Koda is taking this new release to the next level . The music video for Dance In The Rain includes an experience-based 360-degree that makes use of the latest advances in technology like 3D Sound & Oculus Rift . Considered the future of visual entertainment , Oculus Rift is a virtual reality head-mounted display that has not been released yet to the public , projected to be available in April 2015 .
A danceable number sung emotionally by Koda , Dance In The Rain will be released as a CD + DVD edition exclusively only for Koda's fanclub members next month on 12th Nov . The CD will include the A-side & instrumental tracks (no B-sides are included in the single) while the DVD will include the music video + making video footages of Dance In The Rain .
A lot of emotions can be felt in Dance In The Rain in which Koda delivered this song with plenty of gusto . It's a real shame that this song's only released digitally as I feel that it has a lot of potential to do well if it gets a general physical CD release .
My only slight problem towards Dance In The Rain is that it could have been a bit more longer as I felt duration wise , it's a bit short but sometimes you don't need a very long song to prove that it's great which's what I think Koda's trying to deliver when comes to Dance In The Rain .
The video preview for Dance In The Rain is simply stunning & I was in awe upon watching it . I'm sure the full version will be fantastic as soon as it gets released next month . Hopefully in due time , Dance In The Rain (be it song or video) will be eventually made available in Koda's 12th album as it will be a waste for this not to happen at all .
CD Regular
CD Limited
CD + DVD
1) INCUBUS
2) CLOUDY HEART ("LAST GIGS" ver.) 【Recreation Track】
Acid Black Cherry's latest offering comes in about 7 months+ since the release of their previous single Kimi ga Inai Ano hi Kara ... .
CLOUDY HEART serves as the B-side in INCUBUS & for this , it's a cover of Kikkawa Kouji . This song was included in the album Cloudy Heart that was released in 31st Jan 1994 as track #7 .
Finished with their Project "Shangri-la" , Acid Black Cherry is back with INCUBUS which's is a gripping powerful rock number that serves as the beginning of a new phase for the band .
Personally , every single aspect of INCUBUS is brilliant . From the song to the visual aspects , yasu spares no thoughts in making this single an all rounder .
INCUBUS itself is a hard rock edgy gritty number . The song is angsty/aggressive at its very best .
Acid Black Cherry's 4th album L will be released in 2015 . L will centres on an extraordinary story about a woman called L who lived a life full of ups + downs & just wanted love .
L will be Acid Black Cherry's 1st album in 3 years , after the release of their 3rd album 『2012』 .
CD
CD + DVD Normal & Type A
CD + DVD Type B
Music Card
V6's latest single offering comes in about 2 months + since the release of their previous single Namida no Ato ga Kieru Koro .
The A-side was picked to be used as the theme song for Tokai TV / Fuji TV's noontime drama Hottokenai Majotachi starring member Miyake Ken & Sky's The Limit is described as a dance number that shows the group's true value .
There're a total of 3 B-sides in the single in which all of them will be not reviewed :
- Eyes to Eyes
- Ashita wa Kuru kara (CD Only Track)
- Kimi ga Inai Sekai (CD Only Track)
After releasing 2 back to back ballads as singles , I'm so relieved that Sky's The Limit is a great comeback for V6 as I honestly feel that they're equally versatile when comes to doing uptempo songs & ballads .
Sky's The Limit most certainly didn't disappoint & I already like it on 1st listen as it's edgy without sounding cheesy which allows V6 to showcase some serious dance moves in the music video .
V6 will celebrate their 20th anniversary next year & it's hard to believe that 20 years ago , they 1st debuted in the scene with their debut single MUSIC FOR THE PEOPLE .
A lot of artistes come & go but I'm glad that V6 still managed to stick around after so long as they're 1 of the rare seniors Johnny's that still got it going on in them . It's not easy to keep on going but if V6 is still around after all this while , they must be doing something right isn't it ?
Before embarking on his upcoming SUGA SHIKAO NEXT ROUND TOUR 2014 , Suga released Monoraru Sekai to coincide with it + this track's an pleasant listening track coupled with funk , soul + R&B sounds that Suga's known for .
I did not really enjoy Suga's previous physical single release Astride / LIFE that much but Monoraru Sekai is something worth checking out & coming from 1 of the most unique/respective male solo artistes , it says a lot .
Promo wise , 42.195km was picked to be used as the official theme song for the Osaka Marathon that took place yesterday on 26th Oct . Compared to their previous physical single release Hidamari no Michi which was great , I do not really like 42.195km that much because I felt that when Kobukuro does harder rock songs , it somehow doesn't really suit their image .
Let alone , 42.195km doesn't sound as though it's suited to be used in a sports related event even though song title wise it's a different thing .
