i spammed the contrast knob on some of them, so don't stare too long.

says all.
especially the "FREE!".

ajikan's new single, after over a year.
(the title literally means "new century love song".)

tracklist:
01. 新世紀のラブソング
02. 白に染めろ


... it's weird.
it's like nothing ajikan's ever done before.

in shinseiki no love song, ajikan grows out of the surf bungaku happy energetic feel to emerge with a mellower sound, a bit like in aru machi no gunjou.
what puts me off is the melody. firstly, the pseudo-rapping. it worked in night diving (world world world), but not this time. it's awkward and twisted and weird, not rhythmic enough to be proper rapping yet not holding enough of a tune to be singing.
and then all the singing parts don't help much, because they're mostly made up of notes alternating between a semitone, with sudden twists. i was waiting for the chorus that would save the rapping, but it didn't happen. it's another of ajikan's weird compositions that don't really work out.

in the end, what saves the day is the drumming (ichiji! :D) and the sheer intensity of the lyrics.
the lyrics are amazing.
they're deep in a blunt and forthright way and the intensity only comes out through the melody, which i can't comprehend how. but it does. they're especially powerful in the chorus.

i must explain.
(the translations are not mine.)
this is from the second verse:
夕方のニュースで何処かの誰かが亡くなって (on the evening news, someone died somewhere)
涙ぐむキャスター それでまた明日 (the caster was moved to tears, and so tomorrow)
then in the fourth:
朝方のニュースでビルに飛行機が突っ込んで (on the morning news, a plane hit a building)
目を伏せるキャスター　そんな日もあった (the caster covered his eyes, there were days like that too)

i love these two lines and the way they match, and how they mean what they mean, and the way they sound in the song despite the bad rapping.

and this line:
さようなら旧石器 (goodbye old century is the translation, but i don't think it means that and i don't know what it means. but it sounds good.)
and this line:
息を吸って 生命を食べて / 排泄するだけの猿じゃないと言えるかい? (breathe air, eat life / can you say you're not just a monkey that excretes (them out)?)

they're really interesting.

and the most incredulous thing about this song is that it gets stuck in your head in no time at all. objectively bad but subjectively addictive.
i keep singing it even though it sounds awful without the guitars!
well, that's the thing about ajikan's stuff.

the other thing that saved the song from getting skipped by me is the pv. despite all the bad cgi.
(it reminded me of kuuchuu buranko, what with the psychiatrist and all.)
it's a refreshing change from all their funny spastic pvs lately.
it's got strong intensity and a storyline and with the lyrics there's a thought-provoking message that comes through the song. it's actually moving.


(the first 10 seconds are <3! ken-saaaaaaaaaan~)


on to shiro ni somero.
... which is a tad too happy for my liking.
it starts off well, with super bright-and-cheerful guitars, which was a relief at first after shinseiki no love song. and it's not a bad song.
it's just not very impactful. the chorus is awkward and tiring to listen to.
don't really like.


what happened to genius composing! T.T
it seems like ajikan's moving on to a new, more mature sound and they haven't grasped and perfected it yet. and also that they're trying to get more meaningful messages across but they haven't found the right notes that connect immediately.
the music comes first so even with the lyrics, it's not enough to fill the one-year-plus gap.
well, the single sort of works out after a while. it is very ajikan-like in the end.
but i'm still waiting for that really good song that i will like instinctively, like the singles from the world world world era.
for now, listen to it with the lyrics and don't listen to it if you aren't prepared to be super forgiving and tolerating towards the music.

(and i tried very hard not to be biased throughout this review. P:)

(watch the pv if you're in the mood for unconventional stuff~)

i! will! wait! for the next single/ album! and i hope i get used to the new style then!