Okochama Sensou (Children's War) - Giga-P

Handy YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pywNi6gD1FA&src_vid=Tl3vBeuyZ3Q&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_1724896357

Okochama Sensou, or "Children's War" if you prefer the English title, is a song that's upbeat to the max.

 

Sweet Art Link: http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/wSZbbFQBGdE/maxresdefault.jpg

How upbeat is it? Well, whenever I write these reviews, I always listen to the material while composing my thoughts. However, this song was just so insanely catchy and distracting, that I got absolutely nothing down that made any sense whatsoever.

Of course, just being catchy and distracting doesn't make a song good. A good majority of the songs that are popular in the USA right now (2014) are catchy as all hell and get stuck in my head for hours...but that doesn't mean they're good. I often find myself grinding my teeth, trying to get those infectious beats out of my head so that I can get work done.

Children's War is not one of those. Though I can really get into the solid bass line and top-notch tuning of the Kagamine twins, the tune never attaches itself to my mind for very long. I know that the definition of a "catchy song" contradicts what I just said, but screw it. Any song that engages me while I'm listening to it, and leaves me alone when I'm trying to concentrate is a good song in my book.

I haven't really gone over the song itself in any sort of detail yet, so before I digress again on some other wild tangent, lets start the review. Giga-P is a producer who I've not had the pleasure of listening to before. He sings (and pretty well too), makes covers of other songs using Rin and Len, and creates original compositions like the song I'm talking about right now. He's not world-class by any means, but I enjoy his work.

Children's War, in my opinion, sells itself with the tuning. Rin and Len are portraying children in a very juvenile quarrel. They go back and forth, mocking each other in a no-holds-barred elementary school style one-up contest, each trying to out perform the other. While its stated in the beginning that they are the heirs to a wealthy family, the object of their fight isn't really clear until the middle-end. I figured that they were just typical siblings competing over who can eat the most, or be the fastest to the car or whatever. At the end though, we find that they're competing over who can be the most polite. The irony is stunning and it brought a smile to my face.

Oh yeah, back to the tuning. It really sounds like a brother and sister yelling at each other. By nature, the higher registers of Rin and even Len sound harsh without expert tuning skills, but in this song, that actually fully works to the song's advantage. Kradness did a cover of this song, and while I LOVE his voice, for the meaning of the lyrics, I'd still have to choose the original.

The music is pounding. Fantastically so, I might add. However, a lack of a real tune drops my rating for this song. It has clear, crisp beats for the verses, and a high-intensity electro-fest for the refrain (as is the norm for pop songs these days), but not a lot of variety or originality. A song doesn't need to be original to be good, but originality is definitely a plus that I'm always looking for.

7/10

A solid listen for anyone trying to stay awake or in the mood for some loud, upbeat, pulse-pounding Vocaloid music.

Until next time!

ROCK ON, FELLOW VOCALOCONNOISSEURS!

REMIX/COVER SPOTLIGHT: Kradness's Senbonzakura

Senbonzakura. That's another song I don't have to review. Its quite the masterpiece (9/10) that needs little introduction. I don't believe its creator, Kurousa P needs any intro either...that man is a true genius. Cantarella, Risky Game, Crescent Moon, the list goes on.

Because of its extremely upbeat and infectious tune, Senbonzakura has become one of the most heavily remixed Vocaloid song on YouTube. Naturally, the amount of mediocrity is quite high, but many remixes bare listening to.

If you feel in the mood for a remix with some good drops, check out - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JY44KrrHpY

However, this post is to highlight a WAY ABOVE AVERAGE remix/cover by Kradness - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daybRF2pcmA

Kradness has made many covers to the world of Vocaloid through Nico Nico Douga, but none (as far as I've listened) can even compare to the pulse pounding, blood boiling, adrenaline fest that is Kradness's Senbonzakura.

Yeah...so...for me to make a REMIX/COVER SPOTLIGHT on a song, the only rule is, it needs to be better than the original IN MY OPINION OF COURSE!

ROCK ON FELLOW VOCALOCONNOISSEURS!

MMD - A New User's (Bad) Tutorial

Isn't it great when programs are free?

In the world of animation and design, only those with deep pockets can acquire the best software (unless of course you decide to traverse the high seas if you know what I mean).

Of course, freeware does exist legally on the internet, and the Vocaloid scene is no exception. Don't have $200 to blow on a voice bank? Download an UTAU! With some correct tuning and lots of practice, UTAU can sound more realistic than even premium Vocaloids. Need a studio software to record and produce music? Plenty exist, and a free demo for FL Studios (a great music creation software) is available to tinker around with.

In fact, Miku V3 English comes with her own studio free of charge! Isn't that nice.

http://piapro.net/vocaloid/mikuv3e.html

...

So you have your newest track, complete with some seriously wicked UTAU tuning, and now you want to create a PV for it? Well I suppose it is important to beef up your emotional song with some touching visuals of everyone's favorite twin drill rocking pink haired singer!

Well...what options do you have, really? Unless you're quite the accomplished animator, you're likely wanting a quick and easy program that doesn't look like complete crap.

In that case, you might want to try...

MMD or Miku Miku Dance!

MMD is a freeware program that allows you to import different 3D models of your favorite characters, and make them get down and funky. I believe the program itself, upon download, comes prepackaged with Miku only, but its been awhile since I've used MMD for anything serious.

Upon opening the program, you're greeted with a very beginner unfriendly interface. Also, unless you have the Japanese language pack installed (PC users), some of the buttons and text will look like it came out of some crazy hacker's behind.

So naturally, the first thing to do is to hit all the buttons. You can move Miku around, bend her joints, and view her from ANY angle of your choosing.............please restrain yourself. I know what you just did.

At this point, unless you're completely new to the MMD scene, you've likely seen the many fan creations out there. From different Vocaloid costumes, to Hetalia, to even YouTube star Pewdiepie, a myriad of different models exist to suit your fancy...and its free!

So you have the program, installed the Japanese language pack, and have a collection of great models. Time to make your creation COME ALIVE!!!

...

Two hours later:

Yeah. Its not the easiest thing.

Alright, the main purpose of this post was to talk about the merits of MMD as a program, not provide a handy tutorial. I'm not the best at MMD after all. actually really terrible.

So!

MMD, known as Miku Miku Dance, was created by Yu Higuchi in early 2008. Its a freeware program as I stated above, and IT SHOWS. Oh jeez. Believe me, it shows.

MMD itself is not a bad program by any stretch. For a free software, its actually quite robust and allows for many modifications via separate downloads. Of course, being free, anyone can use it, everyone can use it, and EVERYBODY DOES...or at least it seems that way sometimes.

Aside from a few really good videos, YouTube is completely covered in a slimy layer of mediocrity when it comes to MMD.

However, can you really blame the public for not using MMD for its original purpose? Its not easy to make really clean looking music videos, so why not make stupid crap like:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pafu+pafu&sm=3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRJNgq3An8o

More akin to YouTube Poop than anything else, these videos define idiocy...

and I love them. Don't judge.

So overall, MMD as a whole is a fantastic resource. Its free for those who are poor, law abiding citizens, and who are ambitious. Unfortunately, its also free for those who want to abuse our eyes, but hey, what do you expect, really.

ROCK ON FELLOW VOCALOCONNOISSEURS!

WHAT IS UP WITH THE HATE ON: Ryo

First: the controversy. I've noticed that for the most part, the English speaking Vocaloid fan base is split between "Ryo is a genius!" and "Ryo is a terrible producer!"

My opinion is a bit more in the gray area...but before I get into that, its important to know more about Ryo and Supercell as a band. Supercell was formed in 2007, not under some huge production label, but as an independent group. Its worth noting that while Supercell contains 11 members, Ryo is the only one who directly manipulates the music. The other 10 are artists, designers, and photographers.

While Ryo has worked with many female singers, his debut album (just named "Supercell") featured Hatsune Miku as the lead (and only) vocalist. From this one HUGELY SUCCESSFUL album, we get such legends as "Love is War", "Black Rock Shooter", "Melt", and "World is Mine". However, is Ryo really deserving of all the praise he gets? Are his songs really deserving of so much acclaim?

Yes...and no.

