Bubble Gum Crisis 2040

BUBBLE GUM CRISIS 2040
ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK I

—by Charles McCarter

1. Punk It Up 3:40

2. Heat in Beat 1:17

3. Monster's Walk 1:52

4. Phank It Up 1:24

5. DGR-1 3:46

6. A Mood in Bossa 1:42

7. 10:30AM 1:43

8. Industrial-Line 1:55

9. Instinctive 3:52

10. Hick It Up 1:18

11. Prot #1 1:45

12. No Justice 3:33

13. Psychic (DGR-2) 1:49

14. Panic-Attack 1:55

15. River Flows 1:50

16. Solo 1:17

17. Intensive 1:47

18. The Hacker 1:41

19. Rebel Asia 4:00

20. You're in the Battle Field 4:12

One of the strongest selling points of the original BUBBLE GUM CRISIS OVAS was its soundtrack, especially the vocals. Ask an anime fan if they own any anime CDS, and more than likely they will have at least one of the Vocal Collections in their possession. The music—especially the vocals—became a big part of the show's popularity, especially here in the United States.
So, it was with some interest and mild trepidation that I put this first soundtrack from the new series into my player. A lot of changes had been made. The characters not only looked very different, they behaved very differently as well. And while 2040's MegaTokyo had its fair share of sunshine, it had a more gritty, cyberpunk feel than its predecessor. In fact, the only thing that had escaped unchanged seemed to be the hardsuits. So what happened to the music?
Well, in a nutshell, it's radically different. It has more of a techno/industrial type feel to it. Completely electronic, the music ranges from gritty and oppressive, to spooky, to just plain out there. Turntables and samples are used quite heavily on some of the tracks, as are drum machines. The electric guitar seems to be more often than not used to add a specific effect. For the most part, one can expect a variety of synthesizer tracks with drum beats and some very strange sounds.
And sometimes it works. The opening track, "Punk It Up," delivers a very powerful and dark feeling, one that probably goes very well with the show itself. Some of the tracks, such as track four, "Phank It Up," are actually somewhat lighthearted. And there is a surprise or two in store for the listener, like "A Mood in Bossa," which is exactly what it says. An acoustic guitar unfolds a syncopated melody and is accompanied by light but regular drums and an almost ethereal synthesizer. But unfortunately, this track is all too short.
Many of the tracks are a lot of different elements that at first seem to be thrown together in the hopes that music will be born out of the errant noise. But that's the way these things are done. Sometimes, however, the result just isn't worth recording, as in the case of "Industrial Line," which is essentially two minutes of a steady bass drum beat surrounded by some electronic chirps, whistles, and grinds.
For me, the most disappointing thing was the lack of any vocals. Not a single vocal—not even the opening or ending themes—were included on this CD. And I am one of those people who think that it can't be BUBBLE GUM CRISIS without vocals. Still, since this is titled "Soundtrack I," more albums should follow. Hopefully one of those will be a vocal collection.
As for this particular album, some of these tracks are very successful at setting moods, and they will no doubt enhance the experience of watching the show. But I suspect that, for many people, the music will not stimulate enough interest to warrant the purchase of the CD.