Do As Infinity – Brand New Days [album review]

Do As Infinity has had a long history having just released their 15th Anniversary concert DVD and already in their 16th year. They lost their founder/composer in the process, came to a halt during the 3-year hiatus and reformed with just the vocalist, Van Tomiko (Ban chan) and Owatari Ryo (guitarist). After the reformation, there was a clear distinction between the old and present DAI. As we fans see it, the cause was none other than the absence of mastermind Dai Nagao who was largely responsible for the unique DAI sound they were famous for in the past. However, let’s not put down the new DAI so easily because from what I observe, they’re still releasing decent music. Sure they’ve lost a number of fans along the way but that’s something we see in most artists at the moment, sales dipped and whatnot. After releasing their 10th album named X, they took 3 years to produce a new studio album, Brand New Days (their 11th). If you noticed, after Time Machine (2012), they didn’t exactly follow the shiritori game for album names anymore. Some may say X can be interpreted by ‘ex’ but the way I see it, they’ve broken the pattern and though fans would’ve loved them to continue, I think it’s time to start anew. Brand New Days has 11 tracks and besides Mysterious Magic (Fairy Tail Opening theme) and Brand new days (title track) which was included in the USB they gave out to club members last year, we actually have not heard the rest of the album nor do we know what to expect. So let’s get into the album right away.

Mysterious Magic is one those songs that I initially don’t feel much about and ends up liking it. It’s a grower. That said, I’ve come to love it more now. I’ve also watched the live version from their 15th anniversary and I have to say, it’s the kind that sounds a lot better live. Afterall, for an anime theme, I didn’t put high hope for it to sound amazing, although before this, they had a number of great tracks for Inuyasha like Fukai Mori and Shinjitsu no Uta, not forgetting Rakuen as well. But those were the days where we expected no less from Dai Nagao. I think we can all agree that his absence plays a role in causing DAI to exert different sound now.

EDGE continues in the similar vein as Mysterious Magic, in it being a fast-paced pop/rock. I see this as a grower too and will definitely pump the audience in concerts. I like that it has a proper guitar riff during the bridge but still lacks a vocal one.

Brand new days is somewhat a surprise especially for old DAI fans. For us, this sounds a lot like American pop that we never expect them to make. However, I’m sure the lyrics still bring forth the message of a reborn Do As Infinity, perhaps? To be honest, it’s not a bad song at all. Like Mysterious Magic, it’s a grower, though I wish they actually put more bass in the song because it’s lacking it. It’s got too much treble and sound thin, at times grating on my ears. I blame the production at this point.

Sousei is beautifully amazing. Nuff said. Okay, this song deserves more than just two lines. This is the first ballad in the album and it begins with this guitar melody followed by Ban chan’s lower bittersweet vocal. God, I miss her lower register! I haven’t really analyzed the lyrics in detail but I think it’s about appreciating life and there’s also a subtle message about love and peace. I should also mention that this was written by Ban chan. Yup, I can always count on her for heartfelt lyrics. I’m also quite surprised to see that this was composed by foreigners. Do As Infinity never fails in making touching ballads. Just go through all of their ballads and you’ll get what I mean.
Listen to Sousei here.

Rapunzel reminds me of Tasogare. This track is quite odd because the pacing is kinda awkward in some sections and doesn’t quite flow smoothly, I didn’t even realize the first thing she sang was the chorus itself. Once you get down with it though, this song is sweet. I think this style is slightly different from what they’re used to. It’s probably worth mentioning that accordion can be heard and so it gives the track a very folk-ish sound.

Yume no Owari is still pop/rock with a tinge of blues. The beginning sounds like something you’d hear in those blues clubs (guitar riff especially), before the chorus gains more pace. Sadly, as groovy as this is, it’s not my type of song. I can’t find myself listening to this more than once and it’s more like a filler for me.

Marionette immediately reminded me of mainstream American pop/rock again I’m not sure why. It’s definitely the Ahh Ahh Ahh part in the beginning which sounds similar to something in the early 2000s by singers like Michelle Branch (don’t ask). That being said, it takes away the uniqueness I was hoping from DAI but I end up quite liking this as it progresses. The riff is proper and quite nicely done too.

