Starting with the instrumental track, Nakata busts out the real drum kit like he did with Puppy love on the GAME album (it being my 3rd favourite track overall). Everything else sounds like good old Perfume to me. I especially love the hat line throughout. The bassline is fairly standard, nothing particularly rumbly but carries well. The real feature instrument is the piano and electric keyboard. The arpeggios throughout the song really add the dreamy effect and the simple touches Nakata adds in are the icing on an already delicious cake.

And for the topping? I like strawberries. There happens to be 3 strawberries with the names of a~chan, nocchi, and kashiyuka on this Dream Fighter cake. Like most Perfume singles, I find the melody to stick to me like syrup does on pancakes. Not the runny kind, but the really thick and slow kind. Hrmm… molasses?

I guess syrup should stick since the ladies’ outfits are a syrupy yellow and are really sweet in all senses of the word. As usual, they assume their roles as the classy one, the girly one, and the leggy one. I just have to say that kashi’s boots are definitely made for walkin’ if you know what I mean.

Product packaging is cute. Even the obi paper is textured and shimmery like the insert that has cute solo pictures of each of the ladies.

The B-side, Negai, is a nice treat for the quiet technopop types. People have been calling it macaroni part 2. I think that it feels a bit more emotionally charged than macaroni. It’s probably because it’s slower and less playful. As slow and chill macaroni is, it’s still got a bit of pep in its step. Negai, however, just makes me want to lie down and reflect on things.

Overall, love the package and hope this keeps going.

My opinion of MEG, when I first reported on her, was iffy but optimistic, but now is quickly approaching fanboy status. There’s something about her singles that makes everything better regardless of your mood before listening. I find her to be the happy medium between the supercuteness of Perfume and the clubby epicness of Suzuki Ami and quirky enough to be compared to Otsuka Ai. What a combination…

I only watched the PV once before the LE CD+DVD came to my doorstep, mostly out of my fanboyish loyalties but also since I’ve been busy with life. I must say, while I do miss the neko suits, the real cats were pretty freaking cute. The “special effects” were fun to watch and MEG’s just beautiful as always. Oh, and the dance version PV on the DVD is LOVE for obvious reasons.

As for the songs themselves, I just can’t repeat myself enough when I say MEG’s singles put permasmiles on my face. PRECIOUS is textbook MEG technopop. If you don’t have the ears for electronic music, this might sound like every other MEG single. But for myself, the kicks are nice and heavy as I come to expect with MEG now, and the snare is full without being over-bearing. The electric piano, which is now a staple to this type of MEG song, opens well while the various synths carry the song well. While I don’t find the bass line to be as prominent as from other songs, it still peaks out at times and provides that steady foundation for the rest of the song to be layered on top of. Like most her singles, the chorus is incredibly catchy and gets stuck in my head. What really pulled me in was the bridge and the way she holds those notes. The end of summer mix doesn’t really do much more to the song other than offer a beachy feel with the acoustic guitar and extra percussion. Also, the electric piano has more presence throughout the song.

CANDY is a slower, chill song… that is, until about half way when Nakata pulls out the big guns: deep, dark kick drum and fuzz bass. While the bass is quiet and the song is only 90bpm, it doesn’t fail to entertain me. MEG spends the whole song in her higher registers which I enjoy for this type of song. I don’t know about how much staying power the song has but I’m enjoying it for now. I just wish Nakata went with a tempo increase or a different drum line but that would change the song’s feeling all together. I guess what I’m saying is that CANDY has remix potential.

All in all, another great single by MEG. She’s cute and quirky and makes me smile. If you enjoyed MEG’s previous singles, she doesn’t venture too far from her comfort bubble but I’m quite happy with her style and hope she keeps on going for as long as she can.

CD
1. love the world
2. edge
3. love the world -original instrumental-
4. edge -extended mix-

DVD
‘love the world’ music clip

Buy through CDJapan:

love the world CD+DVD

love the world CD ONLY

Its already hit #1 on Oricon Daily and Weekly, sold 80,000 copies in its first week, and set a record to boot; what else is there for love the world to do?

Be reviewed by me, of course.

Naturally, I saw the PV first (Downloaded. Never streaming. It wouldn’t do it justice) and wasn’t particularly moved by the song probably due being distracted by the psychedelic visuals. That changed rather quickly and I feel I listen to it about the same, if not, more than secret secret. The PV is a total mindjob compared to their older PVs. I enjoy it but I would’ve liked to see more dancing but I guess that’s what lives are for. I still need a translation to see if it fits, but who really cares about all that technical stuff? A few things I noticed about the PV which raises (my) eyebrows:

a) How come A~chan doesn’t have a name screen?

I know Kashi’s is a bit weak but it’s there. ~1:40 in the PV if you still don’t believe me.

b) During the dance shot during the first chorus, the girls’ dancing framerates differ slightly with Nocchi going at realtime, A~chan in 2nd with a few frames dropped in the middle, and Kashi at the end with significant slowdowns. Obviously this was on purpose but why the differences?

