VS AMBIVALENZ breaks the mold of generic 2D idol groups with a unique dreamy sound, perfect production, and unreal balance on the vocal end.
Introduction
VS AMBIVALENZ is a 2D music project by NIZISTA (best known for HANDEAD ANTHEM). It has a pretty unique format in which only 7 out of the 14 members will make it to the final group.
And in charge of deciding who makes it to the group is you, the listener.
The cast includes Shintaro Asanuma, Makoto Furukawa, Chiaki Kobayashi, Reiou Tsuchida, Tasuku Hatanaka, Kengo Kawanishi and Ayumu Murase.
To get to know more about this project, please refer to THTFHQ’s extended article about VS AMBIVALENZ.
Review
Title: Go My Own Way Release date: 22/12/2021 Label: NIZISTA Genre: EDM/Pop
Tracklist:
1 - Go My Own Way 2 - Opening Drama Track [Hello, GLANZ!!] 3 - Restart 4 - it's you! 5 - Secret Drama Track [1st mission after party] 6 - Private Drama Track [roommate]
Track by track analysis:
1 – Go My Own Way
Washy synths create a breathy soundscape in “Go My Own Way”. The instrumental is soft, with airy synths and subtle piano and synth stabs adding some dimension to the vast soundscape in front of you.
The song progresses on top of its comfortable mid-tempo beat, smoothly welcoming the feel-good tropical-inspired chorus.
Something that instantly stood out for me is how clean the instrumental is, making sure to create a vast and dreamy soundscape for the listener to lose themself in.
As far as vocals go, I’ve said multiple times that pop and EDM music tend to use unison in a really lazy way – usually to cover for weaknesses on the vocal end or, alternatively, to draw the tension away from any quick things on the instrumental. Now follow me on this one: this song has a fully unison chorus.
What changes here, in my opinion, is that, within this unison, you can tell apart all members. There is clarity there. That is something most 2D groups completely miss and, in this case, the unison is actually pleasing because while there are 7 vocals (actually 14 as all seiyuu are voicing 2 characters), you don’t feel like that chorus is crowded.
Firstly, because the instrumental was really well thought out. By making it airy and wide, you can “spread” the vocals in the mixing, not setting those too close to the listener. And then, good mixing did the rest of the magic, and that’s how the chorus in “Go My Own Way” is absolutely pleasing to listen to when it has everything to go wrong.
Genuinely solid introduction to VS AMBIVALENZ.
3 – Restart
Splashing your way into the song, “Restart” brings an interesting mix of tropical EDM with sprinkles of rock on top. While this may look like a generic mix just press play in this song.
This is not even close to a generic song. The spin to the tropical EDM sound is quite the big surprise right from the start. Those dirty guitar riffs at the start help build up the tension, leading you to the dreamy, wide soundscape waiting for you in the verses.
As wide and bright as those can be – while being tasteful -, the verses are minimalistic, bringing a comfortable bassy beat, a subtle bassline and fancy synth stabs to add depth to the track.
In the background, you do have tropical influences, with the fading, almost washy synths sweeping through the soundscape. But that is really the extent of the tropical elements, serving more as an accent rather than as the main feature.
Tension slowly rises to the chorus, leading the listener to what is one of the strongest choruses to grace us all in 2022 (at least so far, you and I can still be surprised plenty more times until the end of the year).
And this chorus is… bloody perfect. The smooth build-up in tension, the fading synths, the delicate piano accents on your right ear (this is so beautiful and may go unnoticed), the steady bassy 4/4 beat, the punchy bassline, and then those powerful vocals.
On the vocal end, VS AMBIVALENZ is impressive. From their unison parts – as clean as ever – to their individual parts, with all seiyuu tackling two different tones (some even in different vocal ranges). Vibrato, falsetto, ad-libs, powerful unison, harmonies.
This is a performance that is oddly pleasing for how much of the “normal” male vocal range it covers. It is a performance with a unique color and it is quite impressive how such a perfect balance in the vocals this 14-person lineup has.
VS AMBIVALENZ has got in here a catchy – and tasteful – dancefloor anthem. And I’m all in for it.
4 – it’s you!
And wrapping up this single is the bubbly EDM-pop tune “it’s you!”.
As soon as this song kicks off it’s pretty easy to know you’ve been taken to a loungy soundscape in which there are only good vibes. The synth lead is groovy, there are jolly piano + synth stabs in the background, a punchy bassline that goes hand in hand with the breakbeat leading the way.
And what really gives off those 90s bubbly pop vibes for me is that combo of lead synth and the breakbeat. I was not expecting those to come to such a bubbly song but hell if that isn’t still an effective combo almost 30 years later!
