2012 Year-Ender: Rocks Your Sox Music
Music For Your Soul in 2012
With the passing of this year, we here at Metanorn need your help! Because we love our readers and we are curious to see what you enjoyed over this exciting year, we need you to choose the Best of 2012.
So the process is quite easy, all you have to do is nominate your favorites in various categories like music, staff, characters and specials etc. That sounds easy enough right? After everything is finished we will gather up all the results, throw out some voting polls and then finally end it all with a giant magical awards show for you to enjoy!
So as you can tell, the first category up is the Music Category. Every great anime series needs amazing music to help the story flow from romance, drama, comedic moments or even an over the top fighting scene. Without music. how would we know when something badass is about to go down? Or how would we know when two characters are about to confess their undying love to one another?! 2012 was a great year for soundtracks, openings and endings as well.
Shows that are acceptable for nomination of the anime year 2012 are from Winter ’12 to Fall ’12 anime series. This does not include animes that will continue on into the Winter ’13 season that are 20+ episodes.
Nominate at most 3 for each award or just one if you are having trouble choosing. As well, if you can, please add why you chose that nomination.
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That Epic Opening
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Teh Coolest Ending
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Da Awesomest OST
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Kick Ass Composer
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That Catchy BGM Tune
Thanks for your help readers! Wooooooooooo!
Stay tuned for more the next awards category~!
About Foshizzel
Is huge anime fan from Florida! who loves to watch anime and also enjoys drawing and collecting pictures, my favorite genre of anime has to be Mecha, there is just something awesome about giant robots beating the crap out of each other! Other than that type of show, I love a good comedy or action series :D
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Only 3 per category? You’re killing me!
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Something that might help narrow it down: Are we judging OP and ED songs on just the music, or music + animation? Or will both be competing? I’m guessing it’s nominator’s prerogative on whether to judge based on full single or TV size.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I’m dying inside just by reading the rules. It’s nearly enough to make you want to cry because of so many good choices.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Some of the rules are helping me out, tho. I can’t put Days of Dash and happy endings in for ED because Sakurasou and Tempest both continue next season. And one of the other ones I’ve been listening to a ton lately, Zannenki Rinjinbu from Haganai, was in 2011.
But you’ll need to change yours, BB, Psycho Pass continues into 2013.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I don’t think so and I think it’s possible to get away with this choice. That last episode of Psycho-Pass marks that we’re halfway through and the OP usually changes at that point. It was the same for Shiki and Guilty Crown. Proven by the fact that Psycho-Pass is going through a break period just as the two mentioned animes did. To show another similarity, all three are/have been simulcasted by Funimation so there lies the pattern.
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
True there SHOULD be a new opening for a lot of the continuing shows like Robotic;Notes and Psycho-Pass? I forget what else is going on through winter…
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I’m expecting a new opening to come along for Psycho-Pass when its break period is over given that it was the same for Guilty Crown and Shiki which also had a total of 22 episodes.
And other than Psycho-Pass and Robotics;Notes, there’s Zetsuen no Tempest, Shinsekai Yori, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo and Magi that are continuing into Winter 2013. That’s a lot of animes past the 12 episode mark for one season.
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
Well this is just a test run this year! I will see what the pros and cons are and revise it a bit because it was kind of just thrown together in a week or so xDD
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
Fufufu well one of us has to collect the votes! Adding 5+ would take a while to narrow them down >.<
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Ku ku ku. Not if you were expecting this kind of post and had the choices ready beforehand.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 77 comments
Opening: Nirvana from Inu x Boku SS hands down. Just the TV-size one, though; I thought the single version was much worse.
Ending: yume wa nandomo umarekawaru from AKB0048.
koi no beginner nan desu from Kore wa Zombie desu ka? of the Dead.
Enter Enter MISSION from Girls und Panzer.
OST: uhhh, AKB0048 and Horizon II.
Composers? dunno
BGM song: I liked the percussion/electric guitar tracks in Nisemonogatari, and the AKB0048 instrumental versions of existing AKB48 songs.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 77 comments
How did I forget this ED:
Sweets Parade from Inu x Boku SS. Too adorable.
But which one of the other ones to kick off? rrrrrrrgh
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
OP: Inu x Boku SS OMG DAT OP! I loved it so much and I almost forgot about that one thanks for the reminder…yeah Panzer and OTD had some fun openings.
