Review: PSI-missing – Kawada Mami
Artist: Mami Kawada
Title: PSI-missing
Catalogue No.: GNCV-0009
Tracklist:
01. PSI-missing
02. 雨 [Ame]
03. PSI-missing (Instrumental)
04. 雨 (Instrumental) [Ame (Instrumental)]
My love for Mami Kawada’s eyeshadow on the cover art aside – PSI-missing is one of those songs I am not entirely sure why I like. I shouldn’t like it in all respects – it is completely unfulfilling as a song as it is… not as catchy or memorable as Mami’s earlier releases. (The only lines I can remember the melody of is “touzen no kurushimi o unmei ga sasou” and “sezoku made”) Mami sounds flat and the melody doesn’t really resolve itself as strongly as it could be, so it falls flat even if it starts alright.
As for what it sounds like, it sounds like the bastard child of radiance and Hishoku no Sora, arguably Mami Kawada’s two best singles.
That is probably the reason why I like it, ahaha. The use of distortion is reminiscent of KOTOKO’s Suppuration -core-, which gives Mami a darker sounding voice contrasting with the chorus which doesn’t have as many effect filters on it and eventually the distortion is almost non existent towards the end of the song. The effect of altering Mami’s voice quality becomes understandable after watching the PV for PSI-missing, which is included in this edition of the single.
Demonic Mami calls upon Goddess Mami (who is very reminiscent of MELL, though I can’t put my finger on exactly why – maybe it’s the hair. Or the fact that Mami looks… so much more mature than I remember.) and the use of filtering on Mami’s voice fits what she’s doing in the PV. Ohoho, so they did try to be clever.
So, how do I feel about PSI-missing? It’s enjoyable to listen to, but not really memorable. 
Which is a shame. I do love the drums in this song. I couldn’t help but me won over by the entire package – which admittedly in the absence of, might have made me dismiss this song. I do have a soft place in my heart for I’ve Sound’s darker trance songs though.
As for Ame, the b-side… sadly forgettable. Even from the opening, it is just very bland and very flat. A half-hearted pop ballad, if you will. I can’t actually say much about it, because I nod off while listening to the song because I get bored listening to it.
So, is this single on it’s own worth buying? Well, in my honest opinion, not really. (Watch me eat my words as I come back from Japan with this single in my collection, but that’s because I’m obsessed with collecting CD singles.) Admittedly while I do like PSI-missing, for the casual I’ve fan it’s probably worth just waiting for Mami’s next album (which will have this track in it) to come out so you get more value for your money.
MELL: Why I to this date, have a massive crush on her.
I don’t mean just physically, I think that MELL is my favourite member of I’ve sound without any doubt. And I am not ashamed in admitting that I have a crush on MELL.
For those of you unfamiliar with I’ve Sound, MELL is basically the oldest member of the collective; presumably still with Kazuya Takase before I’ve was even formed. It wasn’t until 2006 that she got her big break with Geneon and released “Red fraction” an Engrish filled melange of awesome of heavy guitars versus sparkly piano and MELL’s vibrato filled vocals made to sound menacing with a hint of distortion.
Since then, she’s released one album and a slew of singles with Geneon. She’s also performed in America at Project A-Kon and is going to perform at Otakon this year. So she’s got the distinction of being the only I’ve girl besides KOTOKO who has performed overseas.
Prior to this debut with Geneon however, MELL seemed to be the darkest out of all the I’ve singers. And I seem to gravitate towards darkness a lot of the time, I always used this comparison when describing MELL to people.
“You’ve heard of KOTOKO, right? KOTOKO’s like a mermaid, all sparkly and happy and rainbows. MELL on the other hand, is a siren singing beautifully and darkly with just a little bit of sexual appeal to entice people.”
And in terms of songs? Egen, Out Flow, Proof, Spiral… all good things. Mind you she has had some misses with songs like Fall In Love and Fly To The Top. I don’t even want to begin how getting MELL to sing cutesy is a bad idea. It just doesn’t work and sounds forced for my ears.
Which is why I wonder why she released Proof, her second single. Or rather, I really wonder how she got dragged into singing such a bland song. It’s a flat song that I’d expect KOTOKO or Kaori Utatsuki to sing that has the elements of that sort of anison pop.
On the other hand, the b-side, no vain is pure gold. I always imagine that MELL would be like “Rawr, I don’t like this Proof shit. Let be who I am!” It also has some of the most interesting bits of Engrish written like “In the world chain of pain vomit.” That’s okay MELL, I forgive you because I find it endearing rather than annoying.
