Welcome to the Klassic Note Song Awards 2018!
I'm Kaineng, Klassic Note's only listener and judge. Every year, giving out awards and displaying those decisions has always been a challenge. This year is no exception as I move on to the next stage of my life in adulthood. As I continue to listen to more new artists while reminiscing the passing of many artists within the year, it motivates me more to further search for better songs to make this a better experience and involvement in my life.
Once again, the results below do not fully represent the many songs I listen to for the year. More indie artists have surfaced thanks to YouTube videos, mainstream artists are saying their farewells including uprising ones too, and I still cannot stop myself from giving Anime and idol-based songs as they continue to creep into the ranks this year. A big thanks again to another year of wonderful songs from all artists who got in the list, and there wouldn't be Klassic Note without any of them, but of course, give yourself a pat on the shoulder if your song(s) ever appeared in this results page somehow. I tried my best to give recognition to as many artists as I can every year.
The report below will be split into six segments, with the first two covering statistics and analysis of the songs given this year and how they fare. Diagrams will be shown in some segments to give a better overall picture than just displaying tables of data. Finally, I'll conclude on the report with an audio edit of all Top 20 ranked songs of this year, so to give a better idea of what songs truly represent the year around.
(Results finalised on 31/12/2018)
[Sorry for the mess, just migrated from the previous official results site and it has been rough]
[Note: For a detailed explanation of the results, hover/tap over the small text you thought were lines, like the one above]
Segment 1 – Song List Statistics, Song Integrity Survey & Song Appetite Report
This year, I have given a total of 205 songs over the past 12 months. Not as much as last year, but still very significant considering the number of new artists that have graced their presence in Klassic Note this year.
Firstly, I break down the songs to who sings them and sort them by size and gender, giving a good looks to a certain bias of hearing just female artists sing good songs, also known as the Vocal Styles Popularity Survey. For 2018, Female Solo vocals are close to a two-to-one ratio against Male Solo vocals, which shows a consistent improvement of reducing vocalist bias over the years.
Then, we have the Song Integrity Survey. Taken as an experimental analysis in Klassic Note, here I give further detailed analysis to the many songs rated in the generic 4-star category to give a better insight into how most of the songs are rated. It is also became the new benchmark in recent years in pushing to give more 5-star songs based on impression as done in early years of Klassic Note. As you can see, there is bias to giving more 5-star songs as songs above average rank are more than below average. Also, starting from next year, the categories for 4-stars will be increased from three to four, with 4C being average in order to show lesser bias to the standard average rating.
Thirdly, we have the generic statistics of the songs for the year. These include language (for those with a vocalist), year of release (old songs can appear in the list as far as 2001 for this year), Anime songs (because "sometimes") and B-side analysis for singles which is a direct representation of showing that songs which are good need not be their release's topic songs.
Lastly, we have the Song Appetite Report. The chart represents how many songs I've given every month, and whether there are peak period of giving songs or not, typically based on release month dependent on the music industry or periods of time where I just want to give more or less songs.
Then, we have the Song Integrity Survey. Taken as an experimental analysis in Klassic Note, here I give further detailed analysis to the many songs rated in the generic 4-star category to give a better insight into how most of the songs are rated. It is also became the new benchmark in recent years in pushing to give more 5-star songs based on impression as done in early years of Klassic Note. As you can see, there is bias to giving more 5-star songs as songs above average rank are more than below average. Also, starting from next year, the categories for 4-stars will be increased from three to four, with 4C being average in order to show lesser bias to the standard average rating.
Thirdly, we have the generic statistics of the songs for the year. These include language (for those with a vocalist), year of release (old songs can appear in the list as far as 2001 for this year), Anime songs (because "sometimes") and B-side analysis for singles which is a direct representation of showing that songs which are good need not be their release's topic songs.
Lastly, we have the Song Appetite Report. The chart represents how many songs I've given every month, and whether there are peak period of giving songs or not, typically based on release month dependent on the music industry or periods of time where I just want to give more or less songs.
This is how the new songs fared this year:
Female Solo to Male Solo Ratio: 1.529
AVERAGE: 4.056/5
| Language | English | Japanese | All |
| Songs (%) | 4.0% | 96.0% | 201 Songs |
| Year of Release | 2009-2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | All |
| Songs (%) | 0.49% | 0.49% | 2.93% | 8.78% | 86.83% | 205 Tracks |
| Song Type | Anime Theme Song | Character/Insert Song | ||
| Songs (%) | 2.93% | 1.46% | ||
"Slow Start" is the most dominating in Anime Songs of 2018.
