3 posts tagged “album”
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!
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
Here it finally is.
This is their first major album release. (I noted that a lot of ex-indie bands are now signing with major labels now, which makes me quite happy.) Interestingly enough, I noted that this is already out of print on CDJapan.
(Note: Some of the PVs are linked to the original song, because the versions of es and Hana Uta are both remixes on the album.)
Tracklist:
1. SEIREN
2. 追憶の軌跡 (Tsuioku no Kiseki)
3. 「華唄〜桜華繚乱〜」(Hana Uta ~ Sakura Ryouran~) [PV]
4. BULLETxSTAR [PV]
3. 君と見た雪 (Kimi To Mita Yuki)
6. ライムドロップスo (Lime Drops)
7. 「NIGHT WALKER」
8. マイノリティコンプレックス (Minority Complex)
9. es -Distored MIX- [PV]
10. Shine of Air
Duel Jewel started out with a more unpolished and rough sound, but definitely lots of talent. Their single Aishuu Melancholia really perked up my ears as a very good single! Duel Jewel's style has many many sides, from an almost 12012 hard rock style to a Kagrra, traditional sound. They also have a great knack for composing very catchy hooks and melodies.
This release has impressed me to no end with its maturity and quality. SEIREN hits things right off, and immediately you pick up the best things from Duel Jewel: Hayato's great (Gackt-like) voice, the perfectly balanced instrumentation, and good melody. It develops into an pretty epic track, starting with the synth riff in the beginning.
The song rides on top of this escalated wave for a while, and we get launched into Tsuioku no Kiseki, which feels like a sequel to SEIREN. It doesn't really go anywhere, and is very enjoyable, but gets a bit boring, and leaves you asking for something more.
Hana Uta ~Sakura Ryouran~ then comes in with a Kagrra,-like introduction and then suddenly you are thrust into the turbulent, hard rock verse. Its very cool, and then Duel Jewel hits you with one of the catchiest refrains: "Sakura, sakura". I can't actually hear too much difference from the original song, except for the instrumental opening. Shun and Yuya, the guitarists accent this song with sharp, jabbing riffs, and Baru, the drummer keeps the fast, speedy beat going. The album version is much, much better and polished compared to the original Hana Uta single. A very enjoyable track.
The promoting single for this album, BULLETxSTAR, sounds a bit like alice nine.'s cosmic world, except with.....rapping? It's an interesting experimentation, but I like it when Hayato sings a bit more. Like cosmic world, it doesn't really stick, and it isn't quite as catchy as cosmic world. The track is highlighted with a playful guitar solo, but this is still one of the weaker tracks on the album.
Kimi To Mita Yuki has a traditional feel, and the opening almost reminds me of some kind of anime opening. This song also has a more pop feel, and has a nice easy listening, walking feel, with a touch of melancholy. The flamenco guitar solo fits very very nicely. This is one of the more experimental tracks, and a high point of the album. Great stuff from Duel Jewel. But....
Next track, Night Walker says "Yeah, right." to the soft style of Kimi to Mita Yuki. Although it does have a melodic refrain, this hard rocker is still one of the hardest track on the album - reminding me of 12012. Suddenly the bridge has this strange synth interlude, then back to the chorus. However, this track is still overshadowed by some of the other ones in terms of melody AND hardrocker-ness.
The next IS the hardest track on the album. Minority Complex has an awesome hard rock feel, never going TOO Dir-en-Grey hard. The chorus, like all the other songs, is very catchy, and this stands out to me quite well. Only Duel Jewel has been able to, for me, achieve this great mix of hard rock and melodic rock. One of my favorites.
In es-Distored MIX- (No, that's not a typo, it really is engrish "Distored"), I can't hear much difference from the original version except a few more effects and synth (They sure do they love using this now!) sounds. In my opinion, the original Es was a much better song, being more epic and emotional. The original version had a more Neo-Japanesque feel also. (The PV is just gorgeous, you really ought to see if you haven't yet) If they had just put the normal version of Es on the album, it would definitely be a better track.
Shine of Air is a soft piano based ballad, where Hayato (vocalist) really shines. This is by far the most mature song by Duel Jewel so far. It has a sad, mournful, nostalgic touch, and never fails to move me. From all of Jrock, even all my favorite music, this is one of my favorite ballads, reminding me a bit of Shizuku by Kagrra,, also a favorite. The song climaxes with so much passion, and as it fades away with the orchestral background, it becomes only the band softly singing "la, la, lala, lalala, lalalala" This harmony really cuts to your heart, and finishes this amazing album on a very wistful note.
Overall, this album is a great introduction for any new Duel Jewel fan, and shows great growth and depth from the band. This is definitely a release you can (and I will) listen to again and again, and see the musical complexity and enjoyability that Duel Jewel is able to offer. I look forward to great things from this band in the future.
4.5/5 - Great
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