8 posts tagged “2008”
I'll try to spend this lapse in major releases in June by making up all the reviews I skipped and I might add in a couple classic reviews too, depending if I decide to stop being lazy or not =.=.
Tracklist:
1. BRILLIANT
2. Cocoon [Audio]
BRILLIANT was the first D'espa song I had heard, and it impressed me to no end. Beginning with a quick buildup of white noise (which kinda stays for the entire song), the guitars and driving bass rage on and on, never taking their feet off of the gas pedal. Hizumi provides a solid vocal performance for the entire song, leading the group through the big anthem. Kayru also slips in lots of strong riffs, which are somewhat covered up in the thick wall of sound. The track just keeps on pounding on until the end.
The next track, Cocoon provides a slight change in pace, with more growling, and slightly more subtle verses, and despite the fact the song plateaus a little bit at the refrain, it's still another strong burner.
I would definitely gave this single full marks......until I heard their album MIRROR. Almost every song on that album has more fire than Cocoon, and although BRILLIANT, my favorite of the two songs, does possess a bit more uniqueness, I've come to see that D'espairsRay is quite good at churning out these kinds of anthemic rock songs, and that BRILLIANT really doesn't say all that much.
Although this is really a good single, and had it been the groups debut release, I would have given it a full score, I'm forced to take off a couple points for the slight lack of originality.
4/5 - Good
I've been inactive for a month, and I have no excuse, except that I've been listening to a lot of other kinds of experimental music, as well as a lot of Radiohead as always. And that I'm a lazy person (whose been out of school for almost a month.) But here's my LONG overdue review of this single~!
Tracklist:
MIRROR BALL is like a mix of TSUBASA and Velvet. Except it's more TSUBASA then Velvet. It takes the poppy melodies of their more recent work, and fuses it with the rockiness of some of their older work. It keeps the same refined quality (some would say TOO refined) that their newer music has.
It's quite a pleasant, energetic song, without straying too far down the pop road. However, they've already released a similar song like this for their last single (TSUBASA) and I hope they'll released some more dynamic singles, ballads, and maybe hard rock songs (FANTASY and Kowloon).
Then next track, 奇跡, sounds immediately like a Switchfoot song from the beginning, but turns back into alice nine. for the refrain, then goes back to sounding American. I had to check my iPod the first time I heard it to make sure this was really an alice nine. song. The beginning riff, and the thick, distorted instrumentation all reminded me of Switchfoot. But especially the ending, with the screaming feedback and wah-wah pedal at full blast, before dying out REALLY had a Switchfoot feel.
We then get a re-arrangement (not a remix, it's not different enough) of their song on Alpha, Eraser. It's slightly softer, featuring some piano accents, and a more acoustic arrangement. The only real change to the progression of the song is probably the falsetto vocals near the end (which work out quite well), and the ending itself.
I think my biggest gripe with this single, which is a minor thing, is that there seems to be a lack of real original material. MIRROR BALL resembles TSUBASA, and Eraser -Memoire d'une Fleur- is a re-arrangement. However, I know that if alice nine. changed their sound from 2006-2007, I'm sure they'll be massaging it into something else soon. Overall quite a solid release:
4/5 - Good
NOTE: This is not a re-review, or any new content. It is simply a retyping of my first post, because I screwed up my formatting for the first version. Don't get too exited~!
Well, everyone has been reviewing this single, so I felt that I would give it a try too. (First review! Yay!) About the BULLET one, expect that one soon too, I've just been too lazy, plus this trumps that.
Tracklist:
2. 傀儡絵 (Kugutsue) [Audio]
3. 虚無の終わり 箱詰めの黙示 (Kyomunoowari Hakodzumemokushi) [Audio]
For me, the GazettE have always been a darker band. Even their ballads have been darker. I've always needed a more happy band to balance them out.
If I were to describe the band with one color, it would be purple. Their repertoire generally consists of heavy headbanging songs (DISCHARGE), melodious pieces that lie somewhere between ballad and normal rock (Bath Room), dark ballads (Chizuru), and Jazz-Rock songs (Silly God Disco)
Their latest album, STACKED RUBBISH, has been a generally brown album, with its hints of more joyful subjects, yet generally black themes.
紅蓮 completely captures the purple aspect of the GazettE. On an overall basis, the title song is what they want to show us now, and the other two songs COMPLETELY sum up the GazettE. If I wanted to show my friend this band, I would definitely give them this single.