There are tropical-inspired synths in the background doing all sorts of things to ensure the instrumental has depth and a dynamic worth revisiting. Fading, washy, and poly synths are just some of the ones you can find in the background, cranking up that excitement in “it’s you!”.
Expect the vocals to be slightly higher in this song, fitting the jolly tone and peppy lyrics.
While not the best song on this CD, this is an interesting take on bubbly pop music, not making it overly sweet and certainly straying away from becoming cheesy, delivering a solid performance on top of an instrumental that ensures that the “bubbly” tone in this song ends up sounding stylish.
Final considerations
VS AMBIVALENZ arrives with a bang.
Right off the bat, there is a whole lot of quality to the project, with a sound of a seasoned 2D group and vocals on such a high level that you wouldn’t even think this is the project’s debut year.
I was initially reluctant about checking this project because the talk was all about how the music is EDM and dance and… there are so many 2D music projects with that sound (+ idol concept) that it gets boring with each new project that appears. I thought that, naturally, this project would fall into the same bag of generic 2D idol projects with pop/EDM music.
Oh, boy, how wrong was I? I love being proven wrong in these assessments and finding hidden gems or projects/artists that break the mold despite tackling what would – originally – seem “generic” concepts or sound.
VS AMBIVALENZ arrived to impress. That’s my conclusion. In the highly competitive 2D music industry, this is an idol project with pop music, facing the tough competition of established projects while trying to be different and capture its audience.
The project brings the high stakes of only 7 of the 14 characters making it to the final group in which you, the listener, can vote on without purchasing CDs, joining fanclubs, or having to do any crazy thing.
It’s fairly straightforward and as you may have noticed, that “survival” element to the project has brought a lot of attention to it, with everyone curious about who will make it to the final lineup.
The lineup is fairly balanced, bringing tenors, baritones and a bass singer to the mix in Shintaro Asanuma, Makoto Furukawa, Chiaki Kobayashi, Reiou Tsuchida, Tasuku Hatanaka, Kengo Kawanishi and Ayumu Murase.
One thing that instantly grabbed my attention was the mixing of all songs.
You have 7 voice actors but, in reality, 14 voices in each recording. Usually, that would sound, no matter what, crowded anytime there would be a unison (and 2D groups love unisons like there is no tomorrow so it was bound to happen), so it had everything to sound bad.
However, if you listen to those choruses… notice how clean those unison parts are! The choruses in all 3 songs are way too pleasing in my opinion as a geeky composer/mixer.
You can tell all 14 voices apart which is crazy – especially clear if you’re playing the song through fairly good headphones/speakers. Clarity is underappreciated in 2D music so it is a nice surprise to find a 2D music project that focused on that.
Also, when there are unison parts (14 voices in total, with groups of 7 taking turns), the instrumental doesn’t go bonkers in its volume levels, keeping everything, yet again, clean and pleasing.
I feel like just from a composition/mixing side, VS AMBIVALENZ is incredibly strong. I also feel like this is something that most fans won’t even care about, even if it is something that clearly sets this project aside from others also with idols and pop music as their concepts.
Now, for an analysis of the songs: I won’t get into much more detail because I’ve already written plenty in this review so far but “Restart” was love at first listen. While “Go My Own Way” is a fantastic song with a beautiful dreamy soundscape and motivational performance, “Restart” is pretty much flawless on all fronts, not to mention insanely catchy.
“it’s you!” appears as the bubbly EDM pop tune made to put a smile on your face – if the other songs have yet to do so -, arriving with a stylish take on peppy music.
Usually, 2D music projects have that overly sweet, sometimes cheesy, take on pop music that really doesn’t make the vocals shine. But what the composers and mixer managed to pull off for this song is quite interesting.
90s breakbeat meets EDM pop and what you get is a stylish take on bubbly pop music with a catchy beat and chorus.
While not my favorite song on this CD, this is a fun throwback song with a mildly sweet performance on top that doesn’t put aside technique and harmony on the vocal end.
I can safely say that this CD alone made me want to look for the rest of the music by the project because it is bloody awesome.
VS AMBIVALENZ’s “Go My Own Way” is nothing like what you’ve listened to so far from 2D idol groups. The care for quality music and technical performances is there. The balance between vocals is insane. Their sound is upbeat and tasteful while the soundscapes are aesthetically pleasing.
“Go My Own Way” is unavailable for purchase at CDJAPAN. You can find the single on streaming platforms worldwide.
“Go My Own Way” is available for streaming on Spotify.
Do not support piracy. Remember to support VS AMBIVALENZ by streaming via official outlets.