Considering that the duo has other great songs in their discography , 42.195km is something I don't mind to skip in not hearing it .
Cover for both CD & CD + DVD editions
1) Hyakka Ryoukan
2) Hashire ! Mirai
3) BLEEZE ~Studio Session Ver~
4) Soto Nada SAPPHIRE ~Studio Session Ver~
5) Kuroku nure ! ~Studio Session Ver~
6) YOU ~Studio Session Ver~
7) 「MUSIC LIFE」 Trailer
The group's latest single offering comes in about 3 months + after the release of their previous single BLEEZE ~G4・III~ .
Hyakka Ryoukan / Hashire ! Mirai is GLAY's 2nd single release in celebrating their 20th anniversary in the business .
Besides both A-sides , Hyakka Ryoukan / Hashire ! Mirai also includes live recordings of all tracks from BLEEZE ~G4・III~ which were recorded from their 1st studio session live that was held in July , as well as a digest audio recording of their 13th album MUSIC LIFE .
The 1st A-side Hyakka Ryoukan has a heavy rock tune & is a satire of modern society . The hard rock number has lyrics that're intended to critique aspects of modern society in Japan .
On the other hand , the 2nd A-side Hashire ! Mirai was picked to be used as the opening theme for the anime Daiya no A . This rock tune was written + composed by vocalist TERU who claims to be a fan of Daiya no A .
Regarding the tie-up , TERU commented , "I loved reading Daiya no A , but I never thought that GLAY would be in charge of its theme song , so I am very happy ." This's GLAY's 1st tie-up with an anime in over 15 years , since their song Surviva was used as the opening theme song for the anime Kaikan Phrase .
Between both A-sides , I prefer Hashire ! Mirai a lot more than Hyakka Ryoukan . With regards to Hyakka Ryoukan , its music direction is something I don't really like that much unlike Hashire ! Mirai where it's more light hearted & fun .
Celebrating their 20th anniversary in the music industry , 1 of JRock's most iconic/influential bands GLAY has most certainly come a long way in the business & with the release of their latest single Hyakka Ryoukan / Hashire ! Mirai , they show no signs of slowing things down in any single bit .
GLAY's 13th album / 20th anniversary MUSIC LIFE will be released next month on 5th Nov & both Hyakka Ryoukan + Hashire ! Mirai will be included in the album , as tracks #2 & #4 respectively .
1) Whisper my name
2) Close to you (LIVE)
3) Naturally
The release of Whisper my name comes in about less than a month after the release of Matsushita's previous digital single Eternal now .
In Matsushita's latest digital single offering , it includes 2 B-sides which're live recordings . Close to you was 1st found originally as the 1st B-side of Matsushita's 2nd single LAST SNOW while Naturally was Matsushita's 8th physical single release .
As for Whisper my name , it's an mid tempo R&B number & it's not as catchy as Eternal Now on 1st listen . I find the song ok but it wouldn't be a fave song of mine as it sounds like something Matsushita has done before .
This year alone , Matsushita has already released 4 singles digitally inclusive of his latest offering Whisper my name . I do hope that for his next release , it will be a full length album but of course I wouldn't mind if he chose to put out another digital single release again .
CD
CD + DVD
1) world's end, girl's rondo
2) continue
3) world's end,girl's rondo (Instrumental)
4) continue (Instrumental)
Kanon's latest single release comes in about 6 months + since the release of her previous single killy killy JOKER .
Both the A-side & B-side in the single were written & composed by Kanon .
world's end, girl's rondo was picked to be used as the opening theme no. for the anime selector spread WIXOSS while the B-side continue was used in the ads of WIXOSS TCG card .
Both songs have the mainstream cellist influence that Kanon is known for but my problem for both tracks is that they sounded quite similar .
The only time where I was able to tell each track apart was when continue had a rather strong distinct cello in the 2nd verse of the song , something that world's end, girl's rondo didn't had .
All in all it doesn't mean that I didn't enjoyed world's end, girl's rondo overall . I still hope that Malice Mizer/Moi dix Mois guitarist Mana would return back to work on Kanon's material because up to now , I feel that Kanon's older works still sound the best when Mana worked on them .
That said , hopefully Kanon's next music release will be an album as it has been 4 years since her last album Shoujo Jikake no Libretto ~LOLITAWORK LIBRETTO~ was released .
CD
CD + DVD A
CD + DVD B
1) Theme of YOU
2) Birthday Suit
3) YOUR STEP
4) Issho.
5) Konya ga Kakumei Zenya
6) Brodiaea
7) ice cream
8) Anthem
9) Kimi no Hitomi no Naka ni Mieta Marukute Aoi Hoshi
10) Love & Hug
11) Modorenai Kara
12) Daite Senorita -2014 version-
13) B-A-N-G (CD Only Track)
Yamapi's 1st mini album Asobi was released on 20th Aug & just like Asobi , no singles are included in YOU . Yamapi's last full length album release was last Sept's A NUDE .
