SR a vocal perfectionist?

[justriiingo]

Originally Posted by evilBOXevil

(...if only someone could convince her to stop letting Ukigumo overwhelm TJ.)

That has got to be you me Maou and Jihad.
(and then people start whining and crying and getting mad.)

[fluffiethesock]

Awwwww, come on guys! Why don't you like Uki?? He's soooo cooool! Sometimes your hatred just breaks my heart!

Actually, you know what? I don't need this! And neither does Uki! You guys need to LEAVE THIS FORUM AND NEVER COME BACK! You can't handle the band how it is now? Then we can't handle YOU!

[jigenbakuda]

Originally Posted by cjhobbies00

I think that people can learn how to write a song, but I believe that talent is in a huge part of the equation. Some people, no matter how hard they work, will never write a number 1 hit, or sing at carnegie.

Dylan never had a 'nice' voice, but he had talent and developed a persona and a uniqueness to his voice.

Conclusion: whether it's composition or voice, talent is part of the equation

Success in the music world, doesn't necessarily mean that the person has talent. It just means you have something that makes others like you. Take ayu-chan for example, she can not sing IMO, but she says she is a charisma singer, she has a quality that makes other like her (+3 charisma for the plastic surgery). There is a woman by the name of uehara hiromi, the most talented pianist in my generation(saw a video of her playing a duet with chick corea, couldn't tell the difference), I bet random bl*wjob betty will push more albums than her. In my opinion mana-sama is one of the best composers I have ever heard (suits my tastes very well), but not a really good guitarist. He's known more for looking like a woman than his music... People fail and succeed randomly in my opinion.

Now as a vocalist myself, I love and adore miss ringo. I love her because I have heard others sing her songs (including myself) and have realized how special her voice is. It is no where near sarah vaughn, but I still love shiina's voice. I feel like she means every word she sings, and her songs in english are a real treat, because I actually understand the words going along with her voice.

[ShadyNook]

recording an album is expensive and the performance is permanent. Knowing your recording is going to be your representative to future listeners after your long dead or retired is enough motivation to do your best.

[Lena-chan]

OMG flufflie O_O
now you must post in teh Luv thread

[digdad]

Originally Posted by ShadyNook

recording an album is expensive and the performance is permanent. Knowing your recording is going to be your representative to future listeners after your long dead or retired is enough motivation to do your best.

When you look at it this way, it does seem to provide motivation, even if it might make the take seem rather daunting. But still, there are some artists who can take an approach that to others would seem like less than their best. An example: John Lennon was known to sometimes be impatient with his songs, wanting to do them and be done. In fact, he pushed his song Instant Karma to the press before the final mix was even ready because he just wanted it out. On the other hand you have Paul McCartney who was known to drive his bandmates absolutely nuts with recording the same vocal over and over for three or four days until he thought he had gotten it just right. To me just listening to some of SR's vocals and how it sometimes appears that each and every note was perfectly executed, I would guess that she may have taken more of the McCartney approach. But I don't know, maybe she's just that good.

[HEDOfloe]

Originally Posted by jigenbakuda

In my opinion mana-sama is one of the best composers I have ever heard (suits my tastes very well), but not a really good guitarist. He's known more for looking like a woman than his music... People fail and succeed randomly in my opinion.

Yeah, it's a shame how overlooked his talents are. It doesn't help, however, that he throws it all away by making some crazy goth band @_@

[Canto]

Originally Posted by digdad

When you look at it this way, it does seem to provide motivation, even if it might make the take seem rather daunting. But still, there are some artists who can take an approach that to others would seem like less than their best. An example: John Lennon was known to sometimes be impatient with his songs, wanting to do them and be done. In fact, he pushed his song Instant Karma to the press before the final mix was even ready because he just wanted it out. On the other hand you have Paul McCartney who was known to drive his bandmates absolutely nuts with recording the same vocal over and over for three or four days until he thought he had gotten it just right. To me just listening to some of SR's vocals and how it sometimes appears that each and every note was perfectly executed, I would guess that she may have taken more of the McCartney approach. But I don't know, maybe she's just that good.

Donno about her recent takes, but I've seen earlier reports (from SS era and Kyoiku era) claiming that she records her vocal part quite fast, with some of the vocal recordings finished actually in one take.

[timothysan]

^i also heard tht most of Kyoiku was recorded in one take too.

[Akagaminosteven]

Originally Posted by kuro_neko

As for Killer Tune, her vocals on that song are sublime. If they are so horrible why did that song do so well and why does it remain the undisputed champ of Variety? Her voice is clearly deliberate throughout the song.

my favorite example is during the chorus when she sings "damasenai" on the "se" she pushes to make her voice flare up and go even more nasal and harsh. It is intentional. Love it.

Ringo was never about smooth vocals to begin with. If you want something so polished its soul has been sucked dry, you might want to look at Tomosaka Rie's rendition of just about anything Ringo had a hand in.

Sorry, I can't accept the "well if it's so bad, why is it so popular?" argument. You could say the same about numerous bands, songs, foods, pieces of art, and find just as amusing a counterargument for it. Killer Tune seems to be the most debated song on these boards (at least whenever I randomly peek into a thread). I personally don't like it at all, but it's not because I think she does a bad job singing, it's more that I think she's breaking away from her comfort zone (which I appreciate, but she strays too far for me). I always thought Shiina had rough vocal qualities, and wasn't what many people would call a great singer. I thought that was her charm, that she hit you with something really raw and used it very intelligently, to the point where it was more appealing than someone who had naturally better vocals.

So as for the thread title, I can't call Shiina the perfect singer. But looking back on her best pieces of work, I think she gave (I won't say "gives", because I feel she doesn't let loose on Variety) us a very distinguished voice with amazing personality, and even though she's not the numero uno of singers, she used her voice in the best possible way she could and it was a great success.