ESCAFLOWNE: OVER THE SKY

Victor Entertainment
VICL-769
59:11 (16 tracks: 4 Vocal)
96.6.5
¥3000

1. Yakusoku wa Iranai (3:32)
2. Flying Dragon (2:37)
3. Dance of Curse (4:06)
4. Murder (4:01)
5. Escaflowne (2:06)
6. Angel (2:18)
7. Cubic (2:06)
8. Romance (5:43)
9. NE ZU MI (3:24)
10. Wings (3:34)
11. Gloria (6:58)
12. Eyes (2:57)
13. Empty the Pocket (4:01)
14. White Dove (5:36)
15. Mystic Eyes (4:16)
16. De-ja Blue (1:16)




THE VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE, currently making its run on television in Japan, finally released its first soundtrack CD early in June. Though the cover art is too simple and cute for my tastes, the music contained within redeems itself for me.
Kanno Yoko along with Mizoguchi Hajime are responsible for arranging and composing all the music on this CD (except for Mystic Eyes, the ending theme). Kanno Yoko, recently best known for her work with MACROSS PLUS and the Magnetic Rose episode in MEMORIES, should not let fans down with her large contribution to this soundtrack. Mizoguchi Hajime, whose recent works include composing the PLEASE SAVE MY EARTH soundtrack, also does an admirable job. Performed by the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus and members of the Rome Union Orchestra, this CD contains mostly symphonic pieces and choral works. There are also four vocals, including the opening and ending themes.
Opening the CD is a full length version of Yakusoku wa Iranai, the opening theme for ESCAFLOWNE. Written by Kanno Yoko and sung by Sakamoto Maya, this is one of the original reasons I was attracted by this collection. Maya has a clear voice, and the backing instruments and voices make this a great break from standard J-Pop music. The bagpipe interlude still mystifies me, though.
Background tracks 2-6, 9 and 10 are Kanno's pieces. The music itself is up to the standards set in her previous works, with each theme appropriately setting the mood of its title. And each track stands on its own without repeating variations of the same melody.
A detriment to some of these pieces, though, is the extensive use of the word "Escaflowne". Now, I tend to enjoy chorals in music as they help to add an epic/dramatic feel. But the piece Dance of Curse is almost just that to the listener at some points, with "Escaflowne" beautifully being repeated ad nausium. It could tend to cause nightmares if set on repeat. This is my only real nitpick in an otherwise great group of background pieces.
Mizoguchi composed the rest of the background works, and without looking at the CD track listing it is hard to tell the difference between his and Yoko's styles. If I had to make a comparison, I would say that Mizoguchi comes out a little stronger with more original but slower pieces.
Empty the Pocket is a piece I have not heard before in the show, though it was created by the same group who did the opening theme. It is a very light upbeat song with mandolins, bottles, snare drums and such. A great addition.
White Dove, performed by ACEILUX and written by Hajime Mizoguchi, is an english lyric song. A long, slow introduction with many wind oriented sounds leads into a good, well paced love song. The singing itself is performed by a male voice fluent in English, though it's hard to make out due to the instrumentals having equal weight to the vocals.
Mystic Eyes, the song which currently plays during the credits, is a light techno performed by Wada Hiroki. This is a full sized version and is selling well on the single CD lists in Japan.
And, literally winding down the CD collection, Deja Blue is a music box rendition of the opening theme.
In summary, this CD is my best buy of the month. Chanting Escaflownes aside, many of these pieces give me the impression that this is what John Williams would write if he composed anime soundtracks. Although notably missing from this disk is the next episode preview music and the second vocal found on the ESCAFLOWNE single CD, this is still a great purchase for Escaflowne fans. With the strong emphasis on symphonic pieces, if you are a fan of Kanno's or Mizoguchi's previous works you might want to check out this soundtrack as well.

-- Mark Johnson