5 posts tagged “onitsuka chihiro”

LAS VEGAS is Onitsuka Chihiro's fourth album released on 2007.10.31 . It was her first in two years of hiatus, and her first under Universal. The album is a selection of the best of roughly 20 songs that she composed during her two year hiatus. The album has a theme of travel; which is why Las Vegas (somewhere relatively far away from Japan) was chosen for the title of the album. This title had been decided on since around about Sugar High's release to be the title of the next album in chronological order.

The album opens with the beautiful Sweet Rosemary, a slow and calming song reliant on stunning vocals from Onitsuka and wonderful instrumentation- a lovely accoustic guitar part building up as the song progresses. It's a sweet and romantic song, I think it's about love- or accepting that love is over and love is now gone. I think. It's a beautiful song nonetheless. I love the adlibbing bits to it.  It's a beautiful song, a wonderful opening to the album.

The second track is Bad Trip, a darker song contrasting to Sweet Rosemary. It has a dark, almost bitter sound to it. The song is entirely in english, and despite a slight (and expected) accent, for the most part it's understandable. It's a simple sounding, but emotional song driven by Onitsuka's beautiful voice, and nice instrumentation- piano, strings and some percussion too. The piano part is certainly the highlight. It continues the beauty that Sweet Rosemary first presented.

蝋の翼 (waxen wings) follows Bad Trip. The song is quite upbeat, less calming than Sweet Rosemary and lighter than Bad Trip. The song is about the emotional high of being in love, drawing on the story of icarus as a symbol- "I’m flying

on waxen wings/ up to the sun, no matter how far, if I’m with you/ That they melted and I fell, what a great feeling/I’m not waiting for what’s next/ If I’m with you". What to say? It's another beautiful song.

Track 4 is 僕等　バラ色の日々 (our rose colored days), a beautiful almost sorrowful song. I want to post what the song represents, so here: "[..] is meant to give the image of rose petals swirling about. The Theme of the song is resignation and despair in the face of the fact that rose-colored days cannevre last--and yet, to seek those days over and over represents hope" I think for sure you can picture the PV, a girl running desperatly seeking...searching for the "rose colored days"- swirling rose petals, the sweet smell after the rain has faded etc etc- the song conveys alot of imagery. It's a beautiful song, with stunning instrumental based on piano and strings, and of course wonderful, emotional vocals from Onitsuka Chihiro. I love the ending with the "ah" bits, Onitsuka conveys her emotions of hope contrasting to despair perfectly. In short, this song is amazing and very moving. Did I mention the wonderful lyrics too?

The album changes abruptly when amphibious starts, introducing a far rockier sound. It also has alot of swearing in it, which is enough for me to be turned off. I don't mind swear words, but it automatically means I cannot listen- not with the family around. I do like the overall sound to it, it's not bad but it is out of place and the swearing.. just really offputting.

Then LAS VEGAS goes back to the piano based-ness with MAGICAL WORLD, an album version of course. A song about human warmth <3 Like alot of Onitsuka's song it's a beautiful, piano based song with wonderful and emotional vocals from Onitsuka. There's something about the song I don't particulary like, but it's still very pretty.

Track 7 is a A Horse and a Queen.  I love this song, it is very relaxing and laid-back with a more upbeat sound contrasting to darker lyrics. Onitsuka sounds beautiful, and I like the instrumentation- especially the saxophone and piano parts. I wonder what she means by  "I just kneel to bright ditch down" though ^_^

Next up is a new version of the B-side to 育つ雑草 (pulling weeds), Rainman. The opening is a little cheesy, over the top like a movie theme but it tones down to the familiar repeating piano part and sweet vocals from Onitsuka. I must say, there's something I like about this alot more than the original. The instrumentation is very quirky, matching the lyrics and adding something interesting to the song: I like the overall feel to it. It's an upbeat and hopeful little song- which still remains beautiful and relaxing.

