Momoiro Clover Z

REVIEW: KISS vs Momoiro Clover Z – “Samurai Son”/”Yume no Ukiyo ni Saitemina” CD singles

NEW RELEASE

MOMOIRO CLOVER Z vs KISS – “Yume no Ukiyo ni Saitemina” / “Samurai Son” (2015 King Records Japan CD singles, sold separately)

Here they are, the new singles featuring the Kiss vs Momoiro Clover Z collaboration.  “Samurai Son” appeared on the current Best of Kiss 40 CD, billed there as the “U.S. Mix”.  That meant there are other versions out there, so I ordered the singles (two separate releases) from Japan.  Even if I did not like the other versions of the song, the single covers were cool enough to keep as collectibles.  As it turns out they are printed on high quality textured parchment style paper, and have stunning inner and outer art.  They also come with transparent outer shells with shiny embossed symbols and writing.  For packaging, it’s 5/5 stars for these singles.

Between the two singles, there are four different mixes from the “U.S. Mix” of “Samurai Son”.  All feature Kiss, to a certain degree.  Here’s how the versions break down, from “Least Kiss” to “Most Kiss”:

5. “Yume no Ukiyo ni Saitemina”.  This is the full-on Japanese version with the spotlight primarily on Momoiro Clover Z.  They take the lead vocals and their elements of the song and style and brought up in the mix.  It’s funny to hear Kiss singing background vocals in English, underneath the Japanese lead vocals!  Who know if the words actually go together in any way.

4. “Yume no Ukiyo ni Saitemina” (instrumental version).  Kiss are the backing band on this track and you can clearly hear Tommy soloing, but the Kiss and J-pop elements are mixed fairly equally here.  These first two renditions of the song are on both versions of the single.

3. “Samurai Son” (instrumental version). From the CD with the artwork emphasizing Kiss.  This instrumental is based on the Kiss rather than the Momoclo version of the song.  Tommy is in the spotlight a bit more on this version, as the instrumental mix leaves more room for his guitar licks to take the spotlight.

2. “Samurai Son”.   From the same CD as the above track, this is a Kiss-heavy version similar to the “U.S. Mix” on Best of Kiss 40…but not quite the same.  It follows the same blueprint of Kiss being up front and the Momoclo girls audible in the background and on the chorus.  It has vocal, guitar and J-pop parts that are not as apparent in the “U.S. Mix”.  Gene’s vocals also sound higher in the mix.  It’s audibly mastered way, way louder than Kiss 40, as you can see from the Audacity waveform below.  Track 3 from the CD is on top, the “U.S. Mix” from Kiss 40 is beneath.

1. “Samurai Son” (U.S. Mix). The Kiss 40 version; the mix that is geared to appeal mostly to Kiss fans.  Logically, it sounds the most like Kiss.  It’s only on Kiss 40; neither of these two singles have this mix which makes it a little more special for Kiss fans.

MOMOIRO CLOVER Z VS KISS_0004There are more tracks, but I’ll be frank — I didn’t even rip them to the computer.  These tracks are vocals and instrumental covers by Momoiro Clover Z of “Rock and Roll all Nite”.  I listened to it; it’s cute.  If you want to try and get your little niece into rock music, this might be the way to do it.  It has some guitars but it’s very cutesy.  (Probably still better than Poison’s version though, Mr. Rockett.)

Finally there is the Blu-ray containing the music video, that I cannot play due to region restrictions.  That’s why they invented Youtube, I think….

I give Kiss credit for doing something different like this and making it accessible to different audiences.  My favourite version is the one on Kiss 40, but that one was custom built for people like me.  These two singles are fun additions to the collection.  It’s one of those conversation pieces you can show that one guy you know who says he has “all” the Kiss CDs.

3/5 stars

SAMURAI SON

REVIEW: KISS – 40 (2015 single CD Japan Commemorative edition)

 

NEW RELEASE

KISS 40 2015_0001KISS – 40 (2015 Universal Japan single CD Commemorative edition)

Wait a minute, I’m confused — did I just buy Kiss 40, again?