OST: I like Horizon OST <3
Composers: Yeah same I only know Yasuharu Takanashi for doing Smile Precure, Oda Nobuna and Fairy Tail.
BGM: Ooooh very nice! Nisemonogatari and AKB0048 were nice.
ED: Sweets Parade = HNNGGGGAAA SO CUTEEEEE I DIED
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Hey, Fosh. You’re setting off the alarms on my radar with that picture. That girl wouldn’t happen to be a vampire, right? Those bright colored wings look very familiar. Not only that, if it is, then it’s a perfect fit because the character in my avatar happens to be related to her.
Only 3 OPs for this year that’s been flooded with a good number of them? Oh, just kill me now because this pain is torture!!!
If you take a look at Miyu’s “12 Days of Anime #5 – Nicolove in Animusic” post, you’ll see I have a lot of favorites but these are my choices:
That Epic Opening:
Tasogare Otome x Amnesia: OP: [CHOIR JAIL] by Konomi Suzuki
Psycho-Pass: OP: [abnormalize] by Ling Tosite Sigure
Jormungand: OP: [Borderland] by Mami Kawada
Teh Coolest Ending:
Tasogare Otome x Amnesia: ED: [Calendrier] by Aki Okui
Psycho-Pass: ED: [Namae no nai Kaibutsu ] by EGOIST
Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse: ED1: [signs—Saku Tsukiichi Yoru] by Minami
Da Awesomest OST:
Another
Jormungand
[K]
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
That second girl? I dunno what she is all I know is she is a Touhou character named flandre scarlet, but I always liked her design that and it was hard to find any good music themed pics~
Yeah I suppose next time we will up it to 5 because it is year ender…maybe ill change it for the next awards? I will see what I can do!
OP: CHOIR JAIL FTW!
ED: Wooo Psycho-Pass
OST: I like all of those, but I haven’t listened to much of the Another OST maybe I will search da youtubes xD
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Flandre Scarlet and Touhou. Thanks for the info because it made a good confirmation and it’s just as I thought. I knew about Touhou and some of its characters because of one of Karakuri’s posts. Flandre is a vampire and she’s the sister to my avatar’s character Remilia Scarlet. I’m skilled at noticing things like that. LOL. Never underestimate the Vampire Lover!!!
Yeah, at the end of the year, it’s hard choosing your favorites especially with a limited number of choices. 2012 did very well with music so you understand why it’s so difficult.
Tasogare Otome x Amnesia and Psycho-Pass are great music wise as well as story wise which is quite a rarity. Usually, you’d have to settle for one or the other and that’s depressing.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Yōko Fanboy with 1246 comments
WHY MUST YOU DO THIS TO ME! D: This year has been a great year for music in my opinion. Not just in terms of the awesome jazz anime Sakamichi no Apollon, but I found myself *cough* downloading *cough* more songs than usual ;D But Metanorn’s rules are Metanorn’s rules… but with my very bad memory, I might add more later on in the future 😛
That Epic Opening
Maybe it’s because it’s a recent show and I can’t remember much from the past but I really enjoy listening to Tonari no Kaibutsu’s OP. It’s happy and energetic and very very catchy! I fell in love with it after the first listen! But also I think Tsuritama’s OP was a nice song too. It was definitely catchy, and it only became more enjoyable when we all tried to copy the dance moves on screen XD
(YOU KNOW YOU DID IT TOO, DON’T LIE!!!)
Teh Coolest Ending
Err…. how many ending songs were there for Guilty Crown? 2… or was it 3? Don’t remember it being 4 but ANYWAYS yeah, I can’t think of anything else and GC came into my mind first so I’ma gonna go with that XD Supercell always makes good music so why not right? I do remember them being awesome songs XD So I nominate all the ED’s BUT if there’s more than 3, tell me and then I’ll change my nominations ^^
Da Awesomest OST
Sakamichi no Apollon showed me the beauty of jazz music and that OST lives on in my playlist as the most longest OST selections that have stayed in the playlist (I roughly clean out music each month and a half or 2). I think that if you had also watched Sakamichi no Apollon, you might also start to like jazz a bit more! Try it out! I highly recommend this series!
Kick Ass Composer
I’m just gonna go with a composer I know off by heart and that’s Kajiura Yuki. She has done a marvelous job in Fate/Zero and I’m sure most of you would agree with me on this ;D I loved how she captured each moment with a befitting tune; no matter what the atmosphere, it always seemed to fit. I’m just disappointed that they had to cut off SO MUCH from the light novels.
