Weekly Roundup
Short-ish post today. I think I've decided that I quite like mid-to-endweek for updates - it nets me a nice balance between harvesting the big songs from the ranking, and giving you the best of the Monday to Wednesday new song rush before the next ranking has the chance to. In this way I get to be petty and jealous and you get the newer songs quicker, and everyone wins. Except when 40m releases a track on Friday, I guess. I've also stopped marking PV against tracks if only because it's become the norm rather than the exception. If a video is particularly breathtaking it'll just get noted in the description and we can all move on.
If anyone's going to the Miku screenings in New York or San Fran this weekend and wants to give us some pictures or a write-up, that would be pretty cool. I'm curious as to how much - and what - is actually getting shown. Meanwhile, your roundup - this was very definitely Miku's week, except for a couple of easy steals from Luka and her shiny new PVs. Rin, though, manages to ninja the top slot.
【鏡音リン】ジュリエッタとロミヲ 【オリジナル曲】【初音ミク】
Juliet and Romeo (Tes.), Rin + Miku, Pop Rock
Tes is rapidly becoming one of my favorite producers for his ability to throw out a perfectly 'standard' pop or rock track but, at the same time, infuse it with so many personal touches and such a complete range of sounds that the song becomes a joy to listen to. From the wah-wahs at the edge of your hearing to the gleeful tempo to the soft section to the totally out of left field ending, this is an absolute stunner that's been on repeat all evening.
【初音＆鏡音】 Ｋｎｉｆｅ 【至高のミクスチャー】
Knife (reruriri), Miku + Len + Rin, Rock
I was taken with this track from the first riff, which is a little unusual - it's not quite my usual fare, but this triple act really grabbed me in the right places. Terribly slick, this rock track is produced very well - Len takes jrap duty while Miku and Rin concentrate on playing off of each other in a solid duet, and there's all sorts of neat little elements, from the panpipe solos(!) to the harpsichord-zither-who-knows-what in the background.
【初音ミク(40㍍)】 君の手、僕の手 【オリジナル】
Your Hand, My Hand (40m), Miku, Pop
An obvious choice for the top 3 this week, but certainly not my favourite song of the week so it gets bumped down a bit. The 40m magic is riding high here; the track's clear and crisp and sounds gorgeous, and I can find nothing at all wrong with it technically speaking. It's just that little bit too slow, however, that it starts to drag - and is pipped to the post by the more energetic offerings.
【初音ミク】 かくれんぼ 【オリジナル！】
Hide and Seek (buzzG), Miku, Rock
I don't think this is quite up to the buzzG standard - Miku trips up on a few notes and the tune as a whole can't stand up to some of his earlier hits in my opinion - but this is still a fine, fine rock track from a definite pedigree that's currently sitting pretty at the top of the charts.
【初音ミク】after this【オリジナル曲】
After This (nio), Miku, Jazzy Pop
Seriously feel-good, this jazzy track will pick you up from the first snatches of piano and wobble guitar right through to the end. Miku's a little tinny and possibly a little too quiet for the track at points, but she's really not the focus of this song in the slightest - just an addition to the gorgeous jam session that is the instrumentation.
【初音ミク】トップシークレット【オリジナル曲PV付】
Top Secret (scop), Miku, Rock
You should, by now, know exactly what to expect from scop - a fine pop track with some absolutely fantastic piano and generally, a surprise or two. Scop doesn't disappoint as he grabs his accordion and gets to work - this is a harsher and more powerful track than his norm but all of his trademarks - and especially the piano - are all fully accounted for.
【亞北ネル】ゴチャゴチャうるせー！【オリジナル】
Moaning, Griping - Shut up! (owata), Neru, Pop
Not exactly my first guess for a song that would remain solidly in the top 30 for most of the week, Neru lets loose at all and sundry in owata's latest earworm. Neru doesn't sound terribly good - but, well, that's kind of her point. In her stead, the driving piano and trumpets will do the job nicely; this is a relentless toe-tapper and will latch onto your mind.
