Kana Nishino – to LOVE (a J!-ENT World Groove Album Review)
August 22, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
A solid, well-produced second album for young pop artist Kana Nishino showcasing her maturity as a vocalist and songwriter.
ARTIST: 西野カナ (Kana Nishino)
ALBUM: to LOVE
LABEL: SME Records Inc.
CATALOG #: SECL-878
DURATION: 57:32
RELEASE DATE: June 23, 2010
BUY THIS ALBUM from CDJapan.com:
- *Prologue* ~What a nice~
- Best Friend
- Summer Girl
- Hey Boy
- もっと…
- love & smile
- このままで
- MAYBE
- WRONG
- Come on Yes Yes Oh Yeah!!
- Dear…
- 会いたくて 会いたくて
- You are the one
- *Epilogue* ~to LOVE~
Kana Nishino is quickly becoming my favorite young pop artist from Japan.
The young pop R&B artist has come a long way since she was named among the top performers in the Miss Phoenix Audition held by Sony back in 2005. Since being signed by SME Records in 2006, the pop singer who enjoys listening to Christina Aguilera, Ciara, Jennifer Lopez and various R&B and hip-hop artists has captured the attention of Japanese pop music listeners with a consistent number of singles that have appeared on the top 10 of Japan’s Oricon Singles Charts.
On June 23rd, Kana released her second full-length album titled “To LOVE” which debuted at #1 on the Oricon Album Charts.
With a total of 12 singles released in Japan, “To LOVE” features Kana’s 8th single “Motto…”, her double A-sided ninth single “Dear…/Maybe”, her tenth single “Best Friend” and her eleventh single “Aitakute Aitakute” and features a total of 14 tracks.
In a recent interview, Kana said that the wanted this album to express her growth in her values and her view of love and one can find that quite evident in her latest album.
As her singles showcased Kana’s ballads and pop melodies, there are a good number of tracks on this album that caught my attention. The pop song “Summer Girl” features a collaboration with MINMI, the rock track “Hey Boy”, the club-inspired dance track (and almost entirely in English) “Come One Yes Yes Oh Yeah!!” and the beautiful ballad “You Are the One”.
The CD insert features the lyrics to the songs on the album and production credits. Also, released is a CD+DVD version of “to LOVE” which features music videos for “Kimi no Koe wo” (feat. Verbal), “Motto…”, “Dear..”, “Best Friend”, “Aitakute Aitakute” and the making of each of the five music videos.
Overall, “to LOVE” is a well-balanced album that does show a maturity in Kana Nishino’s music and if you are a big fan of Kana Nishino, the album is definitely worth checking out!
BUY THIS ALBUM from CDJapan.com:
or YesAsia.com
Kana Nishino – Aitakute Aitakute (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Review)
July 2, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
Kana Nishino’s eleventh single showcases the young R&B artist with a smooth R&B ballad and two more upbeat tracks. A solid single overall!
ARTIST: Kana Nishino
CD SINGLE: Aitakute Aitakute
LABEL: SME Records
CATALOG #: SECL 864
DURATION: 11:56
RELEASE DATE: May 19, 2010
Since Kana Nishino’s debut in 2007, the young Sony Music Entertainment R&B artist has been doing quite well in the Japanese music charts.
Her eleventh single “Aitakute Aitakute” (I Miss You, I Miss You) is produced by Giorgio Cancemi and features a smooth R&B ballad. The song beautifully combines piano with cool beats for an R&B sound. A passionate track which debuted at #1 on the RIAJ Digital Track Chart (her fourth single to achieve #1) and #2 on the Oricon Charts. The song was used in the commercial campaign for jewelry company GemCerey.
The coupling track “Love Is Blind” features an upbeat club track produced by Hiro and is used on the Yukina Kinoshita Aeon commercial in Japan. Truthfully, this track could have been a double A-sided single. Very catchy, upbeat and a very cool song!
