Now the only thing left to find is the single itself, and by that I mean the songs. Even the mighty communities at Livejournal doesn't have dowload links for it until now. Lord knows that when it comes to Masa, when LJ doesn't have it, then it's going to be quite an ordeal to find it somewhere else. Huur, and it's almost a month now since the release date.

This is telling me that I should invest on Masa CDs more.

Anyway, cutting all the ramblings aside, here ye Kimi ha Boku no Taiyou PV~

My initial reaction for this would be: WTFLAWL XD

Amusing PV Is Amusing

In this post, I hypothesized that the song is going to be a drama tie-in. But Masa decides to surprise fans by incorporating an actual short drama in the PV. Smooth move, I have to say; it has amused me to quite an extent :D Masa and company versus their gang/Mafia-inspired self, and crack Latin American gang names -- you don't see those everyday! Also, Masa includes his backup band in the scene, which I think is really nice of him (or by the director, or whomever).

What I can't slightly understand for now is the connection between the song and the storyline. Kimi ha Boku no Taiyou (You Are My Sun) appeals to me as a bright, love-driven song. It's not a cheesy love song, but it's like a song about someone's importance, so to speak. We'll see how it is when the official lyrics are up in the Japanese lyrics site.

Fun times deserve a 9/10!

"Kimi ha Boku no Taiyou~" As A Song

It was a bit surprising to hear how the song actually kicks off. Judging from the preview, I never imagined that the intro would sound jazz-like, kind of like the sound that you would usually hear in... well, Mafia-themed flicks. The chorus, as what is featured in the preview, is pretty Jpop to me, so I had to thoroughly listen to it twice before I could make sense of the sound.

The transition of the sound from verse, to pre-chorus, then to the chorus itself is impressive, though. That I truly appreciate. The more you listen to it, the more you like how the song goes by itself. I'm excited to see how the lyrics are this time. I give this a 9/10!

With that all said, I am still wishing to find a working download link for the single.

Shameless personal ramblings is shameless, but here goes:

1. I'm separating my personal blog from Visual Reverie starting today. At first, I never really imagined Visual Reverie to end up the way it is now: a blog dedicated solely on my (objective) thoughts about music. But since it did turn out that way, it has become a challenge for me to post very personal stuff about me, which is generally subjective. I cannot combine water and fire, so to speak, as one may overwhelm the other. Thinking deeply about it, I believe that this blog is more established as a music updater rather than a personal journal, so I've decided to keep it as is.

My personal blog can be found here, if anyone's interested: http://tsubaki-tsubaki.tabulas.com

Of course, it's still bare to the bone, but we'll get to the climax soon :)

2. I finally settled down and tried revamping the codes for this layout, so it would be compatible with all resolutions. A big THANK YOU to sythiel for giving me the basic codes (which was a long time ago already, and I'd just been too busy to actually see how it works) :DD! I took down a couple of elements, but I think it looks better now, doesn't it?

Before, I had the idea of changing the layout, but I love this one too much, so I'm going to keep it for another month. Other than that, I am treasuring Sythiel's codes, hahaha <3

3. Tried searching for Masa's 「君は僕の太陽」 for the 39473892nd time, but to no avail. HUH, WHY DO YOU ELUDE ME SO, MASA MP3?! This is the hard part about liking an emerging artist -- downloads are scarce, unless they have an anime or movie tie-in. August and September are tough money times for me, too, so I'm unable to order the single. That, and I prioritized  GazettE's 「BEFORE I DECAY」 single. Well anyway, I guess I should purchase Masa's releases instead, since GazettE mp3s are all over the place anyway.

I can't wait to be part of the employed population :|

4. I am liking lynch. now~ LYNCH. <3

Well, that sums up everything for now. Tomorrow is another day, hurhur~

A preview of 「君は僕の太陽」 (Kimi ha Boku no Taiyou) PV is now up on Masa's MMV site! View awesomeness here.

I have a feeling that the song is going to be a drama tie-in, unless there is another explanation for the Yakuza (?) shootout scenes, Masa being shoved around with what appears to be a sketch book, and a terribly beaten up guy. Or perhaps Masa just wants to be in a shootout scene *whistles*

Masa grows hotter and hotter with every PV release, ahaha~ ♥!

