HISAISHI, JOE

The final piece of the 1997 trilogy, Joe Hisaishi’s Princess Mononoke: Image Album, offers a fascinating glimpse into the raw creative ideas formed before the film was even animated. Rather than matching finished scenes, Hisaishi recorded this standalone LP based entirely on the earliest conceptual poetry, thematic memos, and character notes provided by director Hayao Miyazaki. Because it was composed free from the strict timing restraints of film editing, the album functions as a highly expressive, experimental canvas where the core themes are explored with different instruments, tempos, and vocal arrangements compared to the final soundtrack.