Oh by the ways, I was just at Tahoe this weekend for Fourth of July. So it's kind of a bummer to be going back so soon, but whatever. I'll do it this time without my family so it will be kinda different. By the way Fireworks over the lake.... THEY'RE AWESOME! <3 Every Fourth of July I recommend you all go out to your nearest large body of water and watch humongous fireworks. xDD We also had a pretty cool hike. My dad took some photos, but I'm too lazy to upload them now.
Anyway, if you can GET TICKETS FOR FLOGGING MOLLY. And join me!!! <3
Here's some old stuff I uploaded.
Do you live in or around Cincinnati, Ohio? If so, you're in luck because Scott and the Queen City Voxers Group have organized a Vox user meetup!
WHERE: Ault Park Playground. 3600 Observatory Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45208. "We'll look for each other at the playground marked by the red X below. If it's raining, head for the shelter to the north of the [red] X."
To RSVP (which is not essential, but is appreciated), reply to Scott's announcement or send him a private message. All Voxers, as well as their friends and family, are welcome to attend.
If you do attend the meetup, have a great time and please take lots of pictures and send them to me so I can post them in Team Vox for everyone to see!
Thank you so much to Scott for organizing this meetup. Wish I could be there!
New artist! I've been meaning to review her albums probably since I started the blog, never got round to it. Will start off with her first album, followed by second and third then sodasou zassou single and finally LAS VEGAS album. Should work out OK. So here is Onitsuka Chihiro's first album Insomnia released on 2001.03.07. The album reached #1 on Oricon charts and charted for 86 weeks. This is currently Onitsuka's only #1 product. By the end of 2001, Insomnia had sold 1,231,860 units, making it the #16 album of the year. In total, Insomnia sold 1,345,000 units.
The album opens with Gekkou (moonbeam), her second single which gained fame from it's tie-in to the TRICK dorama. In contrast to the album version, this one is string with violin backing. Like alot of Onitsuka Chihiro's songs the piano has a dominant part, often just simple repeated chords. Some strings come in later too, However, the song is driven mainly by Onitsuka's powerful and emotional vocals. Gekkou also happens to have some very beautiful lyrics, even the religious "I am Gods child" kinda fits if you see the lyrics translation. It's a beautiful, laid back song with a darker edge. It's quite simple song, but it carries alot of emotion that makes it quite beautiful and not at all boring to listen to.
The second track is Innocence. This one is alot different from anything else on the album. The song opens with piano and a heavy beat, giving it a dark atmosphere. The repetetive piano continues through the song. Chihiro onitsuka comes in, and her voice is beautiful throughout. There is also good use of backing vocals. The highlight is the way it builds up the rock- like chorus. It's a powerful and emotional song. The lyrics are emotive and angry, and this is certainly the mood of the song. It's a very dark but beautiful track. See the lyrics, and in particular the translators interpretation.
Next is the album version of BACK DOOR, which was used as the ending theme for a NHK tv show. Compared to innocence it's alot more toned down. It has a beautiful, sad sounding piano part. When Onitsuka Chihiro comes in she sounds sad, lost and confused. The lyrics support this - "Where is the back door?/ Where is the back door?/ Where is the back door of myself?" Her english carries thick accent, but it's not bad. It's a very sad song, with powerful lyrics. The backing vocals are a bit annoying, and the "where is the back door?" sounds quite sudden. It's still a beautiful song. I love the way it builds up, and the piano part is really pretty.
Fourth is edge, carrying on the trend of sad piano based (though there's alot more to this song!) songs with beautiful vocal performance from Onitsuka Chihiro. The lyrics are amazing- " Don't go, what hurts these thoughts of mine is that/ I'm living here without having fallen down, so/ Don't disappear, lay waste to my heart in this way/ Without you, I'd rather end it all"- extremly powerful and of course Onitsuka puts alot of emotion in. It's another stunning and emotional song. Onitsuka Chihiro sounds so beautiful.
Next up is We can go, a very upbeat and hopeful song with a gospel feel due to the lyrics- "we can go to the place where we can get freedom" and the overall rythmn and mood. It's a nice relaxing song with very good instrumentation, and of course Onitsuka Chihiro sounds great. I find the gospel feel (especially with the backing vocals) and the lyrics a tiny bit irritating though.