After Rainman is Angelina, named after Agelina Jolie. It's another beautiful song, with wonderful piano and string instrumentation and gorgeous vocals from Onitsuka. The lyrics are beautiful, and hopeful- "I'm not dead/not yet". I love the different dynamics to the song, the way it builds up then builds down then builds up again to finally fade away, as well as the emotion Onitsuka presents. It's very beautiful and powerful song. The cello/viola part is love <3

The second to last track is BRIGHTEN US, I really do not like the relgious connations and hymn feel to it- at all. Even though Onitsuka's voice is beautiful like always, I really have no love for religious themed songs.

The album ends on the beauitiful everyhome. The song is just piano and Onitsuka, but it is incredibly powerful and very moving. Similiar to say, 僕等　バラ色の日々 is has a feeling of hopelessness and despair, of simply "going on" with hopes and dreams, that are never realised. Onitsuka said she wrote this whilst watching Forest Gump with the sound off- and I wonder what the song wants to really convey. Anyway, I love how the song builds up, how it starts quietly and climaxes for before calming down again. The lyrics are stunning, "I'm sure they've continued blaming themselves for not snapping out of their dreams" for example; and Onitsuka sounds beautiful, giving an impressive vocal performance. The piano part is also stunning, and compliments her voice perfectly. They blend together to create a beautiful and moving song- a wonderful one  to end the album on. 

This album took a while to grow on me, but when I did eventually fall for it I fell hard. I think it is a very beautiful album, remiscent of her older albums but also presenting a new sound in many ways. I find with the expcetion of Brighten us and Ampibious it could have been perfect. However the swearing in Amphibious is not appreciated, and the more rock sound to it sounds out of place. If 育つ雑草 wasn't placed here, then why should a track like that? Brighten us, well I don't like the religious connations to it. Otherwise the album is absolutly stunning. wonderful to put on in the background as you are chilling out. It is so beautiful, and so relaxing.  I was very glad that Onitsuka Chihiro released something like this after 2 years of hiatus, proving she's still as great as she has always been.

Overall: 10/10 (Amazing, highly reccomended)

and yes, I did write far too much ; ) I really love this album you know? It moves me alot. Quite a few of these songs make me feel like I could cry. This is my second favourite album from her, or atleast it's got alot of my favourite songs from her on it.  But then, I really adore Onitsuka Chihiro and she has such a powerful voice. So that's why you'll see "beautiful", "wonderful", "stunning" etc alot. :D The cover and album booklet are stunning too. I love the setting, and the cover the border and placement of words looks very nice. Lastly, Lyrics and stuff from here  

Sodatsu Zassou (育つ雑草; pulling weeds) is Onitsuka's 11th single and her first after switching labels. It was released on 2004.10.27 and was her last single before going on hiatus. Unofrtunatly the song never made an album, though the B-side was remade and put on her album LAS VEGAS released later on.

Tracklist:
1: Sodatsu Zassou (育つ雑草; Pulling Weeds)
2: Rainman
3: Sodatsu Zassou (backing track) (育つ雑草; Pulling Weeds)

育つ雑草 is perhaps the most unique thing Onitsuka Chihiro has ever done. It's a full blown rock track with a dark sound and rebelious, pessimistic lyrics. Though she has dabbled in rock with tracks like Innocence and later Amphibious this is probably the heaviest she's ever gotten. Even the cover is beautiful, but dark and her expression angry. The song opens with the sound of wind blowing (?) before breaking out into the fast, gritty rock part. Onitsuka's voice is deep and bitter sounding. The lyrics are dark, contemplating the hypocrisy of the world and the feeling of being numb to everything, feelings of unsatisfaction with life: "I'm free, and yet not free in the least" and "Feelin' like a stray dog, I'm dead right now" It's a powerful rock track. I love the adlibbing, like her comparison to a stray dog it's like a desperate howl. The song is so angry, so emotional. Fucking awesome. There's a part of me that wants her to make something more like it, but there's part of me that realises  this is probably gonna be a one-off and that perhaps it's better that way. 

Rainman sounds very out of place after such a track as 育つ雑草, however it isn't bad. The song is simple piano and voice, and it is etirely in english. It's a quirky and cheerful song, totally contrasting to the dark and bitter song before it. It's a nice wind down, but pales in comparison to 育つ雑草.

Overall? 育つ雑草 is one of my favourite Onitsuka Chihiro songs. It's a powerful, angry song but it still remains beautiful. Onitsuka Chihiro has a wonderful voice and she proves how versatile she is by doing such a track as 育つ雑草 is and doing it so well. The lyrics really stand out to me as well. They are incredibly powerful. Rainman is not a favourite of mine, it's actually a very bland track for me. The single is worth listening to for 育つ雑草 alone and for that reason I will give it the mark I do : )

This is my second review as a 16 year old :P  Sorry, can't resist. I've also got Japanese language support on my computer now so I might start including the Kana for song titles  : ) So here is Onitsuka Chihiro's third album, Sugar High. This album is still very good, however it is let down by some worse tracks that not even Onitsuka's voice can save. And there's some beautiful ones, but they tend to be quite "meh" as in you expect it and it reached the expectations but nothing more. Not like her first album where practicaly every track was "wow". It's a pity. Though it's still beautiful and relaxing to listen to. I will also say that I love the cover to the album. She looks absolutly gorgeous and the white hair contrasting to the black clothes is striking- as is the placement of the words. (unfortunatly vox won't upload it ;_;) Anyway, this album was released on 2002.12.11 and coming at #2 on the oricon. There were numerous tie-in's too.

The album opens with NOT YOUR GOD. The song has very simple instrumentation, a constant piano ostinato almost, that only breaks into the full instrumentation after the first verse and continues to build up and build down. The lyrics are striking. I remember reading something, somewhere where Chihiro mentions how the song is about people expecting to much of someone (her?) and she wrote the song with that in mind. "Not your God" is like "I'm not perfect- so don't expect so much of me". This is all from memory though ^_^ It's a nice song to start the album off.  I really do like the meaning- it's quite rebelious but at the same time, it's realistic in the sense that people can expect too much right? 

Next is Koe (声; voice) a beautiful piano based song with heartfelt, beautiful, vocals and amazing lyrics. It sounds sad but at the same time hopeful. I love how Onitsuka uses her voice- especially when she reaches the higher notes and the adlibbing. The instrumentation is amazing too. It's a slow and relaxing song- totally beautiful. 

Third is Rebel Luck, another beautiful song continuing in the same vein as 声. I'm not a fan of the piano part of this one, it's got a very gospel sound and it's a little too accented- a little harsh to the ears. Onitsuka sounds stunning and the song is quite powerful. Not bad. 

After Rebel Luck is the jazzy Tiger in my Love, a very upbeat and feel good song. The song has a heavy beat and repetetive piano ostinato, that begins to vary more and more as the song progresses. There's also a little bit of guitar in there. Onitsuka's voice is deep and breathy- sounding gorgeous. It's a very fast and exciting song. The way Onitsuka draws out that one "Tiger in my love" is f-cking impressive.

Castle・imitation (album version) makes track 5 and it's not one I like much. The instrumentation is a little annoying at points, of course Onitsuka sounds beautiful though. It's pretty beautiful song, I love the repetetion of "Ikite (live)". Parts of the instrumentation I really don't like much though :P It's a very catchy song too, one listen and it's stuck unfortunatly!

Then it's my favourite track on the album, and one of my most favourite Onitsuka songs for it's beauty, and also personal reasons. It's Hyouryuu no Hane (漂流の羽根; Drifting Feather). The song is so stunning. Even more so than infection. It's  made up of voice, piano and cello. Onitsuka's voice is beautiful and powerful, filled with emotion. The piano and cello solo is also very powerful- it's an amazing composition. The way the piano and the cello come together... the tone is beautiful. The cello has a very rich sound, and the piano is very pretty. The tone they create is wonderful- they work together so well. The lyrics are amazing too (eg "What will we wish for this time?"), though my love for them is admittedly for personal reasons, they are still pretty emotive. The song is undeniably one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. It moves me alot. I love the way it ends to. It slowly builds up, then builds down and quietly it just ends. Amazing. Check out her live performance of this, though I can't remember exactly I think it was at Budokan : ) Theirs two piano's instead of the cello but it's still amazing!

