SLAYERS ETCETERA (1):
Excellent! Lina Inverse also leaves today

King Records
KICA 250
95.7.5 (until 97.7.4)
52:44 (18 tracks: 3 Vocal, 2 Drama)
¥3000

1. Get Along (4:07)
2. Oh! What Lovely Lina (3:01)
3. I Want This World (2:57)
4. kakuteyuushawa tabidatan (2:28)
5. ikinashi taitate (2:51)
6. Gourry THE WARRIOR (3:45)
7. Slayers Club (1) {Drama} (2:48)
8. seisenden (3:10)
9. akahoushi lezo(1:41)
10. douchuuki (3:43)
11. nemurenai yoru wa (4:58)
12. Nightmare (1:25)
13. M Is For Monster (2:52)
14. hiroikku akushyon o doozo [Heroic Action Please] (3:07)
15. shouri wa watashi no tame ni aru (1:49)
16. Slayers Club (2) [Drama] (3:11)
17. KUJIKENAI KARA! (4:32)
18. kantekunakya, abarechauzo! (0:19)

Most of my anime CD purchases spawn from hearing a good theme song to a show, then picking up the soundtrack in hopes that the rest of the CD is just as good. In this case, the TV show is SLAYERS, and the song is "Get Along". And with SLAYERS ETCETERA (1), I was not disappointed.
As the confusing title suggests, this CD contains a variety of tracks. It includes full versions of the opening and ending songs from the original SLAYERS TV anime, 1 new image vocal song, 2 short original drama tracks, and many of the major background music pieces used in the show. For sanity reasons however, just think of it as the SLAYERS Original Soundtrack vol. 1.
All the songs on this disk were performed by veteran seiyuu Hayashibara "She's everywhere" Megumi (who also plays Lina Inverse) and Okui Masami. Their voices and ability are very similar and work well with each other, though Megumi comes out sounding a little bit rougher than Masami.
"Get Along" is the fast upbeat pop opening song for the series, and my favorite of the three songs on this disk. The track even includes Lina's brief monologue that introduces the show each week. This single (paired with the ending theme) was a top seller among anime songs at the time of its original release.
The ending vocal "KUJIKENAI KARA!" is again an upbeat song (actually, I think all Slayers lyric music is fast), though of a more average fare.
The image song "nemurenai yoru wa" (Sleepless Night) was my surprise find of the CD: similar in style to "Get Along" but more intense in parts. This is definitely a great addition to any Slayers collection and a good song.
The two drama tracks on this CD are solo performances by Lina (Megumi) wondering where everyone else is, rambling about magic, food, etc. in the standard SLAYERS' non-serious style. Do not let this scare you off if you are looking for music though, as these tracks definitely do not dominate the time on the disk.
The background music is the primary content of this CD, with a wide variety of styles from comic to dramatic. The music is quite good, with many pieces being performed by live musicians. A few of the tracks sound like they could easily be from the LODOSS or YS series. And the disk appropriately closes with the trademark next episode preview tune.
There are more CDs in this series, but since a good part of the original TV background soundtrack is contained on this CD, the others tend to have rehashed material (the TV length versions of the opening and endings for instance) and contain more image or drama tracks. Actually, many of the background pieces on this CD are even still being used in SLAYERS NEXT.
So if you are searching for the opening and ending songs from SLAYERS' first season or are interested in the major background music themes, this CD is definitely your best stop.

--Mark L. Johnson