I've Girl's Compilation Vol. 9 Evidence nine was released on September 26, 2014, two years after LEVEL OCTAVE.
WING OF ZERO starts the album on a high note, giving an overall techno feel to the album – something LEVEL OCTAVE did not offer all that much. KOTOKO definitely fires off tension and energy with a trance song once again, nails it, and adds yet another memorable song under the genre in her discography. Catchy, unconventional, and does not dry up that easily, relative to some other songs. We then continue on to more techno with Reboot oN/↓0, highly reminiscent of KOTOKO's techno works with I've back in the days. The mood of the song feels closer to home. Putting two hard trance songs next to each other, however, is not a good idea. This tends to enforce comparison and eventually, one track overshadows the other. In this case, WING OF ZERO overshadows Reboot oN/↓0 a bit. In this age of custom playlists though, this issue isn't really something to fret about.
While unoriginal, the song still manages to offer a nice listen. The song's defining character is the catchy and upbeat composition to go along with KOTOKO flaunting vocal control – not going over the top but not sounding too lackluster either. Subtle execution to go for a rather surprising and enjoyable listen. Just the right amount of everything.
Taking the album's track off to a lighter and more fun route is Ashiato's charming sound. A great way to start this part of the album. The song instantly makes you feel calm and less uptight with its introductory tune, with the vocals and verses building up this sweet, lovely melody. Not overly cutesy, not too bland, nor too loud. The smooth and perfectly coherent flow does the magic. It was indeed nice to hear Mami do better with this genre, even better than her album track Rasen Kaidan. Light and heartwarming, makes you feel reminded of love, something eroges are known to uphold.
Now to take fun to the denpa level is Dual Force. The song opens up thinly, eventually bursting out to energetic synths characteristic of the denpa genre. However, the vocals embody less of this energy, sounding a bit too robotic for the most parts, perhaps because of too much filtering with a dash of autotune. Pixy lab. once again disappoints with their vocal performance, just like their debut song Sig-naL ~0-ji-sugi no Space soldier~. It's not clear if I've is going for the vocaloid quality with this duo, but this type of bland vocals is unforgivable. Heck even the unexpressive singing of AKI does better than this. Albeit the vocals throw off the denpa image we're so used to hearing with I've and we've grown to love so much, the instrumental work compensates hugely to still deliver the song slightly within expectations. A lot more vocal effort and flare would have made this song a stand out I've denpa track in recent history.
We go a bit jazzy, classy, and lounge-y with the next song, My Love, Honey, hybridized with punch and pop elements. The hybrid genre is a stand out from the rest I've has done by far, so that's a plus. Nami also shows significant control and dynamics, and her uniquely deep register injects charm to the listener's heart like a cupid does to people in love. It is just this character that makes Nami's vocals stand out and all the more lovable. The deep register mixes perfectly with the mood of the song and the end product is plainly soothing, unexpectedly vibrant. Easily Nami's best solo song.
The overall mood of the album descends further in energy with the poppy ballad soupir d'ange from KOTOKO. Cheesy, and tries to attempt a feel-good mood but fails at doing so. The song falls flat and dull because of the lame melody, but still manages to be endearing to a certain extent. The song's appeal hangs in the balance, and quite reminiscent of her nightmarish tracks U make Ai dream or a piacere – tracks that have fallen into obscurity, a fate soupir d'ange is bound to have. Still a decent track but something you probably won't be adding to your playlist ever again.
And we're back on track with the trance ballad Eternal song. The introductory piano synths are hooking and pulls you right in, resembling the way IMMORAL's piano synths did wonders. The verses seem detached from the whole feel of the song, but Eternal song makes up for it with the bridge and the chorus. Airi's voice also sounds less grating than how she usually is, and that's good. In hindsight, the mood of the song resembles a ballad, but the composition doesn't allow the vocals to back up the mood. Airi's vocals could have been more emotional but then again, there's little room to do that in the song. In a more positive note, the song tones it all down perhaps in an effort to put the spotlight over the smaller details, and it works.
