The simplicity of the composition, the commanding presence of the pounding drums, and Shoya Chiba’s dramatic performance impress in Arashi’s “Gunjou”.
This release features Arashi (CV: Shoya Chiba) and Oshiro (CV: Yuichiro Umehara). Arashi is the only one performing the song on this CD.
Title: Creation 1 ARASHI・OSHIRO Label: eternal voyage Release date: 26/08/2022 Genre: Minimalistic electronica
Tracklist:
1 - 群青 (Gunjou)
Track analysis:
1 – 群青 (Gunjou)
Atmospheric synths create a wide soundscape that is quite impressive. As you are put in this soundscape you will notice how wide it is, with the sound stretching itself to the horizon.
While the intro brings distorted vocals, the rest of the song is far from going in the same direction.
What awaits you is something unreal in the TOKYO COLOR SONIC!! franchise.
Shoya Chiba (as Arashi) is performing in quite a dramatic way, opening those vowels to resonate in the soundscape, matching the equally dramatic – yet simplistic – instrumental.
“Gunjou” has the best live drums mix I’ve heard in a long time. Tight, clean, and warm, this mix makes the drums take center stage, sharing the spotlight with Shoya Chiba in the best way possible.
A detail I love about this song is the bassline – which may go unnoticed due to how amazing the drums are. The bassline is relentless and those brief slap bass accents are a treat in the composition and overall performance.
The drums are relentless and are playing in a weird time signature, never clashing with Shoya Chiba’s powerful tenor vocals in the chorus – ranging from his gentle mid-toned leading the way as well as the high notes in the background.
Shoya Chiba keeps on improving his singing with each entry in this series. This time around he comfortably adds drama to his performance, bringing vibrato into the mix as he goes for big open vowels to increase the sense of drama in the performance.
Adding to this, I love those high notes in the background in the chorus. It goes to show that Chiba has so much versatility and the potential to do awesome things as a singer is there for everyone to see.
The simplicity in this song’s composition, the power that the pounding drums have as well as Chiba’s performance are impressive. The whole tone of this song and the dramatic performance are a thing of beauty.
Arashi’s “Gunjou” is the perfect a way to start the GROWING series.
What is TOKYO COLOR SONIC!!
Tokyo Color Sonic!! is the name of the mixed-media franchise created by sprout and counting with character designs by the popular illustrator Ryo Fujiwara.
This franchise includes a star-studded 10 main character cast, with characters split into 5 different “buddy” units of singer + songwriter.
Tokyo Color Sonic counts with a balanced mix of drama CD + music.
To know more about this project, make sure to check our quick guide to it.
“Creation 1 ARASHI・OSHIRO” is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.
“Creation 1 ARASHI・OSHIRO” is available for streaming on Spotify.
Do not support piracy. Remember to support the Tokyo Color Sonic franchise by streaming via official outlets.
