Growth present us with their last song featured on TSUKIPRO THE ANIMATION. There will be times in which Hidamari ni Saku will leave you in awe, and others in which you’ll be dealing with chills running down your spine. This is one of the quartet’s most complete performances to date.
Title: 陽だまりに咲く
Label: Tsukipro/Movic
Release date: 18/05/2018
Genre: Pop
Tracklist:
1 - 陽だまりに咲く
Track by track analysis:
1 – 陽だまりに咲く
Hidamari ni Saku wraps up Growth‘s releases for TSUKIPRO THE ANIMATION in a surprising way. As expected from Growth, this song immediately creates a delicate soundscape that mixes their trademark dramatic and fantastical sound with the power and refinement of orchestral instrumentalization. As you listen to this song, you won’t help but want to further experience the grandiose soundscape that was carefully crafted. It will leave you in awe at times, make chills run down the spine at others and ultimately make you want to nostalgically sing along to its chorus.
The song packs a lot of power underneath its delicate sound. A dramatic, slow paced piano melody introduces us to Hidamari ni Saku, slowly making way for tom-driven drums and acoustic guitars to take the lead. The instrumental is rather simple in its early stages however, as the song progresses, more instruments such as drums and bass join the mix. As a backdrop, the verses feature the sound of crashing waves, washing away the instrumental and setting a relaxing vibe. The chorus has a Christmas-y touch, especially noticeable in its progression, but at the same time there’s something bigger and far greater on this song than just its Christmas vibe. The introduction of orchestral elements into the mix such as timpani, strings quartet, blowing instruments and a haunting choir were decisive to shape this instrumental into the grandiose piece it is.
This might go unnoticed but if you pay close attention to the lyrics, you’ll notice that those include the titles of almost all of Growth‘s songs released up until now. It’s a nod to the past and a nice touch to this song.
Growth delivered yet another stunning vocal performance. It felt new to have the quartet tackling lower toned sections, especially when most of members are known not for their lower register, but for being masters with their higher register. The chorus brought their harmonizations to the spotlight, standing out from the beautiful orchestral instrumentalization featured on that section. They are the only group within Tsukipro that has been consistent since day one when it comes to the vocal performances.
Their balanced line distribution enables everyone to shine in equal measures, which in result makes standing out being a difficult task. However, this time around, no matter how impressive Terashima‘s vibrato and ad-libs, Yamaya‘s high notes or Yamashita‘s all-rounded performance were, Shunichi Toki was always a step ahead, surpassing their quality, taking the spotlight to himself.
He presented us with an memorable all-rounded performance filled with sweet ad-libs, stunning low notes and delicate high notes. His presence could be felt everywhere and it was great for a change to have him leading the way for this group.
All in all, Growth showed us that they are a powerful vocal group with a limitless ability to impress us. “Mahou no Kizuna“ introduced everyone to a world of fantasy through a breathtakingly beautiful landscape, never before heard in the Tsukipro series (and stands as Growth‘s masterpiece), “One day…” stripped the group off their dramatic touch and delivered us a simple ballad, “Parallel Lineage” upped the ante once again with a majestic take on pop-rock and then they wrap up their streak of 4 releases for TSUKIPRO THE ANIMATION with the beautiful orchestral pop tune, Hidamari ni Saku. This is the kind of song that might want to have on your playlist in the coming Christmas.
This song is included in the 6th volume of TSUKIPRO THE ANIMATION.
