Sakamoto Maaya - singer-songwriter

Singer and voice actress Sakamoto Maaya has been branching out into the world of composing lately. Her 8th full length album, the aptly titled singer-songwriter, is entirely self-produced, and she has written all lyrics and music. It was released 27th March.

Having recorded songs written by others since the tender age of 16, Sakamoto Maaya has had plenty of time to learn some tricks of the trade and find the styles that suit and define her. The sweet, bubbly pop that she has always performed is therefore here in abundance. The light harmonies and twinkly celesta introduction of first track Tooku are a familiarity to Maaya fans, all the way through to the wide-eyed, lively chorus. In short, despite her taking the reins for the most part, listeners need not fear as it's still the same Maaya sound. This doesn't detract from the likeability of the catchy melody and light rock arrangement in this strong opener. The sparkly, celesta instrument resurfaces for the sunny Sunshine, a happy pop tune that wouldn't be amiss in a summer's drive to the beach. Title track singer-songwriter is similarly innocent, a nursery rhyme-style song with jazz connotations, sung jovially with a little swing. Its inclusion feels like more of a novelty than anything else, and Maaya handles it with appropriate playfulness.

On the pop-rock side there's the energetic Naritai, a track heavily laden with drums and electric guitar to temper the sugary pop elsewhere on the album. Ask. is much mellower and skewed to the pop side. It's also a pretty bog standard listen and a little dull. Boku no hanbun is a touch more stimulating and has some nice acoustic and electric guitar work, but is still somewhat lacklustre.

There's some folk featured as well, which is to be expected as it's a genre her soft vocals are perfect for. Single release Nicola is upbeat folk-pop, a pleasant contrast from the bright pop with its subtler, warm acoustic arrangement. Kaminari is a tender yet sorrowful folk ballad. Performed expressively, it is a well-written and heartfelt piece.

Two previously released songs have been included as they were composed by Maaya - everywhere ~ HAL mix and Chikai ~ ssw edition. The gentle, orchestral pop everywhere was first featured on her greatest hits album of the same name. This mix by the notorious production team HAL appears to be the standard version, having the same arrangement as the one featured in her official music video. A more serious, rockier Chikai made its debut on concept album Driving in the silence. This edition is loungey easy listening, which although suiting it well doesn't hit home with the emotional impact of the original. This said it is still one of Maaya's best songs in terms of composition, if not arrangement.

Maaya has really stretched to try and prove herself in this release. She has covered various genres, and has shown that she can hold her own on the composition front with some genuinely impressive songs. It is a disappointment to hear the same sort of material that she has always been associated with however. singer-songwriter is only an assurance that she can churn this out by herself without reliance on those writers she has teamed up with before. It appears that this is what she's comfortable with, but it would be more interesting to see her break out of this mould and surprise us a bit with her next venture.

You can watch a clip of the music video for Nicola below.