PROJECTxxLLxxSS:
CYPRESS GIRLS / DETECTIVE BOYS
The term "Cypress Girl" is in reference to the song Umi ni Naritai part 2, and the entire release responds to most of the tracks of the 3rd album.
To speak of these albums as a comparison, CYPRESS GIRLS are girls who are very depressed. For depression, you need more uptempo songs. DETECTIVE BOYS play it cool, so they get a more laid back album.
You can sort of even think of this release as a yin yang.
They have slight qualities of each other. As illustrated below:
GREEN=faster
PINK=slower
[CYPRESS GIRLS]
1.十字架 You and I
2.BAND GIRL'S SPIRAL DAYS
3.Shine On You Cypress Girl
4.beautiful wall (DUB)
5.kamiawanai
6.kimino-me
7.檸檬タージュ
8.Project Blue
[DETECTIVE BOYS]
1.クチビル・ディテクティヴ
2.Transfer Girl
3.BOYFRIEN°C
4.LOVESICK
5.WHITE ROOM
6.星がほしい
7.歌ってるんだBaby. (1+1=new1 ver.)
8.東京
Onto the actual review...
十字架YOU and I: Catchy and fun to sing. A funky song that uses Michael Jackson inspired enunciation. The strumming sounds MJ inspired too, I guess. It mentions the Cypress girl and demons and crucifixions. I like the line about forgetting your cross and DANCE ALL NIGHT. Off to a good start.
BAND GIRL’S SPIRAL DAYS: Picking up exactly where the last song stopped, more catchy, kind of funky in a trippy way. Content wise, it mentions the burdens on this girl trying to form a band (your guitar case is like your crucifix). I think she over works and is depressed.
Here's something interesting to note: The song mentions the girl having a book by the author of "The Notebook" and I wondered why the heck BBB would reference this, but it turns out that The Notebook inspired one of BBB's favorite video games, MOTHER 3 (The brothers were named after the book's 2 narrators.) They never mention Spiral Girl's actual book title, just that it was by that author.
I love this song, the chorus is great, I appreciate the return of screamed lines. All is going as expected, then I get hit with this guitar solo. Ok, cool.. screaming buzzing distortions, spiraling, spiraling, spinning. Wait, faster? Repeating bass leads you through, climbs upward, screaming guitar, toe tapping percussion, fast and then dramatic halted hits, full spiraling with all elements, it dissolves into the next mellow verse. Finishes with the chorus. The song repeats, spirals down down and fades out.
Shine On You Cypress Girl: This is so cute. It's like a jingle for this album, I call it that because it's short (2:44) but so catchy. There's some sweet harmonization by the lead singer, bassist and the drummer. It compares the girls to the Wind (Breeeeze Girl) & the sea (Umi ni Naritai). Also, I think it addresses Love Letter from Heartbeat's idea of sending a paper airplane to your love "the paperplane will surely never return" It also mentions the 8th month. This is in many other songs on this release. I can only guess that August is like a sign of Summer's end. Maybe the end of a Summer fling, Transfer Girl is kind of along those lines. Seasonal Depression? So many possibilities.
beautiful wall (DUB): All about the percussion and echos, and part of the melody is a nod to the secret track from album 3. Plus the fact that it's about a wall in the heart.
kamiawanai: A quick translation says this is about the gods turning against you. My favorite part is the line about being impaled by a rainbow colored crucifix. "Chigaunda" indeed.(you'll find out) Jokes aside, I love how he delivers the rhyming chorus lines. The vocals & mood are as evil and sadistic as the content. This song really builds up throughout, and it's the longest track (7:20) on either disc. I replay it constantly. I love evil BBB.
kimino-me: Even more build up, the first half matches the previous track, but it makes it to a brighter future. Courtesy of SAKANACTION'S Ichirou Yamaguchi. He appears and it becomes funky and trippy.
