Anime like Sakamichi no Apollon

BECK

Also known as Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad.

Studio: MADHOUSE , Marvelous Entertainment , Starchild Records , Funimation , Asatsu DK , Kodansha
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Music , Slice of Life

Tanaka Yukio, better known by his nickname Koyuki is a 14 year old who feels disconnected from life in general. Through the act of saving a mismatched dog, he meets guitarist Minami Ryuusuke, and becomes involved in Ryuusuke's new band BECK. Koyuki's life starts to change as the band struggles towards fame.


Tags: Band , Coming of Age , Urban , Rock Music , Ensemble Cast , Heterosexual , Primarily Male Cast , Male Protagonist , Bullying , School , Female Protagonist , Gyaru , Shounen , Hip-hop Music , Love Triangle , Baseball , Swimming , Language Barrier

Given

Also known as given.

Studio: Lerche
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

Tightly clutching his Gibson guitar, Mafuyu Satou steps out of his dark apartment to begin another day of his high school life. While taking a nap in a quiet spot on the gymnasium staircase, he has a chance encounter with fellow student Ritsuka Uenoyama, who berates him for letting his guitar's strings rust and break. Noticing Uenoyama's knowledge of the instrument, Satou pleads for him to fix it and to teach him how to play. Uenoyama eventually agrees and invites him to sit in on a jam session with his two band mates: bassist Haruki Nakayama and drummer Akihiko Kaji.

Satou's voice is strikingly beautiful, filling Uenoyama with the determination to make Satou the lead singer of the band. Though reticent at first, Satou takes the offer after an emotional meeting with an old friend. With the support of his new friends, Satou must not only learn how to play guitar, but also come to terms with the mysterious circumstances that led him to be its owner.



Tags: Band , Boys' Love , Male Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast , LGBTQ+ Themes , Coming of Age , Primarily Teen Cast , Tragedy , Suicide , Rehabilitation , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Urban , School , Josei , Bisexual , Rock Music , Ensemble Cast , CGI , Basketball , Tsundere

Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

Also known as Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju.

Studio: Studio DEEN
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama

The story revolves around a mature prisoner who was released on good behavior during Japan's Shouwa Genroku era (1960s to early 1970s). He is called Yotarou by others, a term that means an "anti-hero" or a "dim-witted man." When he returns to society, he starts a new life in rakugo (comic storytelling). Touched by Yakumo's role as the "grim reaper," he asks the master to take him in as an apprentice. Most of the season delves into Yakumo's own past during World War II and the years afterward.



Note: The first episode aired with a runtime of 48 minutes as opposed to the standard 24 minute long episode.

Tags: Rakugo , Tragedy , Acting , Historical , Primarily Adult Cast , Love Triangle , Time Skip , Josei , Male Protagonist , Disability , Meta , War , Suicide , Elderly Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso

Also known as Your lie in April.

Studio: A-1 Pictures , Aniplex , Dentsu , Fuji TV , Kodansha , Aniplex of America , Kansai TV , KYORAKU
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

Piano prodigy Arima Kousei dominated the competition and all child musicians knew his name. But after his mother, who was also his instructor, passed away, he had a mental breakdown while performing at a recital. This resulted in him no longer being able to hear the sound of his piano playing. Two years later, Kousei hasn’t touched the piano and views the world without any flair or color. He was content at living out his life with his good friends Tsubaki and Watari until, one day, a girl changed everything. Miyazono Kaori is a pretty, free spirited violinist whose playing style reflects her personality. Kaori helps Kousei return to the music world and show that it should be free and mold breaking unlike the structured and rigid style Kousei was used to.

Tags: Tragedy , Disability , Primarily Teen Cast , Coming of Age , Classical Music , Rehabilitation , Male Protagonist , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , School , Philosophy , Shounen , CGI , Unrequited Love , Tomboy , Slapstick , LGBTQ+ Themes , Suicide , Football

Carole & Tuesday

Also known as Carole & Tuesday.

Studio: bones , flying DOG , Fuji TV , Hakuhodo DY Music & Pictures , BS Fuji
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Sci-Fi

Fifty years have passed since mankind began migrating to the new frontier: Mars.
It's an age where most culture is produced by AI, and people are content to be passive consumers.

There's a girl.
Scrapping a living in the metropolis of Alba City, she's working part-time while trying to become a musician. She's always felt like something is missing.
Her name is Carole.

There's a girl.
Born to a wealthy family in the provincial town of Herschel City, she dreams of becoming a musician, but nobody around her understands. She feels like the loneliest person in the world.
Her name is Tuesday.

A chance meeting brings them together.
They want to sing.
They want to make music.
Together, they feel like they just might have a chance.

