Toko Furuuchi – Purple (a J!-ENT World Groove Album Review)

1. LOVE SONGS
2. PURPLE
3. Where you are
4. 映画を観よう
5. Pages
6. 涙
7. 広いシーツにひとりきり
8. コラージュ
9. Boyfriend
10. スロウビート (feat. KREVA)
11. レッスン
12. 太陽

Toko Furuuchi is a singer/songwriter who came into the music scene in 1993 and has established herself as one of the prominent singer/songwriters in Japan. And for me, having followed her career since she first debuted, I’m still amazed by how far she has come as a talent and to see how much of a demand there is for people to work with her, may it be for a musical collaboration or for her songwriting and musical talent but needless to say, her music is romantic, beautifully written and the musical arrangements for her songs are wonderful.

In 2010, Toko released her album “Purple” (her 14th album) and I have to admit that I have been listening to this album over and over again. There is something that is different with this album compared to others. The music production is simply wonderful, vocals are magnificent and for the most part, she is consistent with staying with the romance theme but there is a more contemporary vibe that is hard to describe with this album that caught me by surprise.

So, I had to ask Toko about “Purple” and why it sounds so different than her previous albums. In my upcoming article with Toko, she told me, “it turned out to be something I’d never done before, and that would be because the change of how I make songs? I’m becoming more “digital”.

I suppose I can see how the digital component comes into play with her music, but for the most part, I found “Purple” to be a wonderful album and another well-done collaboration with producer/musician Kono Shin.

Just from the starting track “LOVE SONGS”, you are just drawn into this romantic upbeat ballad. The music is simply wonderful and Toko’s vocals just melts your heart. The second track is the title track of the album, “Purple” which she sings how purple is representative of love and relationships and how the color comes into play. A wonderful track!

You also get tracks that are vintage Toko as “Where you are” is a track that takes advantage of the brass and is a jazzy, catchy track. The same can be said with the track “映画を観よう” (Try watching a movie), another jazzy style of track with “広いシーツにひとりきり” (All alone on a single sheet) and the breezy and wonderfully performed “Collage”.

And what Toko Furuuchi album is the same without a ballad and there are quite a few. “Pages” is a mellow track, while “涙” (Tear) is upbeat, “Boyfriend” is also vintage Toko with its deep beat and once again, the vocals that simply melts your heart.

Another track that I simply loved is “Lesson” which shows her positive side (as Toko is an optimist) and another favorite track on the album is “Taiyou” (sun) and a good balance of strings and cool beats. I asked Toko about this track in particular, because it stands out. Toko said, “I remember writing Taiyou truly from heart. It kills me everytime I sing it at concerts. Shin Kono did the arrangement beautifully, too. I’m a big fan of Kinbara Strings.”

A track that people will be familiar with is “スロウビート” (Slow Beat) which Toko collaborated with the hip-hop artist KREVA. The two have collaborated for the track “Synchro” for KREVA’s album and there is no doubt that the two have an awesome music chemistry and it shows on this track and it also helps that KREVA is Toko’s favorite hip hop artist.

The CD insert features the lyrics and production notes to “Purple” including an insert promoting Toko’s live concert at The Peninsula Tokyo and it’s important to note that there is a normal version of this album and a CD+DVD version of this album which comes with her music video for “Love Song”.

Overall, this is a fantastic Toko Furuuchi album and I’ve had it on my playlist for over three weeks now and I’m still listening to it, that’s how much I enjoyed this album. Highly recommended!

BUY THIS ALBUM from CDJapan.com:

purple [w/ DVD, Limited Edition]

Toko Furuuchi

or YesAsia.com