CD
CD + DVD Video Version
CD + DVD Live Version
The group's 1st single release of 2019 , Kimi wo Daisuki da was picked to be used as the theme song for Tora-san ~Boku ga Neko ni Natta Wake~ that opened in Japan cinemas on 15th Feb .
Tora-san ~Boku ga Neko ni Natta Wake~ starred leader member Kitayama Hiromitsu who made his debut movie appearance with the movie .
Described as a rock ballad , Kimi wo Daisuki da was written by Fujii Fumiya & arranged by Kameda Seiji .
The video for Kimi wo Daisuki da is 11 minutes long which tells a story of 7 boys who meet again as adults . There are also scenes where the members play as a band in their school uniforms .
Member Tamamori Yuta commented , "It's our 1st music video with a storyline in a while . I think we were able to depict a painful yet beautiful friendship between men . It's a really good song , so please enjoy the song & video together as a complete product ."
A total of 4 B-sides are included in Kimi wo Daisuki da
- Hurray! Hurray! (CD Only Track) ; used in the ads of Shinkenzemi Chugaku Junbi Course
- Bouken Sha e (CD Only Track) ; used to promote Kis-My-Ft2's new show Kisumai Doki Doki
- Kimi Omoi (CD Only Track) ; be used in the ads of Tokyo Interior Kagu
- LIAR WORLD (CD + DVD Video Version)
Kis-My-Ft2 kicked off 2019 with another solid single release in the form of Kimi wo Daisuki da .
Fujii Fumiya + Kameda Seiji both did a good job creating it for the group as it has a mature sound to it .
The B-sides included in the single all contrast the A-side to a certain extent but I personally like Kimi Omoi & LIAR WORLD , with 1 of them being a touching ballad while LIAR WORLD is just straight up angsty rock .
Kis-My-Ft2's 8th album FREE HUGS! will be released on 24th April & Kimi wo Daisuki da is already confirmed to be included in the new album .
Released digitally on 14th Feb , Hikari no Kizuna was chosen to be used as the theme song for the new Ultraman movie Ultraman R / B Select! Kizuna no Crystal that will open in Japan cinemas on 8th March .
Besides being used to promote Ultraman R / B Select! Kizuna no Crystal as its theme song , Hikari no Kizuna will also be included in Tsuruno's 2 CDs best album Tsuruno Tsuyoshi Best that will be released on 17th April .
Tsuruno Tsuyoshi Best is to celebrate Tsuruno's 10th anniversary as a singer after he made his music debut in April 2009 with cover album Tsuru no Uta & this year is also Tsuruno's 25th anniversary in the entertainment industry .
Hikari no Kizuna song credits :
Written by Tsuruno Tsuyoshi
Composed by DAIGO
Arranged by MY FIRST STORY's guitarist Sho
Both Tsuruno Takeshi & DAIGO have work ties associated with the Ultraman franchise so in a way it's not surprising they have joined forces to work on something together .
Frankly I'm a bit surprised this has not materialised much earlier but it's better late than never & it's also quite interesting that 3 separate guys were involved in the creation of Hikari no Kizuna .
Hikari no Kizuna is a nice mid tempo ballad & both Tsuruno + DAIGO's vocals compliment each other extremely well . I will not compare Hikari no Kizuna with ULTRA BRAVE (let alone DAIGO didn't composed it although he wrote it) even though both songs were used to promote the Ultraman franchise but in this case , this's a solid song that I really enjoyed .
That said hopefully this will not be a 1 off collaboration duet from both guys ? I would love to see them work on something again in the near future .
Cover for both CD regular & CD limited versions :
CD Regular Tracklist :
1) Are
2) Koufukuna Choushoku Taikutsuna Yuushoku (Live Ver.)
3) Zutto Suki Datta (Live Ver.)
4) Yasashiku Naritai (Live Ver.)
5) Aruite Kaerou (Live Ver.)
6) Berry Berry Strong ~Aine Kuraine~ (Live Ver.)
7) Tsuki Kage (Live Ver.)
CD Limited Tracklist :
1) Are
2) Would you join me? (Live Ver.)
3) Koufukuna Choushoku Taikutsuna Yuushoku (Live Ver.)
4) Obushi (Live Ver.)
5) Zutto Suki Datta (Live Ver.)
6) Good Luck Baby (Live Ver.)
7) Gekkou (Live Ver.)
8) Yasashiku Naritai (Live Ver.)
09) FIRE DOG (Live Ver.)
10) Muddy Water (Live Ver.)
11) Hello! Everybody! (Live Ver.)
12) Aruite Kaerou (Live Ver.)
13) Berry Berry Strong ~Aine Kuraine~ (Live Ver.)
14) Tsuki Kage (Live Ver.)
Saito's 1st single release of 2019 , Are was chosen to be used as the theme song for NTV's drama Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushu starring Kitagawa Keiko .
Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushu is the sequel to 2016's Ie Uru Onna & Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushu once again depicts real estate agent Sangenya Machi (played by Kitagawa) latest activities .
Saito created Are specially for Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushu . He commented , "I thought the drama was both comedic and serious , so I wanted to create a song like that ."
Prior to the physical release , Are was released digitally on 4th Jan .
Same with Saito's previous single Colour , all B-sides in Are are live tracks that were recorded from KAZUYOSHI SAITO 25th Anniversary Live 1993-2018 25 to 26 ~Korekara mo Yorochi Kubi Chiku ~After Party at Zepp Sapporo 2018.09.19 .
Unlike some of Saito's other songs , Are is actually relatively straight forward sound wise . It's not as complex sounding but it's still a fun song to listen to & I think Saito capture the essence of what he visualise Are as quite well .
Saito's next release KAZUYOSHI SAITO 25th Anniversary Live 1993-2018 25 26 ~Kore Kara mo Yorochiku Beach~ Live at Nippon Budokan 2018.09.07 live album & DVD + Blu-ray will be released next month on 20th March .
I think it's quite fitting for FLOWER FLOWER to decide to release a band acoustic version of Tsuki as this was their very 1st song they released digitally when they made their debut in 2013 .
Compare with the original & band acoustic versions , both of them still have the same music element of chilled out vibe but in this case , Tsuki -band acoustic ver.- is a lot more laidback which's not necessary a bad thing .
Seeing that FLOWER FLOWER supposedly has plans to release more of such band acoustic versions of their songs in time to come , I'm most definitely curious to hear how they will sound like .
This no. was created specially to be used as the theme song for the basketball league B.LEAGUE 2018-19 SEASON .
SPYAIR rarely disappoints & B-THE ONE is no exception . B-THE ONE is very catchy on 1st listen & even if I didn't know it was used to promote B.LEAGUE 2018-19 SEASON , it has a strong sports theme going on .
Also it's always fun to hear guitarist UZ rap alongside with vocalist IKE & most importantly , I like B-THE ONE the moment I 1st heard it .
It reminds to be seen if B-THE ONE will be released as SPYAIR's next single or maybe it will be a B-side coupling song as it would be a waste to leave it digitally as so .