Macross Delta has finished airing, and boy, the music sure was pretty varied, even for a Macross series! But I guess it’s a given, since there were so many composers involved with the show, which resulted in a wide variety of song types that sound great! In the meantime, while we’re all hoping that a movie version isn’t too far off, and more songs will come on the way, let’s take the time to take a look at each and every Walküre song that has been released so far, from the singles to the albums. My take:
- Ichido Dake no Koi Nara
I have to admit, I didn’t really like this song when I first listened to it and thought it was sort of bland, but it’s one of those songs that get better each time you hear it, sort of like “Triangler” (Macross Frontier) was for me. Having it feature in the fantastic 13th episode also helps to keep it in memory.
- Rune ga Pikatto Hikattara
But this one, though, I instantly loved! It’s a really catchy tune that’s full of catchphrases to sing along to that perfectly captures Freyja’s character. It’s super fun. (Not to mention all the mashups with Earth, Wind, & Fire’s “September”.)
- Ikenai Borderline
Right the moment those trumpets kicked in, this one was a winner. I’m sure others would agree that this is definitely their best song, being such a powerful and appealing tune. It has such an infectious beat that gets you up and going, and the song’s many remixes and covers out there is a testament to it’s appeal as a hit even beyond the anime itself. It also showcases the best of the member’s vocals singing as an unit, and of course, how the song debuts in the explosive first episode is by far one of the best moments of the series. In a nutshell, the high energy of the song perfectly captures the spirit of the series at it’s best- brimming with energy beat by beat and never stopping. This song is definitely the song for Walküre.
- Koi! Halation THE WAR
“Welcome to Walkure World” indeed! It’s a nice song to open up the album, and it’s indeed the first Walküre song we get to see them perform in the series. It really gets you ready to want to listen to and love more of their songs. By the end, you’ll be throwing hand signs all over before you know it.
- Giritic♡BEGINNER
Turns out you can make a song whose lyrics are 90% made up of onomatopoeias. It’s a cute and catchy song though, what can I say. Nao Toyama and Nozomi Nishida’s vocals do the job.
- Fukakuteisei☆COSMIC MOVEMENT
It wasn’t before, but Fukakuteisei☆Cosmic Movement has become one of my favorite Walküre songs right now. I love the beat, and the nice touches like the “Are you okay?” and Mikumo’s “Aw!” make it a really fun song.
- Bokura no Senjou
Can you consider this the “Planet Dance” (Macross 7) of this series? You know, for when things get going but not that going, lol. It’s a really great song, though! It really does get your blood pumping, and the title, “Our Battlefield”, gives exactly that feel.
- NEO STREAM
This song, I think, doesn’t stand out compared to the other songs in the album (it was only featured fully once in the series), but it’s a great song nonetheless. The intro in particular is pretty different, and the piano parts in it make it excellent. Looks like only Junna and Nao Toyama can pronounce English well enough, though.
- AXIA~Daisuki de Daikirai~
Kiyono Yasuno, (Kaname’s VA), I think, doesn’t get as much rep as she should compared to the two main vocalists. While her voice isn’t as bombastic as Junna’s or as soft as Minori Suzuki’s, she definitely can sing. Her nuanced performance of everyone’s heart-wrenching favorite, Axia, is proof of that, and the emotions she brings up with the song’s limited vocal range is impressive. You’re not going to be able to forget the events of Episode 10 each time you’re hearing this song, that’s for sure.
- GIRAFFE BLUES
A lot of people say “Giraffe Blues” is the “Aimo” (Macross Frontier) of Delta, but I disagree! It’s better than Aimo, lol. I love how each of the solo versions manage to capture different nuances of the song. Both Minori Suzuki and Junna managed to do a great job with this and bring all the feels. You’ll know their blues.
- Walküre Attack!
Pretty much the same as“Bokura no Senjou“, but I like that song more. But I have to note that it’s still a good song as is every song in this album, just not as good as the other entries. Overall, Walküre Attack, the album, is a very solid album indeed with a definite opening and ending feel to it listening from start to finish, and it never feels like there’s a song that’s just there as filler or tacked on. It’s one of the best albums the Macross series has to offer, and I’m proud to own a copy.
