I have the album looking at me so I played it again before listening to the review. Then played it again after the review. It really isn't worth counting how many tracks are on this Album as so many of them have so much going on within each track. Thanks again for these listen alongs and reviews. It really takes me back to the good old days of going around to someones home and the entertainment was listening to albums all night. With Band Maid there is so much going on that I have yet to fast forward or skip a track. Great fun, thanks.
Thanks for participating! :-) I'm definitely having flashbacks to some teenage years (and even 20s, if we're being honest) and sitting around with someone's Dad's stereo setup -- wooden encased shelf speakers with a turntable and radio tuner built in... Or our own boomboxes once we could afford them. :-)
There is a making of video for this mv, and yes, it was very cold! There is a picture of Saiki in a heavy coat looking very annoyed at being cold, fun! Akane actually got her coat burned from the fires between shots, again trying to get warm.
Ah! I didn't even think to look... But yes, I found a few photos of them wearing coats out there. There's one with four of them sitting in the back of a pickup, all bundled up. :-) Such troopers!
This is a nice way to remind me of songs I haven't listened to in awhile. Thank you. In edition to their doing all of Alone, Miku gets lyrics credit for Freedom and both Miku and Saiki get lyrics credit for Yuragu.
Thanks! Yes, I saw Miku's name on the others (Freedom and Alone), but haven't got that far yet. :-) (And I just wasn't certain if the others were Saiki or not -- the kanji doesn't fully match her kanji on the Wikipedia page, so I hesitated to say it...) I haven't listened to Freedom in a while, so I'm looking forward to my next review/reaction. :-)
I can think of a few really excellent bands (some of my previous favorites) where MISA could easily replace the former bassist and no one would notice if she didn't want them to -- at least in the audio. Other bands, she would elevate several notches without even trying. (And some of those were my former favorites too.)
When I first started my "deep dive" into BAND-MAID, this is the album that really made me say "damn, I love this band!" The whole album is on my playlist and is one of my favorites (so far). I really feel like this is the album that really foreshadows what BAND-MAID is to become. Order, Brand New Road and Yuragu will always be among my favorites. God, I love this band!!!
Agreed. At least for my tastes, these five songs are top tier, with Order and Brand New Road hovering a little higher... (But I'm ready to examine the changes, if any, when they start writing their own songs...)
I really enjoy this style of video, it reminds me of my High School days, sitting in my best friend's Livingroom listening to a brand-new album from one of our favorite bands on His dad's expensive stereo system commenting and mutually appreciating the music one track at a time, so thank you for this. "Brand New Road" is great and has a "Mondegreen" for me in the words you have read from the lyric sheet as "Dirty Fighting" I have heard it (and noted it in my notes on the song in Media Player) as "Daddy's Working". I raised two daughters (the oldest being Miku's age) and the phrase was often thrown about as they grew up. I love the way Miku and Saiki pronounce 'English Words' in their songs, (their accents are so cute) but I rarely catch them correctly without subtitles.
It's as if they share a brain during some of those sections... Not to mention Akane connecting them with her playful patterns. I can't bring myself to imagine a world in which the three of them never came together...
Often it is said that the early albums are a bit weaker. But wait a minute…. some of their best tracks are here. 1. Non Fiction Days- possibly one of the best songs ever made. 11. 2. Look at Me. - not as strong, like a 7. 3. Order. Not as strong, 7. 4. Brand New Road. Experimental jazzy song. Maybe 7. 5. Yuragu. Less memorable but still hard rocking, great live. 8. 6.Freedom. Absolutely brilliant and their most played song live. 11. 7.Before Yesterday. Mid paced gem. Such passion. 11. 8. Alone. Rock at its finest. 11. ….look how many elevens are on this album!
Interestingly, I'd reverse most of those ratings (though we agree on Freedom!) For me, Order, Look at Me, and Brand New Road are all steps ahead of NFD, Alone, and Before Yesterday... On the overall principle, I completely agree - some of their best tracks are here. :-)
I've stated before that Band-Maid are real troopers in their videos. They are either on fire, wet, freezing, burning up or tripping over cords on the floor....poor things...LOL!!They have certainly paid their dues. I've always wondered in the days where they were not writing their own music, how much influence they really had performing their instruments because I see a lot of their early skills rolled into their present style.
