Kanon Wakeshima - Lolitawork Libretto

Kanon Wakeshima’s album Lolitawork Libretto (spelled in Japanese characters “Shoujo shikake libretto”) includes thirteen songs. While the singer gained recognition for her songs on the hit anime series “Vampire Knight,” she has continued to demonstrate her originality and talent in more recent songs. With Maru Music’s release of her album in North America, she continues to expand her fan base overseas.

The album opens with a lovely instrumental, Shakespeare no wasuremono -prologue-, adorned with cello, marching band drums and synths. The overall atmosphere is whimsical and fairy tale-ish. The pace picks up with the lively Kajitsu no keikoku, which fans of Malice Mizer will find familiar in terms of its composition. This is no surprise, as her mentor and producer Mana composed for the group. Kanon’s clear, urgent vocals build in emotion and seem to echo the string instruments supporting her.

Heroine Syndrome combines climbing melodies with a danceable rhythm and digital sound. For the fourth track, twinkle star!, there are less strings and more piano, plus chime-like synths. As the name predicts, the sound is sparkly and pop-like with an optimistic air. Tomei no kagi, also released as a single, returns us to a more string-filled classical style with angelic vocals.

The following Marmalade Sky is a cheerful pop-influenced number with noticeable bass and a playful atmosphere. Track seven, Kuroneko to pianist no tango, is a lovely piano-centric number with a strong tango sound, as the name describes. There are also some great digital sounds and synths lending the number an interesting texture.

Princess Charleston is an entertaining, unusual number with something of a carnival feeling. If you’re looking for some easy listening, you may find it obnoxious, but if you go into it with an open mind you can really enjoy it and the melodies smooth out nicely. Tree of Sorrow brings us back to a dark, urgent sound reminiscent of Malice Mizer.

The tenth track, celmisia, opens with Kanon’s ominous yet childish whispering. Her vocals reach new heights in this number as she hits surprisingly high notes, even for her. Otome no March brings in another marching band rhythm plus some fun chime and bell sounds. Again, she hits some impressively high notes with seeming ease.

Next up is Shakespeare no wasuremono -epilogue-, a very cute piece of nothing but music box notes. Finishing up the album is LOLITAWORK LIBRETTO – Storytelling by solita, which was also released as a single. A strong number with cello, organ, clock sounds, a woman speaking hauntingly in French, exciting digital sounds and lovely melodies, it is classic Kanon Wakeshima.

Overall, Lolitawork Libretto makes an excellent addition to Kanon’s opus, which invites you to delve into the playful side of aesthetic gothic sound. Again mixing genres like classical, electronic, rock and pop, as well as gothic, this album should appeal to a broad range of listeners.