[Poll] The BEST★SCANDAL Rating & Review Thread

[Masa]

BEST★SCANDAL has leaked so it's time to review it! What are your 1st impressions about the album? Do you love the album or do you already regret buying it? Are there any songs that you always skip and which songs stay on repeat for hours? Discuss and post your rating!

[suicune141]

It leaked? What bullcrap. I am not going to listen to it.  I got seriously pissed when Yumemiru leaked.... I would rather wait until it's officially uploaded or I get my copy... 

[dragonfade]

The new songs are great..but i kinda find it not suitable on SCANDAL , i like their rocker style more.

[HaruKira]

Yea I was kinda mad when yumemiru tsubasa was leaked too.
But since I got my album today, its fine with me.
I rated it 10. 

[SomethingWild]

I tend to be overly critical, so let's see what we have here   Quick first impressions:

01. Scandal Baby: I was hoping 'Scandal no theme' would be the opening song, but this will do just fine. I like the overall sound of the song and the vocals lines. The chorus is a little bit generic, but it's cool. And there is a guitar solo! And mixing of HaruTomo vocals to finish it off.

02. Shoujo S: This song got me into Scandal and I still love it. Attitude, cool riffs, cool bridge section.. great song.

03. Doll: one of the 'classic' Scandal songs. It took me a while to get used to it, but I quite like it now. The vocals remind me of Puffy a bit. The chorus has a cartoon-ish feel to it.

04. Koi Moyou: Nice relaxed song. I don't know what else I can say about it. Nice song, but nothing special.

05. Yume Miru Tsubasa: I really dig the chorus of this one and combined with the melodic guitar lines it works really well.

06. Anata ga Mawaru: The pace picks up again, but I don't really dig this song. "pa pa pa" songs can be cool, but I'm not feeling this one at all. The bridge part is kinda cool though.

07. Space Ranger: I used to hate this one, but after hearing it quite often I quite like it now. Especially the part that starts @ 1:04. This song kicks ass live.

08. Ring! Ring! Ring!: I don't like the vocals in verse. The chorus is ok. The jazzy part in the middle is kinda fun + another solo!

09. Maboroshi Night: Some cool blues style riffs in this with a bit of jazz again. Musically interesting, but it doesn't ROCK!

10. Kimi no Yoru to Namida: I like this one a lot. The way the guitar fills in and sounds, the vocals and the overall pace.

11. Hitotsu Dake: THIS! THIS is what I wanted the whole album to sound like. Rock, fast pace, cool vocal lines, palm muting on the guitar. ROCK!

12. Sakura Goodbye: Another 'classic'. Great song imo, still like it a lot.

13. Kagerou: The vocals sound much better in this version than the original version. The guitars sound a bit cleaner, but it sounds really good. Another great song.

Conclusions:
- The album sounds much more 'mature' and versatile than what I was expecting.
- More guitar solos than expected!
- The best songs are in the beginning and at the end. I can't really get into some of the jazzy/slower paced middle songs yet.
- Too many 'old' songs, would've liked more new stuff. Even though I seem to prefer the older songs to the newer songs.
- Best new song is Hitotsu Dake imo.

Rating? I won't vote just yet, but it'll be somewhere around 8 I think. It's not a bad album at all, just less raw and less rock than I was hoping for.

I may write a bit more later once I listened to the cd some more.

[suicune141]

Was this a leak they chose to make? I hope it doesn't sound stupid, but someone told me that sometimes the artists will approve a little leak.

If it's not, then I don't understand why it's done. It's....  I can honestly say I'm going to wait to listen to it. It's just a bit irritating.

[Azagrath]

01. Scandal Baby: 8/10
Though I would have liked something a bit more uptempo and energetic to start the album, it's still a good track.

02. Shoujo S: 9.5/10
Always loved this track, best song on the album.

03. Doll: 8.5/10
Another classic, with a nice hook to keep it above some of the more generic tracks.

04. Koi Moyou: 7.5/10
A nice track on it's own, though following the 2 previous tracks it kinda pales a bit in comparison.

05. Yume Miru Tsubasa: 9/10
A bit more of a commercial and mature sound for the girls, I really like it.

06. Anata ga Mawaru: 7/10
Ugh, bad production is bad. A decent track though.

07. Space Ranger: 9/10
Another old favorite of mine, sounds really raw and it rocks!

08. Ring! Ring! Ring!: 6/10
Another low budget production without any power to it. A bit of a filler track this one.

09. Maboroshi Night: 8.5/10
This was a nice surprise, I love these kinda of jazzy tracks when done right, and the girls pull it off quite nicely.

10. Kimi no Yoru to Namida: 7.5/10
Decent track, slightly on the generic side but has a nice enough melody.

11. Hitotsu Dake: 9/10
I have to agree with BarrieV on this one, finally some uptempo rock! Straight to the point, with some punch and power behind it.

12. Sakura Goodbye: 9.5/10
...and they follow it up with another uptempo rocker. Straight forward rock, a good hook, what more do you need? Second best track on the album.

