grunty
I have reached Yuki nirvana
For shits and giggles since nothing's really happening right now. Part Deux.
Let's refresh our memories with Yuki Kajiura tracks that got MAKEOVERS over time. (Note: expanded to multiple studio versions, rather than just makeovers/selfcovers - more on that below.) I imagine I've not listened to some of these studio recordings in years, as I'm usually going back to versions that I remember liking (or very rarely go back at all if I am satisfied with their YKlive appearances). Excited to revisit them. Would you consider them successes or flops?
In your replies please vote for your favorite versions from choices provided OR say that you don't like any version of the song. Try to be specific with a year/album/performer, if the song title alone isn't enough to differentiate versions. If I somehow missed a studio recording (of a song in discussion) that you like, please specify! (More on that below.) To be honest I'm also thinking we could skip the voting part and just chat about it. I guess we'll see how it goes.
Before I start blogging (there's more of it below), take a look at recordings to discuss this week:
Wall of text:
I originally wanted to make a thread for discussing YK's selfcovers only but then I kept adding more and more tracks and loosening criteria and as of now my list stands at over 50 titles (each with several studio versions to discuss). That's obviously too many recordings to talk about at once so I decided to try making it into a weekly thing for forum engagement. We'll see how that goes - hopefully the thread doesn't die immediately.
I'm thinking of posting 2-3 SETS of recordings in the middle of every week (not more than 7 recordings total) so there's hopefully enough time for everyone to listen & discuss them around weekends. Just to give it a bit of a random feeling, I'm going to try posting one set chronologically, one set alphabetically (alternating asc./desc.), one set random (though it ended up being the last one alphabetically in the first week, lol, some luck); and avoid repeating artists or shows/albums in the same week. You should get the idea from the first set. I know I already went over that aforementioned 7 recordings limit - do comment, if you feel this is already too many recordings to discuss for one week...
Just because we will be moving on to new sets of titles every week, it shouldn't mean that you can't discuss songs that we had already talked about - just be specific in your posts. Previously discussed titles will be listed in a spoiler in one of the following posts.
My current list is a bit of a mess as far as my decisions & criteria go. I'm still on the fence about including certain recordings (with minimal differences compared to the original) but also feel bad about excluding them when I do include a similar version of another song for decent reasons (like comparing to a 3rd or 4th version)... Eh, it is what it is, nothing's ever perfect. I did make the decision to exclude:
Like in the previous poll thread, I will try to provide links to official youtube uploads, which hopefully work internationally - drop a comment if they don't. As some of these tracks are more obscure, there may not be official uploads available unfortunately. I'll try having a version up on mega, if there's absolutely nothing on youtube.
Let's refresh our memories with Yuki Kajiura tracks that got MAKEOVERS over time. (Note: expanded to multiple studio versions, rather than just makeovers/selfcovers - more on that below.) I imagine I've not listened to some of these studio recordings in years, as I'm usually going back to versions that I remember liking (or very rarely go back at all if I am satisfied with their YKlive appearances). Excited to revisit them. Would you consider them successes or flops?
In your replies please vote for your favorite versions from choices provided OR say that you don't like any version of the song. Try to be specific with a year/album/performer, if the song title alone isn't enough to differentiate versions. If I somehow missed a studio recording (of a song in discussion) that you like, please specify! (More on that below.) To be honest I'm also thinking we could skip the voting part and just chat about it. I guess we'll see how it goes.
Before I start blogging (there's more of it below), take a look at recordings to discuss this week:
WEEK #18
here we stand in the ... 2004 / Saeko Chiba 2009 / FJ ver. | ring your bell 2015 / original 2016 / with strings ver. | Haru wa yuku 2020 / original 2020 / the late spring ver. | Kimiga hikarini kaeteiku 2008 / original 2008 / acoustic version |
WEEK #18 BREAKDOWN
| here we stand in the morning dew (2004 "Sayonara SOLITAIRE" / Saeko Chiba single) Performance: Saeko Chiba listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura Keyboards & Programming: YUKI KAJIURA E.Guitar: KAZUYOSHI BABA Chorus: YURIKO KAIDA |
| here we stand in the morning dew (2009 "Everlasting Songs" / FictionJunction album) Performance: FictionJunction listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura Programming: Yuki Kajiura Vocal: YURIKO KAIDA Chorus: KAORI, WAKANA, KEIKO Guitar: Koichi Korenaga |
| ring your bell (2015 "ring your bell" / Kalafina single) Performance: Kalafina listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura Programming: Yuki Kajiura Guitar: Koichi Korenaga Drums: Kyoichi Sato Bass: Tomoharu "Jr." Takahashi Strings: Kiyo Kido Strings Chorus: Yuriko Kaida, Yuki Kajiura |
