Evangelion Soundtracks: Part 1 (Neon Genesis Evangelion - Soundtrack)

Member Name: berlioz II

Product:	Neon Genesis Evangelion - Soundtrack
Date:	02/12/05 (745 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Absolutely delightful with plenty of different musical styles to keep things varied

Disadvantages: "Asuka Strikes!" is really horrendous

I doubt there is any other anime in the world that has caused as much controversy as Neon Genesis Evangelion has since its premiere in 1996. The questions evoked by the series’ creator and director Hideaki Anno still causes much debate, confusion and bitter fighting among anime fans as to whether Evangelion is the best anime ever created or nothing else but an overtly confusing, derivative and unbelievably overrated piece of mindf***ing released on the public. During its ten year existence, people dedicated to understanding every corner of the show are still as much confused and lost as to what ultimately is Evangelion; the personal thoughts of a sick, twisted and troubled individual, a criticism of the world and of mass consumers, a simple mecha action piece with certain religious symbolisms thrown in, or does it have an even deeper meaning, something that Anno had become aware of and of which he gave us only teasing glimpses of. Oh, and the forever old question ”who killed Kaji?” is still raising conspiracy theories. But what is certain is that anybody who has ever seen the series is certain to have some opinion to give about it. The enigmatic ending alone is likely to leave you wondering, psychedelically tripped out, or just plain outraged. To enhance this ride through fights with monstrous angels, teenage angst, psychological mind-messing, and the general harbouring of an apocalyptical future is composer Shiro Sagisu’s musical score that is as diverse as the world it portrays.

I don’t exactly have a lot of knowledge of Shiro Sagisu other than he seems to be the chief composer for Gainax with scores for ”His and Her Circumstances,” ”Nadia” and ”Macross II” being among his accomplishments, of which ”Evangelion” is perhaps his best known work. By the appearance of the guy he seems to be somewhat of a cross between a struggling bohemian artist and a leftover from the ’60s hippie era, only being Japanese. His score for Neon Genesis Evangelion is definitely one of the most diverse I have ever heard in either the movies or on TV. With a deft mix of traditional orchestral writing combined with many modern licks like electric guitars and rock percussion, loungy jazz music, intimate acoustic guitar and romantic piano, the diversity on display is impressive while it could easily make the score disjointed and fall apart. In a TV score that has to provide music for 26 episodes this kind of disjointedness is easier to get away with as it would be in a movie, but when divorced of the series the sudden jumping around could become a little distracting. However in the case of Evangelion, Sagisu treads the thin line of providing very diverse music while still managing to create a whole that feels like there is a bigger architecture for all of this music.

Opening with the incredibly catchy ”Zankoku na tenshi no Thesis” (Cruel Angel’s Thesis), the series and album gets a very propulsive beginning that is hard to resist. The opening song is quite synonymous with many other opening songs to several different anime series with its mix of pop and techno which continues with a relentless sense of energy that is just incredibly fun. Now I’m not much into this style of music and I suppose I never will, but this is one of those rare exceptions that has just grown on me and I just enjoy it to no end (all the way to the point of knowing the full lyrics by heart). Performed by Yoko Takahashi, the version presented on this album is the complete, four minute long Director’s Cut which I prefer more than any of the other versions that have been made along the way. Lyrical, energetic, and instantly memorable, it will remain in your head whether you wanted it or not.

Of equal importance is the ending song, which is the most infamous of all the Evangelion songs and just as different from the ”Cruel Angel’s Thesis” than summer is from winter. ”Fly Me to the Moon” is a very romantic arrangement of Frank Sinatra’s original (though I have to confess as to never actually having heard the original). It is so different from the propulsive opening, that the contrast cannot fail to make the song feel somewhat eerily haunting and incredibly effective. The song makes three appearances on this album, the first being the long, standard version heard most often in the credits sequence (shortened of course). The second is an instrumental version and the third is a more funky ”Acid Bossa” version, neither being really all that phenomenal or coming anywhere close to the quality of the first. With three versions of this song on this album it may seem like pushing it a little but trust me, it gets a whole lot worse for the sequel albums.