After We can go comes call. It's comprable to edge, a powerful and emotional song that is beautifully sung. Onitsuka Chihiro sounds really good both in the deep, low pitch verses, raising her voice for the rest of the song. See the lyrics and read the tranlators interpretation.
Then it's the album version of Shine. the song relies on the piano and vocals. The piano's rythmn lends a dark atmosphere, as do Onitsuka's sad sounding vocals. The chorus is very emotive- "its presses me [...] it blames me". Despite the simple instrumentation, it's a very dark and emotional song driven by Onitsuka's powerful vocals. It's got a very sorrowful feel to it. As with Innocence, see the lyrics translation and read the translaters interpretation. Only problem with the song is Onitsuka Chihiro's often bad pronunciation of english, but that' nothing unusual in jpop.
Track 8 is cage. the song has an upbeat and fast instrumental part, contrasting to the darker lyrics ("Don't leave me alone/God, if you're there/Please let me escape/Far away") and the tone of Chihiro onitsuka's voice- sounding bitter, especially in the chorus. It's another beautiful track with stunning vocals and prominent piano part.
After cage is Rasen (spiral), a very dark sounding song similiar to cage. Onitsuka sounds very sad, very longing. The chorus hints at hope as does the english bit- "Life/My Life/My Fragile Life/I've finally realized it". Onitsuka Chihiro puts so much emotion into those 4 lines, it's absolutly stunning. I love the instrumentation too. The dark atmoshpere is similiar to innocence, it's almost threatening.
Then it's Memai (dizzyness), carrying on the trend of sorrowful piano bases tunes with beautfiul lyrics and amazing vocals. The chorus especially is very strong, I like the way she accents certain notes. It's a beautiful song.
Lastly it's the album version of Gekkou, which unlike track one is solely piano and voice. The same applies for what I said about the first version, because this one really isn't that much different.
This is a fantastic album from Onitsuka Chihiro. It's quite a relaxing album to listen to, despite the dark meanings/ lyrics of the songs. I think it's amazing, simple as that. Each track carries a new emotion, presents something new. Onitsuka Chihiro's voice is powerful, driving the song forwards with heaps of emotions. Her voice sounds amazing both deep, yet reaches higher notes effortlessly. The lyrics are stunning, highly emotive. Her english is thickly accented, but she gets her point across and atleast the actual english lines make sense. This is one of my favourite albums from Onitsuka Chihiro, it shows off her talent perfectly. The weaker tracks are great, and the stronger tracks are absolutly amazing. Definitly something you should listen to.
Seeing so I'm gonna review the second album might as well start with the first. Here is the review for Ayaka's first message, released on 2006.11.01. It brought Ayaka huge success, even reaching number one on the world charts and being the 13th best (selling) album of the year 2007.
The album opens with Start to 0 (love), a very upbeat and catchy opening tune with gospel influences. Ayaka puts alot into her vocal performance, sounding good singing low but reaching higher notes easy- also note how she accents certain notes. It's a very catchy tune, very up-tempo and nice to listen to. The lyrics carry a message of hope and new beginnings, fitting for the opening of a debut album. I love the guitar part too.
The second track is Real voice, another fast and upbeat tune with a very funky little piano part this time. Gone is the gospel infleunce, and instead the song sounds darker with guitar part and an edge to Ayaka's vocals- which are stunning of course. Some nice ad-libbing too. The lyrics are slightly angry, but continue to be hopeful.
Next up is Sha la la. The song starts pretty dark and gritty with disjointed piano, deep and gritty vocals from Ayaka. The song picks up in the chorus, with Ayaka using the higher notes perfectly- sounding very beautiful. The disjointed piano carries through the song, as well as a strong electric guitar part. The song sounds slightly forlorn, but again despite the dark meaning of the lyrics they present a picture of hope. Of moving forward, getting over the wounds of the past: "I just smiled to try and get rid of/The sad regrets etched into my heart/ The future I can’t see, the dark past/ Gotta purge it all from my head". The bridge is definitly the best, carrying alot of emotion and being very beatiful with the "sha la la"'s. It's a very beautiful, laid back and relaxing song. Ayaka sounds stunning when she uses the higher notes, very pure.
