First Impressions on [Kuchiki no Tou]~
My album's not here yet T_T
The one time I want it here asap, it doesn't arrive! Okay, I guess I always want them here asap ;)
Thank goodness for the internet (*kowtows*).. it's like the handphone, I don't know how I managed to survive before without it.
Kinda like mucc too XD
Anyway, this album is nothing short of amazing. To be frank, I wasn't sure what to expect, since mucc has been terribly overworked this year. But this album proved my worries redundant!! How could I have doubted them! *slap, slap!* By the time I was at Track 4, I knew I could put my mind at ease. After listening to it a few times, here are my initial thoughts:
- You can tell there's been care to make sure the album flows beautifully ~ which it does. Tracks 2 to 4, for example, is seamless - as if telling a story. 5-6 picks up the speed of the album before slowing it down to a more melodic and contemplative Track 7. Quite apt before a 2nd intro comes in at Track 8 (first time mucc's done that). One of the only two previously released songs (as singles), [Rojiura boku to kimi e], seems like a very fitting 'mini-climax' to the next set of 3 songs. Then the shocker - a folk-rock number. Time stops there for a while (at least for me), then funny how the 'positive' sound continues to the next 2 tracks (even though the tempos of all these 3 tracks are quite different!). The ending Track 15, well, that's a creature of its own. If you play the whole album on repeat, the end leads you back to the intro again (& not too promptly too, which is good...those who have heard the album will know what i mean!). Just beautiful. It's a piece of art, this one. I need to preserve it somehow .. how do you frame an album??
- What's the mucc brand of music? No doubt some of the songs show remnants of mucc, eg. the opening guitar tracks of [gento sanka] reminds me of [ranchu], while [namo naki yume] has the same atmosphere as [mae e]. But it's not these similarities that make mucc's music distinctive. Cos you have songs like [isho] and [oboreru sakana] that I didn't expect mucc to present to us. Yet there's still a distinctive mucc sound. I think that's the best a band can seek to be - aiming to sound as diverse as possible, yet not losing your character in that diversity. Congrats, mucc, you've made that step up again! Gambatte though, there's still a long road stretching ahead (i hope!)
- Individual tracks..well, some of them..just on first impression..
Track 1 [Kuchiki no Tou]: I can just imagine this starting a live! I'd certainly be v hyped up if i hear this as a starter for a live session :)
Track 2 [Daremo Inai Ie]: I read Tatsurou's lyrics (translated ones though, alas), and loved them. Melodic, powerful.
Track 3 [Isho]: Love-love this song. "kono sekai~~~" Gosh, the last refrain keeps haunting me... refuses to get out of my head! Tatsurou switches from a high angsty voice at the chorus into a growly low pitch for this section.. he did that in [Nukegara] and in another song (shucks, forgot which one) during the 1/29 live as well ~ love the effect. & again, there are the lyrics (this one's Miya's).
Track 4 [Mikan no Kaiga]: I've always liked how mucc could do the switching to-and-fro 6/8 and 9/8-beats smoothly without making it sound too forced. This track's an example.
Track 5 [Dakukuu] and Track 6 [Gentou sakka]: Quite looking forward to watching these live. It's always a delight to see the members play the hard numbers. I like [Dakukuu]'s busy inter-twining bass and guitarlines before the 1st chorus. [Gentou sakka] has a surprisingly melodic chorus that I can see taking the place of [Isho]'s 'kono sekai' refrain in a few days' time XD
Hate to end so abruptely, but kinda tired as it's the end of a long day. Before I go, though, can't help but mention [Kanashimi no hate], Track 10. Love, love, love it. To me, it's a mucc classic, already! Twists & turns, ups & downs. It's one of those tracks I can just envision listening to it a few months down the road and still finding something new in it. How can I go back to listening to half-heartedly-arranged-cos-it's-only-the-melody-that-counts tracks dominating the Chinese music scene after this, I ask you??
