Mahariku Maharita~✩°｡⋆⸜(ू｡•ω•｡) ANGERME's first triple A-side review!

Yo-ho~ I've returned with another review for everyone today~ From what I observed, this single has been quite well-received by the fandom. I actually kinda like it too. Today, I shall be reviewing ANGERME's very own...

(⊃｡•́‿•̀｡)⊃━☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ七転び八起き / 臥薪嘗胆 / 魔法使いサリー

Oh thank god, it's not a long title like ºC-ute's single. /whacked;

♫ .♥.•* ★¨`*•♫.•´*.¸.•´♥ ♫ .♥.•* ★¨`*•♫.•´*.¸.•´♥ ♫ .♥.•* ★¨`*•♫.•´*.¸.•´♥ ♫

- - 01. 七転び八起き - -

So first, let's talk about everyone's favorite (from what I observed), 'Nana Korobi Ya Oki.' My initial thoughts on the song was that it was really really good. If I recall correctly, I first heard it on Hello! Station and simply fell in love with it. While I did love the song, I was slightly surprised that Kanon was not singing. Rina and Rikako weren't singing either. Rather, those three were the lead dancers. It slightly shocked me at first, but you know- it's one of the things that made this particular song unique. I don't that much of a problem with it.

Before I get into more detail of the song, like always, I shall start talking about the music video. Honestly, this music video seems like your very generic Hello! Project music video. You got your standard dance shot, close-ups, and whatever. However, the way that the music video was filmed made this particular MV stand out. The cinematography was absolutely amazing. It was a dark music video with hints of sepia tone in it. The overall music video had a rather eerie, very mysterious, yet also gives off a sense of power as well.

I feel like-- now that the group has a new name (ANGERME), it has given them the excuse to finally try out more darker and gothic themes for both music videos and songs. While their previous group name (S/mileage) was rather cute-- with a group name like that, they can't really do darker themes. I think that this may be the reason why some people didn't really like 'Mystery Night!' With a name like S/mileage, you'd expect the group to do more cutesy stuff... not sexy and dark. But with a name like ANGERME, they can finally do more gothic stuff. And that's my very lame theory. It's not correct. I don't have scientific evidence. I'm just saying. /whacked;

Now back to the music video again. It was shot in a navy blue-ish color for the dance shot (sepia for Rina/Rikako/Kanon trio dance shot). As for the close-up, it was shot in a golden purple hue. I really liked that. There really isn't much I can say about the setting. It's a room which happened to have a brick wall and nice windows. I like the setting. I believe that it helped contribute to the gothic theme of the music video. Everything just contributes to this gothic theme. Arghhhhh, I like it. I don't know what else to say! I'm really loving the new gothic theme the group's being doing. I loooooove it.

The choreography for this video was rather good.The real stars of the dance were Rina, Rikako, and Kanon. Those three followed mostly an entirely different dance. They were doing their own thing. The only time were they the same with the rest of the group was... mostly from the chorus, from what I noticed. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. The dance those three did was amazing. They were practically on the floor! I love it. I commend whoever the choreographer is! The dance complimented the song so well. As for the rest of the group, meh. They were kinda mostly standing around, swinging their arms about. /shrugs;

As for the outfits... Remember how I said that I hated Meimi's stylist from 'Taiki Bansei'? God bless the stylist for this single! Meimi looks absolutely stunning in this video. Finally, they style her short-cut nicely~ The outfits for the single was mainly black and ivory. I love the capes, I love the hair accessories, the shoes was a bit meh but I'll let that slide. I love the outfit as a whole. I think everyone looked really nice and pretty. The outfits also helped contribute to the gothic theme of the music video. Again, it just goes back to the gothic theme!

As for the song, it's mainly about how life is full of ups and downs, similar to a rollercoaster. There's gonna be good moments and then there's gonna be bad moments. But you still need to move on and face life head on. In the end, it'll be worth it. I personally think that this is a good song with a good message. I want to point out that this song was not written by Tsunku, but by Miura Yoshiko. I'm noticing a very obvious trend here, guys. As of this year, the songs that are not written by Tsunku are the more successful ones (i.e. 'Taiki Bansei' and 'Gamusha LIFE' and 'Tsugi no Kado wo Magare' and 'Iin Janai?').

