Alright so I finally got around to listening to her new EP, and I feel like leaving a quick review.
So, quick background on my general thoughts on Chiaki’s solo career. 僕はまだ何も知らない (Or ‘The Vermillion Album’ For a Shorter Title) is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time. Every song on it is an absolute banger, and it really gave me high hopes that Chiaki’s solo career would be extremely good.
Then I listened to her next two albums, and they were kind of hit-or-miss for me. Sure, they had some great songs (E.G. Dolphin In The Sands, Rakurui, Blue Velvet, My Book, Fukanzen Nenshou, Ruisen, etc.) but generally they were a lot less cohesive than Vermillion’s and could get a bit boring.
Then the EPs came along. I quite like Zenya, as most of the songs on it were entertaining. The second one was kind of meh, but Tir Na Nog and the fourth track were great. Then her next album came out, and I was bored for 7/10 of its runtime, excluding the remixes of her older songs. They went on far too long, and I found the compositions uninteresting.
The third EP came out and I just kind of lost hope. There were some alright arrangements, but the problems I had with the last album were increased and I just didn’t have a good time. (雪が眠るとき was good though).
So, going into this new EP, I wasn’t expecting much, but I actually really enjoyed it! 100ある嘘の99 has a lot of impressive vocal switches from Chiaki, going from dark to gentle in a matter of seconds, and the track is also very experimental! Then we get to 理由がないのが理由, which is an incredibly pretty ballad. The third track, Boku wa, is a great showcase of Chiaki’s vocal stamina, particularly in the chorus. And ヴァルトアインザームカイト is just a ton of fun! The only track I don’t necessarily care for is the last one, but it’s by no means bad and it might grow on me!
Anyways, I’m extremely excited for November now! This was a very pleasant, if unexpected, surprise!
