Aisai: A return to melancholic

Album: Aisai (single)

Artist: Eve

Genre: #WorldandJazz

Sub-Genres: #JPop #Pop

Label: TOY'S FACTORY

Non-Airable Tracks: N/A

Aisai follows Eve's recent trend of slower, more relaxed beats when compared to his earlier fast-paced hits. While his most popular songs in the J-pop and J-rock worlds trended towards much more upbeat, Eve is no stranger to calmer tunes. Earlier slow pieces include Leo and Doublet from his 2020 album Smile or even Kiminisekai from Otogi (2019). As such, the release of Aisai isn't so much a change in direction as it is a return to older form, rounding out his upbeat works with more soft and muted ones.

The single starts out calm, with a mix of drums, light synth, and acoustic strings comparable to the strings from his last release, Yuseiboshi. The chorus opens up with surprising intensity and emotion as the music swells with the addition of more instruments and heavier drums, before relaxing back into the calm of the verses. Eve's vocals are a strong and steady presence throughout, tying the piece together as it grows in power and drops back down.

I very much enjoyed the single. While I, like many of his fans, found him through his up-tempo hits such as Dramaturgy, Eve's voice as a singer and composer still shine strong through his often overlooked slower releases. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a melancholic and emotional (especially in the chorus) J-pop listen.

Sounds Like:

1. Yoh Kamiyama

2. TUYU

3. Yorushika

Reviewer’s Name: Vio Stavropoulos

Date of Review: 12/7/2021