I'll talk about the good first. Ryo follows something I like to call "Supercell Syndrome". Many other Vocaloid producers also seem to have Supercell Syndrome, but there is no better example than its namesake. Ryo's Miku album is not the best by any stretch, but neither is it bad. In fact, among all Supercell songs ever made, only one would score a 10 on this blog. However, (and here's where Supercell Syndrome comes in) he has yet to put out, in my opinion, a song I don't like. Sure some of them are mediocre, but all of them are worth listening to! Its quite amazing in that respect. Other extremely popular and mainstream producers such as 40mp, kzLivetune, and even the BRILLIANT Wowaka all have a song or two I can't stand.

Some people don't like how quite a few of Supercell's songs sound alike.

Alright. There are some producers such as UtataP, AVTechNO!, and Kikuo who put out both clean sounding emotional songs and drop the dirtiest wubs ever heard in Vocaloid, but they are few and far between. Ryo is a one man operation for the most part, and light rock is what he knows best. To be fair, he puts out some of the best sounding pieces in his niche.

Also, even if you don't like World is Mine, or even hate it, at least give it the respect it deserves. In America, the place where we have to import all our CDs, manga/anime, and T-shirts, World is Mine played on a car commercial which broadcasted nationally. If there has ever been a Vocaloid track to bridge the Pacific, it would have to be Supercell's most famous song.

...but then again, I wish that song WASN'T World is Mine. Now, I know I said Supercell is genius in my World is Mine review. However, I didn't specify HOW he is a genius. When it comes to songs, he knows what the people want as is evident from his enduring fame. Aside from that, I believe hes genius for a certain song...and just one song in particular.

Usotsuki No Parade or Parade of Liars.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuilbq3j8T8

So Supercell doesn't mix it up. So he isn't always the most innovative force in the Vocaloid community. SO WHAT? Usotsuki No Parade is the BEST example of taking something that you're good at (light rock for Ryo) and polishing it beyond measure. This is the track that would score a 10 which I talked about above.

Usotsuki No Parade is crisp, energetic, catchy, and the lyrics are compelling (especially the last two lines: "I love you, so please, just die.") Its pretty much the quintessential angry breakup song, and it works fantastically.

Now, back to World is Mine. Its a good song...and I can never hate it because it got me interested in Vocaloid, but I don't love it either. I say its a good first song, because its harmless, well known, and cute. Melt might push the HFT (high frequency tolerance), Usotsuki No Parade might scare with the meaning...what I'm trying to say, is that if there was ever a "rated G" song with some spunk and energy intact, World is Mine is a solid choice.

Other than that, for a song talking about being a "princess", its surprisingly lacks the instrumental backup to push through the strong lyrics. It seems much more minimalist than other Supercell works...which simply isn't true, the repetitiveness of some parts conveys this. This isn't one of those songs that should be minimalist by the way.

So, overall, do I think Ryo and Supercell should be the most mainstream and popular thing out there?

No.

Supercell is genius. I like the group, I like Melt, I like Black Rock Shooter, I love Usotsuki No Parade the most, and World is Mine is a meh pass.

Honestly though, based on sheer merit alone, Supercell should not be at the top. They're a good band with solid releases and catchy tunes, but the lack of variety is still a thing despite all my attempts to ignore it. I expect that many people hate on Ryo because he's stealing the spotlight from artists such as Wowaka and Kikuo who are much more versatile.

Its honestly the same in the American Pop scene right now, and believe me, its not going to go away if the last few years were any sort of trend setter.

Ryo sticks with the basics. Drums, guitar piano ect...its the instruments that we all know and love. They are safe picks. He may not be the most original, but nobody can deny that his skills with these instruments are some of the best around. These skills really shine when he does collaborations with other artists, namely Jin (Sky of Beginning) and kzLivetune (Kotchi Muite Baby). Those works were much better than anything the parts could do on their own in my opinion.

Ryo, Supercell, just keep doing what you do.

Lets keep the hate at a minimum please! There are many Supercell supporters, and plenty Supercell detractors. It all boils down to opinion. Even though I may disagree with some people's opinions, its great to know that there are those out there who are getting involved, discussing, debating, and seeing each other's points of view. That's why I hate flame wars. Nothing gets accomplished and everybody ends up angry (except the trolls but that's a different story).

ROCK ON, FELLOW VOCALOCONNOISSEURS!