That Catchy BGM Tune
That one tune which plays during a serious/romantic moment most of the time between Haru and Shizuku in Tonari no Kaibutsu! OMG It’s so adorable~!!! It really sets the mood for any of the romance in Tonari, not just Haru X Shizuku <3
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
OST:
For OST, I really only have one name. Usually I don’t really notice the background music, only when it’s done so wrong so as to break immersion. But for me, one show stood out with its use of music all around:
Tari Tari
Maybe it’s a little cheating to call it all OST, but Kokoro no Senritsu and radiant melody are two really good songs, sung by some really great singers.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Oh, I thought of another one for OST: Girls und Panzer. All that great martial music, thematically keyed to the country of the school that was being shown, and Katyusha for an insert song.
POWUH: iLurker with 6 comments
Soo many to choose from, but…
OPs:
Kuroko op 2: because it gets you hyped up for the show to start.
Robotics notes OP: cuz it’s awesome!
Phi-Brain op 2: cuz it’s awesome times 10!!!
EDs:
Papakiki: the song is rather unique.
Psycho pass: the way the show transitions into the ED is really cool!
Another: without this song, many viewers would have gone into depression.
OST
Kuroko: exhilarating!
Tonari: warm and emotional.
Phi-Brain: listen to the first track of the OST. You’ll think the show is about Arabia… in general.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Alright, let’s give this a try for the hard stuff: OP’s!
1. Natsuiro Kiseki – Non-Stop Road by Sphere
Powerful and uplifting, the song brightens cloudy days and is stunning on clear ones.
2. Nisemonogatari – Platinum Disco by Iguchi Yuka
Overall, the music from Nisemonogatari was not as good as Bakemonogatari (this would be 4th at best if you included songs from Bake…) but it was still a fun song, and the dancing in the OP animation was lots of fun.
3. Rinne no Lagrange – Try Unite! by Nakajima Megumi
This song is catchy, but also slightly melancholy, and has those lovely sections where it just builds tension, and builds, and builds at least two levels past where you expect it to release and keep going, until finally it releases it with that iconic “Maru!”
Honorable Mentions since we’re limited to 3 nominations (maybe someone else will nominate them ;)):
Oda Nobuna – Link by Aimi
Arcana Famiglia – Magenta Another Sky by Harada Hitomi
Sankarea – Esoragoto by nano.RIPE
Accel World – Burst the Gravity by Altima (this song is soooo corny, but catchy)
Busou Shinki – InstallxDream by VA of the show (this song would have been a serious contender for my top 3 if they hadn’t mixed their voices to sound like it’s sung by The Chipmunks)
Chuu2koi – Sparkling Daydream by ZAQ
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
ED Songs:
1. Chuu2koi – Inside Identity by Black Raison d’Etre
– Personally, I like the ZAQ B-side version better than the Black Raison d’Etre version used in the show, but the song was still great in both versions.
2. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita – Yume no Naka no Watashi no Yume by Ito Masumi
– I don’t know if a single song captured the spirit of the show it was with better than this song, with Ito’s lilting, ethereal voice perfectly complementing the whimsical yet bittersweet melody.
3. Hyouka – Kimi ni Matsuwaru Mystery – Satou Satomi and Kayano Ai
– A catchy song with an absolutely perfect animated vignette accompanying it, Chitanda and Ibara chasing Oreki and Fukube and catching them, only to see them get away. Worth seeing just for Houtarou and Satoshi stepping along like villains from a silent movie.
Honorable Mentions again:
Sankarea – Above Your Hand by Annabel – just a lovely touching song (“I want you to wake up next to me… tomorrow too”).
Accel World – Unite by Misawa Sachika
Binbougami – Koi Boudou by Happy Birthday
Rinne no Lagrange – Jersey-bu Tamashi by VA’s in the show – Concept elevates this one.
Girls und Panzer – Enter Enter Mission by VA’s in the show – CHIBI BOUNCY TANKS (and the Fuukiin are soooo cute in the B1)!
