Arashi - LOVE review

Hello. I'm back to talking about Arashi again. And you will see quite a few more posts related to Arashi later on now that they're doing stuff, and their album has come out and with the P.A.R.A.D.O.X PV and Music Station performance they just did... lots of things to talk about! First thing on the list though - my actual thoughts on this new album.

To start with? I like the theme of it, I like the jazzy, R&B, disco kind of 70's feel this album gives as a whole. Would I say that every single song  is awesome? Ultimately no - in fact there's not one song that really stands out except maybe PARADOX and Sayonara no Ato De - FOR ME. But enough of this general ramble, let me just talk about the songs.



1. 愛をうたう (Ai no Utau)
 A lot of fans seem to be over the moon for this song and it's nice - I like it and I do think it's a good opening song to have on the album. I really like the slow build up to the chorus and just the slow steady beat/pace which the song seems to follow... a part of me always thinks "this is what Cosmos could have been but I don't actually remember what Cosmos sounds like at the moment so I may be thinking of another song. But.. it's not spectacular in any way to me. Maybe it's the lyrics? I think if anything I'd enjoy a pure instrumental of this song because the music itself is very pretty. From the way people were raving about it on Twitter though (and from the name) I thought it was a second coming of Subarashiki Sekai or something.

2. サヨウナラのあとで (Sayounara no Ato De)
I don't know why people aren't talking about this song more. Like - this was the song that got me from the opening. I guess in a way Ai no Utau felt a bit too slow for me to really be catchy - like it was good but not great. This song though has the type of rhythm and beat that is just fast enough to appreciate and have me bob my head too. Also I love the chorus and the beat they follow when they say the lines like "kimi no nukumori sae / omoidasezu". I just love the way they say the lines. I think I just like it when they say words with a clearly broken up rhythm, like even when they say "sayou - nara - kara". Anyway - a big yay to this song and definitely one of my favourites. 

3. CONFUSION
I... am not a big fan of this song? Like, I don't think it's bad but I wouldn't say I like it. It just sounds very messy to me - like they're half shouting their lines instead of actually singing and it's very grating to my ears in a way. I am slightly amused by how the way they say "Love you" almost sounds like "Laffu you" which I can understand but it still kind of makes me twitch my lips a bit.

4. Hit the Floor （大野智）...I have this song on repeat a lot. Need I say more? Normally I'm not a fan of autotune but I must be clearly biased because Ohno actually sounds okay with it (although that may be because it doesn't sound as heavy, as in I can still kind of hear his voice through the noise). But yeah - I don't know why style this song is honestly (I'm not a music person) but I love this song. I love the lines that are faded out in the background and all the ranges that Ohno manages to hit in this song (his freakin' falsetto man). I'm imaging a very slick and smooth performance with this song, fast but smooth. Lots of turning and rolling - not so much the super sharp precision that Ohno normally adopts like in Hung Up On or Song for Me. Pretty much something sexy.

5. P.A.R.A.D.O.X
I really hated this song when I first heard it. I actually couldn't even listen to all of this. Within the album it was now actually become one of my favourites - and I can clearly see it being a single on it's own. Although to be honest I don't know how much I'd like it as a single on it's own. It's a catchy song, no doubt, and it really gets me pumped up but... it just sounds a bit too loud and messy. Like there's just a bit too much going on for me to really like it. Within the context of the album, and after Ohno's solo as well, I think it's great but yeah.. nothing I would tackle alone without the nice cushioning it's placed between.

6. Sugar and Salt　（櫻井翔）This song reminds me of Yume de mo Ii Kara and I think Sho rocks this solo and this is really his style and it's great. If Ohno hadn't stolen my heart because, let's be real, I'm pretty sure I'm just super Ohno-solo biased), this would be at the top of the list. I think Sho's really best when he does a mix of rapping and singing. It's like Can't Let You Go all over again, slick, and smooth. A good rhythm but not too rap heavy to be... kind of boring (because I'm not the biggest fan of rap) and he  manages to cut his rap at just the right time to add in the singing so you get this nice easy back and forth of his two voices which sounds so soothing. Higher pitched soft singing and his low rap.. ugh. So nice. (and no I don't mean this in a 'oh he's so sexy way' it's really just a great dynamic)

7. BreathlessI already talked about Breathless right? Made a post? I'll link to it - [HERE].  It's a bit jarring to listen to after Sho's solo and then right after with Nino's solo... like it doesn't really fit.