Track by track:
紅蓮 - This song is beautiful. It really does, as everybody else says, flow. 紅蓮 is able to be an elegant ballad without becoming too layered and heavy or just sitting in one place. Think Kagrra, + the more industrial feel and touch of the GazettE, and you have 紅蓮. Ruki starts off with a gentle croon, and slowly builds the song up to a steady, yet emotional chorus, which swirls into a passionate climax, where Uruha takes over with a fitting guitar solo. The other band members paint the background for you, creating a Neo-Japanesque texture. 5/5.
傀儡絵 - Pretty much, as あさり says, this track takes all the best moments Ruki and co. have come up with these past years, and pasted them all into one song. Chizuru-like opening, Hyena guitars, NIL melody, and STACKED RUBBISH lady vocals. The piece progresses like Nausea & Shudder, albeit a bit more intense. Personally, I love the lady-vocals, they add a great refrain. The final bridge, where Ruki and ladies deliver a very melodious theme is my favorite part of the track. 4.5/5
虚無の終わり 箱詰めの黙示 - This song also takes a good flow, starting off with the Perfect 5th guitar chords. The verses are softy sung, reminding me a bit of HYDE's solo work. They harmony they strike have a very forshadowing, sarcastic tone, which is fulfilled with the big, sweeping chorus. Great instrumentation and vocal delivery. It's very entertaining, and it doesn't get old. Is it a hint of what might be coming from the GazettE? Possibly... 4.5/5
As a whole, this is a thrilling single. I'm delighted by the music direction taken, and maturity of sound from the GazettE. I give this single a:
5/5 - Outstanding
A review-a-day! Probably because I'm just finding so much delightful music~! There's actually quite an interesting story to me and this band, so...
Tracklist:
1. アローンアゲイン、ワンダフルワールド (Alone again, wonderful world) [PV]
2. サイケでリズム (Psychedelizm) [Audio]
3. 初めてのＸＸＸ (First XXX) [Audio]
4. アローンアゲイン、ワンダフルワールド～
Instrumental～
5. サイケでリズム～Instrumental～
I found out about Plastic Tree at first because of my love for Radiohead, while searching for a performance of their song, Fake Plastic Trees. (one of my all-time favorite songs, listen to it if you haven't yet) I saw that there was a Japanese band named "Plastic Tree", and thought, "Oh cool, I look up on them later." and of course, I didn't.
But then, yesterday, I stumbled upon Heroin(e)'s review of Alone again, wonderful world. I read the review, and then pressed play on the PV.
And then I felt this incredible nostalgia, because the song reminded me so much of The Bends-era Radiohead. I instantly fell in love with the song, and then Plastic Tree in general. (Later, I found out that many British alternative bands, which I listen to regularly, were some of Plastic Tree's biggest influences - including Radiohead in particular.)
The thing that drew me in at first about Alone again, wonderful world were the "dirnt-dirnt-dirnt-dirnt" crunches of the guitar. However, these chords which sound harsh at first, take a backseat to Ryuutarou's sing-song, simple vocals, which were what really made me fall in love with Plastic Tree. The way he sat, legs dangling in the PV, the airiness and lightness in his voice brought images of a young Thom Yorke (brilliant frontman of Radiohead) to my head. The simple, yet longing feelings in the song have a everyday touch to them. I just listened to Alone again, wonderful world again and again, and it never got boring or old.
初めてのＸＸＸ confuses me. It starts off with some silence. Then you realize it's a "remix" of the title track. But all it really is Alone again, wonderful world, with the guitar part replaced with a synth lead, and the vocal track pitch raised very high. Then the band just chatters over it.
The single includes two more instrumental versions of the first two tracks, for you to sing along to. This maxi-single is quite excellent, especially the title song. The only thing that detracts from it is 初めてのＸＸＸ, which made me subtract a half a point from my rating. But I still adore wonderful world, and I am proud to say this single has made me a full Plastic Tree fan. I will be following all their future releases, as well as look back into their 15 year history.
Here's to one of the most underrated Japanese bands:
4.5/5 - Great
No prerequisite here; I'm jumping right in.
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
I'm just plain terrible at updating consistently. Homework just gathers on me, and I do form my reviews in my head, but I never seem to get to them....
However, once school's out for me, (which is quite early) I'll be able to regularly blog, so look forward to that!
As for this review, I had a lot of new music on my hands, and I noticed a lot of my recent reviews have been on my mainstream material - so I picked something that is not any less popular, but more......rock. I also felt this great record deserved a evaluation, so here it is.
Tracklist:
1. 水恩 (Suion)
2. 梟の揺り篭 (Fukurou no Yurikago)
3. 塗り潰すなら臙脂 (Nuritsubusu Nara Enji)
4. ファズ (FUZZ) PV
5. ゲーム (Game)
6. フライト -Album ver.- (Flight -Album ver.-) PV
7. アンジャベル (Anjelier)
8. 小さな窓 (Chiisana Mado)
9. 蝉時雨 (Semishigure)
10. 志恩 (Shion)
11. 空忘れ (Sora Wasure)
12. シヴァ(Shiva)
13. リブラ -Album ver.- (Libra -Album ver.-) PV
Before Shion, I had only heard of MUCC, and never actually heard them. And their ugly makeup (sorry~!) didn't really make me any more thrilled to listen to them. However, after reading Cliff's Shion Review, I decided to give them a try, for Cliff gave them an outstanding review. This means that before hearing Shion, I was completely new to MUCC.
I had no idea what I was in for.
Drip. Drip. This is how Suion, the instrumental introduction starts. It finds a tribal beat a couple of seconds in, and some excellent composition makes creative use of an orchestra. (Primarily plucking the strings) This track slowly eases you into the album, instantly hooking you.
This tribal theme is continued with the mystic guitar intro to Fukurou no Yurikago and Tatsurou slowly builds up the vocals until everything explodes at the chorus, hitting you with this really awesome refrain. From here, I can already see the great instrumentation and skills of this band. This track is just an absolutely stunning real opener. Just epic.
The next track just picks up that momentum and sends it spiraling with the riffs just building up and up. Nuritsubusu Nara Enji never goes overboard for one of the harder songs on the album. Some well placed growling and an uplifting refrain, along with a really cool guitar solo and outro rounds off this song.
The already released Fuzz was my first Mucc song I had ever heard. SATOchi pulls out some real beats here, and along with a fuzz infused guitar, harmonica and you've got yourself a fist pounding dance song. It's really quite addicting, and you have to admire the brilliance every single member of the band is able to bring. Right here, the percussion really stands out, highlighting this track.
Game puzzled me a bit at first. It starts out melancholy, but never becomes a real ballad - well, then again, the lyrics are about leaving a loved one and spending the final night. Many moods sweep through this song, as it picks up a bit of speed and happiness as you hit the chorus. But that quickly fades with the sad bridge....as if you're remembering a good memory, but are suddenly brought back to the harsh reality.
All sorts of happy emotions fill you, for sure this time, with Flight. It actually reminds me of THE KIDDIE. It's just some really positive, yet nostalgic rock. Both the lyrics and the music have the "move forward, surging with energy - look to the great future!" vibe.
Anjelier is total 80's disco. With its arpeggio style refrain - it'll be sure to have you either singing along, tapping your foot, or both. Tatsurou is able to reach those high falsettoes, and (now that I'm familiar with Mucc) it brings a smile to your face. The past 2 songs have all been happy, fun songs...
...but this is completely blown away with Chiisana Mado. This grand, sorrowful ballad tears my heart out. It's able to draw out such deep, deep, yet painful emotions. Literally, this will make you cry. Starting with a mournful guitar intro, it quickly builds up to a string backed chorus. During the bridge, the orchestra's ability to fill out such a space and put such colour into the music is simply overwelming. When the song reaches the final refrain, it just leaves you utterly speechless. I could go on and on about his track, but you simply must listen to it to truly understand.
Mucc are smart to put a more upbeat song next, but not a completely "happy" song. Semishigure seems almost bittersweet - it's unique in it's own way. Although it's not an outstanding track, it manages to fill the gap between Chiisana Mado and Shion quite nicely.
Shion pulls out the big riffs and the experimentation we heard in the first couple of tracks again. There's some very exotic tribal chanting and another cool chorus - along with some interesting percussion. It's an almost Indian/Middle Eastern theme. For a title track, this song really deals it out.
Sora Wasure is another experimental track, with the adventure style string opening, and the exotic twist again. This song sounds almost as if Mucc composed a normal pop/rock Mucc song, and messed around with the things they were on the other Indian/Middle Eastern tracks, except this track doesn't really sound Middle East/Indian.......err...yeah.
Woah, a pretty darn awesome riff! Shiva begins like that, but....becomes another more normal Mucc song that sounds like Flight with some strings thrown in. This is probably one of the more "normal" songs on the album, but considering all the rest of the variety, it's still good to have a couple (more) normal songs thrown in. The refrain on this song also reminds me of looking out a train window, on the past. (A theme of this album is being reborn, so I guess this does make sense.)
