Cover for all 3 editions of the album (CD , 2CDs & CD + DVD)
1) OVERLOAD
2) Turning Point
3) Genjou Destruction
4) Sakura Mitsutsuki
5) Winding Road
6) Are You Champion ? Yeah !! I'm Champion !!
7) STAND UP
8) Supersonic
9) Ameagari ni Saku Hana
10) Niji (Rainbow)
11) 16 And Life
The guys's latest album release comes in less than 11 months + since they released their previous album Just Do It . MILLION is also SPYAIR's 1st album release as a quartet , after DJ ENZEL☆ departed from the group last Dec in order to pursue his personal interests .
The album title MILLION stands for the band's goals & their wish for their "music to reach many people" .
MILLION includes 3 singles & 2 B-sides . However , their 9th single WENDY ~It's You~ is excluded in the main CD but the song is included in the 2nd disc , with regards to the CD + bonus disc limited edition of MILLION .
On the other hand , the music video for WENDY ~It's You~ is included in the DVD , with regards to the CD + DVD limited edition of the album .
OVERLOAD is the album's opening track & unlike the group's 1st 2 albums which were short opening tracks , OVERLOAD is a full album track in its own right .
This song was 1st released via iTunes on 24th July , a week before MILLION was released . A music video was actually made for the song but the video itself is not included in the DVD of MILLION .
Picked to be used in the ads of SUZUKI SWIFT , OVERLOAD most certainly brings in plenty of bite if not serious attitude . I can understand why the guys chose to open MILLION with OVERLOAD as it's such a great track to start things off .
SPYAIR's previous opening tracks in their 1st 2 albums were also equally good & for them to start MILLION with a full track as compared to an introduction song , it's a nice change of things .
Turning Point originally was found as the B-side track in SPYAIR's 10th single Sakura Mitsutsuki .
I like Turning Point when I 1st reviewed Sakura Mitsutsuki & for them to include the song in MILLION , I have no complaints as it's still a B-side I enjoyed a lot even up to now .
Genjyo Destruction is SPYAIR's 12th single & this single was released a month prior to MILLION .
The group's best charting single to date , Genjyo Destruction was picked to be used as the theme song for the anime movie Gekijouban Gintama Kanketsu-hen Yorozuya yo Eien nare .
With the release of Genjyo Destruction , it marks the 3rd time for the band to provide the theme song for Gintama . SPYAIR's 4th single Samurai Heart (Some Like It Hot !!) was used as the ending theme no. in 2011 . This year in Jan , their 10th single Sakura Mitsutsuki was used as the opening theme for its TV anime series .
Leader/bassist MOMIKEN commented , "This is our 3rd time to sing for Gintama . And it's for the movie ! It's the final one too ! We have no choice but to take this great opportunity ! We are working on it while giving it our all . Everyone , please look forward for the theme song as well ! "
Sakura Mitsutsuki is SPYAIR's 10th single & this's their 1st release as a quartet .
The song was picked to be used as the opening theme no. for the anime Gintama at the beginning of this year . Sakura Mitsutsuki utilised the theme cherry blossoms , moon , promise & centers around the guitars sound-wise .
Sakura Mitsutsuki was released on the same day as the group's 2nd DVD SPYAIR LIVE at Nippon Budokan 2012 & it was their 2nd single to be used to promote Gintama , the 1st being their 4th single Samurai Heart (Some Like It Hot !!) .
Winding Road is the 2nd album track & this's actually an old song as it was something taken from their indie days , way before SPYAIR went the major label route .
I actually personally like Winding Road a lot as it's essentially a slice of history from the guys's past . This mid tempo ballad is very old school & after listening to Winding Road , I might consider to give their older/indie works a try .
Are You Champion ? Yeah !! I'm Champion !! serves as the B-side in SPYAIR's 11th single Niji & it's the 2nd B-side that made the tracklist in MILLION .
I'm really pleased that Are You Champion ? Yeah !! I'm Champion !! is included in MILLION as at that time when I reviewed Niji , I commented that Are You Champion ? Yeah !! I'm Champion !! is 1 of their coolest if not most interesting B-sides they've came up with , be it for song or title .
As such , I have no complaints that Are You Champion ? Yeah !! I'm Champion !! made the cut in MILLION as nobody should miss out hearing this fun energetic no. .
The next 3 songs are brand new album tracks in MILLION .
STAND UP is a rather typical standard rock no. with lots of hard drum beats thrown in for good measure .
On the other hand , Supersonic is 1 of the guys's most interesting songs as it features lead singer IKE singing & rapping at the same time , something that was never done before until now .
To be honest , IKE surprisingly sounded quite natural when he rapped & it makes the experience in listening to Supersonic even more entertaining if not fun .
The 2nd last album track , Ameagari ni Saku Hana is an uplifting uptempo rock no. which presents a very different vibe from what STAND UP & Supersonic offered .
Niji is SPYAIR's 11th single & it was picked to be used as the theme song for Shota Matsuda's TBS drama Undercover Agent Tokage .
This song is the last single to be included in MILLION .
To accompany Undercover Agent Tokage , the producers wanted a powerful sound , which made SPYAIR a perfect choice . Niji is described as an uplifting , inspiration rock ballad that reflects the courage of one who continues through adversity .
Niji encourages one to persevere & walk forth even when one is troubled . As such , the song was written specifically for Undercover Agent Tokage .
SPYAIR posted their own comments with regards to Niji , "Our world is filled with trash and treasure . The value of things becomes vague & you become unaware of these limits . The protagonist of the drama , Tokage probably knows of this feeling . This is what we thought when we finished writing the lyrics . The vocals are certain to overcome a frozen heart with a sound that reflects a vast view of the world & universal beat . We have put all of our energy into making this song . Whether it's one person , or many , we want people to hear this !"
16 And Life is the final album track & last song in the album tracklist . It's a very under-stated mid tempo song that concludes things quite nicely .
The only grouse about this song was that when I 1st heard it , I was surprised that it ended very abruptly which caught me off guard as I thought 16 And Life would have been longer but that wasn't the case . Only after a few more listens , I got used to the way 16 And Life sounded after that .
After stepping on the sacred stage of the Nippon Budokan last year , SPYAIR is back with their 3rd major label album MILLION .
In recent times , SPYAIR has become my 2nd most fave JRock band & MILLION speaks volume in that despite being a member short , they're still able to release solid rocking music & MILLION is evident of that .
Let alone , they definitely have come a long way since their indie days & MILLION is now officially their best charting release , with it debuting at #2 on the 1st week of release that suppressed the peak position of their previous album Just Do It (which only peaked at #20) .
MILLION on whole is actually really enjoyable to listen & with it being 40 mins long , it can be considered short by an album's standard but most importantly is the quality & not so much on the quantity .
If there're something I didn't like about MILLION , it probably be the strange fact that I actually like the album tracks and B-sides somewhat more than the singles & I definitely was disappointed that WENDY ~It's You~ was excluded from the tracklist .
I suppose the guys want to make MILLION their 1st proper release as a quartet as WENDY ~It's You~ was their last single that included DJ ENZEL☆ .
That said , what I hope for SPYAIR in the near future was for them to release their material a bit more slower as the singles included in MILLION , they were all released really quickly & somewhere down the line , the quality got compromised which's quite evident when I listened to their older singles & comparing them against their latest/recent ones .
But all in all , MILLION is still a really good follow up after Just Do It with special mention that goes to the B-sides & album tracks which're highly recommended .