Album First Impressions - KAT-TUN, Kisumai, ABCZ
Usually when I listen to a new album, I write running commentary notes of my first impressions. I never really post them anywhere, so I'm going to do that now. For older ones, I'll add in my updated impressions in italics as well. Starting with the most recent:
KAT-TUN CAST
DIRTY, SEXY, NIGHT - Not dirty, sexy night, no. Just two adjectives and a noun. WHOA JAZZ. But... actually. Swing? I might be okay with it? It’s super fast. Yeah, I’m ok with this. Not paying attention to lyrics because I’m on a train platform and half listening to delay announcements. :p
Ask Yourself - This isn’t new right? It was a single? But I’m not super familiar with... ah ok, chorus is familiar. Yeah, I like this one.
FIRE STORM - I expect something good with a title like this. OH. Not what I expected. Sounds like Tama’s clapping solo? No. Combo of like... Right Now? Or that’s the voice changers, I guess. W/e, it’s catchy af, I am ready to get down to this. Give me the technoooooooo. Yes. Storm was less a clue for badass and more like Sandstorm. b
READY FOR THIS! - So ready! ...I mean, what? Ok fun. Another good jam. KAT-TUN reliably delivering some good dance beats. And Kame in with the comprehensible English, word. I don’t even need to check the lyrics on that.
Don’t wait - Lol, I’m seeing a theme? Meh. Slow start. Ah. Well it’s very KAT-TUN. Sure. Admittedly the train is not the best place for first listens in terms of lyrics, but oh well. This is growing on me quickly.
願い - Ballad? Oh! Acoustic guitar? Can’t hear melody over the closing door chimes, hold on... Aww. I like this! Not quite a ballad? Mid-tempo? En won’t like it. Ooh, piano. Any chance they’ll actually do the instruments on this in concert?
MoonLight - Spacing? Capitalization? Idk what’s going on here. Speaking of space, this has a weird space-effect going through it that made me raise a brow. It’s like... futuristic Mexican music? It’s like mariachi or... idk, something latin music inspired fused with sci-fi movie sound effects? I don’t dislike it? Dance break accent dance sound stuff. Weird, but in a good way.
One way love - Kame solo. Finger snapping. It’s... Kame. Oh, but then the trap beat(?). And more English. That I understand. Huh. Is this whole song in English? I think it is? Repetitive and simplistic, but makes sense.
Believe it- Whoa jazz. Hey trumpets. Meh it’s fine. Somehow.
vivid Love - This is meh. Just boring. En gonna hate this one too. The bridge is okay.
ツイテオイデ - Why is this in katakana? It took me way too long to read. Kind of as excepted, soundwise.
World’s End. - Yesssss Ah, Ueda, you don’t disappoint. <3
Be Alive - A good follow.
Marionation - Marionette? Or the latest Nintendo release? I expect beatboxing. ...this sounds like a Fujigaya solo is starting. That’s a very good thing. Lol, it totally could be a Gaya solo. Theme, style, everything, it’s very like a few of his. Love it!
Brand New Me - Idk why I can deal with KAT-TUN’s brand of jazzy better than other groups.
New Genesis - Sci-Fi or Biblical? This sounds like KAT-TUN brand EPIC. Ok I’m thinking this is going to be my favorite on the album and we’re only two phrases in. I cannot wait for the show, now.
Unstoppable - More epic? I love how KAT-TUN always goes for the super dramatic strings. YES YES YES. Ooh, this could actually rival the last song for favorite status. HMM.
薫 - Ngl, I picked this version because this extra song has Kunta’s first kanji. :p And it sounds... like a winner!! Good call, me.
ABC-Z VS5
Rock with U: Well, that’s very them. Jazzy. Meh. I was hoping that with "rock" in the title it’d be more ROCK. I’m inclined to skip it, and unless the bridge is somehow amazing, then I most likely will in future cycles. Tottsu’s rap bit is okay. Yeah, this bridge isn’t anything special.
Grew on me a bit. It's fine. The rapping bits help.
Burn Heart: UGH, more jazz. Like realllllly jazzy. *cringe* I gotta skim through this. Chorus reminds me of… something. Probably Broadway or something. Idk and don’t want to think about it. I like hearing Gocchi in the bridge. *skips the rest of the song*
Steal Your Lips: This is… different, at least. Catchy. Yeah, I like this. OH LOL, the kiss sounds. XD; I don’t know what kind of music this is classified as, but I enjoy it.
Still enjoying this one a lot.
Tsukazuhanarezu: Idk what this title is. But it’s a slow tempo something that isn’t a ballad and I like it. Ooh, high notes. :D Yeah, pretty, I like this.
