The Klassic Note Review 2022.11

And just nice we are a week after between release and review! Hey, it could've been yesterday but I was out that evening and there's the DOAXVV game livestream so this just came in earlier than planned which is good but still.

So yes, we're back with another Klassic Note Review and boy have I mentioned how much this year mattered in reviews too many times, I'm already breaking records of the past 4 years in reviews already to be honest. This time around, similar to 2 years ago though, we are reviewing another one of Nan-chan's singles which man, if you still do not know her relationship to me at this point... we have no relation anyways haha she is most definitely not the most capable onee-chan who I wish could be my imouto-

Idol talk aside, let's talk about what impact this has on even just this year me. Shall we?

音楽 The Klassic Note Review

Natsukawa Shiina - Sasakure [Single]

Limited Edition

Regular Edition

(Yes, thanks for the close-ups and the garden themed cover with all the soil for some reason and getting her dirty lol)

Origin: This year didn't have enough emotional songs, so I guess TrySail youngest member Natsukawa Shiina decided to sing a sad song which was first released on her birthday and single releasing on end September... until it was delayed till November. Things may not have gone well out there, but what is inside this new single feels somewhat like a repeat of what we have experienced time and again, with impact and with emotion, and maybe sometimes a little cheeky, which might be her best single yet. With her on the lyrics, she expresses a different or perhaps real self to show us the true form of her solo music career.

(1) Sasakure [Splinter]

From first chorus:

"If (I) pretend to touch your core

Can you escape your boring existence from yesterday?

I won't say anything, just that maybe I'm wrong

That's a ridiculous statement, isn't it? (Just) laugh"

Wow, how should I start... It all started with her birthday present to us fans, which means this song has been released in full about 4 months ago, and bearing similarities to her 3rd single topic song, this song is as real as is impactful in melody. Maybe it's me being weak to songs with huge contrast in emotion, and this one carries the can. From the drop of the melody into the chorus, to her own lyrics composition about feeling unsatisfied just going along with life... It might have said a lot to some of us right here and now. All this only makes my impression of her with all the more respectful, and really sheds a light on how little I can complain about even the melody she was not in charge of. For this, the impression of this song might get stuck in me, for better or for worse.

Rating: Impressively Above Average

(2) passable :(

From first chorus:

"There's nothing wrong in (us) the contents

Then why is there no growth?

There's nothing wrong in (us) the contents

Being "average" is like this

There's nothing wrong in (us) the contents

When the feels are "fair"

Being so hollow (inside, we) feel balance

In other words, until then (there is no growth); I know I know"

As always, it's the B-side which made this a review to talk about, and contrary to the topic song, this is a simple melody from when I first heard of it on the archive of her late night Monday radio show, and then realized this is too good of a Rock tune and so chill of a tempo I don't have much to talk about. Even the bridge is reasonably short and concise, it's good. The lyrics written by yours truly talk about, as the title would let you think, about just being average and while that doesn't just mean being childish, it can say true for the many of us youngsters and how we think today. And I think that's just a plus sign for what she speaks out of her mind when writing the words for this song. Add in a little quirky cuteness throughout the songs, "I know", this is already a song to remember, "I know".

Rating: Chill Average

Conclusion: I can't say better things about this single. This was also how I felt walking into these two songs in this release. And I feel like my respect for dear Natsukawa Shiina only deepens the more I understand her from writing lyrics, and it is only hitting deeper into the soul. Overall though, I feel like these two songs easily represent her solo music career, where they allow her to sing emotional songs with impact while still being able to sing standard fare Rock songs and still excel at them. To this, I can only appreciate more of what is shown to me more than whatever ended the B-side with her jovial laugh put into this. That, I think this deserves more attention even for mainstream, to hear what she has to say through music.

- Aozaki Shouhei, on the Klassic Note

(Maybe it's hard to talk about how well she did on this single without being biased so I'm sorry for that, but that doesn't make it bad though; If I need a reason to support my not real younger sister this is one of the reasons I'll proudly talk about)

THE PACKAGE

I won't elaborate how much I had to spend on this, but maybe because I didn't spend enough for this to appear last weekend instead and had to let the application slip INSIDE this physical release expire because they don't recognize people like me living overseas to have time to register so that I can just get a digital gift or some sort (we have done that once so far with MusicRay'n, and that is Toyosaki Aki's best album back in 2017 where I shipped directly from HMV Japan) even though I would much like the top tier gifts including the DIY planters for 10 lucky winners haha she showed us how she made it too, but regardless, the shipping fee doesn't go to their profits so I might as well save some money. *laughs* And as this was the only thing I am likely giving for the month, I let it come in earlier so I can just love this... this accidental masterpiece more lmao okay me

And if you haven't guessed it, I pre-ordered this single for this to appear this fast, because both songs in the single were revealed with two months left before release, it wasn't hard to make the decision apart from aligning with other things I have in line which is none. I always start from Animate with very little exception because apart from the photo gift being the best among the bunch as you would see for yourself, I would have not bothered to get the one from Gamers despite the 10% off voucher handed to me recently, and I guess Shinseido, TSUTAYA and their own label Sony Music Shop gifts are also fine if they provided direct international shipping just like HMV Japan used to before the fire. *silence* And NO WAY am I giving those landscape photos because I got a couple of those in my previous package run so *laughs* I'm still really quite keen on the... gardening theme of this release though? Haha it's fresh, I will tell you that much.

I think this is enough of a tribute to whatever is left of this wonderful single. Man, this year's gonna be a tough choice between all the ones we have reviewed just this year alone, dude. But good, it has been a while since we have done this many reviews, with this being (I've counted) the 13th release, well single they are only singles haha, for 2022. Trust me, even I'm impressed at my way of spending this much money. *laughs* Anyways, see you guys soon then, we are halfway through the week so let Nan-chan lead you all the way through the rest of it, meanwhile I shall go imagine how great she will be as my sister in real life- Can I send her a trophy too just like Toyota Moe did a birthday livestream to declare her as her official imouto?? Maybe I should try haha bye

P.S.

Tell me she doesn't like gardening because you know, idols tend to lie. *giggles*
If not, can I introduce you to my dad? He likes gardening hehe *dabs*