In my opinion, I think that everyone (with the exception of Rina, Rikako, and Kanon) all delivered very good vocals in this song. Esepecially Meimi-- she rocked her solo lines. They had a strong sense of power in their voice. They were singing in a bit of a lower tone than usual. I really like Maho was able to get a solo line. She's not that bad of a vocalist. She's pretty decent. Aside from the good vocals, I love the instrumental used for this song. It has a bit of a more hardcore sound to it, almost rock but not really. The instrumental had a bit of dark and mysterious sound to it, which I really really like. Overall, this is a really good song. Maybe it will be in my top songs of the year list? Who knows? Although it's a good song, It's actually my second favorite of the single.

- - 02. 臥薪嘗胆 - -

And now, let's talk about the second A-side which is 'Gashin Shoutan.' My initial thought was that I didn't really like the song that much, compared to 'Nana Korobi Ya Oki.' It wasn't love at first. Also, one thing that came to mind was that it reminded me of 'Taiki Bansei' in a way. We had 'Nana Korobi Ya Oki' which is dark and gothic. And now we have this song which is more vibrant and lively! Their last single was exactly the same way in which 'Otome no Gakushuu' was dark while 'Taiki Bansei' was more vibrant. I'm just saying.

I don't particular love the music video for this too much. Rather, I have very mixed feelings for it. As a whole, the music video seems to be pretty good despite it following the generic Hello! Project music video formula. Dance shot? Check. Close up? Check. Random other scenes? Check. The video had a nice sense of pop! Again, it was very very vibrant. It has some sense of colorfulness. I love the way that it was filmed. Nothing really felt out of place, in my opinion. As a whole, the music video seems pretty good. It just when you noticed those tiny individual details here and it all starts to add up. It just bothers you a bit and can drastically change your perspective of the music video as a whole.

I want to like the setting. I tried so hard to do so, but I can't. The reason is that I feel like the different backgrounds clash with other a bit. For the dance shot, we have the girls dancing in what seemed to be a warehouse maybe? Either that or it's a really really big box set. It's a very simple and nice setting. It somewhat reminded of 'TIKI BUN.' However, the fact that the olive green-gray color of the settling clashes with the girls' pastel outfits. I feel like the background for the close-up was the prettiest and suits the girls more. As for the outside shot, it felt slightly out of place... not too much to ruin the music video, but just enough to kinda bug me in a way. It's a very pretty scene, nonetheless. But for some reason, it doesn't feel right for me. I'm weird, I know.

I love the choreography, nothing will change that. The dance for this song is perfect. It compliments the song nicely and follows the beat very well. It's rather jumpy, in my opinion. However, it seems like it's really fun to do. It's not that difficult to learn, in my opinion. I think most people can dance to this. Sure, you may work up a sweat or two. But at least you're getting some exercise by doing a fun dance. I love how they kinda incorporated the spotlight dance during the music break, which is similar to what they did in 'Taiki Bansei.' 

The outfits for this song were absolutely adorable~ Most of the members looked absolutely stunning... except Kanon. I don't like her outfit. The main reason is that her outfit makes her look so unflattering. Her hair is pretty. I love her little heart necklace with the purple ribbon. But her clothes... They make her look so so so chubbier. It really does look good on her. Everyone else- perfect. Even Meimi looked great. I love how her hair was styled here. I love Maho's and Muro's outfits the most. The reason is that those look like clothes that I would wear in real life. Those are the clothes I wear in real life. I have similar clothing.

As a whole, the music video is pretty good. But those little details that I noticed in the music video just changes my perspective of it drastically. I don't really like it that much. I'm sorry. I'm a weird kid, alright? Nonetheless, let's start talking about the song. As said before, this song and me- it ain't love at first sight. I didn't like it at first. It took quite some time for the song to grow on me. It's a pretty good song. However, I wouldn't really list it as one of my top favorites.

Similar to 'Nana Korobi Ya Oki,' this song is also about life and also has a similar message. There really isn't that much difference... in my opinion. Not reawwy. However, it's more shown to you in a more fun and livelier way- compared to the gothic dark theme of the other song. There's a theme going on here- we have two songs about life in a roll. I don't have a problem with it. Another thing is that it really, really does remind me of 'Taiki Bansei.' 

