Showtaro Morikubo delivers an electrifying set of songs in “Chain Reaction“.
Title: Chain Reaction Label: Lantis Genre: J-Rock/Hardrock Release Date: 20/11/2013
Tracklist:
1．CHAIN REACTION 2．生存者 3．Rock-2-U
Track by track analysis:
1 – Chain Reaction
The electrifying rock that Showtaro has made us get used to is back again. Heavy guitar riffs, a good chorus and vocal work from another world, keeping you on the edge of your seat.
There’s a funky twist to the guitar work that I am really fond of in this song.
Instrumental wise this track is a rock piece from start to finish, the raging guitars with Morikubo getting guitar duties in here, the strong bassline and the pop-rock drums make the final piece an electric song, a classic rock piece that won’t get out of your head.
2 – 生存者
“Seizonsha” starts incredibly strong. The double bass on the drums and the heavy guitar riffs lead this head banger. The bassline is otherworldly with all that slap bass along with the aggressive drums and sharp vocals delivered by Morikubo.
The guitar solo is insane and an incredible addition to the track. We’re still headbanging to this one.
3 – Rock-2-U
Heavy riffs, synths and the drums leads us on a song where Morikubo starts singing with a slight distortion on his vocals.
The synths add a kind of futuristic, new wave/industrial vibe to the song, clearly something completely different from all the other songs he has released so far.
The bassline is once again pretty noticeable which is a good thing since it sounds just perfect on this track.
“Rock-2-U” isn’t as aggressive as the last track but makes up for that fact with it’s heavy influenced new wave instrumental built around the synths. Simply good from start to finish.
Final considerations
What a single! It’s safe to say that Showtaro Morikubo is back to the music business and better than ever. “Chain Reaction” is his strongest single release to date.
It’s fierce, daring, heavy and with the right amount of songs for you to head bang to. Impressive vocal work as always, he doesn’t fail to impress. His vocals are sharp, rough and right on the mark without failing notes.
A small note: his English is one of his strongest points on his songs so with him it isn’t possible for you to get lost on some “Engrish” that will “force” you to look for the lyrics, well, we’re talking about a college graduate with honors in English so there is the reason why his English sounds pretty good.
Listening to Showtaro Morikubo on guitar duties is also mesmerizing, he’s a great rhythmic guitarist playing the heaviest riffs in this single.
Regarding the rest of the instrumental pieces well, those sound impressive, the bass is one of the highlights on the single with its slap bass but the drums also deserve an honorable mention for all the fast, technical work with the double bass.
A must listen for fans of good hardrock.
“Chain Reaction” is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.
