View Single Post
Old 2012.01.18, 09:31 AM   #44
TurtleFu
Senior Member
 
TurtleFu's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Honolulu
Posts: 1,592
TurtleFu deserves a fucking medal
Default

All, right. My review, directly after Jihad's. Spot the differences (there are many)
1. Konya wa Kara Sawagi. Yes, this is the typical "Jihen" sound, which is odd because Jihen is a versatile band. Either way, this is not just a Jihen song, this is a Ringo song. She's been doing songs like this since her debut, the sort of lounge/jazz-rock pop songs. This one is noticeably more upbeat. It's not smooth like Noudouteki Sanpunkan or funky like Otona-tachi or dark like Honnou. But nonetheless I really like. I only have two issues: the piano bridge which is too obviously a bridge, and the thing that Uki does throughout the song that seems a little too "pop" for the rest of the song.
2. Kai Horror Dust. Is a mess. Before the chorus sets in, I'm thinking "This is the best thing EVER" The drums, the guitar distortion, Izawa sounding drunk. It slithers and crawls. It's darkly melodic. It vaguely reminds me of Ling Tosite Sigure. And then the chorus starts, and I absolutely hate it. Don't get me wrong, it's a good chorus. But when the chorus and verses so closely DO NOT MATCH, it's just an example of poor songwriting. It draws me right out of the song, which is a shame because the verses are so atomspheric.
3. Time Capsule. It's really odd how Kameda is renowned as a rock producer and rock bassist, but his songs are the most poppish things Jihen has done. Unlike Toumei Ningen, which was fun, and Senkou Shoujo, which was more upbeat, this is a song just like Superstar. Except it's far more straightforward and not enjoyable. I don't usually like ballads anyways (for example, Gips).
4. sa_i_ta. Suffers from the same problem as Kai Horror Dust, but not to the same degree. This is an excellent song, though. It has the typical Uki funkiness, but a great club beat. And all these little flourishes like a guitar riff thrown in during a section really make it interesting. And I enjoy listening to songs that move outside the typical verse-chorus structure, and it seems like this song does.
5. Honto no Tokoro. COMBO BREAKER. Whereas it seems like everyone else has liked this song, I really hate it. I really, really hate it. I honestly feel like you people must only like this song for being so contrary. Jihad, this is not passionate singing. It's the type of singing that's incredibly self-important when the singer has no idea how terrible they sound. This is amateurish songwriting. Let's repeat this line 8 more times! That's a song right? This is amateur songwriting and amateur singing and it SOUNDS terrible. You can talk about how this song deconstructs genres or is outside the box but at the end of the day it doesn't sound good and therefore is not enjoyable to listen to.

All in all, I enjoyed Ringo and Uki's contribution, and mostly enjoyed Izawa's contribution. Kameda is boring, and Hata is unrefined.
EDIT: Uki's contribution is my favorite.

Last edited by TurtleFu : 2012.01.18 at 10:27 AM.
TurtleFu is offline   Reply With Quote