Animetal

Animetal (アニメタル, Animetaru) was a Japanese heavy metal band who specialized in metal covers of theme songs from classic and modern Japanese anime and tokusatsu television series.

They were composed of several luminaries of the Japanese metal scene, most notably vocalist Eizo Sakamoto, who has been involved off and on with Anthem (one of the first Japanese heavy metal bands to achieve name recognition outside Japan in the 1980s) as well as participating in various other projects including the pop rock group Nerima, the JAM Project, and a successful solo career where he also plays lead guitar as well as vocals.

As of 2006, the band is currently on indefinite hiatus. Sakamoto has since begun a similar project called Eizo Japan, but in 2013 he announced that he and She-Ja were reforming Animetal as Aisenshi (哀旋士).

Style

Their music can be classified as speed metal and power metal with a very high level of musical virtuosity, especially on the guitarists' (initially She-Ja for the first four albums, then Syu from Animetal Marathon V to the present) and bassist Masaki's parts. Masaki, in particular from Animetal Marathon IV onward, has shown an intensely active and aggressive approach to his instrument with fluid soloing, manic slapping and popping, energetic fills, and crashing chords for punctuation. The albums are structured as nearly seamless barrages of short songs woven into well-structured medleys that sound as though the band simply enters the studio and lays down virtually the entire album from start to finish in one go, with occasional overdubs and breaks in the action here and there.

Animetal USA

Animetal USA (アニメタルUSA, Animetaru Yū Esu Ē) is a Japan-based American heavy metal band formed as a tribute to Eizo Sakamoto's band Animetal. They made their world debut at the 2011 Loud Park Festival, where they performed on stage with Momoiro Clover Z.

The band's original members consisted of lead vocalist Mike Vescera (formerly of Loudness, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Obsession), guitarist Chris Impellitteri (of Impellitteri), bassist Rudy Sarzo (currently with the Geoff Tate lineup of Queensrÿche; formerly of Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne, and Whitesnake), and drummer Scott Travis (of Judas Priest and Racer X). In 2012, Travis departed the band to tour with Judas Priest and was replaced by Killing Machine and former Slayer and Testament drummer Jon Dette.

History

Their debut self-titled album was released on October 12, 2011, and features English-language heavy metal covers of several anime theme songs, ranging from Dragon Ball's "Makafushigi Adventure!" to Neon Genesis Evangelion's "A Cruel Angel's Thesis". The songs were arranged by Impellitteri and former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman. A second album is in production, having asked their Japanese and American fans to submit requests for songs they should cover on it.

Thrash metal

Thrash metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its fast tempo and overall aggression. The songs usually use fast percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work. The lyrics often deal with social issues and reproach for The Establishment, using direct and denunciatory language, an approach which partially overlaps with the hardcore genre.

The genre evolved in the early 1980s from combining the fast drum beats and attitude of hardcore punk with the double bass drumming, heavy and complex guitar style of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM). It emerged partially as a reaction to the more conventional and widely acceptable glam metal, a less aggressive, pop music-infused heavy metal subgenre which appeared simultaneously. Thrash metal was an inspiration for subsequent extreme genres such as death metal and black metal.

Four American bands, Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, and Slayer, are credited with pioneering and popularizing the genre. The Clash of the Titans tour (1990–1991), which featured Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax, is considered the genre's pinnacle, after which thrash metal saw a decline in popularity throughout the decade. Thrash metal has seen a resurgence in recent times, with many of the older bands returning to their roots with their new releases. A new generation of thrash metal bands emerged in the early 2000s, drawing lyrical and visual inspiration from the older groups.

Eizo Sakamoto

Eizo Sakamoto (坂本 英三, Sakamoto Eizō, also credited as さかもと えいぞう Sakamoto Eizō, February 23, 1964–) is a Japanese heavy metal musician who was born in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture. He is most famous for being the lead vocalist of 1980s band Anthem. In the 1990s he started up the band Animetal which performed heavy metal covers of anime and tokusatsu opening and closing themes. He also was involved with the anison supergroup JAM Project before reuniting with Anthem. Sakamoto then began a new project called Eizo Japan which is similar to Animetal: more heavy metal covers of theme songs post-disbanding, along with original material.

Discography

Albums

Eizo Japan

A Cruel Angel's Thesis

"A Cruel Angel's Thesis" (残酷な天使のテーゼ, Zankoku na Tenshi no Tēze, "Zankoku na Tenshi no These" in Japan) is the theme song of the popular anime Neon Genesis Evangelion performed by Yoko Takahashi. It is used as the opening to the series, and two instrumental versions of it are played in the finale episode, "Take care of yourself." These are "The Heady Feeling of Freedom" and "Good, or Don't Be", scored for violin, piano, and guitar. "The Heady Feeling of Freedom" is a somber and reflective piece for bowed strings and guitar, while "Good, or Don't Be" is played to a light piano and guitar tone. Both are considerably different in feel from the more hard driving techno-dance original. A similar, but sparser, version can also be heard during the intermission between the two parts of Evangelion: Death and Rebirth.

History

According to the liner notes to the album Refrain of Evangelion, director Hideaki Anno had originally wanted to use music from Borodin's Polovetsian Dances as the opening. The TV station (TV Tokyo) felt that audiences would be confused by a classical opening to an anime, and requested a change to a more typical or J-pop and upbeat song. The production of the result, "Zankoku na Tenshi no These", was handled by Toshimichi Ōtsuki. The original song included a male chorus, which was cut at director Hideaki Anno's request in order to "emphasize maternal affection".