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14 Shou ～The message～ review
Posted by wahodes,
17 November 2014
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616 views
Morning Musume 14 Sho ~The message~ review
As I'm sure most of us know Morning Musume '14 has released their 14th and final album under Michishige's leadership entitled, 14 shou ~The message~. I am neither surprised or disappointed with this album. That is to say it was pretty much what I expected to hear following Morning Musume's EDM trend over the last 2 years. Even so I found that many of the songs had a very fresh feel despite sticking mostly to an electro feel and the energy and power these songs gave off have made me eager to watch them performed live.Now lets talk about the songs! (I'm only going to talk about the non single tracks
#3. Asu wo tsukuru no wa kimi (明日を作るのは君, you create tomorrow)
I don't know about everyone else but I thought this song placing was weird. I always thought ballads were set towards the end of an album. Maybe it was because this song is so different from the rest of the album so they decided it would be better to get it out there before the rest of the upbeat electro songs. Never the less I really love this song. Even if it doesn't fit in with the other songs it's a very sweet and heartfelt song, and this is coming from someone who doesn't usually like ballads.
#4 Kikari to Hikaru Hoshi (キラリと光る星, a glittery shining star) - Riho and Sakura Duet
I'm a huge fan of Riho/Sakura duets and this one did not disappoint! I think this has to be my favorite song on the album just for it's powerful sound. I'm so impressed with both Riho and Sakura's vocals on this. Riho did not sound like she was stressing to hit those notes at all but delivered a strong sound and Sakura as always sounded amazing. I don't even know what this song is about yet but from the title I gather it's about reaching for your dreams; this song conveys that message perfectly just in the sound alone. The instrumentals are really not overpowering nor dull. I also love the hip hop opening instrumentals and I really can't wait to see this performed live.
5. Koibito ni wa Zettai ni Shiraretakunai Shinjitsu" (恋人には絶対に知られたくない真実)- Sayumi, Mizuki, Haruna
Okay I love this song so much. I love how it combines the electro robo sound with a really cutesy melody. It's one of those classic sounding songs that fits Sayumi really well and of course Mizuki and Haruna as well. I know usually just Sayumi and Mizuki have a duet but I'm happy that Haruna was included in this song; it's like a leader/subleader trio song, i love it! It's kind of funny that the three oldest members have the most cutesy and childish sounding song on the album, but it works! In the end this song is extremely catchy and we're all really thinking "what is this crazy rock and roll music??"
7. Watashi wa Watashi Nanda (私は私なんだ)
Alright here's the first group song. It's not my favorite song on the album but I'm really happy with the line distribution. I could hear Zukki get a loud and clear line right in the first 30 seconds and several other times throughout the song, as well as other members. When I heard this song on the album preview I thought it was going to be overly auto tuned but now that i've listened to it in full several times the only extreme auto tune is on Sayumi which is normal, and the background vocals. The instrumentals are my favorite part of this song but overall its a very smooth song.
8.Waraenai Hanashi (笑えない話)
Alright this song and watashi wa watashi nada seem very similar. This song also reminds me of wolf boy a lot, but I like this a lot more. I love how much of Ayumi I can hear in this song. Riho is very present on this album (as expected but she sounds really good) but she isn't overwhelming at all and I appreciate the fact that I can hear the other members singing very clearly in most of the songs. Again this song has a very powerful feel which seems to be a theme throughout this album. It's not my favorite song just because it's not as upbeat but I still like it a lot, especially the chorus.
11. Otona ni Nareba Otona ni Nareru!?" (大人になれば 大人になれる) Erina, Kanon, Ayumi, Masaki, and Haruka
Okay I'm impressed that they put a song that does not include any of the lead singers in the group. Like wow I actually get to listen to a song dominated by the background singers. I think Maa chan sounded the best in this song tbh I like it when she doesn't force her voice to sound cutesy or high pitched because she has really great tone when she just sings normally and lets loose. I think this song fit all the members voices really well though I struggled to hear Eripons voice.
Over all I'm really satisfied with this album, though I think it could have had a little bit more variety. Most of the songs had a very similar feel to them with Asu wo thrown in to add a fresh feel but I think that helps tie the album together. I can't say it's my favorite album ever but it's definitely up there in my top 3. If you weren't hopping on the EDM train with Morning Musume before, I'm sure you will be after you listen to this album.
What about you guys? What were your impressions? Your favorite track? How does it compare with the previous colorful era album?
Thanks for reading!
I liked this album quite a bit but the new tracks were not very suprising. Still I really love Kirari to Hikaru Hoshi, a lot more than the previous Riho-Sakura duet.
But... Am I the only one who cannot stop thinking of What is LOVE? when listening to Otona ni Nareba Otona ni Nareru? ? : -O