The remaining tracks constitute the actual score material. As I said before, the music in Evangelion is very diverse. It treads through many genres of music while always remaining elegant and enjoyable. This diverseness of styles actually sits quite nicely in the storyline of a post-apocalyptic world that is still trying to get to grips with building a new world over the ruins of the past. Instead of creating something ethnically Japanese to go with the somewhat Japanese story (in the Godzilla sense I guess), Sagisu relies mostly on a very western style of composing. The action music is mostly modernistically edgy with a whole lot of dissonant writing gracing the feel. Opening straight out with the first score cue, ”Angel Attack” is a very harsh and horror-filled composition. Pounding piano, blaring brass, swishing strings, and even electric guitar screeches make it a tough listen, the enjoyability remaining entirely at your discretion.

The rest of this kind of harsh action music is relegated towards the end of the album with the tracks ”Decisive Battle,” ”EVA-00,” ”The Beast,” and the latter half of ”Marking Time, Waiting for Death” all share the same kind of writing. In ”EVA-00” and ”The Beast” we also get to hear the ”berserk theme” which is played out every time an EVA goes mad. These two tracks are basically the same, ”The Beast” only upping the tempo a few notches and I feel it is much better for it. This theme’s most notable feature is the heavily dissonant, ”swooning” electric guitar licks that, depending on your musical inclination, may take a moment to get used to.

On the brighter side there are the more distinctly ”heroic” cues relegated in the series closer to the beginning when there was still room for optimism. The tracks ”NERV,” ”EVA-01,” ”A Step Forward into Terror,” and ”EVA-02” offer the bulk of optimistic brass fanfares with a heavily triumphalist and heroic edge to them. The cue ”EVA-01” is easily the most traditional with its snare drum backed marching music and ”Step Forward into Terror” continues this with more hip percussion. ”NERV” is a minor keyed relative of this cue and the absolutely delightful ”EVA-02” hits the top button in optimism in Evangelion.

At this point it is interesting to note the different ”EVA” cues and their relation to the children piloting them. Rei’s ”EVA-00” is always edgy and out of whack due to its tendency to go insane, and is therefore dissonantly unstable. The main protagonist Shinji’s ”EVA-01” is the first we see in the first episode and has a stately triumphant ”first day out” feeling to it. It is not what Shinji is, but it represents his inclination in not having a strong will of his own, making him susceptible to be what others want him to be, in this instance brave. The always ambituous Asuka’s ”EVA-02” on the other hand features the most openly joyful Eva music as this is exactly what she wants to do. The brass is more flighty and the breezy electric guitar combined with the modern percussion makes it the most easily enjoyable of the three and my personal favourite.

Outside of the spectrum of traditional orchestral underscore we have the more laid back lounge music and jazz. As represented by the concluding song ”Fly Me to the Moon,” the underscore takes a similar tone of more intimate feeling. The cues ”Hedgehog’s Dilemma,” ”Barefoot in the Park,” and ”Rei II” offer the most laid back material on this album. ”Hedgehog’s Dilemma” is a very enjoyable piece with an improvisational piano solo backed up by acoustic guitar, loungy drums and string swells, while ”Barefoot in the Park” is more happy in tone (I guess elevator music would fit the latter’s description and why most often say they don’t really like it; I don’t think it’s that bad though). ”Rei II” is more romantic, somewhat sorrowful, but very romantic which underscores one of the few moments that Rei actually shows some emotions in the entire series. As a particular diversion on the album, the cue ”Tokyo-3” is unique in its sense of quiet awe, like a sunset in a western with little trumpet fanfares over a synth choir, played during the scene when the highrise buildings in Tokyo-3 rise from their under ground safety positions. I like it no matter what other people may say. (Looks like I like a whole lot of things here it seems.)

