Best anime opening song

[darthrevan]

Which is your favorite? Currently my favorite is the second Death Note opening video. It is totally different from most anime music. I don't really like the lyrics, but I think it sounds cool.

[Sinistrous]

"Tank!"
From Cowboy Bebop. Great little song to feel smug to.

[darthrevan]

I don't really care for the music in Cowboy Bebop. I thought Yoko Kanno was a lot better in Wolf's Rain.

I wonder what they are going to do on Adult Swim when they get to the second Death Note opening? The say the F word about a dozen times.

[Sinistrous]

From what I've heard from her (which is admittedly no more than mp3 rips from the box set of Cowboy Bebop), I've never heard anything poor in quality, so I suppose I'll take your word on that. I don't really understand why you don't like the music in Bebop though, it's all very well composed music. Plus, considering how rare it is to hear modern jazz or blues of real quality, it's a bit refreshing.

[darthrevan]

I haven't heard all of the music in Cowboy Bebop, so I can't really say that I don't like all of it. I just don't really like jazz that much. Is there a particular song you recommend in the show?

[Dja Majista]

JAZZ! It's a declining industry; the last of quality music. The kind of music that's still good even without lyrics, which makes it very similar to metal in one way.
Plus, it's just simply badass. Jazz and metal are actually a lot alike when you look at them from their most fundamental aspects...
Though I can't say it's any good for fighting games like SF3.

[Sinistrous]

Ah, I see. Well, if you're not into the jazz music, you might like some of the more blues-oriented stuff like "Forever Broke" or maybe the more rockish stuff like "Blue". I'd personally recommend downloading/buying the whole soundtrack though. Most of the soundtrack is more jazz-oriented and not to play off the whole "you just need to, like, be more *open-minded* maaaaan" angle, but I'm sure you'd find something worthy as there is a lot of variation in the musical styles.

[Sinistrous]

damasta said:

Jazz and metal are actually a lot alike when you look at them from their most fundamental aspects...

Enlighten me.

[darthrevan]

nocturneinbm said:

Ah, I see. Well, if you're not into the jazz music, you might like some of the more blues-oriented stuff like "Forever Broke" or maybe the more rockish stuff like "Blue". I'd personally recommend downloading/buying the whole soundtrack though. Most of the soundtrack is more jazz-oriented and not to play off the whole "you just need to, like, be more *open-minded* maaaaan" angle, but I'm sure you'd find something worthy as there is a lot of variation in the musical styles.

I liked that Blue song. That Forever Broke song was alright. I like blues with vocals more.

I do admit that every now and then there is a jazz song I like, but not enough to where I can say that I love the genre.

[Dja Majista]

nocturneinbm said:

damasta said:

Jazz and metal are actually a lot alike when you look at them from their most fundamental aspects...

Enlighten me.

OK let's see. They're very free genres, they feature very similar lead roles, and their bands are extremely similar.

First I'll say the saxophone and the lead guitar play primarily identical roles in their respective genres. Also, they are both incredibly versatile instruments. The guitar can emit so many kinds of sounds (you know better than me). The saxophone, has a formidable arsenal of sounds at it's disposal as well. Multiphonics (or playing multiple notes at the same time), the horn has a capacity to use vibrato at huge intervals provided the musician has honed his skills in that particular area. Different kinds of tounging, such as slap tounging can alter the flavor and style. And the fact that it can excel in so many different genres speaks it's versatility better than anything else. Simply put the guitar and the saxophone share a versatility that permits an incredible range of expression for the lead musician. The primary difference aside from the string aspect of the guitar, is the fact that the guitar is much more of a rhythm instrument than the saxophone.