I absolutely LOVE their dedication, not only to the craft of making music, but also to the peripheral aspects like video-making (eg: Kanami strapped to the top of a moving car!), interviews, etc. And, as far as I can tell they do it without the raging addiction problems or other personality defects that plagued most of the bands I used to listen to.
I get the impression that saying is common in lots of places (usually not in Texas where the forecast is usually "hot", LOL). I know I heard it a ton in Missouri and Oklahoma, or variations like "If you don't like the weather, wait a minute." :-)
Listening to that guitar solo in Yuragu, now I see why that Dictaphone has to bow out soon. Mincho literally played it to death. Alone is a fitting funeral.
Yeah, she doesn't seem like the person who hangs guitars on the wall because the look pretty. :-) She gets her money's worth out of every inch of those guitars...
Dictaphone = Addictone. You gotta love spell check lol! I really loved her green one. Addictone still make (or you can order) their Kanami Tono models.
I'm positive I'd heard the song before, but maybe I hadn't listened to the entire thing... It definitely took me by surprise, LOL. Thanks for watching; this was fun to record. :-)
PnD's channel has excellent photo collages to MAID tracks that do not have MV's etc...They are fun to watch while listening..Great pics of the ladies performing or having fun..and both at the same time!..hehe..Shame you missed them for some of these tracks.
You're welcome! :-) I'm strongly considering one-song per video after this... It was more exhausting than I expected to record myself for 90 straight minutes (a lot of edits in this one).
Always enjoy your reviews. These are great songs and it's fun to listen to your impressions of them. I don't always agree with you, but it's all subjective and we're free to like what we like. "The non-fiction days" and "Brand New Road" are my favs from among these five, but I never skip any of the others when I'm listening to the CD in my car. As you noticed, there's just something different and interesting about BNR, from Saiki bending those notes to MISA's jazzy solo with organ. I love when they go off-road like that.
I would be very surprised if everyone agreed with me about my impressions. :-) By the way, I'm still hearing Brand New Road in my head, five days after recording this... And Look At Me is another one that got stuck in my head. As much as I liked Order while listening to it, it's not one that stuck with me a few days later...
The fire you see in Band-Maid's videos is real. There's a behind the scenes video of Shambles in which they were quite happy with the heat it provided.
Ah, thanks for the info! In NFD it definitely looked real. I'll watch Shambles again eventually and see if I've changed my mind by then (it just looked CGI'd when I first watched it...) By the way, lately I've been not consuming Band-Maid content until I pass it on my chronological journey -- which makes me impatient to get the next few songs out of the way. :-)
Thanks! Can't wait to do the next one (and I'm very likely going to make them much shorter in the future -- this was exhausting to record and edit, LOL.)
I honestly don't know how many songs a band can keep ready to play at new shows... I suppose they have to cut older stuff from the "we might still play this" list every time they release a new album. But it sure wouldn't hurt my feelings if they worked "order" into current set lists. :-)
The break down, guitar solo and arrangement in the middle of Look At Me remind me so much of a US rock band from late 80s? with a similar sound, but I just can't put my finger on who it is.
I went back to listen just now, and yes, there's a familiar feel to it... But I also cannot place it precisely. (I'll admit to a limited knowledge of bands from my own time, due to not listening to most of them until later.)
Just an FYI, you have the JPU records version with the English translations. The regular Japanese versions don't have it inside. Japanese version has the version with the live track, and the variant with the MV DVD bonus with nonfiction days(I think it was), order, and alone.
