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Review - MERRY GO WORLD - 12012

May 4, 2008
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No prerequisite here; I'm jumping right in.

MERRY GO WORLD

12012

Tracklist:

1. MERRY GO WORLD [PV]

2. LOVERS [Audio]

3. 未来図 (Miraizu) [Audio]

4. I BELIEVE... (Type C) [Audio]

This single reminds me of Ayabie's MELT AWAY single. There seems to be a reoccurring sound/theme in each of the songs, and they all have a good sense of connection.

The theme/sound of MERRY GO WORLD is to "make as much noise as possible." Seriously. This is even reflected humorously in the PV.

Many people, after hearing the title song, simply dismissed it as "mediocre" and a bad experimentation from 12012's normal sound. But it deserves a chance, because looking underneath the poppy chorus and catchy hooks, there exists still, the aggressive and rough sound of 12012. And the guitars are just roaring, full out, with their volume up 100 % and generally just making a whirlwind of sound. They just pound at their power chords, attack and whine at the the ferocious riffs. I actually like this track for its energy and aggressiveness.

LOVERS is a power ballad, and it still has the general sound of MERRY GO WORLD. The guitars weave a pretty arpeggiated landscape around Wataru's wistful vocals. When we hit the tender refrain, however, they jump right out of the subdued sound of the verses, and blast out a wave of nostalgic-sounding noise. It almost sounds like Wataru is attempting to sing over them. It fades out, with the guitar repeating a sorrowful melody over a soundscape of strings.

未来図 is a fun song, featuring a cheery sing-along chorus. The guitars still burst out, loud as ever, but are still able to hold back at the right times. The song is actually quite catchy, and will easily get stuck in your head.

I BELIEVE... is a quite cool, dark song, which resembles THE MOON in many ways. A lot of the instrumentation and vocals remind me of some of Dir en Grey's work. The refrain is still classic 12012, and once again, the guitars are still using the same effect pedal(s) and boast the same attack.

Another attribute I noted about this single is the production value, which is very, very good. The drums are accented, the guitars are loud, the vocals are set so they stand out, but aren't overpowered (or overpowering), and the bass is big. This is one of the advantages of being signed to a major label (as well as the cool artwork), so I hope they keep this kind of quality mixing.

I don't see any flaws in this single, and it has a good sense of continuity and good individual songs. It's something I would recommend to anyone trying to get into 12012, and it shows a promising future from this band. I look forward to their next album~ (although I hope they do change up their sound a bit - too much of one sound can be boring)

5/5 - Fantastic