☆=☆=☆

Another announcement from the site is the September 28 release of Masa's First Artist Book, 「MEGA Crescendo」! It is an A4-sized book with 144 pages and packed with even more stuff. Check out the 「MEGA Crescendo」 page for more information.

Lastly, we may be anticipating an upcoming fourth single this November. I found a hint on the CDJapan website, but the details are not posted yet (even on the MMV site), so let's just wait and cross our fingers :DD

Anyway, of course I'm looking forward to all these shinies. But, goodness, this man is seriously tempting me to spend much on him!

TRACK PREVIEW (because dork is cool)

So far, so good. I'm loving the PV, the track itself, and the new look ♥;; That, and Uruha's hairstyle caught my attention XDD But seriously, setting all biases aside, I think the full version is going to be great. The obvious makes me expect a fast-paced rock song, which I have been secretly wishing for.

SINGLE COVERS

 Limited Edition

 Regular Edition

Along with the release of all these information, there are other announcements on the band's OHP:

★ The DVD release of TOUR09 -DIM SCENE- FINAL AT SAITAMA SUPER ARENA is on 16 December 2009.
★ the GazettE live09 A HYMN OF THE CRUCIFIXION, 24 December 2009 at the Tokyo Big Dome

Gee, boys, talk about a lot of live performances this year! (>u<)=b

1. 君は僕の太陽 (Kimi ha Boku no Taiyo)*
2. Shining Ray
3. REPEAT (bonus track)

[*] は is specifically romanized as "ha" in the single cover, instead of "wa." Therefore, I shall follow the official romanized title.

Single covers

Source: Nakagauchi Masataka MMV site

=☆=☆=☆=☆=

Spazz times! \:D/ 君は僕の太陽 sounds so optimistic and light, I loooove it to bits already! Can't wait to listen to the whole song ♥;;

"Shining Ray" equates to jazz feeling much. Not bad, but I can't seem to describe how I feel about the song, orz. Full song, Mana needs you.

LOL times for REPEAT! Sounds like your happy anime theme there, eh Masa? XD *hides excessively amused face*

KASJADKHSDJEIRY AT SINGLE COVERS (*A*)/ I'm getting the CD-only edition! *SQUEES MUCHLY* SO MANLY, MASA ♥♥♥♥ I LOVE THE HAIRCUT. KYAAAAAAAAA-----! Drat. Goodbye, money. You have lived well in my stash for quite some time.

*brain dedz* Once again, I don't have a Masa icon.

For Guren, I have the single version and the album version, just because there is a slight variation (in Ruki's singing) between the two.

Sometimes, my obsessions scare me *facepalm*

===

The guy using the karaoke downstairs is starting to annoy me. He's been doing these irritating vocal beats since an hour ago. Screw this. It's too freakin' noisy here today. But then again, it's always noisy here. It's kind of funny how I can still complain about it with a straight face XD But I honestly can't concentrate on things these days, so I just sleep a lot these days and cram when I wake up.

===

I have harbored a deeper feeling of love for THE INVISIBLE WALL, just because I was finally able to understand RUKINGRISH (Ruki + English) by ear alone (yes, I have yet to browse the lyrics booklet) XDDDDDDDDDDDDD I think the thought of the chorus is lovely:

Sorrow made you (3x), yeah
In the bottom of the dark sea

...the second line would sound better, though, if Ruki wrote "in the bottom of the darkest sea." The line lacks a syllable in the actual. But nonetheless, it's still beautiful <3!

Anyhoo, let's formally kick off the review!

「Loudly Riot」 is Hime Ichigo's first mini-album, which has been released on 22 July 2009. Overall, it has seven tracks, including the bonus track in the Type B (CD only) Edition. The PV for this release is entitled コトノハ (kotonoha), which is their third PV to date.