Route 16 is like country pop. It’s not my cup of coffee and so I have a hard time loving this twang. It’s a light-hearted song and the nature of it makes me feel a bit meh about it. Hard to believe this is composed by the same person who did Marionette. On the hindsight, it might not be much of a surprise the fact that I think COZZi was somehow inspired by Western pop/rock. This song might work well in come cowboy town xD

Always, the second ballad is sure to capture your heart. Unless you’re not into slower songs then this won’t work. Anyways, I’m sold by this track, quite effortlessly too. It’s a step lower than Sousei but it’s up there. The chorus reminds me of that anniversary song they did before, heartwarming.

song for you has quite a promising intro and verse but it falls short of expectation when the chorus hits. It’s a bit disappointing because if the chorus was done in a different way, perhaps this would’ve been a solid track. The chorus makes everything collapse thereafter. The only good thing is that it has a proper bridge and riff.

Hajimari no Basho has a pretty intro and I believe they used some traditional instruments similar to what our ethnics are using (I forgot the name of the metal thing they used though). Now this feels more Japanesey and filled with hope.
Listen to Hajimari no Basho.

Overall, this album is better than I expected because I really wasn’t putting a lot of hope having not heard anything new from them for the last 3 years, except for the recent Mysterious Magic release which was to hype the release. If I were to compare though with the post-Dai Nagao releases, I still think Eternal Flame is my favourite and some of the track here remind me of that album. Especially the slower tracks. This album lacks the emo tracks present in Eternal Flame, which I loved so much lol *don’t mind me*. What this album is lacking though is experimentation, in fact, it’s playing on the safe side and I don’t feel like they’re pushing to the edge. I think the strength of this album is on the slower songs followed by the energetic ones. The filler-ish tracks should’ve been replaced with maybe darker vibe ones or harder rock. I miss rock and roll DAI. That said, the style is not much different from the previous album, X, if anything they’ve probably slowed down a bit. I’m not sure what producer Seiji Kameda was planning for the image of this album, it doesn’t sound like Brand New Days to me tbh, I was expecting something more drastic but overall, it’s on the more mainstream side. Regarding Ban Chan’s vocal, I think it sounds similar to the previous albums, I’m not sure if it has naturally just gone higher or what, but when she hits the lower notes, I’m instantly reminded of her True Song days where it was pure bliss. Her vocal has transformed over the years and it may have to do with the technique she’s singing now. I just know quite a number of fans (international) were commenting on it. It’s just something I’ve probably gotten used to but I still wish her vocal will someday magically go back to the way it was during True Song period xD

Still, it’s hard to hate this album when it has some actual solid tracks. In fact, I can’t bring myself to hate any of their albums because they have clear gems in each that you can’t ignore. It still exceeds my expectation and I think I’ll be churning some tracks on repeat for the next few weeks xD

Score: 8.5/10
Highlights: Sousei, Hajimari no Basho, EDGE, Rapunzel, Always.

Do As Infinity – Mysterious Magic [single review]

The band that brought me into the world of JPOP has released a new single, Mysterious Magic. It’s been a while since Do As Infinity released anything new. There’s this song called Brand New Day which came with the USB but I think those were limited to fan club members only. Now after months of wait, Ban Chan gave birth to a baby boy and rested enough, she’s back in the studio with Ryo to continue recording. Mysterious Magic is the tie-in song for Fairy Tale, which is not uncommon since quite a few of DAI’s songs like Fukai Mori and Shinjitsu no Uta had been the endings for Inuyasha.

Mysterious Magic is exactly how I would expect from an anime tie-in. While it definitely doesn’t come any close with the classics Fukai Mori or Shinjitsu, it’s still not terrible. It’s mediocre yes and I admit I was a bit underwhelmed when I first heard it. However, all things considered, I’m still glad it’s actually quite upbeat and catchy in some parts to keep me at least, interested even for a moment. Ban Chan’s voice though is quite grating and thin and probably too high-pitched for my liking in this song. It’s as if they turned up the pitch during the production and that ruined it a bit.

Tidy Beauty is the B-side and thank goodness they didn’t alter her vocals in this. The lower register is definitely part of her charm. This is a slower paced track, a ballad and it serves a good balance to upbeat A-side. However, this didn’t quite do the magic for me too. I like it slightly better than Mysterious Magic but it’s still not enough for me. When it comes to DAI, as a huge fan, I hold very high expectation from my favorite JPOP band, knowing full well they can do better than this. I’m not going to rant here since this single is not awful per se. It’s just not the kind of work I’d recommend to people. They have better tracks than this. On the bright side, rumor has it that they’ll be releasing a new album in February 2015. So I’m looking forward to that. I’m just pretty excited knowing that we might get to hear at least 8 totally new tracks.

