My Boy Friend

Included in the forth volume VHS of the Hoshineku Full House series is this little single.  Published by the Walkers Company Inc.  Vocals again from the talent group known as LISP, which have not appeared again till recently only on another soundtrack done by Nagaoka.  I'm not sure if they are the same people though.  A chorus joins in this time, name MILK, but no details on what the name comprises of.

01	My Boy Friend	4:28
02	そしてすべてが終わり	4:37

Disc length 9:05






My Boy Friend takes the lead as being the fun song with its amazing opener.  Certainly a huge touch of jazz is inserted for this one.  LISP stand out more and each singer can be heard even when singing together.  Despite the girly title, I don't feel it as being singled out for the female audience.  Second song is composed by Hitomi Kuroishi, so it feels a little more conservative in terms of music and pace.  Drums, vocals, and bass guitar are pretty laid back, which give off a romantic love feeling without pushing it too far as such. Both songs are pretty similar to each other, and definitely have a different tone then the singles from vol. 3.   Nagaoka's own composition and arrangement for the first song is certainly stronger then his last in vol. 3, Dancin' Twilight. 


Remember, this is the artists first real gig, at least as a solo artist.  Before this it was a few image albums that seemed to be like he was shadowing or interning as for experience.  I did not expect much difference in song making here, but behold there are some marked improvements.  Specifically in Nagoaka's control of the vocals.  Same vocalists but they feel more matured here and while the three vocalists of LISP sing over each other for most of the songs, each singer has a chance to take a few verses individually.  There is no fear of high notes being struck bad or at all, and no problem with the cute sounds of the synth board overlapping the vocals.  So I'm intrigued by how well Mr. Nagaoka has leveled his instrumentation and vocalists.  I still place Honeymoon as the best song of the four.  There is fortunately enough consistency between all of them.  Both single discs are worth the place in anyone's collection large or small.  

暗黒神伝承 武神:劇中音楽集 Takegami OST

Ah, finally!!  I've been wondering if this soundtrack exists.  I'm glad I found it.  Not rare or expensive.  In fact, I think this CD is highly overlooked.  It exists, and this is my attempt and spreading the knowledge. 

22 tracks?  It should be expected  not to expect everything.  Our composer is the sound producer here, unlike in Kabuto.  So here we go. 

Opening track has Terumi giving her prayer to the Eight-Headed Dragon.  It was not given in the anime.  Nice flute music in the background, then rolls the eerie intro music.  Not a good start, they should have had that separated.  At least offer the BGM in a separate piece.  It was some good wind work.  Other than that, this is the best start.  Fortunately, it only happens for this instance.

1. 開かれし伝説の扉
2. 淡き想いに…
3. 闇からの胎動
4. 武速文献
5. 翡翠輝く時
6. 朱砂の王と地の龍と…
7. 五坊陣
8. 古しえの記憶
9. 悲しみを抱き止めて…
10. 逃亡
11. 龍目紋の龍
12. あつい想い
13. 天空の巨人
14. 去り行く女性の温もりは…
15. 八百比丘尼
16. 婚姻説話
17. 水蛯子
18. もう一人の巨人
19. 神々の戦い
20. 武神
21. エピローグ
22. 天翔 

I'm going to go even further with the opening sequence track.  Ethnically rich in Asian themes.  I wish the breaking sound in the film was included from the film.  After the tense intro music, a melancholic piece follows.  The piano sounds dated, or out of tune, but is probably was done purposefully.  An oboe accompanies the piano, adding more sadness.  Dark bass chords are struck at the  begining.  Then get darker nearing the end.  I remember feeling the pulse of the bass in the show.  Here it seems like just a sound.  The next two pieces are just as eerie and dark as the first.  Track 3 has evil night jingle.  Superb sound effects that gives you the chills.  Track 4 starts with woodworks and broken keys.  Electric guitar and windworking carry you through this isolated piece.  

The above can be quite disturbing.  Track four can be most irritating, but thats for normal minds.  Their dark and brood themes can be haunting.  Best to be enjoyed when alone.  I'm really happy with the inclusion of track 5.  A rock arrangement, infused with the gothic themed show.  Again, I was not feeling the percussion on this piece.  

