Metal Edge January 2006

::From Godhead to Hellsing
When he’s not rocking out with his gloomy Goth mates in Godhead, singer Jason Miller has an equally fun sideline, providing voices for various anime shows, including Hellsing, Reed or Die and Ghost in the Shell—Stand-Alone Complex. Here he gives us he inside scoop on the anime craze.

Metal Edge: What first got you into anime?
Jason Miller: Probably the show Star Blazers, called Yamato in Japan, when I was really young. I think I was about 8 or 9-years-old. Then when I was in junior high, I was all about Robotech.

What are your favorite series?
Galaxy Express 999 is my all time favorite. It’s a great commentary on social issues and how they many or may not be handled in the future. It’s also a great adventure story. Of course there is Robotech, Star Blazers, Gundam. Those are some of the classics. More recently shows like Cowboy Bebop, Evangelion and Texhnolyze have really caught my attention.

How does being a voice actor satisfy you outside of music?
They are two completely separate things, but voice acting is certainly a lot of fun. It enables me to be someone completely separate from myself. Most of the characters look nothing like me, of course, so it’s fun giving them a voice from inside my own mind.

Which titles would you recommend for Metal Edge readers?
I think most metal fans would like Akira—there is lots of stuff blowing up! Also Macross Plus, Evangelion and Appleseed.

Do you think anime will get bigger over the coming years?
It appears to be getting bigger and bigger every year. One of the other shows that I have done voice acting for is Avatar on Nickelodeon, which is original animation made to look like anime, so that has got to tell you something about the popularity of the style.