Top Rock Music Manga Recommendations

20 Seiki Shounen

Also known as 20th Century Boys.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Sci-Fi , Thriller

Humanity, having faced extinction at the end of the 20th century, would not have entered the new millennium if it weren't for them. In 1969, during their youth, they created a symbol. In 1997, as the coming disaster slowly starts to unfold, that symbol returns. This is the story of a group of boys who try to save the world.

For Kenji, a simple convenience store manager who once dreamed of becoming a rock 'n' roll musician, a host of memories from his past come rushing back when one of his childhood friends mysteriously commits suicide. Could this new death be related to the rise of a bizarre new cult that's been implicated in several other murders and disappearances? Determined to dig deeper, Kenji reunites with some of his old buddies in the hope of learning the truth behind it all.



Tags: Coming of Age , Ensemble Cast , Politics , Seinen , Achronological Order , Dystopian , Fugitive , Conspiracy , Cult , Found Family , Pandemic , Time Skip , Post-Apocalyptic , Terrorism , Male Protagonist , Detective , Philosophy , Cosmic Horror , Female Protagonist , Dissociative Identities , Tragedy , Musical Theater , Historical , Augmented Reality , Police , Robots , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Transgender , Foreign , Time Manipulation , Homeless , Nudity , Twins , Urban , Rock Music , Drugs , Crossdressing

NANA

Also known as Nana.

Status: Hiatus
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

Nana Komatsu is a young woman who's endured an unending string of boyfriend problems. Moving to Tokyo, she's hoping to take control of her life and put all those messy misadventures behind her. She's looking for love and she's hoping to find it in the big city.

Nana Osaki, on the other hand, is cool, confident and focused. She swaggers into town and proceeds to kick down the doors to Tokyo's underground punk scene. She's got a dream and won't give up until she becomes Japan's No. 1 rock'n'roll superstar.

This is the story of two 20-year-old women who share the same name. Even though they come from completely different backgrounds, they somehow meet and become best friends. The world of Nana is a world exploding with sex, music, fashion, gossip and all-night parties.



Note: Winner of the 48th Shogakukan Manga Award in the Shoujo Category in 2002.

Tags: Female Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Band , Shoujo , Tragedy , Time Skip , Philosophy , Pregnancy , Found Family , Bisexual , Netorare , LGBTQ+ Themes , Love Triangle , Rock Music , Achronological Order , Urban , Heterosexual , Cheating , Age Gap , Nudity , Drugs , Bar

Solanin

Also known as Solanin.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Slice of Life

College graduates struggle to cope with the real world. Music offers refuge in this modern manga with an American attitude. Meiko Inoue is a recent college grad working as an office lady in a job she hates. Her boyfriend Shigeo is permanently crashing at her apartment because his job as a freelance illustrator doesn't pay enough for rent. And her parents in the country keep sending her boxes of veggies that just rot in her fridge. Straddling the line between her years as a student and the rest of her life, Meiko struggles with the feeling that she's just not cut out to be a part of the real world.



Notes:
- Nominated for the Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material - Japan and the Harvey Award for Best American Edition of Foreign Material.
- Includes one extra chapter and one-shot "Haru yo Koi (Awaiting Spring)" first included in the October 2017 new Japanese edition.

Tags: Coming of Age , Band , Seinen , Tragedy , Primarily Adult Cast , Heterosexual , Found Family , Female Protagonist , Family Life , Urban , Rock Music , College , Office Lady , Nudity

Ki ni Natteru Hito ga Otoko Janakatta

Also known as The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Music , Romance

Fashionable and upbeat high schooler Aya falls head over heels for an employee at a local CD shop. He's got an air of mystery about him, great style, and an impeccable music taste. Little does she know—this supposedly male employee is actually her female classmate Mitsuki! Mitsuki generally keeps to herself, but since her seat is right next to Aya's, she can't help but be extremely aware of the other's crush. Revealing the truth is out of the question for Mitsuki—but perhaps getting closer to Aya wouldn't be so bad...