Personally, I have known and loved Hime Ichigo as a band whose music is upbeat with a touch of groove and jazz. 「Loudly Riot」 tells a completely different tale. It offers a collection of tracks with new strength both in instruments and vocals. Basically, the sound is heavier and bolder compared to their first releases. I like to think that this is the band's successful transition from their emergent style to a heavier and more developed one. Though this may be a huge flip from the style that I have loved, I am still liking how Hime Ichigo pulled this off.

With that all said, here's my specific take on the tracks:

Tracks

01. Adler. - Nothing beats a loud track to kick off this record. However, it lacks on the catch-my-attention aspect. The song is not bad, and we get to hear more of the band's heavier music style proceeding 「re:alice」, but it is nothing special either. It simply comes and go when you listen to it. The lyrics are also hard for me to pick up by ear, so I'm still at loss regarding the whole idea of the song. Though I did my research on what Adler means, and I found some pretty interesting stuff, lol. Anyway, I give this track a 7/10.

02. Asogurera (アンブレラ) - This is a very nice song, with catchy instrumentation and vocals. It slightly reminds me of R/T (B-side of「sherry?」) in a way; I can see myself also listening to this for hours. Hands down, I have nothing more to say. 9/10 for this!

03. Riot - Ah, the undeniable favorite track in the record. I have seen a number of listeners love this track on Last.fm last week. It is a crime to disagree, because this track is nothing but pure awesome! This justifies the title "Loudly Riot" by levels. Goodness, Jin and Reina's fast yet melodious guitars, Jun and Ruka's super awesome bass and drum combination, and of course, Suzuya's powerful vocals -- what more can you ask for? This, I have to say, is the album's best track. It kind of makes me wish that they used this for the PV instead, but oh well. Super awesome song deserves a 9/10!

04. Guilty - I appreciate the sound combination of the song, really, but the intro part gets complicated to listen to when Suzuya starts singing. LOL sorry, Suzuya. You're still my Akiba baby ♥;; I'm thinking if this could have worked better if Suzuya's intro doesn't feel like he forcibly smished the words into the instrumentation. That factor gives the song a bit of overwhelming feeling. On a happier note, his words and singing eventually fits, and the overwhelming feeling fades. After carefully scrutinizing this track, I think I learned to appreciate this one. This gets an 8/10.

05. Puranetariumu (プラネタリウム) - The pace starts to decelerate with this song. Planetarium is a lovely track to listen to, and with the very little Japanese that I can understand by ear, the lyrics are also pretty. The instrumentation is quite simple, but the melody nicely fits the lyrics, so I'm satisfied with it. This calls for an 8/10.

06. Kotonoha (コトノハ ) - I like this song. It may not be as awesome as Riot, but I think this is nice in its own special way. The melody is quite easy to listen to, so it is a good song to have on your music player if you want to take a breather. The music clip is boring, though. The setting and scenes are not bad, but it could be better. Loving this and giving it a 9/10.

07. Chouhane (蝶羽) - Bonus track exclusive in Type-B. I have not yet seen someone share the Type-B tracks /sad.

Overall album rating: 9/10
Package/merchandise: n/a
Oricon chart debut position: n/a (Indies category)
Status: n/a

They are really growing up so fast, these five guys from Sapporo. I guess I'm going to miss the smooth sound of 『そよなら。愛した人。』 or the jazzy twist of 「sherry?」, but I'm hoping that Hime Ichigo would continue moving forward and make great music. :DD

Meh, it seems that everyone purchased the Type-A Edition. I would so get Type-B if I wasn't so poor back then T__T Guess it's time to order my copy :|

 ===

Wow, this took me half a day to finish! :OO Those six tracks are extremely hard to review.

Good lawd, I have not yet prepared for my demonstration tomorrow DD; I should peel myself off this computer now.

