Chihiro Onitsuka – DOROTHY October 28, 2009

Track Listing

1. A WHITE WHALE IN MY QUIET DREAM
2. Kagerou
3. X
4. Storyteller
5. STEAL THIS HEART
6. I Pass By
7. Kaerimichi wo Nakushite
8. Losing a distance
9. Last Melody
10. Hotaru
11. VENUS

1. A WHITE WHALE IN MY QUIET DREAM

I love the tribal opening to this album.  It seems like one of those Native American chants or at least the closest I could compare it to.  The only thing accompanying Chihiro is a pounding drum that has this punch.  Chihiro’s English is pretty hard to understand at intervals of the song, but it’s like a poem and has a nice meaning to it.  I was impressed with this opening actually.

2. Kagerou

As the last A-side released in the era, Kagerou was probably my least favorite for some reason.  I mean it’s a bit like a few other tracks on the album to begin with and it also sounds like a bit of her “INSOMNIA” works that weren’t ballads.  Not to say it’s not horrible or anything because I like the relaxed nature and Chihiro’s vocals are also really nice to listen to.  Still not the best of the era (even I thought “Ai no Serifu” would’ve been a better choice as an A-side.)

3. X

Ahhh, X…It’s Chihiro’s angry tune and I was so damn happy to see her get out of her comfort zone with this track.  At first, it does seem like another sad ballad, but right as you cement the idea, the angry guitar riffs pop up and Chihiro’s vocals get stronger and gain that angst that I enjoyed.  It’s rather one of the odd tracks off the album, but still one of her strongest A-sides in a while.

4. Storyteller

I’m not sure what’s with the flow of the album entirely, but Storyteller is a little bit folkish and also a little bit pop as well.  I love the harmonica solos in the song and I’m noticing that Chihiro is sounding a whole lot fuller here than she was in “X”.  Though the way she says ~storyteller~ is too cute for words hahaha.  This is by far my favorite new track off the album.

5. STEAL THIS HEART

The album’s promotional song, STEAL THIS HEART would be the album’s ultimate weird song.  There’s a whole lot more synth featured in the song and Chihiro is filtered in the song like crazy.  People have complained this song is like the crap that Tommy Heavenly6 did with her last album release…I honestly don’t see the comparison because Chihiro is way into it and her vocals are different to the other songs and it sounds quite refreshing to hear, especially with how Chihiro does songs for her albums.

6. I Pass By

Well, this is a new version of the craptastic track from “Kaerimichi wo Nakushite”.  The Darksmoke Version was basically an acoustic version of the album track we have here.  Instead of acoustic guitar, we get a more broader sound and oddly enough it sounds like a country song.  I’m still not liking the fact I can’t understand what the hell she’s saying since it’s all English.  At least the energy is good and the chorus is so much more catchy.

7. Kaerimichi wo Nakushite

I’m not sure why Kaerimichi wo Nakushite had an extended strings opening on the album, but one the familiar opening comes in we get back into one of Chihiro’s strongest ballads since recent.  I love how the entire song builds itself upon the volume of the strings and Chihiro getting more profound and stronger.  Once it does hit its highest point, it’s just amazing sung and I was stunned by the sheer awesomeness of the person who produced this.  AMAZING BALLAD.

8. Losing a distance

I’m guessing we’re getting into the ballads of the album because Losing a distance is also a ballad.  I’m actually enjoying the piano lines in the song and while it’s not as epic as “Kaerimichi wo Nakushite” it’s got its own thing going on in the song and Chihiro’s calmer vocals make the song flow nicely.  It’s a bit forgetful on the album, but alone it’s a nice track.

9. Last Melody

I’m not why, but Last Melody never really crossed my mind as a song that I’d fully enjoy.  Then again since it’s a bit like later released “Kagerou” it’s quite difficult to really not bag on both of them because of their similarities.  Obviously, there’s differences, but I just can’t help but compare the two like crazy…So I guess it’s not too good for me.

10. Hotaru

Being the oldest A-side on the album (released last year in early August), Hotaru fits in this quite snuggly.  Then again it is in the middle of the ballad section of the album.  I do love how it’s different from the previous ballads because of its lullaby-like arrangement.  Chihiro’s vocals are soft and with the piano backing her up for most of the song.  It’s the most basic ballad, but it’s nice either way.

11. VENUS

Ending the album is a whopper of a track.  VENUS is shockingly over 7 minutes of balladness.  That being said, you know I was moaning and not really wanting to spend time listening to this long song, but honestly it’s like VENUS is wondrous a interesting altogether.  It makes the fantasy-like picture in my head and oddly feels like it’s pertaining to the cover because it’s like when she walked through the door she just sung what she say and/or felt and I loved it.  I think giving it the award of longest track was a smart idea.  One of the best on the album.

Tracks Recommended

• Kaerimichi wo Nakushite
• VENUS
• STEAL THIS HEART
• Storyteller
• X

Seriously, I think DOROTHY is Chihiro’s most vivid album she’s released ever since her debut.  There was a lot of different styles played around on the album, but as a whole you could tell the album was split between her more energetic songs and heartwarming/wrenching ballads.  There were a few songs that kind of lacked the more refreshing sounds.  To be honest this is Chihiro’s best album.