Reviews: 8/20 New Releases

GET ALONG TOGETHER sg WANNA BE+

sg WANNE BE+ is a Korean trio who have been active since 2004 and (I believe) are making their Japanese debut with this single. GET ALONG TOGETHER is a piano ballad with very impressive vocals. All three of the group's members sound really fantastic with very smooth, emotional voices. The song itself isn't too impressive unfortunately. It's a typical ballad and not something that I would think you would want to kick your career off with in Japan. It isn't overly catchy or unique at all. Just when you think it is lifting it drops back. It's a bit of a teaser to be honest. Lots of potential in this group but this single isn't a winner for me.

Rating: B-

Gift Porno Graffitti

Gift is Porno Graffitti's 25th single and the theme song for Flying Rabbits which unfortunately is not about flying rabbits at all but about basketballer air hostesses instead. What a shame! Now to the song: It has that indy-rock feel which everyone just seems to love in Japan. I'm really liking Okano-kun's vocals, they're nice and unique and obviously fit the genre well (they'd have to by now, eh?) The song has a nice layed back feeling to it without being boring. It reminds me very much of a school/university drama theme, not so much basketballer air hostesses. That doesn't matter much though, I still like it.

Rating: B

Life Goes On CHEMISTRY

CHEMISTRY's newest single is a double A-side with Life Goes On ~Side K~ and ~Side D~.I have absolutely no idea what side K or side D represents and I have no desire to start throwing random guesses about.
Life Goes On ~Side K~ is sort of a techno beat dance track, not so dissimilar from the likes of Perfume. I have to admit that I'm not a huge fan of the genre and this track doesn't stand out to me that much. The chorus was pretty good and it was better towards the end. It really isn't my genre though, I've tried to like groups like Perfume and I just can't. sorry.
From the ecclectic ~Side K~, Life Goes On ~Side D~ is very laid-back and sombre in comparison. The vocals are quite nice in this song, albeit soft. It's like an acoustic version of the previous track with some strings inserted here and there. I wouldn't say it is any better than the other track, it's different. I guess whichever genre you prefer will be the side you prefer.

Rating: B- for both.

Lion May'n / Nakashima Megumi

Oh yay! An Anime track. I love my Anime openings, they're usually surprisingly good. Lion is a collaboration between May'n (Nakabayashi May) and Nakajima Megumi. It is the Opening theme for Macross Frontier, an anime (well duh!).
Lion is a synth driven upbeat track with some light rock and orchestral elements. The song itself is good for what it is, which is a mindless anime tune. It doesn't bring much that hasn't been heard before (over and over and over). The biggest disappointment is that they haven't really utilised both girls. If I didn't know better I would have just assumed it was a single artist with backing vocals. This may be because both artists sound similar, I don't know, but I don't see the point of doing a duet if you can't even tell. The song is catchy, despite its downfalls and is one of those songs that you find yourself humming without even thinking.

Rating: B

Single of the Week

Truth / Kaze no Mukou he ARASHI

Despite scouring the new release charts in a desperate bid to not have a Johnny's song as my Single of the Week, I could not find a better single this week than ARASHI's newest double A-side Truth / Kaze no Mukou he. Coming off the lovey-dovey, sickeningly sweet albeit highly successful One Love, Truth / Kaze no Mukou he is a great change of pace for the boys.

Truth



The song starts off with some dramatic strings and the whole instrumental is very orchestrally inspired which is an automatic winner in my books. The guy's vocals aren't overly impressive (in fact they're surprisingly bad in some bits, especially the lower registry), but they are idols so that can be forgiven. I know I blab on and on about songs needing to be catchy and this one fits the bill in almost all aspects of catchy..ness. It has the infectious "I take your life forever, you take my life forever" lines in the verses; the undeniably brilliant backing vocals in the bridge and a very decent chorus. The second verse and bridge mix it up enough to remain fresh throughout and the instrumental is great. I don't know much about ARASHI but I like this song.

Rating: A-

Kaze no Mukou he



The second single on the track is a mid-tempo Summerish song and it ticks the boxes a Summer song should. Laid back? Tick. Summer influenced instrumental? Tick. Rapping? Tick. Catchy? Tick. Uplifting? Tick. It's another really good song. The vocals on this song are better than the previous, though the range seems much less on this song which may be the reason. The song is a touch repetitive but the chorus is good enough to make up for it and it doesn't even take a full listen for you to already be singing along "Kaze no Mukou he!" whilst bobbing around like an idiot. A top rate Summer track.

Rating: A-

I really enjoy the antithesis of light and shade in these two tracks. From the dramatically moody Truth to the upbeat Kaze no Mukou he. The contrast is wonderful. I'm not sold on the group yet but I do enjoy this single very much. Tracks are on the media player at the top of the blog so have a listen and see if you agree.