Maten Rocket “Kimi ga mita sora wa” (Review)

Maten Rocket bring a lot of energy and pop-rock into the Readyyy! Project franchise with their debut single, “Kimi ga mita sora wa”.

摩天ロケット (Maten Rocket) consists on Ryuichi Sawada (Ken Production), Tomohiro Ohmachi (Ken Production), Sonosuke Hattori (Aoni Production) and Shuichiro Umeda (Ken Production).

Title: Readyyy! Project
Label: WAVE MASTER
Release date: 01/05/2018
Genre: Pop/Dance/Pop-rock

Tracklist:

1 - Special Nu World (performed by SP!CA）
2 - キミが見た空は (performed by Maten Rocket)
3 - 大胆不敵に恋したい (performed by Just 4U）
4 - GO NOW! (performed by RayGlanZ）
5 - BEAT IN LOVE (performed by La-Veritta)

[Disclaimer: Although this song is part of the Readyyy! Project album, we decided to review all 5 songs separately in order to give a better insight on each group and song.]

Track analysis:

2 – キミが見た空は

In a Readyyy! Project franchise filled with electronica and dance music, we find the very first pop-rock tune in mix by the voices of Maten Rocket.

“Kimi ga mita sora wa” is a textbook youth pop-rock tune. Massive emphasis was put onto making this song sound bright and at the same time, uplifting. Electric guitar riffs, strings and a dreamy piano melody lead the way for this track, however in different capacities. Strings play a major role in the chorus (although those are present in the pre-chorus), turning this simple pop-rock tune into something craftier and more impactful. Electric guitars are a big presence in this song, being the main instrument to push this song forward. Although we have in hands a pop-rock tune, don’t expect a guitar solo nor anything fancy. We’re teased into thinking there’ll be a solo, yet the reality is that we weren’t presented with it. Even without a solo, the guitar riffs are exciting and an important piece in this song. To wrap up the talk about the instrumental, I’m going to mention that this simple song has timpani, a powerful bass line, bassy drums, atmospheric synths and a couple of other minimalistic elements in the background.

On the vocal end, Maten Rocket are still a group in development. They sound great as a team, but as soon as the solo parts kick in, there are a whole lot of inconsistencies that somewhat got in the way with the performance. No one really stands out (either positively or negatively) for this performance, it was bland, especially the solo parts. A quick first listen is enough to notice that this group doesn’t have skilled singers like, for example, La-veritta or RayGlanz have on their lineups. Lacking in that department, Maten Rocket make up for it with solid work as an ensemble. Their performance in the choruses was exciting and energetic as opposed to some weak solo parts in the verses.

Maten Rocket sure have potential to be a good group, their tight teamwork is noticeable and quite possibly their best attribute aside from their energy. The only thing that needs serious work is their vocals (individually). If they manage to improve in further releases, they might turn into an exciting outfit within the Readyyy! Project franchise.

Final rating: 

This song is available for purchase on iTunes and free streaming on Spotify.