milktub -- Naru ga Mama Sawagu Mama（成るがまま騒ぐまま）/fhana -- Moon River（ムーンリバー）

Unlike the last anime season, the Spring 2017 season hasn't exactly birthed any anison earworms. No aural larvae immediately burrowed into my cerebral cortex when I saw those first episodes of the current crop of shows. But some of them at least are starting to grow some more on me.

"Uchoten Kazoku"（有頂天家族...The Eccentric Family）was one of the loveliest shows that I have seen since my return to Toronto in 2011 and starting off the biweekly viewings with my anime buddy. That was back in 2013 and so I was looking forward to catching "Uchoten Kazoku 2" when it was first announced late last year. The original show may have been lukewarmly received in its native Japan but it's been lauded outside of the nation. I'm happy to say that the sequel has been doing quite well by us with a surprise here and there...such as the usually unflappable and fearsome Benten literally getting dumped on her rear by a fellow who may be even more unflappable and fearsome. That took some serious cojones!

I guess, though, in keeping with the continuous mixture of magic and Kyoto beauty, the opening and ending themes for "Uchoten Kazoku 2" aren't all that much different from their fellow songs from the original series. The artists involved are the same for one thing.

Rock group milktub is back with its raucous glory via "Naru ga Mama Sawagu Mama" (Naturally, Noisily). And it's up with a much more happening set of opening credits. I have to pay attention to see them to catch every little thing that pops up in the various scenes while the music is playing.

Finally, I get to see what milktub looks like. The song came out in April 2017 as their 5th single and their first single since "Uchoten Jinsei"（有頂天人生）which was the opening theme for the first show. The band took care of both music and lyrics this time, and so far, "Naru ga Mama Sawagu Mama" has reached only No. 105 on Oricon. A partial translation of the lyrics is available at Lyrical Nonsense.

At the end of each episode of the original "Uchoten Kazoku", I thrilled to fhana's "Que Sera Sera" as it fit hand-in-glove with the ending credits and the whole anime for that matter.

The band has once again come up with the ending theme for "Uchoten Kazoku 2", and although it isn't quite as catchy and beautiful as "Que Sera Sera", "Moon River" is slowly starting to grow on me, especially with the light technopop touch. I'm kinda wondering, though, if they've got a thing for co-opting titles from old standard songs from the 1950s and 1960s.

I can't help but compare "Moon River" with their "Aozora no Rhapsody"（青空のラプソディ）which came out as the opening theme/earworm for "Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon"（小林さんちのメイドラゴン）. Compared to that fun song (and the fun and goofy video), "Moon River" is more of a cool-down song, comparable to "Que Sera Sera". There is not so much dancing and prancing in this one as there is a need to sit by the bank of a river and watch the flow of water.

As with "Que Sera Sera", Hideki Hayashi（林英樹）provided the lyrics but this time it's band guitarist yuxuki waga taking care of the music. This is their 11th single from April and has gone up to No. 53 on Oricon. The song is also represented at Lyrical Nonsense.

milktub -- Uchoten Jinsei （有頂天人生）

Last night, I watched the pilot episode for the 2013 anime "Uchoten Kazoku"（有頂天家族）once again after a couple of years. It was one of those shows that got differing reactions depending on where it was broadcast; in North America and other places, it apparently got a lot of praise for at least the visuals, while in Japan, it merely got a lot of....meh. That's too bad since I certainly enjoyed it for those gorgeous scenes of Kyoto (indoors and outdoors), the acting by the seiyuu especially by the triangle of main protagonist Yasaburo Shimogamo, the beautiful if dangerous Benten and Professor Akadama the crabby tengu, and some of the more exciting sequences which almost reached Miyazaki-esque heights.