8. 20825日目の曲　（二宮和也） 
I can't even remember the sound of this song. I'm sure it's nice and catchy and it's a lot less bland than I found his last two solos Doko ni demo aru uta and... his solo from Popcorn which I actually totally forgot existed (I thought doko ni demo was for Popcorn, fail). To be honest after Niji I haven't really been too fond of Nino's solos. His BNMF solo, the 1999...etc. one was nice but not out of this world and the last two were close to disappointing. This one? It's... nice to listen to but easy to forget. Expecting another cute Nino-ish solo. I don't know what I expect from this guy.. I guess I want something cute like Himitsu again or something as powerful as Kako or Niji which he doesn't seem to be reaching.
 
9. Rock Tonight
Meh. Haha. I'm sorry - my review for this album is starting to seem like a real downer I realize. Remember my previous comments about songs that sound a bit too loud? Yeah - this song would be up there in that respect. It sounds like a nice throwback to the 70's or 80's or .. just something not for this recent decade. Like, I'm imaging drive through movie theatres, and milkshake stands, and big flashy cards with teenagers wearing huge aviator sunglasses - that kind of thing. Again, nice but eh. Kind of boring in a way - a typical "Arashi" song where I can see them doing lots of running to raise up the energy for a more powerful song, or to keep the energy going after a more powerful song.

10. Endless Game
Have I talked about this single? I don't remember, I don't think I did because I really didn't like the single or any of the B-sides. It kind of grew on me after the performance and in the context of the album I think it actually fits in the best out of all the singles. I still find the way they say "warning" as "wani" hilarious. Let's just say I have listened to this song enough to be able to sing along to most of it. I

11. Calling
Again I already talked about calling [HERE] but I would like to mention that I have come to like this song a lot more than my original review states. I still like Breathless more but Calling has grown on me. Also I feel like it fits the album more.


12. 夜空への手紙　（雅紀相葉）I always feel bad because Aiba's solos have never been my favourite and usually end up being my least favourite - not because I dislike them but because the other members solos interest me more. If anything I pin it down to Aiba's voice, it's not powerful enough, like it always sounds like there's something stopping him from pushing out the rest of his voice. It's a cute song nonetheless and I love the little piano opening. If anything it's definitely one of my more favourite Aiba solos. Again - I feel really bad for saying this but if .. like.. Nino had sung this I think I would've loved it as much as Ohno's solo.
 
13. Dance in the Dar　（松本潤） Okay. I know I have said that I liked Jun's solos from the previous albums but those were more because they were catchy and autotuned and I was expecting entertaining performances. This song I'm expecting all of that but for once I actually like the song because of the way Jun sings it as well. It fits him so well, the jazzy broadway style almost reminiscent of his 5x10 concert rendition of Wish (which I am imagining the performance for this song should be similar too - complete with the hat and suspenders). Seriously Jun sounds so good in this song and the song overall is freakin amazing and I love it. I'll ignore his shitty English as per usual because if I didn't it would give me a migraine.

14. Starlight Kiss
Keeping with the disco theme following Jun's solo, it fits. All I can remember of this song is the way they say "Starlight Kiss" though and that's about it. I don't really have much to say on this song.. it sounds very generic to me honestly therefore quite forgettable.

15. FUNKYAgain, keeping with the disco. I find it pretty easy to mix this song up with Starlight Kiss just by listening to the opening (without any lyrics) but of course. I like this song more than Starlight Kiss as it's slightly more memorable and I can imaging them doing some stupid 70's disco dancing complete with the disco ball strobe effect. Actually can they do that please, complete with crazy 70's attire? That would make me endlessly amused. Do that. Comments on the song... well, like I said it's better than Starlight Kiss?

16. Tears 
And we've hit the resident ballad of the album which always has to be there. In the context of the album I think it's a bit weird but it's good that they placed it last because I honestly don't know where they'd put it.  It's your typical Arashi ballad. Nothing outstanding, got your usual nice lyrics... I see them standing in a line with spot lights on them as they sing their respective lines, wearing pretty suits and all that. Also it does lead back nicely to Ai no Utau's slow opening as well... (something which I just noticed).

So there you have it. Wow. I sound pretty brutal don't I. Almost every song is "not memorable" and it's true... none of the songs really stand out to me. Don't get me wrong, I like the album but it's like Beautiful World where I see it as a whole. I think... that overall in a thematic I enjoy it more than Popcorn but there's nothing really outstanding about it. It's definitely a very high quality album though so I'll give them credit for that. Especially in terms of the solos. Truthfully this album to me feels like it revolves around the solo's more than anything else.. like all the songs are just filler until I hit the next awesome solo (except maybe Nino's...) but yeah.

Rating? 7.5/10. I'm stoked for what they're planning to do for their concert. Like I said, I really like the theme for this album, first the LOVE theme and then the whole 70's vibe I get from it. I hope they do something with that for their concerts (I can't go but still, it'd be great to imagine. 

Comments on the PARADOX PV and Performance will come later - as well as a short review of Jun being on 食わず嫌い王 because how could I not?