Starting on 27 August, 2025 a series of special podcasts episodes featuring conversations between some of the team behind New PANTY & STOCKING with GARTERBELT began airing. It’s our great pleasure to provide English translations of these conversations with permission and approval from STUDIO TRIGGER and FlyingDog. Today we have a discussion between series sound producer ☆Taku Takahashi and contributor Yackle. They'll be talking specifically about creating the soundtrack for the new series.

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out Episode 1, Part 1 / Episode 1, Part 2 and Episode 2, Part 1 / Episode 2, Part 2 for a conversation between ☆Taku Takahashi and Studio TRIGGER's Hiroyuki Imaishi and Hiromi Wakabayashi.

If you would like to read along to the original Japanese audio, the podcast can be heard via Spotify.

☆Taku Takahashi: To everyone tuning into This is New PANTY & STOCKING, good afternoon, this is m-flo's Taku Takahashi. This program covers the recently returned anime series New PANTY & STOCKING with GARTERBELT, where over the last three weeks, we’ve shared behind-the-scenes stories about the creation of the series, as well as undisclosed trivia about the show with the series creators. For this final episode, we’re joined by Yackle, who also participated in the creation of the soundtrack. It’s a pleasure to have you here, Yackle. 

Yackle: Hello, it’s a pleasure to be here! My name’s Yackle, and I’m extremely grateful to be here today to share my thoughts on the series.

☆Taku: So, Yackle, you probably contributed the most to the soundtrack, right?

Yackle: It seems that way, which was definitely a surprise. When we were working together on everything, I was thinking this was about the amount that everyone was doing. Who’d have thought that six songs would be the most out of anyone – thank you so much, seriously. 

☆Taku: No, thank you – seriously. So you’re from Nara, and were born in 2000 and now work as a producer, DJ, and event organizer –

Yackle: Yeah.

☆Taku: Discovering techno and electronic music at age 10, becoming a DJ in 2013, a producer in 2015, and an event organizer in 2016. How old were you then, when you became an event organizer?

Yackle: I started as an organizer at the age of 16, during my first year of high school, and began DJing at the age of 13, during my first year of middle school. 

☆Taku: And until now you’ve worked across genres, with all sorts of people, right?

Yackle: That’s right – I find it a lot more enjoyable to create music with a variety of artists, taking the opportunity to explore new musical styles and each other's unique sounds. I’ve had the opportunity to work with idols, rappers, groups – I’m very open on that front. 

☆Taku: Well, you mentioned the work alongside idols and rappers, but you really do have this innate ability to create such a spectrum of music – and it all ties back to the “Yackle sound” that you have, which is really cool. 

Yackle: Thank you.

☆Taku: So with that, I was more than happy to have you included in the soundtrack, and within those songs you wrote, “Sweet but Deadly” gets used quite often.

Yackle: Yeah, I’m seriously so happy about that too – basically every episode, at least one of my songs is playing.

☆Taku: There’s also “Fear and Happy Hour,” “Defcon 0,” “Girlz Noize,” “F-Bomb,” which I bet if you were to bring up I’m sure people wouldn’t quite know just yet.

Yackle: Yeah, with the soundtrack still not released that’s to be expected.

☆Taku: Well we definitely want people to look forward to the soundtrack’s release – but so today episode 10 finished airing.

Yackle: Right.

☆Taku: The titles for the episode were “The Sex From Another World” and “Lord of The Kokan The Great” – that’s where we’ve aired up to.

Yackle: Yeah.

☆Taku: Have you been watching the show?

Yackle: Yeah, I’ve been watching it on release – I even told my parents about it. It’s funny, they’ve been recording the episodes as they air, but when I was eating dinner with my parents recently in Nara, my mom suddenly said, “Oh yeah!” and started playing the recording while we were eating – I was so nervous watching it. [laughs]

☆Taku: Ahh… 

Yackle: She was completely in the dark about what was actually in the show…

☆Taku: Definitely not the sort of show you want to be watching with your parents.

Yackle: Right? So I was putting my all into changing the topic whenever certain scenes would come up, just whatever I needed to do to get her to stop paying attention. Thankfully we managed to get to the end without anything coming up. 

☆Taku: Absolutely not something I want my parents to know about.

Yackle: Yeah, not really something I want them knowing about. Watching it together wasn’t something I wanted either – there could have been this whole awkwardness to it, you know?

☆Taku: Right, but it is still something to be proud of, being included in this soundtrack.

Yackle: Yeah, and I am super happy about it, but –

☆Taku: I get it, I wouldn’t want to discuss it with my parents either.

Yackle: Yeah…

☆Taku: On that note though, the soundtrack is coming out.

Yackle: Right.

☆Taku: The soundtrack for NEW PANTY & STOCKING with GARTERBELT will be split across two discs – disc one with 31 songs.