- Zettai Reido θ Novatic
I like this one better than OP 1, that’s for sure. The drum & bass beat is pretty uncommon for anison, and it’s welcome. Aside from the the really hard to pronounce song title, it’s a solid song.
- Hametsu no Junjou
I can’t say I don’t want ED 1 to always be the ED song, but “Hametsu no Junjou” is a great showcase of a side of Junna’s strong, deep vocals that isn’t seen as often in the other songs. I like it!
- Kaze wa Yokoku naku Fuku
If “Hametsu no Junjou” got to show another side of Junna, then this showed another side to Minori Suzuki’s vocals in a nice way. The lyrics were written by Maaya Sakamoto, and it really gives you the feels, doesn’t it?
- Absolute 5
A bit of trivia- the Walküre album titles all refer to volleyball terms, for some reason! A “trap”, in volleyball jargon, apparently means ” A ball set too close to the net where the hitter typically gets stuffed.”In this case it might also refer to you, being trapped into buying an album that’s not as good as the first one, unfortunately. The downside to Walküre Attack being so solid is that the second album’s tracklist isn’t as strong, and some songs do feel like they’re fillers. “Absolute 5” is one of them . It’s not bad, but it feels like a generic anime song in a bland way, and that’s not great.
- Onyanoko☆girl
The upside though, is we get to have some interesting, quirkier songs popping up in this album, including “Onyanoko☆girl“, composed by Teddyloid of that Me!Me!Me! Animator Expo short fame. It’s no secret that Nozomi Nishida’s vocals is the weakest among the other members, but her voice really suits this song well. It really doesn’t feel like a Macross song, but it’s fun and unique in that way, making it one of the better offerings in this album.
- LOVE! THUNDER GLOW
This is probably the only Walküre song I actually don’t like, lol. Junna’s vocals just don’t fit well with this type of song.
- Silent Hacker
This song played early in the series and it took awhile until the full version made it’s way in this album, but it doesn’t disappoint. Nao Toyama’s vocals are perfect for this, and it really captures Reina’s character.
- Hear The Universe
Again, like “Absolute 5“, I feel like this just doesn’t cut it and is a bit too generic. Not that great, to the point that I forget which song this was.
- Namidame Bakuhatsuon
Again, Kiyono Yasuno- it seems like her vocals in Walküre are really underappreciated with there already being Nozomi Nishida and Junna, but when she’s given a chance to shine like in Axia and this, she delivers. “Namidame Bakuhatsuon” is a catchy tune even if it’s hard to pronounce. It’s my unexpected favorite for this album, just like “Neo Stream” was for the first album.
- Walkure’s Birthday Song
It’s short, it’s fun, and I’ll probably play it to myself for my birthday. It’s cool that we now have a Christmas song (“Merry Christmas Without You” from Macross Frontier) and a birthday song for Macross. A Macross song for every occassion!
- God Bless You
The moment in the series where this song plays is a very tender one, and this song does a great job of creating that atmosphere. It’s a nice addition to Walküre’s roster of calmer songs.
- Ai Oboete Imasu Ka
To be honest, I didn’t really like this rendition even if it’s nice to have. I liked Ranka’s version and the instrumental one that came with the 2nd Macross Delta OST better. But “Ai Oboete Imasu Ka” will always be “Ai Oboete Imasu Ka“, however it’s sung.
- Kurage Ondo & Ragnyanyan no Uta
Bonus! Well, for those of you wondering, “Kurage Ondo” is the song Freyja sang while selling jellyfish in Episode 9, while “Ragnyanyan no Uta” isn’t exactly a Walküre song- it’s a jingle for Ragnyanyan that I think is sung by the VA for Chuck’s sister. I just would like to point these out since songs like these are always fun- maybe they could do another fun album full of commercial-ish songs like they did in Frontier with CM Ranka. Macross Frontier’s concept albums were a lot of fun, and it would be great if they could do the same with Delta’s cast as well. Or anything, really. It feels like we’ve just started scraping the surface of the amount of Walküre-related content they could bring out, and I really hope that there’s a lot more of Walküre around to go in the future. Deculture!
Absolute Invincible Charging Planet Explosion 