Slightly-psychadelic J-rock band monobright released their fifth single, “Anata Magic,” early this last year. It doubles as the sixth opening theme for the popular Gintama (“Silver Soul”) TV anime series.
The opening seconds of this theme song struck me as “ear-catching,” in the most irritating of ways. I thought, “wow, I’m going to hate this single.” Despite having an awesome band name, and cool cover art for the single, I wasn’t sure I would enjoy the music. Life is like that, you know? “Don’t judge a book by its cover” and all that.
But the song grew on me. Particularly, the chorus of “Anata Magic” is fantastic. It’s simple in that the melody is straightforward, on-the-beat, and repetitious from measure to measure. But the chord progression and the intensity of the guitar playing is strong. Though it’s not as world-changing or intense as, say, “Reptilia” by The Strokes. But I get that same feel from this song.
The B-Side, however, immediately struck me as more artistic and thoughtful than the hit single. The B-Side, “ito wo kashi,” runs at a moderate tempo and features some awesome, simple guitar and vocal recordings. I don’t drink, but if I did, this would be my drinking song. I’d also like to play pool and have some shaded lamps in my room. Then this song would be awesome.
Sound enticing? You can probably find some of monobright’s music (accompanied by anime for AMVs or official OP vids) on YouTube. Else, pick up some singles, or save some money by picking up their first full album, “monobright one” (released October 2007).
