The mythical sirens are some of the most famous characters in fiction to use sound as a power, through their hypnotic voices, which led sailors to their doom. But some characters in anime can control sound like a weapon, usually appearing as some powerful wave, and put it to use as an attack.
Often characters with this ability use their own voice as a weapon, but this isn't always a necessity. In stories dealing with the classical elements, it sometimes gets conflated or associated with air, but some stories treat it as something separate entirely. And, of course, sirens sometimes make an appearance in anime, too.
10 Pretear: Sasame Is The Knight Of Sound
Sasame is one of the seven Leafe Knights, each of whom has control over an element. Sasame has power over sound, which he can lend to Himeno when they fuse. His power manifests in different forms, from creating images of sound to creating a sonic arrow. Keeping the theme going, he even works in radio.
He's notably something of a rival of Hayate, the Knight of the Wind. In the anime, Hayate appears cold, but is Himeno's true love, while Sasame appears friendly, but has much darker intentions.
9 Fushigi Yuugi: Amiboshi Has A Powerful Flute
Amiboshi is a mole posing as Chiriko and a member of the Seiryuu warriors, although he tends to be more sympathetic than the others.
He fights using his flute, and, while he can use his magic to relieve others of pain, he can also use it to control others. He can even control the time and moment his targets die. As he warns Miaka, a person can evade the spell by covering their ears and closing their eyes. That said, he's also capable of playing his flute as an instrument, too.
8 Sailor Moon: Crying Actually Helps Save The Day
During her first transformation into Sailor Moon and her confrontation with the monster Morga, Usagi feels overwhelmed, causing her to break down and start crying. This turns out to be the right thing to do as it activates her hair decorations, which amplifies soundwaves that become strong enough to stun Morga, knock out her minions, and even shatter glass. This was notably Sailor Moon's first attack in the series.
While the attack barely appears in the series afterward, it often appeared as an attack in the video games. A later story reveals that Sailor Chibi Moon has this power, too. In the anime, the two even use this attack in tandem.
7 Sailor Moon: Sailor Neptune Can Attack With Her Violin
Michiru Kaiou is an accomplished, professional violinist, which the anime famously highlighted by having violin music play during the Outer Scouts' transformations and attacks. In the manga, however, Sailor Neptune can literally use her violin in one of her attacks.
With "Submarine Violon Tide," she commands a wave of energy to attack a target while playing her Stradivarius violin, which she calls the "Marine Cathedral." A corrupted version of the attack also appeared while Sailor Neptune was under Sailor Galaxia's control called "Galactica Violon Tide."
6 Mermaid Melody: Lucia & The Mermaids Fight Demons With Singing
Some magical girls become idols; others fight evil. This series splits the difference by having a group of magical mermaid princesses who fight villains by singing at them. And even a few of the villains get to sing, or at least perform some form of music, to attack. It helps that one of the villains just happens to be one of those mermaid princesses...
Considering the main characters are mermaids, their magical singing could be a reference to sirens, as the two are often conflated with each other.
5 Violinist Of Hameln: He is Anime's Answer To The Pied Piper
In this series, playing an instrument can be as good as waving a magic wand. Patterned somewhat after the story of The Pied Piper, Hamel is a mysterious violinist with supernatural powers. His violin is also capable of magical abilities, such as fighting his enemies. He can't exactly control people, per se, but can enhance feelings they already have.
Of course, it's later revealed he has other forms of power due to being the son of the Demon King Chestra and Pandora, the mortal woman who unleashed demons upon the world. This comes in handy when his violin ends up broken.
4 Rosario + Vampire: Kanade Kamiya Is A Literal Siren
Sirens are creatures that appear in this series and, true to the older versions of the myth, appear as both male and female. Kaede Kamiya is an example of such a male siren and he can use his voice to accomplish a variety of things. Not only can he use it to enthrall people, but he can also weaponize it, using songs that cause victims unbearable pain, paralyze, kill humans, destroy environments, cleave the ground, superheat the air, and even blow through other attacks.
Another siren, San Otonashi, who appears in the series is a bit more sympathetic. She normally doesn't talk and communicates with a sketchpad. It's eventually revealed that she does this because her voice is extremely lethal, as seen when she defends the heroes against Kamiya.
3 Black Clover: Kahono Can Do A Lot With Song Magic
Kahono is a priestess of the Seabed Temple but she also dreams of becoming an idol who can use magic while singing and dancing. She has the power of Song Magic, which gives her different spells: "Mother Lullaby," "Destruction Beat," "Rhythm Cushion," and the healing spell, "Heal Lullaby." With her abilities, she can lull people to sleep, attack with sound waves, and even create cushions and barriers out of air.
Sound Magic is a separate attribute in this series, which can be used by the witch Samantha Kravitz, and includes the ability to generate human and animal sounds.
2 Hunter × Hunter: Bonolenov Is Literally A Musical Instrument
Bonolenov is practically a living instrument, as his body is filled with holes that produce sound when the wind goes through them.
This music activates his Nen ability, although different songs produce different effects, like conjuring certain objects or transforming his body. To help control the music, he often covers his body in bandages.
1 My Hero Academia: Jiro Manipulates Sound With Her Quirk
Kyoka Jiro, also known as the Hearing Hero: Earphone Jack, has a pair of headphone jacks hanging from her earlobes, which she can use to channel the sound of her beating heart into a powerful vibration attack.
She can cancel out powerful attacks with sound waves, cause earthquakes with vibrations, and incapacitate her target. She can also use her powers to tune into sounds and vibrations around her. Present Mic also has similar sound-based powers and is notably used to face off against her in a test.