SISTERS Thoughts (Too biased to be called a review.)
Album Theme / Design
The setting of the album photos, and some of their clothing all has a very “classic” feeling to it, circa early 1900s or something. I felt something similar in the string/instrument-arrangements they had throughout the album (especially in the I no Standard intro). I had images of powder rooms, cotillions, lead-based makeup. Those two fit together nicely enough. They did a good job of comping Kikuchi into the photos, I had no idea until I saw the photoshoot extras.
I sort of miss the experimental feel that SUNRISE had; it gave a lot of room for some interesting pieces. I was hoping Masuno would reprise his role with more WTF? pieces. This was sort of the anti of SUNRISE, and very well done indeed.
Rollin’
Starts off with a Celtic tune moves into a carnival atmosphere moves into beautiful string arrangement and ends with a jaunty j-poppy segment. Was that annoying to read ? That’s what it’s like listening to the track. Reminds me of a video game trailer or something; a montage of parts in the game. I wish they’d extended the string section in the middle. Like everyone else I don’t get why these instrumental tracks exist.
SISTER
The song starts out with a pretty stock-idol sound. More walls of voices, blech. The verse reminds me of Chuu Shiyouze! However, it builds up to a very nice prechorus (nice shift in rhythm) and chorus. The solo in the middle was a very abrupt departure from the normal key. Too strong of a shift and too quick. Overall, catchy, but not very unique.
やらかいはぁと -Extended Edition- (Yarakai Heart -Extended Edition-)
I can teach you how to make your own “Extended Edition” of a song. Just grab part of the vocal line in your recording software, press CTRL and just drag it over a few extra bars to time-stretch it. No bueno. What makes this track so strange is that usually a repeat is added at the end of a measure, in this case they added it to the end of a new section, the postchorus. To me it sounds like a mistake; ruins flow worse than paper towels in the toilet. I can see a lot of marching band kids tripping while listening to this one (xkcd reference).
春色の空 (Haruiro no Sora)
Reminds me of an 80s TV-show intro. Anyone who gets a nostalgic tingle from this genre will enjoy this piece quite a bit. The song lacks dynamic, but that’s expected for this specific sound. Definitely good “walk on a nice day” music, but gets my blood flowing about as much as a picture of Rosie O’Donnell.
目には青葉 山ホトトギス 初恋 (Me ni wa Aoba, Yama Hototogisu, Hatsukoi)
*No mix stated, will review the song as it was on the single.
I’ve never liked this song, weak instrumentation, weak progressions, weak hooks. It’s the only Idoling song that’s never made it onto my MP3 player.
プールサイド大作戦 (Poolside Daisakusen)
*No mix stated, will review the song as it was on the single.
Great song. Explosive, catchy. Nice ska elements really capture that summer feeling. The chorus and Endo’s solo add dynamic to the song so the listener doesn’t get bored.
ア・ナ・ロ・グ (Analogue)
A VERY stock disco piece, not a single thing stands out about it, but fun nonetheless. Stinks of the early 90s North American pop. The prechorus has a fun rhythm for vocals, could be fun to sing along. On a good day I could see people enjoying this, but ultimately I don’t see it having much lasting power. Ends on a strange, very dissonant note.
ボクラの庭 -eco mix- (Bokura no Niwa -eco mix-)
How to make a remix:
Step 1 :: Add bird noises to the intro.
Done.
Hated the original song. Weak production quality, weak hook, feels like everything in the mix is holding back, ESPECIALLY the vocals. This song could have been improved several paces if everything was handled by solo lines, but oh no… Let’s have more walls of voices. I don’t think this can even be call a wall of voices, more like a thin, linen sheet.
eve -Voices mix-
Who do I punch in the face for this one ? That “intro” should have been left on a separate track, there is ZERO flow between the intro and the regular song which, might I add, has not had ANY vocal swapping the way Kimi ga Suki did. It would have been far better had they not touched this track, period. Now I’m going to have to use Goldwave to perform a musical circumcision. Oy vey !
