This version is an acoustic version of My Boo which was released last Oct as Shota's 21st single .
I think it's pretty evident that I like My Boo (Acoustic ver.) a lot more than the original as I feel Shota went overboard with incorporating too much autotune regarding his last year's releases .
For My Boo (Acoustic ver.) , it's a lot more simplified which I feel it captures the essence of what the song is .
Let alone , the acoustic version is just Shota singing My Boo while backed up by an acoustic guitar which doesn't get any better than this .
Shota's 22nd single FIRE will be released next month on 21st Feb & I'm curious to see if My Boo (Acoustic ver.) will be included as a B-side as Shota has a habit of re-recording new versions of his previous single song & incorporating it in his next single release .
CD Regular
CD Regular Tracklist
1) Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite
2) Kamisori ~Acoustic Version~
3) Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo o Hodoite ~TV Size Edit~
CD Limited
CD Limited Tracklist
1) Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite
Detective Conan Theme Song ~Special Live Track~
2) Everlasting Luv [2015.5.20 BREAKERZ FREE LIVE at Yoyogi Park outdoor stage]
3) Miss Mystery [2016.7.23 SPECIAL LIVE 『BREAKERZ IX』 at Toyousu PIT]
4) WE GO [2015.9.26 BREAKERZ LIVE TOUR 2015 Ø-ZERO- at TOKYO DOME CITY HALL]
5) Hikari [2010.12.1 BREAKERZ LIVE TOUR 2010 BUNNY LOVE ~Yasei ni Kaere~ at Nakano Sun Plaza Hall]
6) Tsukiyo no Itazura no Mahou [2012.4.8 SPRING PARTY 2012 DAIGO's Birthday ~Henshin!! Miwaku no Urutora D~ @ TOKYO DOME CITY HALL]
7) Overwrite [2016.7.23 SPECIAL LIVE『BREAKERZ IX』at Toyousu PIT]
CD + DVD
CD + DVD Tracklist
1) Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite
2) Kamisori ~Acoustic Version~
This's the trio's 1st single release of 2017 . Their last single release was 2015's YAIBA .
Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite was written by vocalist DAIGO & composed by guitarist AKIHIDE .
Promo wise , the A-side was used as the 43rd opening theme song for the Detective Conan anime . Also , the last single of the guys to include live recording of their songs was 2009's Hikari .
Song title wise , Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite is the longest that DAIGO has came up with in the guys' discography , so far .
Before finding out who was the 1 that composed Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite , I already had a feeling it was AKIHIDE due to the aggressive strong guitar riffs in the song .
In addition , I feel there're also traces of Everlasting Luv in the song too given that both tracks have slight orchestra influences even though AKIHIDE didn't composed Everlasting Luv .
Kamisori ~Acoustic Version~ is the B-side in the single & the original take of the song is found as track #11 in BREAKERZ's self titled debut album .
I had to do a double take when I saw Kamisori ~Acoustic Version~ on the tracklist because Kamisori is a classic song in the guys' fandom & let alone it's favourite track for most old timers fans .
Be it the original and/or acoustic , both melodies were composed by AKIHIDE . I don't know how AKIHIDE did it but Kamisori ~Acoustic Version~ is a complete opposite of what Kamisori offers .
Kamisori is an outright angsty song but Kamisori ~Acoustic Version~ has a really soft mellow strings driven melody which sounds like nothing on what the original offered & in this case , it strangely works really well in the song's favour .
BREAKERZ kicked off their 10th anniversary with the release of their latest single offering , Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite .
It feels like yesterday when I 1st started supporting BREAKERZ & knowing that 2017 is their 10th anniversary blows me away . There were ups & downs in supporting them but regardless of what happens , I'm real proud of them end of the day .
I really hope BREAKERZ will do something epic in celebrating their 10th anniversary & that Ikusen no Meikyuu de Ikusen no Nazo wo Toite is not the only new material to look forward to from them this year .
CD
CD + DVD
1) VESPER
2) Parallel・World
3) HINOTORI
4) Ienai Ienai
5) Qusai Self
6) WARAE ~In The Mood~
7) DENDROBIUM -Instrumental-
8) Dress
9) Kodou -Magnificent Remix-
10) Sonomama
11) Little Samba ~Jounestu no Remix~
12) LUCIFER -Interlude-
13) Side By Side
The duo's last album release was 2015's REVIVAL . In SIDE BY SIDE , singles Ienai Ienai , Parallel・World & WARAE ~In The Mood~ are included in the new album .