Highlight: Both tracks are decent.
Score: 7/10

Do As Infinity – 14th Anniversary 2013 Dive At It Limited Live [concert review]

I knew they didn’t perform in Budoukan this time just by the look at the venue. Did some digging and found they performed at MAIHAMA Amphitheater, located inside Tokyo Disney Resort. It has a semi-circle stage with seating for 2170. It’s a common Japanese venue for Cirque du Soleil.

Here are some pictures of the Amphitheater.

The stage is huge and obviously a lot of space to move around. It felt bit weird watching them on the stage because they used to perform in rectangular stages and more tight-spaced.

The opening was quite something. They began with Fukai Mori, the tie-in track with Inuyasha that catapulted them to fame (especially among international fans). Ryo played the acoustic guitar, very nice, and they appeared from below in the middle of the stage.

Ban chan’s vocals were top-notch. Since it was just the beginning, I expected no less really. With almost 14 years of experience performing live, you can see that she performed comfortably and Ryo, when was he never awesome? He’s still my favorite guitarist in a band xD

I like the way they shot this concert.

The front row crowd was really near the stage. So NEAR!

By the time Tooku Made came around, the crowd was really hyped. Love that song. It’s one of my favs.

The fourth song was Tsubasa no Keikaku. Can I just take a moment here and say Ban Chan was FLAWLESS when she performed this song? She sounded wonderful! My jaw literally dropped. Yes, it did, trust me. Nostalgia just hit hard on me. She nailed the falsetto during the choruses.

After Another (which also brings back so much memory), they performed Rakuen, a great rock number which is also an Inuyasha tie-in. They had quite a number of songs with Inuyasha (which literally brought them to fame anyways). If there’s one thing I love about Rakuen, it’s the bridge during Ryo’s guitar riff. When Rakuen began, I had doubts on whether Ban Chan can keep up because this song, the energy to perform this is no joke. Usually, they lower down a note for this particular track, it’s just tough to get it in the original pitch. You could see sweat all over her face already by then and during the verses, she sounded a bit out of breath. However, she did manage the chorus, even the highest pitch. In fact, could this be one of her best performance for Rakuen? O_O

Oh but Ryo…why didn’t you play the original guitar riff? T_T He did some improvisation instead which just didn’t sound as aggressive as the original. Nevertheless, still a good version.

Packed!

Treasure Pleasure was definitely a pleasure to listen to. Ban Chan really sounded great here. They changed the setting for Desire. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Desire being performed with piano before. Yes, only with piano. Ban Chan handled the song okay with a few instances of heavy breathing. I thought it was going to be a short medley kind of performance, but it was full track. She forgot a line of lyrics too haha (she later on commented that she was nervous performing this with only the piano, in DVD 2’s footage).

After the song, she introduced the piano player, who I’m most certain is his first time performing as backup band for Do As. Then, she joked by calling out for Ryo-kun by addressing him as “Aniki” or ‘Brother’ lol…”Where are you Ryo-kun? Come back here!”

So she then passed the baton to him because the next song was Azayaka na Hana! He wrote and composed this xD He was saying he felt a lot of pressure singing this by himself but looking at the fans’ that worry went away xD

He went on talking about the situation is similar like Steve Jobs on stage…then he called out “New iPod is out!” hahahaha Ryo and his sense of humour >.< When he said Steve Jobs, I could hear Ban Chan laughing backstage (apparently her mic was still on lol). He can definitely talk for long! Ryo has always been great at MC compared to Ban Chan who seems to have this shy personality during MC, her voice will just go lower almost automatically when she speaks. I always had to increase the volume just to hear what she says. But Ryo? He’s loud and clear haha but he has a distinctive style of speaking, sometimes I don’t really get what he means hehe

It was a nice change of atmosphere to have Ryo by himself on stage, strumming the guitar and performed the song he composed. He sang pretty well too! Great job!

Seiji Kameda is one of the producers that has worked with them since their 3^rd single, if I didn’t hear Ban Chan wrongly as she introduced him. It’s nice that he participated in their concerts. He plays bass. What is that instrument called by the way, that huge ass one?