YOU is preceded by lead promo single YOUR STEP .
Just like A NUDE , a variety of artists were involved in the production of YOU . Participating this time are Naoto Inti Raymi , Nanao Tavito , 2PM's Jun. K , Hitoto Yo , Kawatani Enon (indigo la End , gesu no kiwami otome) , ICEDOWN , Andy Platts (Mamas Gun) , Ishizaki Huwie , STY , Koide Yuusuke (Base Ball Bear) , Jeff Miyahara , banvox , Fukuhara Miho , Def Tech's Micro , Yanai Michihiko .
YOU was made thinking of all the fans who always have been supporting Yamapi . About YOU , Yamapi said , "Since the songs are like gently getting closer beside you , to music that is strongly pushing your back , this album gathers songs you will listen to through various situations . "
Yamapi further commented , "This time too , splendid artists participated in the production of this album , the contents are rich with the variety of genres & melodies . Because of this , even if there are people who haven't heard my album , even if there is just one who listens , I'm happy if my fans who have supported me will accept this album for a while , I think that is good ."
For the 1st time , YOU has an opening introduction track Theme of YOU in which this was followed by the 1st album track Birthday Suit which's is a nice mid tempo track that's quite catchy & memorable .
YOUR STEP is the album's main promo track & this served as the theme song of Yamapi's variety show Otona no Kiss Eigo . In addition , it's the only new song in YOU that received a video which's the 1st video that Yamapi personally had a hand in directing .
The lyrics of YOUR STEP were written by Naoto Inti Raymi & the song has both an English + Japanese renditions . The version found in the 3 'normal' editions of YOU is the English version while the Japanese version is only available in the special Yamapi shop edition of the album .
If YOUR STEP was released as a single , it would have been a worthy successor to Yamapi's previously Summer inspired single SUMMER NUDE '13 as YOUR STEP is top notch . I can understand why this song was picked to promote YOU as it deserves so & Yamapi's English dictation in the song is surprisingly quite good .
Issho. is the next song & funny enough just like YOUR STEP , both songs have the feeling that I want to go on vacation upon hearing both tracks . While YOUR STEP is very upbeat , Issho. is very laidback/chilled out .
Konya ga Kakumei Zenya follows after Issho. & this's 1 of my fave songs in YOU as it's uptempo song that has a lot of character which I was drawn to the very 1st time I heard it .
Brodiaea is the 1st album ballad & for this , 2PM's Jun. K + LEL co-composed while Yamapi co-wrote it together with Kenn Kato .
ice cream is track #7 & it's an uptempo song . I thought it was going to be something cheesy but thankfully it's not the case .
Anthem follows after ice cream & this's also another personal fave track of mine as it sounds empowering/inspiring .
Likewise , the same thing goes for the next track Kimi no Hitomi no Naka ni Mieta Marukute Aoi Hoshi which's yet another song that's worth checking out .
Love & Hug is another holiday inspired song just like YOUR STEP + Issho. except in this case , Love & Hug felt as though it contains traits of what both songs have .
Modorenai Kara is the 2nd album ballad after Brodiaea & this was written/composed by Kawatani Enon . Honestly I feel that both ballads found in YOU are equally good which allowed Yamapi to showcase his vocals to a certain extent .
Daite Senorita -2014 version- is a re-recorded version of Yamapi's debut single Daite Senorita that was released 8 years ago on 31st May .
I wouldn't lie that this was the 1 track that I was looking forward to hear the most as the original take of Daite Senorita was already very good but ironically I feel Daite Senorita -2014 version- is the weak link in YOU .
For Daite Senorita -2014 version- , it's very Rock driven which's 1 music genre that I feel it doesn't suit Yamapi & that's what I felt upon hearing the updated version of Daite Senorita . In this case , I definitely prefer the original version by a long shot .
B-A-N-G is exclusively available in the CD only edition of YOU & it's pretty good as Yamapi showcased his falsetto vocals here to a certain extent .
Yamashita Tomohisa concludes 2014 with the release of his 1st mini album Asobi & now his 4th original studio album YOU .
I must say releasing an album without any singles preceding it is a risky move as I wouldn't know if the album will flows well or not but Yamapi managed to defy all odds & put out yet another solid well rounder release .
Just like Yamapi's last album A NUDE , YOU is yet another album that's filled with a lot of different music genres that makes listening to it a real joy + when you get a group of established people to work on YOU , the result's quite evident .
I enjoyed listening to YOU from the start til the end & just like Asobi , both releases of Yamapi are definitely a shoo in in my top 10 fave album releases of 2014 .
