Weekly Roundup
This update is brought to you by my mind getting utterly hijacked by Don't Stop Me Now halfway through writing it, so if my descriptions suddenly take a nosedive it's because I became incapable of connecting with the songs as a rocket ship waited to explode like an atom bomb in my head, yeaaaaaaaaaaaaah.
Very little grabbed me this week - seems like most of the good stuff happened on Monday, shortly before my post, or Tuesday right after I made it. The rest of the week was somewhat interminable, so this is a fairly short and sweet little thing. On the other hand, a twin strike from Gumi by Deco and 40m pretty much guarantees quality.
Videos:
【DECO*27】ペダルハート feat. GUMI【Music Video】
Pedal Heart (DECO*27, Gumi, Pop)
Absolutely red-hot off the presses, I have to wonder why you're even bothering to read this description. Deco is in full-force with another catchy, classic Gumi number and all of his usual high-quality trademarks. Get going right this moment.
【GUMI（40㍍）】 キリトリセン 【オリジナル】
Cut Line (40m, Gumi, Bassa Nova Pop)
And if you were having trouble accepting the new Age of Gumi, well, she walks away with the number two spot this week thanks to 40m's jumpy, jaunty, exemplary pop song full of some stellar instrumentation, from bongos to soaring woodwinds to wholehearted acousic guitars. Brilliant.
【鏡音リン・初音ミク】花火空【オリジナルPV】
Firework Sky (kulfi, Rin + Miku, Pop Rock)
Oh, wow. If you'd asked me which track I was going to be obsessed with this week and then told me it'd be kulfi, I wouldn't have believed you. Traditionally, I have issues with how high and soft he runs his Mikus, but the duet in this track and the upbeat rock around it, with stomping drums and some great guitar, totally gripped me. A very pleasant surprise.
【※PV付き※】Sweets & Bitters【がくぽ×巡音ルカ】
Sweets + Bitters (ゆう十, Gakupo + Luka, Funk)
Let's get funky. There's something joyous about this track, for a whole lot of reasons - it's always great to hear an underrepresented genre out of nowhere on Nicovideo, but it's also great to hear a track so committed to being as suave as it can, with electric piano all over the place, catchy twanging guitars and a great beat.
【GUMI】 はちみつハニー 【オリジナル曲】
Honey Honey (papiyon, Gumi, Piano Rock)
Eeeh...? I have very mixed feelings on this track. On the one hand, Nicovideo really likes it and there's no denying that the strong piano-focused track is some great music that could come straight out of a Touhou opus, with huge sliding scales and breakneck solos. But... Gumi's voice rubs me up entirely the wrong way, and the track is so often muted and hard to pick out that it feels like a lot of the effect is lost.
【初音ミク】一閃に翔ける【オリジナルPV】
Soaring Flash (iyaiya, Miku, ??? Electro Funk Pop?)
What little knowledge of discrete genres I have is utterly failing me here. Whichever genre this is, it's worth noting that this song is very short - not even clocking in at two minutes - but sure does grab your attention, from a smooth introduction to some astounding cut-ins and outros. Miku could do a little better in her high notes, especially when she's holding them, but the whole thing's a short, bitesize treat. Iyaiya also came out with this Luka song, which I couldn't figure out if I liked or not.
【初音ミク GUMI】WINE BERRY【PV付オリジナル】
Wine Berry (蘭, Gumi + Miku, Rock)
So it sure seems to be the week for strange music and fusiony crossovers between different styles and genres. A distinctly eastern flair rides through the backbeat of this rock track, with lots of zithers and other ethnic instruments whose names escape me. As for the duet, it's really very good; Gumi and Miku both have a very strong showing, belting out for all they're worth and harmonising nicely.
【鏡音リン】きみにさよなら★【オリジナルPV付き】
Goodbye To You (putin, Rin, ?!?!)
I've really stopped trying to even describe putin's songs, especially when they get as crazy and meta as this. We're rapidly reaching the culmination of three years of work from him, as this is one of the last videos of what'll be his story's last arc.