The one time I want it here asap, it doesn't arrive! Okay, I guess I always want them here asap ;)
Thank goodness for the internet (*kowtows*).. it's like the handphone, I don't know how I managed to survive before without it.
Kinda like mucc too XD
Anyway, this album is nothing short of amazing. To be frank, I wasn't sure what to expect, since mucc has been terribly overworked this year. But this album proved my worries redundant!! How could I have doubted them! *slap, slap!* By the time I was at Track 4, I knew I could put my mind at ease. After listening to it a few times, here are my initial thoughts:
- You can tell there's been care to make sure the album flows beautifully ~ which it does. Tracks 2 to 4, for example, is seamless - as if telling a story. 5-6 picks up the speed of the album before slowing it down to a more melodic and contemplative Track 7. Quite apt before a 2nd intro comes in at Track 8 (first time mucc's done that). One of the only two previously released songs (as singles), [Rojiura boku to kimi e], seems like a very fitting 'mini-climax' to the next set of 3 songs. Then the shocker - a folk-rock number. Time stops there for a while (at least for me), then funny how the 'positive' sound continues to the next 2 tracks (even though the tempos of all these 3 tracks are quite different!). The ending Track 15, well, that's a creature of its own. If you play the whole album on repeat, the end leads you back to the intro again (& not too promptly too, which is good...those who have heard the album will know what i mean!). Just beautiful. It's a piece of art, this one. I need to preserve it somehow .. how do you frame an album??
- What's the mucc brand of music? No doubt some of the songs show remnants of mucc, eg. the opening guitar tracks of [gento sanka] reminds me of [ranchu], while [namo naki yume] has the same atmosphere as [mae e]. But it's not these similarities that make mucc's music distinctive. Cos you have songs like [isho] and [oboreru sakana] that I didn't expect mucc to present to us. Yet there's still a distinctive mucc sound. I think that's the best a band can seek to be - aiming to sound as diverse as possible, yet not losing your character in that diversity. Congrats, mucc, you've made that step up again! Gambatte though, there's still a long road stretching ahead (i hope!)
- Individual tracks..well, some of them..just on first impression..
Track 1 [Kuchiki no Tou]: I can just imagine this starting a live! I'd certainly be v hyped up if i hear this as a starter for a live session :)
Track 2 [Daremo Inai Ie]: I read Tatsurou's lyrics (translated ones though, alas), and loved them. Melodic, powerful.
Track 3 [Isho]: Love-love this song. "kono sekai~~~" Gosh, the last refrain keeps haunting me... refuses to get out of my head! Tatsurou switches from a high angsty voice at the chorus into a growly low pitch for this section.. he did that in [Nukegara] and in another song (shucks, forgot which one) during the 1/29 live as well ~ love the effect. & again, there are the lyrics (this one's Miya's).
Track 4 [Mikan no Kaiga]: I've always liked how mucc could do the switching to-and-fro 6/8 and 9/8-beats smoothly without making it sound too forced. This track's an example.
Track 5 [Dakukuu] and Track 6 [Gentou sakka]: Quite looking forward to watching these live. It's always a delight to see the members play the hard numbers. I like [Dakukuu]'s busy inter-twining bass and guitarlines before the 1st chorus. [Gentou sakka] has a surprisingly melodic chorus that I can see taking the place of [Isho]'s 'kono sekai' refrain in a few days' time XD
Hate to end so abruptely, but kinda tired as it's the end of a long day. Before I go, though, can't help but mention [Kanashimi no hate], Track 10. Love, love, love it. To me, it's a mucc classic, already! Twists & turns, ups & downs. It's one of those tracks I can just envision listening to it a few months down the road and still finding something new in it. How can I go back to listening to half-heartedly-arranged-cos-it's-only-the-melody-that-counts tracks dominating the Chinese music scene after this, I ask you??
posted by scenic at 1:21 AM