Do yourself a favour & check out YOU which's a highly recommended album worth checking out , you will not be disappointed in doing so .
1) Eternal now
2) All My Love (LIVE)
3) Helpless (LIVE)
Matsushita's latest digital release comes in about 5 months + since the release of his previous digital single Slow Dancin' .
In Eternal now , there're the inclusion of 2 B-sides in which both songs are live versions of tracks that were already included in Matsushita's 3rd album #musicoverdose .
All My Love is included as track #3 in #musicoverdose while Helpless is included as track #5 in the tracklist .
Eternal now was written by Matsushita . The song has a warm ambience & while Matsushita usually sings about heartbreak , this time round he's singing about love that's fit to suit a wedding .
I enjoy Eternal now quite a lot & this mid tempo ballad is quite a nice change from what Slow Dancin' offered . Let alone , I appreciate the personal input that went into creating Eternal now since Matsushita wrote the song himself .
Matsushita's next digital single Whisper my name will be released on 18th Oct .
Kuriyama's last physical single release was last Nov's 0 . 0 was 1st released digitally last May before being released in physical CD mode .
Dilemma was picked to be used in the ads of Zenyaku Kogyo Company's cold medicine Jikinin IP . Regarding the song , Kuriyama commented , "This time it's a Rock song with a sense of speed . I think the sound matches the image of the CM that has changed from 'near future' to 'mysterious' . "
Kuriyama couldn't have described Dilemma any better as that's what I felt when I 1st heard the song . I love her previous stuff which's mainly Rock music but Dilemma has plenty of attitude + spunk .
Let alone , Dilemma gives off quite a strong futuristic vibe which adds a lot of character to the song . Even though Kuriyama generally doesn't release music that often , the quality of her music is quite solid , as evident to what she delivered this time round with Dilemma .
It reminds to be seen if Dilemma will be released in a physical CD mode just like what happened to 0 but I do hope that she can eventually release a new album as it has been 3 years since she released her debut album CIRCUS .
The digital release of Subarashii Sekai comes in about 2 months + after the release of the group's previous digital single Aki / Natsu .
Subarashii Sekai was 1st performed last year when FLOWER FLOWER went on tour .
Promo wise , Subarashii Sekai was picked to be used as the ending theme for TV Tokyo's late-night drama Tamagawa Kuyakusho OF THE DEAD that premiered on 3rd Oct . The drama stars Hayashi Kento & was directed by Kawahara Masahiko .
Tamagawa Kuyakusho OF THE DEAD is a horror-comedy that follows the struggles of Akabane Shinsuke , a ward office worker who is in charge of capturing zombies . The supporting cast of the drama is made up of Hirose Alice , Kaneko Nobuaki , Katagiri Jin & Toyota Ellie .
Subarashii Sekai is something that I immediately was drawn to the moment I heard it as it's quite a different music style FLOWER FLOWER delivered , as compared to Aki / Natsu .
In this case , Subarashii Sekai is a very upbeat & uplifting song that has great catchy guitar hooks which will be impossible not to like on 1st listen .
FLOWER FLOWER's debut album will be released on 26th Nov & I'm most certain Subarashii Sekai alongside with their past 4 digital single releases will be included in the tracklist .
1) Terminal
2) Terminal (Dub mix)
3) Terminal (HACKJACK remix)
Originally supposed to be released on 17th Sept , Terminal was 1st included as track #6 in ayumi's 15th album Colours that was released on 2nd July .
ayumi's last recut single release was 2002's Daybreak . The thumping trance number Terminal was produced by popular Dutch trance producer Armin van Buuren who's also known as one of the top DJ's in the world .
There're 2 remixes included in the single in which the Dub mix was 1st released digitally last month on 17th Sept prior to the physical CD single release . The Dub mix was also produced by Armin van Buuren .
I was really surprised when it was announced that Terminal was going to be released as a recut single . It's 1 of my fave songs from Colours but in retrospect , it's a very pointless release as I feel this release was put out for the sake of doing so .
In addition , the 2 remixes found in the single somehow cheapens everything as both remixes don't really have ayumi's vocals present while the Dub mix is essentially like a vocal less version of the original take of Terminal even though I do enjoy the HACKJACK remix to a certain extent .
That said , at the end of the day this's still a pointless release for ayumi to release . Terminal should have been released prior to Colours , if not both releases wouldn't be doing so poorly .
As a long time fan of ayumi , it does saddens me to see her music career reach this state as I never thought the day would come . Somehow or another , I hope she will be able to bounce back & it will be great if that happens in line with her impending 20th anniversary . If not , the future of her music career will be something very bleak that I'm not looking forward to see it happen if not visualise .