Tags: Female Protagonist , Yuri , LGBTQ+ Themes , Rock Music , Tomboy , Josei , Primarily Teen Cast , Gyaru , Primarily Female Cast , Work , School , Fashion , 4-koma , Iyashikei

BECK

Also known as BECK.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

For the first 14 years of his life, Yukio Tanaka has been one heck of a boring guy. He has no hobbies, a weak taste in music, and only a small vestige of a personality. He yearns for an exciting life, but his shy, and somewhat neurotic personality make him his own worst enemy. Little does he know that his life will be forever changed when he meets Ryusuke Minami, a wild and unpredictable 16 year-old fresh from America, who happens to be in a rock-and-roll band named after his Frankenstein-like patched dog—Beck.



Tags: Band , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Rock Music , Primarily Male Cast , Shounen , Foreign , Heterosexual , Work , Crime , Female Protagonist , Bullying , Love Triangle , School , Mafia , Guns , Swimming , Martial Arts

Tokidoki

Also known as Toki Doki.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance

A heart can only beat so many times in a lifetime. Kokuhaku disease, a rare condition that weakens the heart, leaves the victim with less heartbeats and a shorter lifespan than normal. With the right device, the amount of heartbeats remaining can be measured. When Hato Iijima accidentally walks in on Hatsu Takagi changing her clothes, he sees this device attached to her chest. Hatsu has resigned herself to an uneventful and isolated life to avoid elevating her heart rate. However, she expresses her true desire—to freely and wholeheartedly experience every second she has left. Recognizing her wish, Hato swears to help her enjoy life to the fullest and make her heart beat like crazy.

Tags: Disability , Tragedy , Coming of Age , Female Protagonist , School , Heterosexual , Male Protagonist , School Club , Band , Shounen , Rock Music

Bocchi the Rock!

Also known as Bocchi the Rock!.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Music , Slice of Life

Hitori Gotoh just wants to be popular, but the thought of interacting with her classmates makes her fall to pieces. Her solution-become a rock legend so cool that people approach her instead! However, while spending all of middle school in her closet shredding on the guitar may have earned her anonymous internet fame, it did nothing for her social skills. Now a high schooler, Hitori’s feeling ready to shrivel up and die-when she gets a sudden request to fill in for a band! It’s like her wish came true-but does this most anxious of introverts have what it takes to perform in front of a live audience?!



Note: Includes three extra chapters.

Tags: Band , Female Protagonist , Primarily Female Cast , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , 4-koma , Primarily Teen Cast , Surreal Comedy , Slapstick , Rock Music , Hikikomori , Yuri , LGBTQ+ Themes , Seinen , Tsundere

SHIORI EXPERIENCE: Jimi na Watashi to Hen na Ojisan

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Music

Shiori was once a guitarist in a light music club in high school, but her first live performance was dashed when her brother ran away from home with a lot of debt to become a musician in Tokyo.

A decade later, Shiori is now a high school teacher, leading a boring, uneventful life and paying off the debt... till she runs into the ghost of none other than a famous guitarist Jim-you-know-who.

A story of a 27-year-old woman on her way to a music legend begins here.

Tags: Band , Ghost , School Club , Seinen , Coming of Age , Teacher , Female Protagonist , Tomboy , Anachronism , Rock Music , Delinquents , Ensemble Cast , Primarily Adult Cast

K-On!

Also known as K-On!.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Music , Slice of Life

When their high school's pop-music club is about to be disbanded due to lack of interest, four girls step up to fill the membership quota. Unfortunately, lead guitarist Yui Hirasawa has never played an instrument in her life. Ever. And although she likes the idea of being in a band, standing in front of the mirror posing with her guitar is a lot easier than actually playing it. It's gonna be a while before this motley crew is rocking out, but with their spunk and determination cranked to 11, anything is possible!



Note: Includes five extra chapters.

Tags: Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , School Club , 4-koma , Primarily Female Cast , School , Primarily Teen Cast , Band , Food , Rock Music , Female Protagonist , Tsundere , Seinen , Chibi , Tomboy , Slapstick , Tanned Skin

Fukumenkei Noise

Also known as Anonymous Noise.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance

Nino Arisugawa, a girl who loves to sing, experiences her first heart-wrenching goodbye when her beloved childhood friend, Momo, moves away. And after Nino befriends Yuzu, a music composer, she experiences another sad parting! Both boys promised Nino that they would find her one day through her singing, so she holds on to that hope and continues to reach out with her voice. Now in high school, Nino serendipitously reunites with Yuzu, but she yearns to see Momo again…



Tags: Shoujo , Musical Theater , Love Triangle , Band , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , Rock Music , School Club , Tsundere , Unrequited Love

Futsuu no Keionbu

Also known as Girl meets Rock!.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Music , Slice of Life

With a passion for richly textured Japanese rock, first-year high school student Chihiro Hatono steps into the world of the light music club, new guitar in tow. But what awaits her behind those doors...? A drama of unfiltered youth and musical ambition takes the stage!



