ALI PROJECT – Datengoku Sensen November 4, 2009

Track Listing

1. Datengoku Sensen
2. Takarajima
3. Datengoku Sensen (instrumental)
4. Takarajima (instrumental)

1. Datengoku Sensen

Hmmm….why does the song start out all jazzy and full of swagger before stemming out to be a mix of a string waltz mixed with a dance beat?  I really love how dramatic the song is with Arika.  Her vocals sound a whole lot more together than their last effort (Poison).  She’s got some pipes on her and with her good this song is I’m totally blown away.  Pretty kickass song IMO.

2. Takarajima

Even better was the single’s B-side which IMO, fits the cover a whole lot more than “Datengoku Sensen” would.  The opening is so smooth and mysterious and creepy like treasure hunting through some Egyptian cave.  Now Arika in the song is singing really heavenly through the verses and then the chorus brings out Arika under some kind of filter, strange but awesome.  Even weird is that they either coincedentally or not placed the “Crystal Theme” from Final Fantasy midway.  I love that idea for some reason…have to say the song is WAYYYY better than Datengoku Sensen.

 

 

So it seems I can understand why I like ALIPRO’s albums more than their albums.  It seems that singles are released by Victor which explains the great arrangements and somehow better everything.  The albums are released by Tokuma Japan (Perfume’s company) but I can’t understand why the production value is lesser than Victor’s….hmmm strange huh?  Datengoku Sensen is a really nice single even though Takarajima should’ve been the A-side since it’s so much more better IMO.

High Speed Boyz – LONELY NIGHT November 4, 2009

Track Listing

1. LONELY NIGHT

1. LONELY NIGHT

I was surprised to hear that LONELY NIGHT wasn’t as strong a song like “CHILDHOOD’S END” was.  First off the track is more combined towards dance and electronica and not more rockish and wild.  It’s still a pretty good track though because it’s just as catchy and JIN is under vocoder big time here.  Might bring in new fans I’ll bet.

 

 

While it does suck that LONELY NIGHT doesn’t contain a B-side, but the leading track is a whole lot different than their debut and that might or might not be a good thing.  It’s good they are doing something new, but at the same time, CHILDHOOD’S END rocked hard so iono..

Aki Misato – Scarlet Bomb! November 4, 2009

Track Listing

1. Scarlet Bomb!
2. Love Wind
3. Scarlet Bomb! (off vocal)
4. Love Wind (off vocal)

1. Scarlet Bomb!

I have to say, I wasn’t too big of a fan when Aki released “Made in WONDER”.  Luckily, she won me back over with Scarlet Bomb! which unlike the last single is just pure J-rock.  There’s a little more BKGD vocals here, but I really do like Aki’s vocals in the song.  There’s a lot of energy with arrangement and it’s hard and I like that.

2. Love Wind

Love Wind seems to be more like a mixture of “Scarlet Bomb!” and “Made in WONDER”, odd styling right?  Well, it doesn’t exactly help that it sounds like a summer tune (when it’s already Autumn).  It’s pop music at it’s typicalness, so clearly I’m not too big a fan of this track.

 

 

When’s that album due out Aki?  Anyway, Scarlet Bomb! was actually a pretty cool track to have.  I love how rockin’ it sounds with Aki’s vocals and she should stick with this more often.  Love Wind though was more anime-ish and poppy and kind of cheesy all-around too.  Not the best B-side she’s had.

Haruka Shimotsuki – Griotte no Nemuri Hime November 4, 2009

Track Listing

1. Horobiru no Kotowari
2. Kienai Uta
3. Erabareta Tami
4. Ohime-sama to Doukeshi
5. Madara no Kuni
6. Hitori Yume
7. Sora Watashi
8. Tsunagari no Hana
9. Owari no Toki e
10. Hane ni Sugaru Mono
11. Kooru Sekai
12. Gyaku Mawaru no Inochi
13. FEL FEARY WEL.

1. Horobiru no Kotowari

Opening up Haruka’s album, Horobiru no Kotowari has a very calm opening mix of strings and the chorale singing.  It’s like something that would fit the Kingdom Hearts series because of it’s moving passages and simply nice sound.  Oddly enough it’s the only song that Haruka doesn’t sing in which is a surprise I guess.

2. Kienai Uta

What I’ve already knew about Haruka was that she was once part of Sound Horizon and did previous folkish albums as well.  Kienai Uta is definitely a folk song at its heart.  Haruka’s vocals are borderline nice to almost shrill, but here it’s not too bad and she’s not conjuring up her seiyuu voice.  After the first chorus the song becomes almost a little sad with the crying from the violin.  I can say I was impressed by the song.

3. Erabareta Tami

Our next track reminds me of the opening song with the chorale singing and the almost mysterious piano playing.  After that long opening, the song begins to open up even more and become a serious folk tune when compared to “Kienai Uta”.  It still flows nicely and Haruka still sounds nice here too. 

4. Ohime-sama to Doukeshi

I really loved the strings that opened up this song.  It’s was fancy and felt emotional and felt strong all-around.  Then the accordion comes in with Haruka in her “cute” vocals and it becomes a bit like a dance-like song.  There’s a good amount of catchy clapping rhythms.  I just couldn’t really stand Haruka’s singing here though unfortunately, but I do love the arrangement.  Cute flute moment = WIN

5. Madara no Kuni

I’m not sure if the flow of the album is great, but Madara no Kuni is definitely something I’d expect Sound Horizon (REVO) would have done.  It just sounds epic with the chorale opening here.  It’s even more interesting that there’s an actual band playing in the song giving it the more loud sound Haruka songs haven’t really had.  About Haruka, she sounds amazing here.  She fits the rock-ish setting nicely and makes the song very memorable.