Your grasp of English probably meant that you were the most likely candidate to cover Lia’s Disintegration on The Front Line Covers. And I was impressed, the opening lines were pristine. Somewhere along the line though, your Japanese pronunciation just creeps in. But other than that, it’s a spectacular effort on MELL’s part. (I am suitably unimpressed by Lia’s delayed backing vocals left there, since you can tell it is Lia. Bad SINE6.)
But, I am not here to give you a single-by-single replay of MELL’s career. I am here to tell you why I love this woman as a singer and why she should continue.
… Or not. Recently MELL’s latest singles KILL and RIDEBACK have suffered from following the same format as Red fraction (which was inventive… when it was first released. Now not so much.)
But, the KILL single’s promotional photos looked like the closest to a MELL-sama S&M fantasy.
I suppose the biggest reason I love MELL is because I could never sing like her. She has acquired a certain tone and vibrato to her voice that is very hard to imitate. I have tried singing Red fraction and not even the massive amounts of distortion I placed on my voice gave me a little bit of MELL’s vibrato. And because I cannot sing her songs, I admire her.
Did I mention she’s really hot too?
Note: I am female. Let’s get this completely clear.
Kaori Uta…who? Eh?
I’ve been an on/off fan of I’ve Sound for a variety of reasons. I can’t remember the first time I heard of them but they’ve been in the background ever since I started listening to Japanese music.
It’s only been relatively recently that I’ve have been in the mainstream with their link with Geneon. It’s also then that they reduced their line up from a veritable roster (Including a variety of guest vocalists such as Lia to name a few) to just a core group of five entitled… Love Planet Five, as the moniker from Tenjou wo Kakeru Monotachi would lead me to believe.
My on/off relationship with I’ve comes from the fact that I am not the biggest fan of their denpa stuff. Denpa is a sugary sweet, saccharine – normally fast and nauseatingly nonsensical style of music that KOTOKO (the I’ve mothership artist) is known for. It’s just… a bit too much and denpa is one of those things that I’d like to have in small doses.
This is where Kaori Utatsuki comes in. While she is one of the artists who used to be under vocalist and voice teacher Eiko Shimamiya’s wing – and I do think she has a pleasant enough voice, I find her to be out of place among the current Love Planet Five. She’s the newest addition and arguably one of the weakest.
I never really paid much attention to her until I read at 愛撫―I’ve Sound Blog― that she was releasing a new album entitled SPYGLASS. Other than knowing her existence, she was just another member of I’ve that I didn’t really take too much notice of.
But the more I looked into her, the more she seemed to stand out. I couldn’t figure out for the life of me why that is until I twigged it.
Compared to the other girls in Love Planet Five (KOTOKO, MELL, Shimamiya Eiko and Kawada Mami), Kaori seems to have very little involvement in regards to her input in songs. MELL, Shimamiya Eiko and Kawada Mami write their own lyrics and KOTOKO composes and writes lyrics. But Kaori always seems to have her lyrics written by KOTOKO.
I just feel a bit cheated, really. I always found that personally, one of I’ve Sound’s selling points was the singer writing the lyrics for a fair majority of their songs since you can get a really strong impression from them sometimes and then it becomes a stylistic thing of an artist that you being to look out for. (Case point: MELL’s fantastic English.)
Then another thing that held even more weight hit me. Most of Kaori’s songs are pop ballads, denpa pop, midtempo pop and just pop songs in general. Unless someone proves me wrong, Kaori Utatsuki doesn’t have any dark, electronic trance songs to her name which every other girl in Love Planet Five. I’ve Sound was built upon Takase Kazuya’s heavy trance beats and synth loops. I could name my favourite songs from each of the Love Planet Five, save for Kaori Utatsuki. There is a trend between all of them.
KOTOKO:
- Abyss
- Suppuration/Suppuration -core-
- Princess Bride (this is so the black sheep in this list)
Kawada Mami
- radiance
- PSI-missing
- Trill
Shimamiya Eiko
- World My Eyes
- Higurashi no Naku Koro ni
- To lose in amber
MELL
- Two face (She did such a good job this cover, I was completely amazed)
- no vain
- Spiral
They’re all dark songs with a dance beat and trance/techno elements to them. That’s the connection. And I can’t be bothered to dig through Kaori’s discography.
So, in summary:
- Every single I’ve member in Love Planet Five has at least three songs I like which have trance/techno elements (SAVE FOR PRINCESS BRIDE, that song is just… special) except for Kaori Utatsuki.
- Kaori Utatsuki is purely pop with none of this electronic music which I love the other girls for.
- (minor point, but it needs to be included) She doesn’t write her own lyrics, which strikes me as slightly odd in this I’ve collective.
So I hope someone can prove me wrong and find a dark, beat filled Kaori Utatsuki song. Maybe then I’ll pay attention to her for when she releases SPYGLASS. Call me I’ve ignorant, but my denpa tolerance does run low.
