AKB48 – Sakura no Ki ni Narou (Type-B) (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Review)

1. 桜の木になろう – AKB48
2. 偶然の十字路 – AKB48 (Undergirls)
3. エリアK – (DIVA)
4. 桜の木になろう off vocal ver. – AKB48
5. 偶然の十字路 off vocal ver. – AKB48 (Undergirls)
6. エリアK off vocal ver. – (DIVA)

DVD INFO: 16:9 LB, Region 2, Duration: 32:59

1. 桜の木になろう – AKB48
2. 偶然の十字路 – AKB48 (Undergirls)
3. エリアK – (DIVA)
4. ガチ私服ファッションショー (Type-B) (Gachi Shifuku Fashion Show (Type-B)

It’s a new year and for 2011, AKB48 kicks off with a graduation song titled “Sakura no Ki ni Narou” (to become the cherry blossom tree), the group’s 20th major label single.

The single did very well on the Oricon Daily and Weekly Charts at the #1 position and also became the first single to sell over 650,000 copies for a single day since 2009.  After a week, the single achieved success in becoming the second single to sell over a million copies and also outselling their last million seller “Beginner”.

Similar to previous releases AKB48 releases, there are a total of five versions of “Sakura no Ki ni Narou”.  Two limited editions (comes with tickets for national handshaking events) and two regular editions (both come with a CD+DVD with the same first two tracks but a different third track and also two different DVD tracks) and a theater edition (which comes with no DVD but comes with the third track “Ougon Center” by Team Kenkyuusei.

The version of “Sakura no Ki ni Narou” that I will be reviewing is the TYPE-B limited edition version which features Tomomi Itano featured in the center and Yuko Oshima, Atsuko Maeda and Minami Takahashi  with their jumpropes and jumping.  The insert is a foldout which features eight members on one side and the other side which features photos of more members of the group and the lyrics and production notes.

The first track on the single is “Sakura no Ki ni Narou”, a slow, melancholic track that can be interpreted in several ways. But with the lyrics, I tend to see it as a song about a departed parent or friend in spirit, who has seen their friend or child graduate and grow older.  Remembering the past when the departed was with the person in their school uniform, graduation.  But that spirit now has a cherry blossom tree in their place (note: In Japan, sometimes to celebrate one’s life of departed love one, a tree is planted) and in the context of this song,  a cherry blossom tree is put into the place as a memory of that departed one.  And that spirit which is now the sakura tree hopes that person will come back to the area to visit them and that even if the petals will fall, the branches will be extending out like arms.  And no matter what happens, if one is trouble, that eternal cherry blossom tree will always be there.

This song is so touching and once you watch the music video, you will be captivated by the song.  Which I will go into detail much more later in this review.

The second track is titled “Guzen no Jujiro” (Crossroad of Chance) and is performed by the Undergirls (which are the AKB48 members that placed 22-30 in the senbatsu and features 18 members of AKB48 and SKE48).  The song is an upbeat idol song and revolves around a girl who is riding her bicycle in hopes to meet with someone on a bridge on the crossroad of chance and hopes the guy will take notice of her.

The third track titled “Area K” is performed by DIVA and is a dance pop track and features six members from Teams A, K and B.  While Team K is typically known for upbeat dance numbers, the single features 18 members from all three AKB48 groups taking part.  Overall, a good dance coupling track.

And the final three tracks on the CD are the instrumental off-vocal tracks of the three songs.

The Type-B DVD version is region 2 and is about 32 minutes long with four DVD tracks.  It’s important to note that this is a region 2 DVD and will not play on a region 1 player (unless you have a non-region DVD player) but can be played on a MAC or PC using free video playing software such as VLC or Daum PotPlayer.

The main music video of “Sakura no Ki ni Narou” is over 12-minutes long and is directed by popular Japanese director Hirokazu Koreda (“After Life”, “Distance”, “Nobody Knows”, “Hana”, “Air Doll”) and features a group of five friends which consist of young adults Atsuko (an office worker), Minami (a college student), Yuko (a mother of a young daughter), Tomomi (a restaurant worker) and Haruna (a college student) who are visiting the grave of their deceased friend (Jurina).

The five friends say their prayer but among them, Atsuko who was much closer to Jurina is still saddened by the day.  As they all walk together, Atsuko is distant and nostalgic about her dear friend.

The group goes to visit Jurina’s parents and as they leave and say goodbye, we see Jurina’s spirit as she is wearing her pink high school uniform going to school.  The parents look as how the friends have grown up and we see the spirit of Jurina putting her hand on the parents hands.

While the group of friends are going home, they all decide to go visit their old high school. And while they reminisce with their old teacher and look at photographs of when they are younger, they see a picture of their deceased friend.  As they leave the school, they see a group of high school students in their pink uniforms under the cherry blossom tree at the front of their school and all become sad.

As they travel back home on the bus and look at the ocean, Atsuko sits back on the bus and can remember when she would see Jurina on the bus looking towards the ocean.  And then the memories start to come back of her dear friend and how they would lie under the cherry blossom tree.

And then the video shows us how each member are in their personal life and how in spirit, Jurina was there to help her friends out in someway or other and also be with them in spirit.

But as Jurina is there for her friends, she is comforted by the fact that her friends still remember her.  Overall, a sad and touching music video and I hope there are more lengthy AKB48 videos in the future.

As for the second music video, “Guzen no Jujiro” features a group of teenage guys who like several girls in their school and are not quit sure how to talk to them or if they have the guts to even approach them.

The third music video, “Area K” is rather interesting as the ladies take part in an arena street dance off in front of an audience.  The song is about a group of girls who go to an industrial warehouse to take part in the secret Area K where they will take on another street dancing gang in a dance-off battle.  And trying to get the audience all pumped up and dancing!

The fourth video is the “Gachi Shifuku Fashion Show” which is a 10-minute fashion video which features the AKB48 members modeling plain-street clothes on the runway.

Overall, “Sakura no Ki ni Narou” is a fantastic single.  While, the main song is so touching and many will probably go for the theater edition because of the lower price difference, if you can, I highly recommend the Type-A or Type-B version because of the longer music video for “Sakura no Ki ni Narou”.  It’s a wonderful, dramatic and emotional music video that I would not be surprised if people are in tears after watching it…it’s that good!

A captivating, emotional CD single, “Sakura no Ki ni Narou” is a fantastic AKB48 single worth owning!  But with Type-A and Type-B releases, containing one of the best music videos from the group so far!  Highly recommended!

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