The album continues on with Suna no Tate (砂の盾; Sand Shield). The song continues with the atmosphere of 漂流の羽根 though it doesn't quite live up to it's pre-deccesor (nothing can). It's still quite a pretty song, the deep bass adds a heavy and powerful atmosphere. Onitsuka sounds beautiful. The song is dark and beautiful. It's got an air of sadness, or hopelessness.  

Track 8 is King of Solitude, a very annoying song. I don't like the piano part to this one so I tend not to bother listening.

Lastly, it's BORDERLINE- cutting the album short at only nine tracks. Like alot of Onitsuka's songs the piano is prominent. This is a very dark sounding song. The "Feel across the borderline" is extremly beautiful, almost ethereal. It's a wonderful song, driven forward by Onitsuka's beautiful and emotional voice.  I love how the song builds up though- the violin part introduced halfway is really good. The ending with the Ad-libbing/random words, the backing vocals, and the entire instruments is very powerful- almost agitated feeling to it. It's seems like a nice message of hope to end the album off.  I can't help but feel it has a darker meaning though.  

This is a good album from Onitsuka. However there are ccertain tracks that are pretty meh and let the album down. The amazing one is 漂流の羽根- and I'll say that it's is a must listen. Other great tracks are Tiger in my love, BORDERLINE, 砂の盾 and NOT YOUR GOD. I liked how Onitsuka experimented using fully english lyrics for the song, much like Our song on her last album. This is still a strong album but it's not a personal favourite. Some tracks just don't sit well with me : ) Some tracks blow me away like alot of Onitsuka's music does. I am still in love with her lyrics and her voice is so stunning and amazingly powerful. Her stuff is always relaxing to listen too. 

This is Onitsuka Chihiro's second album released on 2002.03.06.

The album opens with ROLLIN', a very upbeat song with hints of soft rock to it. It's a nice feel good song to it and a great album opener. Onitsuka sounds beautiful, of course and puts all the right emotion into it.

Next up is Ibara no Umi (sea of thorns). The album tones down a bit from the upbeat ROLLIN'. This song still has very beautiful instrumentation, especially the piano part. Onitsuka sounds beautiful too. The song is hopeful sounding with a darker edge. It has beautiful lyrics too.    I love how the song builds up, and the emotion conveyed. Not to mention Onitsuka sounds so amazing, especially her ad-libbing and drawing out of the end of words. Her voice sounds very pure.

Third is shadow, carrying on in similiar vain to Ibara no Umi with beautiful instrumentation, especially the piano and I think it's a cello. Onitsuka sounds amazing, especially using the lower pitch in the verses though she raises the pitch of her voice effortlessly. This is a dark, sorrowful sounding song, with equally dark lyrics. I think like Ibara no Umi it's a beautiful and emotional song. The instrumental solo is amazing too.  

Then it's everything, in my hands comparable to We can go on her debut, it's a gospel feeling song. It's not a bad song but it's not my favourite. I don't like the backing vocals, nor the instrumentation at times. The instrumentation with the strings sounds... 70's disco. Not a favourite of mine. Don't really think it's that great to listen to either.

The next track is Our Song, a gentle and accoustic ballad sung all in english. The lyrics are beautiful and for the most part the pronunciation is OK. Onitsuka sings this beatifully, putting alot of emotion and reaching higher notes perfectly (she does sound a bit breathy but it works!). It's a very relaxing, and beautiful song. Simple but still emotional.

Ryuuseigun is um the next track but it's...um...missing... I might have deleted it for unknown reasons... *is confused herself* 

Track 7 is LITTLE BEAT RIFLE. At first I hated the religious feel (and lyrics) to it, but it's grown on me. Onitsuka still sounds beautiful and the instrumentation is quite nice too. The lyrics are hopeful, about forgiveness (I think). I'm not a fan of "God is watching you" but it's not the worst thing. The song is pretty simple, but still has it's own beauty. 

