Beyond the Sea

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - WAKE YOU UP / Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Kaze no Hi ni wa Kaze no Naka wo / Marvelous

CD+DVD edition
1. WAKE YOU UP
2. Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo
    Kaze no Hi ni wa Kaze no Naka wo
3. Marvelous

CD only edition
1. Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo
    Kaze no Hi ni wa Kaze no Naka wo
2. Ameoto ~Ame no Hi ni wa
    Ame no Naka wo Zenya~
3. Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Kaze no Hi
    ni wa Kaze no Naka wo feat. GooF from
    SOFFet (SMOOTH RAP version)
4. Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Kaze no Hi
    ni wa Kaze no Naka wo (Instrumental)
5. Ameoto ~Ame no Hi ni
    wa Ame no Naka wo Zenya~ (Instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 28th single and it was released on June 25, 2008. This single reached #33 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 4,165 copies. WAKE YOU UP was used as the theme song for the drama Keitai Sousakan 7.

I thought the way avex released this single was kind of strange so I thought I would try to explain it the best I can. The CD+DVD edition is a triple A-side single with no instrumentals while the CD only features the song Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Kaze no Hi ni wa Kaze no Naka wo as the main A-side with additional coupling tracks (it’s also labeled as a collaboration with Mitsuo Aida). The thing is, several online retailers list the CD only edition as a separate single but other places like the Oricon charts and Hitomi Shimatani’s official website consider them as one release. For instance, the Oricon charts combined both editions for the weekly total, just like a normal J-pop release that has multiple editions. So let’s go on to the review!

Starting with what’s on the CD+DVD edition, WAKE YOU UP kicks things off with an old school vibe. The song is very reminiscent of music from the 90s J-pop scene with its single note bursts of synth and English background vocals. When I think about it, this could have easily been a ZARD song. Anyway, even though the arrangement is very chaotic and sometimes unorganized, I really liked the high octane energy of the music and Shimatani’s vocals. The upbeat chorus is also extremely catchy as well.

The next track has a tongue twister of a title. Try saying Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Kaze no Hi ni wa Kaze no Naka wo five times! Based on poem of the same name by Mitsuo Aida, the long title makes a very catchy appearance during the chorus and I loved the way the lyrics rhymed for a great poetic effect. This is actually my favorite song on the single because it just grabbed me on the first listen. As for the music; it’s very sweet and serene. The light bass beats and reggae like riffs also give the song an island vibe.

I know that everybody who is a fan of Shimatani has said that Marvelous sounds like a watered down version of Camellia…and they’re kind of right. It has a similar piano and synth arrangement that’s pretty upbeat with a chorus of the same style as well. I wouldn’t say the song is bad, but it’s definitely the weakest of the three songs on the CD+DVD edition.

♦ ♦ ♦

Now we move on to the CD only edition’s coupling tracks. Ameoto ~Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Zenya~ is a very laid back traditional ballad with gorgeous piano chords and light drums. Shimatani’s vocals breathe life into the music, especially during the ethereal chorus where some gentle strings come in. Further into the song, starting at the second verse, the drums get a little faster. For me, this was another great B-side by Shimatani.

Also on the CD only edition is the SMOOTH RAP version of Ame no Hi ni wa Ame no Naka wo Kaze no Hi ni wa Kaze no Naka wo that features GooF from the R&B duo SOFFet (they’re on avex’s Rhythm Zone sublabel). Most of you guys know that I don’t normally like rappers featured in songs but I’ll make an exception this time because the rapping is actually GOOD. GooF mainly performs the rapping sections during the song’s instrumental sections but the final chorus also has him rapping alongside Shimatani’s vocals.

 Overall Rating

4½ stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - Nakitai Nara

1. Nakitai Nara
2. Kuchizuke Shiyou
3. Nakitai Nara (Instrumental)
4. Kuchizuke Shiyou (Instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 27th single and it was released on March 19, 2008. This single reached #34 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it sold 3,574 copies in its first week.

As much as I love Hitomi Shimatani, her ballads are one of her weakest aspects as an artist. Most of them always end up being TOO simple and less than thrilling in the end. This is what I felt about Nakitai Nara, a sleepy song that’s just plain depressing. The music just feels so drab and lazy to the point that I lost all interest. I don’t think slow ballads are for Shimatani and this song could have been better if it was a little upbeat. Who knows, maybe it will grow on me.

