A single where sono shines.
Music label Gan-Shin Records recently released Matenrou Opera’s first major album, Justice. Now they are bringing the band’s newest single, GLORIA, to Europe.
The word “gloria” means “glory”, or an angelic hymn to God. Matenrou Opera’s eponymous single is full of majesty and power. You can feel a certain irresistible, overwhelming greatness of its melody and lyrics. Vocalist sono’s voice is truly epic with his vibrato and expressivity. The refrain, which truly sounds like a hymn, is a fantastic combination of his high and powerful singing and a background choir. Interestingly, he didn’t try to sing in a choral voice; instead, he kept his usual manner of singing, which created a great contrast. Also, the music lacks any embellishments characteristic of rock songs—though it is still rock-ish, full of speeding drums and great guitar solos. Surprisingly, it complements the choir and exalted feel of the song well. This song is extremely good and will haunt you for a while.
Interestingly, the other songs in this single are not kept in this style. They are completely different but equally good. The first thing that will catch your attention while listening to the PSYCHIC PARADISE is a very fast pace of drums and a constant electronic short part played on keyboards that is repeated throughout the whole song. This track is fast, rhythmic, contagious and should not be missed.
On the other hand, CAMEL is rough and driven by the deep murmur of the bass. Some great solos on the guitar, keyboard and bass can be found on this song, too. sono is in his best shape—he sings in a provocative way, showing his confidence and expressivity. This song will be perfect for lives and will make everyone jump like crazy.
The biggest surprise is the last song: HATSUKOI WE EIEN NI. All the songs on this single are fast and powerful, but the final track is…a ballad. In the beginning we can only hear a simple piano melody, a rhythm tapped by the drummer on the rim of his drum and sono’s vibrating voice. Later, sublime bass riffs are added, but the middle of the song has a melody that blasts like fireworks. Altogether, this ballad is beautiful. At first the addition of a female choir in HATSUKOI WE EIEN NI seems to be a small misunderstanding, but this female counterpart ties well with the male choir in “GLORIA”, as if referring to each other, thus together opening and closing the single in a similar epic and hymn-like fashion.
The highlight of this single is definitely sono’s voice. The composition included on this release only further helps him to shine, showing the great diversity and flexibility of his voice. He doesn’t let the music overshadow him; rather, he dominates it. The best example of this is during the refrain on GLORIA and the last few minutes of HATSUKOI WE EIEN NI. Everything on this single just works for him.
You should try out this single to have a taste of sono’s great vocal abilities and the wonderful melodies of Matenrou Opera.