5 new songs are available in SIDE BY SIDE & also 1 B-side & 2 remix songs .
SIDE BY SIDE was released to celebrate Hilcrhyme's 10th anniversary in the business & it's their 1st release to have a fanclub version .
Kicking things off in SIDE BY SIDE is VESPER which's the 1st of 5 new album tracks . VESPER is quite a cool song that has a futuristic tone attached to it .
Parallel・World is Hilcrhyme's 19th single . This was used as the theme song for their 3D Hilcrhyme 10th Anniversary FILM 「PARALLEL WORLD」 .
Following almost the same music tone as Parallel・World is the 2nd album track HINOTORI . Both tracks back to back are quite angsty driven to a certain extent .
Ienai Ienai is Hilcrhyme's 18th single . This was used as the ending theme for the anime Jitsu wa Watashi wa & it's the 1st song that Hilcrhyme has provided to be used for an anime .
Qusai Self is the 3rd album track & unlike Parallel・World & HINOTORI , this's quite chilled out/laid back .
WARAE ~In The Mood~ is Hilcrhyme's 20th single . Described as a Jazz song , this no. was made with the theme "to laugh" .
Out of the 3 singles included in SIDE BY SIDE , I like WARAE ~In The Mood~ the most as it's completely different from what Hilcrhyme has tackled/released before . It's a pity that the single didn't do that well as the fun jovial side of the duo is seldom showcased until now .
After the instrumental piece DENDROBIUM -Instrumental- , it follows next with the 4th album track Dress . I'm ok with this song as I frankly don't find anything special about it .
Kodou -Magnificent Remix- is the 1st of 2 remixes found in SIDE BY SIDE . For this , it's a remix of Kodou , which's originally found as the 2nd B-side in Hilcrhyme's 6th single FLOWER BLOOM + track #5 in their 6th album REVIVAL .
I like the original take of Kodou but somehow for Kodou -Magnificent Remix- , I feel it doesn't add that much dimension to the track .
Sonomama is the B-side of Hilcrhyme's 20th single WARAE ~In The Mood~ . At that time when I reviewed the single , I wrote that I like Sonomama so as such , I don't mind that it's included in SIDE BY SIDE .
Little Samba ~Jounestu no Remix~ is the 2nd remix song in SIDE BY SIDE & for this , it's a remix of Little Samba ~Jounetsu no Kinyoubi~ which's the B-side found in their Hilcrhyme's debut single Jun'ya to Manami .
Little Samba ~Jounetsu no Kinyoubi~ is still 1 of my favourite Hilcrhyme B-sides & unlike Kodou -Magnificent Remix- , I enjoy Little Samba ~Jounestu no Remix~ significantly as this's a lot more upbeat & fun as compared to the original take of the song .
After a under 30 seconds LUCIFER -Interlude- , the album closes things off with Side By Side which's also the last new album track .
Just like the opening track VESPER , Side By Side also has a rather cool futuristic sound which's pretty fitting in concluding SIDE BY SIDE . Surprisingly , a video was made for Side By Side but it's not included in the DVD tracklist of the album .
Hilcrhyme celebrated their 10th anniversary last year & the beginning of 2017 saw the release of Hilcrhyme 10th Anniversary FILM PARALLEL WORLD DVD + Blu-ray .
While it's no doubt that Hilcrhyme has come a long way since their humble beginnings , I feel in recent times their albums have either been sloppy and/or not as good as their earlier album releases .
In the case for SIDE BY SIDE , even though it's a 13 tracks album , there're only 5 new songs in the record . I suspect due to lack of new material , interludes & 2 remixes are added in to fill in the gaps .
I've been a fan of Hilcrhyme's music for a really long time & I still think that their earlier album releases especially their debut album Recital is still tops . Subsequently along the way starting from their 5th album FIVE ZERO ONE , they lost their spark/footing .
I'm not sure if I plan to listen to their future albums but this's something I need to think about carefully as for now , they haven't lost their touch when comes to their singles , it's their albums that have falter for quite some time .
SIDE BY SIDE should have been released as a mini album as I generally like the single songs & album tracks . I really don't mind if Hilcrhyme remove the interludes & remixes . And since they haven't release a mini album before , they should have gone in that direction instead of trying to pump things up & release it as a full length album .