Track 6 is the main fight theme.  Starting Koichi's realization, some acoustic flutes, then the percussion hits.  Though it was much more effective on screen.  Woodworking signifies the emergence of the monsters.  Quite a long piece, but needs to be louder.  

I'm guessing the tracks are in order of appearance.  That ends the first episodes tracks, and they've missed many unfortunately.  Second episode opener is here.  I missed it in the show, or I thought it was just sound effects.  Glad to have it.  Heavy drums and odd sounds give new flavor to the show.  Track 8 excellently spinkles with piano keys.  A great arrangement of the keys, that soon follows with a vocal.  Nothing different from the anime, but sounds even better here.  An uplifting yet emotionally low track follows it.  Track 10 is Koichi's escape.  Very enticing.  Its short, but the bass and acoustic guitar and flute changes the tone of the CD.

The first action piece of the second OAV.  Even more ethnic music.  Love the strings and flute here.  Gets one ready to fight a dragon.  The action has yet to start, but gets you ready for it.  Sound production has truly gone up in one episode.  A short intermission from actual soundtrack.  A short drama piece, track 12.  Either it's Koichi's or Juinbo's seiyuu.  I like it, the music used makes it a blessing with what he's saying, yet a burden that it is not a stand alone track.  It opens with harps, and then adds the dark piano keys with the jingles of track 3.  

Episode 2's action piece, in short, is amazing.  I don't recall any music from this episode, but it's all laid out excellently here.  I was really expecting Seichiro's and Sayo's Love and Escape theme.  Though what's offered here is making me forget that.  For track 14 and 15 comes back to the anime's dark theme.  The childrens chant is a welcome in 14.  Track 14 gets you down, but 15 goes even further.  My favorite melancholic ending theme in triumphant mp3 form.  Chinese fiddle strings with powerful acoustics that chorally fill the ears, reaching beyond the soul.  Great addition of the pounding drums.  Whether heard off the show or on this OST, these two tracks are going to make you cry.  And keep on wanting to cry. 

Given how both episodes ended on a bad note, and 2 ended even worse.  Ep. 3 is does not continue in such a manner.  Again, I don't recall any of the music standing out here.  Though, production values seemed to have gotten even better again.  It's opener is odd, but used the alien sounds to accurately depict the strange life form that was the subject of this story.  It is truly an aesthetic piece.  Violins sweep, flute alienates the listener, bass violin takes over, accompanied by chilling vocals all to trumbling close.  

Track 17 jumps to the female monster chase fight/scene.  This one sounds like techno, but uses mostly traditional instruments.  Track 18 is another superb action piece.  So well done, that I felt the size of the monster that approaches the city.  Truly gets the feeling that something big is coming.  All to a climactic end.

HoLLLLLYYY Helllll!!!!!  Track 19 alone puts all of Nagaoka's music to shame.  It blasts open with crazy drums and tense cello sweeps.  The gong/bell sound is perfect rendition of how epic this battle is.  More violins and strings show the intensity between the warriors.  Amazing drum orchestration makes for a perfect track.  

Next is the full ending to the first and last episode. Don't expect to hear it the same way off the anime.  It's more fleshed out here.  Bass guitar interlude in the minute and a half mark is beautifully composed.  Excellent high point struck, and well crafted ending.  Another drama piece after this, but the BGM is more of a music box deal, so I'm not mad it's not alone.  

The final track is another prized track among the prize that this OST presents.  The tragic song of the Susa/Koichi sacrifice.  Cause how can they make a song and not have it available.  When listening to this, don't expect to know the lyrics because the first verse was not used in the anime.  佐藤 幸世 or Sato Hiroyuki is the vocalist, whom I guess was a popular anime singer of that time.  Nagoaka gets her vocal chords to work in sync with the already emotional composition.  She hits the high pitch note, as is normal with Japanese Seiyuu, but does not even feel like it.  A very mature song, thankfully.  Love the whipping sound as the percussion.  Here is a taste of the previous few tracks.  Put some headphones on and listen carefully.

