QUELL come full circle and complete the “Two Sides” series with the memorable minimalistic new single “NEMOPHILA“.
Title: NEMOPHILIA Label: Tsukino-Pro Release date: 25/08/2017 Genre: Pop/Minimalistic electronica
Tracklist:
1.ドラマ「テレビ局にて・柊羽」 2.ドラマ「テレビ局にて・英知、壱星、壱流」 3.ドラマ「和泉柊羽のオンとオフ」 4.ドラマ「逃走→脱出→サプライズ！」 5.ドラマ「QUELL様ご一行、ご案内」 6.NEMOPHILA 7.NEMOPHILA -off vocal-
Track analysis:
6.NEMOPHILA
This is a rather unusual track coming from QUELL. While it’s certain that lately the unit has been experimenting with their sound, NEMOPHILA sounds too different from what fans got with the stellar “Believer – inori-“, released last year. Discarding all heavy synths, guitars and drums, QUELL guide their fans through a minimalistic electronic piece that relies solely on vibes, bassy and washy reverbed synths plus simple drum samples to create a dreamy atmosphere. Phasers and delays did the rest of the trick in the post-processing. NEMOPHILA likes to keep things simple and devoid of distractions and the vocal performances follow the same pattern. Harmonizations play a big role on this song and, for the very first time with this unit, everyone is playing a major role – either working on those harmonizations or leading the way with strong verses. There was no need for pretty or flowery, ad-libed singing on the maximum like we’re used to and the final result was impressive. On our side, we need to point out that the harmonizations are spectacular throughout this song and the fact that everyone was showcasing strong high notes and soft mid-tones really made it possible for that dreamy mood to be even more believable for us. NEMOPHILA is not a typical QUELL song but that doesn’t take the merit away from them. This song alongside “WING” made it possible for us, fans, to get a different look into the possibilities for QUELL‘s sound, their versatility and the ever constant quality (there have been some hiccups along the way though) with each performance. They were sublime throughout the “Two Sides” series. They might have gone a little soft with both singles, but it was something we were in dire need of, something fresh and refined. A stellar entry in the “Two Sides” series.
Final rating:
“Inside” is available for purchase on CDJAPAN for all overseas fans.
