My Little Lover – Otono no Sekai / Toki no Bell (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Review)

February 27, 2009 by Dennis Amith 

“Beautiful, enchanting and as always, Akko’s vocals are unique and her own.  Also, a live release of the classic MLL hit ‘Hello Again’ is included.  Simply another solid CD single from My Little Lover.”

BAND: My Little Lover

CD SINGLE: 音のない世界 (Otono no Sekai) / 時のベル (Toki no Bell)

LABEL: avex trax

CATALOG #: AVCD-36003/B

DURATION: 32:42

RELEASE DATE: February 4, 2009

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1. 音のない世界
2. 時のベル
3. Hello, Again ～昔からある場所～ (acoakko Live ver.)
4. 愛と平和 (acoakko Live ver.)
5. 音のない世界 (Instrumental)
6. 時のベル (Instrumental)

DVD INFORMATION: Region 2, Duration: 6 minutes, 4:3

1. 音のない世界 (Music Video)

Beautiful, enchanting and as always, Akko’s vocals are unique and her own.  Simply another solid CD single from My Little Lover.

“Otono no Sekai/Toki no Bell” is the 22nd CD single from My Little Lover and the sixth CD single feature Akko as a solo artist.

There has been quite a shakeup with My Little Lover as the core team that formed the group are no more and Akko and MLL composer and musician, Takeshi Kobayashi (famous producer and former husband) have since went their separate ways.

But I have to say that since going solo, Akko still has managed to keep the My Little Lover sound alive.  Teamed up with talented musicians, her music is still as beautiful now as it was back then.

“Otono no Sekai” is a ballad that was used for Japanese TV network TBS and a theme for the drama “Love Letter” and was the #1 downloaded ringtone on recochoku (note: In Japan, the majority of music sold in Japan are mobile based digital files and ringtones).    The song was written by Akko with music by Tomoya Matsuura and arrangement by Makoto Minagawa.

The track showcases acoustic guitar, strings and overall, reminiscent of popular, classic My Little Lover ballads from the past.

The second double A-sided track “Toki no Bell” is a commercial theme song used for Daihatsu’s “Mira” and an upbeat track written by Akko, music by etsuhiko and arrangement by Makoto Minagawa.

The third and fourth tracks are songs from Akko’s “My Little Lover Live#5 acoakko” live concert back in Dec. 2008.  The songs featured is their classic hit “Hello, Again ~Mukashi kara aru Basho~ (acoakko Live ver.)” which features acoustic guitar, keyboards and strings.  A beautiful live version of a true classic.

The fourth live track is “Ai to Heiwa” which means “Love and Peace”, a track that was featured on My Little Lover’s seventh album “Identity”.  Another beautiful live track featuring Akko on vocals, Masayoshi Fukukawa on guitar and Toshiyuki Mori on keyboards.

The remaining two tracks are the instrumentals for the first two songs.

As for the DVD, the music video for “Otono no Sekai” is included and features Akko walking along the shoreline, as with another woman and reflecting the song’s title “Otono no Sekai” which means a “World with no Sound”.

As for the CD insert, the insert contains the lyrics and production credits.

I may be a bit biased towards My Little Lover.  I’ve always enjoyed the group because of their sound, their willingness to experiment and just doing the kind of music that they want.  And although the trio that I knew back in the 90′s are no more, the core soul of My Little Lover, being the vocalist Akko, is still a major part of the group and showcasing her amazing skills as a songwriter but she’s also a talented musician.

The CD single is another solid release by the My Little Lover and if you are a fan of Akko or MLL’s music, then definitely pick this CD single up!

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