Zetsuen no Tempest – Happy Endings by Hanazawa Kana – Flashback to the 70’s
Sakurasou – Days of Dash by Suzuki Konomi
POWUH: iLurker with 5 comments
Opening and Ending:
Fate/Zero TV2
OST:
Sword Art online
Composer: Yuki Kajiura
POWUH: 500-599 with 543 comments
Opening:
1. To The Beginning by Kalafina from Fate/Zero 2. Perfection for the show, especially the title. And it’s Kalafina.
2. If it counts (I’m not 100% sure) Symphogear by Nana Mizuki. Obviously, because it was Nana Mizuki, and also because it was a good choice for the show, since it was partially about singing.
Ending:
1. Fate/Zero 2: Sora wa Tataku Kaze wa Utau. (I can’t remember the English name) by Haruna Luna. Again, it was perfect for the show and it’s beautiful on its own.
2. Natsuyuki Rendezvous: See You. So pretty. So pretty. So pretty. So pretty.
3. Psycho-Pass’s ED by Egoist. It’s funny to see Egoist doing something for another futuristic anime.
OST:
Horizon 2, I guess. There really wasn’t much anime for great OST’s this year.
Composer:
1. Yuki Kajiura, for the Madoka movies and SAO. (Not sure about Fate/Zero, it wasn’t her best work.)
2.
BGM tune:
Hiding Determination of Horizon S2. It’s quite wonderful and upbeat while building energy throughout the song without losing anything.
POWUH: 500-599 with 543 comments
Oops, no #2 for Composer. Forgot about that.
POWUH: 400-499 with 489 comments
Kuroko no Basuke’s OST was Da best i’ve ever heard in a long time
POWUH: iLurker with 2 comments
I am going to assume that series with 20+ episodes that started in 2011 but continued and finished in 2012 count (this includes Fate/Zero, Guilty Crown and Shana III).
The Epic Opening
– Supercell – My Dearest (Guilty Crown OP 1)
– Kotoko – Light my Fire (Shana III OP 1)
Da Awesome OST
– Fate/Zero
– Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II
Kick Ass Composer
– Kajiura Yuki
That Catchy BGM Tune
– The Mainstream Song (SAO)
– Bios (Guilty Crown)
– Hiding Determination (Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II)
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
the epic opening – “Mune kyun-kei no ballad” from Natsuyuki Rendezvous. Well, not epic, but very emotional and touching <3
BGM – Psycho-pass.
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
That Epic Opening
Futakotome, the 1st opening to Nisemonogatari and a sequel of sorts to Bakemonogatari‘s Staple Stable, was the best of the many openings of that series. (Even if Tsukihi’s Platinum Disco ended up the more memorable one this year). The energy of Joshiraku‘s opening Thank You For Your Appreciation was infectious and perfect for the series. The dancing of Tsuritama‘s opening was just as infectious.
Teh Coolest Ending
Nisemonogatari‘s ending Naisho no Hanashi by Ryo was fun enough to write a whole post on. Joshiraku was another show that excelled on both ends with an ending just as catchy as its opening. And another Ryo work, Guilty Crown‘s ending Confession was quite the excellent song in a not so excellent series.
Da Awesomest OST
Nisemonogatari really surprised me with its music. Bakemonogatari‘s wasn’t bad, but this was even a step above. Just wonderful work by Satoru Kosaki. Tanaka Kouhei’s Hyouka soundtrack was wonderful too, bringing to mind his earlier work on Diebuster, giving the same sense of wonder as that show, except in a mystery high school setting. And I don’t know if Girls und Panzer should count as an original soundtrack, but it deserves props for its great use of famous and well known public domain (and should-be-public domain) music.
Kick Ass Composer
The abovementioned Staoru Kosaki and Tanaka Kouhei would be my picks.
That Catchy BGM Tune
Girls und Panzer‘s Katyusha counts thanks to the instrumental version being used in the background in the 9th episode. Nisemonogatari‘s aptly titled Pleasure taught us the joys of brother-sister toothbrushing. Mysterious Girlfriend X‘s Strange Dream was an oft-repeated piece in that show, used in some unforgettably bizarre dream scenes.
POWUH: Meta Resident with 1557 comments
Late to the party but here are my picks:
That Epic Opening
Rinne no Lagrange “Try Unite!” – Sparkly animation and Nakajima Megumi? Pure win.
Binbougami ga! “Make My Day!” – It’s just so catchy. One! Two! Three!
Girls und Panzer “Dream Riser” – Just.So.Cute. And catchy music!