Between the opening and ending themes for "Uchoten Kazoku", I preferred the latter theme of "Que Sera Sera"（ケセラセラ）by fhana, but on seeing the anime again, I felt like writing about the opening theme by pop punk duo milktub, "Uchoten Jinsei" (Eccentric Life). While the lovely "Que Sera Sera" makes the perfect musical backdrop to the ending credits focusing on Benten's evolution from callow high school girl to intimidating dragon lady, "Uchoten Jinsei" is the raucous introduction to the weird/wonderful world of the Shimogamo family of shape-shifting raccoon dogs. With lyrics by milktub and music by Kyoichi Miyazaki（宮崎京一）, the duo of bamboo and Ichiban Boshi Hikaru（一番星☆光）exhorts listeners to put some spice in their lives and not get dragged about by anyone else. The Shimogamos (and their allies/enemies) are definitely a good example of that.

milktub had its beginnings in the late 80s when 16-year-old bamboo was inspired by the then-band boom in Japan which resulted in him coming up with the name milktub in 1991. However, it wouldn't be until 1999 that the band would push forward in earnest with a set of indies singles before their 1st major album was released in December 2008, "Smile Energy". "Uchoten Jinsei" isn't one of their 4 major singles, though.

I've been to Kyoto twice with my first time being during that summer 1981 trip to Japan. "Uchoten Kazoku" premiered in the summer of 2013 and the show reflecting that season reminded me of my time there. The old capital being in a bonchi basin made things truly sunny and supremely hot there, and trying to view the Gion Festival from a three-deep sidewalk probably had me sweat off a kilogram or so. The skies I remember from that day were portrayed exactly as they were right from Episode 1 of the anime so there was a reason for me to fall for its charms. And scenes like the one above sealed the deal for me.

fhana -- Que Sera Sera （ケセラセラ）

Last year, I was introduced to an anime by the title of "Uchoten Kazoku"（有頂天家族...The Eccentric Family）. The tale of a family of shape-shifting tanuki in modern-day Kyoto as they balance their lot between daily life in the former ancient capital and the fears of getting set upon by enemies comical and beautiful (including being eaten in a stew), admittedly it wasn't a show that grabbed me immediately despite the gorgeous scenery since I had to struggle with the story sans subtitles. However, since getting the entire series as a present, I've been able to enjoy the anime at a more leisurely pace and therefore appreciate it a whole lot more.

One of the reasons that I have enjoyed the show is the ending theme by the group fhana. Amongst the number of anime I've seen, this is a group that I've seen fairly often taking care of various opening and ending themes, the latest being the openers for "Witchcraft Works" and "Gingitsune" earlier this year. However, my favourite theme hands down by fhana has been "Que Sera Sera". According to the J-Wiki article on the song itself, it's been getting a goodly number of accolades including this one: "There hasn't been an ending theme that fits an anime as well as this one does."

I don't think I have seen anywhere near the number of anime that would ever make me that authoritative when it comes to that opinion. However, I can certainly understand that commenter's point of view. The bright and sweet vocals by towana along with the cheerful if somewhat introspective melody mesh wonderfully together, and they both work perfectly with the lovely ending credit visuals. And the title itself of "Whatever will be, will be" (yep, I'm old enough to have the Doris Day record of the same title) kinda goes hand in hand with how the characters in the show seem to deal with most of their crises.

One of the commenters at YouTube mentioned that "Que Sera Sera" sounded a bit like the famous theme for "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" by Ryuichi Sakamoto (probably the intro). I can also add that some of the arrangement harkens back to some of the dance groove about a decade ago used by singers like bird and Misia.

"Que Sera Sera" was composed by fhana leader and keyboardist Junichi Sato （佐藤純一）and written by Hideki Hayashi（林英樹）. Released in August 2013 as the band's first single, the song didn't go any higher than 111th place on Oricon, but that won't dampen any of the fans' enthusiasm.

As for the group itself, the story leading up to the current lineup reads as if it also deserves its own time on the small screen. Sato, who originally came from the band FLEET, started getting into a Twitter friendship with guitarist yuxuki waga from s10rw at the end of 2009. Then almost a year and a half later, the two of them met sampler Kevin Mitsunaga from another band, Leggysalad, at an event. From there, the three supposedly cemented the concept and direction for fhana at a maid café (hey, where else?). Initially, fhana had thought about having just guest vocalists do the singing but since they were so impressed with one of their invitees, towana, she just became the permanent vocalist. And the band was officially in business from 2012.

January 15 2016: I've finally gotten the article up for the opening theme "Uchoten Jinsei"（有頂天人生）by duo milktub.