Another season, another OP/ED themes post. It’s for Spring 2009 this time. Quite a few good tunes this season. As usual, please note that this list of songs is pretty much subjective. It’s listed as “Top 5″ ranked according to my preference, followed by randomly listed titles as “special mention.”
~ Format :: “Song title” by band/artist (OP#/ED# – anime series title)
- My Top 5 OP/ED themes this Spring:
1. “BACK ON MY FEET” by BOOM BOOM SATELLITES (TV Broadcast OP – Xam’d: Lost Memories)
– watch: anime TV broadcast OP — music video
- Awesome tune. Very nice beat. The song is a mix of electronic and punk rock. I also loved BBS’ previous OP song for this series. The new OP sequence kinda fits well with the song too (although I think the previous one was done better). So, I guess this new OP can be sort of classified as OP#2? Hmm.
Speaking of which… Apparently, the Xam’d anime that aired last Fall 2008 was a ” special PlayStation Network premiere broadcast” of the series for their video download service. So, basically, this season is just a re-broadcast of it (the “TV broadcast” version). If you’ve watched the PSN broadcast version, you’d find that this TV version’s OP sequence is pretty much spoiler-filled (although I don’t think it would affect the viewing pleasure of those who haven’t seen the previous PSN broadcast). Xam’d is a pretty good series, but it’s not something I’d feel like re-watching this soon after it just finished airing (26 episodes, aired at PSN from Jul 2008 to Feb 2009).
2. “Falling Down” by Oasis (OP #1 – Eden of the East)
– watch: anime OP — music video
- Been looking forward to Eden of the East most this season, and it doesn’t disappoint. They even start and end the series with an OP/ED that leaves a strong impression. This song and OP sequence totally rock! (plus I can sing along without a hitch because it’s English! xD I’ve also liked several of Oasis songs since their second album). Contemporary rock song + hip and stylish mix of visuals = WIN. Very nicely done. This makes it stand out from the rest of the OPs this season… Maybe even one of the best ever.
Furthermore, I loved the words written around throughout the OP. Being the curious spy that I am, I (luckily) found a breakdown of the OP sequence and the words… It definitely adds to the mysterious air of the plot (I made a separate post for this).
Come to think of it, if I consider the entirety of this series’ OP (song + sequence, not just the song) and how it was presented, this would totally be on top of my list (along with its ED; see #4).
3. “Free” by Yamada Yu (ED #1 – Basquash!)
– watch: anime ED — music video
– It’s a pretty catchy tune with its pop-ish, a bit techno-ish and rock-ish beat. I really like the melody. It kinda fits the whole atmosphere of the series, too: Light, fun, colorful, and modern.
4. “Futuristic Imagination” by School Food Punishment (ED #1 – Eden of the East)
– watch: anime ED — music video
- A very nice song and interesting visual presentation. Just like this series OP (see #2), I also loved how they did the ED sequence, which I thought was quite reminiscent of Honey and Clover’s OP sequences. A refreshing mix of creativity, style, stop motion animation, and good music.
5.1 “Summer Rain” by Kobukuro (OP #1 – Cross Game)
– watch: anime OP – full song
- It’s a triple tie! First is this great song from Cross Game. I really loved the melody and its disco vibe. It somehow kinda does make me think of summer rain, like a cool and laidback break in the hot summer season. Cross Game turned out to be a surprisingly good series, too (baseball, comedy, slice of life, with a touch of romance and drama). It ended up being one of my favorite series this season, it might even tempt me to read the manga sometime.
5.2 “Again” by YUI (OP #1 – Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
– watch: anime OP – music video
- It’s a triple tie! Second is this OP song from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. I really liked the tune and the guitars on this one, especially in the chorus and verse parts.
5.3 “Kimi wo Mamotte, Kimi wo Aishite” by Sambomaster (ED #19 – Bleach)
– watch: anime ED – music video
- It’s a triple tie! Third is this catchy tune from Bleach. I included this because it was this series’ ED song as this spring season started. Even though I don’t watch this series at all, I do check out its OP/ED themes every season because some of them are really nice to listen to.
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Special Mention: (just click on the song title to watch & listen to the anime OP/ED)
- “JAP” by Abingdon Boys School (OP #1 – Sengoku BASARA)
- “Break & Peace” by Dustz (ED #1 – Sengoku BASARA)
- “Parallel Hearts” by FictionJunction (OP #1 – Pandora Hearts)
- “Maze” by savage genius” (ED #1 – Pandora Hearts)
- “Cagayake! GIRLS” by Aki Toyosaki with Yoko Hikasa, Satomi Satou and Minako Kotobuki (OP #1 – K-ON!)
- “Don’t say ”lazy’” by Yoko Hikasa with Aki Toyosaki, Satomi Satou and Minako Kotobuki (ED #1 – K-ON!)
- “Asu e no kizuna” by HIMEKA (OP #1 – Valkyria Chronicles)
- “Ano Kaze ni Notte” by pe’zmoku (ED #1 – Valkyria Chronicles)
- “Koikogare te Mita Yume” by Ayaka (ED #1 – Cross Game)
- “Free and Dream” by Suara (OP #1 – Tears to Tiara)
- “Blue sky, True sky” by Aira Yuki (ED #1 – Tears to Tiara)
- “Atashi dake ni kakete” by Omokage Lucky Hole (OP #1 - Natsu no Arashi!)
- “Kirari Futari” by Ryoko Shiraishi (ED #1 – Natsu no Arashi!)
- “Change” by J-Min (OP #1 – Hanasakeru Seishounen)
- “Aka no Kakera” by Yuki Suzuki (OP #1 – 07-Ghost)
- “Hitomi no Kotae” by Noria (ED #1 – 07-Ghost)
- “Marigold” by orange pekoe (OP #1 – Ristorante Paradiso)
- “Suteki na Kajitsu” by Lisa Komine (ED #1 – Ristorante Paradiso)
- “Kimi Shinitamō Koto Nakare” by May’n (OP #1 – Shangri-La)
- “Hajimari no Asa ni Hikari Are” by midori (ED #1 Shangri-La)
- “The fine every day” by Kicco (OP #1 – Tayutama -KIss on my Deity-)
- “Everlasting Luv” by Breakerz (OP #26 – Detective Conan) – I included this because it was this series’ ED song as the Spring 2009 season started.
- “Doing All Right” by Garnet Crow (ED #33- Detective Conan) - Ditto.
- “Shōjo S” by Scandal (OP #10 – Bleach) – Ditto.
- “Shinkokyuu” by SUPER BEAVER (ED #9 – Naruto: Shippuden) - Ditto (what creepy teeth?! xD).
- “Hatsukoi Limited” by marble (ED #1 – Hatsukoi Limited)
- “Wonder Wind” by ELISA (OP #1 – Hayate no Gotoku!! 2nd season)
- “Koi no Uta” by Haruka Tomatsu (ED #1 - Shinkyoku Soukai Polyphonica crimson S)
- “MY BOY” by Buono! (ED #3 – Shugo Chara!! Doki)
- “Party Play” by Sakura Nogawa (OP #1 – Slap Up Party -Arad Senki-)
- “Hateshinai Sekai” by YMCK (ED #1 – Slap Up Party -Arad Senki-)
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Most of the songs are from anime I’ve seen (or at least seen 1 episode of this Spring or heard the OP/ED song somewhere, or was recommended to me by someone), so I might’ve missed some good songs from series I don’t usually watch.
~ Which OP/ED songs made your “favorites” list this Spring 2009?
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