                                  

The packaging here suffers.  Though it is normal for Victor to just have a few pages, or just a panphlet.  The album cover is attractive, but more of that could have been inserted.  The only extra provided here is commentary by the creator/director Osamu Yamasaki.  Whom, I will be giving bio coverage of, eventually.  Though, the man in question, Mr. Nagaoka had no lines to speak.  That's ok, his musical voice is good enough.  Package Grade: 4/10

 

I really had a difficult time reviewing this OST.  That's because I have no education on what the sounds or instruments really are.  Even so, this soundtrack is so amazing, that I still can't find the right words to describe it.  Absolutely, NO track can be done with out.  Many BGM's are missing.  Though, what is here, cannot be denied.  Koichi's theme was probably left out, becuase it was upbeat and happy compared to the entire soundtrack.  I still think that this soundtrack could have been completed.  While the compositions are without peer, the sound was very weak.  Especially for the first episode.  They must have heard of Bass boost at that time.  It might be the greatest music, but it needs to be heard.  OST Grade: S++

Seek this treasure out!!!!!

Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki Ongaku Hen 1

PICA-1003 

'92.08.25

 

I remember a different version of the cover.  Mihoshi was in place of Washu.  I find that odd, that all characters are shown before the release of the first episode, which comes out a month later.  It's a good way to get a feeling the characters before they go on screen.  Though, I'd rather have them come out as a surprise, then have this come out.  Anyways, there is a lot planned for the future with this CD.

 

One would expect an OST to mainly consist of, well, ORIGINAL MUSIC!! There are 8 short dramas, couple character songs, few instrumentals, and OP/ED themes in their full glory.  Chisa Yokoyama, Sasami's Seiyuu, sings the ending theme. Composed by Ikuru Fujiwara, the man behind most Pioneer/AIC theme songs.  He does an excellent job of capturing the fun in the anime in this one song.  Chisa's voice is actually not that annoying.  I can listen to this song without any qualms.  Even when compared to the amazing English versions.

Unfortunately, the original OAV theme opener does not lay anywhere on this disc, but we do get the Original Version and the Re-Mix Version.  Oddly, they place the remix first and the original last.  The original, of course, stays true to the opener, only getting into the main arrangement immediately.  Some haunting vocals have been added. Love hearing the bass.  Drums are masterful.  The jingles and japanese acoustic give great flavor.  Just when you think its over at 1:50 it loops, but doesn't give the feeling of repitition.  As Nagaoka, improvises it even further.  The remix version, is not necessary, and kind of can be a turn-off.  The drums are more ethereal here, as well as other instruments.  I was expecting more use of synthesizers, but all instruments sound authentic on this one.  The piece does feel a little slower.  I actually I am happy with the turnout. 

I've avoided the character songs for to long.  If not for this review, I wouldn't have embraced how well done these songs are.  Ryoko's seiyuu, Ai Orikasa, takes the mic in Daiichi Hakkensha Blues.  The smooth rythym posed in this song goes along with the cover.  As in, it gives off the whole jazz club feeling.  Nagaoka and Oriakasa should go together more often.  She does express her seduction as the character would in this song. 

Away from the R&B section, Yumi Takada, poses as Aeka, and sings us a ballad.  Seikou puts the Juraian themes in this song.  Piano, harps, oboe and snare drums occupy the entire track.  Takada is accompanied by some male vocals at the end.  All leading to a triumphant finish. 

Both Takada and Orikasa follow Masami Kikuchi in a duet, only with three people.  Ueno No Koi No Monogatari continues the rythym and blues theme.  I guess jazz and R&B is not so bad when in the hands of Nagaoka.  Ryoko and Aeka bicker with each other, trying to out sing one another.  The song almost falls apart hilariously at the end. 

Now for the radio dramas, constructed by none other, lady Nahoko Hasegawa.  It's worth actually getting into these voiced adventures.  Out of the Tenchi dramas, these are my favorites, because she truly expresses the characters in a unique way.  Hayashi Hiroki even sketches out the scenario for each drama.  Giving an extra method to understanding the dialog for non-Japanese speakers.

