Growing old. Revisiting good memories. Dreaming. Nostalgia takes over in SOARA’s peppy pop-rock tune “LET IT BE”.
SOARA consists of Toshiyuki Toyonaga, Yuki Ono, Makoto Furukawa, Taishi Murata, and Chiharu Sawashiro.
Title: TSUKIPRO THE ANIMATION 2 vol.1 Label: Tsukipro/Movic Release date: 26/11/2021 Genre: Pop-rock
Tracklist:
1 - KAN-ZEN-OFF-MODE (SolidS) 2 - LET IT BE (SOARA) 3 - KAN-ZEN-OFF-MODE -off vocal- 4 - LET IT BE -off vocal-
Track analysis (only SOARA’s LET IT BE was reviewed):
2 – LET IT BE
SOARA brings to the spotlight an upbeat pop-rock sound set in a wide soundscape.
There is a warmth coming from the guitars and drums while the piano and bassline add a youthful, slightly melancholic touch to this song.
The verses progress at a comfortable mid-tempo, with the piano painting the background alongside the punchy bassline as the guitars and drums perk you up a bit, putting a smile on your face.
The song naturally progresses to the chorus, the climax of all that fun, memories, and good feelings, and explodes into a sweet, peepy rock tune that will entice you to sing along.
One thing I find particularly interesting in this song – and this is following the band’s growth in the last 2 years – is that their once youthful sound has now matured and that “youthfulness” has turned into “nostalgia”.
Much like the other songs of theirs released since 2019, this song has a lot of nostalgia and melancholy at its core. It is fun but slightly more contained in the way that fun is conveyed to the listener.
This, in my opinion, not only makes their sound more entertaining but it also shows a natural growth that the characters go through – something you don’t usually experience in other 2D music projects (in which characters don’t grow up or updates in age only happen every 3 or 4 years).
SOARA is growing old alongside their fans and while their excitement is the same as ever, you clearly notice that they are at a different place in life from the way the songs were composed. This is a neat detail that I believe not many will pay attention to but something that makes it so worthwhile following this project and band.
Now, when it comes to the vocals, SOARA has sorted out their lines distribution to something that brings, in almost equal measures, Chiharu Sawashiro, Taishi Murata, and Makoto Furukawa’s vocals to balance things out with the main duo, Toshiyuki Toyonaga, and Yuki Ono.
As such, this performance is brimming with life and excitement, with all 5 vocals lending something unique to the song. And when it is time to perform the chorus in unison, something really awesome happens: all voices are clear. You can pick every single one of the 5 vocals with insane ease as no one is overlapping in tone.
All in all, SOARA’s “LET IT BE” is a nostalgic trip down memory lane, embracing a mature brand of their exciting pop-rock sound while delivering a clean, emotional performance.
TSUKIPRO the animation 2 vol.1 is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.