【初音ミク】little flames【オリジナル】
Little Flames (mamomo), Miku, Easy Listening
You may or may not remember my linking the hell out of a series of softer Miku tracked all entitled 'Little Something'; Mamomo continues the trend with this latest track. With expert tuning and a pedigree for some seriously relaxing soft songs under his belt, the addition of bagpipes isn't nearly as strange as I might make it sound. This track's just all round gorgeous - but only as long as you enjoy the slower tempo and careful ambience.
【巡音ルカ】Q-Pダンス【初音ミクsingsハルメンズ】
Quite Perpetual Dance (miron), Luka, ?!?!?
What the hell, Luka.
【初音ミク】Six steps【オリジナルPV付き】
Six Steps (koichikurin), Miku + Luka, R + B
For some reason, the tag 'VocaR+B' really makes me smile. I've got no idea why - possibly it's just an affinity with the tag, or the first 'vocaaar' as I sound it out. Six Steps is ... not very good, if I'm honest, either too minimalistic or else ahving problems with its tuning, but sections of it such as the synth chords kicking in with the piano and Luka 'oh-oh-ohoh'ing make me smile in much the same way.
【PV付き】初音ミクオリジナル『自由奔放』
Freewheeling (PELIE), Miku, R... ock?
This is a bizarre track! Before we even get into the matter of the video, we've got a frequently atonal barrage of jazz-ish piano and rock guitars and horror crescendoes and synths worthy of your finest Touhou track. Then we've got a sketchy Miku whose voice often cracks but who's perfectly suited for the song as it stands. And then you have a boggling video that flies between different styles and then there is a Miku dollfie, aaaaaaaaaaa
【初音ミクAppend】 break;down 【オリジナル曲PV付き】
Break;Down (hmtk), Miku, Fusion Rock
Pretty much occupying the same mental space as Freewheeling above, this kind of mixes up yelled opera and snatches of jrap and some electro rock to produce a bizarre angst track. On balance, I quite enjoyed it, but it certainly didn't endear itself to me easily.
【初音ミク】クラウン【オリジナルPV】
Crown (KulfiQ), Miku, Rock
I'm genuinely uncertain whether I like this track or not. Unlike most of KulfiQ's tracks, the super-floatiness that usually plagues me is gone, replaced with a solid rock track with some great solos. On the other hand Miku's been made similarly non-floaty, bumped down a couple of octaves from the rest of Kulfi's tracks - and that just sounds bizarre.
【鏡音レン】パーフェクトソリューション【オリジナル・PV】
Perfect Solution (koushiro), Len, Rock
Len sneaks in near the end of this post for his solo number. Alas, I really wanted to like this track - it started off well, and it seemed promising - but then too many segments of it seemed to start vying for control and the various facets just started working against each other rather than with. Add in a very high Len at times and I couldn't quite get into it.
【初音ミク】 ハッピー・ラボ 【オリジナル曲】
Happy Lab (Hoso-Q), Miku, Electro
I don't think much of the music on this one - it's certainly unique, but sent me to sleep about halfway through the song - so this is getting linked instead for the video, and the amazing range of expressions pulled during it.
PVs/Other:
完成版[巡音ルカ]CORRUPTIONGARDEN-3DPV
Corruption Garden 3D PV (Caz, PV Ikeda), Luka, Thrash Rock
There really aren't any words for how astounding this is - looking like it came straight out of Squeenix's animation department with an extra dash of Spirits Within, the entire thing is dripping professionalism. You might take issue at the somewhat plastic, Dreamy Theatre look Luka sports, or possibly the fact that the base song could be better, but these barely mar a visual treat.
「ワールズエンド・ダンスホール」PV作ってみた。
Worlds End Dancehall (wowaka, PV pio + taku), Miku + Luka, Wowaka Rock
A video so full of stuff going on that at times Nicovideo itself can barely take it, this isn't a video to watch during economy hours if you want the full experience. This is a seriously shiny PV of wowaka's hit, and possibly the best one I've seen yet. Most importantly, there's a lot of abstraction and funky logo work that harkens back to Uraomote Lovers and really makes it feel appropriate for the song and producer both.
【メグッポイド】 Packaged 【ぼかりす】
Packaged (kz, Cover Vocalistener), Gumi, !!!!
Breathtaking cover of Packaged by Gumi. She has... issues with some of the notes, to the extent that I cringe a few times through some of the held notes - but when she gets it right she absolutely knocks it out of the park.
