A lot of new anime air every season, and along with that comes opening and ending songs and sometimes even character songs, leading to the creation of many new anisongs, too. If you’re looking at this article, you are probably interested in anisongs yourself but maybe you’ve managed to miss some famous anisongs! Some of our anisong-loving staff here at TOM have chosen some of their top anisongs for you to check out!
— What kind of anime do you watch often?
I don’t really care about genres too much, but I watch a lot of isekai, slice-of-life, and romantic comedies.
— When do you listen to anisongs?
I generally have music playing at all times, so it’s not like there are times when I choose to listen to anisongs. There are times that I’ll listen to nothing but music from specific anime I’m obsessed with, though. Lately, I rewatched ARIA so I’ve had “Undine” on repeat. (LOL) (“Undine” by Yui Makino is the opening theme of ARIA The ANIMATION.)
“Ugoku, Ugoku” by Chito (Minase Inori) and Yuuri (Kubo Yurika), the opening theme from Girls’ Last Tour (2017)
This is the opening theme for an anime about two cute girls traveling in a post-apocalyptic world. The setting can be dark, but the theme uses cute video game sounds and has an upbeat tempo that will make you want to dance. It’s been covered a lot by internet artists and many fans have made their own remixes, so you can tell how beloved this song is.
“Vidro Moyou” by Yanaginagi, the ending theme from Waiting in the Summer (2012)
One of anime’s most standard genres is high school romance! Also known as romantic comedies (I accept that not everyone agrees with me LOL). This anime is set during a summer in Nagano Prefecture and features a very bittersweet love triangle. This ending theme has a sense of liberation and speed that perfectly represents the bittersweet summer depicted in the anime.
soh (SNS and news management, cameraman)
— What kind of anime do you watch?
I watch a lot of mecha, fantasy, and slice-of-life comedies.
—When do you listen to anisongs?
I often listen to them when I’m on the train or walking somewhere.
“Ichido Dake no Koi Nara” by Walküre, the opening theme from the first season of Macross Delta (2016)
I’m sure a lot of people think Macross F was the best. When I first saw the trailer for Delta, I thought, “There are 5 singers? Are they becoming Power Rangers or something?” I was also worried because Kanno Youko wasn’t credited. However, when I heard this song and saw the opening animation, all of my worries were instantly blown away. The animation, melody, and lyrics are perfectly matched, which made my expectations for the animation itself rise. More importantly, having gospel-style main vocals despite being an idol song is really, really cool. When I looked it up, it turns out the singer, JUNNA, made her debut with this song – she’s only fifteen! Are you serious?!
“Easy Breezy” by chelmico, the opening theme from Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! (2020)
You might have heard of this one because it was a meme in early 2020. The cheery rhythm matched with the rap really matches the easygoing nature of some of the Eizouken members, doesn’t it? The opening animation is distinctive and may make you go “Huh?” but you can see the story being referenced throughout it, which is pretty fun. The music video for the song has a similar strange feeling as Eizouken’s opening animation, so it’s fun to watch!
T.K (TOM Shop operations)
— What kind of anime do you watch?
I’ll watch anything.
— When do you listen to anisongs?
During work.
“Shakunetsu Switch” by Suzumegahara Chuugaku Takkyubu, the opening theme from Scorching Ping Pong Girls (2016)
This is the theme song for Scorching Ping Pong Girls. It starts out comical and switches to an intense chorus, so it’s pretty irregular. Please make sure to listen!
“Wagamama MIRROR HEART” by Ohashi Ayaka, the opening theme song from Masamune-kun’s Revenge (2017)
This is the opening theme to Masamune-kun’s Revenge. Ayaka Ohashi is a voice actress who is also a drummer for BanG Dream! songs, so needless to say, her voice is incredible. I want more people to know about her.
usaco (writer, shop operations)
— What kind of anime do you watch?
I don’t care about genres.
— When do you listen to anisongs?
When I watch anime.
“Idol Katsudou” by Waka, Fuuri, and Sunao from STAR☆ANIS, an insert song from Aikatsu! (2012-2016)
Aikatsu! is a difficult anime because if you don’t really love it, it’s hard to explain easily. Please just take a listen to “Idol Katsudou.” The lyrics include the lines “Seeing you as I race to the goal makes me want to fight harder.” The series is about idols and their fans, so these lyrics connect the show and its fans, which I think is wonderful!
“UNION” by OxT, the opening theme from SSSS.Gridman (2018)
This song connects anisongs from the 60s to the 80s with post-90s anisongs perfectly. Both the melody and the show are independent of each other, but are connected by being about heroes, so it’s a well-constructed song. They were able to bridge the gap between songs aimed for children and those for adults by not repeating the show’s title in it. It’s an amazing song that successfully links the music to the anime.
TAKESHI P (TOM Shop operations, product development)
— What kind of anime do you watch?
Fantasy.
— When do you listen to anisongs?
I often listen to anisongs after I finish work or when I’m doing chores on my days off. If a show has already ended, listening to the music reminds me of it and it makes me feel like laughing or crying as I remember the story, so it can make me quite emotional. Listening to anisongs that get performed live or at clubs gives me a sense of unity that’s really fun!
“READY!!” by 765PRO ALLSTARS, the opening theme from THE IDOLM@STER (2011)
I grew obsessed with anime and video games because of this song. When things don’t go well or when I feel really down, I listen to this song and it makes me feel like tomorrow will be better. It’s a song from one of my beloved series, but more than that, the lyrics are very positive and make me feel great when I listen to them. By the way, the song itself is for an anime from 2011, but the performance is very high quality.
“Lost Princess” by Pecoline (MAO), Kokkoro (Itou Miku), and Cal (Tachibana Rika), the opening theme from Princess Connect! Re:Dive (2020)
This song has a very interesting musical composition. You’ll definitely gasp at the melody between the introduction and the first verse! This song gets better the more you listen to it, so I think every anime fan should listen to it at least once!
What did you think of these anisongs selected by some members of TOM? Did you enjoy them? Hopefully they introduced you to a new world of anisongs! I hope you’ll be able to find your favorite anisong one day, too.
This is a Tokyo Otaku Mode original article.