It makes sense, I guess, that their domestic (Japan-only) versions wouldn't have English inserts. But I'm VERY glad they thought to include it for those of us ignorant enough to not yet know Japanese. :-)
@@Chan_Fry If you've seen NFD live like have, it might move to your number one! But trying to place band-maid songs in any fave order is really a futile endeavor! Same for pickin' a fave Maid! ;-)
Since you (and someone else) mentioned it, I searched and found a few photos, including one with four of them in the back of a pickup wearing coats. Which increases my respect for them. :-) (Yes, I know a ton of movies, shows, and on-location MVs are filmed in less than ideal conditions, and I have a ton of respect for all the people involved in them. I've had outdoor jobs before, and I survived, but I also didn't have to be on camera while doing it...)
First of all, "Brand new road"! Nice intro to your reaction! I don't like the vocal melody in look at me baby? song either 😅 cool guitar solo though. I love it. Vocals on this album is a bit monotonous to me. Very watered-down version of live vocal, but as you said, Saiki crescendo into the ending a bit and added some raspiness, which is a nice touch...but still much prefer her live vocal even at her worst.
Thank you for the comment. So far, I like the vocals -- and since most of the music I listen to is audio only (earbuds while I'm mowing or doing other chores), I like to evaluate the studio tracks before moving on to videos. :-)
There are only a hand few of non original songs I like from them beyond real experience and thrill …. But even their studio canned songs are better than 90% of everything else out there
Agreed! I think I failed to mention it in this video, but yes, even the ones I labeled as merely "fun" ("Look At Me") were being unfairly compared to other Band-Maid songs. :-)
I can't figure out which anime/song it is, but the chorus of Nonfiction days sounds really similar to something in tone like maybe a death note song. Does anyone know what I'm thinking of?
Thanks for watching! I personally am not familiar with any anime (I've only seen what my son watches, and only in passing)... Hopefully someone else will have some input.
I'm afraid I don't have enough musical knowledge to answer that (maybe Nittpic or Drumroll Tony can definitively answer something like that?) To my untrained ear, I seem to notice time changes in a bunch of their songs, but I'm probably being fooled by half-times, and other musical tricks. :-)
Easily, without having to be a musician, just keep time with hand claps (easy if it's in 4/4 time). If a part of the song does not fall within that tempo, it means that it has a time change, if it falls within 4/4 but is slower/faster, it is only half time or double time. You can try this with the song mentioned, at 26:47 the tempo changes, I think it goes from 130 to 160 bpm (I could be wrong).@@Chan_Fry
MISA MISA MISA!!!!! that is why "Non Fiction Days" is way down my list I don't like having to strain to hear MISA I don't blame you for the lack of enthusiasm for the vocal melody (I like it) in "Look at Me" but there are songs well song where I am NOT a fan at all of the Vocal melody during the chorus ("GLORY") ohh never mind you liked it after all back in 2017 when I first heard "Brand New Road" I thought what is this S@#T NOW ohhh my goodness what a song. Ähhhhhh "YURAGU" one of my top 5 songs by Band-Maid both Mincho and A-chan do backing vocals Live for this one.
Ha, yes, I came around eventually on "Look At Me"... Not sure what it was that bothered me at first. Now it's stuck in my head and I don't mind. :-) (It's another interesting subject, to examine which songs stick in my head days after listening... Right now, it's "Brand New Road" and "Look At Me"... I can also conjure "the non fiction days" if I try, but for the life of me can't hear the tune of "Order" or "Yuragu" right now ... I'll have to go listen again.)
Good to see you back! Okay...controversial take time: this is my least favourite album by them. Outside of Non-Fiction Days and Alone there isn't much for me here. Freedom is ok-ish and I do like parts of "yuragu" quite a bit. The rest of the album gets little play from me If you asked me to say which album had which had "better songs" overall, Brand New Maid or Maid In Japan (my second least-favourite), I'd say Brand New Maid. But I think the songs on Maid In Japan get closer to what they try to accomplish than these songs. That leaves these songs feeling to me like they're missing something. Whereas the songs on Maid In Japan feel more successful. Think of Maid In Japan like someone making basic food but doing it well. Then Brand New Maid is like a cook trying for some complicated food but they don't manage to make it all come together yet; so while you appreciate the attempt, because it hasn't all worked quite right, the flavour is hard to enjoy even though they used better ingredients.