Which brings me to the B-side, Kuchizuke Shiyou. This song is also a ballad, but it’s a lot more charming and sweet. At least it’s slightly upbeat and I liked the romantic lyrics. The accordions in the background were a nice touch, oddly enough. The chorus is quite memorable too with its cute “soutou kuchizuke shiyou, sora ni hoshi ni yoru ni“ line.

Overall Rating

3 stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - Shinku / Ai no Uta

1. Shinku (original version)
2. Ai no Uta
3. Shinku (A.C.E.3 version)
4. Shinku (Instrumental)
5. Ai no Uta (Instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 26th single and it was released on September 5, 2007. This single reached #14 on the Oricon Weekly Chart and it has sold 25,019 copies. The first track was used as the opening theme song for the video game A.C.E.3: The Final, while the second track was the ending theme.

Shinku is like a crossover between two previous Hitomi Shimatani songs. It has the dance beats and strings of Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- and the electronic synth pop of Garnet Moon. The heavy dance beats in this song are very strong this time around, especially during the gorgeous intro. Shimatani’s vocals are powerful and she carries the song with grace and power. This is another great addition to her vast inventory of ‘crossover’ style songs.

The next track is the mesmerizing Ai no Uta. Compared to Shinku, the music is a little lackluster, but Shimatani’s beautiful vocal performance more than makes up for it. This song only features the piano, but the melody is lovely and it sounds so nice when accompanied with Shimatani’s voice.

Track 3 is a shortened version of Shinku that is used during the opening sequence of the video game A.C.E.3: The Final. The only main difference is that it opens with an explosive orchestral ensemble. It seriously gave me goosebumps on the first listen because it was such a surprise. It quickly flows into the regular beginning of the song.

Overall Rating

4½ stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - Neva Eva

1. Neva Eva
2. Hakuchuumu
3. Neva Eva (instrumental)
4. Hakuchuumu (instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 25th single and it was released on June 6, 2007. This single reached #22 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 10,749 copies.

Much like her previous single Dragonfly, Neva Eva showcases a new sound from Hitomi Shimatani. The song has a ska vibe to it because of its excessive use of the brass section. I also liked the underlying electric guitar throughout the entire song and there is a nice solo during the bridge. Shimatani’s vocals are pretty catchy and like her vocal performance in Dragonfly, she handles the quick pace of the song very well.

The B-side is the tropical sounding Hakuchuumu. Compared to the A-side, it’s much more laid back but still features a strong brass section. The song is not exactly an eye opener but it’s still pretty good.

Overall Rating 

3½ stars

ALBUM REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - PRIMA ROSA

1. Ramblin’
2. Kimi no Koe
3. Hareta Hi wa…
4. Dragonfly *
5. Psychedelic Future
6. Camellia (PRIMA ROSA Version)
7. Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- *
8. Prague no Onna
9. Koimizu -tears of love- *
10. PASIO *
11. El Dorado
12. Haru Machibito *
13. Brand new Dream
14. Futari de Iijanai / Masayuki Suzuki & Hitomi Shimatani

♦

Note: Songs with a (*) at the end of their titles have already been reviewed. Click on the links to see their reviews.
Songs in bold are new tracks and will be reviewed.

♦ ♦ ♦

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 6th album and it was released on March 7, 2007. This album reached #16 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 18,931 copies.

The first track is the energetic Ramblin’. It’s a very pretty song with gentle electric guitar and percussion. Shimatani’s vocals are wonderful especially when she sings the fast paced chorus. It’s a great song that instantly sets the refreshing tone of this album. 

Track 2 is a continuation of Ramblin’ as it follows the same upbeat pop style. Kimi no Koe has a dominant string arrangement with gorgeous vocals. Shimatani reaches those high notes easily and she doesn’t strain her voice.

The final track of the album’s ‘pop’ phase is Hareta Hi wa…, a song that is pretty much a combination of the last two tracks. It’s nice but not as good as Ramblin’ or Kimi no Koe.

The album takes a completely different direction with the next track. Dragonfly, the last single released before the album, sticks out like a sore thumb since it has that strong rock sound and none of the other songs are like it.