The instrumental for 'Gashin Shoutan' is very trumpet-heavy. It was a really big band sound to it. Recently, I'm not that much of a fan of big band sounds... I don't know. I haven't been liking it that much recently. It is a very energetic, peppy song. It's really upbeat and I do believe that it's a song that can cheer you up when you're down. It's a song that may help motivate you to continue doing your best in life. It's a song you can just jump up and dance to. There really isn't anything else I can say about this song. Overall, it's pretty good. But for this particular single, it's my least favorite out of the three. I'm sorry.

- - 03. 魔法使いサリー - -

And now, last but not least, we have 'Mahoutsukai Sally' which is my most favorite song of this single. If you know me, you know how I love fantasy which includes the idea of witches. It was love at first sight. The minute I listened to the song, I knew that  this would be my most favorite song of the entire single. It's really really catchy. Even the music video too. I love the music video for it very very much. I will buy the Limited C for this single, that's how much I love it!

Compared to the other music videos, 'Mahoutsukai Sally' may seem to be more boring and such. It follows the generic Hello! Project music video formula. There really isn't anything particularly unique about it. This can be easily overshadowed by 'Nana Korobi Ya Oki' and 'Gashin Shoutan,' which are more superior nonetheless. But who know what? I still love this music video! I feel like this was a very cute music video. Arghhhh, I don't know what else to say!

First, let's talk about the setting. I love both the setting they used for this music video. I really like the background they used for the background. Yes, it's rather simple. However, it helps gives the music video a more childish sense (is that the right word for it?). I don't know how to describe it that well. The music video just looks fun and cute. This is an anime song after all. Mahoutsukai Sally was maybe the first magical girl anime out there, evah. It makes the dance shot look a bit more colorful. It helps make the girls' outfits pop more. The setting for the close-ups as well as the magic scenes was also really, really nice. I love the little vintage decor in the background. It really did felt like it was actually a cute witch's house. Hahaha. Despite the two contrasting settings, one vintage and one colorful, they actually work well together. Nothing felt out of place.

The dance of the song was really fun and cute. It really goes well with the song. It's a bit jumpy in the beginning during the 'Mahariku maharita~' chants. It's a fairly easy dance. It's actually pretty memorable for me. I pretty much remember all the dance moves. Whenever I'm listening to the song, I would following along and do all the hand movements. This is a really fun dance. I really do like it. It's not one of the best dances from Hello! Project. It's not as complex and epic like 'Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke.' But it's fun. It's easy. Everyone can do it. It's unique in its own way. Also, the outfits for this song was absolutely adorable. Each girl was wearing her own member color. Each outfit was different for each member. No one had the same. Ughhh, they were just so cute. They were all cute little good witches.

As you can see, I cannot find one bad thing about this music video. That's how much I love it. It's not the best music video out there, but I still love it nonetheless. And now let's also start talking about the song, which I also love. Surprisingly, the solo lines are all sung by the 3rd generation members. I don't have a problem with it. I knew ahead of the time that the 3rd generation members would be centers. However, I didn't expect them for be singing all the solo lines. It would've been nice if others like Meimi or Rina had a solo line or two during the second verses.

This version of 'Mahoutsukai Sally' by ANGERME is actually really good. It's a really good modern cover of the song. Yes, it doesn't have that oldie band feel like in the original. But it's still pretty good nonetheless. Personally, I love this new modern cover than the original version. The third generation members really delivered good vocals for this song. The one that stood out to me most was actually Rikako. She's actually a better vocalist than I expect her to be. She sung her solo lines really well. Although that final 'Sally-chan!' at the end of the song was a bit... Ehhh. It was also really nice seeing Maho having solo lines too. She's also sung very well. She's not bad~

Overall, I love it. There is nothing else I can saw really about the music video and the song. I love it. I just love it. This is my most favorite song out of the three. When I get the chance, I will definitely buy this single.

♫ .♥.•* ★¨`*•♫.•´*.¸.•´♥ ♫ .♥.•* ★¨`*•♫.•´*.¸.•´♥ ♫ .♥.•* ★¨`*•♫.•´*.¸.•´♥ ♫

Well that's all for my review of ANGERME's latest single. I'm sorry this is super rushed. I've just been feeling a bit more tired than usual. It's only been a little more than a week since I came back from my summer trip. I guess my body's still trying to readjust back to normal time. Well until my next post, jyaa ne~

MUSIC; ようかい体操第二 / Dream5
MOOD; Pretty Cheerful ヾ（*⌒ヮ⌒*）ゞ