Iwase Keigo - Bright Day Part 1
All I have to say is....KITAAAAAA----!!!! What's KITAAA--- you say?! Iwase Keigo's newest album!! It's been three years (or four?) years in the making. I'd almost given up on expecting any ACTUAL cd releases (since from website, it was obvious he was still actively touring and doing lives). According to towerrecords.co.jp, he whittled down eighty songs he wrote in the past few years down to the 12 that ended up making the cut for his third full-length (solo) album: Bright Day.
I'm a bit confused by that statement though, because...if he had that many songs to choose from...why did he release a 4-song maxi-single in November, only to end up taking three of the songs from that album (Noise to Tameiki) and pasting it into Bright Day? The only two reasons I could come up with...were, either Tower Records was lying (which wouldn't be too extreme of an assumption to make. They write short summaries for practically all the newly releasing CDs...and those number in the thousands, so I wouldn't be surprised if they screwed things up), or that he was tight on budget. I guess it could work out either way.
For his first and second album, because he had been a part of the duo 19, which in its 3 year run, managed to sell a good 1 million+ cds, he managed to grab up a major record deal (as did the other member of 19. The other member's become fairly popular lately with his punk/pop band 3BLab). But...don't get me wrong, I love his music...it just doesn't have mass appeal. He's mostly the type to have a small group of dedicated (or obsessed, depending on the way you look at it) fans rather than a bunch of semi-fans who'll throw him away once the next big-act is thrown into the lime-light. You have to be a bit obsessed to join a fan club that costs $50 a year in membership costs even when the artist hasn't even released an album in 3+ years and the only thing you really get from the $50 is the chance to buy tickets to his live concerts ahead of time [only useful if you live nearby] and the bi-yearly newspaper on the latest Iwase Keigo news [which you could get in more or less detailed form on his official website] annndd access to the "special" section of his website that has exclusive pics, notes, etc.
That being said, I loved NewSPEAKERS (Yes, the capitals are there on purpose), his 2nd full length album, so I was really looking forward to Bright Day. His first album, although still special in its own way, was really an unfocused mess. I couldn't figure out WHAT the theme of the album was (heck, I couldn't even figure out what he was trying to get through to his audience in the lyrics to each of his songs! "kurikaesu wa...kuchiguse to zaiakukan..."?!). With his second album, it was obviously an experimental album, and he tried out different styles from the European-influenced rock in "Rock 'N' Roll Blossom" to the pop "Radio Stereo". It truly showed his growth as a solo musician in the brief one year span in between the release of his second album and his first.
I haven't had the chance to actually listen to the album the whole way through and let it sink in (because I know with NewSPEAKERS it was one of those albums you had to listen to a couple of times before you realized it for its true worth) so I can't etch my words into stone yet. I'll keep you posted!
I'm a bit confused by that statement though, because...if he had that many songs to choose from...why did he release a 4-song maxi-single in November, only to end up taking three of the songs from that album (Noise to Tameiki) and pasting it into Bright Day? The only two reasons I could come up with...were, either Tower Records was lying (which wouldn't be too extreme of an assumption to make. They write short summaries for practically all the newly releasing CDs...and those number in the thousands, so I wouldn't be surprised if they screwed things up), or that he was tight on budget. I guess it could work out either way.
For his first and second album, because he had been a part of the duo 19, which in its 3 year run, managed to sell a good 1 million+ cds, he managed to grab up a major record deal (as did the other member of 19. The other member's become fairly popular lately with his punk/pop band 3BLab). But...don't get me wrong, I love his music...it just doesn't have mass appeal. He's mostly the type to have a small group of dedicated (or obsessed, depending on the way you look at it) fans rather than a bunch of semi-fans who'll throw him away once the next big-act is thrown into the lime-light. You have to be a bit obsessed to join a fan club that costs $50 a year in membership costs even when the artist hasn't even released an album in 3+ years and the only thing you really get from the $50 is the chance to buy tickets to his live concerts ahead of time [only useful if you live nearby] and the bi-yearly newspaper on the latest Iwase Keigo news [which you could get in more or less detailed form on his official website] annndd access to the "special" section of his website that has exclusive pics, notes, etc.
That being said, I loved NewSPEAKERS (Yes, the capitals are there on purpose), his 2nd full length album, so I was really looking forward to Bright Day. His first album, although still special in its own way, was really an unfocused mess. I couldn't figure out WHAT the theme of the album was (heck, I couldn't even figure out what he was trying to get through to his audience in the lyrics to each of his songs! "kurikaesu wa...kuchiguse to zaiakukan..."?!). With his second album, it was obviously an experimental album, and he tried out different styles from the European-influenced rock in "Rock 'N' Roll Blossom" to the pop "Radio Stereo". It truly showed his growth as a solo musician in the brief one year span in between the release of his second album and his first.
I haven't had the chance to actually listen to the album the whole way through and let it sink in (because I know with NewSPEAKERS it was one of those albums you had to listen to a couple of times before you realized it for its true worth) so I can't etch my words into stone yet. I'll keep you posted!