CD
CD + DVD A & CD + Blu-ray A
CD + DVD B & CD + Blu-ray B
1) Henshin -Prologue-
2) Henshin
3) JOYER
4) Dai Ichi Kou : 「Henshin no Zenchou」 -Interlude-
5) Acchi Muite Hoi
6) Dry Ice.zip
7) WHAT'S NEW
8) Dai Ni Kou : 「Sentaku no Kiro」 -Interlude-
9) Chankapana (English Version)
10) Gomen Asobase
11) Love to Love
12) Dai San Kou：「Henshin no Yukue」 -Interlude-
13) Kimi no Mamade
CD only version
14) CHOIYAMA (Koyama Keiichiro)
15) Cocoon (Kato Shigeaki)
16) TM (Masuda Takahisa)
CD + DVD A & CD + Blu-ray A version bonus track
- Touch (METROCK 2025 ; 2025.05.11 Ver.)
CD + DVD B & CD + Blu-ray B version bonus tracks
- HOT LIMIT (T.M. Revolution) (Inazuma Rock Fes 2024 ; 2024.09.22 Ver.) ; duet with T.M. Revolution
- Chankapana (Inazuma Rock Fes 2024 ; 2024.09.22 Ver.)
The group's last album release was last Aug's JAPANEWS .
The theme of NEWS' new album is based on a transformative experience shared between NEWS & listeners . By the end of Henshin , both NEWS & fans will be transformed into new versions of themselves .
1 physical released single Acchi Muite Hoi is included in Henshin while the English version of NEWS' Chankapana was 1st released digitally on 2nd June .
And a concept movie was made for Henshin -Prologue- .
Experience a transformation with NEWS ! The group's 15th album Henshin is themed around a transformation experience for NEWS & for listeners as well . The album expresses this story of transformation in various ways .
I was not sure what to expect before listening to NEWS' latest album Henshin but to say their new album surprised me considerably in a good way is an understatement .
Henshin overall on whole felt like the music version of a kitchen sink . With how Henshin -Prologue- sounded like , that gives a rough idea how the rest of the album would turn out to be , not that it's a bad thing .
Oddly , some of the songs in Henshin felt like they could have been in NEWS' 10th album WORLDISTA which to me is the group's less memorable & weakest sounding album to date .
Also the more I listen to Henshin , the more I like it . I personally like the 1st 1/2 of the album a lot more than the 2nd 1/2 but I realised the more listens I gave , the more the 2nd 1/2 of Henshin sounded on par with what the 1st 1/2 of the release is .
On that note , NEWS LIVE TOUR 2024 JAPANEWS DVD + Blu-ray will be released on 10th Sept .
CD + DVD
CD + Blu-ray
1) ChaO!
2) Curly Hair
3) CELESTIA
4) CUBE
Koda's last physical single release was 2014's HOTEL .
All 4 songs in De-CODE have different promo tie in's .
ChaO! was used as the theme song an animated movie of the same name which was released in Japan's cinemas 2 Friday's ago .
Before De-CODE was physically released , ChaO! was 1st released digitally last month on 9th July & it's the only song in the release that has a video made .
The 2nd song Curly Hair promoted Koda's new beauty book Koda-teki Beauty while the 3rd song CELESTIA was used in the ads of loveil contact lenses . In addition , the song's instrumental is used in the promotional videos which were uploaded over the last few months in hyping up Koda's impending 25th anniversary .
CUBE is the last song in De-CODE & it was used to promote Koda's upcoming arena tour KODA KUMI 25th ANNIVERSARY TOUR 2025 ~De-CODE~ .
Celebrating her impending 25th anniversary in the business , Koda Kumi heats things up with her 2nd new music release of the year in the form of De-CODE .
Aside from having all 4 songs coincidentally starting with the same alphabet C , I thought most of the new material in De-CODE are pretty good even though I wished that Koda would have made videos for all 4 songs instead of just 1 .
It has been a long time since Koda last released a proper physical single & for that it's a long awaited welcome from her for sure .
BENI 1st performed Escape at BENI 20th Anniversary Tour “Deja Vu” which took place on 30th March at Tokyo's Zepp DiverCity ie. on BENI's birthday .
Written by BENI , Escape was also co-composed by her & Chaki Zulu . The song has a catchy beat that evokes a moment of escape from the mundaneness of everyday life , as well as a striking sound that evokes the 90s .
It has been quite a long time since BENI last released a new song but despite this Escape is worth the wait & it's something that reminded me of her older works a great deal .
Even though musically BENI has not been as active as she once was , the release of Escape was a nice return form for BENI & it's why I'm still her fan all these years .
Hopefully I will not need to wait so long for BENI to release something new again .
SPYAIR's latest new digital release comes in about 6 months+ since they released Buddy digitally at the beginning of the year .
Promo wise , Chase the Shine was chosen to promote Boat Race 2025 .
Unlike Buddy which is not catchy on 1st listen , I did not experience that with Chase the Shine as I find the song having a big memorable impact on 1st impression .
SPYAIR was able to capture the essence of Boat Race 2025 quite well in Chase the Shine & I feel the song sounds better the more I listen to it .
That said I hope the next new music release SPYAIR put out will be a full length studio album as this's something they have not done so ever since YOSUKE joined the band .
Since then SPYAIR has released a considerable number of new material & it will be great if this were to happen before year end .
