The one thing we must never forget is that the labels produce a lot of songs. It's the choices that AVEX makes for SEB that someTIMES make me wonder. Don't forget all those unreleased material we have heard and thought it was well worth an SEB appearance, but never saw the light of day untill recently. I some TIMES think AVEX wants certain labels to sound a certain way and won't showcase thier more risque material? Whatever the cause; to state that a certain label's style is the cause of Eurobeat's downfall is downright outrageous. That's more like a personal feeling some of you might have, but there is nothing to back up a statement like that.
Anyway, I decided to give this new cd a listen, even though some reviews have inclined me to have second thoughts about my purchase, but being I'm a certified Eurobeat lover, I found that I mostly disagree with the bad ratings its getting. I laso found myself changing more than half of my original feelings of the previews I heard a week ago. Some previews I initially praised are now slightly above average, while others I disliked, have really grown on me.
The theme of this cd could have easily been.
Back To Basics. Eurobeat 101. Meaning it's full of rehashed; or for a better term, Popular, melodies and ideas. Some work and some don't, but it's still all 100% Eurobeat.
Super Eurobeat 222 review
1.
Ace- Dance In The Starlight(Extended version)(SCP)
First off; it gives me great pleasure to write the words “Extended version” next to an SCP song and this song really does give great use to the word “Extended” Ace has always been a hit or miss kind of artist. I appreciate his vocals mostly on his Go2 songs. I absolutely adore songs like “Future Land” and “T.V. Hero”. That’s another one forever etched in my mind. Then there is the other side of the coin. Songs like “In the Fire of the Victory” or something like that. Forgettable and boring. On this new song; it seems Ace has found that Euro mach spark once again. It’s a super rehashed melody, but that’s the whole charm of the synth. BTW, I will be using the term “rehashed melody” throughout this review, because it’s not a bad thing at all when dealing with Eurobeat and from the songs I hear; could be the theme of this disc. At the same TIME it will show, how some of us fans; actually look forward to familiar melodies and styles that we grew up with and made us love the genre in the first place. This new Ace song has all that and more. The shout outs fall right into place as perfect as in any Go2 song. The extras or special parts are those piano beats throughout the verses. Great sing a long chorus just adds to the fun, but the part that really caught my attention was the break; which falls perfectly at the 3:00 minuet mark. The synth style is a lot like the style used in the “Disconnected” extended version. Not as stellar, but follows the same idea. The hard drums accompanying that last bridge to chorus are just what the song calls for in order to ride into that last guitar laced mini break right before the outro. Very good job from a label that I know can put out great extended versions when they want to.
9/10
2.
Irene –Lovely(extended version) (SCP)
Oh wow, poor Irene. She used to get so much love from the fanboys. This TIME her song is being used as a dartboard. Let me break this down like this. You guys want her to sound a certain way. You are probably stuck on her vocal style of the 170s? Well, isn’t this what you guys want? “Bring something new to the table” is the outcry. This is new, isn’t it? Now really,is it that bad? Have you paid attention to the overall production or just dismiss it because she sounds HRG Attack-esque? She does, doesn’t she? I dare say that I like her vocals better like this, because I’ll be shot down as being HRG Attack bias. In all honesty, I really do not like her vocal style in this song either, but I feel it fits the song’s style very appropriately. So what about the song? Let me be one of the first to give it some praise. Its starts off with a mega cool sounding intro. It’s very powerful with Go2 elements. The “do it do it” chants are the last thing I expected in an Irene song. Those shout outs give it a nice aggressive feel. I really didn’t expect such a good intro, by hearing the sample alone; which at first thought was gonna be another transy entry. Thank goodness it’s not. Once again the chorus seems to me to be the weakest link of the song, but I really love the power inserted in the verses. If you notice this song does a cut and paste job. It just grabs the original intro and sticks it right smack in the middle of the song, but it works like a charm and adds a bit of extra power to the small synth solo which follows. Besides, it’s a really cool intro that just had to be brought back one more TIME. I love replaying that mini synth solo right before the last bridge two or three times in a row and I wish it had been longer. Before I close out this Irene review; I would like to add that the song’s “Galloping” baseline: weather it sounds like that, because of it’s speed or whatever; really reminds me of Stil Novo. Just at way faster bpms.Naturally this is another factor of why I enjoy this song tons more than the rest of you? I still long for an extended, because I think it deserves one, but I think SCP did “Bring something new to the table” with this new Irene entry. The only thing I would have changed; is that I would have given Irene another alias. This might have been a major factor with the fan boys. Think about it? When Pasquinni or Farina sung in their falsetto style; they came up with new aliases and no one shot them down for their vocals, because they weren’t expecting the same thing from a different artist name. Just a thought. Anyway, I like this Irene song very much and already the first two SCP entries are better here than on 221.