Interesting take! (And yes, I can see why it might be controversial, LOL.) Personally, I'm accustomed to differing opinions when it comes to subjective matters, so it doesn't bother me when others like different things... Thanks for explaining, even if I don't agree. :-) (You wanna hear controversial? I don't like cheese. Imagine the looks on people's faces when I tell them...)
Don't think you can put it all on the ladies. Miku gets three writing credits with Saiki sharing two, and "the band" got one. This is them still playing music by others.
I guess it's a matter of taste/preference... I find some of these songs to be fantastic -- ORDER and Brand New Road specifically I think would sound decent played by any competent musicians... And LOOK AT ME has a catchy chorus (it was stuck in my head days later). :-)
Disagree. These songs are incredibly good and on deeper listening are brilliantly arranged and performed. The 'Brand New Maid' album took my breath away when I first heard them years ago when it was first released. It shows the steady development of the band from their initial works and points the way towards their later spectacular albums.
The Non fiction days should have a whole video of them talking about making it. It was freezing out there when they made it.
I'd watch that! :-) I do enjoy behind the scenes videos...
I have the album looking at me so I played it again before listening to the review. Then played it again after the review. It really isn't worth counting how many tracks are on this Album as so many of them have so much going on within each track. Thanks again for these listen alongs and reviews. It really takes me back to the good old days of going around to someones home and the entertainment was listening to albums all night. With Band Maid there is so much going on that I have yet to fast forward or skip a track. Great fun, thanks.
Thanks for participating! :-) I'm definitely having flashbacks to some teenage years (and even 20s, if we're being honest) and sitting around with someone's Dad's stereo setup -- wooden encased shelf speakers with a turntable and radio tuner built in... Or our own boomboxes once we could afford them. :-)
There is a making of video for this mv, and yes, it was very cold! There is a picture of Saiki in a heavy coat looking very annoyed at being cold, fun! Akane actually got her coat burned from the fires between shots, again trying to get warm.
Ah! I didn't even think to look... But yes, I found a few photos of them wearing coats out there. There's one with four of them sitting in the back of a pickup, all bundled up. :-) Such troopers!
This is a nice way to remind me of songs I haven't listened to in awhile. Thank you. In edition to their doing all of Alone, Miku gets lyrics credit for Freedom and both Miku and Saiki get lyrics credit for Yuragu.
Thanks! Yes, I saw Miku's name on the others (Freedom and Alone), but haven't got that far yet. :-) (And I just wasn't certain if the others were Saiki or not -- the kanji doesn't fully match her kanji on the Wikipedia page, so I hesitated to say it...)
I haven't listened to Freedom in a while, so I'm looking forward to my next review/reaction. :-)
Those mid-song breaks were pretty cool - especially that one with the organ... MISA is incredible and could easily improve most other bands.
I can think of a few really excellent bands (some of my previous favorites) where MISA could easily replace the former bassist and no one would notice if she didn't want them to -- at least in the audio. Other bands, she would elevate several notches without even trying. (And some of those were my former favorites too.)
When I first started my "deep dive" into BAND-MAID, this is the album that really made me say "damn, I love this band!" The whole album is on my playlist and is one of my favorites (so far). I really feel like this is the album that really foreshadows what BAND-MAID is to become. Order, Brand New Road and Yuragu will always be among my favorites. God, I love this band!!!
Agreed. At least for my tastes, these five songs are top tier, with Order and Brand New Road hovering a little higher... (But I'm ready to examine the changes, if any, when they start writing their own songs...)
I really enjoy this style of video, it reminds me of my High School days, sitting in my best friend's Livingroom listening to a brand-new album from one of our favorite bands on His dad's expensive stereo system commenting and mutually appreciating the music one track at a time, so thank you for this. "Brand New Road" is great and has a "Mondegreen" for me in the words you have read from the lyric sheet as "Dirty Fighting" I have heard it (and noted it in my notes on the song in Media Player) as "Daddy's Working". I raised two daughters (the oldest being Miku's age) and the phrase was often thrown about as they grew up. I love the way Miku and Saiki pronounce 'English Words' in their songs, (their accents are so cute) but I rarely catch them correctly without subtitles.