I thought there was nothing ‘psychedelic’ about track 6, Psychedelic Future. It’s actually a bubblegum pop song with blaring brass and cutesy vocals. The carefree English lyrics of the bridge were fun and the bridge itself was definitely the best part of the song because it also has a incredibly catchy percussion solo. Compared to the rest of the songs on the album, this would be my least favorite simply because I thought the other songs were better and not because I didn’t like it.

I thought the new album version of Camellia was so much better than the single version. The new version is reminiscent of her past ‘crossover’ works because of the added strings and dance beats. A lot of the elements of the single version have been altered or removed and it’s a major improvement.

Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- is my favorite song on the album because it’s epic, grandiose, and extremely ethereal. The string and percussion arrangement is amazing and this is probably one of the best ‘crossover’ themed songs of her career.

I really liked the western European sound of track 8, Prague no Onna. The music sounds very festive with its ethnic strings and clapping. This song is 1 of the 3 ‘cultured’ tracks on the album (even though the other 2 songs are Spanish inspired).

I thought it was kind of odd to place Koimizu -tears of love- smack dab in the middle of all these upbeat tracks. This song is a very pretty ballad but it would have been better if it was placed near the end of the album.

The next 2 tracks are a nice return to the Spanish pop songs of her early career. PASIO has a very catchy chorus and a very noticable accordion in the background.

El Dorado is the more ‘ethnic’ track of the two because it actually sounds authentic. I didn’t like it as much as PASIO even though it followed the same style.

I thought it was a bad idea to place Haru Machibito at the end since it has that refreshing spring atmosphere that the first 3 songs on the album had. It’s still a good song but it should have been placed right after Ramblin’.

On the CD+DVD edition of the album, Brand new Dream is the final track. This is a beautiful and uplifting song with a simple but absolutely gorgeous string arrangement. I loved the light hearted nature of the song.

On the CD-only edition, Futari de Iijanai is a bonus track. The song was a duet with Sony artist Masayuki Suzuki. This song was also released as a collaboration single on January 15, 2007 (by Sony, not avex trax). The overall sound of this song is VERY old school and similar to 80s mainstream pop. I’m not too fond of Masayuki Suzuki but he has a nice, deep voice. However, when they sing together, Shimatani’s voice totally overpowers Suzuki’s. I mean, you CAN hear his voice, but Shimatani dominates the whole song just by listening to the chorus.

PRIMA ROSA was my first Hitomi Shimatani album and I loved it on the first listen. There were a lot of memorable tracks for me and I thought Shimatani’s voice was one of the best things I have heard in a long time. From a new fan’s perspective (like myself), this is a wonderful album. When I saw the reactions from veteran fans who have listened to past albums first such as Tsuioku+LOVE LETTER, Heart & Symphony, and even her special concept album crossover, they didn’t like PRIMA ROSA as much. I could understand what they are saying though and I would probably feel the same way under those situations, but I don’t. For those who want to try out Shimatani’s music, this album is an EXCELLENT introduction to the various styles of music that she performs. You get the ‘crossover’ genre songs (Destiny -Taiyou no Hana-), the ethnic songs from the earlier years of her career (PASIO), as well as the pop songs (Ramblin’). Her past albums have had a consistant sound but PRIMA ROSA combines it all in one nice package. I would have liked it if they moved certain tracks because some of the songs felt really out of place (Koizmizu -tears of love- and Haru Machibito were the biggest examples of this). Aside from that, this is a flawless album.

Overall Rating

5 stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - Dragonfly

1. Dragonfly
2. Bye-Bye
3. Dragonfly instrumental
4. Bye-Bye instrumental

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 24th single and it was released on February 21, 2007. This single reached #29 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 7,787 copies

Dragonfly is one of Hitomi Shimatani’s most unique works to date because it is completely different from anything she has done before. The song has a distinct, gritty garage rock sound that mixes in a odd synth loop. I loved the thumping and constant percussion beat and I thought the electric guitar solo during the bridge was awesome. Shimatani’s vocals actually fit into the song quite well and I surprised she was able to handle the music’s frantic, rockish pace.

The B-side is also pretty different as well. Bye-Bye is poppy, but has a nice jazzy vibe too thanks to the brass. It’s a pleasant song, but nothing special. I already know that Shimatani is an extremely versatile artist, but I love the fact that she is dabbing into even more categories of mainstream J-pop.