As for the final track, “Grab Bag”, I personally would have named it “Mixed Bag” because of it’s unusual music arrangement, especially during the chorus which it seems it didn’t match at all. I dig the beats by DJ Mass but the music around the chorus just seems off. The song is presented primarily in English.
The CD insert comes with a booklet with photos of Kana Nishino, lyrics, production credits, a sticker sheet featuring Kana Nishino and a small insert with her concert information for “Kanayan Tour 2010 ~Autumn~”.
Overall, the “Aitakute Aitakute” single has two solid tracks and shows how Nishino can easily take on the R&B and club-style of music tracks. The third track was OK but its arrangement during the chorus was not all that. But overall, another solid single from Kana Nishino.
Oricon Top 10 CD Single and Album Daily Charts (JAPAN): Koshi Inaba takes #1 on the Singles Charts, Kana Nishino takes #1 on the Album Charts (6.23.10)
June 23, 2010 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment
It’s new release Wednesday! Which artist or band took the #1 spot for Japan’s Oricon CD Single Daily Charts and Oricon Album Daily Charts?
Buy the #1 CD Single & Album from CDJAPAN or YesAsia.com:
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or purchase from: |
- Koshi Inaba – Okay
- flumpool – reboot ~Akiramenai Uta~
- w-inds. – Addicted to love
- Spitz – Tsugumi
- Nightmare – a:FANTASIA
- DEATH DEVIL – Love
- Aya Hirano – Hysteric Barbie
- Fudanjuku – Muteki! Natsuyasumi [w/ DVD, Limited Edition / Type A Yosuke Shijyuin Ver.]
- Sound Horizon – Ido e Itaru Mori e Itaru Ido
- miwa – Little Girl
As for the #1 Indies release on the Oricon Indies Daily Charts, the #1 indie song in Japan goes to VAMPS for “ANGEL TRIP”.
For Oricon Weekly Chart Rankings, please click here.
SOURCE: Data was translated from Oricon CD Single Daily Charts
ORICON TOP 10 ALBUM DAILY CHARTS
NOTE: Kana Nishino takes the #1 spot while last week’s #1, KAT-TUN drops out of the top 10. ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION gets #2 and Yuko Harra at #3.
- Kana Nishinto – to LOVE
- ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION – Magic Disc
- Yuko Harra – Harrado
- Kiyoshi Hikawa – HIKAWA KIYOSHI ENKA MEIKYOKU COLLECTION 12 -SHAMISEN TABI GARASU- [B Type]
- THE IDOLM@STER BEST OF 765+876!! VOL. 03
- Miley Cyrus – Can’t Be Tamed
- EXILE – FANTASY
- GACKT – ARE YOU “FRIED CHICKENz”??
- Sawao Yamanaka – DISCHARGE
- Jeff Beck – Emotion and Commotion
For rankings comparison, please compare to Oricon’s NINKI Poll predictions for Album Sales.
Kana Nishino – Motto… (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Music Review)
January 3, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
Kana Nishino’s seventh CD single “Motto…” is another fantastic release from the young Japanese R&B pop star. Smooth beats, beautiful vocals…overall, a solid single!
ARTIST: Kana Nishino
CD SINGLE: もっと… (Motto…)
LABEL: SME Records
CATALOG #: SECL-818
DURATION: 15:40
RELEASE DATE: October 21, 2009
BUY THIS CD SINGLE from CDJapan.com:
- もっと…
- missing you
- Dear My Friends
Kana Nishino is quickly becoming my favorite young pop artist from Japan.
The young pop R&B artist has come a long way since she was named among the top performers in the Miss Phoenix Audition held by Sony back in 2005. Since being signed by SME Records in 2006, the pop singer who enjoys listening to Christina Aguilera, Ciara, Jennifer Lopez and various R&B and hip-hop artists has now released her sixth CD single and her first single to crack the top 20 on the Oricon Charts (#14).
