Shinsekai Yori ED Single – Wareta Ringo / Yuki ni Saku Hana – Review
| Album Title: | Wareta Ringo / Yuki ni Saku Hana |
|---|---|
| Anime Title: | Shinsekai Yori (From the New World) |
| Artist: | Chikara Ozaki, Shigeo Komori, Risa Taneda, Kana Hanazawa |
| Catalog Number: | PCCG-70156 |
| Release Type: | OP/ED Single |
| Release Date: | January 25, 2013 |
| Purchase at: | CDJapan, Play-Asia |
| Track Title | Artist | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 01. Wareta Ringo | Risa Taneda | 4:13 |
| 02. Yuki ni Saku Hana | Kana Hanazawa | 4:56 |
| 03. Wareta Ringo (Instrumental) | Chikara Ozaki | 4:12 |
| 04. Yuki ni Saku Hana (Instrumental) | Shigeo Komori | 4:53 |
Review: Shinsekai Yori presents a world as a facade that hides a bloodthirsty history, one that, when uncovered, turns the show’s characters’ world upside down. As their perception of reality falls apart in light of a truth that is revealed little by little, the characters have no choice but to persevere in the face of this knowledge. Given the turmoil and desperation that they experience, Risa Taneda’s performance of “Wareta Ringo,” Shinsekai Yori’s first ending song, is an appropriate reflection of the tense emotions that arise in the course of their plight.
With the opening guitar stutters, a sobering, almost tragic soundscape settles in and is further intensified by the backing vocals which lend an air of sadness through their ethereal quality which contrasts with Risa Taneda’s stirring delivery. Although Taneda’s voice comes in strongly, there’s a subtle sense of desperation that lurks around and the despondent tone persists in spite of her attempts to hide it through her resolute singing during the stanzas, which, in totality, meshes well with what her character experiences in the anime. And as the song continues, the second stanza remains steadfast; she continues on with aplomb after the chorus with nary a pause, soldiering on past the pain.
And that chorus! Taneda’s delivery is captivating as the R&B feel of her singing bonds with the instrumentation. As she holds out each end note, there’s an effortlessness in her performance that transforms the lingering air of sadness into a more tragic aura to sweep listeners along. Even if her voice never falters, the backing vocals succeed in grasping the extent of the pain poignantly in a way that captures the overarching mood of the anime, leaving that lasting imprint after each episode ends.
With such a strong first track, Kana Hanazawa’s performance for the second ending theme, “Yuki ni Saku Hana,” would unfortunately not be able to match the one in “Wareta Ringo” in emotional depth for one main reason: its safe tack makes little effort in stretching Kana Hanazawa’s limited vocal talents. While Shigeo Komori is able to extract a competent effort out of Kana Hanazawa’s singing without imposing a higher level of ability than what Hanazawa is capable of doing, the song’s repetitive structure makes it somewhat boring and its tone is overly conventional, making it less memorable overall.
That said, Kana Hanazawa, to her credit, is able to craft a somber atmosphere during the stanzas while unleashing heartfelt pleas near the end of the chorus to make it the song’s highlight. Her intonation is also much more mature; it’s nice to see her tackle something that’s far from the sort of catchy, bubbly pop music that she’s normally associated with. So although the song won’t eclipse her efforts on the ear-wormy “Renai Circulation,” it’s still decent enough to pass muster even if its enjoyment is dwarfed by the entrancing “Wareta Ringo.”
Rating: Very Good
Shinsekai Yori ED 1 – Wareta Ringo
Good song. The stuttering guitar in the intro catches your attention and the instrumental before the final verse was cool. It goes without saying that the vocal/chorus is nice (a good debut for Risa Taneda).
Someone noticed that the first verse is slightly different in the full version (at 0:25-40). In the TV version there’s some strings in the background during that part, but not in the full version. It’s present in the other verses though.
By the way, you accidentally spelled it as “Wareta Shingo” instead of “Wareta Ringo” in your review.
@random
Thanks for catching that!
