The music just disappeared….

The time has come again for another Megax March review! This time we’ll be looking at the two pieces of music to come from the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya movie!

On January 27th Lantis released the original soundtrack for the movie; a first for the series since the BGM was not released with a limited edition DVD. They followed that release on February 24th by releasing the theme song for the movie: Yasashii Bokyaku. I decided to purchase these two CDs through Yokatta Web, my middlewoman in Japan, and I was lucky to receive two postcards from Gamerz that they gave out to customers!

Toonleap already reviewed the OST in an earlier post, so I won’t go into more details about the set. It is a lovely collection of music and wonderfully performed by eminence. I cannot wait to hear it with the animation.

As for the theme song itself, Minori-san evokes strong emotions with her voice as Yuki. It is a touching song and more than fitting for the story it tells. I did some work translating the song and I did tear up during said translation due to the source material.

The CD itself comes in a sleeve with one side for Minori-san and the other for Yuki. This continues the trend of sleeve as Bouken Desho Desho? and Super Driver did come in sleeves as well.

The booklet has many pictures from the PV taken at the model school for the Haruhi series.

The single has four variations of the theme: the normal one heard in the PV, an a capella version used over the credits in the movie, a version played with piano accompaniment, and an instrumental version that has a different composition than the first track.

I’m a fan of the third track with the piano accompaniment over the original single. In my opinion it fits Minori-san’s voice moreso than the first two tracks.

I will now confess one guilty pleasure of mine: I am a sucker for posters, specifically B 2 size posters of shows I like. I have posters from Kamen Rider Kiva, Engine Sentai Go-Onger, Kamen Rider Den-O, Samurai Sentai Shinkenger, and now…

On the side, I included a playing card (it was the closest thing I could think of) and the Endless Eight DVDs for reference on size. This poster is absolutely huge! I cannot state how much I love it.

Yokatta Web was able to order these CDs from one of the stores in Japan that was participating in a campaign that enabled you to get the poster with purchase of the CDs. I also took the chance to order the ENOZ CD and Gensou DVD at the same time (which is why those reviews were late).

Later this month, Kyoto Animation will be mailing out orders for another poster from the movie (it’s the art where the brigade is standing against the wall) and yes, Yokatta already has my order in. I’ll be posting pictures when I get it in April (something else I’m ordering ships in that month).

Overall, this was an absolutely great haul for me. A CD for each Hirano-san and Minori-san, and two orchestrated versions of BGM from the Haruhi series in addition to store goods (postcards and poster). I can’t say enough how grateful I am to Yokatta Web for getting those for me.

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Music to calm the savage beast that is Haruhi Suzumiya

Phillip Chu will help guide us along this review today

An Alien suddenly approaches!

Starling Inferno GET!

Today marks the fourth review for this month already. We started with the second DVD of Sigh and continued through the Disappearance Guidebook and the special ENOZ CD. We continue with the DVD for the Gensou (string concert) event held last year!

Kadokawa finally put out the DVD the same day that the Sigh DVD came out to limited success. It only sold around 2000 copies total that weekend to rank 20th on the Oricon rankings, but my copy is one of them!

The DVD itself comes with one double-layered disc and a 24 page booklet that details background information on the series as well as advertisements. It’s really nice and probably modeled after the programs from the show itself.

The main feature is of course the concert performed by the Toyko Philaharmonic Orchestra, but unlike the CD, the presenters come out and speak about the music as well. Minoru Shiraishi and Megumi Matsumoto reprise their roles from the Gekisou concert as hosts and a special guest comes along….Satoru Kousaki, the composer for the Haruhi BGM!

The music is well done and comes out amazingly in surround sound. The performances by Hirano-san and Chihara-san are wonderful (even if Minori’s costume defies all fashion sense) and every single instrument can be heard.

There is some more humor mixed in as Phillip has to move Minori to the singing spot just like Yuki in the Hare Hare Yukai ED.

Included on the disc is a backstage feature where they show Phillip meeting the Haruhi actors and the difficulties in speaking English versus Japanese. Phillip even has to get the special violinist to translate how to give a high five from Aya!

If you love classical music and the BGM from the Haruhi series, you’d be remiss if you didn’t pick up the Gensou concert on either CD or DVD. The DVD features are nice and it’s wonderful being able to see the music played, but it’s not for everyone. I really enjoyed the music and feel that it’s a well-put together DVD.