【鏡音リン】DOGS【ゆっけのオリジナル】
DOGS (yukkedoluce, Rin, Rock Fusion)
Kind of a strange track, this may not be to everyone's tastes due to the way it bounces between styles so rapidly - from ambient, atonal chords to a jrap beat across to strong rock and back again. Rin sounds pretty great, mind you, and gets some really great vocal inflections and catches to mirror the song's own ricochet nature.
【VOCALOIDオリジナル】終の風【MEIKO】
The Final Wind (calfo, Meiko, Rock)
There were a couple different Meiko songs on my list this week, but none of them could hope to match this driving track. A top-notch Meiko blasts her way through a solid piece of anthemic rock with some thrashing drums.
【KAITO】旅路の果て、空の慟哭【オリジナル】
Journey's End, Empty Wail (仕事して, Kaito, Traditional/Ethnic)
This is classic shigotoshite through and through, very much in the same vein as her other recent works with Kaito and Iroha. Lots of celtic sounds, lots of whistles and pipes and bells all over the place. Bonus background singing from... ... someone. Iroha? Meiko? Probably the former, but I can't immediately tell.
【初音ミク】ねがいごと【オリジナル】
Wish (fuwari, Miku, Pop)
Fuwari's rapidly worming back into my music rotation, and if we keep getting heartening and upbeat songs of this calibre then I'll be perfectly happy with that - a solidly crisp Miku blasts through a song that lifts and lifts into a crescendo that drags you bodily along with it. I grinned like an idiot when the backing singers jumped in and rounded out her voice nicely.
【初音ミクオリジナルPV付き】sweet magic【あぺじ】
Sweet Magic (APG550, Miku, Pop)
Just listen to that introduction and you'll instantly know why I picked this for my last spot of the week. Full of fantastic piano, some great Miku encoding, and a catchy, headbanding theme, this really deserves more views than it got. More importantly, perhaps - it's also AGP550's return to Nicovideo after having left for personal reasons last year.
And Finally...
【MMD】 トリノコシティ 【DIVAっぽいど】
Torinoko City (40m, MMDPV: SPS, Miku, Pop)
A lot of Torinoko City MMDPVs crawled out of the woodwork this week, pretty much dominating the MikuMikuDance tag. But there, in the middle of them, was a perfect Diva model version from the same guy who's given us amazing Miracle Paint videos and generally been a master at the craft. So that's the one I'm linking. So there.
Very little grabbed me this week - seems like most of the good stuff happened on Monday, shortly before my post, or Tuesday right after I made it. The rest of the week was somewhat interminable, so this is a fairly short and sweet little thing. On the other hand, a twin strike from Gumi by Deco and 40m pretty much guarantees quality.
Videos:
【DECO*27】ペダルハート feat. GUMI【Music Video】
Pedal Heart (DECO*27, Gumi, Pop)
Absolutely red-hot off the presses, I have to wonder why you're even bothering to read this description. Deco is in full-force with another catchy, classic Gumi number and all of his usual high-quality trademarks. Get going right this moment.
【GUMI（40㍍）】 キリトリセン 【オリジナル】
Cut Line (40m, Gumi, Bassa Nova Pop)
And if you were having trouble accepting the new Age of Gumi, well, she walks away with the number two spot this week thanks to 40m's jumpy, jaunty, exemplary pop song full of some stellar instrumentation, from bongos to soaring woodwinds to wholehearted acousic guitars. Brilliant.
【鏡音リン・初音ミク】花火空【オリジナルPV】
Firework Sky (kulfi, Rin + Miku, Pop Rock)
Oh, wow. If you'd asked me which track I was going to be obsessed with this week and then told me it'd be kulfi, I wouldn't have believed you. Traditionally, I have issues with how high and soft he runs his Mikus, but the duet in this track and the upbeat rock around it, with stomping drums and some great guitar, totally gripped me. A very pleasant surprise.
【※PV付き※】Sweets & Bitters【がくぽ×巡音ルカ】
Sweets + Bitters (ゆう十, Gakupo + Luka, Funk)
Let's get funky. There's something joyous about this track, for a whole lot of reasons - it's always great to hear an underrepresented genre out of nowhere on Nicovideo, but it's also great to hear a track so committed to being as suave as it can, with electric piano all over the place, catchy twanging guitars and a great beat.