Libra is the year-old song that is a big mixed bag of tricks, like 3 songs thrown in one. It begins with a heavy guitar intro, which fades out to some soft rapping by Tatsurou with some gothic undertones.....and it somehow works. Then, in the bridge, this rapping verse intensifies, and crescendoes to a dark climax. The song fades out with a repeated theme first heard in the refrain, which has that "Everybody come together, and goodbye!" feel to it. And it really wraps up the album with a grand feeling of satisfaction. Libra fits just perfectly at the end of Shion.
To sum up, Shion really covers everything, with great variety in the songs, a good sense of continuity, lots of individual song potential, and lots of emotions. You feel the rage, the happiness, the sadness, the melancholia, everything in this album! This release by Mucc is just absolutely fantastic - and is a must have for anyone who....well....loves music!
Quoting Rockerica: "everyone is sure to find his/her's favorite on this remarkable album." I couldn't agree better, and I'm sure many of you will enjoy it as a whole. This album is definitely in great competition for album of the year~! If I keep writing now, I'm just going to be saying the same praise over and over again, so to the rating -
Of course, I have to give Shion a:
5/5 - Fantastic!
Ack! I haven't updated since March 21! This is impermissable...~
So, this review was the one that had been deleted by Vox, and which I have finally the patience to rewrite.
Note: I redid some of the ratings from my past reviews, so it was easier to tell what I wanted.
Tracklist:
1. Namidairo [PV]
2. I wanna be...
3. LOVE AND TRUTH ~Yui Acoustic Version~
4. Namidairo (Instrumental)
This deviates slightly from my normal review content, being on the pop side more. But YUI has always been a personal favorite of mine because her music has this strange, alluring quality - it's simple in a very easy-to-listen, yet not forgettable way.
Namidairo is a string driven, dramatic ballad. But there's one nagging problem I have with it: IT SOUNDS LIKE JAY CHOU OR WANG LEE-HOM WROTE IT!! Although there is a little acoustic guitar in the beginning, what happened to the guitar driven sound that YUI's other ballads had? Good Bye Days was a perfect example of that.
But, it still brings some diversity to her repetoire, I guess. For many fans of YUI, this track will be very enjoyable. But for me, who has enough of Jay Chou in Taiwan, I've heard better from YUI.
The next song, I wanna be... is what I've been expecting from YUI. It's not very special, it doesn't stand out from her other songs, but it's still a solid track. We then get a acoustic version of LOVE AND TRUTH. I actually haven't heard the original version, but I enjoy this track a lot, it feels a lot more raw. These kinds of songs are one of the things that make YUI unique. Closing off is an instrumental version of Namidairo, for any of those karaoke junkies out there.
Namidairo doesn't bring anything really new to the plate, but it's solid. The title track is a bit bland for me, but many people out there might feel otherwise. I award Namidairo a:
3.5/5 - Not Bad
First off, I'd like to say thank you to all the people who have taken the time to read something I wrote, because page views of my site have increased over 50% since my last post - which is very encouraging.
So...It seems I have been somewhat of an idiot in saying that "nothing major was released" in my last blog, because the day after, Ajikan (short for ASIAN KUNG FU GENERATION) released their 5th full length album. To sum up briefly, World World World is a whole lot of fun, easy to listen to, and a great soundtrack to everyday life.
Tracklist:
1. ワールド ワールド ワールド (World World World)
2. アフターダーク (After Dark) PV
3. 旅立つ君へ (Tabidatsu Kimi e)
4.ネオテニー (Neoteny)
5.トラベログ (Travelog)
6. No.9
7. ナイトダイビング (Night Diving)
8. ライカ (Leica)
9. 惑星 (Wakusei)
10. 転がる岩、君に朝が降る (Korogaru Iwa, Kimi ni Asa ga Furu) PV
11. ワールド ワールド (World World)
12. 或る街の群青 (Aru Machi no Gunjou) PV
13. 新しい世界 (Atarashii Sekai) PV
Before I start my review, I'd like to say that Ajikan's PVs have always been a joy to watch for me, and if you haven't watched them before, really, you should. I would recommend the "After Dark" one, and especially the "Atarashii Sekai" PV, because it is simply a piece of art. This also goes for all the covers of their releases, which are simplistically beautiful.
I first got into Ajikan through anime (Naruto and Fullmetal Alchemist). After hearing the opening songs, I went "Wow, that's a pretty good band!" And soon, I was hooked on their music. Ajikan's style reminds me quite a bit of Weezer. It's always a fat guitar rock sound, and that doesn't change much throughout this album. This is both a good, and bad thing, because at some point, you start to think everything sounds the same. Most people will find this is the only problem they have with Ajikan, and everything else is fantastic.