Mini-Drama 1 sounds like they are at bar.  Again, accurately depicted in the sketch above.  Ryoko is daydreaming or something and Aeka breaks the fantasy.  Then Aeka gets drunk as well, and she gets into her monologue.  Things get wild with some rapid footwork.  Aeka gives some shock therapy that tickles Ryoko. 

Ryoko's Theme follows.  A great representation of the character.  In one of the many Tenchi books, Seikou states that Ryoko is his favorite character.  It certainly shows here.  The track is filled with a strong beat, synthesizers depict Ryoko's fiestiness, and at the same time her lonliness. 

Second mini-drama, is a short Ryoko monologue.  Tenchi and Sasami are spying on her.  Trying to keep quiet and laugh at Ryoko's thoughts.  Ayeka gets the third mini-drama, for the full 30 seconds.  Then in the fourth, it's both of the girls, discussing something.  Aeka looks for Tenchi's attention, but does not respond.  She then yells for a response.  Ryoko laughs at the relationship.  Tenchi seems very overpowered here, but at least he says somethings.  Sasami is picked on for some reason. 

The middle of the OST has some long instrumentals.  The first is the Ryo-Ohki Summoning, or Sneaky Tenchi theme.  Bass, violins, and some acoustics quietly fill in for two minutes, before some percussive instruments take charge for another two minutes.  It feels tense as it should, and the synth helps add character.  Aeka's theme follows.  Might take some time to actually like.  Percussion and ethnic Japanese strings set the mood for the piece.  Acoustic rythyms and pace establish the peaceful and proper nature that is Aeka.  The opposite of Ryoko.  Don't skip this theme, becuase then the character can't be fully understood.

The Destruction of the Saito Bridge, begins with synthesizers and a beat, signifying that something is emerging.  The intensity builds, before some snare drums and ticking sounds give it speed.  The oboe moves in for the evolution of the BGM.  Guitars start getting pressed on to show the gravity of the situation.  At two minutes the action begins.  Oboe, clarinet and strings represent the fall of the ships.  An epic track that deserves the repeat treatment.

Mini-drama 5, has Tenchi on the edge.  Sasami and Aeka try to play karaoke.  Sasami comes out of no where laughing in the sixth drama.  Tenchi is running again. 

Another Aeka BGM insert.  This sweet piano/oboe ballad is very welcoming, but is put to shame by the next BGM.  The instrumental gem, Royal Teardrop of Jurai.  I'm not even going to describe how powerful this ensemble is.  A majestic symphony.

In the 8th drama, Ryoko sings her song which wakes up and annoyes Aeka.  Whereas, in 7, Ryoko and Aeka are sneaking in the middle of the night and cross each other.  They do battle. Aeka seems to be doing some damage.  Sasami is awoken, wakes up Tenchi, and he has a fit by the girls destruction.  They simmer down and pout about it. 

Kajishima provides the character illustrations.  Artwork that I cannot find in any other Tenchi media. The Washu uniform is sleek.  Wish it was used in the anime.  Pioneer does not mess around when it comes to extra's, but where is the music.  The booklet is complete with images and descriptions.  In my opinion, over the top design.  Booklet barely fits in the case.  Package: 10/10

What is provided here is beyond complaint.  The cuts between the tracks were off.  It was as if it was all recorded in sit.  A split second of the drama echoes into the BGM song.  The BGM song carries on into the drama.  With only 6 actual BGM's, it's hard to really grade the musical world of Tenchi.  There could have been the Tenchi and Sasami themes at least.  Aeka's themes may bore the listener, but they are quite essential.  The rest of the soundtrack is a party, and Ryoko alone is a fiesta.  Album: A...

City Hunter Original Special CD- #2 Bay City Wars, #3 Plot of $1,000,000

Since I liked the songs from the Dramatic Hunter cd that I reviewed last month, I went and bought me this.  This was the only cheapest one available with an obi.  As soon as it arrived, I just popped it in.  I actually listened to it all the way through, while working out.  Opening song was engineered rather nicely.  Then the following instrumentals carried me through the work out.  Anyway, I was only turned away by the jazzy/blues theme of the music.  I did like the rock orientation with it, but was used in a romantic way that I didn't like.  Still, this CD is worth a look.