【猫村いろは】メモリー【CATS】
Memory (from Cats) (根気), Iroha, Broadway
It's deeply weird to hear this in Japanese while instinctively trying to sing along to it in English.
If anyone's going to the Miku screenings in New York or San Fran this weekend and wants to give us some pictures or a write-up, that would be pretty cool. I'm curious as to how much - and what - is actually getting shown. Meanwhile, your roundup - this was very definitely Miku's week, except for a couple of easy steals from Luka and her shiny new PVs. Rin, though, manages to ninja the top slot.
【鏡音リン】ジュリエッタとロミヲ 【オリジナル曲】【初音ミク】
Juliet and Romeo (Tes.), Rin + Miku, Pop Rock
Tes is rapidly becoming one of my favorite producers for his ability to throw out a perfectly 'standard' pop or rock track but, at the same time, infuse it with so many personal touches and such a complete range of sounds that the song becomes a joy to listen to. From the wah-wahs at the edge of your hearing to the gleeful tempo to the soft section to the totally out of left field ending, this is an absolute stunner that's been on repeat all evening.
【初音＆鏡音】 Ｋｎｉｆｅ 【至高のミクスチャー】
Knife (reruriri), Miku + Len + Rin, Rock
I was taken with this track from the first riff, which is a little unusual - it's not quite my usual fare, but this triple act really grabbed me in the right places. Terribly slick, this rock track is produced very well - Len takes jrap duty while Miku and Rin concentrate on playing off of each other in a solid duet, and there's all sorts of neat little elements, from the panpipe solos(!) to the harpsichord-zither-who-knows-what in the background.
【初音ミク(40㍍)】 君の手、僕の手 【オリジナル】
Your Hand, My Hand (40m), Miku, Pop
An obvious choice for the top 3 this week, but certainly not my favourite song of the week so it gets bumped down a bit. The 40m magic is riding high here; the track's clear and crisp and sounds gorgeous, and I can find nothing at all wrong with it technically speaking. It's just that little bit too slow, however, that it starts to drag - and is pipped to the post by the more energetic offerings.
【初音ミク】 かくれんぼ 【オリジナル！】
Hide and Seek (buzzG), Miku, Rock
I don't think this is quite up to the buzzG standard - Miku trips up on a few notes and the tune as a whole can't stand up to some of his earlier hits in my opinion - but this is still a fine, fine rock track from a definite pedigree that's currently sitting pretty at the top of the charts.
【初音ミク】after this【オリジナル曲】
After This (nio), Miku, Jazzy Pop
Seriously feel-good, this jazzy track will pick you up from the first snatches of piano and wobble guitar right through to the end. Miku's a little tinny and possibly a little too quiet for the track at points, but she's really not the focus of this song in the slightest - just an addition to the gorgeous jam session that is the instrumentation.
【初音ミク】トップシークレット【オリジナル曲PV付】
Top Secret (scop), Miku, Rock
You should, by now, know exactly what to expect from scop - a fine pop track with some absolutely fantastic piano and generally, a surprise or two. Scop doesn't disappoint as he grabs his accordion and gets to work - this is a harsher and more powerful track than his norm but all of his trademarks - and especially the piano - are all fully accounted for.
【亞北ネル】ゴチャゴチャうるせー！【オリジナル】
Moaning, Griping - Shut up! (owata), Neru, Pop
Not exactly my first guess for a song that would remain solidly in the top 30 for most of the week, Neru lets loose at all and sundry in owata's latest earworm. Neru doesn't sound terribly good - but, well, that's kind of her point. In her stead, the driving piano and trumpets will do the job nicely; this is a relentless toe-tapper and will latch onto your mind.
【初音ミク】little flames【オリジナル】
Little Flames (mamomo), Miku, Easy Listening
You may or may not remember my linking the hell out of a series of softer Miku tracked all entitled 'Little Something'; Mamomo continues the trend with this latest track. With expert tuning and a pedigree for some seriously relaxing soft songs under his belt, the addition of bagpipes isn't nearly as strange as I might make it sound. This track's just all round gorgeous - but only as long as you enjoy the slower tempo and careful ambience.
