CD review: Watashi no Koi wa Hotchkiss – Hanauta Yui

Yes, I am really going to review this. As the new year approaches, so do the soon-to-be-broken New Year’s resolutions and I am reminded of the fact that I have yet to accomplish everything I set out to do with this blog. One of my main goals was to review every K-ON! CD out there, old releases as well as new. I finished the first season’s batch of CDs earlier this year, but never really got started on season 2 – so here I am, easing back into things with a short review of the shortest of all K-ON! CDs: Watashi no Koi wa Hotchkiss – Hanauta Yui.

Delivered in a clear slimline jewel case, this single was given away as the prize in a mail in contest in 2011 and was not sold in stores. Finding it on online auctions isn’t particularly hard, but unused copies will cost a tad more than one may usually want to pay for a CD – you’ll have to really want it. Personally, being the crazy completist that I am, I didn’t have too many misgivings about parting with a few thousand yen to acquire it – even with the rather limited runtime.

The CD features exactly one track: Watashi no Koi wa Hotchkiss: #1 “Kou san!” version. The song, of course, is the one first heard in the episode “School Festival!” and subsequently on the first season’s insert song album. The version heard here, as the track title indicates, is the one heard in the very first scene of the season 2 episode “Seniors!”, with Yui playing solo guitar while humming the melody.

Totaling 1 minute and 8 seconds – that is both the song and the CD – it’s pretty much the same as in the actual episode, but with a slightly different ending and with Yui’s voice more prominent in the mix. Hotchkiss is one of my favorite songs from the first season, so hearing it again – however briefly – is welcome, if expensive in this form.

Is it worth buying for the sake of the content? Probably not. Is it worth buying for collection purposes? Hell, I’m certainly not the person to say no to that.

New CD box set announced

Okay, I always kind of figured there’d probably be some sort of “best of K-ON!” album or something released at the end of the franchise’s run, but I never expected they’d release a 12 disc box set containing a whopping 258 tracks, which is what the official site announced today.

“K-ON! MUSIC HISTORY'S BOX” will be released on March 20^th, featuring the OST and opening/ending/insert songs from both TV seasons as well as the movie, plus character songs as well as – for the first time on CD – the versions from the “K-ON! Ho-kago Live!!” PSP/PS3 game.

Not included in the release are tracks from the Band Score CDs, the Radion! shows, or any of the instrumentals. Nevertheless, it seems this box set will cover the basics and then some, and at the relatively tolerable price tag of 19,800 yen it sounds like quite a good deal for any fan who has yet to break their wallet collecting every K-ON! CD in existence like a sucker (unlike me, who will of course happily throw money at this release regardless).

Thanks ultimatemegax for the heads-up.

More vinyl coming!

Still remember the 7inch Vinyl “Donuts” BOX, the box set of vinyl singles from K-ON!’s first season? Yeah, the official site has announced there’s another one coming, this time containing nine singles from season 2. The “K-ON!! 7inch Vinyl “Donuts” BOX” will be sold at Comiket 83, starting December 29^th and ending the 31^st, for the pretty price of 12000 yen. Singles included will be the second season’s opening and ending themes, as well as the character singles of the main five – minus all instrumental versions and “Come with Me!!” tracks.

Full track listing:

Disc 1:

Side A: GO! GO! MANIAC
Side B: Genius…?

Disc 2:
Side A: Listen!!
Side B: Our MAGIC

Disc 3:

Side A: Utayo!!MIRACLE
Side B: Kira Kira Days

Disc 4:

Side A: NO, Thank You!
Side B: Girls in Wonderland

Disc 5:

Side A: Oh My Giita!!
Side B: Shiawase Hiyori

Disc 6:

Side A: Seishun Vibration
Side B: Soukuu no Monologue

Disc 7:

Side A: Drumming Shining My Life
Side B: Yuuzora a la Carte

Disc 8:

Side A: Diary wa Fortessimo
Side B: Yasei no Jounetsu

Disc 9:

Side A: Over the Starlight
Side B: Joyful Todays

And this is where I’d complain that I’ll probably never be able to buy this etc., but in all honesty – who am I kidding?

K-ON! 7inch Vinyl “Donuts” BOX gets general release

Remember K-ON! 7inch Vinyl “Donuts” BOX, the box set of vinyl singles from K-ON!’s first season? Originally a limited released sold only during the Canime Summer Festival back in August, the set has been going for nasty prices on auction sites since. That might come to an end, temporarily at least, as the TV anime’s official blog has announced the box set will be released and sold in stores on December 19^th!

 

It’s a limited edition, so it might be a good idea for those interested not to wait too long before ordering. The price tag, as before, is 10,000 yen.

K-ON! 7inch Vinyl “Donuts” BOX

So, that box set of vinyl singles from season 1? I bought it. I’m not going to do a full review of it or anything (here’s a short one: It’s very nice), but I will show off a bunch of photos.

