The first buddy team – ARASHI and SORA – brings pop-punk rock to the spotlight for an electrifying “NEW DEVIATION“.
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 counts with an 8 character cast, with characters split into 4 different “buddy” units of singer + songwriter.
Tokyo Color Sonic counts with drama + music in its CDs.
To know more about this project, make sure to check our quick guide to it.
Review
Title: Tokyo Color Sonic!! Unit.1 ARASHI×SORA Label: sprout/COLORATION Release date: 30/07/2021 Genre: Pop-Punk
Tracklist:
1 - 7 - DRAMA TRACKS 8 - NEW DEVIATION
Track analysis:
1 – NEW DEVIATION
Overdriven guitars paint a dreamy soundscape in the intro to “NEW DEVIATION”. The song quickly changes dynamics as it enters its first verse, with the powerful guitar riffs toning down, giving way to the bass and drums to take the spotlight.
The verses are brief, quickly evolving into an explosive, punk-pop-inspired chorus that will have you headbanging along. It has a youthful yet intense vibe that is further enhanced by the charismatic performance by Shoya Chiba.
My only issue with this song lies once again with how low the vocals are in comparison to the instrumental.
It seems like Chiba is far away at the same time that the guitars are surrounding smothering you and the drums taking center stage. This is an odd mixing and it may take some listens to get used to it. If his vocals were brought up a bit (or the instrumental sound levels toned down), this song would be perfect.
As far as the vocals go, Chiba brought a lot of energy for this track – a must for the fast-paced punk-pop genre – and gave a twist to his vocals, lowering a bit his tone and bringing vibrato into the mix. He delivers each line with confidence and never misses a beat. He was rock solid.
“NEW DEVIATION” will be an exciting track for fans of rock music to enjoy. If you were expecting the solo tracks to go in the same line as “Begin on Buddy”, then this track will come as a surprise (yet a pleasant one if you enjoy good vocals and don’t mind fast-paced guitars and drums).
Straightforward and intense, “NEW DEVIATION” is a good introduction to the buddy team 1 and its vocal, Arashi (CV: Shoya Chiba).
Tokyo Color Sonic!! Unit.1 ARASHI×SORA is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.
