The Sound of Neo-Tokyo: Akira music
Akira anime is not only a visual and narrative masterpiece, but it also boasts a soundtrack that grabs you by the gut and doesn’t let go. Every devoted fan that listen to it, feel transported back to the energy of Neo-Tokyo, the despair of Kaneda, and the unsettling atmosphere surrounding Tetsuo. It’s such an integral part of the experience that, honestly, I can’t imagine the film without it.
The mastery of Katsuhiro Otomo shines through every meticulously animated frame. However, beyond the animation and visual design, what kind of music did Otomo choose to accompany his futuristic vision of Japan? The fascinating answer is: the traditional Balinese Gamelan music.
Listen to the Akira OST
What is Gamelan Music?
Gamelan is the traditional music of the Indonesian archipelago. Although there’s no clear historical record of its origins, Javanese mythology suggests that the god of Java invented various “guns” (instruments, probably referencing gongs) in the third century to communicate with other gods. Java and its neighbor Bali are home to the oldest and most traditional styles of Gamelan. These islands have had the most enduring impact on Gamelan music, and Balinese Gamelan in particular has continued to evolve with contemporary styles characterized by exciting, upbeat, and virtuosic performances.
Geinoh Yamashirogumi: The Mastermind Behind Neo-Tokyo’s Sound
The genius responsible for this marvel is a name that might not be as familiar as other film composers, but whose work on Akira is iconic: Geinoh Yamashirogumi (芸能山城組). It’s a Japanese musical collective founded by Tsutomu Ohashi (artistically known as Shoji Yamashiro), specialized in various forms of folk music from around the world. It’s a huge collective, with many people involved from various backgrounds (doctors, engineers, students, you name it), not only musicians.
Otomo took notice of Geinoh after their hit 1986 album, Ecophony Rinne (1986) which also features a combination of world music with digital mastering. The collective is known to breathe a new life into old folk songs and blending traditional sounds with modern instruments and synthesizers. The Akira soundtrack itself is a wild ride, as they didn’t limit themselves to a symphony orchestra, but used a vast number of instruments: from the mentioned Indonesian Gamelan and taiko drums, to PPG Wave synthesizers and Roland D-50s, blending the old with electronic sounds, Bulgarian chants and many other influences. That particular fusion is what gives Akira’s soundtrack its unique and, at times, disturbing character.
An Unmistakable Style: Ritual, Chaos, and Pure Emotion
How does Indonesian folk music fit into the Neo-Tokyo of Akira? It’s a match! Gamelan music is powerful, tribal, hypnotic, and, at times, terrifying… just as Akira universe. From the moment you hear the opening theme, “Kaneda“, with its booming taiko drums and distorted synthesizers, you know you’re entering something special. The style is an amalgamation of thundering percussions, evoking something primal and ancient, alongside avant-garde electronic sounds that fully immerse you in the film’s dystopian future. There are moments of strange, almost mystical beauty, with choral chants that give you goosebumps, and others where the tension becomes almost unbearable, with dissonances and frantic rhythms that reflect the chaos on screen.
The soundtrack was originally released as a “Symphonic Suite,” which is an elegant way of saying it was conceived as a cohesive musical work that could be enjoyed on its own, not just as a cinematic accompaniment. The Symphonic Suite differs from AKIRA: Original Soundtrack in the absence of vocals and sound effects. The US edition included a series of production notes by producers David Keith Riddick and Robert Napton.
One of the most fascinating things is that the music for Akira was composed and recorded before the animation was even finished. Otomo wanted the music to influence the film’s rhythm and sequences, which is quite unusual in the industry. This demonstrates the clear vision he had for how the soundtrack would be a fundamental pillar.