CD Regular
CD Limited
Ballad Selection was released on 6th Jan . White Avenue is a new song while Michi wa Tezukara Yume no Hana (20th Anniversary Ver.) is a re-recorded version of their latest / 37th single .
KinKi Kids consolidates their best ballads to commemorate the 20th anniversary of their debut with the release of Ballad Selection .
White Avenue is a nice ballad that showcases the duo's vocal harmonisation efforts with each other . I also enjoy the new version of Michi wa Tezukara Yume no Hana as well with it having a rather strong Spring feel attached to it .
I would prefer if KinKi Kids re-record other ballad songs of theirs as I think it's rather too early for them to re-record Michi wa Tezukara Yume no Hana especially since this single was only released last Nov . Still , I don't mind as I really like the single when I reviewed it at that time of release .
With 2017 being the duo's 20th anniversary , I'm sure Ballad Selection will not be the only release I'll be seeing from them .
CD
CD + DVD
2 CDs + Blu-ray
1) Unbalance by Me
2) RIGHT LIGHT RISE
3) the BEAST can't BE STOpped
4) Odette
5) Hei Bonnna Boku
6) Not For Sale ・ Fossil
7) Kimi wa Soreiyu
8) Drink Drunk Music
9) Love your enemies
10) luminescence Q.E.D.
Kanon's last album release was Feb 2015's Tsukinami . In luminescence Q.E.D , the record includes 10 songs inclusive of singles RIGHT LIGHT RISE , Kimi wa Soreiyu & Love your enemies .
All 10 songs in luminescence Q.E.D were written & composed by Kanon .
Kicking things off in Kanon's new album is Unbalance by Me which was a special single which was only made available for sale when Unbalance by Me Kanon Wakeshima Live Tour 2016 took place .
At the time when I reviewed Unbalance by Me , it was a single song that I enjoy . As such I'm really glad that Kanon decides to include it in luminescence Q.E.D & let alone putting it in the 1st track in the tracklisting as well .
RIGHT LIGHT RISE is Kanon's 7th single . Described as a light upbeat pop tune , RIGHT LIGHT RISE was picked to be used as the ending theme song for the anime Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no Wa Machigatte Irudarou Ka .
the BEAST can't BE STOpped is the 1st of 6 new album tracks . Despite the weird title , it's actually quite an upbeat Rock driven song .
On the other hand , Odette is a rather creepy sounding track . I wasn't sure what to think about this when I 1st heard it but it's quite a nice mid tempo song .
The next song Hei Bonnna Boku is also the longest track in the album clocking in at almost 6 mins long . Like Odette , it's also a mid tempo song that also has rather strong Bossanova lounge vibes .
From another weird song title to the next is Not For Sale ・ Fossil . Out of the new material , I feel this's 1 of the more memorable ones as it's a fast paced song that's heavily piano driven .
Kimi wa Soreiyu is Kanon's 8th single & it was used as the ending theme for Strike・The・Blood OVA anime .
Drink Drunk Music is the 2nd last album track & I feel this's a really cool song that emphasises quite a lot on trumpet sounds . As soon as the track starts , you immediately get the full blown sound of trumpet blaring straight . Frankly this song sounds like something I might hear in a lounge club which's not necessary a bad thing .
Love your enemies is Kanon's 9th single & this was used to promote the selector destructed WIXOSS anime movie .
Sharing the same title as the album & also the last song in the tracklist is luminescence Q.E.D. .
luminescence Q.E.D. (the song) is intriguing as it starts off with an electric guitar melody & then the song structure changes to a rather grand sounding orchestra melody which concludes things quite nicely .
Kanon Wakeshima pleasantly surprised me with the release of her latest album luminescence Q.E.D . Prior to listening , I kept my expectations low as frankly on 1st look , 10 songs looks very little for an album .
But in actual fact , for the most part , luminescence Q.E.D is quite solid . Considering Kanon personally wrote & composed the entire record herself , it's an commending effort .
Most of the new material is better than I expected & luminescence Q.E.D is significantly quite musically experimental as the new songs contrast the single songs quite a great deal .
If there's 1 flaw that luminescence Q.E.D suffered is that for the new songs , some of them takes a lot longer for me to remember how they sound . It would have been better if Kanon spread them out more evenly as she lump all the new material together , especially in the middle of the album .
But aside from that , luminescence Q.E.D is an enjoyable release & with this release , Kanon shows that she's surprisingly quite musically versatile .