K-On! vinyl singles

So, you’re a K-On! fan and a vinyl collector? You might be happy to learn that Pony Canyon will release an exclusive box set of 7 vinyl singles (7 inch) from the first season. The catch? Aside from the 10,000 yen price tag, the set will be a limited pressing and won’t see a general release – if you want it, you’ll have to attend the Canime Summer Festival 2012 in Akihabara, which takes place on August 11^th and 12^th.

The seven lucky singles to chosen for inclusion in this “7inch Vinyl “Donuts” Box” are Cagayake!GIRLS, Don’t Say “Lazy”, and the character singles of Yui, Mio, Ritsu, Tsumugi and Azusa. Contents will be the same as their respective CD equivalents, minus instrumental tracks and the song “Let’s Go” from the character series.

And, just to keep track of these things; season 1 singles that do not get the vinyl treatment are Fuwa Fuwa Time, Maddy Candy and the Ui and Nodoka character singles.

CD review: “K-On! Character Image Song Series” part 3: Ui & Nodoka

Five character singles each featuring one of the five main characters clearly wasn’t enough. The third and final wave of the character image song series (for the first season, anyway) came about in October of 2009, and featured the “major” supporting cast members; Ui and Nodoka (Sawako didn’t get a character single, but then, the “Maddy Candy” single pretty much served that purpose).

CD review: “K-On! Character Image Song Series” part 2: Ritsu, Tsumugi & Azusa

The second batch of K-On! character singles were released in late August of 2009. The first wave had seen the release of Yui and Mio’s singles, and this second wave upped the simultaneous CD release count to three, with the Ritsu, Tsumugi and Azusa singles all coming out at once.

If you read the first part of this particular review series, you may remember that I’m not particularly fond of anime character image songs in general (if you missed it, you can read my pretentious ramblings here) but came to the conclusion that the first two K-On! character singles had several strong points. The question is, would this continue with these next three outings?

CD review: “K-On! Character Image Song Series” part 1: Yui & Mio

Is it bad if I say I’ve never really cared much for character image songs in general? Granted, they’re obviously going to be a little bit harder to get into than the songs that are actually in the anime, which you get to hear on a regular basis and get stuck in your head before they’re even released on CD… but aside from that, character singles often appear to me to be blatant cash grabs with little to no artistic merit, half-assed productions of uninspired songs relegated to image song status because they just aren’t good enough to be featured in the actual show.

Okay, let’s be honest – they’re pretty much always blatant cash grabs. There’s little reason to create a buttload of extra music not meant for inclusion in the anime itself, and releasing it as a series of CD singles, other than wanting to wring some more money out of the hardcore fans who are still willing to buy more after the many opening/ending/insert song and OST albums and singles.

These things are generally merchandise first, and entertainment (or “art”, if you want to pretend we’re being important here) second. However – that doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t ever be good. At best, character songs can provide an insight into their respective characters that goes beyond what the anime itself is able to relate through the actual storytelling. At worst, they can be fluff pieces so generic and clichéd that it doesn’t matter who’s singing or what anime they’re tied to.

In the specific case of K-On!, the character song series is a mixed bag. There certainly are a lot of them – seven for the first season alone – but one good thing they all have in common is that they certainly don’t skimp on the production or musicianship. Whatever one might think of the songs, they’re all slickly and professionally produced and sound terrific. Many of the songs are composed by Tom-H@ck, composer of “Cagayake!GIRLS” and the other anime opening themes, so you know right away there’s going to be a lot of perky, frantic, fast paced tracks that walk the thin line between catchy and obnoxious, with songs landing on both sides of the fence.

I’ll be looking at all the singles in good time, but for now I’m going to concentrate on the first two: The Yui and Mio ones, which were released all the way back in June 2009.

News: “K-On! The Movie” theme song “Unmei♪wa♪Endless!” preview

TBS’ official K-On! website has released a preview of the song “Unmei♪wa♪Endless!”, the theme song from the upcoming K-On! movie. The clip features an introduction by the five Ho-kago Tea Time cast members and a short clip of the actual song.

YouTube user musashino003 has uploaded an edited-down clip featuring only the song itself:

News: K-On! The Movie CD singles and soundtrack announced

Broadcaster TBS’ official K-On! website has announced today the dates for the K-On! movie related music releases. The film’s opening song “Unmei♪wa♪Endless!” will be released as a CD single on December 7^th. The CD will also include the song “Ichiban Ippai” as well as instrumental versions of both songs. The two songs are composed by Tom-H@ck (also responsible for the opening songs from the TV anime), with lyrics by Shoko Omori.

Released on the same date is the ending theme song single “Singing!”, composed by Hiroyuki Maezawa (composer of the TV anime ending songs, and a number of other related tracks including “Fuwa Fuwa Time”) with lyrics by Shoko Omori. Also included is the song “Ohayou, Mataashita” and instrumental versions.

