Otaku USA Magazine
Three Unique Jams from Anime Music Supergroup JAM Project

JAM Project

Anime and game song supergroup JAM Project has had a busy few months. Lockdown hasn’t slowed them up, with an anniversary film out and a theme for the upcoming Getter Robo finale on the way. The talented team has been making songs together for two decades, largely for mecha series and action-packed shows like One-Punch Man.

But the group’s themes sometimes range outside their home turf. While they’re a mainstay of Super Robot Wars and giant robot anime, they’ve also lent their unique sound to completely different genres. Here are a few themes from the band, ranging from kids’ shows to the world of tokusatsu.

 

Sgt. Frog: “Hello Darwin! ~Curiosity on Demand~”

Mine Yoshizaki’s adorable alien invader series Sgt. Frog (a.k.a. Keroro Gunsou) is not lacking for themes. The super-referential series boasts 11 openings and 17 endings. And of those 28 songs, two — plus a third for the “Episode 0” film short — are by JAM Project!

Opening 9, “Hello Darwin! ~Curiosity on Demand~,” exemplifies childish curiosity and adventure, with the driving beat and big chorus that exemplifies the band. As seriously as Sgt. Frog and his team may think they take their mission, this summer vacation imagination vibe is much closer to how things go.

 

Scrapped Princess: “Little Wing”

While JAM Project may be best known for their epic harmonies and big battle tunes, they can also pull it back a bit when they need to. Fans of the band in concert will know they often have an acoustic portion, and the opening from 2003 anime Scrapped Princess is a mainstay in that portion.

The genre-bending fantasy from BONES is the story of an ancient prophecy, focused on a princess named Pacifica whose latent power could destroy the world. The truth of that prophecy is a lot more convoluted than it first seems. The band, with regular member Masami Okui on lead vocals, brings a traditional feel, with an undertone of something even vaster waiting to be revealed.

 

GARO: “GARO ~Savior in the Dark~”

From anime to the world of tokusatsu, JAM Project brought its powerful sound to the world of GARO. The series, about Makai Knights who fight paranormal Horrors that cross over into our world, spawned a number of sequels and spinoffs over the years.

The band is a mainstay of the GARO franchise, creating music for the show ever since the first series. This theme served as the opening for the second half of the original show. Not only that, group member Hironobu Kageyama voices the sentient magical ring Zaruba across the franchise’s many iterations.

We’ve got high expectations for JAM Project’s latest Getter Robo involvement. In the meantime, what’s your favorite song from the group?

Kara Dennison

Kara Dennison is a writer, editor, and presenter with bylines at Crunchyroll, Sci-Fi Magazine, Sartorial Geek, and many others. Beyond the world of anime, she's a writer for Doctor Who expanded universe series including Iris Wildthyme and the City of the Saved, as well as an editor for the critically-acclaimed Black Archive series.

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