Otakon 2004

Angela Panel

angela in Concert at Otakon Image courtesy of and © Kevin Lillard

angela is a band composed of two people: Singer/songwriter Atsuko and instrumentalist Katsu. Otakon hosted their first concert in America. angela is best known for their work on the Stellvia opening theme song, "Brilliant Road to Tommorrow". Aside from the Stellvia opening theme, angela has produced a number of singles, as well as a full album in Japan. A second album is due out this fall.

Both members of angela came from the same town in Japan, and both moved independently to Tokyo. They found each other by accident and played live street performances, where they were discovered by the producer of Evangelion while playing a song inspired by Evangelion's Cruel Angel Thesis. A short time thereafter, angela produced "Brilliant Road to Tommorrow" for Stellvia.

Inspiration for the name 'angela' comes from a Motley Crew song, as well as a song from the 50s by a band called the Boppers. Katsu strongly liked both groups.

Katsu described himself as an "otaku"; his hobbies are "sleep and anime". The anime series he enjoys are Dragon Ball, Mobile Suit Gundam, and Evangelion. He plays guitar for the band and arranges the music for all of their songs. Atsuko enjoys surfing the internet and shopping. She grew up playing the piano and wanted to sing, so in High School she formed a band. It didn't turn out successfully like angela, however.

There are no plans yet to release a CD in America, but during the panel, angela and various staff begged Geneon to consider releasing a full CD. For fans who can't wait, though, the Stellvia soundtrack released by Geneon last week does contain Brilliant Road to Tommorrow.