*Alternative Girls is the most dominating Game of 2018. (not included in Anime)
| Total Singles Released 2018 | 52 | ||
| Total Tracks | 1 | 2 | 3 or more |
| Singles | 8 | 20 | 24 |
| Total Considered in List | 2 | 8 | |
In comparison 5 of all singles released are in Klassic Note Review 2018.
Segment 2 – Song of the Day Rankings & Statistics
Every day is unique, it is special; it will set us in a different mood every day. And so it does, with the waking up and going to sleep, different melodies pop up in my mind mainly after listening to the large number of songs every year. I could confidently say that my mood is easily summarised with what song I'm listening to, that's for sure.
Congratulations to Cider Girl for taking the top for Song of the Year 2018!
So, the first two tables below show what are the most popular songs I've listened for the year and for each month. The last two tables show the most popular songs to wake up and sleep to to give a different perspective as to how they potentially can feel if you start and end the day with maybe.
| SONG OF THE YEAR 2018 | No. of Times Appeared | |
| Rank | Artist - Song Title | |
| 1 | Cider Girl - Evergreen | 10 |
| 2 | SIX LOUNGE - STARSHIP | 8 |
| 3 | Ryokuoushoku Shakai - Alice | 7 |
| Ryokuoushoku Shakai - Otonagokko | 7 | |
| SECONDWALL - Beautiful Lie | 7 | |
| 6 | Polkadot Stingray - Telecaster Stripe | 6 |
| 7 | Asakura Momo - Pumpkin Meat Pie | 5 |
| Friends - NIGHT TOWN | 5 | |
| LuckLife - Bokura | 5 | |
| mol-74 - Saisei | 5 | |
| Suchmos - 808 | 5 | |
| Taketatsu Ayana - OH MY Sugar Feeling!! | 5 | |
| SONG OF THE MONTH 2018 | No. of Times Appeared | |
| 2018 | Artist - Song Title | |
| Jan | mol-74 - Saisei | 3 |
| Feb | Awesome City Club - ASAYAKE | 3 |
| Mar | LuckLife - Bokura | 3 |
| Apr | Ryokuoushoku Shakai - Alice | 4 |
| May | Endou Yurika - Melody and Flower | 3 |
| Jun | LILI LIMIT - signal | 2 |
| Jul | SECONDWALL - Beautiful Lie | 5 |
| Aug | Cider Girl - Evergreen | 6 |
| Sep | SIX LOUNGE - STARSHIP | 2 |
| Oct | Polkadot Stingray - Telecaster Stripe | 3 |
| Nov | Ryokuoushoku Shakai - Never Come Back | 2 |
| Dec | a flood of circle - Natsu no Sabaku | 4 |
TOP SONGS TO START THE DAY
| Song Title | Count (Total) |
| Cider Girl - Evergreen | 6 |
| Ryokuoushoku Shakai - Otonagokko | 5 |
| Asakura Momo - Pumpkin Meat Pie | 4 |
| Coalamode. - Daisenpu | 4 |
| Polkadot Stingray - Telecaster Stripe | 4 |
| SECONDWALL - Beautiful Lie | 4 |
| Taketatsu Ayana - OH MY Sugar Feeling!! | 4 |
TOP SONGS TO END THE DAY
| Song Title | Count (Total) |
| SIX LOUNGE - STARSHIP | 5 |
| Cider Girl - Evergreen | 4 |
| LuckLife - Bokura | 4 |
| Ryokuoushoku Shakai - Alice | 4 |
Segment 3 – Single & Album Rankings
What are songs without releases, right? Here we talk about the overall packaging of songs in compiled lists, also known better by their smaller and larger counterparts. Many releases did not perform well this year, which explains the number of reviewed releases this year, however I did give more songs out of the decresed reviews, which is a good thing. Best album dominate the ranks this year as many are leaving, and some want to make an impression here before they leave so I can't deny giving them chances here and there.
In Klassic Note, best singles are determined by (1) whether they are on the shelf ie. all songs of the single have been given and (2) how good they fare in impression. Details for giving these singles shall not be discussed here since there is The Klassic Note Review for your reference. Best albums are determined mostly by how many songs have been given in it, so best album have a natural advantage if I've been listening to the artist for years.
Congratulations to Sambomaster and miwa for being best single and album of 2018!
