Review | VAZZROCK play of color Series Vol.4

Provocative and exciting, VAZZROCK play of color Series Vol.4 Strong Taste, is an absolute banger that you’ll want to listen to again and again.

Title: VAZZROCK play of color Series Vol.4 Strong Taste
Release date: 31/07/2020
Label: Movic
Genre: R&B / Rock

Tracklist:

1 - DRAMA『ばずらじ』収録中！
2 - DRAMA「Strong taste」
3 - Sue-Kiss-Sue-Kiss
4 - snow edge
5 - Sue-Kiss-Sue-Kiss -off vocal-
6 - snow edge -off vocal-

Track by track analysis:

3 – Sue-Kiss-Sue-Kiss

The VAZZROCK franchise is not known for being sexy or playing risqué with their music but, for a change, that is exactly what we have in Sue-Kiss-Sue-Kiss.

Suggestive guitar riffs, an old-school 80s pop bass line + beat combo and R&B inspired atmospheric synths set an alluring and mature vibe to this song.

The verses are punchy, flowing slowly and carrying a downright sexy vibe that builds up into complete dangerous addiction in the chorus. Sexy and melodic, the chorus seals the deal for me. 

Although the lineup for this release is off the charts in terms of quality and versatility, I need to talk about Takuya Sato, the one exuding a hypnotizing sexy vibe, leading the way for this song.

Sato took over this track, adding it a natural, racy twist that Masahiro Yamanaka and Yukitoshi Kikuchi complemented with their skilled vocals.

The harmonies, the canons, the R&B riffing and ad-libs, this is a masterful performance. The best song in the VAZZROCK franchise, hands down.

4 – snow edge

This release wraps up with “snow edge“, an up-tempo electronic rock song that blends delicate strings with intense synths and shredding guitar riffs.

The verses are powerful and fast paced, never missing a beat while carrying over a lot of tension to the chorus.

Guitars are low, the bass is thunderous and the drums… The drums go wild on the double bass, something that we don’t find with that much frequency in 2D music projects.

Nice to have it making an appearance in the VAZZROCK franchise and on such an awesome, headbanging song as this one.

This is the kind of song that will keep you on your toes, this is the kind of sound that I expected was more frequently found in the VAZZROCK franchise.

Intense, powerful and tasteful rock. The vocals are fancy and carrying a lot of emotion. Masahiro Yamanaka particularly shines on this song, with his vibrato adding quite a lot of power to the overall performance.

But let’s not forget the other members. Yukitoshi Kikuchi does a stellar job with those uniquely flavored high tones whereas Takuya Sato blasts his way thorough the song with an intensity that is riveting.

Final considerations

The 4^th entry in VAZZROCK’s play of color series finds Masahiro Yamanaka (VAZZY), Yukitoshi Kikuchi (ROCK DOWN’s leader), Takuya Sato (ROCK DOWN) on the vocals, one of the best match-ups in this series.

Complete on the vocals end, what was left for this trio was for their songs to be as compelling and exciting as their quality.

And what happened?

They went full-on sexy with “Sue-Kiss-Sue-Kiss”, song that came as a surprise, especially when you look back at the VAZZROCK franchise and the last word you’d use to describe it would be “sexy”.

However, as unexpected as it was, “Sue-Kiss-Sue-Kiss” turned into an instant favorite of mine.

By the time the 1^st chorus kicked in, I was completely invested in this pop-rock song with some hints of R&B in the mix.

As someone born in the 90s, this song has such a nostalgic sound for me, it’s that textbook sexy pop song with a rock edge – because “sexy” in the 90s meant adding melodic guitar riffs to pop and R&B – that won’t me over.

It may sound a bit cheesy to some people but, for me, it was an instant winner. You don’t find songs sounding like this nowadays, sexy and classy at the same time while being pretty explicit about its intentions.

Things change around a bit for the coupling track, “snow edge”, song that explored a heavier brand of rock, as a matter of fact, it explored electronic rock with a beautiful strings twist. It fit the trio’s vocals and closed this release in a really good note.

VAZZROCK play of color Series Vol.4 Strong Taste is the best release in the play of color series.

VAZZROCK play of color Series Vol.4 is available for purchase at CDJAPAN.

 

VAZZROCK play of color Series (4) “Strong taste”

Drama CD