Fourth is Blue days, a very soft and mid-tempo ballad. Ayaka puts alot of emotion into it, her voice even cracking at times as if holding back tears. The song begins to pick up at the chorus, introducing the beat to the instrumentation and becoming louder, crescendo-ing into the full song. This one features accoustic guitar, giving it very laid back feel. It's quite sad, with the overall message seeming to be about breaking up. It's a sad and beautiful ballad, however it does get repetetive, even the bridge only livens things up a little. Give points to Ayaka for putting so much emotion into it.
After Blue days comes her first single, the ballad I believe. The first song I heard from her. It's a very impressive ballad. Ayaka uses the alto part of her voice, sliding up to higher notes quite easy. Her vocal performance in this song is gorgeous- as is the intrumentation relying on piano and string (violin!!!) alot. The lyrics are the most hopeful so far, almost like ayaka reassuring herself that everything is fine now. Love how it builds up, and the string part which doesn't sound "woe as me"- very few songs use the violin as a solo in this way :P It's a beautiful, simple sounding ballad.
Track 6 is stay with me, which goes away from the ballads to an upbeat tune, again tinged with gospel influence (i think). What to say that's not been said before: good emotion and powerful vocals with good instrumentation. Nothing more to say.
Number 7 is melody another little upbeat number, again a nice electric guitar part. It's very fast paced, and the lyric seem to be about Ayaka appreciating music and being proud of her music. Aww. The repetetion of melody is a little irritating in many ways, espceially since it's pronounced wrong. But it's not bad at all.
After melody is Kimi no Power to Otona no Furi (Your Power and an Adult's Inseparability) another upbeat one, which starts with the piano key slide thing before bursting out into the full track. It's very lively and Ayaka sounds good as usual. Very poppy, and I like the use of backing vocals too.
Track number 9 is Eternal Story- and it's back to ballads. It starts with Ayaka just over guitar, and it actually sounds like she is straining her voice -alteast it takes on a strange tone. Kinda offputting.
Next is Turning Back time, starting off very laid back before introducing the brass (?) and gospel like organ (?). Ayaka sounds very beautiful, especially when she draws out the higher notes in the beginning of the verses. The song builds up the chorus which is pretty fast, almost angry sounding- like the "heys". It's a pretty regretful song in many ways, and Ayaka conveys this bitterness well. Although, the blaring brass is a little irritating.
Then it's 1.2.3.4. It starts off and builds up the chorus, very fast and upbeat- poppy. It's nice, nothing outwardly annoying about it, and Ayaka gives a great vocal performance.
Track 12 is story, it starts off sounding very typical with the instrumentation and slowly builds up the first verse, toning down the instrumentation to introduce Ayaka. Again, good vocals. The rythmn of the chorus is irritating though.
Next up is Rairarai- a very nice tune, tinged with gospel again. It's upbeat with powerful vocals. I love the "rairarai" bits to it. The song carries on the message of hope with it's happy lyrics- "We can’t lose our chance, move forward!". the variotions in the song are good and keep it interesting. It's good, really good.
Second to last is the very well known Mikadzuki (crescent moon). A piano and string driven ballad to finish the album off. It's very sad, and unlike alot of the album there isn't much hope- rather hopelessness. Of loneliness and longing. Ayaka conveys this with stunning vocals, especially the chorus starting with the "ah". This song has fantastic composition, and alot of emotion. I love it when ayaka sings high, and she does alot here. Beautiful song, very relaxing to finish the album off. Love how it builds up then quietens down.
But that's not all! Lastly it's message. It's basically Ayaka speaking over soft instrumentals (well that's what I remember, I deleted it long ago. No use to me!) The message Ayaka gives is cute though: "I want to sing for you/I want to sing for the people listening/If I can tell people about something I feel/That’s all it takes to make me happy" Kinda like something from a manga where the girl wants to be a big singer for various reasons but nvm.
