Four catchy new rock songs showing GaGaalinG's excellent skills.
ALICE is currently GaGaalinG’s newest release to date. Released in November 2008, the maxi-single contains four fresh offerings. It is obvious that the band has not only kept their Japanese listeners in mind but their overseas ones as well, as the booklet shows the lyrics in Japanese on one side, and the other side shows the romaji, a very nice gesture towards foreign fans.
The single kicks off with CHANCE, a fiery, upbeat rock song peppered with rap vocals provided by A-D. The song glides along smoothly, fluidly moving from verse to chorus and back again. The rap vocals mix well with MYM’s voice and add a little bit of extra spice. Overall, the song is incredibly catchy and you might find yourself moving along to the tempting groove.
Next up is the title track, ALICE. The song starts with a quick-paced beat, a few electronic effects and the static sounds of a harpsichord. The baroque instrument resurfaces throughout the song, and even though the harpsichord doesn’t seem to match with the modern rock music, the combination works out very nicely. However, despite also being catchy, high-tempo rock, the song somehow lacks the catchiness of CHANCE and might appeal less. Therefore, putting ALICE as the second track instead of the first, as one might expect, seems to be a good decision.
Kowaremono is up next, which follows in the trademark GaGaalinG sound: cheerful and strong. This time, the instruments in the verses are kept to a minimum, so it brings out MYM’s confident voice very nicely. The heavier choruses are a nice contrast to the verses, and so is the bridge, in which A-D can be heard rapping again.
The single ends with DESTINY, which is more timid than the other songs and leans toward a ballad style. Overall, it has a sad feeling to it, though the melancholy air is better represented by the instruments - especially the guitars - than by MYM's voice. She is much better suited to something with a faster, harder beat. The song comes to a very abrupt end, simply stopping without any kind of fade-out or outro.
With ALICE, GaGaalinG offers four excellent tracks that show both their skills and their own trademark sound. The quality of the compositions is quite high, and it’s hard to believe that this band has only been around for a few years. ALICE is a highly recommendable release, and we're looking forward to what GaGaalinG is up to, especially their overseas activities.
