THRIVE arrive with a stripped down and mature funky sound in their newest and best single to date, “Wrap Wrap“. Hard not to be swayed by the awesome performances and smooth vocals.
Title: Wrap Wrap Release date: 07/10/2020 Label: MAGES. Genre: Pop
Tracklist:
1 - Wrap Wrap 2 - I'm your Ghost 3 - Wrap Wrap - Off Vocal - 4 - I'm your Ghost - Off Vocal -
Track by track analysis:
1 – Wrap Wrap
Muffled brass does the honors for “Wrap Wrap”, song that brings quite the loungy and mature take on their trademark sound.
Acoustic guitars played with a Spanish flavor and fading synths paint the soundscape for the funky “Wrap Wrap”.
I love the stripped-down verses counting with those groovy guitar riffs, riveting drums and minimalistic bass line. It flows pretty well with the alluring, mature vibe going on.
The build up to the chorus is really smooth, flowing to the chorus seamlessly.
The chorus is fun and funky, with brass and a groovy bass line adding a lot of flavor, underneath the awesome vocals by Toyonaga, Hanae and Kato.
There’s a lot of falsetto in play in their performances with Kato and Hanae particularly making a big impression in that department.
“Wrap Wrap” is quite the refreshing and hypnotizing pop song.
2 – I’m your Ghost
Funk and rock blend to create the groovy “I’m your ghost”.
There’s an acid jazz touch to this track, where the guitars lend a lot from blues and funk, the bass line is groovy in a boogie sense, strings are classy, adding quite the disco touch to this song.
Then you have the jazzy piano and drums adding the final touches to this tasteful song.
The verses are rather gentle, with a piano and strings being the main elements for the 1st half of it. Then, funky guitar riffs and bouncy drums add a bit more of punch to the instrumental, making the verses quite fun to listen to.
The chorus is a bundle of fun and classy, mixing quite well the trio’s usual seductive vibe with a more mature, loungy sound that fits them perfectly.
THRIVE’s vocals are always a delight to listen to. The emotions in their vocals, their harmonies, the groove tackling those verses and the gentleness in the chorus, all make you want to hit that replay button again and again.
Final considerations
THRIVE made quite the 180 to their sound.
Ditching the heavy synths in favor of a stripped down, more emotional – and, as a result, more seductive – sound, THRIVE are sounding at their best.
This danceable, minimalist and loungy sound with a bit of Spanish (in the acoustic guitars) and Latin influences (the brass and the main percussion) fits quite well with the group that have always had quite the mature image and sound.
The title track, “Wrap Wrap” is the best song I’ve listened to by THRIVE.
Addictive, danceable, tasteful in its sound and even in the performances. I found myself wanting more from this track, completely immersed in that loungy sound and how smooth the vocals were.
“I’m your ghost” is an awesome track. Still in the same tone as “Wrap Wrap”, this song is stripped down and pretty mature in its presentation while carrying quite a bit of emotion.
Aside from their seductive gimmick, THRIVE are best known for having a powerful and versatile lineup. Toshiyuki Toyonaga, Kazuki Kato and Natsuki Hanae are sounding at their best in this single.
I absolutely basked in Kato’s falsetto and breathy mid-tones in “Wrap Wrap”, he’s the kind of singer with a lot of warmth and emotion to his vocals but when he cranks that up and adds allure to it, it’s hard not to be swayed by his vocals.
Overall, their harmonies were pleasing and rock solid in terms of consistency, something that I love about this group.
All in all, THRIVE’s “Wrap Wrap” takes the crown as the trio’s best single to date.
Consistent from start to finish, mature in their sound and presentation and with best vocals the talented trio has presented us with since their debut.
Wrap Wrap is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.
[…] “Wrap Wrap” isn’t shy about being sexy with its brass, Latin inspired percussion and acoustic guitars but does so in such a classy way that made my jaw drop in awe. […]