+8/10
3.
Kaioh – Sunlight (Go Go’s music)
So this track turns out to be the one turning heads. It’s a good song, but by far the best on the disc. First off; I remember who Kaioh is now and the song that really blew me away was “Are U Ready”. He sang that one under his Freddy Rodgers alias, right? That was a great song. What I really want to praise are his vocals. He really has seemed to mature since his “Are U Ready” days and he doesn’t have the really high tone like Dejo or even sometimes Ace. So what I really don’t care for; and feel is out of place, are those backup shout outs by the Go- Go girls. Those “get Up and rise up” sound very Kika and Kira-ish. Almost childish and takes points off the song’s power value. I know backups are very important to Eurobeat structure, but they could’ve ‘e used the back up style of “Dance in the Starlight” It is slightly different and less Disney-ish. I admit that the song really is very catchy and well written lyric- wise that it really doesn’t phase me as much, to hear it’s only 4:00 minuets long. Do I wish it was longer? Yes, and they (SCP/GoGO’s) could have probably added more special parts to it, but it seems to work just fine in its edit form. I did have to repeat it about 5 TIMEs before I finished my review on it. Anyway,Before I read the lyrics; I thought the chorus said, “I know the secret of Sun Light” but that sounds more like Dima’s lyric style;eh. A good song, not the best on the disc, but damn, I’m liking the direction his vocals are going, so I’ll give it a whole extra point for the point that it loses on those disny-ish back ups.
+8/10
4.
David Dima- Strangers In The Night (Dima Music)
So far this new volume in the series sounding great, so when the next song on the disc is from David Dima; you really feel at ease with the cd’s quality. Right of the back; you hear a world of difference between this track and the 3 previous ones. More for the adult or Italo lovers crowd. It’s the cool off period. TIME to put your Corvette Stingray in cruise control and just feel the cool wind wisp through your hair as the song plays. That’s the feeling I get. Not only the music, but his vocals, have that perfect vibe for a night drive by the beach line. Since the theme on this disc is “Rehashed melodies”, you can easily hear the well-known style form his past hits. Songs like “I Can’t Stop Loving You” come to mind. Even though that’s more a Dream Fighters sound, but it still applies for this song. The only different element would have to be the intro’s sytle. The looping of the words "night", and "strangers" gives it a cool sound. Like I said; it’s a cool night drive song with vocals guitar and synths you can count on, but that’s about as much new stuff you’ll hear on this song. What it probably needed was a really catchy synth riff which broke off from the melody of the chorus to really make it stand out and maybe some female backup? I like the rehash of
Joe Tempest- Shock The Night melody. That's one of my favs from Euro Panic series, but I think Dima could use some rehashed melodies from songs like “Samurai” or “Queen of Fire” to really shake things up.
7/10
5.