Top 10 Singles
| Rank | Name of Single | Contributing Artist(s) |
| 1 | Kagayaki Dashite Hashiteku | Sambomaster |
| 2 | WANTED GIRL | TrySail |
| 3 | Prayer X | King Gnu |
| 4 | The Everglow | SHE'S |
| 5 | Azalea | nano.RIPE |
| 6 | All of Us | GLIM SPANKY |
| 7 | I'll be there | Roys |
| 8 | Haru no Aisareru Hito ni Watashi wa Naritai | Hanazawa Kana |
| 9 | Haru ga Kite Bokura | UNISON SQUARE GARDEN |
| 10 | FREEDOM | BLUE ENCOUNT |
Top 10 Albums
| Rank | Name of Album | Contributing Artist(s) |
| 1 | miwa THE BEST | miwa |
| 2 | Light The Fire | Sunset In My Attache Case |
| 3 | Kalafina All Time Best 2008-2018 | Kalafina |
| 4 | Telepathy | SPECIAL OTHERS ACOUSTIC |
| 5 | Kisses & Kills | THE ORAL CIGARETTES |
| 6 | BEST HIT AKG 2 (2012-2018) | ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION |
| 7 | COLORFUL GIFT | Tomatsu Haruka |
| 8 | The Only Blue | Amamiya Sora |
| 9 | TSUBOMI | Iwasaki Ai |
| 10 | emotion | Kotobuki Minako |
Segment 4 – Song Commendations
In Klassic Note there are Awards. And then, there are Commendations. When I think of those worth mentioning but not necessarily worth of competition because it feels more like an achievement or special encounter, I take note. Songs here represent special moments for the year, and I think they deserve their own space. And I swear, nothing's harder than making sure Polkadot Stingray gets the best music video just because. So here they are! I regard the songs/videos mentioned here more relatable to my everyday life than other segments, to be honest.
In Klassic Note, Commendations are given to songs which stand out on their own (with terrible English), songs that are on my shelf, songs that have pure lack of creativity (same song titles) and songs I cannot forget.
Also included in this segment is the mention of music videos. Instead of giving them Awards, Klassic Note here compliments videos which stand out better than their music, sometimes better than not, in order to give better representation and thus impression to their audio listeners. And so, I commend and also criticise (a bit) on those, as you can see below too. Many of the music videos can be found online too, so be sure to check those out for yourself. I'll post the links to get you started.
Also included in this segment is the mention of music videos. Instead of giving them Awards, Klassic Note here compliments videos which stand out better than their music, sometimes better than not, in order to give better representation and thus impression to their audio listeners. And so, I commend and also criticise (a bit) on those, as you can see below too. Many of the music videos can be found online too, so be sure to check those out for yourself. I'll post the links to get you started.
| Commendation | Recipient |
| "The Artist (Non-Japanese)" | Middle Kids |
| "Single Order" | Sambomaster - Kagayaki Dashite Hasshiteku |
| TrySail - WANTED GIRL | |
| King Gnu - Prayer X | |
| ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION - Shinseiki no Love Song | |
| Asakura Momo - Tokubetsu Ichiban!! | |
| "Music Worth Mentioning" | SPECIAL OTHERS ACOUSTIC - Telepathy |
| "English Song of the Year" | Middle Kids - Mistake |
| "Lasting Tune" | [Alexandros] - NEW WALL (2016) |
| Arimura Shion - Heart Cleaning (2017) | |
| ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION - Juuni Shinhou no Yuukei (2014) | |
| Chatmonchy - Magical Fiction (2017) | |
| GLIM SPANKY - I Stand Alone (2017) | |
| Goose house - Egao no Hana (2017) | |
| Minase Inori - Aimaimoko (2017) | |
| NEGOTO - INSIDE OUTSIDE (2017) | |
| Primary - petit bonheur (2017) | |
| sphere - Heart to Heart (2017) | |
| The Floor - Cheers With You (2017) | |
| Tokyo Karan Koron - Douitashimashite (2017) | |
| Touyama Nao - Garakutaful World (2017) | |
| Yonezu Kenshi - Kaijuu no March (2017) | |
| YUKI - Flag wo Tatero (2017) | |
| "Same Name" | Asakura Momo - Fanfare!! |
| mol-74 - Fanfare | |
| The Floor - Fanfare | |
| "Subjection" | Uesaka Sumire - POP TEAM EPIC |
| "PV of the Year" | Polkadot Stingray - Telecaster Stripe |
| "Awesome PV" | TrySail - WANTED GIRL |
| "Impressive PV" | ORESAMA - Hi-Fi TRAIN |
| "Fanservice PV" | Asakura Momo - Pumpkin Meat Pie |
| "Great PV" | FINLANDS - Girlfriends |
| "Quirky PV" | Fujifabric - Cannes no Kyuujitsu feat. Yamada Takayuki |
| "Neglected PV" | Chatmonchy - Tatta Saki Kara 3000 Nen Made no Hanashi |
| "Plain Boring PV" | SCANDAL - Platform Syndrome |
| "Best Anime Theme Production" | Survive Said The Prophet - found & lost |
Segment 5 – Song Awards
One of the most important things that built the foundation of the song awards are of course, the awards themselves. They have also been the toughest to decide every year besides the Top 20 songs, which shows how much thought needed to be put in in order to award songs into categories every year to show what kind of features they possess, and how unique they are. Like last year, it feels really hard to even get enough songs for entry to even award one of them as I hardly feel for some of the songs which are worthy of the titles. However, I have made my case, and below are the results.