Yackle: That’s a lot of songs.

☆Taku: The second disc will have 25 songs, for a total of 56 songs.

Yackle: 56 songs isn’t something you see too often in the age of streaming either, right?

☆Taku: Definitely not something you see too often at all.

Yackle: That’s a crazy number – like, the sheer number of tracks.

☆Taku: And even then, we couldn’t fit everything onto the streaming version.

Yackle: Wait, is that even a thing?

☆Taku: Yeah… that’s how it is.

Yackle: Compared to the last release, the track count is way up this time, right?

☆Taku: Way up.

Yackle: Right.

☆Taku: We made sure that Wakabayashi and Imaishi were in the know about that part, too.

Yackle: *laughs*

☆Taku: We were like, “This is super cost-effective, you know.”

Yackle: Totally. We just cranked out a whole bunch of tracks.

☆Taku: But it was fun.

Yackle: Yeah, it really was. And in making the songs, lately I’ve had lots of opportunities to co-write in different settings, but we also tried some new approaches this time.

☆Taku: And everyone will get to hear that when the soundtrack drops on September 24.

Yackle: Two weeks from now, exactly.

☆Taku: Pre-orders are already open, and I feel like good things happen if you pre-order, so I hope you do. On Spotify, it’ll be up on the 25th. Of course, I want you to check it on Spotify, but holding the physical disc in your hand while listening on Spotify… that’s magic.

Yackle: These days, not everyone has a CD player at home, but you can still listen while holding the disc, you know?

☆Taku: Exactly. Listening to Spotify while holding the disc somehow makes it sound different.

Yackle: Right – there’s something about physically holding a thing that matters.

☆Taku: Just to be clear, that’s a personal opinion and not a guarantee of results.

Yackle: Results may vary.

☆Taku: Yeah, but that’s how it feels to me.

Yackle: I get it.

☆Taku: I’m sure that’s how it is.

Yackle: That’s how I feel, too.

☆Taku: I believe in magic.

Yackle: Yep.

☆Taku: Yep.

Yackle: So, everyone who wants to feel a little magic – please grab the physical and listen with it in hand. That would make us happy.

☆Taku: Exactly. If you believe in Santa Claus, you’ll definitely listen.

Yackle: It’s not about “believing” – Santa Claus exists. 

☆Taku: Oh, right, right.

Yackle: Careful there. Anyway, with you saying all that, I’m sure everyone listening right now has already hit pre-order. I think we’re good.

☆Taku: Honestly, people listening to today’s episode are probably real diehards.

Yackle: True.

☆Taku: Most folks would rather hear from the anime’s director or story writers. But this episode’s about the music.

Yackle: Right.

☆Taku: And “diehard” is a compliment. We’re gonna let ourselves get super nerdy.

Yackle: Fair enough.

☆Taku: Even if we go deep, I’ll properly explain and add context. We can throw around music terms—it’s fine. I’ll clarify everything.

Yackle: Thank you!

☆Taku: …Though after saying that, it might be you who ends up clarifying. Anyway, shall we dive right in?

Yackle: Yes, please.

☆Taku: A question for you, Yackle.

Yackle: Oh, sure.

☆Taku: When you got invited to join New PANTY & STOCKING, how did you feel at first?

Yackle: It actually came over the phone, and I just said, “I’m in, thank you,” without asking anything.

☆Taku: Ahh, right.

Yackle: Instant yes.

☆Taku: So you didn’t even hear the part where we said, “Do it all for zero yen?”

Yackle: Yeah! I didn’t ask about any of that. I was like, “Please! I’ll do anything!” That’s basically the mindset I have whenever I make music with you.

☆Taku: “Zero yen” was a joke, but honestly, even if they asked me to do it for free, I’d do it—because it’s a TRIGGER project.

Yackle: I’d checked out the original Panty & Stocking, and I listened to the soundtrack a lot, even played the songs in DJ sets, so getting to participate now was honestly too much of an honor.

☆Taku: You spin it in DJ sets?

Yackle: Yeah, of course. Especially the “Fly Away” edit by TeddyLoid and you – I played that a lot. And you know the main theme? I used to compete in yo-yo, where routines run to music. When I was in grade school, a senior used that theme in the Asia competition prelims. I heard it and went, “What is this track?!” After looking it up, it turned out to be from PANTY & STOCKING. 

☆Taku: They used it for a yo-yo tournament?

Yackle: Yep!

☆Taku: I’m grateful.

Yackle: That was my gateway.

☆Taku: I love hearing it gets used in DJ sets.

Yackle: Yeah.

☆Taku: I always feel like PANTY & STOCKING cues pop up as BGM on info programs.

Yackle: Really? On info programs?

☆Taku: [laughs] Yeah, on info programs. Even though the series is what it is.

