CD
CD + DVD A & CD + Blu-ray A
CD + DVD B & CD + Blu-ray B
Same for all versions
1) "2nd Movement" -Interlude-
2) A Real Man
3) Tick-Tock
4) Hallelujah
5) Memories
CD only :
- Shiro
- Finale
CD + DVD B / CD + Blu-ray B :
- KMK the boys rock you all! (LIVE Ver.)
- Narukamimai (LIVE Ver.)
NEWS's latest music release serves as the sequel to their 12th album Ongaku which was released last Aug .
The release of Ongaku -2nd Movement- EP marks the beginning of celebrating NEWS' 20th anniversary in the business .
2 album tracks A Real Man & Tick-Tock have videos made .
Tick-Tock was used as the opening theme to promote the Shadowverse Flame anime while Memories was used to promote Japan Camping Car Show 2023 & this song has a cool sound with sentimental lyrics .
This year is 2 decades since NEWS made their music debut & I guess they want to do something different as compared to their previous music milestone so what better way than to release their 1st mini album ?
I enjoyed Ongaku so in a way I'm not very surprised NEWS decided to release a sequel . The songs included in Ongaku -2nd Movement- EP probably almost made the cut in the full length album but in the end they couldn't be included in .
With Ongaku -2nd Movement- EP being a mini album , I feel most of the songs are really good & same with Ongaku , they're all musically diverse which make things even more enjoyable .
The 1 song that I'm not sold on is Finale & ironically despite the song title , I was expecting it to be a grand Orchestra sounding no. but instead that's not the case .
Videos wise I would have preferred to see Hallelujah or Memories have video(s) made as I feel both songs are more worthy unlike Tick-Tock even though A Real Man definitely deserves it .
NEWS will celebrate their 20th anniversary this year & I'm sure Ongaku -2nd Movement- EP will not be the only music release they put out in marking this landmark milestone of theirs . They've been through a lot over the years but despite the numerous setbacks they faced , their fans including me still have their back no matter what .
flumpool's 1st new material of the year , Magic promoted the drama Shishousetsu which aired in 2 parts on 7th & 8th April .
It was easy for me to like Magic the moment I 1st heard it as it's such a nice pleasant sounding mid tempo ballad from flumpool .
Funnily enough , I felt that Magic could have been something flumpool included in their 1st concept album A Spring Breath as the song would fit well with the concept album's theme .
That said hopefully I wouldn't need to wait long for flumpool to release even more new music this year . This year marks flumpool's 15th music anniversary debut in the business & it will be interesting to see how they will celebrate this milestone of theirs .
Only time will tell .
CD
1) DIRTY LUV
2) Wild Rose
3) Fantasia
4) Love Lots Together
5) Perfect Date
6) Lament
7) Sail on earth
8) FLIGHT
9) Zero Kara Ichi e
10) ELIZA
11) Kissing your hurts
Only in this version
- Mikanseina (Kamenashi Kazuya)
- Judas (Ueda Tatsuya) ; Ueda cowrote the song
- New sight (Nakamaru Yuichi) ; Nakamaru wrote the lyrics
- KAT-TUN no Genba ; Nakamaru wrote the lyrics
CD + DVD A & CD + Blu-ray A
1) DIRTY LUV
2) Wild Rose
3) Fantasia
4) Love Lots Together
5) Perfect Date
6) Lament
7) Sail on earth
8) FLIGHT
9) Zero Kara Ichi e
10) ELIZA
11) Kissing your hurts
Only in this version
- Toumeina Asa
- Yume de Aitai
CD + DVD B & CD + Blu-ray B
1) DIRTY LUV
2) Wild Rose
3) Fantasia
4) Love Lots Together
5) Perfect Date
6) Lament
7) Sail on earth
8) FLIGHT
9) Zero Kara Ichi e
10) ELIZA
11) Kissing your hurts
Only in this version
- Mado o Akete
KAT-TUN's previous album release was last March's Honey .
No physical singles are included in Fantasia . Only the digital released Zero Kara Ichi e is included & it has a video made .
The new album's theme is Genreless . 2 tracks Fantasia (which's described as aggressive , elegant & up-tempo) & Love Lots Together have videos made alongside with Zero Kara Ichi e .
Welcome to KAT-TUN's Fantasia ! The Johnny's group brings a "genreless" album with songs of different styles that capture the breadth of KAT-TUN's music .
Honestly I was really surprised KAT-TUN decided to dive straight into releasing a new album so soon after Honey because I really thought they would release a few singles prior but guess not .
Honey was an album that divided a lot of long time KAT-TUN fans because it sounded like nothing like what KAT-TUN was known for , for better or for worst .
Luckily Fantasia managed to strike a balance in appeasing both the group's long term & recent fans . And most importantly , the overall vibe I got from Fantasia is that most of the new songs not only sounded catchy , but also distinct & memorable , something that I didn't get from Honey .
It's no surprises why Fantasia (the song) has a video made because it deserves so . Fantasia (the song) is almost like Honey's Ain't Seen Nothing Yet where both songs' melodies are very simple & not dramatic .
While for Love Lots Together , it took me a while to get used to this mid tempo song & I'm not surprised when KAT-TUN said this's the song that took them the longest to record because it's quite different from the other album tracks in Fantasia .
For me personally , Fantasia is the 1st KAT-TUN album since 2008 / their 3rd album KAT-TUN III -QUEEN OF PIRATES- that I surprisingly like almost all the songs in the record .
Also in a way , Fantasia is also just as musically diverse as their 8th album CAST which's somewhat fitting as CAST is the 1st album that was released by the now trio .
If there's 1 minor grouse about Fantasia is that I wished Into The Light was included in the release but KAT-TUN do not include B-side songs in their albums & in a way Into The Light would musically be the odd 1 should that happen .
Overall I enjoy Fantasia considerably a lot more than Honey & for me it's heartening to see KAT-TUN is still active despite all the horrible things they went through years ago .
For me & many others , I'm really glad KAT-TUN stuck out & still continue on and coming from a longtime fan like myself , that says a lot for KAT-TUN in not taking their fans' support for granted .
And I look forward to even more KAT-TUN music in the future !