Possible scenarios and predictions for Tokyo Jihen 2009?

[Nimh]

I still love Ringo's voice, absolutely. When she tears into a song, she's like no other.

Wouldn't we all like to rule Toshiba-EMI and tell Ringo exactly what to do?

[ShinjiPG]

Originally Posted by Scribble R

I thought JCHI Shiina vocals were horrible. It seemed like she wasn't even trying! If I hadn't been exposed to Shiina beforehand and I saw, say, MaruSad JCHI, I would wonder what the woman was doing on stage.

Precisely. Most of the performances are "soft" and un-Ringoish. Two or three songs escape that tho (like Kenka Joutou, Tegami and Shoujo Robot).
Also, please don't remind me of RSRF 2008 solo Ringo, where she completely wrecked "Ekimae".

I'm getting used to her voice in Ringo Expo 2008, because it sounds really desperate in "Koko de" and that gives it more emotion to the song. The same with "Gips". But those are very emotive songs anyway, so let's see how it works in the rest. For some reason tho, "Gips" and "Omatsuri" make me believe she managed to do it right, even with noticeable out-of-tune and i'm-outta-breath moments.

Fortunately, her voice in the Maboroshi collab is actually very good and looks like a new direction. It looks like it's what she really wanted to go after, and this Variety era was just a big test/experiment that failed completely. There's just not enough evidence to prove that she'll follow that road, instead of continuing varietyish. And by varietyish I really mean this past 2 or 3 years of Ringo, not just that particular album.
Really, just listen to some of her live performances on Music Station or Bokura no Ongaku. Bad bad voice. And in S&T it's bad as well. Not just high-pitched, but bad as well.

[fluffiethesock]

Originally Posted by ShinjiPG

this Variety era was just a big test/experiment that failed completely.

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[pariscombo]

I'm absolutely ok IF ONLY ANY NEW ALBUM IS COMMING THIS YEAR.

[kuro_neko]

^ totally agreed.

[HEDOfloe]

I'm actually surprised at this whole thing about her voice. I haven't thought of her voice as getting bad at all. Any differences I chalked up to being a different style for Variety not that she was getting worse.

[kuro_neko]

her voice has a different quality to it, I wouldn't blame it on the cigarette smoking (cigarette smoking tends to lower your voice, not make it high pitch and screamy) more just on the natural progression of her body. I mean you figured she was around 20 when she debuted and now she is entering her 30's, so lots of body changes. Plus she had a kid, which really influences your voice while your pregnant (it tends to become deeper and fuller, not that I know that she specifically recorded anything while pregnant with Sonata). At any rate, her voice tends to be a bit screechy-live, moreso than recordings. As for the vocals on Variety, some of it was penned by Ichiyo or Ukigumo so they didn't necessarily have her voice in mind at the time either. I'm just hoping that whatever the new move is Ringo will have a part in the process again.

[gekokujyo]

I don't believe there has been any occasion on which I've disliked the sound of her voice.

[a_grumble_cake]

I think those of us who talked about her voice really just meant her voice during live performances. Is there anyone here who dislikes her voice in recent studio recordings?

[ShinjiPG]

Yeah, I was talking about live performances, where she doesn't seem to have the full-power anymore. In more than one occasion she goes out of breath, in songs where she sang perfectly before.
Even tho there's clearly a difference in studio recordings as well, mainly in Variety. Just think "Killer Tune", "OSCA" or "Fukushuu". Damn, just think the whole album and compare to her voice during SS or KZK. Altough I can't and don't complain about that, since her voice is not the problem. It's different, no doubt, but that's not entirely bad. I wished she still sang as she did in "Kyogenshou" or "Izonshou" (studio versions) tho.