Note:
- Winner of the Tsugimanga 2024 Award in the Web Manga Category.

Tags: Band , Female Protagonist , School Club , Coming of Age , Rock Music , School , Shounen , LGBTQ+ Themes , Heterosexual , Bisexual , Primarily Teen Cast , Aromantic , Yuri

Bocchi the Rock! Gaiden: Hiroi Kikuri no Fukazake Nikki

Also known as Bocchi the Rock! Side Story: Kikuri Hiroi's Heavy-Drinking Diary.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Music , Slice of Life

Kikuri Hiroi-genius bassist of Sick Hack, terror of concert venues, eternal deadbeat, and all-around poor role model-has always believed there’s no problem you can’t drink your way out of. The world might be dull and depressing, but whether it’s the failing economy, overdue rent, or just plain ol’ social anxiety, a quick trip around the spiral of happiness will help everything work itself out in the end, right? Surely her personal life isn’t a total disaster...right?! Find out in this freewheeling spin-off of Bocchi the Rock!



Tags: Band , Primarily Female Cast , Episodic , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , Female Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Slapstick , Yuri , Rock Music , Urban , VTuber

Rock it, GIRL!!

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Music , Romance

Kaname likes playing her guitar and singing by the streets and can't believe her ears when a strange girl who's actually a music producer suddenly offers her a contract for a debut CD.
However she tells Kaname that her voice is completely worthless and that she'll have to debut within a band and just be the guitarist. Furthermore, the vocalist who will sing the songs in her place is an arrogant girl full of herself who immediately starts bullying her; however...

Tags: Band , Yuri , Female Protagonist , Primarily Female Cast , Time Skip , Rock Music , Primarily Adult Cast , Shoujo

Sayonara Piano Sonata

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

Enter Hikawa Naomi, son of a music critic and Ebisawa Mafuyu, a young prodigy pianist who suddenly disappeared from the music world. Together they formed a rockband with members involved in classical and rock music.

Tags: School , Seinen , Musical Theater , Band , School Club , Coming of Age , Time Skip , Male Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , Rock Music

Rock wa Lady no Tashinami Deshite

Also known as Rock is a Lady's Modesty.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Music

When her mother marries into high society, Lilisa Suzunomiya is forced to leave her commoner ways behind. Now enrolled at an elite all-girls academy, she’s expected to smile politely, sip tea, and hang up her beloved guitar for (ugh…) a violin. But when she hears drums echoing from the old school building, Lilisa is dragged into a jam session with the secretly rebellious young lady Otoha Kurogane, and her passion for music is reignited! High society better watch out—the academy’s most demure maidens are teaming up to form an elegant rock band the likes of which the world has never seen!



Tags: Rock Music , Primarily Female Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , Yuri , Ojou-sama , Female Protagonist , Seinen , Band , School

Mashikaku Rock

Status: Finished
Genres: Music , Romance

1-3. Mashikaku Rock (マシカク・ロック)
Miyako's living her life diligently following rules, just as her deceased father wanted her to. But one day Azuma Koutarou sees her play guitar and blackmails her to join his band. How will she face it up?

4. Tonari no Hanako-san (となりのハナコさん)
Hanako-san who sits next to me has passed away. I don't know her that well, but for some reason she's always on my mind...

5. Sayonara Sankaku (さよなら さんかく)
I though I would have no trouble having two guys as my childhood friends, but it turns out we are in an unrequited love-triangle.

6. Tsui Me de Otteshimaimashita. (つい目で追ってしまいました。)
His blonde hair stands out so much, it's annoying that it always enter my field of vision. But why do I always notice it?