Overall this is a very strong debut album, and it's actually quite amazing. Her voice is very powerful. For a young girl this is admirable. I also like that she never shows off with her vocals, the high notes slide in perfectly as do the low. She's not just using her higher notes for the sake of it- if that makes sense? Nothing worse than that. I also love the emotion she always puts into it, makes the songs really powerful. I also think she wrote alot of the lyrics, if not all, which is definitly admirable. The album is either upbeat pop (often with gospel influence I note), or meloncholic ballad. The overall sense is of hope, lots and lots of hope and new beginnings- fitting to a debut and her acheiving her dream of being a singer. Some of the tracks have weakness', and sometimes it does drag- meaning it's best for background music usually. I'm giving it a eight because it's good, but to me personally it is not the best thing- and everything which gets a 10 is really really super good, anything above and it's awesomeness itself.
Thanks to HarimaKenji for kicking my ass into doing another one of these. It's still not perfect, but I think this is about as good as it'll get, so check it out!
Songs played:
Yuko Nakazawa - Tokyo Bijin
Behemoth - Slaves Shall Serve
Aucifer - Datenshi BLUE
Yuko Nakazawa - Momen no Handkerchief
Download it here (39:52, 54.7MB)
Hey, how are all of you doing? How's everyones summer holidays going, assuming you are on one?
Mine's going nicely. Days pass by without me doing anything at all. It's awesome. Last weekend was the Tuska festival though, and what a fucking great festival it was. Three days of non-stop drinking, awesome bands and great atmosphere. Well worth the price of admission. I gotta tell you man, it's pretty rewarding to be a metal fan as compared to a j-pop fan at least if you live in Europe. Way more satisfying, and easier to see your favorite bands live. I literally had to travel only like 20 to 25 minutes each day to see bands such as Behemoth, Nile, Amon Amarth, Slayer or Morbid Angel... crazy stuff. Behemoth was the best band for me. I've gotten used to seeing all my favorite bands live already so it's usually no big deal, but this time I just couldn't help getting chills in my back when I saw those guys get on stage in their crazy armors, black metal make-up and all, kicking into their first song (which I recall being Slaves Shall Serve), with Nergal later in the set of course doing one of his trademark antics on stage:
Ahh, good times, good times. So, anyway, all these fun acts of blasphemy aside...
June turned out to be a pretty damn lazy month for me after all, as far as blogging goes. Dammit. Two posts a month is ridiculous, even for me. I really am an incompetent blogger! I'll try to get something more done this month, I promise.
Well, here's my answers here's my answers for Bikkuri Project's survey:
1. You have found a magical J-pop genie who will grant you one J-pop related wish (so no wishing for a million dollars or world peace or anything like that). It can be virtually anything as long as it’s directly related to J-pop, and don’t worry, because this is the nice sort of genie, not the kind who will try to find a loop-hole and screw up your wish. So, what do you wish for???
It'd be bitching to be Tsunku's right hand man. That'd include stuff like observing how he composes songs (maybe even sometimes getting the chance to compose with the guy!), naturally backstage access at H!P concerts... that kind of stuff. So basically I wouldn't do anything of importance at all, I'd just be in the way. But still, it's ok, it's the magical J-pop genie!
2. Is there any J-pop artist or group who seriously pisses you off? If yes, who, and why?
None that I can think of right now. There are numerous J-pop artists I dislike because of their music being downright bad, but I wouldn't go so far as saying they "piss me off".
3. Who do you think is the sexiest japanese singer out there?
I guess I'd have to say Miki-sama!
4. How about the cutest?
Hmmm. This was surprisingly hard. I guess Airi Suzuki.
5. Best personality?
I have to say Miki Fujimoto again. Reason being that I find her personality quite similar to mine in many ways (well, at least the personality she portrays as an idol). You know, the bitchyness and the whole "fuck you" kind of aura she gives off. That kinda stuff. I feel that can't be too far from how she really is. I hope so anyways. I think it's very refreshing compared to the usual cutesy and genki image.
Second place definitely goes to Risa Niigaki though. She's great. You gotta love her attitude towards fans. I think she truly appreciates the fans unlike some of the girls... (*cough*Rika(*cough*whore*cough*)*cough*)
6. If given the opportunity, would you rather date person 3, person 4, or person 5?
Miki, without a shadow of a doubt.
7. You work for a Japanese music magazine, and you have the opportunity to interview your favorite artist or group. What are a couple of the questions you want to ask them?
Man, too hard. You know what would be pretty funny to ask them though? Play them something like Burzum's self-titled album (ie. what some might call 'true Norwegian black metal') and film their reactions to it and do interviews afterwards on what they thought of it. It'd make for a fun DVD release, I assure you.