檸檬タージュ: We start with a rumbling, NUMBER GIRL inspired? bass intro. Then other instrumentals come in and suddenly I think of indies BBB, it definitely feels like their old nostalgic songs about high school. I love the percussion, it almost inspires headbanging, but then the catchiness makes it dancey instead.
Project Blue: Things slow down a bit and it goes back to the beautiful wall style. Then it builds up as a rock ballad when bassist Shiori's vocals are introduced. It becomes dreamy and mixed up with haunting backwards vocals at the end.
TO BE CONTINUED-da da da da yo yo yeah
クチビル・ディテクティヴ: This song features Akiko, bassist of Chatmonchy as the main vocal! Amazing because it's rare to hear her voice. She surprised me and I really like the fact that someone who I've met in real life is on this album. A sweet sounding song that deals with the album concept "death/love". K/I/SS/ OR K/I/LL (this is referenced in their Youtube channel that promoted this album, PROJECTxxLLxxSS <-the order switched!) There's also a rapper named Ryohu.
Transfer Girl: Very SAKANACTION like intro, the PV is in tribute to them as well. This sounds the most like standard BBB, but it's fresh somehow. It's a song about being stood up. There's a lot of reference to body temperature & synching heartbeats. This is why the next track title ends in a Celsius symbol.
BOYFRIEN°C: (note: Koide is a serious °C-ute fan) This song opens with someone putting on a cassette tape.. It has a retro/degraded sound, and the overall mood of the singing matches. It's a very simple and short song. There's almost no lyrics beyond "I WANNA BE YOUR BOYFRIEND". The idea is driven by angry vocals. Also, introducing the 1st song to feature singing from the main guitarist. There's a ton of distortion to give it more edge, but I really like how it turned out. The song's lyrics are directly responding to the events in Transfer Girl. They mention a transfer student and the pool under the moonlight night.
LOVESICK: Finally, the track I was waiting for. Bassist Shiori's absolute solo track. The intro announces that you should get ready for something special. It's very dramatic, and then goes into a mid tempo, catchy reggae sound. It's about unending hallucinations and insomnia. She goes through the days of the week in English at the end. She imagines love from someone, but they are actually just an illusion. That is very love sick. This is similar in sound and concept to the B-side, FICTION ONCE MORE, only from a female perspective.
WHITE ROOM: A sweet acoustic track. Listen for the "Love Letter From Heartbeat teasing melody" at 3:09.
I haven't paid close attention to the lyrics yet, but I like the line Tatoeba Forever (because it's tatoeba~foreba) He uses this with other words too.
星がほしい: This is like Girl's Spiral for Detective Boys. It's very catchy, it sort of sounds more like a superhero anime theme. It also has a slight retro sound. There is a sense of urgency in the music. While the other song spirals, this one flies forward and doesn't look back. It's "soaring". (to actually relate this feeling to the lyrics)
歌ってるんだBaby.[1+1=new1 ver.]: This song was originally on iLL's [Turn A] album, but this has all new lyrics and arrangement, and there's rapping by Ryohu from Kuchibiru Detective. Before it was iLL & Koide. I kind of wish that Koide had a rap in this, but he only does the main singing. It's very separated, each singer has a specific part that they stick to. Overall, pretty cool.
東京: Ending song in tribute to the home of BBB. Mid tempo, kind of sounds sad. "I live in a lonely city"
If you listen to anything by Base Ball Bear, this is my #1 recommendation.
When allowed to experiment, the can do some amazing work. More self produced albums, please.
FAVORITES: (the whole damn thing) but my most played songs:
BAND GIRL'S SPIRAL DAYS, kamiawanai, LOVESICK, TRANSFER GIRL.
next in line: 檸檬タージュ & Hoshi ga Hoshii
cutest song: Shine On You Cypress Girl
YAY, 5 & 6 on the Oricon! Cypress won. I wonder if it will ever flip or will one stay while the other falls.
