flumpool - Present
CD
CD + DVD
1) Present
2)『Arigatou』 (Thank You) Kurai Jya Tsutae Kirenai Kimochi Wo (Isn't Enough To Convey A Person's Feelings)
3) Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
4) Present (Instrumental)
5)『Arigatou』 (Thank You) Kurai Jya Tsutae Kirenai Kimochi Wo (Instrumental)
Present is flumpool's 8th single & it was released last week on 7th Dec & this comes about 3 months+ since the release of the group's previous single Akashi (Proof) .
This single is an end-of-the-year ‘present’ for flumpool's fans & it’s described to be filled with the members' strong feelings .
The band explained , “We want to combine all of the happy & sad things that happened this year & conclude the year with a smile . Connecting our feelings of gratitude for important people such as family & friends , we want to do our best next year !”
The 2 B-sides available in Present are perhaps not surprising Christmas influence driven just like the A-side .
『Arigatou』 (Thank You) Kurai Jya Tsutae Kirenai Kimochi Wo (Isn't Enough To Convey A Person's Feelings) has a very strong if not cheery sounding Christmas vibe which's definitely a song that's able to get me into the festive mood .
Despite the rather long sounding title , I actually prefer 『Arigatou』 Kurai Jya Tsutae Kirenai Kimochi Wo a lot more than Present itself (which took me a few listens to remember how it sounds like) .
Happy Xmas (War Is Over) is a cover track which was written by the late Beatles's John Lennon & his wife (now widow) Yoko Ono .
This song was 1st released in 1971 as a single by John & Yoko / Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir .
At 1st , I found it a bit strange hearing lead singer Ryuuta singing in full English in their cover take of Happy Xmas (War Is Over) but after I got that out of the way , I guess this's a pretty good cover of this classic no. .
I'm not sure if the group was able to do justice to the original but I have to give them credit for trying their best to cover Happy Xmas (War Is Over) .
flumpool held their largest-scale concert ever on Dec 10th & 11th at the Saitama Super Arena . To coincide with the 2 concerts , the band is especially releasing their latest Present .
Truth be told , to me this year has been a rather disappointing music year for flumpool as it's no open secret I haven't been impressed with their recent material , starting from their 2nd album Fantasia of Life Stripe which I feel it's quite a letdown , especially when I compare this album against their older works .
Thankfully , the singles that followed after Fantasia of Life Stripe still are able to hold a fort on its own but I do hope next year flumpool's able to bring back that old spark of theirs back to their material as it will be a major big waste to see this talented band going the samey same old same old route .