【GUMI】 はちみつハニー 【オリジナル曲】
Honey Honey (papiyon, Gumi, Piano Rock)
Eeeh...? I have very mixed feelings on this track. On the one hand, Nicovideo really likes it and there's no denying that the strong piano-focused track is some great music that could come straight out of a Touhou opus, with huge sliding scales and breakneck solos. But... Gumi's voice rubs me up entirely the wrong way, and the track is so often muted and hard to pick out that it feels like a lot of the effect is lost.
【初音ミク】一閃に翔ける【オリジナルPV】
Soaring Flash (iyaiya, Miku, ??? Electro Funk Pop?)
What little knowledge of discrete genres I have is utterly failing me here. Whichever genre this is, it's worth noting that this song is very short - not even clocking in at two minutes - but sure does grab your attention, from a smooth introduction to some astounding cut-ins and outros. Miku could do a little better in her high notes, especially when she's holding them, but the whole thing's a short, bitesize treat. Iyaiya also came out with this Luka song, which I couldn't figure out if I liked or not.
【初音ミク GUMI】WINE BERRY【PV付オリジナル】
Wine Berry (蘭, Gumi + Miku, Rock)
So it sure seems to be the week for strange music and fusiony crossovers between different styles and genres. A distinctly eastern flair rides through the backbeat of this rock track, with lots of zithers and other ethnic instruments whose names escape me. As for the duet, it's really very good; Gumi and Miku both have a very strong showing, belting out for all they're worth and harmonising nicely.
【鏡音リン】きみにさよなら★【オリジナルPV付き】
Goodbye To You (putin, Rin, ?!?!)
I've really stopped trying to even describe putin's songs, especially when they get as crazy and meta as this. We're rapidly reaching the culmination of three years of work from him, as this is one of the last videos of what'll be his story's last arc.
【鏡音リン】DOGS【ゆっけのオリジナル】
DOGS (yukkedoluce, Rin, Rock Fusion)
Kind of a strange track, this may not be to everyone's tastes due to the way it bounces between styles so rapidly - from ambient, atonal chords to a jrap beat across to strong rock and back again. Rin sounds pretty great, mind you, and gets some really great vocal inflections and catches to mirror the song's own ricochet nature.
【VOCALOIDオリジナル】終の風【MEIKO】
The Final Wind (calfo, Meiko, Rock)
There were a couple different Meiko songs on my list this week, but none of them could hope to match this driving track. A top-notch Meiko blasts her way through a solid piece of anthemic rock with some thrashing drums.
【KAITO】旅路の果て、空の慟哭【オリジナル】
Journey's End, Empty Wail (仕事して, Kaito, Traditional/Ethnic)
This is classic shigotoshite through and through, very much in the same vein as her other recent works with Kaito and Iroha. Lots of celtic sounds, lots of whistles and pipes and bells all over the place. Bonus background singing from... ... someone. Iroha? Meiko? Probably the former, but I can't immediately tell.
【初音ミク】ねがいごと【オリジナル】
Wish (fuwari, Miku, Pop)
Fuwari's rapidly worming back into my music rotation, and if we keep getting heartening and upbeat songs of this calibre then I'll be perfectly happy with that - a solidly crisp Miku blasts through a song that lifts and lifts into a crescendo that drags you bodily along with it. I grinned like an idiot when the backing singers jumped in and rounded out her voice nicely.
【初音ミクオリジナルPV付き】sweet magic【あぺじ】
Sweet Magic (APG550, Miku, Pop)
Just listen to that introduction and you'll instantly know why I picked this for my last spot of the week. Full of fantastic piano, some great Miku encoding, and a catchy, headbanding theme, this really deserves more views than it got. More importantly, perhaps - it's also AGP550's return to Nicovideo after having left for personal reasons last year.
And Finally...
【MMD】 トリノコシティ 【DIVAっぽいど】
Torinoko City (40m, MMDPV: SPS, Miku, Pop)
A lot of Torinoko City MMDPVs crawled out of the woodwork this week, pretty much dominating the MikuMikuDance tag. But there, in the middle of them, was a perfect Diva model version from the same guy who's given us amazing Miracle Paint videos and generally been a master at the craft. So that's the one I'm linking. So there.