Also, I wonder if they took the vocals from the first stanza and combined them with the instrumentals from another section or if that was done especially for the ED theme. Did seem strange that there isn’t a traditional B-side to this album per se if their goal was to showcase more of what Risa Taneda could do.
Nice review, I flipping love Wareta Ringo. I was waiting for it to come out since the first episode of SSY.
@Eric
Definitely one of the most ear-catching tracks I’ve heard in a long time!
I love this song. It’s been one of the only things that has caught my ear in the past two seasons.
I agree one hundred percent with your interpretation of the song but for me the icing on the cake is the lyrics. Assuming the lyrics being posted on the web and in the episodes are close to the actual lyrics, my feelings are that the lyrics are quite poetic compared to the standard fare. More importantly though I cannot shake the feeling that it is pure foreshadowing. All the images she sings about are beautiful but fleeting. She sings about the soap bubble that bursts and later about a wild flower that wants to be picked while it is still beautiful. She also remarks that she wants the apple of her heart to be green (unripe) inside should it split open. These all make me believe there is going to be a moment that just breaks her. Combining with the imagery of her eyes suddenly opening on the “I burst” line I wonder about the violence that may or may not be associated with this revelation.
Lastly she summarizes exactly what she is going through in the current episodes: “Do you really think I’ll just behave / and bloom in someone elses flower bed?”
To me this ED is up there with the Haunting OP/EDs of Higurashi with the same sort of despair as something like Uninstall. I love it.
@Taka
You hear songs about love, whining, pining, and all that good nostalgia for the past. This one does seem to be a different beast which, agreed, makes it a wonderful change from the standard fare. I’d love for it to foreshadow all the things you’ve mentioned and, well, so far, the anime has been really enjoyable in terms of the intrigues that have surfaced.
Haunting and despairing… yup, the union of Higurashi and Bokurano indeed!
I sometimes wonder how you can think of all those words while listening to a single song. Amazing review.
One thing I noticed about Shinsekai Yori is its lack of an opening theme, which I guessed made the first ED really stick out. Pretty bold move by the creators of the show (because most people associate a show with its opening theme), but the song (and the sequence) was so perfect it didn’t even need an opening theme. I just wished the second ED did as well as the first (first thing that crossed my mind was “ehh… that was pretty anticlimactic”).
I also agree with Kana Hanazawa and her very narrow “idol-ish” singing style, which may impede her popularity outside of anime theme songs, but with a right producer she can really bring out some very nice stuff with her calm nasal voice (example are of course Renai Circulation, and this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sb29ilMdrIs). Just not the sad, ambient stuff that the second ending has.
Going back to the first track, I’m pretty much tired of listening to that (I probably listened to the TV size at least a billion times before the single even went out), but I always remember the first time I heard (and saw) the ending. The sequence and the song are two strokes of masterpieces put into one.
@coral422
Well, I have been doing this for almost 5 years now. At that point, practice just helps hone that craft :3
All I know was that when I experienced the ED, I was absolutely captivated, not only by the visuals (which were sharp in their own right) but the music had this longing sense of desperation that raised the goosebumps and made you wonder what was to come. But yeah, second ED was just ehhhh. Competently done, but ultimately nothing all too special.
I hate the guitar stutters; ruins the whole song for me, they hurt my ears. 🙂
@signorRossi
Might need to tone down the volume! I do like the way it catches my attention though :3
immediately fell in love with the groove of it…
@Balry
It’s certainly infectious in the way it catches the ear and latches on!
That, and it really grew on me to the point I wished they didn’t change the end song because its just that good.
Yuki Ni Saku Hana is my favorite of the two tracks, despite the fact that I enjoy Risa Taneda’s voice more. Hanazawa manages to get the job done with her voice, and the melody of this song is much better than that of Wareta Ringo (though I quite like Wareta Ringo). The intsrumentals are much better in Yuki Ni Saku Hana also, and it wasn’t until I listened to the instumental version that I realized how complex the bass line is; It essentially tells its own melody that’s much more complicated and intricate than the vocals, and compliments them very well.
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This anime, and everything related to it, destroy me EVERYTIME.