Aesthetic Rhapsody

Artist: Angel Aki
Release Date: September 17, 2008
Label: Sony Music Japan
Genre: J-pop
Number of Songs: 4
Personal Rating: 4.5/5

1. Tegami ~Haikei Juugo no Kimi e~
2. final destination
3. Still Fighting It
4. Tegami ~Haikei Juugo no Kimi e~ -strings version-
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Since Angela Aki is an excellent piano player as well as a great songwriter, it’s pretty natural for people to except ballads here and there. But Tegami ~Haikei Juugo no Kimi e~? Totally awesome! It was really nice how people could hear her true emotions put into the song and how the whole song wasn’t messy, boring or simplistic like some Japanese ballads. If someone were to just listen to this song, it would seem like she spent years composing this song! Another great plus is that she mixed up the genre of light pop and slow ballad into one song. Usually, when J-pop singers attempt to do that, the whole song turns out badly but this one was an exception. There was a nice and fluid transition throughout the song and made it quite enjoyable.

For some reason, the word, final destination reminds me of that freaky horror movie with the same title. (I know, this is a bit random but honestly…) I’m pretty sure that many people really like this song but for me, it’s good and all but I’m not really into it. Despite the fact that the instrumentals were really great, there’s just something about the song that doesn’t really catch my attention. The way she sings in English was great, though and the chorus sounded uplifting. But it still doesn’t beat the A-side.

Still Fighting It is another one of Angela Aki’s cover songs. (When she takes a classic English song and then rewrites some of it while maintaining parts of the original song.) I usually don’t like the idea of artists doing cover songs since it’s not really…original but when Angela Aki sings them, it’s really flawless. Her voice has this power that makes listeners love her songs whether it’s a cover song or not. I thought this song was pretty good, too.

The Tegami ~Haikei Juugo no Kimi e~ -strings version- sounded pretty much like the original except this version sounded a bit more melodious. It’s really the power of the string instruments that makes original songs sound a bit better. (But for some reason, I still perfer the Original version.)

Personal Rating: 4.5/5

Artist: Angela Aki
Release Date: July 11, 2007
Label: Tofu Records
Genre: J-pop
Number of Songs: 2
Personal Rating: 3/5

1. Tashika ni
2. Tashika ni -piano version-
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After reviewing her beautiful “Kiss Me Goodbye” single, I wouldn’t have guessed that Angela Aki would have a very uplifting track like Tashika ni. Although it was nice and positive, I wasn’t really impressed with the song because: A) It includes one of my well known pet peeve: repetition and B.) It reminds me of one of the annoying Hannah Montanna songs. But I liked how she incorporated the “La’s.”

Personally, I pretty much liked the Tashika ni -piano version- better although the repetition was still there.

A pretty short review for the most part but I guess the first paragraph explains it all. I like Angela Aki but I guess I wasn’t that impressed with this single as much as I liked her “Kiss Me Goodbye” release.

Personal Rating: 3/5

Artist: Angela Aki
Release Date: May 23, 2007
Label: Sony Music Japan
Genre: Ballad
Personal Rating: 4/5

1. Kodoku no Kakera
2. Kodoku no Kakera -piano version-
3. Solitude
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The very passionate and genuine Angela Aki has once again released a very well composed piece called Kodoku no Kakera. Unlike the very upbeat “Tashika Ni” single that was released during the same era, Kodoku no Kakera takes Angela Aki’s level to more of a somewhat dramatic side by adding a very graceful set of string composition in the background. But for some reason, I think that this “dramatic” style shows more of Angela Aki’s talent and how people could see the strength in her voice.

However, the Kodoku no Kakera -piano version- is almost exactly the same as the original except there’s moreof the piano in the background. I could just say that my opinion with the original version is somewhat the same with the piano version so I don’t really have much to say about this version.

I was actually expecting to hear a B-side for this single but instead, Solitude is actually just the piano arrangement of Kodoku no Kakera. Although the arrangement still has the beautiful melody, I was just a bit disappointed because I was hoping that Angela Aki would try something new with this single. But since she’s a very talented piano player, I guess the label wanted to show Angela’s fans by releasing a single that focuses on both her vocals and her piano playing.

Personal Rating: 4/5

Artist: Angela Aki
Release Date: March 15, 2006
Label:—
Genre: Ballad/J-pop
Number of Songs: 4
Personal Rating: 5/5

1. Kiss Me Good-Bye
2. Santa Fé
3. Aoi Kage
4. Kiss Me Good-Bye -FINAL FANTASY XII-
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Yes I know, I’m a total die-hard fan of Final Fantasy so it was coming to a time when I’ll review another release from the series. First of all, Kiss me Goodbye was used as the insert song for Final Fantasy XII. (Well…the english version.) Just hearing it for the first time gave me that emotional impression. And after hearing this song, it somehow made want to look more into the artist. Kissing me Goodbye was my introductory song to Angela Aki after all, I thought that she is a great singer.

Santa Fé was a song that was completely sung in english and was in total contrast with the A-side. I would simply like to state that this was a very very very captivating song and I just had to listen to it over and over again. Not to mention that the lyrics were pretty cute.

The final original song is  Aoi Kage which is mainly about sadness and is totally different than “Santa Fe’” but somehow shares the same style with “Kiss me Goodbye.” An of course, there’s another song with the piano. I’m guessing that I’m going to have a great time reviewing all of Angela Aki’s releases.

The Kiss Me Good-Bye -FINAL FANTASY XII- was the english version of the original song that was featured in the game. There’s not really a difference with the two version except of the language, gentler instrumentals and the fact that it was in the game. In other words, I like both versions equally.

Personal Rating: 5/5

Artist: Angela Aki
Release Date: January 18, 2006
Label: Avex Trax
Personal Rating: 4/5

1. Kokoro no Senshi
2. Sora wa Itsumo Naiteiru
3. TODAY
4. Eyes On Me
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“Kokoro no Senshi” is actually Angela Aki’s second album with Sony Music Japan but for some reason, I thought that it was her first. =/

People say that Kokoro no Senshi is probably one of Angela Aki’s most popular song for her “HOME” era. It’s seems to me that she actually started with a little bit of an R&B feel to her song since she pretty much repeats the chorus over and over. I would say its a good song but that repetition…

Unlike the A-side, Sora wa Itsumo Naiteiru isn’t that repetitive. (I’m guessing that She’s just experiencing with different genres.) I liked how there’s transitions with volume and pace throughout the whole song. There were some part that were slow and some parts that picked up the speed. I hope that Angela Aki does more of this style than the R&B style.

TODAY is a cover song of the original English version sung by “The Smashing Pumpkins.” (Really cute band name!) There isn’t really a huge difference between the two versions except the fact that Angela AKi’s vocals make the song sound much more feminine. But otherwise, great cover song!

Now who sings Eyes On Me from Final Fantasy VIII? Well, it’s another cover song that was originally sung by Faye Wong. However, Faye Wong’s version was used for the game. Anyways, I really wished that they used Angela Aki’s version as their theme song because there were loads of English mistakes and that Angela included the piano.

Personal Rating: 4/5