “Mangetsu no Dolche,” and “Mizu no Kagami,” the soundtrack to ARIA the Animation stands out as a wonderful work that’s unlikely to be matched for its grace and elegance as well as its optimistic outlook on life, a feeling that resonates strongly with the series itself.

Track 3
[See post to listen to audio]
Anime series: Oh! Edo Rocket
Track title: Rocket
Per nkcl’s request, this answer is revealed! Though I have not seen Oh! Edo Rocket myself, a hat tip goes out to SeijiSensei from AnimeSuki for introducing me to this excellent soundtrack. Much of the music on this soundtrack is big band jazz, which will undoubtedly please anyone who loves that particular genre since it’s one that I’ve found to be sorely lacking in the world of anime soundtracks. Needless to say, I was completely blown away by how enjoyable the melodies are and would heartily recommend this album to anyone needing their jazz fix.

As a slight aside, Oh! Edo Rocket focuses a lot on the individual, which is quite a step from most anime series that have a group-focused approach to the plot and characters. This makes the usage of jazz all the more appropriate since that genre tends to be more individualistic with all those solo bits and improvisation during the course of a jazz performance.

Track 4
[See post to listen to audio]
Anime series: Le Chevalier D’Eon
Track title: PSALMS
The guesses for this track being from Blood+ aren’t far off the mark as far as genre is concerned since there is plenty of action and supernatural creatures running about (especially zombies, lots of zombies). This track hails from Le Chevalier D’Eon and I remember that when I watched the first episode, something triggered my memory and my first thought was “Huh… the music has Michiru Ooshima’s style written all over it” and my subsequent research confirmed those suspicions. Of course, most people know her better as the composer for Full Metal Alchemist, and if you listen carefully, you can definitely hear some “Ooshima-isms” (if I may call it that) scattered throughout the Chevalier soundtrack, especially in the way she uses the cello (maybe it’s a bass?) and clarinet in “PSALMS.” So for those of you who enjoyed FMA’s music, I definitely recommend giving this one a listen since it’s practically more of the same stuff from her. Good stuff at that.

Track 5
[See post to listen to audio]
Anime series: Planetes
Track title: Outside Atmosphere
Finally, we come to the track that everyone is waiting for. As Nazarielle was able to deduce partway and as I hinted, there’s a strong connection between this piece and Code Geass on two counts. The first and obvious count is that both series share the same composer: Kotaro Nakagawa. The second and less obvious count is that both Planetes and Code Geass are directed by none other than Gorou Taniguchi. Unlike Code Geass, Planetes is universally acclaimed, without the over-the-top plot twists or anything complicated; the series is much closer to a slice-of-life series that can be described as “salarymen in space.” Though I haven’t seen all of it, what I have seen of Planetes has been enjoyable and I highly recommend giving that one a look.

Nazarielle’s observation of this track wasn’t far off the mark either and I can definitely see how this track gives off the feeling an observer has upon gazing at some ancient ruins resulting from some great conflict. This piece starts out with a violin motive that exudes a sense of tranquility while conveying a sense of isolation. That is, apart from the ruined structures, there is no trace of human activity present as far as the eye can see. As the observer continues to stay in the area, the chorus section comes in followed by the violin which has a warm and comforting timbre as though this piece was describing a beautiful sunrise that bathes the world in its warmth and shines its light upon the land. Naturally, the above description is fitting if you imagine this piece describing the vastness of space as the characters are in orbit and witness a beautiful sunrise. Like in most things, context is everything I guess.

And that’s it! Again, I hope you enjoyed this exercise and got some utility out of listening to the tracks.

After reading this post, I was inspired/compelled to address the impact that the background music had in Episode 16 of Clannad ~After Story~, specifically in the last five minutes where things come crashing down emotionally. So before we actually go too deep into the discussion, those of you who haven’t watched the episode should be warned that there are spoilers ahead. For the rest of you, we will start by examining the scene and taking a look at how well the music succeeds in bringing the viewer’s emotions to bear because of the associations that have been put in place.

