Yowamushi Pedal O.S.T. 2 is a 32-track CD that contains background instrumental score from the first season of the Yowamushi Pedal anime series. The score was composed by Ken Sawada.

Yowamushi Pedal O.S.T. 2
Publisher: Toho Co., Ltd.
Release Date: November 19, 2014

When it comes to the tracks included on this disc, the first 10 tracks are score pieces from the section of the series that focuses on Sohoku’s training camp that determines which members will be on the Inter-High team. The remaining 22 tracks are score pieces from the Inter-High race. Most of the score pieces from the training camp are more upbeat and rocking in nature, with only a few exceptions.

“Rocket Sprint Style,” the opening track on the disc, is instantly recognizable to fans of the show. It’s a piece of music that’s also been utilized during important portions of races after its initial use during the training camp.

“Naruko & Kanzaki & Sakamichi” is the one of the tracks from the training camp that’s not rocking in nature. It’s a more playful and lighthearted piece, and I wish I remembered exactly where I’ve heard it in the series because it’s kind of neat. However, it does stand out quite a bit from the other pieces on the disc that surround it.

“Lifting The Ban” is a more uptempo track, but admittedly, there’s not much to make it stand out. Of the tracks on this disc from the training camp, “Full Power Rush” is the most driving of them. When you hear this piece, you can feel quite an intensity. With its sound, it has to be something that would be used during a tense-filled and crucial moment in a race.

“Psychological Warfare” is a slower piece that is more minimally arranged, but you can still feel a sense of tension behind it. The next track, “Difference,” takes the basic sound of the previous track but builds off of it. In this case, it’s the addition of a piano, as well as slightly tweaking the sound of the previous song.

The arrangement of “Halfway to the End” gives it a sense of buildup, which makes the listener anticipate where it’s going. In a way, it almost sounds like something you’d hear in the background of a scene of a character following someone.

“First-Year’s Counterattack” picks up the pace and relies on the slap form of bass playing. If you’re familiar with Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers, that slap form is the way he plays his bass. This piece adds to the excitement of the final moments of the race between the first years and the second years at the training camp.

“Regret And Encouragement” slows the pace down considerably and relies very heavily on stringed instruments. This makes sense, considering the title of this track. I’m confident that this is the piece that’s playing in the background when Teshima and Aoyagi are crying and Tadokoro praises them for their effort. That was one of the iconic scenes of that training camp, and it’s a scene that was referenced later in the series. “Teshima & Aoyagi” is another slower song, but this one focuses on piano instead of strings.

The remaining tracks on the disc focus on the Inter-High, with the first being “Together to the Inter-High.” When I listened to this one, I almost thought it sounded like a music box playing a lullaby. My guess is that this piece was used for the morning that everyone is getting up and getting ready to go to the Inter-High.

“New Scenery” opens with fanfare, and later has the sound of a marching band. This was likely used when the racers were getting ready at the starting line before the beginning of the race.

“Dream” has what I refer to as the “standard” sound I expect from the background music of Yowamushi Pedal. What I mean by that is that the piece has an “airy” sound to it, is usually more midtempo, and focuses on strings. If you listen to enough of the background music, especially in certain moments of this series, this is the sound you expect from the incidental music.

“Full-Power Refresh” slows the tempo down a bit and focuses more on the piano. It’s not a bad piece, but it doesn’t quite stand out like many of the tracks on this disc do. “Cruel Defeat” is another slower track, which utilizes both piano and strings. This is one of the background pieces that can be heard when someone has lost a race, and the arrangement of this song perfectly captures that feeling of defeat.

The next four tracks (“Midousuzi,” “Midousuzi Dancing,” “Gross, Gross, Gross, Gross,” and “Monster”) all focus on the character of Midousuzi (or, as he’s known in the anime subtitles, “Midousuji”). Unlike most of the background music of the series, the pieces that focus on Midousuzi rely heavily on synthesizers and electronic instrumentation instead of the more classical instruments that most of the score uses. This difference in style helps to accentuate how different of a character and racer he is in comparison to the others.

“Display of One’s True Ability” returns the score to familiar territory with the more orchestral sounding arrangements, but this song is a little more intense than the other tracks done in this style.

“Victory Taken by the Strong” is a hard rocking number and has a strong emphasis on electric guitar. It’s quite intense, and it’s a piece that can be heard when you’ve got two intense competitors getting closer to a finish line. The intensity of this piece really adds to the mood of the scenes that it’s used in.

“Connected Hope” is a slower piece with a strong emphasis on the piano, and it’s a piece viewers will recognize. It shows up at times when Sohoku’s racers rely on the hope that connects them during a race.

“Sprint Climb!” picks the pace back up, and it’s another piece that’s recognizable to fans of Yowamushi Pedal. It’s heard when a major plot point in the race is taking place on a climb.

“Toudou’s Conflict” is a track that’s arranged in such a way that it feels much more dramatic than a lot of the other pieces included on this disc. But considering how dramatic Toudou can get at times, it makes sense that a piece connected to him would have a dramatic flair to it. However, “Toudou & Makishima’s Promise” has a much simpler arrangement that focuses primarily on the piano. As I recall, this is the piece that was used in the background when the flashback of Makishima and Toudou promising to race each other during this Inter-High is shown.

“Hill Climb!” focuses on electric guitar and percussion, and it picks the pace of the disc back up by quite a bit. It’s another piece that’s associated with the climbers when they’re racing. “Dancing” isn’t quite as driving as “Hill Climb!,” but it’s still rather upbeat. Considering that racers generally start “dancing” on their bikes during an important part of the race, an upbeat sound for the song makes complete sense.

“The Winner’s Proof” slows the pace back down a bit, and the arrangement returns to focusing on the piano. This is a piece that’s played after a winner is decided and the characters reflect back on what happened in their race leading up to the outcome. This is usually the time when the two racers also talk to each other in an understanding way.

“Manami’s Smile” continues the slower, piano-based arrangement of the previous track. Admittedly, this is one of the tracks on the disc where I can’t easily remember what context it’s used in during the series. Considering Manami’s name is in the title, it has to be connected to him, but I can’t remember how.

“I Can’t Run With You” is another slower piece, but it has more of tense feel to its arrangement. Don’t quote me on this, but I think this is the piece used when Tadokoro tells Makishima that he’s not feeling his best the first night of the Inter-High, and if he can’t keep up the next day, to leave him behind. Unlike what the title seems to insinuate, the next track, “The Price of Fierce Battle,” isn’t an upbeat piece. Instead, it’s a slower piece with only a minimal arrangement. To be honest, this piece didn’t stand out to me very much.

“Hime Climb” is the background music for when Sakamichi and Tadokoro are singing an anime theme song as they pass by other racers as Sakamichi pulls Tadokoro back to the front. While I appreciate getting the background music for it, I wish there was a CD release that included the singing that went with this piece. Since this is a score CD, I understand why the instrumental was included and the vocal version was left off. But this piece is still a great way to end the disc.

Yowamushi Pedal O.S.T. 2 is a great companion to Yowamushi Pedal O.S.T. 1, and I would recommend both releases to fans of the anime. However, as of this writing, these discs are getting harder to come by new. CDJapan can still get new copies, but it can take 2-4 weeks for them to ship. But that wait is definitely worth it in order to own the score from the first season of the Yowamushi Pedal anime.

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