| ring your bell～with strings ver. (2016 Winter Acoustic "Kalafina with Strings" / Kalafina album) Performance: Kalafina listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura, Kinoko Nasu Music: Yuki Kajiura Piano Arrangement: Hirotaka Sakurada Strings Arrangement: Hiromitsu Ishikawa All Chorus Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura Conductor: Hiromitsu Ishikawa Strings: Hitoshi Konno Strings Violin: Hitoshi Konno, Kyoko Ishigame, Masahiko Todo, Yasuhiro Morimoto Machi Okabe, Ayaka Jomoto, Shizuka Kawaguchi Mika Shirasawa, Yuri Kamei, Honoka Sato Viola: Sachie Oonuma, Atsushi Nagaishi Cello: Takayoshi Okuizumi, Masateru Nishikata Double Bass: Hisami Tamaki Piano: Hirotaka Sakurada |
| Haruwayuku (2020 "Haru wa yuku / Marie" / Aimer single) Performance: Aimer listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura All Keyboards & Programming: YUKI KAJIURA Guitars: KOICHI KORENAGA Drums: KYOICHI SATO Bass: TOMOHARU "Jr." TAKAHASHI Harp: TOMOYUKI ASAKAWA Strings: HITOSHI KONNO STRINGS |
| Haruwayuku the late spring ver. (2020 "Hana no Uta / I beg you / Haru wa yuku" / Aimer single) Performance: Aimer listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura Piano: YUKI KAJIURA Strings: HITOSHI KONNO STRINGS 1st Violin: HITOSHI KONNO 2nd Violin: TOMOMI TOKUNAGA Viola: ATSUSHI NAGAISHI Cello: SHINICHI EGUCHI |
| Kimiga hikarini kaeteiku (2008 "oblivious" / Kalafina single) Performance: Kalafina listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura (per Seventh Heaven album:) Programming: Yuki Kajiura All Vocals & Chorus: Kalafina Guitar: Susumu Nishikawa Bass: Tomoharu "Jr." Takahashi Drums: Kyoichi Sato Acoustic Piano: Masato Matsuda Violin: Kiyo Kido Viola: Daisuke Inobe Cello: Masami Horisawa Chorus: Yuriko Kaida |
| Kimiga hikarini kaeteiku～acoustic ver. (2009 "Re/oblivious" / Kalafina single) Performance: Kalafina listen | Lyrics: Yuki Kajiura Music: Yuki Kajiura Arrangement: Yuki Kajiura Note: No musicians in booklet. |
END OF WEEK
Wall of text:
I originally wanted to make a thread for discussing YK's selfcovers only but then I kept adding more and more tracks and loosening criteria and as of now my list stands at over 50 titles (each with several studio versions to discuss). That's obviously too many recordings to talk about at once so I decided to try making it into a weekly thing for forum engagement. We'll see how that goes - hopefully the thread doesn't die immediately.
I'm thinking of posting 2-3 SETS of recordings in the middle of every week (not more than 7 recordings total) so there's hopefully enough time for everyone to listen & discuss them around weekends. Just to give it a bit of a random feeling, I'm going to try posting one set chronologically, one set alphabetically (alternating asc./desc.), one set random (though it ended up being the last one alphabetically in the first week, lol, some luck); and avoid repeating artists or shows/albums in the same week. You should get the idea from the first set. I know I already went over that aforementioned 7 recordings limit - do comment, if you feel this is already too many recordings to discuss for one week...
Just because we will be moving on to new sets of titles every week, it shouldn't mean that you can't discuss songs that we had already talked about - just be specific in your posts. Previously discussed titles will be listed in a spoiler in one of the following posts.
My current list is a bit of a mess as far as my decisions & criteria go. I'm still on the fence about including certain recordings (with minimal differences compared to the original) but also feel bad about excluding them when I do include a similar version of another song for decent reasons (like comparing to a 3rd or 4th version)... Eh, it is what it is, nothing's ever perfect. I did make the decision to exclude:
- remixes not produced by YK (like old See-Saw remixes);
- efforts like "salva nos ~ dialogue remix ver." or "full size mix" ("kouya ruten ~full size mix" is pretty pointless and do many actually people go back to the shortened edits of "romanesque" or "I have a dream"?);
- lyric/vocal theme song expansions of BGMs, like "let the stars fall down"<=>"Manten". Taking them into consideration would put me in a position of including songs based on melodies/leitmotifs, rather than other full tracks. That means that even tracks like "el cazador"/"cazador del amor" and "Sagitta luminis"/"Hikariful" are excluded as of now.
Like in the previous poll thread, I will try to provide links to official youtube uploads, which hopefully work internationally - drop a comment if they don't. As some of these tracks are more obscure, there may not be official uploads available unfortunately. I'll try having a version up on mega, if there's absolutely nothing on youtube.
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I also never watched the Gundam series back then, nor did I bother understanding the lyrics.
I also couldn't stop looping the song for days, dwelling in its vivid, soul-moving warmth of sunset, loneliness, lamentation and longing - it expresses so much emotions, so heavy yet gentle, that it makes me want to sigh and shiver... it's so poignant.