As for the song itself, I classify it as a medium - not heavy like Electro World and not light like wonder2 - like Baby cruising Love but with a bit more unf. Instrumentally, everything works well together: the opening synth which leaves its mark throughout the song and in your head, the electric piano jazzing the background, and the percussion that feels like it was ripped out of the 80’s. Now that’s a recipe for awesome; all we need are the ladies and their signature vocals. Overall the song is cute and fun -some fairly textbook Perfume. Some might say it’s similar to their other stuff while I say why venture far from a formula that works?

Being a dedicated fanboy (read: crazy), I didn’t listen to edge until the single arrived at my doorstep. The comments I got from people who did listen were that it was the opposite from love the world in that it wasn’t happy, fun, cute, or “medium”. When I heard opposite, I was thinking it was dark and semi-evil sounding which would’ve been quite interesting if that were the case. Instead, I get a heavy-hitting, club-style track with and epic bridge / chorus combination. It’s kinda like FREE FREE light but with cutesy-er vocals. Hrmmm… ideas for the next mixtape?

I have a little anecdote about my unboxing. It was pretty fail actually. I live in a neighbourhood with a similar mailing system as an apartment; all of the mailboxes are at one location while all the residents have to go there to get their mail, making it easier for the mail persons (which also happens to be right across the street from my house). There are two compartments reserved for bigger packages in our mega-mailbox and the mail person gives you a key saying which compartment your package is in if you happen to have one (packages bigger than those compartments get delivered to your door as long as your home, otherwise they get sent back to get picked up at the post office). So I was greeted with this when I got home from work last Monday:

The mailperson got the chain stuck between the “mailboxes” when they were closing the “mailperson-only” access door (that opens all of the mailboxes to make delivering even easier). Luckily, I still had access to the key. I had to take the key off the chain to unlock the compartment door and then reattach it except I couldn’t reattach it to where it was supposed to be. Also, standard protocol is to put the key into the incoming mail slot when you’re done with the key. I couldn’t do that. Oh well. I GOT MY LOVE THE WORLD AND THAT’S ALL I CARE ABOUT. :D

I also had to note one thing about the CD+DVD version booklet. There’s texturing in the paper. It’s the weirdest and coolest thing I’ve seen in a while.

Finally, before I part ways for now, I was trying my luck with remixing love the world and this remix popped out. It’s still in the beta stages but comment and let me know what you think and what you like and don’t like. Thanks in advance :D

If you said the best single of 2007, you would be correct. I’ve never really talked about this single on this blog though I did review it while it was still fresh back on my older blog… which shall remain nameless. Hop onto the dance floor and join me on an adventure FREE FREE-ing your inner SUPERMUSIC MAKER!

Out of all of Nakata’s harder house tracks, I believe that FREE FREE is one of the more emotional and infectious tracks. Sorry Toshiko, Ami’s voice was made for this song. As much as I love capsule, I don’t think Toshiko could’ve pulled it off. Ami’s voice sounds more commanding and definitely has more presence. Toshiko’s voice is more relaxing, like I’ve said before in the MEG review, and suits songs like Glider, dreamin dreamin, and I’m Feeling You. I digress.

From the opening arpeggios that persist throughout the entire song, to the fuzzy bassline that rumbles my walls, and the extra background percussion that I really need to start incorporating into the tracks I make, FREE FREE is a musical journey from start to finish. Ami delivers the Japanese lines with such force and a sombre feeling, it’s almost intimidating. FREE FREE is serious business, folks. It’s great for listening to when you’re down and need some empowerment. Go FREE FREE yourself from dancing to his tune!

On the flipside, I get more of a fun, party vibe from SUPERMUSIC MAKER. I like the suggestion limejam from the contemode livejoural community posed in the lyrics article:

“And I totally think he wrote SUPER MUSIC MAKER for Ami….to sing about himself.”

SUPERMUSIC MAKER definitely captures the club sound with the deep kicks and catchy bassline. It makes me want to explore the mysterious world around me and find some excitement. Everything about this song is catchy to my ears. It’s happy and upbeat and an awesome listen when you feel like something good’s about to happen.

Enough about the songs themselves, let’s get to the beautiful packaging.

This insert picture is easily one of the most beautiful pictures ever, and I’m not even a Suzuki Ami fanboy. Likewise, I think she’s really sexy in the video. The electricity she emanates is probably second only to the amount of electricity was used to power the light walls and TVs surrounding her in the PV. Probably not. I think her suggestive dancing was powering the room. They just hid the wires really well. Oh, the magic of television…

Cute shot of the two in the booklet. Oh, and PINK CDs! YAY?! I think so.

Bottom Line: 5 out of 5 little red dresses. *heart*

Buy via CDJapan:

Free Free / Supermusic Maker [CD+DVD]

SUZUKI AMI joins NAKATA YASUTAKA

Free Free / Supermusic Maker

SUZUKI AMI joins NAKATA YASUTAKA