13. Kagerou -album mix-: 8/10
Production wise a few steps down compared to the original, it just sounds too clean and polished. A good song though.

-

Overall a very good album, and seeing as I don't buy singles it's nice to have all the A-sides on one disc. The only thing I would change would have been to replace Ring!Ring!Ring! with BEAUTeen, seeing as I love that track and the album could have used another uptempo rocker. Ah well, a solid debut album nonetheless. 

[SomethingWild]

13. Kagerou -album mix-: 8/10
Production wise a few steps down compared to the original, it just sounds too clean and polished. A good song though.

Doesn't that mean that the production is better?  Even though we all seem to prefer their old 'raw' sound.

My main problem with this album is that it feels too professional.. if that makes any sense. They promoted themselves as a garage band with a raw sound. The album sounds polished and there are a lot of mid-paced songs and jazzy bits, which makes it feel that they're being pushed in a certain direction by the record company.

[HaruKira]

13. Kagerou -album mix-: 8/10
Production wise a few steps down compared to the original, it just sounds too clean and polished. A good song though.

Doesn't that mean that the production is better?  Even though we all seem to prefer their old 'raw' sound.

My main problem with this album is that it feels too professional.. if that makes any sense. They promoted themselves as a garage band with a raw sound. The album sounds polished and there are a lot of mid-paced songs and jazzy bits, which makes it feel that they're being pushed in a certain direction by the record company.

Yea I feel the same about the album. Its kinda annoying that the band have to be pushed by the record company to do different styles instead of deciding to do them themselves . (Dunno if I'm making any sense here) =x

[Azagrath]

13. Kagerou -album mix-: 8/10
Production wise a few steps down compared to the original, it just sounds too clean and polished. A good song though.

Doesn't that mean that the production is better?  Even though we all seem to prefer their old 'raw' sound.

My main problem with this album is that it feels too professional.. if that makes any sense. They promoted themselves as a garage band with a raw sound. The album sounds polished and there are a lot of mid-paced songs and jazzy bits, which makes it feel that they're being pushed in a certain direction by the record company.

Define better. 

For tracks like Kagerou and the likes, I definately prefer a more raw and edgy sound. A polished and clean sound is nice too, and it works on tracks like their latest single. I think my biggest complaint when it comes to the production on the album is that the tracks are all over the place, ranging from clean and polished to muddy near-demo quality sound.

The tracks themselves are quite varied as well, so it'll be interesting to see what direction the next singles will take. I just hope they're not being pushed too far towards an accessable and commerical sound, and are gonna end up being "over-produced".

[mcspiral]

Voted for 8!

Well I like all the songs including the new one. Its just that I didn't expect the new songs to be like that, I imagined more fast-rocking songs but seems like things kinda changed. I hope they continue those raw sounds like DOLL, Space Ranger and ShoujoS in the upcoming singles and less "Pa Pa Pa" or jazzy bits like BarrieV said.

But my expectation didn't got totally wasted because of Hitotsu Dake. That song is what I can call SCANDAL! 

[konohagure]

voted for 9. I especially liked RingRingRing 'cause Mami sang. Hitotsu Dake really rocked! Anata Ga Mawaru sounded a bit like Panic! At the Disco. All the other songs are my favorites, after all, I'm easy to please.

[SomethingWild]

After listening to it some more I voted 7.

It's not a bad album at all, but it is too versatile, too 'professional' and generally not what I was expecting (i.e. hoping for).

I just hope they're not being pushed too far towards an accessible and commercial sound, and are gonna end up being "over-produced".

I really think this will happen in the (very) near future

[Azagrath]

I really think this will happen in the (very) near future

If their latest single is any indication, then yeah, most likely. From a business standpoint, it's totally understandable of course. Watered down to appeal to the masses. Gonna be interesting to hear what the next single is gonna sound like.

[lambchopsuey]

I didn't really elaborate much, but here's my review:


01 - SCANDAL BABY (9/10)
I'm glad "SCANDAL no Theme" wasn't the album opener, because that song only works when performed live. This song, on the other hand, is great! Nice guitar intro, attractive title.

02 - ShoujoS (9/10)
Good use of multiple vocals parts. Very addictive. Love the guitar.

03 - DOLL (9/10)
Great opening with the catchy guitar riff, and then good focus on the drums during the verses. Nice raw sound. I didn't like this song at first because the chorus is kind of shout-y, but it grew on me, and it is appropriate for the lyrics.

04 - Koi Moyou (5/10)
I never really liked this song; the chorus is rather annoying sometimes. I never listen to this manually, only when it comes up on shuffle.

05 - Yumemiru Tsubasa (8/10)
Not including "START" or "PLAY-BOY", this is SCANDAL's first song with a noticeable arrangement other than their usual instruments. The effects in the intro and the keyboards and what not throughout effectively create an atmosphere of airplanes and flying. (BTW, this is an answer song to HILLBILLY BOPS' 1988 song "[noembed][/noembed]".)

06 - Anata ga Mawaru (8/10)
Jazzy and circus-y (like the album art)! Interesting and new kind of song.