After little beat is Arrow of Pain. This was the B-side to her Gekkou single. Originally, track 8 was going to be "A horse and a Queen" but was later removed because it didn't fit with the album, and then left to her comeback album LAS VEGAS. It's a slow and sorrowful song with warped sounding, movie soundtrack like, instrumentation. I think the lyrics are about unrequited love, and Onitsuka portrays this pain and longing well. It's a very beautiful song. The lyrics are amazing too, very emotive and not easily interpreted like alot of Onitsuka's songs: "Although the arrow I let fly
didn’t hit you/ Why is it that it’s me who’s hurt/ and crying so completely?"

Second to last is perhaps her most well known song, and for sure it was this song which made me fall in love with her music. It's Infection. Infection fits into place perfectly after the sorrowful Arrow of Pain. It's the most stunning song. See the lyrics here and read the translators interpretation, as love is the infection in the song. The lyrics are stunning by the way. The PV is also quite haunting. The only let down is the tear at the end is unrealistic as it doen't flow from the tear duct.  Back to the song! The song is dominated by a sorrowful piano part and deep, emotional vocals from Onitsuka. It starts of quietly, building up the end where Onitsuka belts it out- her voice powerful and emotional. Just like the song. It's an amazing song. Just listen. (though everyone has alteast heard this song once right?)

Lastly, to finish the album it's CROW. I don't like this song, the instrumentation really annoys me- especially the chimey thing (bell?).  Onitsuka sounds beautiful of course. I think leaving it at infection would have ended the album just fine, though I suppose Onitsuka would want to end on something more hopeful- like this.
 
This is another amazing album from Onitsuka Chihiro. In a way I personally don't like it as much as insomnia, despite stand-out tracks Like infection, Arrow of Pain and Ibara no Umi. I guess there are some weaker tracks on here that despite Onitsuka's beautiful voice- still ain't that good. The good ones are amazing, the bad ones are pretty irritating and then there's the "meh" ones which make for nice, relaxing listening. Overall it's beautiful and nice to listen to, but it's let down by a couple of weaker tracks. Onitsuka still has an amazing voice, as I'm sure I've repeated numerous times in the review.

New artist! I've been meaning to review her albums probably since I started the blog, never got round to it. Will start off with her first album, followed by second and third then sodasou zassou single and finally LAS VEGAS album. Should work out OK. So here is Onitsuka Chihiro's first album Insomnia released on 2001.03.07. The album reached #1 on Oricon charts and charted for 86 weeks. This is currently Onitsuka's only #1 product. By the end of 2001, Insomnia had sold 1,231,860 units, making it the #16 album of the year. In total, Insomnia sold 1,345,000 units.

The album opens with Gekkou (moonbeam), her second single which gained fame from it's tie-in to the TRICK dorama. In contrast to the album version, this one is string with violin backing. Like alot of Onitsuka Chihiro's songs the piano has a dominant part, often just simple repeated chords. Some strings come in later too, However, the song is driven mainly by Onitsuka's powerful and emotional vocals. Gekkou also happens to have some very beautiful lyrics, even the religious "I am Gods child" kinda fits if you see the lyrics translation.  It's a beautiful, laid back song with a  darker  edge. It's quite simple song, but it carries alot of emotion that makes it quite beautiful and not at all boring to listen to.

The second track is Innocence. This one is alot different from anything else on the album. The song opens with piano and a heavy beat, giving it a dark atmosphere. The repetetive piano continues through the song. Chihiro onitsuka comes in, and her voice is beautiful throughout. There is also good use of backing vocals. The highlight is the way it builds up the rock- like chorus.  It's a powerful and emotional song. The lyrics are emotive and angry, and this is certainly the mood of the song. It's a very dark but beautiful track.  See the lyrics, and in particular the translators interpretation.