Norma Sheffield –Gimmi Love (Sun Fire)
So this TIME we got some rehashing of a different kind. The song’s title has been used over 50 x in a Eurobeat song or part of a song. Actually the song’s title title sounds a little lazy for a Eurobeat Aishu comeback. Norma Sheffield is one of my favourite female vocalists from the genre. Her accent, tone ect... Basically, I love every aspect of her vocal abilities, so it’s not a big stretch for me to immediately accept her music for that factor alone. This song plays it safe on every level. I’ve been listening to it a lot, but really goes by unnoticed half the TIME. The ultra- lazy short intro; sounds, very much uninspired and gives no power to the synth riff at all. The part that shows any depth would have to be that last verse with its different vocal style and soundworlds, but this song really has to be one of the weakest entries from her catalog. It could have easily been sung by Nuage or Annalise in the 170s era. What happened to the style of songs like,“Ladies” or “I Love You like You Are”? Those stood out, but this one kinda goes by without much to say. Basically, I give it a 6+ for its vocals alone, but it really leaves much to be desired. Even by a fan boy, much as myself.
6+/10
6.
Cy-Ro – Dance To The Top Of The Fire (HRG Attack)
And here we are at one of the high points of the cd. Or are we? First off; I do not wanna get lynched for changing my initial thoughts of this song. I still think it’s very good, but it does have its flaws. Let me first say, that I think it was bad judgment for AVEX to feature another Cy-Ro song so soon. I’m still enjoying BTBWIMC to the fullest and do not see the reason for this. AVEX does this a lot with the David Dima alias as well. I could suggest about 5 other songs that they could have opted for instead. “Maybe in the Dark”, “Go Go Japan Go”, or the new Stephy Martini song. Anyway, what this song does well; is its use of 5:00 minuets. Catchy Intro used in the style of “I’ll Kiss You”, powerful Synth riff and good melodies throughout the verse and bridge. Cy-Ro’s vocals also sound to be in top form. The rehash value is all over the place. That’s a good thing. What isn’t so special is the melody they chose to rehash. I hear HRG Attack songs every day and one of the most recent ones that comes to mind when I hear this new Cy-Ro song ,is “The Champion Of The Discotech” They tried something different with that song in the techno beats ,but the melody of the chorus didn’t really grab my attention. They use that same melody here. I realized; it isn’t that great when I finally caught on to it. The synth riff is great, but the chorus falls just a bit short of my expectations. Before I finish; I will praise the perfection of their middle break downs. Always perfect to a T. However; I must recognize that there is much competition from other labels on this cd and for the most part, they showcased better songs. I understand what some members mean about the “Fun” factor and this entry doesn’t have too much of that. What I don’t understand is how they can say the same thing about “Lucky Lucky”? A song that oozes the fun factor. Anyway, I’ll get to that one in part two of the review.
-8/10
7.
Annalise- Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now (Sun Fire)
track 7 starts off with another Sun Fire entry. This one is from a few years back. The first thing you notice is that a lot more thought was put into the intro. It grabs the listener’s attention a lot more than the Norma Sheffield entry. This is another song that caused me to change my initial thoughts once I heard it in its entirety. This song falls under the category where a Eurobeat riff has the same melody as the chorus. Most of the time it works, but must be done carefully in order to really sound effective. I believe this Annalise song does just that. I’m really hyped to skip right to the middle breakdown, because I think this song features a rather great one. It strikes at the 3:00 minuet mark and sounds very crafty by first having the mini instrumental taken from the intro, and then having her repeat the chorus just once without backup music. What follows is yet another variation of the same mini into, before she finally repeats the bridge. It might seem simple to some, but I liked it and thought it gave the song a little different vibe from other AbeatC breakdowns that leave much to be desired. I say AbeatC, because the song was written while Sun Fire was still under that name. In the end, this is the song I think Norma Sheffield should have sung, but sounds really great by Annalise as well.
8/10
8.
