ayabie - Ecumenical

ayabie's first release of March, Ecumenical is also their first release of 2007 easily available to the general public. With only six tracks, this mini-album packs quite a number of punches and surprises for ayabie's fans.

The first track is Artifact and at roughly two minutes in length, it is an entirely instrumental tune with a strange, ominous feeling to it. Given its length, and its mood, it feels more like a full instrumental track instead of a simple opening one, but it blends seamlessly into the second track, Senjou Cameraman to Saigo. A quick rock song, Senjou Cameraman to Saigo's strongest components are its fun, bouncy bass line and Aoi's breathy vocals in the chorus. His vocal work, however, is slightly less becoming during the bizarre break in the song featuring a traditional Japanese melody; the music works well but his vocals are strange. Despite this moment of weakness, Senjou Cameraman to Saigo is otherwise a fairly solid track.

Featuring synthesized, bell-like tones, masquerade wears a number of masks. A catchy, slightly retro sounding tune, thanks to the drum beat, it blends this unexpected sound with ayabie's usual sensibilities to create an interesting blend. The end effect is an experimental song which the listener will likely either love or hate- for those that hated it, they may want to skip the next track as well. For those eager for a much more traditional rock sound, without as many synthesizer frills, and who loved the upbeat, retro hints in masquerade, Ms Santa Claus is a dream come true. Unexpectedly, it mixes both screaming and rapping with some impressive, upbeat guitar work which brings the genre 'surf bop' to mind.

After all of this experimentation, ayabie returns to their roots in the last two tracks, Honey flavor and Nanairo no sora no octave. While Honey flavor is a decent enough song, it sounds rather predictable and almost bland after the playful Ms Santa Claus. Nanairo no Sora no Octave is slightly more memorable, thanks to catchy guitar lines and Aoi's vocal work, which is some of the strongest he's yet shown on this mini-album.

When all is said and done, Ecumenical is perhaps to be expected from a band having recently gone through some major changes. Experimental and not always cohesive, it's unfortunately not ayabie's finest work and likely not the best to introduce new listeners to. With that said, fans who plan to stick by this band should still pick this up to get an idea of where they may yet be heading and for the stronger tracks, such as Senjou Cameraman to Saigo and Ms Santa Claus.