While the cover does say its from the motion picture, I don't see how that is so.  This album seems more like an arranged or cover production.  Even seems more like music videos.  Instrumentals are done by Tatsumi Yano, and he arranged Take Me Back.  The other two songs were done by various artist.  I'm jealous that this production gets live instruments and there are composers who should be utilizing them. 

01-	Rock My Love	4:31
02-	Night Moves	4:40
03-	DeathTrap	6:29
04-	Kanojo no Omoi	4:03
05-	Woman in the Dark	4:35
06-	Easy-Going Guy	4:14
07-	Take Me Back	4:10
08-	BayCity Battle	4:29
09-	More More Shiawase	4:58
10-	Never Say Goodbye	4:45

I'll start with the songs.  Rock My Love has hip synthesizers and jazzy rock influence.  Yoki Oginome does a nice job as the vocalist.  Fitting for typical 80's and 90's themes.  I like the middle of the song where she raps.  Take Me Back is odd indeed.  It starts out more like a poem, with some bluesy strings.  Then the actually chorus and song take place with some soulful english lyrics.  I really love the arrangement of this song.  Both of the songs mentioned are very different.  They were really smart in songs styles.  Definetly not your normal beats.  Oginome also sings More More Shiawase.  Nothing attractive about the begining.  This song is more traditional in terms of songs style.  I didn't like the addition of kids singing in the chorus.  Still this does some justice to the ears.  Take Me Back definetly stands out though.

Yoko Oginome, ready to dance! This picture really has that 80's era feel.

It's time to test the series composer, the instrumentals are up.  Night Moves is hip, starting with some bass drums, and the jungle beats.  Snazzy strings and hornets carry you throughout this piece.  It stops with some nice romantic vocals.  The synthesizers and keyboards make it feel atmospheric.  An excellent piece, all the way through, as it fades out.  Death Trap begins with loud drum beats and moves in with some rocking gutiar, a great start, but the French horn rips in.  That is what scares me about jazz.  It always reminds me of someone ripping a big one.  It's a long track, kind of too long.  Yano plays around alot in this one.  Exactly at the middle of track, it sounds like its skipping, but not.  That was well put, and then starts back up again. 

Forth track isn't all that special.  This is really couples music here.  Even with a date, I wouldn't put on, but it may put that "falling in love" mood for the women.  Too much jazz club themes.  Violins are added for extra sweetness.  I like the drums, but doesn't help me like it much.  Easy Going Guy is also for dance clubs.  Takes you back to old west, and yet it its as modern the those jazz clubs still available today.  Not my cup of tea, though.  Woman in the Dark is a sweet rock melody.  Very entrancing.  Yano doesn't go far at all with trumpets and horns.  Keyboards are well used for a nice ring in your head.  It calls for repition like Night Moves.  The dog-like guitar arrangement was wierd but good.

 Baycity Battle gets into it right away.  Again, with those annoying horns ripping it out loud, but damn if this track isn't so rocking.  Guitars in the backround can be in the way.  This is like battle in a casino.  Nicely done anthemic ambience. Never Say Goodbye literally sounds like your turning on your Playstation.  Piano's and violins rule this moody track.  Vocal chorus and drums are a plus.  An excellent finish. 

I'm really happy with this purchase.  There were alot of things that I'm against in music, but Tatsumi Yano does a nice job in attracting me to his style.  He might make it to my favorite composer list.  I just need more of his cds and he doesn't have much outside City Hunter.

This CD deserves an A for outstanding music, orchestra, and songs.  Quality of tracks of are very high, but not a whole lot of variety.  Quantity is about fair.  In terms of the packaging, a 6/10 is fair.  Jewel case is basically empty without cd and booklet.  There is no back cover.  The booklet is the reason for the high package rating.  Booklet cover is nice, but doesn't stand out.  Credits are laid out well and we get director and producer comments.  Each song gets fleshed out on the pages.  The score above is enough warrant for you to obtain this cd.  It's not rare at all. 