Next the background. While jazz has progressed a lot over the years, it has kept the ability to make excellent music without a large band. really just a band the size of your standard metal band does the trick. The background while they all have their distinctive roles, all work together to create the rhythm that the lead works off of. This is what your standard jazz combo looks like: saxophonist (could be playing something else, but sax is most common), pianist, bassist, and of course the drummer. Sound familiar?
sax=guitar; piano=keyboard; bassist=bassist; drummer=drummer.
Their roles are also primarily the same. Sax and guitar are simply the leads. Piano and keyboard are almost integral in defining the chord progressions. The bass in jazz is sort of a blend between the drums and the piano. It provides the backup to the chords, and simultaneously serves as a powerful drive in the rhythm. The main difference here though is that in metal, the bass takes a much more active role than in jazz typically. The drummers are drummers. In both genres they are always crazy, and will never pass up the opportunity for a solo. They brim with confidence, and consequently they are the rightful candidates to take the reigns in commanding the tempo and rhythm of their respective genres.

Alright so from a structuralist perspective, they are similar. But what about the deeper levels? OK look at how many kinds of metal their are, and then look at how many there are in jazz. Subcategory upon subcategory upon subcategory. Jazz has been developing for a long time and it's taken on different interpretations from all breeds of artists. Metal has tons of genres as well.
Jazz and Metal are simply very free-spirited genres. They can take on loads of different forms and emphases depending on the artist. The leads have an incredible freedom of expression (though metal is not particularly known for being mello). Guitar solos and sax solos feature a lot of the same elements.
The primary differences are that jazz has a tendency to prioritize "cool" while metal has more of a tendency to prioritize "intensity" for lack of a better word. Also jazz moves more toward refinement while metal is more wild (as is the primary, if only, difference between their drummers.)

That's my summary of thoughts.

But one of the things that inspired this thought in me was when I heard Jeff Coffin play his sax. He could have been an honorary guest star for any metal band. I mean, when he played he did get funky with it--like how a sax player should be. But he really wailed on that thing. I mean he was such a liberal player. he moved around ALOT just like a good lead guitarist should do. He would actually make screaming sounds while he was playing (that's got metal written all over it). Only difference between him and a lead guitar player from a metal band was that he had short hair and he didn't have a guitar in his hands. Other than that he was one of the most liberal musicians I have ever seen. And his saxophone permitted every bit of it.

[Dja Majista]

darthrevan said:

nocturneinbm said:

Ah, I see. Well, if you're not into the jazz music, you might like some of the more blues-oriented stuff like "Forever Broke" or maybe the more rockish stuff like "Blue". I'd personally recommend downloading/buying the whole soundtrack though. Most of the soundtrack is more jazz-oriented and not to play off the whole "you just need to, like, be more *open-minded* maaaaan" angle, but I'm sure you'd find something worthy as there is a lot of variation in the musical styles.

I liked that Blue song. That Forever Broke song was alright. I like blues with vocals more.

I do admit that every now and then there is a jazz song I like, but not enough to where I can say that I love the genre.

If there are any songs in jazz you like, chances are there will be a sub-genre too. Usually people break jazz down into three fundamental genres: latin, swing, and rock. And then when you look at the spectrum from traditional to contemporary, that breaks it up even more.
That was the same with my take on metal. I really could care less for half the sub-genres. But styles like symphonic metal, power metal, thrash, and game metal really got me hooked.

[Sinistrous]

You made your points well and many of them are true, however I see none of the structural similarity you speak of, which is the most important part. In jazz, the structure comes as a result of improvisation. As in, the structure is not the intent of the piece, but to express through the genres preferred compositional technique (improv). While improvisation is present in some metal and other more structured genres (classical, ambient), the structure itself is the means by which ideas are expressed.

That's not to say jazz is bad, it just serves a distinctively different purpose (and no, I don't just mean to play Street Fighter to).

Summarizing, yes, the instruments serve similar purposes, but look at rock music. It uses the exact same instruments that metal bands use, yet the music is completely different structurally (though not enough so to dissuade crossover - the same goes for jazz and metal as well [remind me to show you the Pestilence album Spheres sometime]).