CD (Ichi no Mori Ondo version)
1) Ichi no Mori Ondo
2) Ohitsujiza no Otoko
3) Ichi no Mori Ondo (Karaoke)
CD (Ohitsujiza no Otoko version)
1) Ohitsujiza no Otoko
2) Ichi no Mori Ondo
3) Ohitsujiza no Otoko (Karaoke)
Ichi no Mori Daigo's latest single offering is a follow up release to last April's Ichi no Mori Daigo Desu / Modotte Okure .
Despite being a double A-side single release , only Ichi no Mori Ondo had a video made .
The 1st A-side Ichi no Mori Ondo is described as a song that will get everyone dancing to it during Bon Odori this Summer . In the chorus , Ichi no Mori Daigo repeatedly chants his own name .
While the 2nd A-side Ohitsujiza no Otoko is a song that references Ichi no Mori Daigo who was born in April under the horoscope sign of Aries . Both the song title & the melody both pay homages to the famous Showa era .
Ichi no Mori Daigo's latest single release is almost a drastic musical difference as compared to his debut solo single . Unlike Ichi no Mori Daigo Desu / Modotte Okure which I did not know what to expect prior to hearing , I did not get the same feeling with Ichi no Mori Ondo / Ohitsujiza no Otoko .
Nonetheless it's quite obvious between Ichi no Mori Ondo & Ohitsujiza no Otoko , Ichi no Mori Ondo is a lot more catchy while amusing at the same time while Ohitsujiza no Otoko showcases the more mature serious side .
It reminds to be seen whether will Ichi no Mori Daigo continue to release more new music as he did hinted that Ichi no Mori Ondo / Ohitsujiza no Otoko was possibly his last release .
If so it was fun while it lasted & it's something that I admire DAIGO for going out of his musical comfort zone to try something different .
CD
CD
1) Bad Karma
2) DON'T FORGET MY NAME
3) Syrup
4) Hikouki Gumo
5) KAGEROU
6) tomato
7) Sick of u
8) Naimononedari
9) PUZZLE
10) Epilogue (Instrumental)
Shota's last album release was 2023's Insomnia .
Pulsatilla cernua is Shota's 1st album release to get a CD + Blu-ray version alongside with his 1st ever fanclub version of a release pertaining to his latest album release .
Shota's new album has 10 songs , inclusive of :
- DON'T FORGET MY NAME
This's the lead album track which was 1st released digitally on last month 28th May & it has a video made
- Syrup ; released digitally in April
- tomato ; released digitally on 11th June
- PUZZLE ; released digitally last Oct
I enjoy Shota Shimizu's last 2 album releases HOPE & Insomnia so naturally I was curious to see if I would like his latest album offering Pulsatilla cernua which luckily I do to a certain extent .
Autotune is still present in Pulsatilla cernua but thankfully this has been kept to a bare minimum and instead the majority of Shota's new album allowed him to let his vocals shine & not having auto tune to conceal his singing to the extreme .
The strength in Pulsatilla cernua is no doubt the mid tempo driven numbers & also ballads . Both music genres showcase what Shota vocally excelled in the best , such as the album's new material ie. Hikouki Gumo , KAGEROU & tomato .
If there's 1 thing to nit pick on Pulsatilla cernua is that I wished Shota would have included a bit more new material as the album overall felt a bit too short .
In addition I don't think DON'T FORGET MY NAME should have a video made . Instead this should have been given to KAGEROU as that to me is the standout new song in Pulsatilla cernua .
Aside from that , Pulsatilla cernua is overall quite a worthy follow up to Insomnia and most of the new songs in the album I enjoy especially the 3 songs I singled out (Hikouki Gumo , KAGEROU & tomato) .
I look forward to see what Shota Shimizu will release next & if he were to release another song like PUZZLE I'm up for it as this's the type of song he should be releasing a lot more often & in return people will and have responded to it positively .
CD
CD + DVD & CD + Blu-ray A
CD + DVD & CD + Blu-ray B
Promo wise , encore was used as the theme song for the drama Parallel Fufu: Shinda Boku to Tsuma no Shinjitsu starring member Inoo Kei .
4 B-sides are included in encore :
- SUPER CRUISIN' 1st released digitally on 26th March & it has a video made
Described as a funky upbeat track driven by lyrics from Saya & a groovy beat produced by Sakiura Shin .
Lyrically SUPER CRUISIN' is all about motion , momentum & swagger . This isn't a cruise for the calm , it’s a wild ride of highs , spins & unexpected turns .
- Love Letter (CD Only Track)
- MATSURI☆FEVER (CD Only Track)
- Step by step (CD + DVD & CD + Blu-ray A Track)
- Miraisen (CD + DVD & CD + Blu-ray B Track)
Hey ! Say ! JUMP's 35th single encore is the theme song for the Fuji TV drama Parallel Fufu starring member Inoo Kei . The refreshing love song makes you want to sing & dance along with its rhythmic pop melody .
The single's B-side track SUPER CRUISIN' that was penned by Laland's Saya is an upbeat hip-hop number that expresses the strengths & charms of Hey ! Say ! JUMP, who have cruised from Heisei to Reiwa at their own pace as a group .
In all honestly I'm not really a fan of Hey ! Sɑy ! JUMP's previous single UMP as I felt it was a bit un-necessary for them to redo their debut single where they could have chosen not to perform Ultra Music Power any longer .
Luckily I do not have the same opinions towards encore as I do like the song the moment I 1st heard it .
As for the B-sides in encore all 4 of them are equally enjoyable & different from each other in a good way even though I personally feel Love Letter should be the 1 that gets a video made & not SUPER CRUISIN' .
Hey ! Say ! JUMP LIVE TOUR 2024-2025 H⁺ DVD + Blu-ray will be released next month on 30th July .