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ENOZ here, Ready to Rock!

The March Month of Megax Reviews continues into the second week! As you may have seen, the ENOZ CD featuring Aya Hirano-san singing came out on February 24th. I do apologize for the lateness of this review, but I won’t apologize for why it’s late as you’ll see next week.

To begin with, the CD “Imaginary ENOZ featuring Haruhi” has three new songs and three old songs by ENOZ. The old songs are the two insert songs featured on the Tsumeawase CD “God Knows….” and “Lost my music” as well as the final song on the SoundAround Drama CD “First Good-bye” which takes place chronologically following the Live A Live Concert.

So what’s new? Three songs entitled “Star Way to Heaven”, “Secret of Sensation”, and “When I was in Love.”

When I first heard the new songs, I didn’t think anything about them was special, but after listening a few times, I’ve noticed that the chorus beat in “When I was in Love” has a rhythm that I find rather catchy making it my favorite of the bunch (even over the old songs).

Hirano-san brings her best vocals to the job and makes this album sound much better than Super Driver or any of her character songs. She’s consistent in her vocals and doesn’t try to overdo any note. It’s a good mini-album.

The inserts are shots from the Live a Live show. Due to the small size, I cannot tell the quality to see if Kyoto Animation has made any touch-ups on the shots. The original footage was some of the higher quality animation from the 2006 episodes, so it still looks very nice.

The only negative I can really state about this CD is the cost. For the price of a real album, to only have three new songs on it is rather cheap of Lantis and Kadokawa. I don’t regret buying it as a Haruhist with a little bit of extra money, but others may (and have in Japan) vary against it. If you really like Aya Hirano and would like to support the Haruhi music, then get it. If not, there’s always Youtube when you have it stuck in your head.

Up later this weekend will be a review of the Gensou DVD and next week’s review features the music for the Disappearance movie and a surprise!

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Japan Husband-hunting school!

With low birth rates in Japan, Some people are trying to find a solution for relationship problems….Take for example this case…An school for spouse hunters in Japan.

The Infini school offers various classes for wannabe brides and grooms at a time when many people in Japan are either shunning the institution of marriage or are finding it very difficult to hook up with a partner.

The school, which is open to men and women, teaches students how to talk, walk and present themselves elegantly in a bid to capture the hearts and minds of prospective partners and their parents, who are often a major obstacle to successful unions.

Infini, which opened last month, now has about 30 female students. An almost equal number of males has signed up, but those who actually turn up to class are much fewer than their female counterparts.

“I had never even thought that my boyfriend’s mother could play such a big role in my relationship, but now I’ve realized I need to start thinking seriously about how to impress my future in-laws,” said Kozue Sugawara, 29, who joined the school after her previous marriage plans failed.

With women wielding increased economic clout and changing social attitudes toward marriage, more Japanese in their 20s and 30s are single than ever before.

Government statistics show nearly two-thirds of women under the age of 34 are unmarried, despite some 3,800 firms in Japan offering match-making services.

The average age of the school’s female students is 30 years.

“Before, people would find it easy to get married because families and society would connect them in some way, sometimes pushing them to get married. But nowadays, people have too many choices and cannot seem to make up their minds,” said Etsuko Satake, principal of the Infini marriage prep school.

Instructors provide critiques about students’ dress, posture and even details such as how they cross their legs or get out of a car. Men and women are taught different skills, which range from how to set a table well to how to be more emotionally expressive.

Students also simulate dates, during which their instructors grade their performance and point out what they did wrong.

The school charges an annual fee of 200,000 yen ($2,217) for unlimited access to its classes.

And some students, such as 32-year-old Mei Oda, seem to think it’s an investment worth making.

“I’m looking for a man who makes more than 10 million yen (110,000 dollars) a year, doesn’t ask me to live with his parents and takes good care of me,” said Oda, a contract office worker.

Experts say that with Japan’s economy plunged deep into recession, many women are taking a renewed interest in marriage and the economic stability it could provide, and are actively seeking a partner through “konkatsu” or spouse-hunting activities.

Source: Reuters / Video

I dont know if I should cry or laugh about the 10 million yen a year part…I think She is looking for a CEO and not exactly just a husband!

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