Overview

JAM Project are a J-Rock group that principally make theme songs for animations. In addition, they have been a regular force on Banpresto's Super Robot Taisen games, given their extensive use of mecha anime crossovers. After debuting on the PlayStation's Super Robot Taisen Alpha, they have appeared on nearly every main game on the series, each time releasing singles featuring their opening and ending theme songs. How about their contributions to the latest generation of Super Robot Taisn titles?

Body

"Rocks" is a typical opening theme from the band, featuring particularly energetic rock instrumentals and anthemic melodies presented by the band's male and female vocalists. It adheres very closely to anime tradition, following more erratic entries like "VICTORY" and "GONG", and will be clear favourites with fans of the band. However, some parts are more ambitious, for example the apocalyptic instrumental introduction, the use of vocal manipulation, and the peculiar fast guitar solo. It's a pity that these features weren't better integrated with the rest of the song, as the introduction especially reveals some unfulfilled potential.

"Portal" also stands out as polished, well-produced, but ultimately somewhat unoriginal ending theme. The close harmonisation of the male and female vocalist really brings something to the piece and embodies a sense of companionship at the end of the game. The instrumentals are comparatively dull, however, with typical acoustic guitar chords and somewhat tacky ethereal synthpads.

The main exclusives on the single are the full-length versions of the theme songs that only featured in shortened versions in the game and its soundtrack release. However, there are also instrumental versions of the theme songs at the end of the single, lacking any vocals. These are good for karaoke purposes, but a little pointless and hollow otherwise.

Summary

Overall, while certainly good, the theme songs for Super Robot Taisen OG: Original Generations are some of the less distinguished of the series and don't really distinguish a new generation of titles. Instead of heading for this single, dedicated fans of JAM Project should consider the Super Robot Taisen JAM Project Theme Song Collection instead, since it features these full-length songs and 12 others from the series.