Scheduled for release on December 21^st is the “K-On! The Movie Original Soundtrack” album with music by Hajime Hyakkoku, composer of the TV anime original soundtracks. No track listing has been released so far.

The singles will sell for 1260 yen apiece, and the OST price tag is set for 3150 yen.

CD review: “Fuwa Fuwa Time” Chorus Husky Yui version

In my review of the “Fuwa Fuwa Time” CD single, I mentioned that another version of it exists on disc. This is it; the “Chorus Husky Yui” version. The disc contains only one track; “Fuwa Fuwa Time” as played by the Light Music Club in episode #6 “School Festival!”. Meaning that unlike the regular version, which sounds like a normal professional studio recording, this one has been mixed to sound like a live performance in the school auditorium (the main difference from the actual episode being that this is a full length four minute version) – and, like the title suggests, includes Yui’s husky-voiced background vocals which makes the track pretty funny. Pretty much a novelty CD, in other words.

The disc comes in a clear transparent jewel case, with a four page cover inlay. The included lyrics are printed in the same style as in the regular “Fuwa Fuwa Time” single, yet not completely identical.

The backside of the cover is clear, so that you’re looking straight at the actual CD. The disc itself is facing down inside the cover, leaving the label – which is almost identical to the regular “Fuwa Fuwa Time” CD, but with the text “Chorus Husky Yui” added on the right side – visible through the backside of the jewel case.

It probably goes without saying that this novelty version of the Light Music Club’s signature song is by no means a must-have for most fans. What makes it frustrating for completists, though, is the fact that it was never made available for purchase – instead, a total of 10,000 copies were given away as prizes in a mail-in contest in 2009. So with a finite amount of copies in existence, it’s not going to be the easiest K-On! CD to come by. It’s definitely out there – as evidenced by the fact that I managed to get my grubby hands on it – but don’t expect to find tons of it going for reasonable prices on eBay or anything.

CD review: “Maddy Candy” single

While the CD single for Sawako’s High School band Death Devil was among the last CD releases to come out of K-On!’s first season, the title track “Maddy Candy” was actually the anime’s first insert song.

Well, kind of. You only ever hear a fragment of the song in the series itself – specifically in episode 4 “Training Camp!”, when Mio plays it back from an old cassette tape (including of course the guitar solo that Yui imitates).

The B-side “Hell The World” isn’t heard in the anime per se, but Sawako’s trademark yell opens the track. Both songs are composed and arranged by K-On!’s music producer Shigeo Komori, with words by KANATA. The usual instrumental versions are also included.

Is the music any good? Honestly, I’m not qualified to give an informed opinion. This isn't the type of music I’d normally listen to, although I don’t find it too hard on the ears either. Still, I have a feeling that the type of music aficionado who would think “Death Devil” is an awesome name for a band rather than an over-the-top parody band name would probably not be too impressed.



Ah, that adorable K-On! charm...

The CD comes in a standard jewel case, one of those old-fashioned ones that don’t have a clear spine. The disc features a rather unique design involving a skull and a scythe, and the cover inlay consists of two four-page foldouts – one containing the credits (all in English) and one containing the song lyrics.

No, that is not a black & white photo.

Death Devil’s “Maddy Candy” is probably the least interesting K-On! CD for most fans, except of course for those whose taste in music happen to be closer to this kind of style. For the rest of us, this single is of interest primarily for completion purposes, or for some, I’m sure; not at all.

CD review: “Fuwa Fuwa Time” single

The first song written and performed by the Light Music Club, “Fuwa Fuwa Time” has become more or less the signature song of the band and to some extent the K-On! anime itself. With lyrics “by Mio”, taken directly from Kakifly’s manga (and expanded upon for the anime) and the music composition credited in the anime to Tsumugi Kotobuki (but really by Hiroyuki Maezawa, composer of “Don’t Say “Lazy””) the song can be considered the classic K-On! song.

This CD single includes a full-length version of the song, based on the performance in episode 6 “School Festival!” with Mio (Yoko Hikasa) doing lead vocals, but with a more polished sound and with Yui (Aki Toyosaki)’s background vocals done straight rather than with the husky voice (a full length version of the “Husky voiced Yui” mix exists, but that CD was never commercially released and can be a little tricky to come by).

The single’s B-side track is “Tsubasa wo Kudasai”. Not the short instrumental version played in the first anime episode (Remember that? Well, no, if you’ve only seen Bandai’s US version, you wouldn’t… Okay, okay, moving on!) but a full three minute version in an original K-On!-style “rock” arrangement with all four club members taking turns doing the vocals.

Following that is the usual instrumental mix of both songs, followed by four additional instrumental versions of “Fuwa Fuwa Time”, each one subtracting one of the main four instruments.

