Which anime have the best soundtracks?
 

Hey guys :]

Just started watching Naruto for the first time, and something I noticed immediately is the rather lackluster soundtrack. I cringe a little every time I hear the greatly overused dramatic/combat music, and right now I pine to watch Yakitate!! Japan again. I even use the OST to test speakers with, it's just that fantastic.

Which anime series do you feel have the best soundtracks ever? My top three:

1.Yakitate!! Japan
2.Samurai Champloo
3.Cowboy Bebop

Most of the replies will recommend Cowboy Bebop so I'll just say it has a good soundtrack and leave the rest to evaluate it better.

Mushishi has an excellent soundtrack, with relaxing, soothing BGM. Every episode has a different instrumental ending as well. Highly recommended.

Kanon 2006 has lots of soft, soothing music as well. All the music, including the OP/ED and BGM, has this unique "Kanon" feel to it that is mostly either melancholic (but not tragic) or refreshing.

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann has a very "epic" soundtrack that ranges from catchy rap to symphonic battle music to dramatic opera music to electronic techno.

FLCL has loads of insert songs (by the same band) but I personally don't like them.

Thanks for the great reply! I COMPLETELY forgot about FLCL, the series itself is a tad weird but I love the Pillows :]

Kanon 2005 sounds interesting....nothing to do with Pachelbel is it? :P

Mushishi sounds brilliant...every episode???? Wow :]

I've heard TTGL's opening, and LOVE it! Something I'll get to eventually :]




I also like BECK's opening, but don't like the series <.< Love NHK ni Youkoso's op and music as well, but lacks diversity.

My favourite composer: Kouhei Tanaka

Of all his works, my favourite pieces come from Gunbuster 1 and 2 and Gaogaigar/FINAL.

His music is one of the reasons why Gunbuster and Gaogaigar are some of the best mecha anime in history. Gurren Lagann is a successor to both animes, especially Gunbuster, as they're both from GAINAX.

Simoun
Gunslinger Girl
Noir
Maqcross FRONTIER
Gundam SEED

I also say Mushishi has a exquisite OST. If you didn't like Toshiro Masuda in Naruto, you might like him here. I especially love Mushi Utage, but I think you're better off watching the anime than solely listening to the music. The music really does wonders bringing to life Mushishi's world.

If you loved Yakitate Japan! music, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann's composer is the same person, Taku Iwasaki. There's a lot of wonderful pieces I can't name specifically one I like especially.

The best anime OSTs I've heard are Ouran High School Host Club by Hirano Yoshihisa and Hikaru no Go by Megumi Wakakusa. Amazing strings and nice piano flourishes. I'm a fanatic of them lately. His and Her Circumstances by Shiro Sagisu deserves an honorable mention, but I didn't like the new musical direction as the anime got worse imo.

Pachelbel's Kanon plays in a few parts but not really as a BGM but as a quiet music in a restaurant. You hardly hear it and it isn't in every episode, so you have nothing to worry about.

And you're welcome. ;)

Hmmm.. I'd have to go with Cowboy Bebop and Nodame Cantabile.

Cowboy bebop's OST (my favourite ever) goes all the way from jazz to rock, not forgetting blues, some electronica, some classic vibed music etc.. etc.. It's rly RLY good...

Plus the series was my first anime import a few years ago and it was so legendary it became my favourite ever, that mood from the series: a kinda melancholic, rainy day mood, with some jazz on the back ground, is something rly rly made me love it (and arent those character the most memmorable ever, those and Rei Ayanami)
But then the series is also very dinamic, because after the rainy day mood moments we have the amazing comic relief sessions with epic songs and scenes such as Ed in "mushroom Samba"!

Nodame Cantabile e is for Classic music fans only, the thing is, if you start watching Nodame Cantabile you will automatically start loving classic music, you just can't fight it. The series was rather suprising, I was not expecting to adore this series, his OST contributed a GREAT deal to just that.

Also, soul eater's OST is rly good in the context of the series, when you are watching the anime for the first time (such as I) the first thing you'll notice is that great cheerful up-beat vibe that is rly well accomplished
If you listen to the album alone though, you'll get about 4/5 great tunes and then some tracks that just dont make the album better than average as stand alone.

Kung Fu Hung-Su - "2.Samurai Champloo" I've never seen the whole series but from about6 episodes I've seen I got a pretty good impression for this one!

I liked the Death Note soundtrack and FMA's too so those.

Rurouni Kenshin OVAs are imo Taku Iwasaki's masterpiece, he also did Yakitate!! Japan, Gurren Lagann, Soul Eater, Kekkaishi among others, I highly recommend you check out his work.

Jigoku Shoujo,xxxholic,chobits,gravitation and inu yasha

Second Rurouni Kenshin OVA OSTs, the melodies are a bit overused though, but the music fits the scenes in the anime perfectly.
Then the Jin Roh OST, also tied very closely to the anime.
Mononoke OST, has the same characteristics as the previous two.
The OST I have listened to most of all so far is the Twelve Kingdoms one, I like especially the Piano and Kokyu Memories albums.
Then I am a great fan of all the Hisaishi Ghibli sondtracks, no need to enumerate them, I even like the Nausicaas' ones. ;)

SignorRossi.

EDIT: Oh, forgot Macross Plus OST...

oh theres soo many...

gits (movies and sac)
naruto
beck mcs
rideback(if only for the mell song)
...........

Macross Series. It is one of the few anime that puts music as a central theme. TMHS too.

Another anime music that caught my ears was Claymore's ED (Danzai No Hana), and Clannad (most of Key's anime had good music). I must admit, although Seed and Destiny had lousy storylines, they make up for great pieces, like Invoke, Meteor and Find The Way (beautiful piece). G00 doesn't even have songs that can compare (though I admit Love Today and the new ED is pretty sweet).

The two inserts from Code Geass by Hitomi are very nice.

Right now I feel that Sora Kake Girl is going to have a few good pieces coming up.

yup, the lilium theme was all over, and that created a rly stressing mood, like everyone has a secret plan or second intentions. That theme is rly gloomy and dark, although it doesnt seem so at first.

Insofar as the newer stuff goes, I've been enthralled with Hidamari Sketch x365's soundtrack quite a bit because it's definitely an improvement over the first season's OST. Natsume Yuujinchou also manages to do well with its atmospheric tracks and you can't ever go wrong with Sakimoto's compositions from Romeo x Juliet.

Not really into anime soundtracks, since I concentrate more on the voices and action, but two animes where the music really stood out for me were Serei no Moribito and Shakugan no Shana.

I doubt they're of the quality that may be considered among the "best", but for me they really helped enhanced the mood of the scenes.

Efen Lied's soundtrack is down right one of my faves...

Gantz
death note
beck

I like most of what Kouhei Tanaka produces, so I've liked what I have heard in One Piece, Angelic Layer, Kaiketsu Zorori... He also happened to compose my favorite anime theme song of all time, "We Are!", so that's a huge plus.

FMA's soundtrack is also great for being very involving and intense. I find myself remembering a ton of BGM from that show, despite not having heard the OST soundtrack CDs yet.