Damn, this was one great journey.
Ever since I’ve watched Your Lie in April, there isn’t even one that comes close that can embody the music genre inside, and escalating the heart-warming and heart-breaking feelings with just a single tone. But then again, I have not watched many music-based anime until a few months ago where I stumbled upon Stop This Sound!, which is the literal translation of the name of this anime.
It’s an anime where romance doesn’t dominate the story, and comedy doesn’t take away the serious tone it is set for. It’s a story done just right and the reason is simple – it has the right composue of romance, drama, slice of life and music for you to crave for more. It’s not sad, it’s refreshing and it’s touching.
It’s not everday you get an ensemble of characters that trusts each other, while slowly revealing their weaknesses and acknowleging it with each others’ supports. Their playful interaction makes you want to join in. And with the last chance to get to the national competition, the stakes are up even more, forcing them to present their best performance yet. And the romance also continues to blossom, even sailing two ships at a time.
If eyes are the windows to the soul, then this anime proves just that. Frustrated eyes, shocked eyes, manipulative eyes, disappointed eyes, determined eyes are the soul tools to be accompanied by music to evoke emotions, and this is executed perfectly. But among the all, the ultimate tool is a pair of eye that can radiate sadness with kindness that requires way more than just superb animation.
One of the main merits of the show is the chibi cartoon style that changes the mood for the comedy, while the blushes and bubbly art style enchances the mood for the romance. There are moments where eyes are covered for the characters, to elevate the suspension and uneasiness. Adding this with the moment of resonation, when they expressed their feelings frankly (only to receive a weirdly-wide smile) and that’s it.
The studio has done such an amazing job with this distinction of art style that can build up the ambience to suit the story nicely. It’s not perfectly done, but it’s right on time in a way that you can expect it but it will still carve a smile on your face.
The opening, ‘Harmony’ is compiled with such small details that is very rewarding if you watch every single one of them as it adds much more attachment to the characters. But just how far can the attachment get and how entracing their sounds can be?
This is when the melody of koto sneaks in, with each and every tune becoming alive as they are being played. It’s like these 7 members trying to get their message from their heart across to you. Sometimes, this melody carries a bit of fun and sweetness, making everyone listening immerse in the happiness. Sometimes, it is tinged with a bit of sadness, a pain and hidden feelings bursting out to be heard. But as the melody converges, they form a string of sound that bring forth a mixed feeling. A warmth and relief inside the heart, yet a bit bittersweet. As if the sky is crying.
Kono Oto Tomare, to say, is one of the best slice of life I’ve ever seen that can blend romance, music with shounen genre. It is composed of hard works, friendships and passion from their heart. An unique sound that carries the story of each and every one of them as they intertwined. Or maybe, you can rephrase it as – listening to their very own
Sounds of Life.
Thanks for reading!
Due to the preparation for a festival and my finals that frustratingly crashes for the next few weeks, I won’t be able to post anything including the episodic reviews that was promised long ago. So, to make up for that, I’ll be making a 6-episodes review for the winter anime of my choice this season – Kyokou Suiri! Darwin’s Game certainly caught my attention and Haikyuu is off to a great start so I’ll be including these two as well.
Again, I apologize for dampening your hype if you were looking forward to it as well as I did. Thanks for understanding, and I look forward to seeing you guys soon!
Anime as a Cup of Tea 
Good show… But with one blinding flaw. They kept interrupting the main narrative to look at side characters who were never really anything more than cardboard cutouts. (And used basically for all-but-throwaway tropes/gags.) Sometimes it looked like they were trying too hard to pad out the run time.
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True. But I think it’s the temporary diversion from the main narrative that makes the other elements to be able to fill in the void. As there was only one national match left and with the type of instrument they were playing, there wasn’t much thing to see for their preparation or preliminary matches in this case.
So in a sense, they are, trying to pad out the run time by adding more interaction with side characters however they can. And I actually quite enjoyed the way they did it with the comedy and romance created. I think that’s why I like it.
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