The two of them may only create a tiny wave.
But that wave will eventually grow into something larger...



Tags: Band , Female Protagonist , Cyberpunk , Artificial Intelligence , Urban , Politics , Tanned Skin , Foreign , Dystopian , Post-Apocalyptic , Drugs , Rotoscoping , Gender Bending , LGBTQ+ Themes , Terrorism , Bisexual , Homeless , Clone , Unrequited Love , Agender , Anachronism

BLUE GIANT

Also known as Blue Giant.

Studio: Toho , NUT
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music

Dai Miyamoto's life is turned upside down the day he discovers jazz. A former high school basketball player, Dai picks up a saxophone and begins practicing day and night, determined to become one of the greatest of all time. He leaves his hometown Sendai for the bustling nightclubs of Tokyo, but soon finds the life of a professional musician is not for the faint of heart. His passion eventually wins over the cocky but talented pianist Yukinori, and after Dai convinces his friend Shunji to learn the drums, they launch a new jazz trio whose rough sound contains a raw energy that quickly wins attention from local audiences. But what does it take to truly be great?



Tags: Jazz Music , Urban , Band , Male Protagonist , Ensemble Cast , Primarily Adult Cast , Seinen , Primarily Male Cast , CGI , Bar , Tragedy

NANA

Also known as NANA.

Studio: MADHOUSE , VAP , Shueisha , Nippon Television Network , Sentai Filmworks
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

Two twenty-somethings seemingly share nothing in common apart from their first name, but a chance meeting on a train bound for Tokyo sets Nana Komatsu and Nana Oosaki on a collision course with destiny. Nana Komatsu, a love-at-first-sight dreamer, aims to find enduring happiness in the big city. Nana Oosaki, neo punk rock vocalist, pursues her burning ambitions of musical stardom and worldwide fame. As their fates increasingly intertwine, they each chase their dreams — until the harsh realities of life in big city Tokyo threaten to tear everything apart.



Tags: Female Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Band , Coming of Age , Tragedy , Love Triangle , Rock Music , Shoujo , Ensemble Cast , Netorare , Heterosexual , Fashion , College , Kuudere , Nudity , Age Gap , Pregnancy , Mahjong

3-gatsu no Lion

Also known as March comes in like a lion.

Studio: Shaft , Aniplex
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life

Rei Kiriyama is a 17 year old boy who recently started living alone, financed by his salary as a professional Shogi player. Despite his independence, however, he's yet to mature emotionally, and his problems continue to haunt him in his daily life. His relationship with his adoptive family is strained, and he has difficulties interacting with his fellow high school students.

Meanwhile, his professional career in Shogi has entered a slump. Burdened with the heavy expectations placed upon him, his wins and losses are fluctuating as his record and progression into the ranks begin to stagnate.

Acquainted with Rei are the three Kawamoto sisters: Akari, Hinata, and Momo. Unlike Rei, they live happily in their modest home, which they warmly welcome Rei into as if he were one of their own. He frequently visits the family, interacting with them and receiving the kind of care and affection he never quite had while under his foster home.
This is the story of Rei's triumphs and failures, relationships new and old, and his growth as a person.



Tags: Coming of Age , Rehabilitation , Shogi , Seinen , Found Family , Family Life , Board Game , Estranged Family , Male Protagonist , Philosophy , Tragedy , Bullying , Primarily Adult Cast , Food , Trains

Mashiro no Oto

Also known as Those Snow White Notes.

Studio: Shin-Ei Animation , DMM music
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music

Sawamura Matsugorou is a shamisen player of legendary talent. Upon his death, his grandson, Sawamura Setsu, lost his ability to play. Having lost his beloved sound, Setsu finds himself in Tokyo in search of a new sound to love. Tachiki Yuna, who works at a club, hooks him up with a gig to play there as a warm up act. Setsu imbues the sound of his shamisen with his many thoughts and feelings he has of others, still searching for his own sound and his own feelings.



Tags: Musical Theater , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , School Club , Shounen , Urban , School , Tragedy

Hibike! Euphonium

Also known as Sound! Euphonium.

Studio: Kyoto Animation , Pony Canyon , Lantis , Rakuonsha
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Slice of Life

Spring in the first year of high school. Kumiko, a member of the brass band in junior high school, visits the high school brass band club with classmates Hazuki and Sapphire. There, she comes across Reina, her former classmate from junior high. Hazuki and Sapphire decide to join the club, but Kumiko can’t make up her mind. She recollects her experience with Reina at a competition in junior high school.



Tags: Band , School Club , Female Protagonist , Coming of Age , School , Primarily Teen Cast , Primarily Female Cast , Ensemble Cast , Classical Music , Unrequited Love , LGBTQ+ Themes , Love Triangle