Timeless time comes in and warms our hearts once again. The notable difference the album version has over the original one are the introductory vocals and the more prominent guitar riffs in the background at certain parts of the song. The song just has this ironically harmonic mix of joy and melancholy about it that makes it graceful and magical. The lovely tune and vocals are sure to melt any heart, sparking up some emotions. The ballad and pop elements blend so well, something INITIATIVE didn't pull off quite well. Definitely another testament to Mami Kawada's excellence at this type of music.
The compilation album veers a bit more denpa once again with Love mission!! ~nanda. tada no koi ka w~. The song definitely combines elements and parts from previous KOTOKO denpa songs. It may well be a good thing, but the mix doesn't work out and pushes the song to confusion instead. There's a lot going in with the melody and it's a mess altogether. The slightly mid tempo beat doesn't help either, making the song sound more generic and boring, contrary to what a denpa song should be offering. Even for a pop song, Love mission!! does pretty bad. The verses seem promising but the bridge and the chorus ruin the build-up. Lame, half-baked, ultimately horrendous.
Kibou ~NOZOMI∙ashita e no kakehashi~ comes in with pop energy, armed with a more structured melody, but still falls short. The song experiences similar problems as Love mission!! – the verses are sweet and gives you that feel of "oh, this could be something nice!" but no. Definitely anticlimactic. The rest of the song immensely lacks energy, but unlike Eternal song, Kibou has more room for vocal dynamics. Rin just didn't have what it takes to bring out more from the song composition and that was disappointing. The whole song could have been way better with more energetic, flavorful vocals.
And Airi comes to save the pop genre in the album after two mediocre pop tracks. Steadily sounds so much like KOTOKO's Crystal moment. Definitely unoriginal and something we've heard before from I've but you know, just as Crystal moment was good, Steadily is too. We rarely get two songs sounding this much alike but hey, the end product was great nonetheless so the resemblance is forgivable. Airi's charm shines through and pulls off more of the cheery vibe than the previous two songs did. The simplistic take and formula turned out nice, mainly due to the equally simple mix of melody and vocals.
find a piece then brings the three LSP girls back into the scene, and is one of their last songs as part of a three-member unit. The song also brings back the usual techno/trance feel the unit usually takes on. Sadly, however, find a piece is underwhelming. The premise to offer something new is there, but the harmony is all over the place and the energy anticlimactic. This is another example of a confused mix and match of genres. Not the best composition for an LSP song, and not something you'll remember the unit by, that's for sure.
Yuzuno takes center stage as the album draws to a close, and that's pretty much welcome. Her debut song Moratorium Cluster was great, but Yuzuno (and I've) steps it up with Subliminal Agenda. You can hear and notice how the I've producers are enjoying themselves with the style they're building up on Yuzuno. Definitely something unique and fresh to the music circle. The enthusiasm and the creativity apparent on this song kick ass. Yuzuno's vocal performance and her notorious diction adds further flavor and flare to the song, doing justice to the roughly metallic sound. The end product was flawless and eargasmic. And if you think the original version was already godly, hell yeah, the album mix made it even godlier, if that's even possible. The altered intro was more eargasmic, rougher, and hyped, and Yuzuno herself singing the rap part was more awesome than whoever sang the same part in the original version. Never a dull moment in the song. The dynamics was crazy and always engaging.
Evidence nine, the titular track, caps it all off. Heavy synths open up the song, set in an ironically softer mood. The chorus sets itself apart and makes the song memorable. Yuzuno's squeals during the high notes may sound off, but they actually add more character to the song. The squeals, then again, are part of her vocal style – take it or leave it. For those who buy her style, it actually is a plus, at least for this song. Evidence nine is neatly decent, not the best off the album but still stands out in its own right.
All in all, the album is good, the positives outweigh the negatives. Evidence nine is about at par with the previous album LEVEL OCTAVE. While different in the overall feel, the two albums have their own share of hits and misses – definitely something all albums have. It was nice to hear a better Pixy lab. song, for one, but there is still way more room for improvement, if I've is planning to let the unit linger for long that is. Airi shone better in this album than the previous one, and Yuzuno's I've girl compilation debut was awesome. Mami Kawada delivers with two songs, and Nami too with My Love, Honey. KOTOKO wows us with the first two tracks but fails with the latter two. Rin's Kibou and LSP's find a piece then fall back under the shadows.
I've is still doing good, fortunately, albeit not as good as their golden era. But who knows if another era like that is yet to come up? We can only hope for it.
While unoriginal, the song still manages to offer a nice listen. The song's defining character is the catchy and upbeat composition to go along with KOTOKO flaunting vocal control – not going over the top but not sounding too lackluster either. Subtle execution to go for a rather surprising and enjoyable listen. Just the right amount of everything.
Taking the album's track off to a lighter and more fun route is Ashiato's charming sound. A great way to start this part of the album. The song instantly makes you feel calm and less uptight with its introductory tune, with the vocals and verses building up this sweet, lovely melody. Not overly cutesy, not too bland, nor too loud. The smooth and perfectly coherent flow does the magic. It was indeed nice to hear Mami do better with this genre, even better than her album track Rasen Kaidan. Light and heartwarming, makes you feel reminded of love, something eroges are known to uphold.
Now to take fun to the denpa level is Dual Force. The song opens up thinly, eventually bursting out to energetic synths characteristic of the denpa genre. However, the vocals embody less of this energy, sounding a bit too robotic for the most parts, perhaps because of too much filtering with a dash of autotune. Pixy lab. once again disappoints with their vocal performance, just like their debut song Sig-naL ~0-ji-sugi no Space soldier~. It's not clear if I've is going for the vocaloid quality with this duo, but this type of bland vocals is unforgivable. Heck even the unexpressive singing of AKI does better than this. Albeit the vocals throw off the denpa image we're so used to hearing with I've and we've grown to love so much, the instrumental work compensates hugely to still deliver the song slightly within expectations. A lot more vocal effort and flare would have made this song a stand out I've denpa track in recent history.
We go a bit jazzy, classy, and lounge-y with the next song, My Love, Honey, hybridized with punch and pop elements. The hybrid genre is a stand out from the rest I've has done by far, so that's a plus. Nami also shows significant control and dynamics, and her uniquely deep register injects charm to the listener's heart like a cupid does to people in love. It is just this character that makes Nami's vocals stand out and all the more lovable. The deep register mixes perfectly with the mood of the song and the end product is plainly soothing, unexpectedly vibrant. Easily Nami's best solo song.
The overall mood of the album descends further in energy with the poppy ballad soupir d'ange from KOTOKO. Cheesy, and tries to attempt a feel-good mood but fails at doing so. The song falls flat and dull because of the lame melody, but still manages to be endearing to a certain extent. The song's appeal hangs in the balance, and quite reminiscent of her nightmarish tracks U make Ai dream or a piacere – tracks that have fallen into obscurity, a fate soupir d'ange is bound to have. Still a decent track but something you probably won't be adding to your playlist ever again.
And we're back on track with the trance ballad Eternal song. The introductory piano synths are hooking and pulls you right in, resembling the way IMMORAL's piano synths did wonders. The verses seem detached from the whole feel of the song, but Eternal song makes up for it with the bridge and the chorus. Airi's voice also sounds less grating than how she usually is, and that's good. In hindsight, the mood of the song resembles a ballad, but the composition doesn't allow the vocals to back up the mood. Airi's vocals could have been more emotional but then again, there's little room to do that in the song. In a more positive note, the song tones it all down perhaps in an effort to put the spotlight over the smaller details, and it works.
Timeless time comes in and warms our hearts once again. The notable difference the album version has over the original one are the introductory vocals and the more prominent guitar riffs in the background at certain parts of the song. The song just has this ironically harmonic mix of joy and melancholy about it that makes it graceful and magical. The lovely tune and vocals are sure to melt any heart, sparking up some emotions. The ballad and pop elements blend so well, something INITIATIVE didn't pull off quite well. Definitely another testament to Mami Kawada's excellence at this type of music.
The compilation album veers a bit more denpa once again with Love mission!! ~nanda. tada no koi ka w~. The song definitely combines elements and parts from previous KOTOKO denpa songs. It may well be a good thing, but the mix doesn't work out and pushes the song to confusion instead. There's a lot going in with the melody and it's a mess altogether. The slightly mid tempo beat doesn't help either, making the song sound more generic and boring, contrary to what a denpa song should be offering. Even for a pop song, Love mission!! does pretty bad. The verses seem promising but the bridge and the chorus ruin the build-up. Lame, half-baked, ultimately horrendous.
Kibou ~NOZOMI∙ashita e no kakehashi~ comes in with pop energy, armed with a more structured melody, but still falls short. The song experiences similar problems as Love mission!! – the verses are sweet and gives you that feel of "oh, this could be something nice!" but no. Definitely anticlimactic. The rest of the song immensely lacks energy, but unlike Eternal song, Kibou has more room for vocal dynamics. Rin just didn't have what it takes to bring out more from the song composition and that was disappointing. The whole song could have been way better with more energetic, flavorful vocals.
And Airi comes to save the pop genre in the album after two mediocre pop tracks. Steadily sounds so much like KOTOKO's Crystal moment. Definitely unoriginal and something we've heard before from I've but you know, just as Crystal moment was good, Steadily is too. We rarely get two songs sounding this much alike but hey, the end product was great nonetheless so the resemblance is forgivable. Airi's charm shines through and pulls off more of the cheery vibe than the previous two songs did. The simplistic take and formula turned out nice, mainly due to the equally simple mix of melody and vocals.
find a piece then brings the three LSP girls back into the scene, and is one of their last songs as part of a three-member unit. The song also brings back the usual techno/trance feel the unit usually takes on. Sadly, however, find a piece is underwhelming. The premise to offer something new is there, but the harmony is all over the place and the energy anticlimactic. This is another example of a confused mix and match of genres. Not the best composition for an LSP song, and not something you'll remember the unit by, that's for sure.
Yuzuno takes center stage as the album draws to a close, and that's pretty much welcome. Her debut song Moratorium Cluster was great, but Yuzuno (and I've) steps it up with Subliminal Agenda. You can hear and notice how the I've producers are enjoying themselves with the style they're building up on Yuzuno. Definitely something unique and fresh to the music circle. The enthusiasm and the creativity apparent on this song kick ass. Yuzuno's vocal performance and her notorious diction adds further flavor and flare to the song, doing justice to the roughly metallic sound. The end product was flawless and eargasmic. And if you think the original version was already godly, hell yeah, the album mix made it even godlier, if that's even possible. The altered intro was more eargasmic, rougher, and hyped, and Yuzuno herself singing the rap part was more awesome than whoever sang the same part in the original version. Never a dull moment in the song. The dynamics was crazy and always engaging.
Evidence nine, the titular track, caps it all off. Heavy synths open up the song, set in an ironically softer mood. The chorus sets itself apart and makes the song memorable. Yuzuno's squeals during the high notes may sound off, but they actually add more character to the song. The squeals, then again, are part of her vocal style – take it or leave it. For those who buy her style, it actually is a plus, at least for this song. Evidence nine is neatly decent, not the best off the album but still stands out in its own right.
All in all, the album is good, the positives outweigh the negatives. Evidence nine is about at par with the previous album LEVEL OCTAVE. While different in the overall feel, the two albums have their own share of hits and misses – definitely something all albums have. It was nice to hear a better Pixy lab. song, for one, but there is still way more room for improvement, if I've is planning to let the unit linger for long that is. Airi shone better in this album than the previous one, and Yuzuno's I've girl compilation debut was awesome. Mami Kawada delivers with two songs, and Nami too with My Love, Honey. KOTOKO wows us with the first two tracks but fails with the latter two. Rin's Kibou and LSP's find a piece then fall back under the shadows.
I've is still doing good, fortunately, albeit not as good as their golden era. But who knows if another era like that is yet to come up? We can only hope for it.
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