Review: The overwhelming consensus from the comments received for last week’s review of Yuki Morikawa’s Character CD indicated that while there was some amount of enthusiasm for Aya Hirano’s performance as Yuki, most people were eagerly awaiting my take on this album for one reason and one reason only: Nana Mizuki. And who could blame them given 1) Nana Mizuki’s excellent reputation as a voice actress and singer and 2) the insert song that she sang in episode 3 of White Album which gave us a taste of what was to come. Even though the dialogue during that episode’s segment made it difficult to wholly concentrate on Mizuki’s singing, one could still tell that the song would be astoundingly beautiful.

In the past, I and a few others have commented on how Nana Mizuki tends to do well within a certain dynamic range which can result in some of her music sounding generic across the board, making it difficult to differentiate one song from the next. Here, we find that only “SOUND OF DESTINY” fits that case because once you listen to “Glass Flower,” you’ll find that Nana Mizuki becomes a lot more expressive and her delivery really shines in a way that makes the song nothing short of brilliant.

SOUND OF DESTINY:
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

“SOUND OF DESTINY” was originally written for the White Album game and if you listen to the original version found on the game’s soundtrack, you’ll find that the Jpop feel that was present in the original is preserved in this album’s version. Although I’m not all too keen on the way the music sounds, when you throw in Nana Mizuki’s voice on top of the pop harmony, the song improves upon the original by leaps and bounds. The music opens up with a steady rhythm with a synth part to provide you with a standard pop backdrop. As I mentioned, it’s Nana Mizuki’s performance that makes this piece tolerable by making it come to life through the power of her delivery. Nevertheless, she can only do so much to enhance the generic pop and though this song doesn’t have any major flaws, it’ll end up being forgotten because there isn’t much about this track that particularly stands out aside from Mizuki’s competent performance.

Glass Flower:
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

But where “SOUND OF DESTINY” does a passable job, “Glass Flower” just blows you out of the water. While I’d initially commented on lelangir’s blog that given Nana Mizuki’s enormous body of work, one can’t declare this song to be the best she’s ever done, after listening to it for a fair number of times, I’d have to conclude that it’s going to be pretty high up there. You know that when a song gets me to melt in my seat, that it’s a very good sign and “Glass Flower” has succeeded in doing just that.

“Glass Flower’s” opening is just soothing and crystal clear and I love the way Nana Mizuki integrates herself into the song. Here, her expressiveness can’t be emphasized enough since her delivery is that wonderful, especially when you get to the chorus section around 0:56. At that point, you can feel the emotion in her voice as she ponders over whether her feelings are requited while acknowledging that her tough exterior hides a fragile, glasslike interior and that she’s too afraid of the prospect of rejection to find out how her partner feels. The presentation is already stunningly beautiful, but the song continues to shine as it adds a saxophone part starting around 2:37 that plays all the way to the end. Its inclusion complements the atmosphere of the piece through and through and once the song finished, the only feeling I got was one of awe since it was magnificently executed.

“SOUND OF DESTINY” might be the competent piece that doesn’t stand out all too much, but it does whet our appetite for “Glass Flower” which effectively serves as the main course and the dessert all rolled into one. “Glass Flower’s” melody and Mizuki’s impeccable performance hits all of the right spots and through that single performance, Mizuki once again affirms why her reputation is as deserving as it is. “SOUND OF DESTINY” may be a hit or miss, but if “Glass Flower” doesn’t melt your heart away with Mizuki’s expressiveness, you may want to check and make sure you haven’t killed off your emotions or something.

Rating: Very Good

Review: I’ve already made a comment on lelangir’s music blog regarding Yuki’s song from White Album and now that her character’s CD has been released, we are finally able to focus all of our attention on her performance from episode 13. As lelangir points out, “WHITE ALBUM” is a cheesy song, but it does a decent job of bringing about a calming, soothing effect that leaves the listener feeling pretty mellow by the time it ends. Part of that is due to Aya Hirano’s performance using a non-Haruhi voice (as lelangir points out yet again) to fit in with this piece’s overall comforting mood. There’s no doubt that it is a nice change from her usual fare even if the final product isn’t all too remarkable.

WHITE ALBUM:
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

When it comes down to actively reviewing “WHITE ALBUM,” the process of doing so is difficult in the same vein that it’s difficult reviewing Suara’s “Maiochiru Yuki no You ni.” That is, there’s actually very little to describe here that can’t be summed up by saying that this song is very comforting and mellow, and that people who gravitate towards such tracks will enjoy it quite a bit. The song starts up with a feel-good pop backdrop provided by the keyboards and a light rhythm section that makes way for Aya Hirano’s entrance. As she sings, her tone is different in that is a lot mellower, thereby allowing her to subtly convey her feelings of contentment as she remains calm in spite of the travails that she sings about. The parts where the saxophone plays during the brief interludes complement the mood through the instrument’s timbre and together with Hirano, reassures the listeners that in spite of all the difficulties that exist, things will turn out all right in the end.

Although I’m not totally enamored with “WHITE ALBUM,” I will concede that its soothing effect will get me to listen to it once in awhile when I feel the need to be comforted. And if you were to look at this song and compare it to Hirano’s other performances, I’d say that it’s significantly better than some of her works that I’ve listened to most recently (“Unnamed World” and “Namida Namida Namida” if you must know).

Tsuiteru ne Notteru ne:
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Before I go into the second song on this album, let me disclose the fact that I have no personal experience with the 80s’ club scene. But in listening to “Tsuiteru ne Notteru ne,” I’d say that if I were to find myself in such a setting, I would expect to hear music that is in a similar vein to that song. “Tsuiteru ne Notteru ne” is a complete reversal of “WHITE ALBUM” in the way its tone and mood are presented. The opening lines come off as being more aggressive and dominating through its harsh dance beat that fits in with the club setting that I talked about earlier. Again, Aya Hirano’s voice complements the song by keeping pace with the beat and hitting the stresses as she sings the lyrics. The melody itself is also catchy in the way this song sticks in your mind, especially during the chorus section’s opening motive, making it a decent piece to listen to if you want a bit more variety out of listening to Aya Hirano.

Those of you who’ve talked to me know that I’ve dropped White Album for quite some time now, but if there’s anything this album did get me to do, it was to watch the segment in episode 13 in which Yuki (Aya Hirano) sings “WHITE ALBUM.” My thoughts on it remain unchanged in that it’s a pleasant, soothing pop melody with little substance to get in the way. The same can be said for “Tsuiteru ne Notteru ne.” I wasn’t initially particularly impressed with that track, but it did grow on me after awhile though not enough that I’d wholeheartedly recommend it. When it comes down to it, this album isn’t bad by any stretch. Its failing, if anything is that it’s just not particularly memorable through the long haul.

Rating: Decent