Okay, here are the rest of my initial thoughts (before the Copyright War breaks out - I think Darksky was more surprised at everyone having the release a whole day early, but with it being Golden Week, that may explain...)
Anyways...
Baby Go is bubblegum euro-dance-beat. The synths and percussion are clearly Eurobeat, but everything else is pure bubblegum Eurodance. The male vocals aren't really to my taste, and if I'm honest I would much rather have heard Aleky/Krystal singing the female lead - she's been way too quiet recently! The intro is almost reggae in its stylings, and there are some nice touches, but I find myself switching off halfway through. Not too sure that bubblegum is the way forward for Dima...
Blackout shows us the opposite end of the Dima spectrum - GUITARRRRRRSSSS!! Dima is on lead vocal, but it's not his most dynamic performance for me. I'm undecided on how to feel about this one - I expected it to feel more masculine and aggressive, but it ends up sounding more inspired by hill-billy country-rock. The melody always sounds a bit like it never quite reaches the climax that it should - every "Blackout" that passes makes me long for Dima to just scream it loud and proud. Kudos for changing things up, but these two tracks have followed some absolute hits so they have a lot to live up to...
Pretty Girl Rock - where on Earth do I start. I kind of don't mind the intro that gradually builds and builds with more and more drums and more and more synths. But the vocal melody and lyrics are just so insipid and bland - it just me off completely. Also, there doesn't seem to be any sort of attempt to structure this in a more manageable way - the vocal section that starts at 1:33 goes right through to 3:53 without a single stop - that's just ridiculous. Things just seem way too drawn out, and ultimately, this is not the sound I want on a Super Eurobeat compilation. I definite pass for me...
Together brings the speedier side of Hi-NRG Attack back to life, which is great to hear. My joy at hearing that guitar growl one beat before the synth hook was immense - I just adore the beefier sounds that Hi-NRG Attack are using nowadays. The meaty bass is present here again, and the vocals don't seem quite as pitched as in the past. What also strikes me about this song is the much mature chorus, both lyrically and melodically - the way the various synth lines mirror the vocals and also provide the trademark flourishes is a real treat. Hi-NRG Attack has succeeded in hopefully satisfying both camps with this track - by using the synths and production techniques from their recent slower tracks and then by increasing the BPM and energy, they have a big winner here!
Just A Dream sounds ridiculously speedy, but it is the fastest track that I can remember ever being on an SEB. To be honest, I don't mind the original of this song, and for me there are more elements here of more classic Saifam sounds in the synths and percussion. I still think it's ridiculous having rap verses in a Eurobeat song - but of course, this isn't really a Eurobeat song. To be honest, the backing track sounds like a mid-90's Eurodance track that has been sped-up loads and then had a generic vocal laid over the top. More bearable than Pretty Girl Rock, but still a poor showing from the once great Saifam.
You Are In Love seems far more epic than previous slow Hi-NRG Attack songs. The bell synths, the percussion, the galloping bass - everything seems to have been turned up to the max. The vocal melody is quite sentimental through the verses and short bridge section, but the chorus is where things truly shine. A classic 80's melody backed up with piano accents and an irresistible rising synth breakdown between each repetition. I love how this shows a different side of the Hi-NRG Attack female styles to Together - less anthemic, but no less impactful. Great stuff!
Take My Life has a really awesome intro section with the suspenseful piano line creating the tension before the beat and distorted synths take over. Dave has really turned the volume up to the max on the synths and bass - maybe he borrowed Sinclaire's studio to master this one. Rich Hard sounds more like Dave Rodgers than ever in this track - only with a massive dose of auto-tune! To be honest, this gives the track an unique sound and I don't mind it too much. The chorus has a great sense of urgency and anguish in its delivery - reflected perfectly in the lyrics. This will no doubt become one of my favourite SunFire tracks - the writing talent is definitely still there, if only they could sort out their production techniques!
No More Love has the honour of closing the show (in terms of the new tracks anyway), and Cherry does another very solid job. The verse is very structured with a nice flourish halfway through ("just can't let you go"), but the bridge is a bit shaky. Vocally, things don't seem quite as together as they do in Skyline for me. The chorus is also a bit generic for my liking, but it may yet grow on me. Delta are definitely one of the most consistent labels, but I wish they would try a few more different things sometimes. Too much time listening to Delta extended tracks could send you in to a trance...
Ding A Ling (Healing Version) is one of the more ridiculous remixes I've heard. If ever a track needs a bit of bounce and energy to it, it's a track like this. A while Dall'ora does a fine job in creating a nice ambient atmosphere with the piano and mellow beats, it just all sounds a bit silly when the lyrics "Ding.....a-ling" come into it. Worth a listen, but again it won't be played much by me - there are way too many other awesome tracks on this album!
I hope people give this album a chance - it has received a fairly luke-warm reception so far, and besides the ropey songs in the middle section, it deserves far more praise. I will be looping this a lot over the next month and look out for a more complete review in the weeks to come (along with my SEB 212 review which I failed to finish
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