They performed Week! And We are. Again, a nice change of pace for these songs. We are especially sounded beautiful.

After that, it was time for post-Dai Nagao. What I mean here is that they broke up in 2005 and 3 years later, they came back, only without the founder and composer, Dai Nagao. They kicked off the new era with ETERNAL FLAME. Full band this time. This song is written fully in English and I still wonder why so? It could’ve been written in Japanese alone, imo. Ban Chan’s English is not the best so I call it Engrish. At least she tried. Need Your Love was next. This track was in the final album before they broke up. Following the two rock ballads, Yesterday & Today ensued. A flood of nostalgia came upon me T_T They even showed the translation of lyrics on screen, which was nice. Not a single DAI concert can do without this song. It will feel incomplete. One of the best performance of Yesterday & Today, almost felt a tear welling up my eyes *_*

And….then we were back to the usual Do As Infinity Rock and Roll style!!! Ban chan hyped up the crowd and they moved on with TIME MACHINE. It never really occurred to me how great this song was when I first heard it on the album. It’s true when some songs are meant to shine on stage, performed live. This particular song is one of those. They rocked it and everything from the lightings, the camera angles to Ban Chan’s vocals and Ryo-kun’s guitar riffs were on-point. PERFECT! I wish I was there to watch this myself. Special came next, what a fun song ^^ I like the part where the fans can interact by shouting along some of the phrases and they jumped xD

Copernicus followed by Honjitsu wa Seitenari!

YESSS MORE Ryo and Ban chan moments please!

Final song T_T

Ai no Uta!!!

I love this song so much! So MUCH! It was used as the final song for so many times over the past years, it has somewhat become a tradition. So I’m glad they ended with this.

Not the end yet! Fans chanted the usual Encore and so…they came back wearing the official merchandise T-shirt for this particular concert.

Yay MC time! Ban Chan thanked them for the encore chant. Then, fans prompted Ryo-kun to chat too. Ban Chan went and took a little pouch on the stand behind. She said that Ryo-kun has been using it for forever. She went on saying this was when Dai Nagao was still with them, some Fukuoka promotion, on the way back at the airport, they bought it. There were orange, yellow and blue colours. And he was still using it till today. Ban Chan was touched T_T

OMG Ryo why U SO CUTE!!!

Then she asked whether Ryo-kun washes the pouch or not lol…and she said, “You don’t wash this, do you? Wash it from time to time..” LOL Ryo-kun then defended himself and said he does wash it xDD

Then fans wanted Ban Chan to chat too. She said she has been very forgetful recently. She didn’t want to tell something at first, because she was convinced everyone will go EEHHHHH if she told them. But then, because it was their 14th Anniversary so she decided to just talk about it. She said Ryo knew about it too, which surprised him.

I wasn’t quite sure the details of her story, she was speaking quite fast. But basically, it had something to do with something she bought – clothes. She thought she lost it or was stolen and even asked the security to check the security camera. So the next day, she got a phone saying they had checked the camera footage and that a woman with long hair took it. Then, she was like ‘Masaka?!’ She went to check her closet and saw her clothes hanging properly in there LOL

She then apologized for how horrible her memory was and for all the trouble she caused haha…
She said she’ll be more careful next time.
Band introduction again

Then photo time!

Final song – For the Future!

Ryo was taking his sweet time shaking hands with fans! All the while he was randomly mumbling stuffs haha!

I noticed that guy, he was in the Free Live DVD too! lol…hardcore fan ^^

He was totally taking his sweet time!

Ban Chan then started from the corner and touched the hands in a quicker method lol

Wanna shake hands?

In the end, he was high-five-ing with them instead of shaking one by one lol

Great concert! Totally worth the money spent. Like I mentioned, any DAI concert is definitely worth watching. They improvised from time to time, changing the setlist and always find different ways to perform, bring something fresh for fans. I have to say, Ban Chan’s vocal was superb 90% of this concert. I am tempted to get the live album even! Ryo-kun’s guitar play has always been awesome. And I totally love his antics xD Likes to joke, chatty and basically just a great personality!

When this rolled out during the end, it tugged at my heartstrings a bit.

It used to be a 3-person band.