The CD single comes in a standard clear jewel case. The regular kind, not the thinner ones often used for singles.

The cover insert is a simple four-page booklet, with the song lyrics and the credits found inside. The lyrics are done in a hand written style. One may wonder whose hand writing this is supposed to be.

The CD itself is blank and shiny like CD’s tend to be, with no artwork aside from the cutesy “hand writing” style titles.

There isn’t a whole lot more to say about this, I guess. The CD doesn’t come with a whole lot of bells and whistles, but the content is what’s important here. It’s “Fuwa Fuwa Time”. That in itself should be enough information for any K-On! fan to decide if this CD is worth getting or not.

CD review: “Don’t Say “Lazy”” single

I don’t think anyone needs me to review the song Don’t Say “Lazy”. It’s the end credits song for K-On!, everyone knows it, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the popularity of this song is what made some people K-On! fans to begin with. Needless to say, it was very well received and is probably one of the most, if not the most iconic of K-On! songs.

Limited Edition cover

No, the song itself needs no recommendation from me. And I suppose the CD single doesn’t either, to be honest, but hey – this is the kind of stuff this blog exists for. And I suppose maybe, just maybe, there still are some K-On! fans out there that wonder if this CD is worth spending their hard-earned cash on.

Regular edition cover

So let’s get right down to it: What do you get on this CD? Well obviously, you get the song Don’t Say “Lazy” in its full 4 minute 23 seconds version. It’s like the 90 second TV version, but… longer. The B-side is a song called Sweet Bitter Beauty Song (the title refers not to the song itself, but to life. It’s, like, deep and stuff) and then there are instrumental versions of both songs.

As with the Cagayake!GIRLS single, there are two editions – the regular-ass edition that comes in a slim case, and a Limited Edition that comes in a regular jewel case. I have the latter version, so that’s what we’ll be looking at.

LE cover backside

The LE version of the CD has the same content as the regular edition, but the packaging and disc art differs. The LE CD has a picture of the four girls in their Don’t Say “Lazy” attire, the same as on the cover, on the actual disc.

And again like the Cagayake!GIRLS single, instead of a booklet inside the CD case, there is a series of alternate covers (with the lyrics and credits printed on the backside), each featuring one of the characters. So if you want to buy four copies and have each one display a different character on the cover… you’re crazy.

…but yeah, it’s possible to do that. Provided you can actually get a hold of multiple copies, that is. It just so happens the LE is out of print, but should be fairly easy to find second-hand. I was able to find a new and unopened copy for myself, although that was a while back. I don’t think it’d be too hard for a collector to find an unused LE CD, but for the sake of your wallet (and possibly your sanity)… just get one.

CD review: “Cagayake!GIRLS” single

The first two K-On! CD’s ever released were the opening and ending song singles, Cagayake!GIRLS and Don’t Say “Lazy”. Released all the way back in April 2009, they became the first two out of many K-On! singles to hit the Japanese pop charts pretty hard. In fact, in their first week; Don’t Say “Lazy” and Cagayake!GIRLS scored the number 2 and number 4 spots, respectively, selling more than 60,000 copies each.

"Cagayake!GIRLS" Limited Edition cover

Reviewing the song Cagayake!GIRLS would be pointless. There is not a K-On! fan in the world who doesn’t know this song from the TV anime. The difference, obviously, is that the CD single features a full length version of the song as opposed to the 90 second long version featured over the anime’s opening sequence. But it’s the same song, of course, just… longer.

The B-side is an upbeat, somewhat catchy song named Happy!? Sorry!!. Like the first track, it features Yui (Aki Toyosaki) as the lead with the other three main cast members doing background vocals. To finish up the CD, there are vocal-less versions of each of the two songs.

"Cagayake!GIRLS" Regular edition cover

Two different editions of the Cagayake!GIRLS single were released. The content of the CD was identical between the two versions, but the presentation of it differed. While I don’t have the regular edition on hand to review, it had different cover art and came in a slim CD case whereas the Limited Edition comes in a standard jewel case.

Unique to the Limited Edition is the artwork on the disc itself (the same as on the cover), as well as how the cover insert is handled: Instead of the usual little booklet, there is a series of separate inlays, each with a piece of the art work on the front and part of the lyrics or credits on the back. Each of the characters featured on the “main” cover gets their own cover inlay where their picture is separated from the rest, so if you’re one of those weirdos that’s only a fan of a specific character and not the group as a whole (how are you a K-On! fan?) all you have to do is switch the cover and – voilà! – your beloved Ritsu, or whoever, gets all the attention.

The regular edition should still be easily available, but the LE is, sadly, out of print. Fortunately, if you really want it – and why wouldn’t you? – it’s not hard to find it second hand and if you do a little searching you can probably find new and unused copies without too much trouble.