Customer Reviews

Ghost In The Shell: Original Soundtrack (1995 Anime Film)

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am a big Ghost in the Shell fan, so this CD is pretty much essential to my collection of music. The score for GITS is powerful and moving, and it plays an essential role in displaying the ominous, breath-taking mood of the movie. I wasn't sure if I'd enjoy listenting to the music by itself, since I usually listen to rock, blues, and a little jazz. I soon found out that this CD is very enjoyable. It's excellent study music, since it's slow and has few vocals.

The CD begins with the movie's theme song, and eventually gives it two VERY different variations with "Ghost City" and "Reincarnation." "Ghosthack" is a bit odd, since the first two minutes of the song is pure drumbeat before the keyboards and other instruments are heard. However, the solo drumbeat seems to describe the suspense in some of the first scenes of GITS. My personal favorite is "Nightstalker," with what sounds like a beautiful guitar or mandolin solo with a synthesizer in the background. I find myself skipping back to that track after the CD is over. Too bad "Nighstalker" couldn't be longer than a minute and a half! All the other tracks are really cool, however, the last track of J-Pop (Japanese Pop) doesn't really fit the CD's mood, since the track is very happy and has a comparitavely faster pace. It might have been played during the credits, because I don't remeber it at all from the movie.

If you're looking for a CD to jam and play air guitar with, this isn't your cup of tea. But if you want a CD that is great for study music and setting a unique mood in a room, then this is the CD for you. And by the way, if you have not seen Ghost in the Shell, do so, and then you'll really be able to appreciate the soundtrack.

For those of you who are still clueless as to why track 11 was included in the soundtrack, go watch the movie again. If you listen carefully you can hear the song playing in the background during the chase scene in the market place. FYI, the song's in "cantonese" not japanese.

After the first time I saw Ghost, I was mesmerized by the film. After the second time, I was still amazed, but I also noticed the ending credits score was some of the best music I'd ever heard.

So I went out and got the soundtrack, but was (very) disappointed to find the one piece I wanted was absent. Then I went out and got the DVD to confirm that I hadn't hallucinated that there was something different at the end. But looking at the closing credits, I found the title for the ending credits was only published outside N. America.

Unfortunately, the album Amazon is selling here does not contain the ending track "One Minute Warning" by legendary musician Brian Eno and U2. The rest of the tracks on the album are all pretty good, but most are very similar -- with the slow drum beat, and Chinese chanting.

Incidentally, the ending credits from the original Japanese version of Ghost (which is still a pretty good score) is included on the album. Also, "One Minute Warning" can be found on an album called "Passengers".

-Jason

I bought this CD years ago, [and the money] I had spent was worth it. I love the music, it combines elemnets of traditional Japanese folk music (temple bells, chanting,and I think koto)with some synths. Some tracks, if not all of them, are great for meditation, yoga, or just thinking about the grander things in life. Kawaii has outdone himself with this soundtrack. Defintely worth the high price.

OK...for all of you who saw the American version, the last song that's played during the closing credits is called "One Minute Warning" and it was actually sung by U2 (I think...don't quote me on that)That song can be found on a CD called "Passengers"- this CD has very cool music too. The last song on the import CD is the song in the Japanese-language version closing credits of Ghost in the Shell. I searched for a loooong time for "One Minute Warning". Hope this helps.

Mostly, I'm not very excited by soundtracks as most seem to sound rather jejune and insipid without the movie to back them. This of course is perfectly comprehensible; soundtracks are supposed to be purely there for the ambience, never distracting you from the movie. However, some gifted composers have made masterpieces in their own right that somehow manage to be unobtrusive while the movie plays and at the same time reveal themselves as beatiful pieces of music on their own.

Vangelis' Blade Runner soundtrack is one of them; this is another. While it will NOT be everyone's cup of tea, the beautifully percussive pieces that dominate the album create a magical atmosphere all their own that refuses to leave long after the album has been played. These pieces are gorgeously sparse and elegantly japanese; Kawai at his best. And the more melodic pieces (Making Of A Cyborg, Nightstalker) are wonderfully haunting, fusing such diverse components (shamisen, synth pads, strings, choral parts) that it seems impossible they shall work... but they do!

The only flaw is that the japanese (being compulsively thorough) thought it a good idea to include as a bonus track the incidental pop piece "I See You Everyday". It's dreadful! I really can't stress how much this piece ruins the soundtrack, but I guess it's a small price to pay for what is otherwise VERY powerful music by Kenji Kawai.

this is an excellent ost. however the prices for this that I have seen are much to high. A company in California sells this cd import for 18.00 dollars, and shiping is a couple of bucks.

Ghost in the Shell is my favorite anime film of all time, and the soundtrack is one reason why. It is, in my opinion, the best anime soundtrack I've ever heard. It combines the haunting rhythms of folk drums with computer synth sounds and choral chants to produce a truly haunting sound. The first time I saw the film, I was captivated by the musical interlude (which I later learned was "Floating Museum").

But it is definitely pricey considering the length, and some of the tracks don't stand well on their own. To me, it is worth owning the soundtrack because it helps to evoke the mood of the film, a mood that I find conducive to work. If you haven't seen the film, I recommend you first watch the film and then decide if the music moves you. To me, the soundtrack and the film go hand in hand. Kenji Kawai and Mamoru Oshii are perfectly in synch in this collaboration.

Excellent disc, but don't buy it if you're looking for fast japanese music. Percussions are worked carefully, organized to fit the other sounds. The sound layers are complex and extremely beautiful. This record has, in deed, a Vangelis-like sound, it reminds me of Antarctica. By the way, as a Pizzicato Five fan, I really enjoyed the poppy extra-track.

It's great music.you don't have to see movie to enjoy this music.even I don't understand lyric still like it.Lyric of track 1,5 and 10 must be written with ancien Japanese probably around 4 or 5 century. I can pick some words but can't make sense from there. then track 11 is Cantonese of cause I don't understand but I like the song.Talk about track 11, English title is never presented anywhere on CD or liner note.All I get from liner note is lyric writing by Pong Canck Man, sing by 15 years old girl Fang Ka Wing, how Kawai struggle to find right person to sing and all these happen because Oshii wants short Cantonese song. but when I play this CD with my computer while connecting internet,media player shows track 11 title as " See you eveyday " I could be wrong but that must be the English translasion.

Im a big fan of the movie, in my opinion one of the best pieces of anime yet produced. a fantastic story, incredible quality of artwork, and an awesome soundtrack.

the soundtrack CD is one of the most atmospheric pieces of ambient music ive come across. the main theme appears three times, once at the beginning, once in the middle, and once at the end, changing each time, mirroring Kusanagi's own changes - birth, awakening, and rebirth. the atmospheric tracks in between paint the picture of the city and the events in between these changes.

another reviewer wrote of the disappointment at not finding the eno/u2 track on this cd. the movie only used the first two iterations of the main theme, replacing the third and final version with this eno/u2 track. though the eno/u2 track is a great track, it is misplaced - dropped into the movie for Big Star Name Appeal - and the soundtrack CD thankfully restores the final iteration of the main theme to its rightful place.