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First anime related J-pop/J-rock song + initial impression




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rti9



Joined: 08 Jul 2007
Posts: 1241
PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 7:26 am Reply with quote
I was going to bump this thread but since it got caught with so many non-anime related songs and one liners I thought that making a new one would be better. I updated the question to: What was the first anime related J-pop/J-rock song you ever heard and what was your initial impression?

Since sometimes openings and endings get dubbed or simply edited off, the first J-Pop song I heard in Japanese was Evangelion's Zankoku na Tenshi no Te-ze. I even recall watching the romanji version of the lyrics rolling sometimes and asking myself "why would anyone want to read this?" only to find myself singing along after a couple episodes more. My initial impression wasn't of strangeness since I had heard dubbed anime songs before, but it was kind of weird to like it so much because at the time I avoided pop at all costs. I was a rock/punk/metal fan at the time.

I managed to count the answers from the other thread so they didn't go to waste. This kind of data is interesting because you can indirectly see around what year the ANN community got in touch with anime.

7 - Just Communication (Gundam WIng)
2 - Heart of Sword (Rurouni Kenshin)
2 - Teen Titans Theme (Teen Titans)
2 - Zankoku na Tenshi no Te-ze (Neon Genesis Evangelion)
1 - Change the World (Inu Yasha)
1 - Fighting (Captain Tsubasa J)
1 - Hohoemi no Bakudan (Yu Yu Hakusho)
1 - Prism (Gokudo)
1 - Sakura Saku (Love Hina)
1 - Sobakasu (Rurouni Kenshin)
1 - Understar (Hajime no Ippo)
1 - Watashi ni Happy Birthday (All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku)
1 - White Reflection (Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz)
1 - 大人になんかならないよ (Obake no Q-Taro)

Obake no Q-Taro's theme made me wonder: around what time pop songs started to replace themes created specifically for an animation?
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Zoe



Joined: 05 Jul 2003
Posts: 898
Location: Austin
PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:34 am Reply with quote
rti9 wrote:
Obake no Q-Taro's theme made me wonder: around what time pop songs started to replace themes created specifically for an animation?


Rurouni Kenshin is the earliest I can think of that used mainstream songs for almost all its themes. I don't think it really became prevalent though until Avex joined the party and then Sony started doing it all the time.
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Randall Miyashiro



Joined: 12 Jun 2003
Posts: 2451
Location: A block away from Golden Gate Park
PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 5:58 pm Reply with quote
rti9 wrote:

Obake no Q-Taro's theme made me wonder: around what time pop songs started to replace themes created specifically for an animation?


I used to own the 45rpm of the 1972 Q-Taro theme which sounds like a kid song and came on one of those flimsy transparent records which were popular at the time. I actually have a bunch of those from various 70s shows since many of those books came with them.

If I recall the song begins "O- O- O-Bake No Q-Taro" which beings up a point that many of the pre 80s songs incorporated the name of the series in the theme song. There was a strong shift around 83-85 possibly due to the popularity of the songs from series like Macross since even that show had the famous "MA KU- ross" theme song. Although Southern Cross had it's name sung in it's title Mospeada didn't.

Likewise on the Sunrise front Dunbine had it's name prominently used. Dunbine was replaced with L-Gaim which also had a MIO song which ended with the very powerfully sung "L-GAIM!!!" which actually I think works. The second L-Gaim song never uses the name L-Gaim but does use "say Mk-II" referring to the L-Gaim MK-II. When L-Gaim's time slot was replaced with Zeta Sunrise decided to go all out and hire the very famous Neil Sedaka to compose the the OP and ED themes. The second theme song was performed by newcomer Moriguchi who would later gain some fame in the J-pop community. Mio and Mami Ayukawa also have a good number of albums under their belt.

I will go as far as saying that Macross was the true beginning of the marriage between J-pop and anime although Sunrise was quick to follow in the next couple of years. There are really not too many songs that predate Macross that don't have the name of the series in the song (Votoms comes to mind) and by the late 80s using the name of the series in the theme song seemed something exclusive towards kid shows and super robot series.
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sirgalahadthegreat



Joined: 20 Dec 2007
Posts: 108
PostPosted: Tue Apr 15, 2008 8:14 am Reply with quote
Well, my first anime related song was Aozora no Namida from Blood+. I'd been watching anime before this, but most of them were either removed or heavily dubbed.