Yackle: [laughs] I’m sure they can’t even begin to imagine its source.

☆Taku: [laughs] Right. Anyway, we’ll start light and then dig deeper and deeper. Do you have a question for me?

Yackle: Yes, may I?

☆Taku: Go ahead.

Yackle: All the artists on the new series soundtrack have their own styles and strengths. How did you decide whom to reach out to?

☆Taku: Ahh, I get that a lot. If you ask what the criteria were, PANTY & STOCKING isn’t a typical anime, so “people who aren’t typical” is the simple answer. It’s a worldwide show, so we needed artists whose sound hits hard globally. Plus, Wakabayashi and Imaishi are very particular, so we needed people with the strength to meet their requests. People who understand cutting-edge sounds. And for vocalists, artists from Japan who can truly play on the world stage. I was really picky about that.

Yackle: Totally. Even just amongst the trackmakers, there’s such a wide range, and on top of that, all sorts of vocalists and guest performers came together for this.

☆Taku: Yeah. A lot of them also DJ, so they know how things work on the floor. But it still had to function as a soundtrack. That was true for the original PANTY & STOCKING, too. The directors’ requests this time leaned less dance and more towards rock. So having dance-music people who also “get” rock interpretations was key.

Yackle: Right, like KM, especially, he explores that crossover even in his solo works.

☆Taku: Yeah, KM, right. Like putting melodic-hardcore elements into trap.

Yackle: And there are quite a few tracks with live – or “wa” – sound elements, too.

☆Taku: Melodic hardcore is basically a band sound. And 80KIDZ – personally, I think they’re essentially a rock band. They use tons of electronics and make techno, but their interpretation of electro comes from rock. And with you, Yackle—even if you don’t play guitar, the way you drive and distort synths feels close to rock to me. That’s why I called you.

Yackle: Thank you, that makes me happy. Compared to the original soundtrack, there are way more contributors this time. Was managing all that tough? I mean, just coordinating that many tracks and people sounds rough.

☆Taku: Honestly, 80KIDZ were the toughest. [laughs]

Yackle: [laughs] Really? That’s so sudden!

☆Taku: Calling them out by name. [laughs]

Yackle: If they’re listening, they’re probably like, “Hey! He just said that!” [laughs]

☆Taku: Meetings never reached conclusions.

Yackle: How so?

☆Taku: I mean, I’m self-aware about it – like, “I’ve got a quirky side.” 

Yackle: Yeah, there are those moments – out-of-nowhere timing things.

☆Taku: [laughs]

Yackle: But I love that. I think it’s hilarious, in the best way.

☆Taku: Really?

Yackle: Yeah. Even in production, you’ll suddenly throw something in and I’ll go, “Oh, that’s actually sick.”

☆Taku: Sorry for all the trouble.

Yackle: No way, not at all.

☆Taku: And to top it off, both of them have such strong thoughts that the meetings wouldn’t move forward.

Yackle: That was at the stage of deciding direction, right? Not during production?

☆Taku: Exactly. We got on a call together, and the conversation just zig-zagged everywhere. That was probably the toughest part.

Yackle: So even before sound design, huh.

☆Taku: Once the sound is made, it all just starts moving.

Yackle: Right.

☆Taku: Made me think maybe the meeting wasn’t necessary. 

Yackle: Maybe just sparring with the music would’ve been faster.

☆Taku: Right. Also, MONJOE – he works very structurally. He came to our studio and we made things together. You and MONJOE made the m-flo song “HYPERNOVA” on the same day, remember?

Yackle: Yeah.

☆Taku: When we made “Divine,” we were talking about channeling 90s/2000s American/UK boy group vibes, but updating it with a modern sound. We both saw the direction, and while we fiddled around, we just kept moving our hands and finished it. With 80KIDZ, it was all handled remotely.

Yackle: Yeah, sometimes in your studio, sometimes purely remote.

☆Taku: Right. With 80KIDZ, they built the base, and I added melodies, lyrics, structured it, that kind of flow.

Yackle: So more division of roles on that side.

☆Taku: TeddyLoid also mostly worked solo – we didn’t co-build much. But for the opening, we said, “Let’s do it together.” He came toward the end and sprinkled… well, “sprinkled” is a weird term.

Yackle: Yeah.

☆Taku: How should I explain “sprinkled”?

Yackle: Like scattering ear-candy elements here and there?

☆Taku: Exactly, those little top-line sounds that pop out for a second and change everything. He came at the very end, showed up, and was like, “What if we drop this sound here?” And I’m like, “That’s so good.” His instincts are fantastic.

Yackle: Those final tweaks can change the vibe completely.

☆Taku: Totally.

Yackle: Super important.

☆Taku: Yeah. Also, TAAR came to the studio and we worked together.

Yackle: So after that studio session with myself, TAAR, and MONJOE.

☆Taku: And KM.