Background: Nagisa’s pregnancy is already in full force, and though the arrival of a child is supposed to bring happiness, there are enough doubts lingering over Nagisa’s health to dampen the occasion. Each passing day brings forth a mixture of hope, despair, and uncertainty. Tomoya tries to temper his feeling of hopelessness and sense of self-loathing by dismissing it outright or keeping up a mask to hide his worries. This approach does work for a time but fate ultimately deals the two a rather cruel hand and when the day finally came, tragedy struck. Tomoya had already been worrying, his mind in a haze and he was practically wandering through a world of mist and fog and only the sound of Ushio crying was able to jerk him out of his dazed state and bring him back to reality. But it had already been too late. Nagisa lay there, minutes away from dying and though the two were able to exchange tender words, there was no doubt as to what was going to happen. Tomoya’s voice cracked. His tone indicated a sense of desperation as he began babbling while his eyes pleaded for Nagisa to hang in there but alas, the ordeal was enough to sap the last remnants of her strength and she passed from this world. In their final moments together, the viewer is treated to montage that allows us a peek into Tomoya’s memories that he shared with Nagisa, but in reverse chronological order. And while all of this was occurring, a familiar melody begins to play:

[See post to listen to audio]

The Music’s Impact: The scene is very beautiful and moving in its tragedy and “Nagisa” nails that sentiment by starting out soft and subtle. Up until now, this piece had captured Nagisa’s character as well as her experiences with Tomoya perfectly in the way it’s structured. The subtle piano opening conveys her shy, unassuming personality but it grows ever so slowly, starting with the left hand on the piano, and then with the addition of a violin part at the 0:38 mark accompanying piano motive. A transition section takes over around 0:57 and the piano is replaced by an instrument that sounds like a harpsichord which plays a melody that brings forth the imagery of someone taking baby steps cautiously at first, but with increasing confidence as time passes. This confidence culminates at 1:17 when the full strength of the melody blooms, its arrival announced by a bass drum that brings in a melody that is buoyant, colorful, and alive as the harpsichord and piano play side by side, bolstered by percussion instruments that moves at a deliberate pace. The way this section expresses itself feels like a depiction of Tomoya and Nagisa’s happiness as they resolve to go through life together with all its joys, pains, and sorrows, while overcome any obstacle that gets in their way.

But in spite of the optimism imbued in the last section, this piece comes across as being very melancholy within the context of Nagisa’s death scene and it’s only logical to ponder why. My thinking is because this melody isn’t one that we, the audience, are unfamiliar with. Rather, we’ve heard this piece play quite a few times and the fact that it fits her character so well is strongly ingrained within our subconscious that we’ve come to associate that melody with her. That element is why that piece is so powerful in the scene described above. The way it plays is absolutely subtle but its presentation blends in perfectly that it augments the raw emotions gushing forth. As “Nagisa” begins to play, it dawns upon us that this really is the last time we’ll see her and the feeling of loss that we experience upon realizing that fact hits us pretty hard. Furthermore, the scenes in which we backtrack from Nagisa and Tomoya’s married life, to the Theater Club, to helping out fellow classmates, and finally to the moment where the two first met serves as a strong reminder of all they’ve been through and the memories that they’ve created together. When you put “Nagisa” on top of all that, the memories we recall become really clear and we get a sense for the scope of the tragedy borne from the hole that now exists in Tomoya’s life; a hole that, I might add, is unlikely to be repaired anytime soon.

The piece succeeds at bringing out the brunt of the pain as we too sympathize with Tomoya’s loss. Throughout the piece, we’re reminded of all the good times that Tomoya and Nagisa shared as they practically grew up with each other’s support. Even if some of us saw this outcome, the sense of loss isn’t diminished. So with that, I’d like to leave you all with Lia’s rendition of Nagisa’s theme, titled “Chiisana Tenohira,” which is probably the most beautiful version that I’ve heard because Lia’s voice brings out the sheer beauty of the piece so well:

[See post to listen to audio]

It’s tragic. It’s beautiful. And it’s a poignant scene that we’re unlikely to ever forget.