My impression can be summed up in just two words: IT ROCKED!!!!
I fell in love with Hitomi Takahashi's voice, and she became my first step into the world of J-Music.
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CerebralDivinity



Joined: 20 Jul 2007
Posts: 11
PostPosted: Tue Apr 15, 2008 6:41 pm Reply with quote
Hmmm.... For me it would have to be "everysongonthefoolycoolyOSTatthesametime" - The Pillows. My initial impression was "I gotta get me some of that." So I did. The End.
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elloshiions



Joined: 09 Jul 2007
Posts: 44
Location: USA
PostPosted: Wed May 07, 2008 8:31 pm Reply with quote
hmm, i really don't remember my first impression on japanese music. though i believe that my very first song might have been from either dragon ball z or sailor moon.. forgot my reaction, but i am pretty sure that i thought i understood the song when i really didn't because i probably mistook it for chinese/mandarin. hahaa. silly of me, but yehh...
when i actually got into japanese music however, it was total obsession. hahaa =]
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Full_Metal1923



Joined: 16 Feb 2007
Posts: 312
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
PostPosted: Thu May 08, 2008 5:25 pm Reply with quote
My first Japanese song in general was "My Will", the first ending theme to InuYasha. I remember browsing channels looking for something to watch, and stopped during the middle of an early InuYasha episode (this was several years ago of course), and I instantly got into the ending theme. It was different, and even up to now it's still one of my favourite songs from InuYasha, and in general, even if just for the nostalgic purposes.

That said, I may have very well have heard See-Saw's "Anna ni Issho Datta no ni" first but didn't recognize it, but I eventually fell in love with that song as well as I slowly became more interested in anime, and stopped shrugging off the Gundam series. Other songs I attribute to my entry into Japanese music go a bit further with L'Arc~en~Ciel's "READY STEADY GO", "Link", and "Lost Heaven", T.M.R. Revolution's "Invoke", and additional InuYasha theme songs - "Change the World" by V6, "Fuki Mori" by Do As Infinity, "Every Heart" by BoA, and "Come" by Namie Amuro. All of which seem to provide something new, intriguing, and of course very catchy.
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Murasakisuishou



Joined: 22 Jun 2006
Posts: 1469
Location: NE Ohio
PostPosted: Thu May 08, 2008 5:44 pm Reply with quote
The first "J-Pop" song I ever heard was Simple and Clean by Utada Hikaru, and for a time I thought it was the best song ever (I was getting out of my boy band phase then.) Soon after, however, I got my hands on some L'arc-en-Ciel and BUCK-TICK and assorted bits of Kanno Yoko awesomeness, and my musical tastes have done something of a complete 180 since then. I still have a soft spot for the pop-y stuff, though; Mizuki Nana, Sakamoto Ma'aya, and Hayashibara Megumi rock my world.
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Aura Ichadora



Joined: 25 Apr 2008
Posts: 2302
Location: In front of my computer
PostPosted: Fri May 30, 2008 10:50 pm Reply with quote
My first was Fukai Mori by Do As Infinity, the second ending to InuYasha. At first, I was like "Hey, Japanese music!" and just listened and watched the ending. But then I started to hum along to the beat, then went on to trying to sing it, and now I have the song memorized in both English and Japanese. Anime hyper
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musk.stick



Joined: 31 May 2008
Posts: 42
PostPosted: Sat May 31, 2008 3:50 am Reply with quote
The first Japanese song I ever heard was on the end of the Sailor Moon movie Hearts in Ice, and entitled [i]Moonlight Destiny[i].

I was only seven at the time and only vaguely recognised that "Hey, this Sailor Moon thing is Japanese huh?" but I fell in love with the song instantly, and would watch the credits over and over again just to listen to it.

Who knew that many years later it would still be one of my favourite songs?

Now I want to watch Sailor Moon Laughing
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sakurahydeto



Joined: 26 Dec 2009
Posts: 13
Location: Malaysia
PostPosted: Sat Dec 26, 2009 11:46 am Reply with quote
My first anime related song..I don't really remember about it, maybe Purachina by Sakamoto Maaya in the anime Cardcaptor Sakura. Her voice is so calm and soothing somehow..but as I grow older, I hooked on J-Rock music and the J-Rock songs that caught my attention are Ready Steady Go, Link and Lost Heaven by L'Arc~en~Ciel(and now I ended up searching for ALL their songs and fell in LOVE with hyde). Other anime related songs that I love are Rewrite by Asian Kung-fu Generation, Asterisk by Orange Range and Colors of the Heart by UVERworld. J-Rock sure rocks the anime world!
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