Kaneda: Kinetic Energy and Interlocking Rhythms
Shōtarō Kaneda is the leader of the bike gang, “The Capsules”. Musically, Kaneda is represented by a form of Gamelan music known as Gamelan Jegog. This style uses pitched bamboo instruments performing groupings of overlapping and interlocking rhythms called Kodōkan. The beginning of the Kaneda musical cue perfectly represents this Kodōkan structure, as rhythmic ideas build to form a complex texture.
This style is a perfect fit for the energic, young and rebel mood of Kaneda. At the same time, it works well in establishing The Capsules as a group that works together to form a cohesive team. In fact, the choir that enters later in the cue even sings the names of the main members of the gang.
Something notable is that Geinō Yamashirogumi composed this cue entirely within the tonal limitations of the Jegog instruments, which can only produce four pitches (yes, one of the most iconic cues in all of anime uses just four pitches).
Tetsuo: Conflict, Collapse, and Polyrhythm
Kaneda’s theme is only the beginning. Tetsuo Shima is a bit of an outcast even amongst the gang. He’s got a temper and an inferiority complex with Kaneda. However, those are the least of his worries when his latent psychic powers explode.
Yamashirogumi decided to represent Tetsuo’s conflict with another Gamelan style called Gamelan Gong Kebyar. This style utilizes a traditional ensemble of gongs and keyed metallophones. This cue uses the five pitches found in the Balinese Pelog Selisir scale.
Tetsuo’s theme is the movement to minor as opposed to major, unlike in Kaneda’s theme. This makes sense as Tetsuo falls into a dark pit of power-crazed insanity over the course of the film. In this theme, what initially sounds like a simple rhythm is eventually revealed to be a complex polyrhythm. It progresses smoothly but is abruptly interrupted at the end of every four-bar phrase. The rhythm only becomes clear once the full Gamelan ensemble enters and establishes a 16-beat phrase. This matches Tetsuo’s mental state throughout the film, on the verge of brain collapse.
As the rival gangs collide, the score goes on with "Battle Against Clown", a relentless, polyrhythmic theme. This track intensifies the chaotic showdown with urgent and aspirated vocals.
Later, the disturbing "Doll's Polyphony" amplifies an hallucination sequence in which Tetsuo envisions animated dolls growing to monstrous sizes on his bed. The track masterfully heightens this tension by weaving fragmented children's voices into a sinister nursery rhyme.
As the film reaches its climax, a 14-minute long piece called "Requiem" takes over. It has different parts, going from quiet to very loud and back again. It starts with slow, deep drum crashes and electronic drum sounds that echo as if in a huge cave. Then, all the other instruments stop, and a ghostly choir sings a sad, funeral-like song. After that, a church organ plays a bit sadly at first, but then gets much more intense and fast. Finally, it gently brings us back to that mournful choir song.
The film closes with a different version of Kaneda's theme, bringing us back to the beginning of the movie.
A Lasting Impact
The experimental nature of the Akira film subject, matter and execution warrants an equally bold musical score. People remember when Kaneda’s gang speeds through Neo-Tokyo with their taillights smearing across the screen, accompanied by the thumping, rhythmic Jegog theme. Fans also remember the eerie feeling they get while watching Tetsuo’s psychological breakdown and eventual rampage, coupled with the unique sounds of the Kebyar ensemble.
Ultimately, could Akira have been a successful anime with a more traditional orchestral score? Sure. But it’s the daring decisions like those made by Otomo and Yamashirogumi that leave a more unique and lasting impression on viewers, turning a great film into a classic.
Aftwer 30 years of the Akira anime release, Synthspiria decided to gather talented Synthwave artists from all around the world to pay their own tribute to one of the greatest anime of all time. In 2018, a group of synthwave melody creators came together to pay spectacular tribute to Yamashirogumi's work. Wolf Arm, Roex, Carbon Killer, and Fixions have created the content included in 30 Years Later – An Akira Tribute, a monumental compilation whose sole objective is to transfer the classic essence of the original material to an updated version promoted in synthwave.Bonus: 30 Years Later - An AKIRA Tribute