Traditional Japanese music meets rock for an intense shuffle track with “Nagori Oni” performed by some of TSUKIPRO’s best singers.
Title: 名残鬼 Label: Movic Release date: 28/01/2022 Genre: Traditional Japanese/Pop-rock
Tracklist:
1 - 名残鬼 (Mori, Soshi, Ken, Ryota, Shiki, Tsubasa) 2 - 神解けに当たる時 (Sora, Ren, Nozomu, Rikka, Dai, Shu, Eichi) 3 - 名残鬼 -off vocal- 4 - 神解けに当たる時 -off vocal-
Track analysis (only “Nagori Oni” was reviewed):
1 – 名残鬼
“Nagori Oni” brings traditional Japanese music to the spotlight adding a rock flavor to it. The song kicks off with intense drums and guitars, before quieting down a bit for the verses.
And it’s in this part that the traditional Japanese elements kick in. The beat is dictated by taiko drums with a hi-hat joining in for the very first part of the verse.
Slowly, shakuhachi and shamisen melodies plus the sound of a shishi-odoshi (bamboo water fountain) join in, giving this song a characteristically Japanese sound. As the song progresses to the chorus, its intensity rises, and with it comes the electric guitars, bass, and live drums, adding an extra punch to this tune.
In no way does the addition of these elements make it so that the track is overcrowded. You have a lot of clarity however, I’d add that the chorus ends up sounding fairly crowded, at least on a first listen.
The rock elements take over but there is also panned to left and right, a bit in the far back, the traditional Japanese elements and, at center stage, 6 vocals. The bassline is quite intense in this part, going head-to-head with snare-driven drums.
This section will click with you if you fancy the instrumental as is however, do know that it can be quite overwhelming at first.
On the vocal end, this song is stacked with top talents. Mori (CV: Yuki Ono), Soshi (CV: Makoto Furukawa), Ken (CV: Yoshitaka Yamaya), Ryota (CV: Daiki Yamashita), Shiki (CV: Takuya Eguchi) and Tsubasa (CV: Soma Saito) team up on the vocal end.
What happens when this group has more tenors than bass or baritone singers is that there is plenty of room for high notes, harmonizations, head voice, and even some falsetto.
Yamaya, Yamashita, and Saito surely cover that range almost flawlessly while Ono, Furukawa, and Eguchi make sure the core of this performance is strong and steady, bringing in low to mid-toned vocals to the spotlight while dishing out powerful vibrato as an accent throughout their performances.
The chorus does feature all 6 vocals however I felt that only the instrumental was overwhelming – in a way – with the vocals sounding clear at all times, with a genuinely good distribution of lines and good vocal pairings in the mix.
All in all, “Nagori Oni” is an interesting song with a traditional sound that, despite not being refreshing, is fun and energetic while keeping the elegance and delicate touch of traditional Japanese music in the spotlight. A pity that the instrumental, in the chorus, ends up being excessively intense, ending up sounding murky, especially on a first listen.
TSUKIPRO the animation 2 vol.3 is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.
