CHAIN: I have opinions
I didn't really have time to listen to CHAIN properly until... well, today, once I'd sent off that batch of assignments. I'd sampled the songs just briefly when it came out, stuck two on my 'current' playlist, and decided closer inspection and appreciation of the rest had to wait.
Lock on - I don't think I like this one as much as most other people do. It's okay, I don't usually feel like I want to fast-forward it when it comes on, but it doesn't really do anything for me, either. It feels strangely static to me, does anybody else get that?
One Day - cute little poppy thing. That one definitely goes somewhere. A little too poppy for my taste, but the beat makes me forgive a lot.
Birth - gets on my nerves. I like the start, actually, but then it gets so awfully disjointed. It's like somebody threw three different songs together.
Ultimate Wheels - easily my favourite KAT-TUN song of the last year and a half. I love everything about it. EVERYTHING. The start, the beat that goes through it, the voices, the lyrics, the build-up, the instrumentation... yeah. This is the song which convinced me that I wanted to see KAT-TUN in concert after all, after 2010.
Finale - best solo on the album (sorry, Kame). It's got some oomph, Junno's voice actually sounds good in it, and I like it musically. In fact, IMO it sounds like something that could be on Pi's 'Superbad', which also has quite a bit of stuff I like.
Step by step - unoffensive, but kind of boring? That style just does nothing for me, it's one step (ha, pun) up from lounge music.
Run for you - another favourite. I don't love it as dearly as Ultimate Wheels, but the tense verse parts really work for me (okay, so the chorus made me crack up for first few times, for being so incongruous after that, but it's amazing what one can get used to). The verses are hot, somehow.
あの日のように - I find the first two thirds of this pretty but boring and faintly reminiscent of stuff I knew in the late 70s. But I really like the way the texture builds up after 4:00, how their voices interact, how the quiet rap fits in... it's very soothing, in a way the more boring start actually wasn't.
ずっと - Oh, Kame, you are so sweet. Also, you sing well. And I listen to this song because it's you and you're cute and you sing well and the song tinkles along nicely, but oh, Kame.
Smile for you - this is the song on this album which I cannot bear for more than 20 seconds. The end.
儚い指先 - this reminds me of something they've done before, I just haven't been able to pin it down yet. Something in 2007? More lounge music, anyway. Not my thing.
~again - This song is okay. Actually, I could see that growing on me with time. I haven't liked Ueda's solos all that much in recent years, but this is a welcome development.
Change ur world - I still remember how glad I was when that came out, because after I only liked two of the Jin-less songs on NMP and hated everything on Going! with a passion, I was really starting to think KAT-TUN was over for me. So to that extent, this song changed my world. /lame It was the start of the up-curve again, and just for that I love it.
Dangerous Cat - LOLOL. Just... lol. LOLOL. MIAOW! Oh, Koki. Yami is giving you LOOKS, Koki. And I could live without the squeaky-squawky. Actually, I wish Koki would sing something with a melody for a solo some time. He's got a nice, husky voice when he does that.
歩道橋 - My very first thought was 'oh, so that's the on-yomi for hashi'. But my next thought was, 'this is quite a nice song'. I like it better than 'あの日のように', though it won't ever win prizes for originality. I like how they sing together in this.
White - Okay, so 2/4 beat just tends to work for me in principle. So this is fun. It doesn't blow me away like UW does because music and beat don't work together quite the same way, but... yeah. I can listen to this.
Soldier - wins points just for being unusual. Very interesting start, fascinating dissonances, interesting verses; the harmonics are very dense and controlled. The last bars of the chorus remind me of Fall Down in a way I find very unfortunate, but apart from that, intriguing song and I'm looking forward to what they'll do with that in concert.
Chain of Love - oh hello thar, Arashi! #nuffsaid
What did the rest of you think? What's your favourite? Is there one you hate? [There are currently
comment(s) on the Dreamwidth version of this post. | post a comment @ Dreamwidth]
Lock on - I don't think I like this one as much as most other people do. It's okay, I don't usually feel like I want to fast-forward it when it comes on, but it doesn't really do anything for me, either. It feels strangely static to me, does anybody else get that?
One Day - cute little poppy thing. That one definitely goes somewhere. A little too poppy for my taste, but the beat makes me forgive a lot.
Birth - gets on my nerves. I like the start, actually, but then it gets so awfully disjointed. It's like somebody threw three different songs together.
Ultimate Wheels - easily my favourite KAT-TUN song of the last year and a half. I love everything about it. EVERYTHING. The start, the beat that goes through it, the voices, the lyrics, the build-up, the instrumentation... yeah. This is the song which convinced me that I wanted to see KAT-TUN in concert after all, after 2010.
Finale - best solo on the album (sorry, Kame). It's got some oomph, Junno's voice actually sounds good in it, and I like it musically. In fact, IMO it sounds like something that could be on Pi's 'Superbad', which also has quite a bit of stuff I like.
Step by step - unoffensive, but kind of boring? That style just does nothing for me, it's one step (ha, pun) up from lounge music.
Run for you - another favourite. I don't love it as dearly as Ultimate Wheels, but the tense verse parts really work for me (okay, so the chorus made me crack up for first few times, for being so incongruous after that, but it's amazing what one can get used to). The verses are hot, somehow.
あの日のように - I find the first two thirds of this pretty but boring and faintly reminiscent of stuff I knew in the late 70s. But I really like the way the texture builds up after 4:00, how their voices interact, how the quiet rap fits in... it's very soothing, in a way the more boring start actually wasn't.
ずっと - Oh, Kame, you are so sweet. Also, you sing well. And I listen to this song because it's you and you're cute and you sing well and the song tinkles along nicely, but oh, Kame.
Smile for you - this is the song on this album which I cannot bear for more than 20 seconds. The end.
儚い指先 - this reminds me of something they've done before, I just haven't been able to pin it down yet. Something in 2007? More lounge music, anyway. Not my thing.
~again - This song is okay. Actually, I could see that growing on me with time. I haven't liked Ueda's solos all that much in recent years, but this is a welcome development.
Change ur world - I still remember how glad I was when that came out, because after I only liked two of the Jin-less songs on NMP and hated everything on Going! with a passion, I was really starting to think KAT-TUN was over for me. So to that extent, this song changed my world. /lame It was the start of the up-curve again, and just for that I love it.
Dangerous Cat - LOLOL. Just... lol. LOLOL. MIAOW! Oh, Koki. Yami is giving you LOOKS, Koki. And I could live without the squeaky-squawky. Actually, I wish Koki would sing something with a melody for a solo some time. He's got a nice, husky voice when he does that.
歩道橋 - My very first thought was 'oh, so that's the on-yomi for hashi'. But my next thought was, 'this is quite a nice song'. I like it better than 'あの日のように', though it won't ever win prizes for originality. I like how they sing together in this.
White - Okay, so 2/4 beat just tends to work for me in principle. So this is fun. It doesn't blow me away like UW does because music and beat don't work together quite the same way, but... yeah. I can listen to this.
Soldier - wins points just for being unusual. Very interesting start, fascinating dissonances, interesting verses; the harmonics are very dense and controlled. The last bars of the chorus remind me of Fall Down in a way I find very unfortunate, but apart from that, intriguing song and I'm looking forward to what they'll do with that in concert.
Chain of Love - oh hello thar, Arashi! #nuffsaid
What did the rest of you think? What's your favourite? Is there one you hate? [There are currently
comment(s) on the Dreamwidth version of this post. | post a comment @ Dreamwidth]