Three Years of Expressing a Cyber-Society through Music: The Relationship between Cornelius and Ghost in the Shell
Find the intervew here: theghostintheshell.jp/news/cornelius-interview
Keigo Oyamada, a.k.a Cornelius, produced music for Ghost in the Shell: Arise for three years. He fuses acoustic instruments and electronic sounds to create a vision of a cyber-societal world with “the existence of soul” as the keyword. He talks about using his own style to create the soundtrack and theme song while staying true to the sci-fi nature of the work, and how that influenced his career as a musician.
Ghost in the Shell: Arise Opening Theme “Ghost in the Shell: Arise”
Music: Cornelius
Director: Yugo Nakamura
This experimental technique uses still images from the anime that are printed and photographed individually against an urban backdrop. The ambiguity of cyborgs is expressed by blending them into the real world.
Border:1 Ending Theme “Jibun ga Inai” by salyu x salyu
Lyrics: Shintaro Sakamoto
Composition: Keiga Oyamada
Director: Koichiro Tsujikawa
Performance: Salyu
This poetic visual world where bodies and voices overlap in multiple layers explores the space between “absence” and “presence.”
Border:2 Ending Theme “Soto wa Senjou dayo” by Ichiko Aoba and Cornelius
Lyrics: Shintaro Sakamoto
Composition: Keigo Oyamada
Director: Koichiro Tsujikawa
Through the innocent faces of children, it quietly questions humanity and the loneliness of society as a battlefield.
Border:3 Ending Theme “Heart Grenade” by Sean Lenon and Cornelius
Lyrics: Sean Lenon
Composition: Keigo Oyamada
Director: Koichiro Tsujikawa
Videography: Toyotaro Shigemori
A bittersweet love story depicting romance between two machines.
Border:4 Ending Theme “Split Spirit” by Yukihiro Takahashi & Metafive
Lyrics: Leo Imai, Yukihiro Takahashi
Composition: Keigo Oyamada
Producers: Yukihiro Takahashi & Metafive, Keigo Oyamada, Yoshinori Sunahara, Tomohiko Gondo, Leo Imai
Director: Koichiro Tsujikawa
Performance: Leo Imai
As philosophical images resonate with the rhythm of the city, it makes a pointed statement about our own multifaceted nature and fragmented mentality.
Ghost in the Shell: Arise Alternative Architecture Opening Theme “Anata o Tamotsu Mono” by Maaya Sakamoto and Cornelius
Lyrics: Shintaro Sakamoto
Composition: Keigo Oyamada
Director: Koichiro Tsujikawa
CG/VFX: Munechika Inudo
An overwhelming visual poem, featuring the transparent and impressive voice of Maaya Sakamoto, where cities and bodies, reality and virtuality intersect.
Streaming Information
Ghost in the Shell: Arise O.S.T.
jvcmusic.lnk.to/cornelius_ariseost
Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie O.S.T. by Cornelius
jvcmusic.lnk.to/cornelius_ghostintheshellost
Available on select music streaming services and major music download platforms such as iTunes Store, Rekochoku and mora.
Streaming services:
Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube Music, LINE MUSIC, Amazon Music, Deezer, AWA, Rakuten Music, KKBOX, Qobuz
Watch the music videos on Apple Music, YouTube Music, LINE MUSIC, and U-NEXT.
Keigo Oyamada’s Profile
Born in Tokyo on January 27, 1969. After Flipper’s Guitar disbanded in 1991, he began his solo career, going by the name “Cornelius” in 1993. His albums The First Question Award and 69/96 found great success, and he became a lead figure in the Shibuya-kei movement at the time. In 2006, Sensurround + B-sides was nominated for Best Surround Sound Album at the 51st Grammy Awards in the United States. He is currently active in a wide range of fields, collaborating, working on remixes and producing music with numerous artists both in Japan and abroad.