Next is the album version of BACK DOOR, which was used as the ending theme for a NHK tv show. Compared to innocence it's alot more toned down. It has a beautiful, sad sounding piano part. When Onitsuka Chihiro comes in she sounds sad, lost and confused. The lyrics support this - "Where is the back door?/ Where is the back door?/ Where is the back door of myself?" Her english carries thick accent, but it's not bad. It's a very sad song, with powerful lyrics. The backing vocals are a bit annoying, and the "where is the back door?" sounds quite sudden. It's still a beautiful song. I love the way it builds up, and the piano part is really pretty. 

Fourth is edge, carrying on the trend of sad piano based (though there's alot more to this song!) songs with beautiful vocal performance from Onitsuka Chihiro. The lyrics are amazing- " Don't go, what hurts these thoughts of mine is that/ I'm living here without having fallen down, so/ Don't disappear, lay waste to my heart in this way/ Without you, I'd rather end it all"- extremly powerful and of course Onitsuka puts alot of emotion in. It's another stunning and emotional song. Onitsuka Chihiro sounds so beautiful.   

Next up is We can go, a very upbeat and hopeful song with a gospel feel due to the lyrics- "we can go to the place where we can get freedom" and the overall rythmn and mood. It's a nice relaxing song with very good instrumentation, and of course Onitsuka Chihiro sounds great. I find the gospel feel (especially with the backing vocals) and the lyrics a tiny bit irritating though.   

After We can go comes call. It's comprable to edge, a powerful and emotional song that is beautifully sung. Onitsuka Chihiro sounds really good both in the deep, low pitch verses, raising her voice for the rest of the song.  See the lyrics and read the tranlators interpretation.

Then it's the album version of Shine. the song relies on the piano and vocals. The piano's rythmn lends a dark atmosphere, as do Onitsuka's sad sounding vocals. The chorus is very emotive- "its presses me [...] it blames me". Despite the simple instrumentation, it's a very dark and emotional song driven by Onitsuka's powerful vocals. It's got a very sorrowful feel to it.  As with Innocence, see the lyrics translation and read the translaters interpretation. Only problem with the song is Onitsuka Chihiro's often bad pronunciation of english, but that' nothing unusual in jpop. 

Track 8 is cage. the song has an upbeat and fast instrumental part, contrasting to the darker lyrics ("Don't leave me alone/God, if you're there/Please let me escape/Far away") and the tone of Chihiro onitsuka's voice- sounding bitter, especially in the chorus. It's another beautiful track with stunning vocals and prominent piano part. 

After cage is Rasen (spiral), a very dark sounding song similiar to cage. Onitsuka sounds very sad, very longing. The chorus hints at hope as does the english bit- "Life/My Life/My Fragile Life/I've finally realized it". Onitsuka Chihiro puts so much emotion into those 4 lines, it's absolutly stunning. I love the instrumentation too. The dark atmoshpere is similiar to innocence, it's almost threatening.

Then it's Memai (dizzyness), carrying on the trend of sorrowful piano bases tunes with beautfiul lyrics and amazing vocals. The chorus especially is very strong, I like the way she accents certain notes. It's a beautiful song.

Lastly it's the album version of Gekkou, which unlike track one is solely piano and voice. The same applies for what I said about the first version, because this one really isn't that much different.

This is a fantastic album from Onitsuka Chihiro. It's quite a relaxing album to listen to, despite the dark meanings/ lyrics of the songs. I think it's amazing, simple as that. Each track carries a new emotion, presents something new. Onitsuka Chihiro's voice is powerful, driving the song forwards with heaps of emotions. Her voice sounds amazing both deep, yet reaches higher notes effortlessly. The lyrics are stunning, highly emotive. Her english is thickly accented, but she gets her point across and atleast the actual english lines make sense. This is one of my favourite albums from Onitsuka Chihiro, it shows off her talent perfectly. The weaker tracks are great, and the stronger tracks are absolutly amazing. Definitly something you should listen to.