Her seventh CD single “Motto…” (in Japanese the word means “More…”) is a wonderful upbeat pop track produced, arranged and written by GIORGIO CANCEMI and featuring the Japanese lyrics by Kana Nishino. A mid-tempo, smoothly sung track with nice beats and synth chimes in the background. Another solid single track from Kana.
The coupling track “missing you” is a track written by Kana and Sakura Leon and features a collaboration with Kotaro Egami. A beautiful piano-based ballad combined with beautiful beats. A solid single showcasing Kana’s vocals.
The single ends with the track “Dear My Friends” featuring a song by Susumu Kawai and arrangement by eighteen degrees and lyrics by Kana. A very happy, synth pop track with a club beat. A different style from the previous two tracks and was an OK coupling track. Nishino comes off seeming a bit Japanese idol-ish vocally in this track versus how she sounds in the other two songs.
As for the insert, the CD insert booklet features the lyrics and production credits to the three songs and pictures of Kana Nishino. Also, a photo insert of Kana Nishino and a tour promotion flier for Kana’s March-April 2010 upcoming performance.
Overall, another solid single for Kana Nishino. “Motto” continues Nishino’s beautiful streak of pop hits and Japanese listeners have definitely began focusing on her releases of late. But overall, wonderful single from Kana Nishino!
BUY THIS CD SINGLE from CDJapan.com:
Kana Nishino – Kimi ni Aitaku Narukara (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Review)
November 5, 2009 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
Kana Nishino’s sixth CD single featuring sad, upbeat R&B tracks songs and a collaboration with hip hop artist WISE. Overall, a solid single worth checking out!
ARTIST: Kana Nishino
CD SINGLE: 君に会いたくなるから (Kimi ni Aitaku Narukara)
LABEL: SME Records
CATALOG #: SECL-781
DURATION: 13:10
RELEASE DATE: June 3, 2009
BUY THIS CD SINGLE:
- 君に会いたくなるから (Kimi ni Aitaku Narukara)
- 失恋モード
- again
Pop artist Kana Nishino has come along ways since she was named among the top performers in the Miss Phoenix Audition held by Sony back in 2005. Since being signed by SME Records in 2006, the pop singer who enjoys listening to Christina Aguilera, Ciara, Jennifer Lopez and various R&B and hip-hop artists has now released her sixth CD single and her first single to crack the top 20 on the Oricon Charts (#14).
The single “Kimi ni Aitaku Narukara” (which translates to “So Much I Want From You”) is an upbeat, sad ballad written by Kana Nishino and Kanako Kato. The single was produced by Jeff Miyahara and overall, a catchy track from Kana courtesy of the musical arrangement. Subtle synth strings with cool beats.
The coupling track “Shitsuren Mode” (Heartbreak Mode) features a track written by Kana Nishino and hip-hop artist WISE. Another upbeat, sad ballad with a message that life goes on. Similar to the first track with elegant synth strings and cool beats but slightly slower in tempo. Overall, nice touch of J-pop R&B and hip-hop.
The third track features Kana’s continuing collaboration with Australian music duo Nervo (Olivia and Miriam) in which she gives a Japanese spin to the original song. Produced by SIZK from STAR GUITAR and lyrics translated to Japanese and written by Kana. The track is more rock based with acoustic guitar, synth and percussion. Overall, a solid track.
The CD insert is an 8-page booklet which features photos of Kana and the lyrics and production credits to her songs. Also, included is a postcard for mensegg featuring a photo of four men with tears running down their face and another for SME Record’s promotion for the single.
“Kimi ni Aitaku Narukara” features a solid sixth single for Kana Nishino. I was expecting more of a slow jam but for the most part, the single track is upbeat and the collaboration for wise for the coupling track was pretty good. But my favorite track on the album happens to be the second coupling track “Again”. I know her love is for R&B/hip-hop but this track was well-done and catchy.
But overall, another solid single that is definitely worth checking out if you are a fan of Nishino’s music.
BUY THIS CD SINGLE:
