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!
