Beyond the Sea

SINGLE REVIEW
melody. - Haruka

1. Haruka
2. Plumeria
3. That’s The Way It Is
4. Haruka (Instrumental)

This is melody.’s 11th single and it was released on February 13, 2008. This single reached #10 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 39,042 copies. The title track was used as the theme song for the drama Daisuki!!.

I’ve always said that ballads have been melody.’s strongest asset and she certainly doesn’t disappoint with Haruka, a vibrant song that’s reminiscent of the spring season. The music is quite complex, complete with a full band arrangement and prominent strings in the background. What stands out the most is the electric guitar, something that hasn’t appeared in a melody. song (I think). Progressive riffs open the song and the bridge has an awesome solo. Her vocals are soft but very pretty as usual, and she performs with enough power so the music doesn’t drown her voice out.

The first B-side is a standard mid tempo pop song that’s a little upbeat. Plumeria has gentle beats with guitar and strings providing a good accompaniment. I really liked the background vocals because they were simple yet catchy. Aside the from that, the song is nothing special but at least it sounds nice.

melody.’s cover of Celine Dion’s That’s The Way It Is was supposed to be on that tribute album where a bunch of J-pop artists did covers of her most well known songs, but it was removed for unknown reasons. Anyway, it’s on this single instead and that’s the end of that. I always liked this Celine Dion song when I was younger so it was great to hear melody. do an excellent rendition of it. She sings it very well and the music is pretty different from the original too since the strings play a very big part in the cover version.

Overall Rating

4½ stars