Eminem, 50 Cent, New Found Glory ... with all the regular musicaround and a short attention span for songs that sound the same, you start to search for alternatetunes to keep you entertained for late-night studying.

With popular animes and mangas comingfrom Japan, it's to be expected that their music will make its way here too. One such CD isthe original soundtrack to the second season of the anime series, “Ghost in the Shell: AStand Alone Complex” with haunting tunes and upbeat rhythms. There's symphony andinstrumentals, and also Japanese lyrics that would mystify you if it weren't for thetranslation booklet that comes with the CD.

A good bit of Italian is added to lend thesongs some flavor. It's so different that it is perfect for someone tired of American musicand who wants something that catches their mind.

The first song, “Cyberbird,”starts out slowly but picks up and hooks you. Of 17 songs, only eight actually havelyrics. Renowned composer Yoko Kanno blends the songs in arrays of stylish jazz, bouncing technoand smooth ballads.

It might seem a little weird to listen to music when you have no ideawhat it's saying but, trust me, it's much cleaner than what we usually listen to andoffers something different from the norm.