*MISA* and *Kanami* interweave so beautifully with the Bass and the guitar.
It's as if they share a brain during some of those sections... Not to mention Akane connecting them with her playful patterns. I can't bring myself to imagine a world in which the three of them never came together...
Chan -- On YURAGU and other early songs, Kanami and Akane occasionally sang backup vocals in studio and live.
Makes sense, especially on Yuragu when we can hear more than two voices at one time... (And we *know* they can sing, so...) :-)
Often it is said that the early albums are a bit weaker. But wait a minute…. some of their best tracks are here.
1. Non Fiction Days- possibly one of the best songs ever made. 11.
2. Look at Me. - not as strong, like a 7.
3. Order. Not as strong, 7.
4. Brand New Road. Experimental jazzy song. Maybe 7.
5. Yuragu. Less memorable but still hard rocking, great live. 8.
6.Freedom. Absolutely brilliant and their most played song live. 11.
7.Before Yesterday. Mid paced gem. Such passion. 11.
8. Alone. Rock at its finest. 11.
….look how many elevens are on this album!
Interestingly, I'd reverse most of those ratings (though we agree on Freedom!) For me, Order, Look at Me, and Brand New Road are all steps ahead of NFD, Alone, and Before Yesterday...
On the overall principle, I completely agree - some of their best tracks are here. :-)
I've stated before that Band-Maid are real troopers in their videos. They are either on fire, wet, freezing, burning up or tripping over cords on the floor....poor things...LOL!!They have certainly paid their dues.
I've always wondered in the days where they were not writing their own music, how much influence they really had performing their instruments because I see a lot of their early skills rolled into their present style.
I absolutely LOVE their dedication, not only to the craft of making music, but also to the peripheral aspects like video-making (eg: Kanami strapped to the top of a moving car!), interviews, etc. And, as far as I can tell they do it without the raging addiction problems or other personality defects that plagued most of the bands I used to listen to.
Here in Michigan we always say, "If you don't like the weather, wait a day or two it'll change."
I get the impression that saying is common in lots of places (usually not in Texas where the forecast is usually "hot", LOL). I know I heard it a ton in Missouri and Oklahoma, or variations like "If you don't like the weather, wait a minute." :-)
@@Chan_Fry Yeah, "wait a few minutes" is popular in Ohio : )
Listening to that guitar solo in Yuragu, now I see why that Dictaphone has to bow out soon. Mincho literally played it to death. Alone is a fitting funeral.
Yeah, she doesn't seem like the person who hangs guitars on the wall because the look pretty. :-) She gets her money's worth out of every inch of those guitars...
Dictaphone = Addictone. You gotta love spell check lol! I really loved her green one. Addictone still make (or you can order) their Kanami Tono models.
@@Davey-Boyd that wasn't spellcheck, that was me being old. 😂
@@bandmaidfanATL Oh boy, I know that feeling lol!
I love your Band-Maid album reviews and your insights on the songs! Your face at the breakdown of Order… 😂
I'm positive I'd heard the song before, but maybe I hadn't listened to the entire thing... It definitely took me by surprise, LOL. Thanks for watching; this was fun to record. :-)
PnD's channel has excellent photo collages to MAID tracks that do not have MV's etc...They are fun to watch while listening..Great pics of the ladies performing or having fun..and both at the same time!..hehe..Shame you missed them for some of these tracks.
Thanks for letting me know.
That's one hot heater... ah, I mean, mic! Thx Chan, for your great, expansive coverage of the Maids! 🤘😂
You're welcome! :-) I'm strongly considering one-song per video after this... It was more exhausting than I expected to record myself for 90 straight minutes (a lot of edits in this one).
@@Chan_Fry If it works for you, it works for me!
Always enjoy your reviews. These are great songs and it's fun to listen to your impressions of them. I don't always agree with you, but it's all subjective and we're free to like what we like. "The non-fiction days" and "Brand New Road" are my favs from among these five, but I never skip any of the others when I'm listening to the CD in my car. As you noticed, there's just something different and interesting about BNR, from Saiki bending those notes to MISA's jazzy solo with organ. I love when they go off-road like that.