Fire Emblem: Thracia 776-Blow'in in the Wind Single

Very rarely do video games have CD soundtracks, and even fewer do have songs, and even far fewer CD singles.  I find no use for CDS's.  For franchises, singers, animations, etc, that barely make any songs, is where they are needed.  This is one of those rare cases. I don't like to have media divided in so many different formats.  

Koh Ohtani helps arrange these unique songs, with our veteran composer, Yuka Tsujiyoko.  Ohtani adds his jazzy style, yet Tsujiyoko manages to keep the songs magically entrancing.  Blow'in in the Wind(odd how they spelled Blowing) fits nicely into the Fire Emblem series.  I understand that these were used for the BS satelite game.  Which was taken in place with the Akaneia saga.  Funny, how these songs made out two years after the fact. I like the middle of the song with the jazzy sounds and synth piano. 

Wind rocks, with a nice rock guitar.  I'm glad that the lyrics are done by our beloved composer.  It works wonderfully with the vocalist, Juliana Schano.  Nothing annoying about her voice thankfully.  She is pictured on the back.  She sings every note perfectly.  Even the high notes, which is where people tend to mess up.

For this CDS, it is necessary to have it.  If you are looking for karaoke versions.  I like the cover art, done by Miyumi Hirota.  It's the only place you can see it, as far as I can tell.  Problem is, that only the one song has karaoke.  You can find both songs on the games original soundtracks. So the only thing of value is the karaoke and the images. Both songs, beautifully arranged, all thanks to Yuka. Good luck finding this, and you will be paying a hefty price. 

City Hunter Dramatic Master CD

This is one of many cd's that accidentally fell into my collection.  They had come with a bunch of cd's I didn't want, but had to get them if I wanted the specific one.  Of the bunch, I tried this and liked it.  I try a lot of cd's without regards to the show they belong to.  I'm quite glad I did, which got me to ordering some others from this series.  All other cd's I had, had no hand to grasp me.  The series is a old, but that is what makes it good.

1.ANGEL NIGHT～天使のいる場所～
2.WHAT'S GOIN' ON
3.ゴーゴーヘブン
4.NO NO NO
5.FOOTSTEPS
6.EARTH～木の上の方舟～
7.SUPER GIRL
8.STILL LOVE HER(失われた風景)
9.CITY HUNTER?愛よ消えないで～
10.MR. PRIVATE EYE
11.終りのない傾き
12.SARA
13.GIVE ME YOUR LOVE TONIGHT
14.PARTY DOWN
15.GET WILD
The entire cd is not all that great. What first grabbed me was, What's Goin' On sung by Kohiruimaki Kahoru.  She is spunky.  The song is jazzy as is all of the cd and most of the era's music.  I like the lyrics, even though I don't understand theme, and the upbeat tone of it.  She also sings track 9, which has her starting off at the wrong beat, but I like the bluesy lyrics. 

Go GO Go, number 3 is a fun song as well.  I don't like male vocals, but for this it was ok.  It's the high pitches they do, makes them less of a man.  Like track 11, another male vocalist, sounds like he can't sing, but the song is good.  I like how it fades out. 

Footsteps, is a nice short english song.  Even though the songs are in English, they're sung by the seiyuu.  Give Me YOUR Love Tonight is my other favorite.  It's those lonely city nights songs.  You can tell that she's japanese by the way she pronounces the words.  Like she's reading the English words in Japanese.  Party Down, is like the title says, composed by Koh Ohtani, and the vocals actually perfect the English tongue.  Mr. Private Eye, starts with a drama, which is annoying, I just want to hear the song.  Lyrics are great, and a fun beat to it.

That's all that I can talk about.  The rest on the cd don't have the same atmosphere as the ones I mentioned above.  Some are techno, which is out of place with the theme of the series, and others are like girlish anime songs. 

A cool cd to obtain.  An A- for the quality of the cd, good amount of songs, and the overall fun of them. 

4/10 for the package- cd cover is normal, booklet has no real extras, and artwork doesn't stand out.