Dare no mono demo nai kono michi wo: (Long title, wow.) Ballady and pretty. Sure.
REALLY like this one. PRETTY.
Haraharahirafuru: These TITLES. XD; This is somehow okay? Don’t love it, but don’t dislike it, surprisingly. …but it’s actually also kinda boring. Going to skim the rest.
MISSED MY LAST TRAIN CHRISMAS OH NOES: (Yeah, obv. that’s not the real title.) I think I’ve only actually heard this once before maybe. It’s… Christmasy as advertised.
DESTRUCTION!!: Whoa, uh. O_o That was very unexpected when it came on. But yay! This is fun! Terrible grammar and idk what they’re trying to say with this exactly. I’ll have to check the lyrics. But it sounds like "distraction" instead of "destruction" but I assume the title is accurate since they keep saying 壊せ。WHOA weird bridge. O_o This is pretty wtf, but not in a bad way. I like this guitar solo. All of the guitar, really.
Still sounds like "distraction" but also still fun.
Machikado: Jazz. -_- Slow jazz. Let’s see how long I last before skimming it. Jazzy ballot. Forcing myself through the chorus. But ugh, no. …I think I define most things I have an immediate "don’t like" reaction to as jazz. I’m also sure I know nothing about musical genres and this is incorrect. OH WELL. Bridge is fine, but too boring to save the rest of this blah.
Grew on me slightly. It's not bad.
BOU! NEN! KAI!: Ew? This is ALSO jazzy? *criiiiiinge* ABC-Z, WHY? >_< With a heavy dose of weird "rapping" that idek. I’m side-eying this whole mess.
Still just no.
Triple Lucky: This all just sounds like Johnnys World type stuff, and maybe it is? Skim/skipping. Rap bridge is fine.
Okay, find, it's catchy af and it grew on me.
Forget How To Forget: First of all, what? This title makes no sense. Slow thing. Uh. Also not something I’m going for. *skims* "regret no more regret" Uuuuhhhhh. And the English at the end. I also don’t get that.
It grew on me a bit. It was pretty enough in concert, so despite the lyrics, it's pretty mellow and I like it.
Future Light: Dance-y, but it’s just kind of the same as everything else? Idk. It’s fine I guess.
Also grew on me, and I like it.
Get up!: I’m a sucker for the oldest-youngest combi. But this is good. A good match for what I’d expect from them. A balance between dance and vocals that can show off what they can both do. I expect a good performance of this.
Performance wasn't AS good as what I expected, as Gocchi wasn't pulling out all the stops with the choreo, but it was still fun.
Suki nanda: Starts out pretty. Ooh, harmonies. GOOD JOB, guys. Super cheerful Johnny’s song. XD But you know. Kawai. So. XD With rap bits. Fun. :D Long. More rap. Silly. Yeah, idk, it’s good.
This was SUPER fun in concert. It amuses me to listen to the song.
Kis-My-Ft2 Yummy!
Invitation: Meh. It’s just my usual reaction the most things with a lot of brass. It’s just very jazzy. But at least it’s not boring.
Still don't love this, and the costumes were gross.
Shinkiro: I don’t normally go for this type of beat straight up, but I’m kind of digging it this time. The melody is pretty, and the overall effect is catchy. I like the lyrics. Kind of wistful. And any song where I get to hear everyone gets an auto bump in my ranking lists. And that ending!! Just a single trailing acappella bit by Mitsu. Ooh. That is GOOD. I really like that the music cuts out first. I did also like one of Gaya’s bits in the bridge region a lot.
LOVE IT. The choreo just made it even better, because Senga is brilliant like that. Ugh, I have so many feelings about this song a lot. Also I still love Gaya's little "whoo!" after his bridge bit.
Break the Chains: YES. YES SO HARD. It made my cry? It’s badass, the rap bits are all great, everyone’s got parts, the quick part changes that they always do so well, multiple overlapping parts, harmonies! Good arrangement, great chorus, and the lyrics are fantastic. It’s a great fight song. That rock sound but with “You’re beautiful!” It’s just. Reminds me of Linkin’ Park. Ugh. I get lots of feels from this. Clear favorite!
God DAMN this was good in concert. Just the beginning alone was epic, with that first pulse and the lighting and wow. I am also extremely pleased that Nika has such a major role in the song.
Clap-a-holics: Makes me laugh. Sorry Tama. XD;; It’s so SILLY. It’s catchy as hell though and I enjoy it a lot. But SILLY. XD Dance-y, whee~! And time changes!
Omg SO DAMN CATCHY.