Congratulations to Mineuchi Tomomi for being THE CHARASON of the year with a character songs from Anime "Slow Start", and to GLIM SPANKY for being THE CONTRIBUTOR and THE ARTST of 2018!
The Award titles mean exactly unless stated otherwise, which are stated as follows:
- THE CHARASON now represents all songs from the Anime and Game genres so to give more songs recognition on how good they are.
- THE IDOLISM awards idol songs (sung by voice actress solo artists mostly) which have been on the rise and gives the one with best impressions
- THE INSPIRATIONAL awards songs which create motivation and creativity for me, and encourage me to further heights
| Award | Recipient |
| THE ARTIST (JAPANESE CATEGORY) | GLIM SPANKY |
| THE CONTRIBUTOR 2018 | GLIM SPANKY |
| THE NEWCOMER 2018 | SHE'S |
| THE NUMBER ONE SONG OF 2018 | Cider Girl - Evergreen |
| THE ALBUM 2018 | miwa - miwa THE BEST |
| THE SINGLE 2018 | Sambomaster - Kagayaki Dashite Hasshiteku |
| THE DEAD THREE 2018 | RUANN - I AM STANDING |
| THE CHARASON 2018 | Tokura Eiko starring Mineuchi Tomomi - Strawberry Ice Cream |
| THE IDOLISM 2018 | Natsukawa Shiina - Parade |
| THE EMOTIONAL 2018 | Kuso Iinkai - Yell |
| THE ROMANTIC 2018 | Asakura Momo - Fanfare!! |
| THE LIVELY 2018 | The Floor - Fanfare |
| THE INSPIRATION 2018 | Sambomaster - Kagayaki Dashite Hashitteku |
| THE LONGEST 2018 | FLOWER FLOWER - Nichijou |
| THE SHORTEST 2018 | Hanazawa Kana - Hinata no Shirabe |
Final Segment – Song Rankings
And last but not least, we have the song rankings. Every year, I try my best to showcase Klassic Note in the most positive possible, hopefully with a good balance and representation of what the year means in Klassic Note, and many more in these 20+ songs I'd like to recommend. Unlike past years, this will have a reduced number of songs not because there aren't many good songs to give, but it's getting real hard to give songs their place, so this shall in protest of trying to give as many songs as recommendation instead of songs I like. Because if I list half the song list this will never be determined. Okay let's get to it!
Congratulations to Yoru no Honki Dance for snatching the #1 song in Klassic Note despite only releasing one single this year and immediately taking over the ranks! It's way too good to not put you guys on the throne this time around!
In Klassic Note, The Top 20 list will include certain conflicts in rank number as some of the songs can't stay apart due to my lack of criteria to differentiate them, but is also a clever attempt to show certain trends or similarity within topics and timeframes, to a smaller extent. So do not be surprised to see up to 25 songs every year on this supposedly "Top 20" list.
Below is an audio preview of the Top 20 Rankings of Klassic Note 2018, for your listening pleasure.
Enjoy.
(Trying out a new cry and I swear it's not my voice)
And this is it for yet another year of awarding new songs in Klassic Note. Again, if you're just here to give yourself a chance to listen to the above preview, I thank you for giving me a chance to tell you how wonderful Klassic Note has been for 2018. And if you have given them a listen after this, even just one of them, it will already make my day. Klassic Note has once again had another wonderful year, and I'm proud to be in it as deep as my passion can take me.
See you all next year again for another year of Klassic Note! And as always, don't forget to be "Searching For A Different Melody".
DISCLAIMER
#All content and results are subject to personal opinion, and please do not, in any other manner, attempt to copy or adapt it in any other purpose whatsoever. All data shall stay in this webpage and shall not be published, edited or shared anywhere else in this World Wide Web. If necessary, permissions are not required but all sharing must be linked and/or credited to this page. All audio in preview are copyright (c) respective owners.