The quartet are able to strike the perfect balance in their songs: catchy, yet not so that they fade away very quickly. Often, I find myself walking on the street, and out of nowhere pops out a refrain from an Ajikan song in my head. Their music is never "epic", and always remains human - easy to connect with.
World World World is an interesting instrumental intro (like the alliteration?) which sounds like it belongs at the end of a record, not at the beginning. However, what it does do is get you in the mood for some good Ajikan music. This song was actually played as an intro to Rewrite during the Rising Sun Rock Festival. (See here)
The second track, After Dark, was released as a single earlier, and THIS really sounds like the beginning of the album, starting with the energetic drum beat, which Ajikan builds off of. The refrain is very catchy, and although the bridge sounds a little out of place, the track is still a great "real" opener.
Tabidatsu Kimi e and Neoteny are a two song suite. The first one keeps the energy from After Dark with the driving drum beat, and suddenly slows down two-thirds of the way into the song. It fades out peacefully, and in the background, the opening riff of Neoteny starts up. There is NO pause between the two tracks, which seamlessly fade together. On my first listen, I had to do a double take when I saw I already hit the 4th track although I thought I was still on the third. Neoteny is quite interesting, which the refrain simply 3 voices singing a triad (a three note chord). So far, Gotoh (vocalist and 2nd guitarist) has not unleashed his signature belted choruses.
Travelog is also more mellow, never fully rocking out, but keeping the flow of the first 4 tracks. It's actually the first time where I noticed the guitar solo, which is quite funky. It starts to feel like you've heard this song somewhere in the album already, however.
No.9 is finally a departure from the style in the first couple of tracks. This sounds more like the Ajikan I know. There is a fun little "Oooh" intro, and the refrain also has these little vocal accents (the "ooh"s). The song has a more Rock n' Roll feel. I start to get the sense that Ajikan has also matured musically a bit, because they've mellowed out a bit.
Reggae! That's what I think when I hear the beginning of next song Night Diving. Slowly the song becomes an Ajikan style song. That's what you think for about 30 seconds, at which point the guitar solo is something else, and then we have a section with Kita, the guitarist, singing a small duet with Gotoh. The song jumps around, and is, if anything, fun.
Starting off with on time rhythm guitar and drums, Gotoh's voice escalates a bit, and we settle into Leica. This has a bouncy, school-time feel to it. It makes me bob my head, and think of everyday moments. I've also noticed that although the songs sometimes feel simplistic, Ajikan is actually very good at layering tracks, and have some pretty complicated arrangements.
Wakusei is another one of those Ajikan rock songs, but really, it feels like this has already been heard somewhere earlier. However, as you start to feel that each song is similiar, you also start to pick apart the subtle differences with each listen. This song, for example, actually has a faint summertime, nostalgic feel.
At this point, we enter the best part of the album, beginning with the newest single, Korogaru Iwa, Kimi ni Asa ga Furu. It's a fun track, and has a great intro, flowing refrain, and a bridge that really gets stuck in your head. To me, this song stands out quite a bit because as with all of Ajikan songs, they get better with time, and this one already had one month to get better before this.
Following Korogaru Iwa... is another interlude, World World. It has this funky "tic-toc" click track, and gives you a break before moving on to the final stretch of the record. It crossfades into....
Aru Machi no Gunjou, which is my favorite track on the album. (But it's possibly because I've been given about....1.5 years or so to fall in love with it.) Beginning with the sound of people talking and walking around, it has a city-life feel, and the instrumentation in this song fills out the rest. My favorite moment is when Gotoh sings "hikari datte, yami datte kitto" (Even into the light, into the dark, surely)
Closing out the record is Atarashii Sekai, which delivers another one of the best tracks on the album. The rock-out in this song reminds quite a bit of their older sound. It leaves you with a very content, happy feeling. The refrain has a "let's all come together" vibe to it, and considering the title, it's very fitting. And really, the PV is just beautiful, featuring all their old album covers too.
I find that Ajikan's songs are great for when you're in the car, walking somewhere, doing you're work, just going on with you're everyday life. It's very easy to get into a song, and then jump out again to resume whatever you were doing. As I said earlier, the only problem with World World World is that the general arrangement and sound never really changes.
Neither is this album one of those "Amazing!" ones, and neither is it a "bad" record in any sense, so I will give it a:
4/5 - Good
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