【巡音ルカ】Q-Pダンス【初音ミクsingsハルメンズ】
Quite Perpetual Dance (miron), Luka, ?!?!?
What the hell, Luka.
【初音ミク】Six steps【オリジナルPV付き】
Six Steps (koichikurin), Miku + Luka, R + B
For some reason, the tag 'VocaR+B' really makes me smile. I've got no idea why - possibly it's just an affinity with the tag, or the first 'vocaaar' as I sound it out. Six Steps is ... not very good, if I'm honest, either too minimalistic or else ahving problems with its tuning, but sections of it such as the synth chords kicking in with the piano and Luka 'oh-oh-ohoh'ing make me smile in much the same way.
【PV付き】初音ミクオリジナル『自由奔放』
Freewheeling (PELIE), Miku, R... ock?
This is a bizarre track! Before we even get into the matter of the video, we've got a frequently atonal barrage of jazz-ish piano and rock guitars and horror crescendoes and synths worthy of your finest Touhou track. Then we've got a sketchy Miku whose voice often cracks but who's perfectly suited for the song as it stands. And then you have a boggling video that flies between different styles and then there is a Miku dollfie, aaaaaaaaaaa
【初音ミクAppend】 break;down 【オリジナル曲PV付き】
Break;Down (hmtk), Miku, Fusion Rock
Pretty much occupying the same mental space as Freewheeling above, this kind of mixes up yelled opera and snatches of jrap and some electro rock to produce a bizarre angst track. On balance, I quite enjoyed it, but it certainly didn't endear itself to me easily.
【初音ミク】クラウン【オリジナルPV】
Crown (KulfiQ), Miku, Rock
I'm genuinely uncertain whether I like this track or not. Unlike most of KulfiQ's tracks, the super-floatiness that usually plagues me is gone, replaced with a solid rock track with some great solos. On the other hand Miku's been made similarly non-floaty, bumped down a couple of octaves from the rest of Kulfi's tracks - and that just sounds bizarre.
【鏡音レン】パーフェクトソリューション【オリジナル・PV】
Perfect Solution (koushiro), Len, Rock
Len sneaks in near the end of this post for his solo number. Alas, I really wanted to like this track - it started off well, and it seemed promising - but then too many segments of it seemed to start vying for control and the various facets just started working against each other rather than with. Add in a very high Len at times and I couldn't quite get into it.
【初音ミク】 ハッピー・ラボ 【オリジナル曲】
Happy Lab (Hoso-Q), Miku, Electro
I don't think much of the music on this one - it's certainly unique, but sent me to sleep about halfway through the song - so this is getting linked instead for the video, and the amazing range of expressions pulled during it.
PVs/Other:
完成版[巡音ルカ]CORRUPTIONGARDEN-3DPV
Corruption Garden 3D PV (Caz, PV Ikeda), Luka, Thrash Rock
There really aren't any words for how astounding this is - looking like it came straight out of Squeenix's animation department with an extra dash of Spirits Within, the entire thing is dripping professionalism. You might take issue at the somewhat plastic, Dreamy Theatre look Luka sports, or possibly the fact that the base song could be better, but these barely mar a visual treat.
「ワールズエンド・ダンスホール」PV作ってみた。
Worlds End Dancehall (wowaka, PV pio + taku), Miku + Luka, Wowaka Rock
A video so full of stuff going on that at times Nicovideo itself can barely take it, this isn't a video to watch during economy hours if you want the full experience. This is a seriously shiny PV of wowaka's hit, and possibly the best one I've seen yet. Most importantly, there's a lot of abstraction and funky logo work that harkens back to Uraomote Lovers and really makes it feel appropriate for the song and producer both.
【メグッポイド】 Packaged 【ぼかりす】
Packaged (kz, Cover Vocalistener), Gumi, !!!!
Breathtaking cover of Packaged by Gumi. She has... issues with some of the notes, to the extent that I cringe a few times through some of the held notes - but when she gets it right she absolutely knocks it out of the park.
【猫村いろは】メモリー【CATS】
Memory (from Cats) (根気), Iroha, Broadway
It's deeply weird to hear this in Japanese while instinctively trying to sing along to it in English.