Mr. Starlight: Bordering on jazzy, but enough on the pop side of things that I still like it. And no horns? So I think that’s saving it. It’s mostly synth? Plus I already have a mental image of roller skating from all the clips.
Uhhhh, it took me wayyyyy too long to realize that half the lyrics are self-referential and titles of their other songs. I like this a LOT more after realizing that.
Selfie: Prettyyyyyy. Medium tempo? Uptempo ballad? Idk what you call this. It’s not slow. It’s this summers equivalent to Summer Breeze, which I love. The title sucks, but the song is cute.
Plus anything that starts with Miyata is usually a good thing.
Toxxxic: Taipiiiiii. XD Reminds me of earlier solos like Think u x. The ufufufu parts are cute and make me smile, but the rest is pretty sharp. It’s a nice contrast. I’m imagining stage grinding and being trashy. XD
The performance was EXACTLY as I expected. With bonus drugging-of-Jr.s. Which means my impression of the song has changed exactly not at all.
Freeze: Not quite as awesome as I’d have expected from Meevs plus the comments that it could overtake Fire Beat (that’ll be entirely up to the choreo). But good.
Well. The choreo is a rehash of EbiKisu 2008 con choreo, with lots of stage grinding. Which just kind of makes me have to smother my amusement. Does it beat Fire Beat? I'm going with no. But it's a fine enough song.
Seishun Don’t Stop: *sigh* more jazzy things. But also not ACTUALLY horns? So ok? Reminds me of Wanted? Or... hmm. The shalila part, lol.
I forgot this song existed. Oh right. It's still pretty meh.
HAPPY DAY: Kinda cute. Although the first question is “Did you eat breakfast?” To which I mentally answer NO every time. And then it makes me feel guilty, oops. But it’s otherwise very cute and catchy and makes me smile. Apparently horns bother me less if they’re super low. Also a good mix of rapping/talking and cute bits.
I forgot about this one too, and my impression has not changed. It's just kind of chill.
Kakushigoto: Whyyyyyyy Mitsu? What’s with all the snazzy stuff this album? -_- It’ll be fine in concert, maybe? Sounds like something he can do without messing up, maybe. And it’s not even bothering me much, so.
It's boring. It's SO BORING. Absolutely unchecking this in my playlist.
Yuujyou: Pretty start. And then Tama ww. But yeah, pretty. I like this one. Also the slowish rap(?) for the bridge. Aww, Mitsu gets the little high part.
Real Me: Back to Fujikita being... yeah. Good.
Please comment at the original entry.
KAT-TUN CAST
DIRTY, SEXY, NIGHT - Not dirty, sexy night, no. Just two adjectives and a noun. WHOA JAZZ. But... actually. Swing? I might be okay with it? It’s super fast. Yeah, I’m ok with this. Not paying attention to lyrics because I’m on a train platform and half listening to delay announcements. :p
Ask Yourself - This isn’t new right? It was a single? But I’m not super familiar with... ah ok, chorus is familiar. Yeah, I like this one.
FIRE STORM - I expect something good with a title like this. OH. Not what I expected. Sounds like Tama’s clapping solo? No. Combo of like... Right Now? Or that’s the voice changers, I guess. W/e, it’s catchy af, I am ready to get down to this. Give me the technoooooooo. Yes. Storm was less a clue for badass and more like Sandstorm. b
READY FOR THIS! - So ready! ...I mean, what? Ok fun. Another good jam. KAT-TUN reliably delivering some good dance beats. And Kame in with the comprehensible English, word. I don’t even need to check the lyrics on that.
Don’t wait - Lol, I’m seeing a theme? Meh. Slow start. Ah. Well it’s very KAT-TUN. Sure. Admittedly the train is not the best place for first listens in terms of lyrics, but oh well. This is growing on me quickly.
願い - Ballad? Oh! Acoustic guitar? Can’t hear melody over the closing door chimes, hold on... Aww. I like this! Not quite a ballad? Mid-tempo? En won’t like it. Ooh, piano. Any chance they’ll actually do the instruments on this in concert?
MoonLight - Spacing? Capitalization? Idk what’s going on here. Speaking of space, this has a weird space-effect going through it that made me raise a brow. It’s like... futuristic Mexican music? It’s like mariachi or... idk, something latin music inspired fused with sci-fi movie sound effects? I don’t dislike it? Dance break accent dance sound stuff. Weird, but in a good way.
One way love - Kame solo. Finger snapping. It’s... Kame. Oh, but then the trap beat(?). And more English. That I understand. Huh. Is this whole song in English? I think it is? Repetitive and simplistic, but makes sense.
