Hiroko Moriguchi to Perform Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island Theme Song ‘Ubugoe’

Anime production company Bandai Namco Filmworks(Sunrise) has announced Gundam songstress Hiroko Moriguchi will be performing the theme song “Ubugoe” for the upcoming Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island film.

On Sunday, April 24, Moriguchi sang “Ubugoe” live for the first time at the opening ceremony for the life-sized Nu Gundam statue at Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Fukuoka in Fukuoka, her hometown. The new single containing the song will be released on June 1 with the accompanying tracks “Ima wa Oyasumi” (I’m Going to Bed Now), “Eien ni Amuro” (Amuro Forever) with VOJA, and “Ubugoe (Instrumental).”

“Ubugoe” Cover Art by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko

The single will have a standard edition and a first-press limited edition that will include the “Ubugoe” music video. Another limited edition will be available at participating theaters that includes an LP-sized jacket. Both limited editions feature artwork by director Yoshikazu Yasuhiko.

The title track “Ubugoe” is written by Goro Matsui and composed by doubleglass, with Keiichi Tomita as music producer. The lyrics focus on the feelings of Cara, a girl who takes care of Doan’s younger children in the film. Moriguchi, who says that she was moved by Cara, sings warmly, tenderly, and powerfully to the theme of “motherhood”.

Hiroko Moriguchi began her career with the debut single “Mizu no Hoshi e Ai wo Komete”(“From the Aqueous Star with Love”), serving as the second theme song for the 1985 TV anime series Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. She has since become known as the “Gundam Goddess” for performing many songs for the Gundam series, including “Sora no Kanata de”, the theme song for Mobile Suit Gundam The Origin: Eve of Destiny and “Eternal Wind ~Hohoemi wa Hikaru Kaze no Naka~” for the 1991 film Mobile Suit Gundam F91.

In March, Moriguchi released the third and final album in her Gundam Song Covers series. The series features Moriguchi collaborating with a variety of artists producing unique renditions of classic Gundam songs.

Announced during the 2nd Gundam Conference on September 2021, Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island is a new anime film directed by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, the character designer and chief animation director of the 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam series, as well as chief director of the 2015-2018 Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin OVA series. The film will be a new perspective on the fifteenth episode of the same name from the 0079 series. The tagline for the new film is “Gundam, rising again—“ and is set to release June 3, 2022 to 185 theaters in Japan.

Story

After enduring the battle at Jaburo, the Earth Federation Forces plan to launch a major counteroffensive to capture Odessa, a major base of Zeon’s Earth Attack forces. The White Base, with Amuro and his fellow crew aboard, head towards Belfast to receive the last resupply before the operation. White Base is then given a mission. The mission is to mop up the remaining Zeon enemies on an uninhabited island, commonly known as the “Island of No Return”. Amuro and his team embark on a search for the remaining agents, but what they see is a group of children and a Zaku that should not be there. After losing his Gundam in a battle, Amuro meets a man who calls himself Cucuruz Doan. Will he be able to uncover the secrets of the island, and will Amuro be able to find the Gundam again and escape safely……?

Cast