07 - Space Ranger (8/10)
I like the subtle electronic effects in this. That, plus the guitar creates a good space-y song.

08 - Ring!Ring!Ring! (6.5/10)
Another circus-y song; this time, a more softer sound. I guess this is like "MAMI's song", because she was the only member to partake in the lyric writing, she's the main vocal in the verses, and you can hear the other members cheer "Go, MAMI!" before the guitar solo. She deserves it. :)

09 - Maboroshi Night (8.5/10)
This is where the circus theme REALLY kicks in, because this sounds VERY circus-like! (I'm surprised that I'm the first to mention this.) With the bass+guitar interludes and catchy melody, this song is pulled off really well.

10 - Kimi to Yoru to Namida (6/10)
I don't really know what to say for this one.

11 - Hitotsu Dake (6/10)
The melody is really cheesy for a rock song. It sounds like something ikimono-gakari would release; I was half-expecting a harmonica to kick in after the "hitotsu dakeeeee", in vein of the song "[noembed][/noembed]". The great instrumentals saved this song.

12 - SAKURA Goodbye (7/10)
This is a weak single that was probably only released because of MAMI and TOMOMI's high school graduation. Even so, it's still kind of catchy, and also an improvement from the [noembed][/noembed], minus the "hello goodbyes".

13 - Kagerou -album mix- (4/10)
Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, UGH!!!! What is this??? I was hoping it would be more like the [noembed][/noembed], but it's not. First off, there are no countdown beats at the beginning, so it just starts very suddenly with the heavy rock chords, especially following "SAKURA Goodbye". Then, you hear the weird thing from 0:12-0:23 that they kept, and after that, the vocoded vocals in the first verse were still vocoded, PLUS, echoed! Basically, every voice and instrument sounds super vocoded, for lack of a better term. HARUNA and TOMOMI are somewhat unrecognizable, and when HARUNA sang "mata motomete shimau", it was off-key. The whole thing is so fake, and a terrible ending to the album. The only reason it didn't get a 1 was because I was basically comparing it to the original and the live version. "Kagerou" is still my favorite SCANDAL song, so I gave it a 4, but I still wouldn't have fallen in love with it if the album mix were the only version.


Overall (8/10) (even though the average is 7.23)
I didn't like how a few of the new songs ended with the build-up and then a final note that you usually hear live.
Anyway, overall great songs, but no flow. The rock-ish old songs to not mix well with the new circus-ish songs. I know you can always put it on shuffle and what not, but a uniform album is still important. It's nice to have different-sounding songs, but I think they should've saved it for album number two. I was kind of expecting better from the amazing singles, but this is still a solid debut album.

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[donkeykong83]

The album didn't blew me away like I was expecting it to but overall its still passable as a debut. I didn't quite like Kimi to Yoru to Namida and Hitotsu Dake. I find them kinda boring and uninspiring. I usually start to lose attention when those songs are playing until Sakura Goodbye kicks in. With a title like SCANDAL BABY, I was expecting them to go all out with a kick ass opening. But its more of a mellow song. Still good though. Love the guitar intro.
My favorite track is Maboroshi Night because it sounds really different and fun at the same time. And...sexy! Hell yeah!
Kagerou -album mix- is just blah. They sound like chipmunks in the beginning and it just didn't seem to rock as hard. I can't remember what the original sounded like but don't remember hating it. I've seen them perform it a few times and it sounded good.

Its a shame that Beauteen was left out...

Overall 8/10!

A hell lot better than MARIA's album which was rubbish. Ok..I don't think I should have said that here but what the hell.
Don't know why am I even comparing both of them.

[suicune141]

I gave the album 5/10. I think it's okay.... But I certainly could do without half the songs on it. =T

New songs I like:
~Maboroshi Night
~Hitotsu Dake
~Anata ga Mawaru
Recurring songs I like:
~DOLL
~Koi Moyou
~Space Ranger

Songs I hate/wish weren't re-released:
~Kagerou
~SAKURA Good-bye
~Yumemiru Tsubasa
~Ring!Ring!Ring!

Neutral on:
~Shojo S
~SCANDAL BABY
~Kimi to Yoru to Namida


Maybe I'll change my vote to a 7.5/10...

[SomethingWild]

^from 5 to a 7.5 is a big difference 

This is where the circus theme REALLY kicks in, because this sounds VERY circus-like! (I'm surprised that I'm the first to mention this.) With the bass+guitar interludes and catchy melody, this song is pulled off really well.

It's very interesting that you point this out. I never thought of it like this. That being said, I have a completely different view of what sounds circus-like.


After a couple more listens I gotta admit I'm not very happy with the way the album turned out. It seems like a random collection of songs and most of the new songs don't rock. I hope the new single will kick some serious ass and I hope they forget about 'commercial appeal' for a while.

[lambchopsuey]

Well, I guess I kind of meant more like "dark carnival" circus-y than "kiddy clown music", if you know what I mean.

[SomethingWild]

Yeah I see what you mean. I guess it does explain the covers somewhat 

This album is like Metallica's Load. It's by no means a bad album, it's just not the album you expect by this band.