I would be very surprised if everyone agreed with me about my impressions. :-) By the way, I'm still hearing Brand New Road in my head, five days after recording this... And Look At Me is another one that got stuck in my head. As much as I liked Order while listening to it, it's not one that stuck with me a few days later...
The fire you see in Band-Maid's videos is real. There's a behind the scenes video of Shambles in which they were quite happy with the heat it provided.
Ah, thanks for the info! In NFD it definitely looked real. I'll watch Shambles again eventually and see if I've changed my mind by then (it just looked CGI'd when I first watched it...)
By the way, lately I've been not consuming Band-Maid content until I pass it on my chronological journey -- which makes me impatient to get the next few songs out of the way. :-)
those scenes where the maids play in the fire or explosion are all real.
Love the format and your commentaries. Keep them coming. Cheers!
Thanks! Can't wait to do the next one (and I'm very likely going to make them much shorter in the future -- this was exhausting to record and edit, LOL.)
Love Order myself. Great solo leading into the final chorus. One of my very faves. They don't play it these days sadly.
I honestly don't know how many songs a band can keep ready to play at new shows... I suppose they have to cut older stuff from the "we might still play this" list every time they release a new album. But it sure wouldn't hurt my feelings if they worked "order" into current set lists. :-)
This was very enjoyable yet again Chan. Your effort is very much appreciated. 🤘✌️
Thank you! (I'll admit it was exhausting so I might take it one song at a time from here on out...)
That was really fun! Cheers Chan!
Glad you enjoyed it. :-)
The break down, guitar solo and arrangement in the middle of Look At Me remind me so much of a US rock band from late 80s? with a similar sound, but I just can't put my finger on who it is.
I went back to listen just now, and yes, there's a familiar feel to it... But I also cannot place it precisely. (I'll admit to a limited knowledge of bands from my own time, due to not listening to most of them until later.)
Reactor 3-4 years ago (channel got nuked) said something pretty close to 'it sounds like an old familiar song, that you've never heard before'.
Just an FYI, you have the JPU records version with the English translations. The regular Japanese versions don't have it inside. Japanese version has the version with the live track, and the variant with the MV DVD bonus with nonfiction days(I think it was), order, and alone.
It makes sense, I guess, that their domestic (Japan-only) versions wouldn't have English inserts. But I'm VERY glad they thought to include it for those of us ignorant enough to not yet know Japanese. :-)
For me, my faves where:
1) NFDays
2) Order
3) BNR
4) LAMe
5) Yuragu
Almost my exact order (just move NFD down to spot 3).
@@Chan_Fry If you've seen NFD live like have, it might move to your number one! But trying to place band-maid songs in any fave order is really a futile endeavor! Same for pickin' a fave Maid! ;-)
I've seen behind the scenes pictures for Non Fiction Days they were wearing big, puffy, black jackets so it must have been cold.
Since you (and someone else) mentioned it, I searched and found a few photos, including one with four of them in the back of a pickup wearing coats. Which increases my respect for them. :-)
(Yes, I know a ton of movies, shows, and on-location MVs are filmed in less than ideal conditions, and I have a ton of respect for all the people involved in them. I've had outdoor jobs before, and I survived, but I also didn't have to be on camera while doing it...)
And two of them caught on fire. Akane and Kanami if I remember rightly!
First of all, "Brand new road"! Nice intro to your reaction!
I don't like the vocal melody in look at me baby? song either 😅 cool guitar solo though. I love it.
Vocals on this album is a bit monotonous to me. Very watered-down version of live vocal, but as you said, Saiki crescendo into the ending a bit and added some raspiness, which is a nice touch...but still much prefer her live vocal even at her worst.
