Koda Kumi – 4 TIMES August 14, 2011

Track Listing

1. Introduction ~sunny time~
2. Poppin’love cocktail feat. TEEDA
3. Interlude ~sunset time~
4. IN THE AIR
5. Interlude ~midnight time~
6. V.I.P.
7. Interlude ~time to…love~
8. KO-SO-KO-SO

1. Introduction ~sunny time~

Another Kuu single that has way too many intros/interludes?  Why am I not surprised seeing as this is a quad A-side.  Sunny time begins on a beach with a clock ticking then a car starting revving off and driving off (“Driving” much?).  Anyways the radio is turned on for a short period of time and then the brakes are used.  Weird intro if you ask me.

2. Poppin’love cocktail feat. TEEDA

Our first full song is a collaboration of course and it seems that this is the summer song for the song but it’s funky because it’s an upbeat rock track (think “Hashire!” but TEEDA who kind of annoys to a great degree).  Kuu doesn’t sound too bad but like “Hashire!” it doesn’t really suit her very well.  I also get vibes of “Lick me♥” as well which puts my interest in this song even LOWER.  Sorry but this first main track is pretty bad, ngl.

3. Interlude ~sunset time~

So the ticking clock returns and so do the sound of waves but the music in the background is really nice and sparkly and mixes really nicely with each other despite the uber short length.  I just hope it leads to something pretty awesome.

4. IN THE AIR

And for good reason to because IN THE AIR is probably the first song I’ve been rather interested in a while from Kuu.  I’ve heard that it’s been compared to “WIND” and “anytime” and that’s pretty good because she pulls off the more fluffy pop songs.  It’s a bit like going to the past with her and I actually like her vocals quite a bit.  Good track!!!

5. Interlude ~midnight time~

Yeah, the typical clock enters but this time around it sounds like we’re at a party with music playing in the background.  It’s one of the more useless interludes on the single but whatever!

6. V.I.P.

So we usually have our dirty song but it seems we get two on this song “Poppin’love cocktail” kind of failed though.  V.I.P. is definitely one of those ero-kakkoi songs from Kuu with a pretty clinky arrangement with a good clapping rhythm.  It sounds pretty busy in different parts of the song but Kuu did sexy pretty well but I could use less of the filtered vocals heard throughout.  It’s pretty interesting and some of the arrangement kind of reminds me of “UNIVERSE” but still it’s good.

7. Interlude ~time to…love~

Getting into our final interlude, time to…love starts off like the others do for sure.  However it does sound like the previous interlude with people talking like it’s a party but it seems Kuu leaves the party at the end.  Kind of sudden of an ending but I guess it works in some strange way.

8. KO-SO-KO-SO

Strange that she closes the single with another synth-based song like KO-SO-KO-SO but that’s good because I actually also ended up enjoying this one.  It really fits her style and she sounds sexy without crossing the line which is nice.  I have to say this is a pretty damn good song to listen to!

 

 

 

Kuu begins a new era with something that parallels “4 hot wave” yet feels like a clone to “3 SPLASH”.  4 A-sides eh?  I have to say this one was just as good but it has some hollow issues to work out.  I mean were the interludes REALLY that necessary?  I seriously could’ve lived without them and Poppin’love cocktail…it really sucks as a song!  IN THE AIR and KO-SO-KO-SO were the single’s best tracks and I have to say cute, pop songs and synth tracks are her forte.  V.I.P. is a little on the fence, but I think I just need more time to get used to it.  Good single and with “Ai wo Tomenaide” announced so quickly…I’m sure we’ll get a ballad next.

eufonius – Literal

Track Listing

1. Literal
2. lingers on
3. Holograph ~Piano ver.~
4. Literal ~instrumental~

1. Literal

I somehow found myself enjoying the beginning riffs of Literal.  It does seem pretty basic in the arrangement which is a surprise since “bezel” was anything but simple lol.  There’s also something about riya’s vocals that doesn’t seem to connect to me this time around which is kind of bizarre for me since once again I liked it a lot.  Right now, I’m not really fond of the song to be honest.

2. lingers on

Now this was more of what I expected from the duo!  lingers on is definitely a song that is very ethereal and dreamy right from the start and that’s seriously a plus to their music.  riya also fits the role very well since she just kind of flows effortlessly through the tune and it just fits together like a puzzle. 

3. Holograph ~Piano ver.~

Of the songs they could’ve chosen off of “bezel” to get a piano version, Holograph wouldn’t have been my first choice to be honest!  Instead of the acoustic guitar take of the original, it’s replaced by of course piano.  The bad thing is that it’s just piano which = no riya to be found.  Of course it would’ve been way better if she was there but whatever…

Eh, Literal isn’t too bad of a single but I’d only listen to lingers on really.  Only that song is really worth the listen to be honest.  Literal was alright, but it didn’t bring much to the table sadly and the piano-only version of Holograph was a bit empty for me.  Oh well at least they have a mini-album lined up next.

access – Share The Love

Track Listing

1. Share The Love
2. Keep It (Type A only)
3. Ride Up For The Shiny Way (Type A only)
4. Keep It (2010 Version) (Type B only)
5. Higher Than Dark Sky (Piano Version) (Type B only)

1. Share The Love

Synths and harpischord opening the A-side?  I found that pretty epic IMO for some reason.  It does seem when the song opens to the main track I feel like Daisuke is trying to hit back for some nostalgia in the arrangement, but it’s also a little like “Doubt & Trust” with how quickly Daisuke is playing some of the piano.  I also found myself enjoying Takami’s vocals a bit more than the last two singles so that’s a good direction. 

2. Keep It

So I’ve seen that access has performed this before the single’s release and that’s kind of cool but took a while before it was finally released.  Unlike the energetic “Share The Love”, this is more pop-laced and a tad slower in the tempo.  Though there’s something in the background that sounds like a siren that keeps going on and off that annoys me to death in the song and Takami under A LOT of filters bother me even further.  I hope the 2011 version is a lot better than this mess!

3. Ride Up For The Shiny Way

I’m not sure what the duo were thinking for their B-sides but whatever I do like Daisuke’s arrangement in this song as well since it’s full and has a lot of oomph to it.  I will say I’m not too big of a fan of Takami’s vocals in this song either, but there’s not a lot of filtering going on which is a start I guess.  Still his nasally higher register is a bit cringing.  I’d say it’s between the two tracks on likes.

 

 

*will review Type-B when it leaks*.  I must say that after “Higher Than Dark Sky” this single kind of feels like a bust.  It’s not the A-side that caused this however since that continued the hi-energy synth rock style that’s been getting them places.  Ride Up For The Shiny Way was alright, but nothing that hasn’t been done before on previous albums while Keep It was just terrible all-around.  I seriously think it’s album time for the duo!