Believe it- Whoa jazz. Hey trumpets. Meh it’s fine. Somehow.
vivid Love - This is meh. Just boring. En gonna hate this one too. The bridge is okay.
ツイテオイデ - Why is this in katakana? It took me way too long to read. Kind of as excepted, soundwise.
World’s End. - Yesssss Ah, Ueda, you don’t disappoint. <3
Be Alive - A good follow.
Marionation - Marionette? Or the latest Nintendo release? I expect beatboxing. ...this sounds like a Fujigaya solo is starting. That’s a very good thing. Lol, it totally could be a Gaya solo. Theme, style, everything, it’s very like a few of his. Love it!
Brand New Me - Idk why I can deal with KAT-TUN’s brand of jazzy better than other groups.
New Genesis - Sci-Fi or Biblical? This sounds like KAT-TUN brand EPIC. Ok I’m thinking this is going to be my favorite on the album and we’re only two phrases in. I cannot wait for the show, now.
Unstoppable - More epic? I love how KAT-TUN always goes for the super dramatic strings. YES YES YES. Ooh, this could actually rival the last song for favorite status. HMM.
薫 - Ngl, I picked this version because this extra song has Kunta’s first kanji. :p And it sounds... like a winner!! Good call, me.
ABC-Z VS5
Rock with U: Well, that’s very them. Jazzy. Meh. I was hoping that with "rock" in the title it’d be more ROCK. I’m inclined to skip it, and unless the bridge is somehow amazing, then I most likely will in future cycles. Tottsu’s rap bit is okay. Yeah, this bridge isn’t anything special.
Grew on me a bit. It's fine. The rapping bits help.
Burn Heart: UGH, more jazz. Like realllllly jazzy. *cringe* I gotta skim through this. Chorus reminds me of… something. Probably Broadway or something. Idk and don’t want to think about it. I like hearing Gocchi in the bridge. *skips the rest of the song*
Steal Your Lips: This is… different, at least. Catchy. Yeah, I like this. OH LOL, the kiss sounds. XD; I don’t know what kind of music this is classified as, but I enjoy it.
Still enjoying this one a lot.
Tsukazuhanarezu: Idk what this title is. But it’s a slow tempo something that isn’t a ballad and I like it. Ooh, high notes. :D Yeah, pretty, I like this.
Dare no mono demo nai kono michi wo: (Long title, wow.) Ballady and pretty. Sure.
REALLY like this one. PRETTY.
Haraharahirafuru: These TITLES. XD; This is somehow okay? Don’t love it, but don’t dislike it, surprisingly. …but it’s actually also kinda boring. Going to skim the rest.
MISSED MY LAST TRAIN CHRISMAS OH NOES: (Yeah, obv. that’s not the real title.) I think I’ve only actually heard this once before maybe. It’s… Christmasy as advertised.
DESTRUCTION!!: Whoa, uh. O_o That was very unexpected when it came on. But yay! This is fun! Terrible grammar and idk what they’re trying to say with this exactly. I’ll have to check the lyrics. But it sounds like "distraction" instead of "destruction" but I assume the title is accurate since they keep saying 壊せ。WHOA weird bridge. O_o This is pretty wtf, but not in a bad way. I like this guitar solo. All of the guitar, really.
Still sounds like "distraction" but also still fun.
Machikado: Jazz. -_- Slow jazz. Let’s see how long I last before skimming it. Jazzy ballot. Forcing myself through the chorus. But ugh, no. …I think I define most things I have an immediate "don’t like" reaction to as jazz. I’m also sure I know nothing about musical genres and this is incorrect. OH WELL. Bridge is fine, but too boring to save the rest of this blah.
Grew on me slightly. It's not bad.
BOU! NEN! KAI!: Ew? This is ALSO jazzy? *criiiiiinge* ABC-Z, WHY? >_< With a heavy dose of weird "rapping" that idek. I’m side-eying this whole mess.
Still just no.
Triple Lucky: This all just sounds like Johnnys World type stuff, and maybe it is? Skim/skipping. Rap bridge is fine.
Okay, find, it's catchy af and it grew on me.
Forget How To Forget: First of all, what? This title makes no sense. Slow thing. Uh. Also not something I’m going for. *skims* "regret no more regret" Uuuuhhhhh. And the English at the end. I also don’t get that.
It grew on me a bit. It was pretty enough in concert, so despite the lyrics, it's pretty mellow and I like it.
Future Light: Dance-y, but it’s just kind of the same as everything else? Idk. It’s fine I guess.
Also grew on me, and I like it.
Get up!: I’m a sucker for the oldest-youngest combi. But this is good. A good match for what I’d expect from them. A balance between dance and vocals that can show off what they can both do. I expect a good performance of this.