Tags: Shoujo , Band , Female Protagonist , School , Heterosexual , Rock Music

Burai Otoko: Bremen

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Music

Reiji and Kasuga head out to Tokyo to become the "Gods of Rock," but they seem to always attract trouble. On their way, Hayama Ryo and Fujii Ran join them in their quest.

Tags: Shounen , Band , Crossdressing , Rock Music

Bocchi the Rock! Anthology Comic

Also known as Bocchi the Rock! Comic Anthology.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Music

Hitori “Bocchi” Gotoh might find it hard to make friends, but that doesn't mean she's lacking in admirers! This rockin' anthology features a lineup of all-star guest authors ready to take the stage for the ultimate Bocchi the Rock! tribute concert! With a set list featuring hits such as “What If Bocchi Was Totally Ripped?,” “Kessoku Band Tours in Another World,” and “Hitori Gotoh vs the Police,” you'll discover new sides to your favorite characters you never even dreamed of!

Volume 1 (2022/10/27)
#Cover illustration: Chiba Sadoru
#Illustrations: Matsuda Hikari, Uzaki Uso, Instant, Hoshi, Souma Hajime, HOJI, Iwawa
1. Bocchi the Rock!? (ぼっち・ざ・錠〈ロック〉!?) [Yuichi (ゆいち)]
2. Futari-chan no Okaimono Daisakusen! (ふたりちゃんのお買い物大作戦!) [Takeo Kyuujuu (タケオキュージュウ)]
3. Arigatou Guitar to Kinniku (ありがとうギターと筋肉) [Shirou Urayama]
4. Bocchi-chan no Otoshimono (ぼっちちゃんの落とし物) [Totsuno Takahide]
5. Bocchi-chan vs. Shokushitsu (ぼっちちゃん VS 職質) [Uraya Nagi]
6. Bocchi the Rally! (ぼっち・ざ・らりー!) [Uchino Maiko]
7. Toaru Classmate ga Mita Kessoku Band (とあるクラスメイトが見た結束バンド) [Cornflake (コーンフレーcu)]
8. Kessoku Band to Fushigi na Ehon (結束バンドと不思議な絵本) [Fuku Kitsune]
9. Go to the Burger Shop (GO TO BURGER SHOP) [kashmir]
10. Hajimete no Gakki (はじめてのがっき) [Higasa Nozomi]
Volume 2 (2023/08/25)
#Cover Illustration: Rasuko Okuma
#Illustrations: Arukimachi Hinode, Okanadamo, Ka, Suisogenshi (すいそげんし), Nakamori Kemuri, Maki (巻), Mebachi
1. #Gyoza Party #Shika Katan (#餃子ぱーりー #しか勝たん) [Fuji Fujino]
2. Make Up! Make Up! [Futaba Haru]
3. Akumu wo Miro Bass (悪夢を見るベース) [Urushino Rihito]
4. Let's Go Night Pool (れっつごーナイトプール) [Nagayama Yuunon]
5. Bocchi the Change! (ぼっち・ざ・ちぇんじ!) [Ishii Yuka]
6. Oogui Challenge (大食いチャレンジ) [Toda Hiroki (戸田大貴)]
7. Bocchi is Bad!? (ぼっちへあーいずばっど!?) [Tatsunokosso]
8. Moshimo Oneechan ga "Tomodachi" ni Nattara (もしもお姉ちゃんが"友達"になったら) [Kasuga Sunao]
9. Ameagari ni Mieru Niji (雨上がりにみえる虹) [Mameda]


Tags: Anthology , Primarily Female Cast , Band , Rock Music

Tokyo Girls Bravo

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Music , Slice of Life

The story takes place in the 80's. Kaneda Sakae, a high school girl living in Sapporo, suddenly moves to Tokyo with her mother...

Tags: Josei , Female Protagonist , Urban , Primarily Teen Cast , Coming of Age , Primarily Female Cast , Nudity , School , Rock Music , Bullying , LGBTQ+ Themes , Love Triangle , Psychosexual

Kuuden Noise no Himegimi

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Slice of Life

Hosaka Mao's never stood out. Her father's a washed-up rock-and-roller. Her hair reminds people of Pippi Longstocking. She's nowhere near the in-crowd. The arrival of long-haired beauty Hasekura Yokiko changes everything...

Tags: Band , School , Seinen , Female Protagonist , Rock Music