So for today’s anime jukebox selection I decided to go with
one of the most popular and recognizable songs from 1990s anime. Yep, it is the
opening theme song to Neon Genesis
Evangelion. According to legend, director Hideaki Anno wanted to use a
classical piece to open the series. Theproducers were loathe to try this, and wanted a J-pop song instead. This
was the result. It is still pretty atypical for opening credit songs, even
these days after countless series borrowed from Evangelion. Cruel Angel’s Thesis isn’t as perky or
rockin’ as you would think for a mecha anime series. But this is what makes it
so distinctive. It is also one of the few opening credit songs my wife can sing
in Japanese with little help from subtitles. It goes slow enough that you don’t
run into too many of those 10 syllable run-ons that occur in J-pop.So enjoy Cruel Angel’s Thesis performed by Yoko Takahashi.
Yeah this is more of a nostalgic favorite. I hear it and I'm taken back to when I first discovered the series. Lots of great memories from that era. But I'm with you, there are a few other opening titles that I like more than this one.
Luckily Japanese is not too hard to pronounce. Once you figure out how the vowels sound, you can read the romanji subtitles and get a pretty good grasp of how to sing along with the songs. And yes, most anime DVDs provide romanji subs for the opening credits. Anime fans love to sing along. :)
Yeah, actually I enjoy the song, granted after you hear it many times while watching the episodes it gets a little old. I like the closing tune, Fly Me to the Moon, as well.
Yeah, I really like Claire's version of "Fly Me to the Moon". She does a wonderful job with it. Of course I'm not partial to Sinatra. I watched this series when I was still living at home, and my mom was very surprised to hear a golden oldy being played as end credits for a Japanese anime with giant robots.
Ha. I can sing it in Japanese too. I have no idea what I'm saying but I can sing a mean Japanese J POP song.
ReplyDeleteI must admit there are other theme numbers that would have worked better.
It's not one I love.
Yeah this is more of a nostalgic favorite. I hear it and I'm taken back to when I first discovered the series. Lots of great memories from that era. But I'm with you, there are a few other opening titles that I like more than this one.
DeleteThe only Japanese (or approximation thereof) I've ever sung has been bits from Sukiyaki, the song not the meal.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a big fan of modern pop in any regional flavor, but I hear much more painful stuff than this coming from my 22 y.o. niece's radio.
Luckily Japanese is not too hard to pronounce. Once you figure out how the vowels sound, you can read the romanji subtitles and get a pretty good grasp of how to sing along with the songs. And yes, most anime DVDs provide romanji subs for the opening credits. Anime fans love to sing along. :)
DeleteYeah, actually I enjoy the song, granted after you hear it many times while watching the episodes it gets a little old. I like the closing tune, Fly Me to the Moon, as well.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I really like Claire's version of "Fly Me to the Moon". She does a wonderful job with it. Of course I'm not partial to Sinatra. I watched this series when I was still living at home, and my mom was very surprised to hear a golden oldy being played as end credits for a Japanese anime with giant robots.
Delete