Performance wasn't AS good as what I expected, as Gocchi wasn't pulling out all the stops with the choreo, but it was still fun.
Suki nanda: Starts out pretty. Ooh, harmonies. GOOD JOB, guys. Super cheerful Johnny’s song. XD But you know. Kawai. So. XD With rap bits. Fun. :D Long. More rap. Silly. Yeah, idk, it’s good.
This was SUPER fun in concert. It amuses me to listen to the song.
Kis-My-Ft2 Yummy!
Invitation: Meh. It’s just my usual reaction the most things with a lot of brass. It’s just very jazzy. But at least it’s not boring.
Still don't love this, and the costumes were gross.
Shinkiro: I don’t normally go for this type of beat straight up, but I’m kind of digging it this time. The melody is pretty, and the overall effect is catchy. I like the lyrics. Kind of wistful. And any song where I get to hear everyone gets an auto bump in my ranking lists. And that ending!! Just a single trailing acappella bit by Mitsu. Ooh. That is GOOD. I really like that the music cuts out first. I did also like one of Gaya’s bits in the bridge region a lot.
LOVE IT. The choreo just made it even better, because Senga is brilliant like that. Ugh, I have so many feelings about this song a lot. Also I still love Gaya's little "whoo!" after his bridge bit.
Break the Chains: YES. YES SO HARD. It made my cry? It’s badass, the rap bits are all great, everyone’s got parts, the quick part changes that they always do so well, multiple overlapping parts, harmonies! Good arrangement, great chorus, and the lyrics are fantastic. It’s a great fight song. That rock sound but with “You’re beautiful!” It’s just. Reminds me of Linkin’ Park. Ugh. I get lots of feels from this. Clear favorite!
God DAMN this was good in concert. Just the beginning alone was epic, with that first pulse and the lighting and wow. I am also extremely pleased that Nika has such a major role in the song.
Clap-a-holics: Makes me laugh. Sorry Tama. XD;; It’s so SILLY. It’s catchy as hell though and I enjoy it a lot. But SILLY. XD Dance-y, whee~! And time changes!
Omg SO DAMN CATCHY.
Mr. Starlight: Bordering on jazzy, but enough on the pop side of things that I still like it. And no horns? So I think that’s saving it. It’s mostly synth? Plus I already have a mental image of roller skating from all the clips.
Uhhhh, it took me wayyyyy too long to realize that half the lyrics are self-referential and titles of their other songs. I like this a LOT more after realizing that.
Selfie: Prettyyyyyy. Medium tempo? Uptempo ballad? Idk what you call this. It’s not slow. It’s this summers equivalent to Summer Breeze, which I love. The title sucks, but the song is cute.
Plus anything that starts with Miyata is usually a good thing.
Toxxxic: Taipiiiiii. XD Reminds me of earlier solos like Think u x. The ufufufu parts are cute and make me smile, but the rest is pretty sharp. It’s a nice contrast. I’m imagining stage grinding and being trashy. XD
The performance was EXACTLY as I expected. With bonus drugging-of-Jr.s. Which means my impression of the song has changed exactly not at all.
Freeze: Not quite as awesome as I’d have expected from Meevs plus the comments that it could overtake Fire Beat (that’ll be entirely up to the choreo). But good.
Well. The choreo is a rehash of EbiKisu 2008 con choreo, with lots of stage grinding. Which just kind of makes me have to smother my amusement. Does it beat Fire Beat? I'm going with no. But it's a fine enough song.
Seishun Don’t Stop: *sigh* more jazzy things. But also not ACTUALLY horns? So ok? Reminds me of Wanted? Or... hmm. The shalila part, lol.
I forgot this song existed. Oh right. It's still pretty meh.
HAPPY DAY: Kinda cute. Although the first question is “Did you eat breakfast?” To which I mentally answer NO every time. And then it makes me feel guilty, oops. But it’s otherwise very cute and catchy and makes me smile. Apparently horns bother me less if they’re super low. Also a good mix of rapping/talking and cute bits.
I forgot about this one too, and my impression has not changed. It's just kind of chill.
Kakushigoto: Whyyyyyyy Mitsu? What’s with all the snazzy stuff this album? -_- It’ll be fine in concert, maybe? Sounds like something he can do without messing up, maybe. And it’s not even bothering me much, so.
It's boring. It's SO BORING. Absolutely unchecking this in my playlist.
Yuujyou: Pretty start. And then Tama ww. But yeah, pretty. I like this one. Also the slowish rap(?) for the bridge. Aww, Mitsu gets the little high part.
Real Me: Back to Fujikita being... yeah. Good.
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