Track Listing
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TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STAR -prologue-
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Yakou Ressha ~nothing to lose~
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Anata ni Deawa Nakereba ~Kasetsu Toka~
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Egao
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Re:pray
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Kanashimi wa Aurora ni (Restarred by Takagi Masakatsu)
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Sabishikute Nemurenai Yoru wa
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AM02:00
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Hoshikuzu Venus
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Yuki no Furu Machi
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Fuyu no Diamond (Re-echoed by Genki Rockets)
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Rokutosei no Yoru
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TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STAR
1. TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STAR -prologue-
I really dislike the fact that Aimer opened the album with a short excerpt from probably my least favorite tracks from her. I mean the way it repeats is really grating and her Engrish kind of gets on my nerves but hey at least it’s short as hell.
2. Yakou Ressha ~nothing to lose~
After that bleh intro, we get into the first new track (of three…). I kind of like the fact that there’s some acoustic guitars at work instead of what she’s been putting out. The song is also a little more upbeat than most of the tracks on the album and I liked that. Aimer’s vocals are really nice to listen to and she puts out a good enough of emotion behind it. Good first full track!
3. Anata ni Deawa Nakereba ~Kasetsu Toka~
Moving into ballad-land, Anata ni Deawa Nakereba is still the best of the many A-sides of this album. It just has a lot of color and Aimer just sounds so beautiful singing the song. It does have your typical ballad instruments which is going to be a problem the album will have but this track handled it very well.
4. Egao
At the same time length as the previous track Egao, starts up nice with a little opening with filtered beats and piano. I actually thought Egao would be a darker song, but it kind of has a lighter mood but like a dull light which is pretty cool. I do like the song since it’s kind of cozy and pretty to listen to and that chorus is kind of catchy. Pretty good song!
5. Re:pray
As this is Aimer’s most recognizable tune (was an ending theme for BLEACH after all), Re:pray really has kind of fallen off the chart for me. I mean it sounds like a most of Aimer’s current discography so it kind of failed to stand out for me. I will say that it’s not terrible and some parts of the song are really pleasant, but zzzzz.
6. Kanashimi wa Aurora ni (Restarred by Takagi Masakatsu)
As the second A-side from her debut single, Kanashimi wa Aurora ni was one of two tracks on the album that got touched up. It’s really evident when the song starts because the arrangement has turned from a sparkly little tune to a bland piano arrangement. This is pretty tragic because I really did like the original! TERRIBLE IDEA!
7. Sabishikute Nemurenai Yoru wa
As the secondary A-side akin to “Re:pray”, Sabishikute Nemurenai Yoru wa follows up after the previous track with Aimer and piano opening the song up. At this point, I was kind of zoning out further from the album. The song tries to go places by adding drums and strings but it really doesn’t add too much, but at least it’s got a little more going for it than “Kanashimi wa Aurora ni” did.
8. AM02:00
I’m finding it weird that I’m kind of enjoying the new tracks more than the old ones on the album. Unlike the many ballads, this once has a little more of a beat to it granting it’s mid-tempo style. It just is nice to see Aimer in a setting that isn’t behind just strings and piano. Yeah this is pleasant of a song…different change of pace.
9. Hoshikuzu Venus
As the only track released as a digital single (and later was the secondary A-side akin to “Anata ni Deawa Nakereba”) I still am not a big fan of this song. It’s a lot like “Sabishikute Nemurenai Yoru wa” which is already a no-no for me, but I wasn’t too much a fan of Aimer’s whispery vocals in the song. I don’t know but this feels like a clone of a song that I’m not a big fan of either…
10. Yuki no Furu Machi
As the primary A-side from her 3rd single, Yuki no Furu Machi introduces synths into the arrangement for this winter song and I actually kind of started to enjoy it a little more than I did from the single. I think there’s something about the song that’s charming and Aimer sounds better than she did in the previous track.
11. Fuyu no Diamond (Re-echoed by Genki Rockets)
The other track that got edited for the album, Fuyu no Diamond had the opposite happen when compared to “Kanashimi wa Aurora ni” as in more things were added rather than taken out. So going from a boring ballad to something a little more experimental (especially with Genki Rockets at hand). There’s some electrionic buzzes and clicks and the arrangement is a bit more ethereal. However, it feels longer than the original (in literal sense it is…but it feels like 8 minutes). I do like it, even if it kind of doesn’t fit.
12. Rokutosei no Yoru
Ahhh her debut A-side is found towards the end huh? After going through the entire album listening to Aimer’s stuff and coming into the debut track, Rokutosei no Yoru doesn’t sound as unique as it once did because it does remind me of a lot of the other tracks, but the chorus is a little more dramatic. It’s pretty standard…but did fairly good.
13. TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STAR
Unfortunately, the album closes the same way it begun with this ridiculous cover of this nursury rhyme. I know it’s the shortest track at two minutes, but that’s even too long for this track. I mean, like I’ve said about the prologue, Aimer sounds really mechanical and her engrish is meh….plus the song is repetitive as hell…it just doesn’t work for me…gross way to close the album.
Tracks Recommended
Song of Avoidance
Well, listening to Aimer’s first album was REALLY hard to get through. I mean the fact that ALL of her A-sides have made the album cut really made this release single-heavy and left space for only three new songs. Sleepless Nights is tough because majority of the songs are ballads and even then the it only goes to mid-tempo. It just really wasn’t my kind of album, but I’m sure ballad lovers might find something hear to their tastes.