Thank you for the comment. So far, I like the vocals -- and since most of the music I listen to is audio only (earbuds while I'm mowing or doing other chores), I like to evaluate the studio tracks before moving on to videos. :-)
There are only a hand few of non original songs I like from them beyond real experience and thrill …. But even their studio canned songs are better than 90% of everything else out there
Agreed! I think I failed to mention it in this video, but yes, even the ones I labeled as merely "fun" ("Look At Me") were being unfairly compared to other Band-Maid songs. :-)
I can't figure out which anime/song it is, but the chorus of Nonfiction days sounds really similar to something in tone like maybe a death note song. Does anyone know what I'm thinking of?
Thanks for watching! I personally am not familiar with any anime (I've only seen what my son watches, and only in passing)... Hopefully someone else will have some input.
Is Look at Me the only BM song that has time changes?
I'm afraid I don't have enough musical knowledge to answer that (maybe Nittpic or Drumroll Tony can definitively answer something like that?) To my untrained ear, I seem to notice time changes in a bunch of their songs, but I'm probably being fooled by half-times, and other musical tricks. :-)
Easily, without having to be a musician, just keep time with hand claps (easy if it's in 4/4 time). If a part of the song does not fall within that tempo, it means that it has a time change, if it falls within 4/4 but is slower/faster, it is only half time or double time. You can try this with the song mentioned, at 26:47 the tempo changes, I think it goes from 130 to 160 bpm (I could be wrong).@@Chan_Fry
MISA MISA MISA!!!!! that is why "Non Fiction Days" is way down my list I don't like having to strain to hear MISA I don't blame you for the lack of enthusiasm for the vocal melody (I like it) in "Look at Me" but there are songs well song where I am NOT a fan at all of the Vocal melody during the chorus ("GLORY") ohh never mind you liked it after all back in 2017 when I first heard "Brand New Road" I thought what is this S@#T NOW ohhh my goodness what a song. Ähhhhhh "YURAGU" one of my top 5 songs by Band-Maid both Mincho and A-chan do backing vocals Live for this one.
Ha, yes, I came around eventually on "Look At Me"... Not sure what it was that bothered me at first. Now it's stuck in my head and I don't mind. :-)
(It's another interesting subject, to examine which songs stick in my head days after listening... Right now, it's "Brand New Road" and "Look At Me"... I can also conjure "the non fiction days" if I try, but for the life of me can't hear the tune of "Order" or "Yuragu" right now ... I'll have to go listen again.)
Good to see you back!
Okay...controversial take time: this is my least favourite album by them. Outside of Non-Fiction Days and Alone there isn't much for me here. Freedom is ok-ish and I do like parts of "yuragu" quite a bit. The rest of the album gets little play from me
If you asked me to say which album had which had "better songs" overall, Brand New Maid or Maid In Japan (my second least-favourite), I'd say Brand New Maid. But I think the songs on Maid In Japan get closer to what they try to accomplish than these songs. That leaves these songs feeling to me like they're missing something. Whereas the songs on Maid In Japan feel more successful. Think of Maid In Japan like someone making basic food but doing it well. Then Brand New Maid is like a cook trying for some complicated food but they don't manage to make it all come together yet; so while you appreciate the attempt, because it hasn't all worked quite right, the flavour is hard to enjoy even though they used better ingredients.
Interesting take! (And yes, I can see why it might be controversial, LOL.) Personally, I'm accustomed to differing opinions when it comes to subjective matters, so it doesn't bother me when others like different things... Thanks for explaining, even if I don't agree. :-)
(You wanna hear controversial? I don't like cheese. Imagine the looks on people's faces when I tell them...)
Don't think you can put it all on the ladies. Miku gets three writing credits with Saiki sharing two, and "the band" got one. This is them still playing music by others.
The songs themselves are not great but the musician ship is fantastic
I guess it's a matter of taste/preference... I find some of these songs to be fantastic -- ORDER and Brand New Road specifically I think would sound decent played by any competent musicians... And LOOK AT ME has a catchy chorus (it was stuck in my head days later). :-)
Disagree. These songs are incredibly good and on deeper listening are brilliantly arranged and performed. The 'Brand New Maid' album took my breath away when I first heard them years ago when it was first released. It shows the steady development of the band from their initial works and points the way towards their later spectacular albums.