Overall Rating

4 stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - PASIO

1. PASIO
2. True Blue
3. Tsuioku
     LIVE REC from Special Live “crossoverII” 
     at Tokyo Geiju Tsuge Kijou 2006.10.1
4. PASIO (instrumental)
5. True Blue (instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 23rd single and it was released on November 15, 2006. This single reached #12 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 12,078 copies.

After all of those ‘crossover’ themed singles (which I still love), Hitomi Shimatani returns to her pop roots with PASIO. To be more specific, a lot of her songs prior to the release of her first best album in 2003 had a exotic, foreign sound to them. The song follows the same style as her other Spanish themed songs such as Fantasista, Ichiba ni Ikou, and Akai Sabaku no Densetsu. The entire song is incredibly catchy and I loved Shimatani’s fast paced vocals. My favorite part is the bridge because of it sounds so exotic and different. Shimatani does these kinds of songs exceptionally well because she has experience doing them in the past.

The B-side is the drastically different True Blue. The strings, piano, and organ are soothing to the ears and Shimatani’s vocals are nice and controlled. The song was used as the ending theme song for the final episode of the anime The Law of Ueki.

The 3rd track is a special live version of Tsuioku that she perfomed at the Tokyo Geiju Tsuge Kijou. It’s only available on the CD only edition. I just want to get this out of the way and say that this song is NOT Tsuioku+LOVE LETTER, an older song from her 4th album of the same name. It’s actually a cover of another song that she sang just for that concert. Anyways, Shimatani sounds AMAZING live and I was really impressed with the musical arrangement as well.

Overall Rating 

3½ stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - Destiny -Taiyou no Hana-
                             / Koimizu -tears of love-

1. Destiny -Taiyou no Hana-
2. Koimizu -tears of love-
3. Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- (Black Jack 21 Mix)
4. Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- (Instrumental)
5. Koimizu -tears of love- (Instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 22nd single and it was released on June 21, 2006. This single reached #14 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 26,858 copies. The title track was used as the first opening theme song for the anime Black Jack 21.

Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- blew me away with its captivating mix of classical strings and heavy dance beats. I have never heard a song like this before and I was simply amazed by its grand and epic sound. The song heavily relies on the complex string arrangment and once they blend with Shimatani’s mystical vocals, it’s absolutely spell-binding. I highly recommend this song because it’s extremely different from your average J-pop song as it combines classical and dance elements.

The other A-side is the calm and relaxing Koimizu -tears of love-. Shimatani’s vocals are gentle and very sincere and I loved the laid back atmosphere of the song. The song has a string arrangment as well but it is nowhere near as powerful and grandoise as the one in Destiny -Taiyou no Hana-. I thought this song was the perfect contrast to the first track.

The Black Jack 21 Mix of Destiny -Taiyou no Hana- is actually the TV size version of the song that is heard during the opening credits of the anime Black Jack 21. It’s shorter of course but follows a different structure and the background vocals have been removed.

Overall Rating

5 stars

SINGLE REVIEW
Hitomi Shimatani - Haru Machibito / Camellia

1. Haru Machibito
2. Camellia
3. Sky High
4. Haru Machibito (Instrumental)
5. Camellia (Instrumental)

This is Hitomi Shimatani’s 21st single and it was released on March 15, 2006. This single reached #19 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 12,443 copies.

I wish I heard about Hitomi Shimatani sooner. She has an amazing voice and she is also one of the most gorgeous singers in the J-pop industry. This single was the first one she released for her latest album PRIMA ROSA. Haru Machibito is a very pretty mid-tempo pop song that has a crisp spring feeling to it. Shimatani’s vocals are well done and this is a great song in general.

The other A-side is the very energetic Camellia. Now this is what I call sophisticated dance song because it contains a lot of synth but the vocals are still full of grace and passion. It’s a little better than Haru Machibito as it is more upbeat and uplifting.

The 3rd track originally appeared as the opening song on her previous album Heart & Symphony. Sky High starts off a little slow but it suddenly fuses into a odd mix of heavy electronica and classical strings. Many of the songs on the Heart & Symphony album feature a similar sound.

Overall Rating

4 stars