Tracklist

[CD+DVD Edition]

CD
01. 君は僕の太陽 (Kimi wa Boku no Taiyo)
02. Shining Ray [*]
03. 君は僕の太陽  [karaoke]
04. Shining Ray [karaoke]

DVD
01. 君は僕の太陽 PV
02. Making of "君は僕の太陽"

[Normal Edition]

CD
01. 君は僕の太陽 (Kimi wa Boku no Taiyo)
02. Shining Ray [*]
03. REPEAT [bonus track] [*]
04. 君は僕の太陽 [karaoke]

[*] lyrics by Nakagauchi Masataka

===

He wrote two songs for this single~~~ *flutterhearts*

Goodness, Masa is starting to make things tough for his fans me T__T I honestly find it hard to choose between the bonus track and the PV clip. >>;; My dorky self wants each bonus track, because I want my artist discography to be complete up to the last song. But then again, who doesn't want a copy of the PV?! DDD;

Tough times! I wish I can buy both editions, gednemmit. And I need a Masa icon here. I am such a bad fan for not having an icon uploaded here! D:

For one thing, they can survive stepping out of the house carrying nothing but themselves, a decent amount of money, and a hanky. Well, maybe even more than that. I can do that, too, and so are some of my kind out there. But generally speaking, women usually carry the most luggage (or things), that is why our line at baggage checks is always longer than the men's line. I'm pretty sure that there are others; I just forget them sometimes, ahaha.

But the grandest of them all is that men do not need to endure a monthly period and all the forsaken hormonal punch that it causes :|

...Estrogen and progesterone, you are such a bittersweet creations, really.

LOL don't mind me. I'm just spending my unexpected free time by being moody all of a sudden D:

BUT KYAAAAAAAA OMG MASA'S RELEASING A THIRD SINGLE ON SEPTEMBER KLSDJASHDEYIRISHYDKWEYIRY!! OH, GAWD, YOU DON'T KNOW WHO MASA IS?! SRSLY, YOU MUST KNOW THIS AWESOME PERSON! GO HERE AND ACQUAINT YOURSELF WITH HIS AWESOME 8DDDD I wrote that Last.fm wiki, haha /pimping LASKJDKFIWEYRIHYFI *ROLLS AND FLAILS AROUND*

Yep, my happiness is as simple as sliced bread ♥;;

Egh, why is there a stray wire over there? O_o CD case (white), bonus external CD booklet (black), and the awesome cardboard sleeve (the one with the cube). It moves when you tilt it from side to side! :D See the images here, here, and here.

Sad to say that I'm disappointed with the package. Though I appreciate the minimalistic approach that they did with CD booklet, it is still too plain white :| The external CD booklet is a collection of scenic photographs of everything except the GazettE boys. What redeemed my disappointment is the obvious hard work that they did with the sleeve. You can see their efforts on this when you watch THE OTHER SIDE OF [DIM] :]

Speaking of THE OTHER SIDE OF [DIM], it is indeed a making-of video. The footages are worthless, though, since we only see the boys from behind while working, wtf. Occasionally, you'd see smoke coming from Ruki's cigarette, so I guess that's spazz-worthy enough. LOL.

Now, on to the record itself. The tracks are awesome in their own right, but I think I expected too much from the album as a whole. How should I say this... it lacks essence somehow. It's not bad, but it's not uber great either. I guess this won't be a better album than NIL or STACKED RUBBISH, in my own humble opinion, of course. Oh, and let us not forget that only 12 out of 17 tracks are actual songs. 5 tracks are merely instrumentals.

☆==☆==☆==☆

With that all said, here's my specific take on all of all the tracks.

01. Hakuri (剥離) - Following the footsteps of the GazettE's previous albums, this first track is purely instrumental. It radiates a dark and solemn feeling combined with a medieval/classical feel. The sound is short-lived, and it's nothing special, really. 5/10 for this one.

02. THE INVISIBLE WALL - The song for their promotional video, as well as the first full song that has been released to the public prior to the album's release XD I have ambivalent reactions about this song. When I heard it for the first time, it felt incomplete. There's too much repetition of lyrics, though I undoubtedly liked the oneness of the instruments. But the more that I listen to it, the more I can appreciate how the actual lyric repetition compliments the instrumentation. I'll give this an 8/10.

