ONE☆DRAFT – Jounetsu (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Review)

1. 情熱
2. ターミナル II (feat. MACHERI)
3. 昇陽

ONE☆DRAFT is a Japanese hip hop/vocal/hip-rock group that debuted back in 2007 on the Sony Music Japan label.

The group consists of MC Lance, vocalist RYO and DJ MAKKI.  The three were members of the Teikyou High School baseball team and the name originated from a slogan “Big Top Rookie Draft Pick”.  After high school, LANCE went to Boston to study and lived their for five years and absorbed the culture.  Upon returning, the three formed their hip hop group and their music has been used for tie-ins for professional baseball games in Japan.

“Jounetsu” (which translates to “Passion”) is the trio’s sixth single and was the theme song for NTV’s “2009 Nippon Professional Baseball PRIDE & SPIRIT”.

The single kicks off with the title track “Jounetsu” and unlike previous singles which are hip-hop driven, the track is an all vocal rock track.  The track which was written by LANCE and is a pretty catchy rock song from the trio.  An upbeat rock track that is a type of song to fire the crowds at a baseball game.

The coupling track “Terminal II” features a hip hop track collaborating with female vocalist Macheri.  A slow-tempo, beat driven hip hop track featuring beautiful cool harmony with Macheri, while the second coupling track “昇陽” (Rising Sun) is a mid-tempo vocal hip rock track and a mellow track that showcases the groups singing vocals and rhymes.

The CD insert features the lyrics and production credits.

Overall, “Jounetsu” is a pretty solid single feature three awesome tracks and what I like about ONE☆DRAFT is that their music is not all hip-rock, you get an all vocal track, an all hip hop track and a hip-rock track.  A good balance of music in this single alone and their style and presentation definitely makes them stick out among the many similar groups out there in Japan.  Definitely recommended!

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