粉雪が舞う街並みで -Powder Snow Mix- (Konayuki ga Mau Machinami De -Powder Snow Mix-)
Effects > Reverb > Large Hall > 95%
I wasn’t a fan of this song before, not much has changed now (not to mention as a Canadian I HATE any mention of snow). Hook is a tad boring, the production isn’t flattering and I can’t get Rick Astley out of my head when I listen to the chorus. However, it’s REALLY refreshing to hear Endo do a solo where she doesn’t cop out and use a falsetto to hit the high notes. Poolside and eve were both hella guilty of that. Now to see this live; I want to see her larynx having a fit.
Queen Bee~少女の時代から~ (Queen Bee~Shoujou no Jidai Kara)
*No mix stated, will review the song as it was on the single.
This might be the most overused progression that Idoling’s ever incorporated into their music. Despite that, a good song. Catchy, and a nice new sound for Idoling to play with. My only complaints: 1) that modulation up to the last chorus, we’ve all seen that move hundreds of times, but that one did not feel right 2) it feels very underdeveloped, the fact that it’s their first song of this style is a bit obvious.
4U
This song is my guilty pleasure of SISTERS. Most will likely shrug it off as a typical electronic pop song and objectively, that’s precisely what it is. Thump thump thump beep beep beep. The hooks are rock-solid, especially that prechorus. Otherwise, the song is pretty flat. It’s pretty much the same throughout (does it need to change? I think not.) I hope this finally replaces Stay with Me in their live shows; for me SWM was always the runt of Daiji na Mono.
キャラメルラテ飲み行こー! -実は糖分過剰摂取Mix- (Caramel Latte Nomi iko — ! Jitsu wa toubun kajousesshu Mix-)
Intro’s more interesting, and the radio / megaphone effect on the vocals in the verses is a nice addition. They ruined that pause with … Sakai ? shouting something, sounds like “Kuuu!” I’ve always thought the vocal performances on this song were horribly weak. I’m surprised the Producer didn’t tell them to retrack it. It’s a rock song, and the girls are singing quietly like they’re afraid being whipped if they hit a wrong note. They should be belting it out like Kawamura.
いち恋(Ichikoi)
*No mix stated, will review the song as it was on the single.
[HUGE BIAS] I love Gotou. Absolute favourite member. It was her polished voice that won my heart at the 8th live, and it’s that same voice that made this song amazing. Well, that and leonn’s spectacular writing. A very energetic, hyperactive piece that’s as loud as Kikuchi. I’m a bit worried about Asahi’s ability to belt this out live, but I’m sure this will be killer if they choose to add it to the setlist.
まけへんで (Makehende)
A very well written song, solid hooks, some solos, vocals and instruments complement each other perfectly. A lot of vocal dynamic with the “Haaah”s and Tachibana’s solo. The first time I heard this song it was that mangled rendition from the 9th live, so it’s nice to hear this in all its studio-magic glory.
StarGirl★StarBoy -BuiBui Mix-
One of my top five Idoling songs (all five written by leonn) Instrumentally, this was a very refreshing remix. I always thought the original was holding back a bit. The orchestral elements are beautiful and the electronics are much thicker, sort of a nice blend of classic and futuristic. The HARPeggios during Endo’s solo were perfect; Heavenly music with an Angelic voice. Synth bass was maybe a bit too thick. It was the vocals that they fudged up on. They made the instrumental mix thicker, and made the vocals slightly colder and more distant with heavy effects.
Iのスタンダード -Popsicle Mix- (I no Standard -Popsicle Mix-)
The intro had me excited about a totally new version, so I was a bit disappointed with the rest of it. Still, it’s a great song. Nice new guitar accents, and drums have been nicely beefed up and given some character instead of being so digital. Vocal tones have been vastly improved, they did a good job of adding some warmth without having to retrack; centering them helped a lot.