*This took me whole night to compile and write up. Been a while since I do a review of concerts. I might do another one soon, so watch out for it xD

Do As Infinity – X [album review]

I’ve been a fan of Do As Infinity since 2005 and it really didn’t help when that was the year they decided to break up in order to pursue their solo projects. But I never let go off the hope of them returning one day. And it came true in 2008, 3 years after their solo works. I’m not sure whether their reunion was due to the fact that their solo projects didn’t quite work as they’d hoped, as claimed by several fans in the forum or because they felt that DAI is still where they belong together. I hope it’s the later of course. However, the biggest shock is that Dai Nagao, their founder and composer is no longer in the band. So this leaves Ban chan (Van Tomiko) and Ryo Owatari. I am expecting a different style and sound since their prominent composer is no longer with them, but what I’ve heard so far still gives me that tinge of DAI-ness to it, so it’s still acceptable. But I’ll probably go deeper at the end of this review.

Now, this new album came as a surprise because it was only last February when they released TIME MACHINE and that makes it only approximately 8 months of them recording in the studio/writing the new album, named X or ten. Their tenth album and they released it on 10.10.12. Another neat detail is it’s going to have 10 new tracks too. This time, they decided not to release any singles or promotional videos, which is such a sad thing for us fans. Maybe they didn’t think there’s a need for that. I don’t know but if that money’s going to be used on their next album etc…, then so be it.

Yoake wa Chikai
A good track to start off the album, get hyper with this, and I can imagine it being an opening song for their tour (8/10)

Tokyo Anettai
They don’t slow down in second track, another upbeat one. I actually liked the guitar riffs here. (8/10)

Work!
upbeat track again. Kinda reminds me of their old song, Week! (although they have different sounds altogether but the feel). Chorus could’ve been better though. (6/10)

Renge – First ballad of their 10th album, this sounded good in the preview but after the full thing, I find it missing the oomph. Repetitive but very glad they didn’t sing the chorus again at the end, if not it’d have been too much. Ban chan’s voice was great though, as usual. She sounded strong yet there’s the tinge of mellow. I need translations of the lyrics to this song because I’m sure it’s meaningful from some sentences I caught. (7/10)

mannequin
a laid back track. I like the intro xD It reminds me of old DAI songs. A good sign. (8/10)

copernicus
this is the track that I can’t find anything memorable at all. Easily forgotten and the album can even go without this. It’s upbeat and got a pretty interesting intro but it’s a filler. The first line of the chorus sounded a lot like Ariadne but sizzles afterwards. (5/10)

Right Now
Now this one is fun. It immediately reminds me of pop/punkish tunes especially by The Maine, trust me, if you’ve heard of the band’s older songs, this one pretty much nails it. So similar. And because of that, I feel like this track is closest to a western track of that genre. Ban chan sounded like she’s having fun singing this in the studio too hehe (8/10)

sodensen
Second ballad and this one is well-done, so much more than Renge. However, there’s something very familiar with the entire song, like I’ve heard it somewhere before but couldn’t pin point (let my friend listened to it and she said the same thing). Irritating but the song’s good on its own. I like Ban chan’s voice in this one. Very calm and composed. Waiting for translation for this. (9/10)

また明日も少しだけ頑張ろうとおもう
Surprise, surprise, another ballad? From DAI’s past, especially older albums, they don’t offer this much ballad in one album. Or maybe because this album only has 10 albums, I felt like there are a lot of ballads. This rates second from sodensen, not quite there but it’s got its moments. Rock ballad. (8/10)

ROCK DAYZ
final song returns the atmosphere to hyper. The chorus is actually nice but I half-wished Ban chan could pronounce “We will rock! x2” better than the engrish. It’s not obvious but I can still hear that engrish there. But I have to say, this track makes me wanna get up and let loose hehe, not to mention, Ryo has an exciting guitar riff here.

Overall, if I were to complain anything, it’s the number of tracks offered. Of course, we get all 10 new tracks because they didn’t even release any single and PV. But still, another one or two tracks would’ve been really nice. I mean, it’s their 10th album! okay, so maybe that’s their point, 10th album so 10 tracks. And released on 10.10.12. How obvious can they make it? LOL Another downside is how their sound has gotten very similar since the new DAI was formed. What you hear in this album is their comfort zone and you don’t get to hear anything outside that. You don’t get whacky tunes like you do when Dai Nagao was around. You don’t get crazy or sick riffs delivered by Ryo anymore. And that’s what I missed most from them. I hope they take some time off, get back in studio and look back at their past songs and try something new rather than this normal formula, coz it’s getting bit old.