6. Hitori Yume

I felt surreal when I listened to Hitori Yume.  The arrangement is very empty except the inclusion of piano and distant soothing sounds.  It seems to be the sad song off the album and I can tell why because it does emanate that feeling throughout.  It might not be as memorable as other tracks, but it’s nice for what it is.  Then again 7 minutes is enough to not garner another full listen.

7. Sora Watashi

We get to go back to the folk songs with Sora Watashi.  It seems that kids are singing the opening lines and their voice aren’t the most prettiest things here.  Once again the song is a bit more serious than other folk songs she’s done, but I don’t really find anything much to write about.  It’s just not that memorable I guess.

8. Tsunagari no Hana

Even though the album was going down a bit from quality, Tsunagari no Hana brought back up pretty firmly.  With a great choice of instruments, Haruka could do know wrong (or her producer for that matter).  Including much needed brass and Haruka sounding stronger I couldn’t help but like this.  Thank god for this tune.

9. Owari no Toki e

Owari no Toki e sounds more like a normal pop song on the album.  There’s just something that felt missing here.  I’m not sure but I was quite uninterested with it until the electric guitar.  Once the guitar and chorus happened I felt like I was listening to another anime theme like “Asu e no Kizuna” from HIMEKA.  It has that typical anime-like chorus, but sadly it’s the best thing from the song.

10. Hane ni Sugaru Mono

The dark pounding piano chords that open Hane ni Sugaru Mono was a great to start for this song.  Though I’m already getting a little bored of hearing the chorale begin the tunes.  Still, Hane ni Sugaru Mono is a very dark tune.  While the song has a very ominous feel and Haruka is whispering through the verses before coming out strongly in the bridge.  It’s something new and refreshing after some meh tracks.

11. Kooru Sekai

I’m not really feeling that Kooru Sekai had to be after such a dark track because Kooru Sekai is quite the opposite.  I’d like to call it the normal ballad.  It doesn’t really create any feelings for me towards me so it just flys by me.  It could’ve been better, but this is OK at best.

12. Gyaku Mawaru no Inochi

Another chorale opening?  Really?  Gyaku Mawaru no Inochi tries to replicate as another epic song off the album and some points it’s true.  I love the pipe organ here in the song and the mixing of Haruka’s singing and the BKGD’s point-on singing.  It was interesting having two vocal parts happening simultaneously so this was a pretty good tune.

13. FEL FEARY WEL.

The ending of the album begins with waves crashing upon shore like some other tracks I know have done in the past.  Haruka comes in singing with a simple arrangement consisting of xylophone and piano.  It’s a rather fairytale-like song with how it’s made to sound.  I like how the song sort of transitions because of a water drop into a more forlorning tune.  I liked how this ended the album.

Tracks Recommended

• Hane ni Sugaru Mono
• Madara no Kuni
• Kienai Uta
• Gyaku Mawaru no Inochi

Haruka’s 4th studio album is something different from what I usually listen to.  Griotte no Nemuri Hime is a nice album because it shows that Haruka can do songs without making all the songs into folk.  It’s weird some of the songs are a bit boring and long, but there’s times she has genius moments with her arranger and I’m not sure why she didn’t stick with em.  Alright album overall for me.

BREAKERZ – LOVE FIGHTER ~Koi no Battle~ November 4, 2009

Track Listing

1. LOVE FIGHTER ~Koi no Battle~
2. Winter Bell
3. Birdman ~Acoustic Version~
4. LOVE FIGHTER ~Koi no Battle~ Gachiage Battle Mix

1. LOVE FIGHTER ~Koi no Battle~

When compared to their previous singles of the era, LOVE FIGHTER is a bit different, kind of like how “BAMBINO” was.  There’s a whole lot more synths here and DAIGO is also under some autotune making the song a little more interesting.  The chorus is a little repetitive for me, but it’s still pretty catchy nonetheless. 

2. Winter Bell

I really had to hold back the laughs when DAIGO and the other guys repeated the whole ~silent night, holy night~ line at the beginning.  As the guy’s Christmas-themed song, it’s your cheesy song for some reason, but I really do like all of the strings in the song so it makes up for the band’s cheesy-filled lyrics.  Alright, but thank god it’s relegated as a B-side.

3. Birdman ~Acoustic Version~

So, Birdman was originally a track off their debut album, “BREAKERZ”.  It seems that since “GRAND FINALE”, the band’s been acoustically redoing their old tracks and while since this is the fourth single, I’d be tired of this, I’m not.  It’s a whole lot better than the original IMO.  The acoustic version gave Birdman a more mysterious sound and the group sounds nice together, especially in the song’s chorus.  I have to say this is my favorite acoustic song I’ve heard from BREAKERZ.

4. LOVE FIGHTER ~Koi no Battle~ Gachiage Battle Mix

I don’t think I’ve seen a remix of a tune from them period so this is clearly a first for the group.  LOVE FIGHTER sounds a lot more edgier in its arrangement since there’s more emphasis on the synths involved.  Once DAIGO comes in, his voice is auto-tuned even more than what it was which is a little annoying and the chorus is a little anti-climatic but it’s a daring remix and it’s alright, just not as powerful as the original.

 

 

As BREAKERZ finally get around this era to release their 4th album “FIGHTERZ”, LOVE FIGHTER ~Koi no Battle~ was an interesting single for sure.  The title track and its remix were definitely treading on new grounds and that’s good.  However, Birdman took over as the best thing on the single since it showed improvement from the original in many aspects.  Winter Bell is the worst song however, but it’s just because of the winter song syndrome xD.