Wait a minute, it’s 2015 now — shouldn’t this be Kiss 41, or something??

Wait a minute, what the hell is “Kiss vs. Momoiro Clover Z”???

Eager to buy anything new from Gene and Co., I got this new single CD version of Kiss 40 without really knowing what it was about.

Now that the CD has arrived at the door, I discovered that Momoiro Clover Z is a Japanese all-girl pop group with similar intentions as Kiss themselves.  They dreamed big dreams for themselves and aimed to entertain and bring a spectacle to the people.  They have colour coordinated members and characters, so perhaps a Kiss collaboration seemed like the next step for them.  I don’t know how the collaboration came to be, but the result was a brand new Kiss song written by Paul Stanley and producer Greg Collins.

This edition of Kiss 40 commences with a Kiss-heavy mix of the new collaboration, “Samurai Son”. There are other versions available on two singles and on iTunes, but reviews for those will wait until they arrive at LeBrain HQ.  The good news is that the “U.S.” mix of “Samurai Son” has no problem hanging out on a Kiss greatest hits CD.  Musically, it’s not too much of a departure of the direction from Kiss’ last album, Monster.  It’s just more produced, polished and embellished.  The girls from Momoiro Clover Z come in during the chorus, but it’s not the first time Kiss have had female backing vocals on their albums.  It’s the first time since 1989, but remember old classic tunes like “Tomorrow and Tonight” from Love Gun, and “Sweet Pain” from Destroyer?  Female backing vocals.  The new twists this time are the lines in Japanese, and the very slight J-pop slant.  It’s not too far of a departure.

Collector's card included inside Kiss 40

Collector’s card included inside Kiss 40

It may not be to your taste, but I love “Samurai Son”.  The lyrics address Kiss’ experience of hitting Japan for the first time back in 1976:

“I took a flight into Tokyo,
Into the Land of the Rising Son,
I heard my song on the radio,
Blowin’ my mind like a shot from a gun.”

Paul then proceeds to tear it up all over town, “Livin’ life with no regrets.”  The words suit one of those fast paced Kiss rockers that they’ve been doing of late — think “Hell or Hallelujah”.  There are some cool Thayer licks and you can tell that Gene Simmons showed up for the sessions, because you can hear him singing on the choruses.  The overall impression is that “Samurai Son” is one of those solid Kiss catalogue rockers.  It’s like the new material on side four of Kiss Alive II: pretty good but living in the shadow of the Kiss greats.

KISS 40 2015_0006From this point on, Kiss 40 (the 2015 abridged version) continues with the “best” hits from the full length 2 CD version…but not quite.  There have been some major tweaks to the tracklist, perhaps to maximize the listening pleasure of consumers who just need one CD of Kiss in their lives.  The classic live version of “Rock and Roll all Nite” has been replaced with the studio version from Dressed to Kill.  Same for “Shout it Out Loud” and “Detroit Rock City”, here in their original full Destroyer guises instead of live. I like the way the car crash ending of “Detroit” merges into “Calling Dr. Love”.  “Dr. Love” and “Love Gun” were thrown into the pile here, even though they weren’t on the original Kiss 40 in any form.  A little further down, a different song was plucked from Kiss Killers:  The superior “I’m a Legend Tonight” replaces “Down on Your Knees”.

Moving on from the makeup years to the non-makeup 1980’s, the original version of “Crazy Crazy Nights” replaces that unreleased live version from the double Kiss 40.  That sums up the song substitutions; the album still continues chronologically to the current era.  I’m pleased that even though early songs from the first two Kiss albums were axed, songs from the last two Kiss albums were not.  I think Sonic Boom and Monster are Kiss albums the band should be proud of, so you get “Modern Day Delilah” and “Hell or Hallelujah”, as it should be.  Other albums excluded from this compilation are The Elder, (surprisingly) Creatures of the Night, Hot in the Shade, the live records and the solo albums.

With all these tweaks and alterations, the overall listening experience is enhanced albeit at the cost of some deeper tracks. It’s a give and take, so the overall score for the new Kiss 40 remains:

4/5 stars