8. What’s the best (J-pop) song to listen to when you are really sad?
With the aim of getting uplifted from the sadness? This is much too hard of a question, since to me J-pop in general is all about the happy songs and, uh, good vibrations. Well, most things H!P at least. But okay, here's a good one: Ikimono Gakari's Uruwashiki Hito.
9. When you’re really happy?
Again, this is much too hard for the same reason. Early Morning Musume stuff would be good for this though. Ai no Tane, Morning Coffee, Manatsu no Kousen... stuff like that.
10. Do you often sing along to your favorite songs?
Sure.
11. How about dance?
Never.
12. Artistic integrity question!! If someone offerrered to pay you for blogging, but they were allowed to censor some of your opinions or veto some of your blogging ideas, would you do it?
Hmmm. That'd really depend on how much money I would be getting from the deal. As much as I'd love to say I wouldn't do it... if I was getting enough money so that I could actually make a living off it, I have to say I'd do it.
ink & watercolour, 8x10 inches (SOLD)
It's finally out!! I'm so happy. Released on this is Suzuki Ami's 29th single, her 14th on Avex and her second produced by that awesome dude from capsule. Then again I only like his Suzuki Ami productions, as well as perfume's secret secret. Otherwise both meg and perfume are rubbish. Suzuki Ami though really suits the genre- and she can actually sing. And she looks really hot on the single covers, somehow not sl^tty at all.
Tracklisting:
1: ONE
2: A token of love
3: ONE (instrumental)
4: A token of love (FM88 mix)
ONE kicks off with the distorted vocal part before coming in with the electronic instrumentation. Ami's voice is distorted, especially on the longer notes, but it don't sound bad. The song builds up the very catchy chorus. Again her voice is distorted but it works really well in the context of the song. For sure it meets the specification of "upbeat" and "sparkly". It's an amazing song, comparable to the awesome FREE FREE. It's got great electronic instrumentation, effects and variation. I love Suzuki Ami's voice, emotionless or distorted or just as she is. I love the repetetion of "number one" and also the meaning of the song, which is I think about "the one" and "only one in this world". It's cute. But it's also quite sexy, especially with the whispering voices and stuff.
The PV for ONE is also very sexy, with bad dance moves but cute outfits and pretty face makeup. Suzuki ami looks great and though the lights are blinding, it fits the song well.
ONE is cute and sparkly with a sexy edge. It is AWESOME.
The single takes a slight downfall with A token of love as the B-side. It's still great, but it's very very long. Like ONE it's all very electronic, and it's great with lots of varioations and effects. This one has a much more spacey feel though. Suzuki ami comes in with her "oh" and she sounds really good. It's all very techy and quite nice. She sounds a bit robotic in the verse though- like she's trying to be cute but the distortion means she sounds like some sort of alien. The pre chorus continues to be irritatiing, before the plain and dragged out chorus. The you and me is like some creepy alien coming after a human... "hehehe. You and me~~~~~"
Can you imagine that? XD sorry... bad joke...
There are good parts of the song, and they are very good, sprinkled with some bad parts of the song, and they are pretty irritating. It's all very cutesy (more creepy) and techy. Not bad but it may have to grow on me.
Overall? ONE is so awesome, and A token of love despite my taking the mick out of it is also quite good. I do think that Yasutaka brings out the best in Suzuki Ami, and I'm glad that there's also gonna be a full album of this standard. It's not a bad single, on the contrary it's pretty damn good. ONE is up there with my favourite electronic songs. A token of love will continue to make me giggle, but will probably still linger on my playlist.
I remembered to check when Misono's new album is coming up, having liked her rock project. turns out it's another great release on my birthday! (Tohoshinki's new single out on my b-day as is Versailles album! :P)
I thought that perhaps I should have pre-ordered it...
then I saw the cover.
o_o
It's definitly gonna be alteast ok msuic wide, naturally I'm hoping it's gonna be good or amazing. The cover though... very risky. Not something I could allow my parents to see...thus I probably won't be buying it.
Ahh... but Tohoshinki's new single soon! I should be getting the photobooklet!! And the B-side is called box in a ship! LOL
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