Hitsujibungaku have released ‘Sugar’, the first of six songs they have written for ghost – end of night, the original animated film from director Shingo Natsume and studio Madhouse. The insert song is out now as a digital single, and will be paired with the film’s theme song ‘life’ on a CD single in February.
Written and composed by vocalist and guitarist Moeka Shiotsuka, ‘Sugar’ first surfaced in the film’s teaser in July. The band have since been performing it on their first national hall tour of Japan, which closes with two nights at Tokyo’s Yoyogi National Gymnasium on November 10th and 11th.
Due in Japanese cinemas on February 11th 2027, ghost – end of night (ghost/Yoru no Hate) is Natsume’s first original feature-length animated film, with a score by songwriter and guitarist Ohzora Kimishima. Natsume previously directed One-Punch Man, Sonny Boy, and The Tatami Time Machine Blues, while Madhouse’s catalogue includes Perfect Blue, Paprika, and Summer Wars.
Set in a near future where only the most capable still work and everyone is sorted at 18 into people the world needs and people it doesn’t, the film follows Nike (voiced by Mayu Hotta), a gifted girl already selected at 15. Frustrated with the world around her, she searches for somewhere she truly belongs, and meets Masu (Issei Takahashi), a man living with deep loss.
Commenting on the film’s official website, Hitsujibungaku said they read the script many times and were always in tears by the end. “When I faced this work, I wanted to make sure there was nothing false in it”, the comment reads. The band finished the songs around their first US tour in 2025, adding, “I wanted to express Nike’s strength and fragility by setting the pain I’d felt in Japan to a bright, open sound that suits the vast American landscape”.
On December 14th, Hitsujibungaku return to London for matsuri ’26: Japanese Music Experience LONDON at Outernet Live, sharing the bill with Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Otoboke Beaver. The show follows their sold-out concert at O2 Academy Islington in October 2025, the final stop of their debut European tour.
RELATED: Japan’s music industry sends Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Otoboke Beaver, and Hitsujibungaku to London for matsuri ’26
‘Sugar’ is available digitally via F.C.L.S. from November 10th, while the ‘life/Sugar’ CD single follows on February 10th 2027, the day before the film opens. Watch the first teaser for ghost – end of night, featuring ‘Sugar’, below.
matsuri ’26: Japanese Music Experience LONDON
| Date | Location | Show & tickets |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Dec 2026 | Outernet Live, London, UK | Scheduled |
