Tracks:
1. your “Magic Time”
2. Spiral
5. Sherbet Iro no Jikan
6. Macaroon Holiday
7. Brand-new day
8. Shiny GATE
9. Fuyu no Yuuenchi
10. Kirei À La Mode
11. Ivy
12. Sorairo Days -Tengen Toppa Edition-
Shoko Nakagawa’s Magic Time was released on January 1st, 2009. It’s her 2nd album.
Starting off the album is your “Magic Time”. It’s just a plain ol’ opening, but it sounds actually really pretty. It has nice piano and some strings in the background that sound kinda happy. It also sounds like it’s being played on a record.
Our first “real” track on the album is a rock song. Spiral is a great song because it shows off Nakagawa’s amazing voice. This song is all rock, with the exception of the flowing strings in the background. I like the upbeatness to this song, because it just sounds overall awesome. I think she has the perfect for rock songs because it doesn’t sound squeaky or nasally and she can really belt it out. For you other Shokotan fans, this song sounds a lot like calling location, from her last album.
Sherbet Iro no Jikan is a pretty weird song, but in a good way. It kinda takes back to the happier sounding songs she had, but it’s a LOT more laid back and chill. It features weird retro synth and more strings, as well as the somewhat thumpy beat. I especially like the chorus when she repeats “kono mama” and it fades through the speakers. I’m glad her voice doesn’t sound weird in this song because I actually really like it. I hopeher future “cuter” songs sound more like this and not weird and crazy, because Shokotan crazy is BAAAD.
We have another rock song, but this one has a poppier sound to it. At first Macaroon Holiday sounded good but when Nakagawa started singing, she sounded a little… I dunno how to put it. Let’s just say she sounded a little dead. Her voice just sounds waaay too soft for this type of song and it kinda throws everything else off, making it kinda boring. I feel this song would soung a lot better if her voice was a little more “out there.” I will have to say that I like the chorus though.
Brand-new day is ANOTHER rock track. This one sounds similar to the others, but it’s a little less happier sounding. I like that she’s doing rock tracks but, I don’t feel like they’re being executed right. This song seemed more like filler in my eyes. Not that it’s bad, it’s just a little boring, despite being a rock track. “BUT ETHAN!? ROCK TRACKS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE IN YOUR FACE ZOMG.” Actually that’s only half true, if you have the voice then it’s in your face. Nakagawa has the voice, but it’s just boring in this song.
The album’s main promotional track is a ballad!? That’s right. When I first heard Fuyu no Yuuenchi, I was really underwhelmed. She has done waaay better ballads, I mean look at snow tears and starry pink. They were more orchestral-like, but this one seems way too simple. Her voice just doesn’t seem to be as pretty as the others, not saying it’s ugly, just boring. The music wasn’t really something to write home about either. Let’s just say I was expecting something a lot more, considering her past ballads were amazing.
I looove the beginning of Ivy. It’s one of those feel good drums and upbeat sounds. Despite being really poppy, it’s actualy a great track. I loved the upbeat atmosphere and that she actually sounded happy instead of insane. I thought the electric guitar with the pop twinkles and drums and clapping was a good throw-in too. Not my favourite track off the album, but one of them.
This was a big surprise. The final track is the Tengen Toppa Edition of her best-selling single Sorairo Days. I immediately noticed the difference oon this one. It opens with wind blowing and sounds of running, and then it suddenly plays the opening piano bit of Tsuzuku Sekai, then it goes into the normal Sorairo Days. I can already tell that her voice sounds a lot more mature and deep, which I thought was amazing, considering this song is a lot darker than the original. I also like how it took bits of happily ever after and calling location, distorted them a bit and made them into this new edition’s bridge. I couldn’t think of a better way to end the album.
So… as you can probably tell, I was kinda underwhelmed by this album. I’m not saying these songs are bad, they just weren’t something I was expecting. I did like that she tried to do more rock songs for this album, but she didn’t really give it as much as she could’ve for most of them. I’m gonna have to say her debut album was better than this in overall presentation. Hopefully her next set of singles will have a better album to follow.
Overall Grade:
