Ghost in the Shell [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack] [LP]

by Kenji Kawai

Overview

This haunting score ties in beautifully with the spirit of the Japanese animated film Ghost in the Shell, based on the books from Shirow Masamune. Composer Kenji Kawai serves up a chilled platter of deep drums, gongs, shakers, bells, female vocals, shimmering keyboards, and vaporous ambience. A somber and powerful rhythm dominates most of these tracks, but percussionist Yuhki Sugawara maintains emotional content rather than mere drum exercises, as he pounds, taps, palms, and skips across a wide array of instruments. At times this album is bleak and sparse, but always engaging. Gongs float upward from the depths like huge jellyfish, female choirs run chills down the spine, and keyboards breathe softly in the distance. A curious finale to the disc is an all-out pop song entitled "See You Everyday," also written by Kawai, with upbeat female vocals from Fang Ka Wing. Certainly this song breaks the spell the rest of the album has cast on listeners, and this overly sweet piece of candy seems very much out of place (indeed, the CD producers list this as a "bonus track"). Sadly absent from the album, however, is a piece featured in the closing credits for the theatrical release -- "One Minute Warning," performed by the Passengers (aka U2 and Brian Eno). This would have made a superior closing to the CD, by maintaining the darkness and intensity that makes this still such a great soundtrack. ~ Ken Tataki

Product Details

Release Date:	07/14/2017
Label:	We Release Whatever The Fuck We Want Records
UPC:	7640153366719
Rank:	18246

Tracks

1. Ghost in the Shell~Utai I - Making Of Cyborg
2. Ghost in the Shell~Ghosthack
3. Ghost in the Shell~Puppetmaster
4. Ghost in the Shell~Virtual Crime
5. Ghost in the Shell~Utai II - Ghost City
6. Ghost in the Shell~Access
7. Ghost in the Shell~Nightstalker
8. Ghost in the Shell~Floating Museum
9. Ghost in the Shell~Ghostdive
10. Ghost in the Shell~Utai III - Reincarnation

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Kenji Kawai   Primary Artist,Keyboards,Multi Instruments
Yuki Sugawara   Percussion
Hironori Houki   Synthesizer
Kazumi Nishida   Vocals
Uchida Group   Strings,String Ensemble
Yoshiko Itoh   Vocals
Junko Hirotani   Vocals
Yuhki Sugawara   Percussion
Fang Ka Wing   Vocals
Taeko Shirai   Vocals

Technical Credits

Kenji Kawai   Arranger,Composer,Producer,Performer,Instrumentation
Takashi Koiwa   Assistant Engineer
Andy Frain   Executive Producer
Kenji Matsunaga   Assistant Engineer
Yamashita Yasushi   Text
Shigeru Ohtake   Production Coordination
Tomoko Nakano   Production Coordination
Reiko Yasuda   Production Coordination
Shigeru Watanabe   Executive Producer
Hirozaku Funahashi   Engineer
Hiroyuki Okiura   Illustrations
Takeshi Ohhashi   Assistant Engineer
Teruhisa Tajima   Art Direction
Takeshi Inaba   Engineer
Kiyoshi Yamaguchi   A&R
Kyouhei Fukushiro   Engineer,Mixing Engineer,Mastering Engineer
Pong Chack Man   Lyricist
Ayako Koike   Design
Yoshimasa Mizuno   Producer,Executive Producer
Hideki Kodera   Assistant Engineer
Yasushi Yamashita   Text
Mamoru Oshii   Supervisor
Yasunori Yuge   Text