Honorable mention: Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun “Q&A Recital!” – “Fresh Ass for You”! ^^
Worst OP – Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai! “Sparkling Daydream” – I just had to add this. The schizo animation hurt my brain.
Teh Coolest Ending
Rinne no Lagrange “Hello”! – Nakajima Megumi and cute animation.
Da Awesomest OST
I think there’s only one OST I’ve ever enjoyed and kept, and that would be Kaichou wa Maid-sama. Most other OSTs I just breeze through. So no nominations.
Kick Ass Composer
No Comment (as that would require me actually knowing who theya re in the first place – I struggle with remembering VA names).
That Catchy BGM Tune
Rinne no Lagrange – the BGM was well done, or at least it made my experience more enjoyable.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
OH OH! Another had some amazing BGM and soundeffects. It’s definitely worth mentioning.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
AND BANZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIII for random Kise-kun karaoke fun <3 <3 <3 can't wait 'till spring to get to see Kuroko no Basket again ^_^
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
OP: Phi Brain S2, Mirai Nikki (1st OP), Kuroko no Basuke (1st OP)
ED: Phi Brain
OST: Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita, Jormungand, K
BGM Tune: “Time to Attack” Jormungand, “Fushigi na Jikan” Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
Oh yeah, K did have quite the nice soundtrack, though it wasn’t the best used. A little overbearing at times, like that blue filter. Jormungand was a fine one too, and catchy as hell.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Oh I have to add one more for ED:
Highschool DxD – STUDYxSTUDY mostly for the animation. Who am I kidding, entirely for the animation.
I would have nominated this before, but I was too busy watching it…
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Hahaha, I don’t blame you. It was a guilty pleasure. The ED was too alluring with the girls doing their own dance on that pole. Don’t forget Koneko’s scissor kick.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Koneko’s too loli for me (she’s all yours, skylion). It’s all Rias and Akeno (“fufufu”) for me.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I’m totally with you on Rias and Akeno (their personalities and smokin’ hot bodies) but what’s your vote on Asia?
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Distant also-ran, like behind Souna and Grayfia. Heck, I’d rather just hang out with Koneko (who does have a fun personality, I’m just not into lolis as objects of desire) than be around Asia. She’s nice enough I guess, but needy and ditzy and always behind the curve.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Her innocence and ditziness are what makes Asia so cute. Those alone are enough to win my tolerance of her in spite of being so needy and slow on the uptake.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
And in honor of BB’s current comment count:
“Attention all planets of the Solar Federation!
We have assumed control.”
http://youtu.be/LQEgZNqa8jE
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Nice! Thanks for the honor, Highway. My comment count sure came at an opportune time for that.
POWUH: 1000-1099 and Pirate King with 1048 comments
That Epic Opening
“Escape” by Hemenway from E7 AO. And the electrical version included with the single is even more epic.
Also the Phi Brain opening (I don’t even watch that show) and Mirai Nikki’s 2nd OP.
Teh Coolest Ending
PapaKiki’s ED “Coloring” by Yui Horie just as a song. Also “Gekko Symphonia” from Aquarion Evol. Video included, “Study x Study” from Highschool DXD.
Da Awesomest OST
Sakamichi no Apollon. All that jazz. Fate Zero and E7 AO, also.
Kick Ass Composer
Yuki Kajiura
That Catchy BGM Tune
“Rock and Roll Boobs” from Jormungand.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Don’t forget the French rapping from time to time on Jormungand: Perfect Order. For example, during the launch of Koko’s satellite on the first episode.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I don’t know if this was one of the best OP songs of the year, but I wanted to mention Rakuen Project from To-LOVE-Ru: Darkness. I’m not the biggest techno fan, but I like the drive the song has, and it’s special because it really is basically Momo singing about what she’s going to do for Rito. I’m kind of surprised they didn’t just have Toyosaki Aki sing it, as much as it is explaining the harem plan. Some of the lines:
“Believe in me and I’ll show you paradise. Jump into the garden of love, and we’ll dream the best dream together.”
“You want to make everyone happy, so let’s turn this into the biggest scandal in the galaxy!”
“Just trust the Ohimesama, I’ve got the courage to open the door for you.”
“The target is you, the one I want to be next to forever”
“Trust me, and I’ll put Paradise before your eyes.”
Yeah, they’re my really crappy translations, but I don’t think it’s really far off the meaning.