03. A MOTH UNDER THE SKIN - Love at first encounter. This is a really awesome song, and the only thing that I dislike about this is its shortness. 2:58 is not enough, gaiz. It's not. The intro part is cool, and the progression is very catchy. Ruki's singing is highly addicting here, especially at the chorus part. ONCE AGAIN, THIS IS SPELLED AS AWESOME. 9/10, baby!

04. LEECH - Always an epic song. This version is no different from the single version; the record quality is only slightly different. Since LEECH has been a favorite of mine for a long time, I give this an undying 9/10.

05. Nakagen (泣ヶ原) - We have another beautiful seven-minute ballad here like Reila ♥;; The song is heartwarming, touching, and all things synonymous to it. Gah, and the acapella singing at the end part killed me off. Talk about fidgety feeling while listening to Ruki's pure singing. PV for this, anyone? Nakagen deserves a 9/10!

06. Erika (エリカ) - Another instrumental. Less than one minute this time with nothing but monotonous, low keys of an electric guitar. Boring stuff equals to 4/10.

07. HEADACHE MAN - My heart fluttered when I saw this in the album tracklist. This is my power song in the DISTRESS AND COMA single, very strong and addicting. The screams are great, the music is loud, and "I am the cause of your headache, and this is your song." Harhar, Ruki~ Harhar. Also, sinister laugh FTW! 9/10 all the way.

08. Guren (紅蓮) - Unlike LEECH and HEADACHE MAN, there is a slight variation from the single version of this song. Aside from better quality, the part at 3:22 is sung differently from the single. The song as a whole is as beautiful as always. 9/10 for you, Guren.

09. Shikyu (子宮) - Good lord, this instrumental gives me goosebumps. 43 seconds of creepy sounds and a crying baby, wtf. I honestly skip this track, lol. Should I really give this a rating?

10. 13 STAIRS [-] 1 - Sounds like a typical slow metal song, imo. I hardly listen to this, it's not as appealing as the other tracks. But the melody starting at 2:10 gets better, at least. The sound is amusing to listen to, but I think there's nothing special in the lyrics, or the way Ruki sings for that matter. Hmm, 6/10 for this one.

11. DISTRESS AND COMA - Who doesn't love this song? It's a ballad, Ruki sings about brides, the words are touching, and the PV is lovely. This version is not different from the single, though, so I'll leave it at that. My rating for this is unchanged, 8/10.

12. Kanshoku (感触) - Finally, an instrumental that's worth listening to -- a combination of piano and slow techno sound. Calm-inducing and clear, this one should get a 7/10.

13. Shiroki Yuutsu (白き優鬱) - My current favorite track in the album, definitely. The song kicks off with a groovy to funky acoustic guitar, then progresses to a lovely mid-tempo ballad. It gives me a really good feeling everytime I listen to this, so I consider this as my "feel-good" song in the album. 9/10 without second thought!

14. IN THE MIDDLE OF CHAOS - Another one of my power songs, which is unique to DIM this time. Awesome instrumentation plus Ruki's catchy way of singing the lyrics equates to three cheers of love from Mana. 9/10 for this.

15. Mourou (朦朧) - There was a slight mistake in the Romanized name of this track, btw. Most of the Romanized tracklist that was circulated in the nets wrote this as "Mousou." It is actually Mourou. Other than that, there's nothing much to say, since this is just an instrumental. It's a notable one, though. 5/10 this time.

16. OGRE - Yay, fast track~ It sounds a bit generic, though. Sad to say that this is my least favorite track in the album. 6/10, buster.

17. DIM SCENE - They chose a good song for a grand finale, I have to say. It's a slow rock type of song, but nonetheless it's a good song that'll stick in your head. They even incorporated violin sounds. Mana approves and gives this an 8/10 ★!!

Overall album rating: 7/10
Package/Merchandise: 6/10
Oricon chart debut position: #5
Status: still charting (#18 as of July 26 in the Oricon Daily Chart)

Well, this wraps up my rambling :D Track-wise, the album is still worth the money, so I encourage everyone to go purchase DIM if you haven't done so yet! Only the Regular Edition is available around this time, but it's not like you missed anything from the Limited Edition, to be honest. You can always download the PV of THE INVISIBLE WALL, since it's everywhere.