Yackle: KM also worked at your studio?

☆Taku: Yeah. We did the synth-guitar first, then he took it home and re-tracked guitar, etc. TAAR is a chord genius.

Yackle: He’s got so many tools to pull from in production.

☆Taku: Tons of drawers to open.

Yackle: TAAR really is that good.

☆Taku: There was one track in particular that plays during a pretty touching scene. The chord work on that was fantastic.

Yackle: Right – chords can instantly steer a scene. Emotional moments, battle scenes, TAAR’s great at translating that imagery and feeling into music.

☆Taku: Yeah. Mitsunori Ikeda’s in this one, too.

Yackle: Yeah.

☆Taku: He’s on several tracks we used a lot. “Theme of Super Guy Jin” brings that kind of Japanese vibe. He’s insanely good at turning Japanese elements into dance music.

Yackle: Yeah, he’s super versatile.

☆Taku: Ridiculously so. A genius at making Japanese sounds into dance. He’s done that on other works, too. The way he pulls off that Japanese sound, you’d think he grew up doing traditional Japanese music, but he actually hasn’t done any of it in his lifetime. Yet, nobody tops him at creating that vibe.

Yackle: He’s done remixes for m-flo, as well as other productions, right?

☆Taku: Yeah, he’s multi-talented as an engineer, composer, and a guitarist. Absolute genius. Then there’s Junji Chiba, who’s been with m-flo since our very first single.

Yackle: Oh, really?

☆Taku: Yeah, our first single “L.O.T. (Love or Truth) / Been So Long” – he played keys on “Been So Long.” This time, he performed piano on “Theme for Panty & Stocking” and the piano version of “Fly Away,” too. And I can’t forget Taku Inoue; this was our first session together.

Yackle: Taku x Taku.

☆Taku: Double Taku.

Yackle: Double Taku.

☆Taku: We get along super well when we drink, and he’s always so easy to talk to. Recently, we nerded out about gear with tofubeats and Ram Rider, it was a whole thing. We’re on the same wavelength. We didn’t need any revisions on our tracks together, right?

Yackle: None at all. Did other tracks need fixes?

☆Taku: Not so much revisions as tempo adjustments.

Yackle: BPM stuff.

☆Taku: Yeah. Things like “Try this tempo, now this tempo…” That happened, of course. But almost no directional changes.

Yackle: Your role as producer really helped make that possible.

☆Taku: What I was careful about was translating what Imaishi and Wakabayashi were saying and how to communicate that direction to everyone.

Yackle: It was super clear. Even among the six tracks we did together, some had very different themes, but your guidance was so on point that progress felt really smooth. We finished those six in like two days, right?

☆Taku: Two days, yeah.

Yackle: Like three tracks a day, back-to-back-to-back.

☆Taku: Right. On the original soundtrack, I was swamped, which led to me throwing directions all over the place. A lot of things came back that I had to give negative feedback on. This time, we worked together more; we were absorbing notes directly from the director and Wakabayashi, so there were almost no fixes. I was also on the phone with Wakabayashi a lot.

Yackle: That’s key, though, keeping the communication flowing mid-process.

☆Taku: Just being told, “It’s this kind of scene,” isn’t enough. I’d read scripts, watch comps, and check in to confirm that this was what they’re looking for.

Yackle: If all the animation were finished beforehand, it’s easier to understand, but before that stage, you really need to make sure everyone’s aligned.

☆Taku: Exactly.

Yackle: Otherwise, it really is tough.

☆Taku: And when something was quite there, I’d reach out to ask them to send WIPs. Some things they could send, some they couldn’t. In Japan, composing while watching actual footage is relatively rare.

Yackle: Oh, really?

☆Taku: Overseas, it’s totally normal. PANTY & STOCKING let us do that more, and I hope that becomes more common, because it really does speed up the process.

Yackle: It definitely makes it easier to compose to the visuals.

☆Taku: Yeah, like matching tempo to movement. I want to do more of that. We actually managed quite a bit here, which made me happy; it was a lot of fun.

Yackle: How was it on the original series?

☆Taku: Back then, we just made tracks and sent them.

Yackle: So the workflow was totally different.

☆Taku: Wakabayashi’s really good at placing music. He used the video software himself and laid in the audio we sent. Last time he forced it to fit. This time, he’d ask me to edit parts that didn’t fit, which is what I wanted – the ability to edit. He picked up on that, and we could tweak stuff. Wakabayashi’s sense is insane.

Yackle: That placement is everything—choosing which track for which scene is huge.

☆Taku: Totally.

Yackle: And with more tracks this time, there were more options, right?

☆Taku: Wakabayashi was definitely happy about that.

As with the other episodes, this one has been split into 2 parts for length and flow. Check back in a few days for the conclusion of the This is New PANTY & STOCKING podcast series!