My strange music tastes

Not the usual post, but I guess it's still about my obsession? With the release of Hayley Kiyoko's debut album Expectations, I've decided to talk about my very, very strange music tastes.



I'm not someone you'd consider very knowledgeable in the music scene. As a former weeb the only songs I ever listened to are anime openings and endings and osts. Until now my music genre has always been soundtracks. Years ago with my introduction to Assassin's Creed, I was exposed to more english songs which are not my childhood. Lorde, Zella Day, Woodkid, to name a few. I even have a whole playlist for AC trailer music. Of all the artists featured in the playlist, only Woodkid stuck with me. We'll come back to it later.

Final Fantasy XV, after it's long 10-year development hell was finally released in 2016, alongside a single dedicated to the game by Florence + the Machine. Florence Welch is... incredible. Her music is soothing to my ears, unlike the more well-known pop artists. Most importantly, I can damn well hear what she was singing! I have been into ambient and alternative genres for a while, and Florence + the Machine just came at the exact right moment.



After this I started looking for similar artists, with little to no success. My specific genre for english pop/rock is alternative or folk. Aurora's eerie atmospheres are a recent favourite following Lana Del Rey's melancholic tunes. Then comes some synthpop from Halsey, upbeat funk from Janelle Monae (she looks so good in suits) and many other small indie artists. They all share a common aspect: I can actually hear what they're singing, even though they might not produce music of my taste. Famous pop artists like Lady Gaga are some of my go-to for upbeat pop, but rarely can I ever understand their lyrics, and they produce music for a wide variety of genres.









So my selection process for english pop is as follows: genre - audibility - lyrics/themes

And then there's Woodkid...

Woodkid is a really special and weird case. He's french, but produces english music. There's a thick accent to his songs, and sometimes I have no idea what the lyrics are. But his songs are my jam, my personal favourite of which is The Golden Age. It's hard to explain why I'm so fond of his style.



If I had a specific route for english music, then I have no guidelines for J-pop. My japanese music experience consists of anime songs, which can include all kinds of genres, the staple being pop and rock. While I lean more towards 'epic' types more than 'cheerful' or 'melancholy', if it's from my fave anime, there's no way I won't listen to it. I don't care who sings what most of the time; there was a time I had heavy metal and rap in my music libraries because the anime featured it! However in recent years I have been more picky with my choices. My japanese music preference is larger than my english one, so let's get started!

A major factor that influences my choice is the composer. Since many anime songs are produced in conjunction with the soundtrack, the composers get to write OP, ED and insert songs for the artists. Yuki Kajiura is one such composer, having not just involved in one, but two groups! FictionJunction and Kalafina has great vocalists and paired up with Kajiura's brilliance, had me stanning them since my childhood. Her collaborations with See-Saw also saw me getting hooked into Gundam SEED and its sequel. There's also Yoko Kanno, who worked on Macross Frontier and collaborated with amazing vocalist ORIGA (bless her soul). She is the reason why I'm still listening to Macross Delta's songs even though they're not as amazing as Frontier's, because I'm smitten with the franchise. Hiroyuki Sawano appeared in my radar in 2013 with the release of KILL la KILL and his unique and unusual music style, with breaks and the use of vocals, which I like A LOT. He even has his own vocal project "SawanoHiroyuki[nZk]", with albums that feature many artists including Aimer.







By now you might know I'm a big fan of vocal work. It's not surprising Final Fantasy XIII-2 has one of my favourite soundtracks, due to its massive vocal tracks. And you know who is also very well known for composing soundtracks with vocals - Keiichi Okabe. He is most well known for his work on generally-not-so-well-known Nier and very-well-known-and-praised Nier: Automata of 2017. He even got so many awards/nominations the director Yoko Taro got salty about it! His music is already in a playlist I named "Woke". If Okabe is well known, then I have another fave who isn't necessarily appreciated enough by the fans: Go Shiina of God Eater and Tales fame. He is responsible for God Eater's soundtrack, but sadly only ever composed for one Tales game which didn't really sell well. He did collaborate with series staple Motoi Sakuraba in Tales of Zestiria... but that's only one disc of his works. Go Shiina has a way of mashing music of very different genres together to make epic pieces, and like Sawano, has odd breaks and vocals mixed in. Honorable mentions go to Shoji Meguro of Shin Megami Tensei and Persona and Yoko Shimomura of Kingdom Hearts.






Nothing tops Sea of Rage. Nothing. But this will do.

Composers influence my choice of soundtracks (and some Jpop), but without them, it's an entirely different story. There are a few artists that I listen to exclusively, some because of their genre, some because of their voice. Continuing my love for vocal works, Akiko Shikata to me is the master of them all. An indie artist, you won't see her in mainstream media, unless you know about lesser-known Gust (of Atelier fame) franchise Ar tonelico. That's as mainstream as she gets. Though she has contributed to Akatsuki no Yona and Tales of Symphonia OVA in the past few years... Partnered with Haruka Shimotsuki (indie artist and otome games vocalist) and Noriko Mitose, both great vocalists, they brought me into the world of Ar tonelico through their singing. at first it was only the three of them, until KOKIA (along with others) joined the party with the third installment.


One of Akiko's older songs.


With Haruka Shimotsuki (red) in Ar tonelico 2.

KOKIA oh boi. This woman, like Florence Welch, is incredible. If Florence + the Machine was alternative, KOKIA was folk. Her songs are rarely upbeat or cheerful, mostly hopeful and soothing, like a cool breeze on a sunny day, sitting in the garden under the porch with tea and biscuits. The most epic you'll ever hear are the ones she did for animes and games, and even then they sound sorrowful and bittersweet. And here's the kicker: she contributed to the Final Fantasy XIII-2 soundtrack. She's even in Dark Souls!





After KOKIA there's... Ayumi Hamasaki. Her genre is a far cry from my usual alternative/folk. She's a pop star! Her songs are a mix of pop and all kinds of electronic. How I came to like her music is still a mystery to me, but it definitely started with the openings of Tales of Xillia and its sequel. Out of all the opening songs, hers was the only one that didn't use the beginning, but the middle chorus. Try as I might, I have no idea why they did it; is this the brilliance of her composition? Sad news: she's becoming deaf. Universe bless her.







Straying from Ayu, I sometimes listen to Utada Hikaru's music, thanks to Beautiful World which was introduced to me when I was 12??? I think??? From a Jpop compilation lyric book??? It took me around 3 years to realise the song came from EVA, then some when I started Kingdom Hearts. MIND BLOWN.


Her english songs are also ~amazing~!!!

So the process is mostly anime - genre - composer - artist. But I mostly go for epic vocals. But my music tastes always change.