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Yuji Yoshino’s compositions for the Spice and Wolf soundtrack are for the 2008 anime rather than the 2024 version. The more recent version’s soundtrack is written by Kevin Penkin. But even though there are two different versions of the Spice and Wolf anime, the show’s premise remains the same. Craft Lawrence, a merchant, meets a wolf goddess named Holo who grants bountiful harvests. Together, the two pair up and take viewers through case studies in medieval economics from the situations they find themselves in.
With that as the premise, Yuji Yoshino’s music settles you into Spice and Wolf’s setting beautifully. Many of the tracks on this album conjure up images of medieval life. You have instruments like lutes, bagpipes, and mandolins to complement the anime’s atmosphere, making it immersive. I’m especially fond of tracks like “Shippo to Dance” which captures the gaiety of a medieval festival and “Shounin to Ookami to, Tabi no Nibasha” which has the vibe of a jaunty travel theme. But some of the pieces that speak to Holo’s loneliness are also poignant. And, of course, there are tracks that capture the growing relationship between Craft and Holo. All together, the variety in this soundtrack help to make it more well-rounded.
The other notable points on the album is that it features the opening theme, “Tabii no Tochuu” (“In the Middle of a Journey”), a solid opener in its own right sung by Natsumi Kiyoura. The other piece is the fun, engrishy ending theme “Ringo Biyori ~The Wolf Whistling Song” by Rocky Chack. I’m still very much enjoying the opener to this day. But I can’t stand the ending theme, though I do know many in the anime blogging community who unironically love it.