Who in the world is Milky Bunny? Maybe it’s just me, but at
first glance I thought it was a stage name for someone in the adult
video industry. But fear not, I am not reviewing anything of that nature
on JpopAsia!
Milky Bunny is the stage name for
Tsubasa Masuwaka, who was a popular
Gyaru model for several magazines before debuting as a singer in 2011. On
March 21th 2012, she released her debut self-titled album
Milky Bunny under
Pony Canyon.
If you guys prefer more popular artists, I’m sorry; this album probably
won’t even make it onto the weekly Oricon for top 10 albums sold for
the week of March 19 to 25. But if you are wondering why this was even
considered for review, read on!
Tracklist:
1. DISCORD
2. PARADISE CALLING
3. Bunny Days
4. Canvas
5. Zurui yo... (ずるいよ・・・)
6. Baby Sugar
7. I Wish
8. Song for...
9. Haruiro (春色)
10. no shape of love
11. Step By Step
12. Milk Shake SOS! (ミルクシェイクSOS!)
Review:
I first heard of Milky Bunny when I was watching the anime
Fairy Tail. She sang the 10th opening
“I Wish”
and I absolutely loved it. The song was so great that I wanted to pick
up the single but after reading news of the impending release of her
debut album, I waited. But man, is this song great. Without a doubt,
this is the
best opening to
Fairy Tail.
The chorus is tailored perfectly as an anime opening and sounds even
more epic alongside the animation. This is the type of anime song where
when you listen to it a few years later, it brings back those awesome
moments. But, enough of this song, what about the rest of the album?
"I Wish" (Fairy Tail Opening Ver.)
“DISCORD” and
“PARADISE CALLING”
are really great songs to start off the album. The upbeat pop sound is
perfect for Milky Bunny’s voice. They are good songs, but when you
listen to the entire album, you will discover you are drowning in
similar songs. This leads us to
“Bunny Days” which was
the first single she ever released. A little bubblegum pop/rock sounding
but probably because it was a single, this song was quite catchy. The
same can be said for the last song of the album
“Milk Shake SOS!” which was produced by
TAKUYA of
JUDY AND MARY. It’s cute and catchy, but both songs are not to the level where it gets stuck in your head.
"Milk Shake SOS!"
By now Milky Bunny slowed things down a bit with
“Canvas”,
“Song for…” and
“Haruiro (春色)”
These were some of the slower pop songs in the album. Similar to what
was mentioned above, these songs sounded too much alike. They are a nice
listen but are also easily forgotten even when paying attention to the
lyrics. By the end of the day, if you listen to this album casually,
you’ll most likely forget which song is which. Apart from these three
songs, there is
“Baby Sugar”. This song is probably one
of the flattest songs I have heard in years. Not only was it boring,
the way Milky Bunny sang it didn’t help either. I started to question if
this song was purposely put there to better highlight the two jewels of
this album.
“Zurui yo… (ずるいよ…)” is the
backbone, the
diamond, the
grand prize
of this album. Starting with a piano opening that leads into a
wonderfully crafted pop song. Milky Bunny’s voice is probably not the
best but it was perfectly utilized in this song. It’s the type of song
in your music library that you haven’t played for a while and playing it
again to find it’s awesomeness. “Zurui yo…” and “I Wish” are really
great songs in this album.
“no shape no love” and
“Step by Step” are also the better songs in the album. Thankfully these four songs saved the album from being extremely bland.
“Zurui yo… (ずるいよ…)”
Rating: 3/5 ☆☆☆
(+) “Zurui yo…” and “I Wish” cannot be praised enough
(+) “no shape no love” and “Step by Step”
(+) Overall the songs were good-
(-) –but they sound too similar
(-) “Baby Sugar” was really questionable
(-) not enough of the catchiness factor to her pop songs
Believe
it or not, I was quite looking forward to this album. I would have to
say I wasn’t disappointed at all. The album is not the greatest thing
I’ve heard but it doesn’t completely suck either. Taking into
consideration that
Tsubasa Masuwaka is not someone like
Ayumi Hamasaki, it is a decent album with several songs that stood out.
Like I said before, this album won’t likely be debuting on the Oricon
charts in any respectable position. However, I am glad I picked this up,
gave it a try and have it in my music library. And plus, Milky Bunny is
quite cute right?
If you have any questions or suggestions for future reviews follow this editor on Twitter @cowfin or drop a message here at the editor’s profile.
Buy this single at
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CDJapan ! (Regular Edition)
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