Brand New Wave – The introduction song to kick off the album, love the groovy sound, very relaxing, less rock of course but doesn’t mean they’ve lost their touch. Both Haruna and Tomomi sing in this and their vocals were electronically distorted a bit, which I don’t mind because it adds to the flavour of the track.
OVER DRIVE – Their last single just before the release of the album. Very catchy pop/rock. The first time I heard the preview, low quality version, but totally love it already. Nakata (Perfume’s producer) worked this track and you can hear his input, even though it didn’t turn out like Perfume, thank god because Scandal is first and foremost, a band. He did add some new instrumentals like the violin-like sound after first chorus. Very interesting indeed. I love the keyboard too in the second verse.
打ち上げ花火 (Skyrocket) Uchiagehanabi – Another pop/rock tune with an overall cute chorus and verse? Lol…both Haruna and Tomomi sing this again. Well, to be honest, if not for the drums and guitars, this would probably pass as an idol song? What makes this an interesting tune is because it consists of one chorus, 2 verses before they slow down the whole thing (like it’s about to end) and bring in the guitar riffs and some ‘huu huu huuu’ part which I totally love by the way. Again, a cute one.
Orange Juice – Fast-tempo pop/rock tune, reminds me of Do As Infinity for some reason xD I seriously need to hunt down that song from DAI which sounds similar. Like how they distorts that guitar throughout. Quite unique.
Metronome – Sounds like some grunge music, another fast-tempo pop/rock, might sound bit noisy to some but this might be closer to Scandal’s earlier music? Haruna sounds nice in the verse. When it comes to chorus though, it’s like she’s pushing it bit too far. Tomomi’s lower register actually sounds much better to my ears. I think this will rock in live concerts. They get to really play very fast and different patterns for the instruments, esp guitars. I’m hoping Mami will rock this in live performance.
Weather Report – This is my favourite new song off the record, hands down. From beginning till end, it’s just great. That intro is just LOVE. PURE LOVE. When Haruna’s vocals come in, more LOVE. She sounds just so peaceful and calm you know. Then, it picks up in chorus and it’s got amazing guitar riffs towards the end other track. Was hoping it’d go on for a while more, but they cut it off, too bad. Haruna sings this alone, which is perfect anyway, no reason for Tomomi to chip in. No offence to Tomomi really but sometimes, her higher pitch vocals can ruin a song when Haruna’s low vocal is just perfect enough.
Hachigatsu (August) – I’m not sure whether I should call this a ballad, maybe a pop/rock ballad fits more. It’s got that nostalgic feel. Well, other than that, I really don’t know how to describe this. Nevertheless, a good one.
Awanai Tsumori no, Genki de ne + Kagen no Tsuki
These two were singles and so I won’t touch much on them but both are probably the typical Scandal tracks. Awanai’s got very catchy guitar openings, and Kagen’s definitely not losing either. I think putting them together is good choice.
Koi no Gestalt Houkai/ The Collapse of Love’s Gestalt – Totally rocking out tune. Haruna gets to sing really fast too (let’s hope she isn’t out of breath in lives), Tomomi chips in once in a while, still bearable. After 2dn chorus, in the bridge, it sounds like Haruna’s breathing into the mike or something (for effects?) and their voices gets distorted. Guitar’s pretty sick in this track, Mami is a killer this time!
Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki/Fully Synchronized With You and the Future – Another pop/rock and it still reminds me of those dancing robots in their PV. Cute indeed. I like the second verse where they mix things up a bit, rushed the tempo and gives it more edge.
Namida yo Hikare/ Shining Tears – Thought this will be a ballad but I was wrong xD It’s pop/rock and Mami gets to sing! But is it me or her voice was muffled and just not the usual Mami voice. Still, it’s nice to bring in the other members. Not sure if Rina sings in this or not.
STANDARD – The girls composed this themselves, and stays true to their nature I guess. Girls wanna rock out, that’s for sure. And this track is excellent and definitely made for live concerts. It’s random and Mami sings again (she should really sing more). Tomomi makes funny sounds and screams randomly xD Haruna sings some English lyrics. Mami will definitely rock out that guitar riffs! Drums and bass are awesome too. I didn’t feel this song that much when I initially heard it, but now it’s growing in me. It’s definitely a grower. Awesome track to end the record. Couldn’t think of any other songs to do so.
Overall, very enjoyable album. I give it 4/5. I think I like this album more than Queens Are Trumps. Glad I bought this with DVD. I can’t wait to watch Scandal in the House PV. I think it’s definitely a step-up from QAT, in terms of instrumentals and maybe vocally, there’s nothing much to say as Haruna and the girls still sound good as always, but you can feel that their effort in this record paid off well. They wrote some songs and even composed, which I think, they should so more often in the future because they’ve proven that they are capable of doing so. Instrumentals, especially the guitars, I think Mami definitely has to pull off a lot of sick riffs this time in lives. They experimented with new sounds, still pop/rock but something more edgy and unique style of playing. So you won’t feel like that sounds typical or whatnot. This album will surely rock in lives, no doubt. And I guess that’s the Standard they’ve set for themselves. Perhaps the only thing I was hoping for is a true ballad, there isn’t one this time. Hachigatsu is the closest but it’s still pop/rock infused. Not something like Namida no Regret. Still, a worthy album to try out!
Ritsu no Jpop Land 