Mark Farina- Last Of Eurobeat (Saifam)
Which brings up to the high point of the Cd. Oh yes; this TIME I mean it. This is also the TIME for the best use of a Rehashed Eurobeat melody on the cd. I’m also proud to announce that Saifam, Boom Boom Beat, Asia records; whatever you wanna call them, showcase the best song on the disc. It is naturally TIME to praise the living hell out of a song. The last TIME I enjoyed a Saifam song above all other songs on a cd was probably the disc that featured “Disco Energy” and yes I searched for the extended till I got it. In fact this “Last of Eurobeat” takes me back to the Boom Boom Beat era. Let’s call that Asia record’s comeback era. So where do I start? How about that magnificent intro? Everything I love about the Boom Boom Beat is present. The somewhat eerie- haunting keyboards reminding, me a bit of that Tubular Belles melody. For those of you born after the fact; that’s the title of the melody of the movie; The Exorcist. There’s a little flavor of that melody in this intro. Than you have the strong synth style of songs like, “Bad World”. So far it’s a perfect recipe. Add the ultra aggressive vocals style of Mauro Farina along with a super catchy well known Eurobeat melody and you can’t go wrong. The ever present guitar sounds are also in there. You hear them blaring throughout the chorus. I will add, that this chorus is; hands down, the best I’ve heard this year and it has everything to do with the words “Boom Boom” The rest of lyrical value is just as I said. It’s about him being one of the last great Eurobeat composers, and to some extent I get the feel, he is saying he has found his fire to produce again. It’s definitely not about him leaving the Eurobeat scene. You people sometimes strike me as being super pessimistic. Anyway, I really hope this is a sign of a much awaited Saifam comeback’ with the absence of Eurobeat greats like Dall Ora and Newfield; I welcome the original master of them all. Before I heard this song in its entirety; “Spirit Of The Night” by Michelle Rose was my favourite 2013 Eurobeat song, but this song here, could easily be my top track by the end of the year. 112 repeats on my Windows player and counting. Yes; this is what I refer to, as a song to put me in the perfect Eurobeat zone.
10++++
9.
Cherry – Reborn My Fire (Delta)
Next up is the song; that is also getting a lot of negative feedback from the community. Granted; it is not the best from the Cherry catalog, but again; this is the revival of Eurobeat. Well known sounds and melodies should be welcomed with more enthusiasm. This song has its flaws, but it also has some really ear catching elements. I love this style of DELTA’s songs. This particular style reminds me of one of my favs from Luke. “Turbo Disco”. She also sounds really good when they loop her saying “Fire” I love that effect and is one of the reasons I give the song more replay value. The synth riff is also really Old School. Not played at mega speed and you can appreciate its melody. It actually sounds really good with a couple of listens. It has the grow effect. Clara, for the most part sounds good. Not stellar, but also not as bad as some of you are saying. I think they might have hyped her vocals a tad in the verses, but I hear her just fine in the bridge and especially; the chorus. My gripe is the song’s length. The reason it has a somewhat uninspired rehash vibe is because it doesn’t add many special parts. Like I mentioned, rehashing can work wonders for your song, but it can also hurt it, when not chosen right. This song fails miserably in its Intro and breakdown value. First off;The break down, is practically non existent. I cannot specify a good breakdown enough if you want your song to stand out above the rest. 4:18 is way too short for a Delta song, because they don’t have enough room to spread their wings. As far as I can remember; Delta showcased perfect breakdowns for vinyl mixing throughout the start of their career, so why the sudden laziness? The intro is another aspect that sounds ultra lazy on this song and adds to its short length. It’s TIME for Capaldi and Rizzi to really start coming up with some cool ideas for intros and breaks. Call up Newfield for some advice, if that’s what it takes, but do it, because this is the type of uninspired rehashing just won’t do. It does; however have many charming parts as well. One is how Clara sounds like she says “Reburn My Fire” as opposed to what the title suggests. It’s funny, but for all the gripes I have about the songs intro and break: it really is one of my preferred tracks on the disc. Call it Fanboy-ism or whatever, but I do enjoy it while it plays.
-9/10
I'm gonna stop for now cuz after looping each song multiple TIMES during each review; I'm pretty much Eurobeat fried. the next part will feature 3 of my top songs, so it does get better