Most of the main characters have also been blessed with themes of their own, although in most cases they are pretty much downplayed. Shinji’s theme in ”I, Shinji” reminds me somewhat of a more heavy handed film noir piece. Though Shinji is the main character, this theme does not make a reappearance, leaving Shinji somewhat musically out of the picture. More importantly we have Rei’s theme in ”Rei I” that is my absolute favourite theme in all of Evangelion. It consists of a melancholy piano melody that has a very Romantic bloom to it, which appropriately disintegrates into downward dissonances at the end of each phrase. And when the strings enter the mood turns practically chilly. The theme for Asuka on the other hand in ”Asuka Strikes” is the one piece that I consider to be a big mistake. The theme is a really silly hillbilly–type country parody that just does not suggest Asuka to me in any way, shape or form (she’s not a country yokel for heaven’s sakes) and despite the diverseness in the overall musical approach, this one sticks out very badly for being too different. It’s the only score cue that I could happily skip and throw into the trash bin.

The theme for Misato is just fun. It is a cheerful representation of the sloppy Misato off duty with a happily rolling flute over glockenspiel twinkles. It is an amusing composition and its lightheartedness is a really welcome diversion (it always reminds me of Misato waking up in the morning all fuzzy, guzzling down a can of beer, and shouting out: ”Jiiihuuuuu! This is the way to start a day”). Her best friend ”Ritsuko’s Theme” is similar to the more intimate music with piano and guitar set out to a pleasantly laid back melody.

The album runs for 58 minutes which is quite an appropriate length, neither too short or overtly long. The representation of music is pretty comprehensive in regards of presenting all the main thematic material and the biggest highlights of the first half of the series. The album comes with a ten page booklet that includes pictures, lyrics to ”Cruel Angel’s Thesis” and ”Fly Me to the Moon”, as well as brief notes from Hideaki Anno and Shiro Sagisu. As all the music is composed in the form of concert arrangements, this has given the freedom for the music to be quoted whenever necessary. There is actually not all that much music composed for the series alltogether (the total underscore amounting to some 150 minutes in full), which results in each episode pretty much introducing at least one new piece of music while editing the other cues to fit the show where necessary (some cues are normally used over and over again to save money). Therefore each cue is an easy standalone piece that doesn’t necessarily need visuals to back it up. The sound quality is crisp and clear, with none of the instruments drowning out in too wet a mix.

The availability is a whole other matter. Originally released under the Japanese Geneon label, the rights for international distribution were bought by BMG who undertook to re-release just about all the Evangelion soundtracks. I have no idea whether any of these are still in print, though considering the popularity of the music (as well as the series), I would not rule out the possibility. The best bet would be to check Amazon or eBay for used copies as there always seems to be some available (usually going at around £6-12).

The Neon Genesis Evangelion Original Soundtrack Vol.1 is a very good introduction to the music of Evangelion and is quite a fun album overall. With its mix of jazz, grand orchestral writing, and swatches of more modern composing styles, it is no wonder that the music has appealed to so many people with many different musical inclinations. I can warm heartedly recommend this first volume that is the perfect place to start expanding one’s Evangelion music collection.


TRACK LIST

1. Zankoku na tenshi no Thesis (4:05)
2. Fly Me to the Moon (4:33)
3. Angel Attack (2:31)
4. Rei I (2:59)
5. Hedgehog’s Dilemma (2:47)
6. Barefoot in the Park (2:37)
7. Ritsuko (3:03)
8. Misato (1:32)
9. Asuka Strikes! (2:19)
10. Nerv (1:59)
11. Tokyo-3 (2:22)
12. I, Shinji (2:02)
13. EVA-01 (2:48)
14. A Step Forward into Terror (1:54)
15. EVA-02 (2:00)
16. Decisive Battle (2:25)
17. EVA-00 (1:51)
18. The Beast (1:40)
19. Marking Time, Waiting for Death (2:44)
20. Rei II (2:56)
21. Fly Me to the Moon (instrumental) (2:59)
22. Jikaiyo koku (0:34)
23. Fly Me to the Moon (acid bossa version) (3:54)


Music Composed, Arranged and Conducted by Shiro Sagisu
Produced by Hideaki Anno
Music Recorded and Mixed by Kohoichi Suzuki
Music Recorded at King Record 1st.

© berlioz, 2006

Summary: The First Evangelion soundtrack really hits all the right marks to entice further familiarity