This spring features 48 new TV anime–and with each a slew of anime music. And then there are all the films, ONAs, and continuing series with their own sets of jams. From all that, I narrowed down which I’ve enjoyed most into the following 10 recommendations.
*Note: Songs are presented in alphabetical order by series.
Image source: TVアニメ「ダイヤのA」公式 on Twitter
Anime: Ace of Diamond: Act II
Song: “Hajimari no Uta”
Artist: GLAY
Why I Love It: The rest of the song isn’t bad in any way but the way the two male vocals powerfully intertwine in that chorus! Damn!
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Image source: TVアニメ「みだらな青ちゃんは勉強ができない」公式 on Twitter
Anime: Ao-chan Can’t Study!
Song: “WONDERFUL WONDER”
Artist: EDOGA-SULLIVAN
Why I Love It: The chorus on this one is stupidly catchy (and the full version of the song has way too much fun switching between musical styles).
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Anime: Carol & Tuesday
Song: “The Loneliest Girl”
Artist: Nai Br.XX＆Celeina Ann
Why I Love It: This song–the emotional core of the entire anime–is sung with such feeling, that I tear up every single time I hear it. (It is the song in the background for the first half of the trailer above.)
Anime: Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress: The Battle of Utano
Song: “Sakase ya Sakase”
Artist: EGOIST
Why I Love It: This is basically a traditional Japanese festival song made in modern-day–something not entirely unheard of, but certainly rare.
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Anime: Fairy Gone
Song: “KNOCK on the CORE”
Artist: (K)NoW_NAME:Ayaka Tachibana & AIJ
Why I Love It: There are two things that have kept this song on repeat for me: the powerful alto line and the staccato strings section that counterpoints the melody in the chorus.
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Song: “Nexus”
Artist: Laco
Why I Love It: Poppy with a rocking beat, this song is fit for the dance floor–especially with the dueling female vocals. (It can be heard from 4:28-5:07 in the video above.)
Image source: TVアニメ『盾の勇者の成り上がり』 on Twitter
Anime: Rising of the Shield Hero
Song: “FAITH”
Artist: MADKID
Why I Love It: It’s the short phrase of music that starts the song–the same part that repeats at the end of the chorus–that just gets me pumped every time. (The syncopated rap and blasting tenor chorus aren’t half bad either.)
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Song: “Sight Over The Battle”
Artist: OLDCODEX
Why I Love It: This one has a deceptively slow build to a chorus that just whisks away your soul when it finally gets there. (Song starts at 1:06 in the video above.)
Anime: Wise Man’s Grandson
Song: “Attouteki Vivid Days”
Artist: Yoshi Nanami
Why I Love It: The instruments, singer, and basic structure of the song all remind me of the first ending of the original Fullmetal Alchemist–and that’s pretty much all I need to listen to it constantly.
Image source: アニメ『この世の果てで恋を唄う少女YU-NO』公式 on Twitter
Anime: YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World
Song: “Kono Yo no Hate de Koi wo Utau Shoujo”
Artist: Asuka
Why I Love It: The sound of this chorus hits me right in the late 90s, early 2000s nostalgia.
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Bonus Pick
Game: Robotics;Notes DASH
Song: “Avant Story”
Artist: Zwei
Why I Love It: Fast-paced and filled with Zwaei crazy powerful voice, my favorite part of this song isn’t, oddly, the chorus. Rather, it’s in the pre-chorus where, for a single phrase, all the background instruments except for the strings and drum kit cut out. It’s in this moment of relative musical silence we are introduced to the game’s protagonist: Super Hacker Daru of Steins;Gate fame. (And yes, this is a cheat as the game came out in the Winter but… well, it’s my list so I can break the rules if I want.)
Provided courtesy of iTunes
Top image source: ＴＶアニメ「キャロル＆チューズデイ」(公式) on Twitter
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I 100% agree with the late 90s, early 2000s nostalgia thing about the YU-NO opening 😀 Plus, the whole counterpointing thing about “KNOCK on the CORE” seriously reminds me of Lisa’s songs – especially “ADAMAS” Oo