QUELL‘s last entry in the Kachofugetsu series is helmed by Shu Izumi. Pale Moonlight‘s unique instrumental and Shunsuke Takeuchi‘s performance steal the show.
Title: Kachofugetsu Tsuki Hen Label: Tsukipro/Movic Release date: 26/10/2018 Genre: R&B
Tracklist:
1 - Pale Moonlight 2 - Pale Moonlight (off vocal)
Track analysis:
1 – Pale Moonlight
QUELL wrap up their participation in the Kachofugetsu Hen series with Shu Izumi’s “Pale Moonlight“. The theme for this release is “Moon” and with it in mind we find an ethereal and distinctive instrumental that you’ll want to keep listening to.
Out of all songs released in the Kachofugetsu series, this is one of the most unique. There’s been rock, electronica and traditional Japanese music on QUELL’s side. And within the Kachofugetsu series as a whole there has been a multitude of music genres and different approaches that have impressed us time after time however nothing like this. “Pale Moonlight” is just too unique with its warm and emotionally powerful instrumental. Traditional Japanese instrumentalization – shamisen mainly – blend with delicate strings and elements from jazz, R&B and hip-hop to create this fancy song. The instrumental counts as well with several bits of atmospheric fx – wind, birds and water – that help create this sweet soundscape as well as giving another layer of depth to this song. Even with all these instruments in play, this instrumental still follows QUELL‘s trademark: minimalism that gives the feeling of being underwater.
Shunsuke Takeuchi takes his sweet low-toned vocals to another level for this performance. Instead of focusing on delivering a powerful performance, the focus was, instead redirected towards matching the song’s slow pace and ethereal instrumental. Takeuchi completely absorbed the instrumental’s emotional and delicate vibe and made his performance stand out with a matching R&B flair, gentle mid and low tones, impressive ad-libs, stunning falsetto and high notes.
Flawless performance on the vocal end and a breathtakingly beautiful instrumental make “Pale Moonlight” one of the best songs in the Kachofugetsu series.
Final rating:
Kachofugetsu Tsuki Hen is available for purchase on CDJAPAN.
[…] We reviewed this release. Check our review HERE. […]