[Dja Majista]

nocturneinbm said:

You made your points well and many of them are true, however I see none of the structural similarity you speak of, which is the most important part. In jazz, the structure comes as a result of improvisation. As in, the structure is not the intent of the piece, but to express through the genres preferred compositional technique (improv). While improvisation is present in some metal and other more structured genres (classical, ambient), the structure itself is the means by which ideas are expressed.

That's not to say jazz is bad, it just serves a distinctively different purpose (and no, I don't just mean to play Street Fighter to).

Summarizing, yes, the instruments serve similar purposes, but look at rock music. It uses the exact same instruments that metal bands use, yet the music is completely different structurally (though not enough so to dissuade crossover - the same goes for jazz and metal as well [remind me to show you the Pestilence album Spheres sometime]).

Well by no means are they identical. They're simply much more similar than people make them out to be.
Structure may prove a bit ambiguous when talking about a genre as a whole. so I'll just say that they are similar in the sense that they can break into a variety of different sub-genres and still keep their respective titles (jazz or metal). From what I've seen in both genres their is a substantially wider opportunity for creativity that is unique to the two. And that is a fundamental characteristic both share.
In your sense of structure, I'll admit they are very different, even opposite in some ways. The mood in jazz is almost always on the opposite end of the spectrum from metal, and improv is indeed a much more common expression in jazz. But on a broader scale (which seems to reveal more fundamental aspects), the structure is always extremely varied (in latin jazz, improv is relatively rare). So I guess the point I missed was that jazz and metal have a level of creative power that most genres don't. (Rap, especially, has to stick to a very limited formula.)
Well, really the main point is that Jazz and Metal are awesome while everything else sucks.

[The Big Daddy C-Master]

I think Love Hina and Green Green had some interesting tunes if I'm not mistaken.

[darthrevan]

I haven't heard the songs from Green Green, but the Love Hina music was alright I think. Bleach has some good ones too. I like all 7 openings, and 90% of the endings.

[KD]

I liked the fourth opening for Fullmetal Alchemist (REWRITE - Asian Kung-Fu Generation).

Of course, nothing beats the opening for NGE. I can't help but try to sing along to it anytime I hear it. Go '90s!

[darthrevan]

I liked the Fullmetal Alchemist one too. You might like the latest Bleach opening "After Dark". It is by Asian Kung-Fu Generation.

[KD]

I forgot about that. I've already heard it, and it's one of my favorite songs by them.

[The Big Daddy C-Master]

darthrevan said:

I haven't heard the songs from Green Green, but the Love Hina music was alright I think. Bleach has some good ones too. I like all 7 openings, and 90% of the endings.

So you've seen some of Love Hina?

[darthrevan]

I've kind of stalled on it. The last episode I saw was ep. 17, but that was months ago.

[The Big Daddy C-Master]

Did you enjoy it?

[darthrevan]

Well, I thought it was decent. That is why I'm not worried about finishing it.

[darthrevan]

I'm even starting to warm up to Yoko Kanno's jazz music. The station I listened to just played 3Tops from Ghost In The Shell, and it was pretty good. Of course the average rating from the users was pretty bad because it was jazz.

[Psyquis52]

.

Not a huge fan of the show but FLCL's soundtrack (by the Pillows) is actually incredibly good.

"Tank" is good, but then again anything by Yokko Kanno is good

I notice that's already been said. Garyuu makes a good point. Her stuff on Wolf's Rain is some of the best out there.

Actually I dare say that Wolf's Rain is possibly the best soundtrack period. It's either that or Macross Plus for me.

If you like Jazz then you should check out the soundtrack for Rahxephon. It's full of it.

I'm a big fan of "H. T." from Trigun but it's pretty one-dimensional.

I think my favorite is going to be "Lilium" from Elfen Lied.
Which is saying something since I wasn't a huge fan of the show. I'm not saying the show was bad (I haven't finished writing the review yet) I'm just saying that it didn't suit my tastes.