Oh, of course Yoko Kanno! She's my favorite composer ever. Period. It's
amazing how many different genres of music she can write.
Her wiki article lists the following as her genres:
- Shibuya-kei
Jazz
Orchestral
Electronic
New Age
Blues
Folk Rock
Electro Rock
J-Pop
Art Rock
She's all over the place too; every anime you say to yourself, "Wow, this anime has a great soundtrack!" she probably has her hand in.
She writes most of Maaya Sakamoto's songs, which make them twice as awesome to me, since I already like Maaya's voice. She responsible for the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack (performed mostly by The Seatbelts, another great group), Ghost in the Shell, Wolf's Rain... it's countless the number of things she's had her hand in, really.
Oh, and
Steve Conte... check him out too. He's actually the lead Guitarist for the New York Dolls, but he's done a good deal of work with Yoko Kanno for a handful of anime series. He sang
Call Me Call Me,
Words That We Couldn't Say and
No Reply for Cowboy Bebop,
Stray,
Heaven's Not Enough and
Could You Bite the Hand for Wolf's Rain, and one of his favorite songs of mine,
The Garden of Everything, a duet with Maaya Sakamoto.
He's got a great voice, anyway... but more importantly, YOKO KANNO PWNS. ^-^