Watariroka Hashiritai 7 – Valentine Kiss (Type-A) (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Single Review)

1. バレンタイン・キッス
2. ソミソミラシラ
3. 初恋よ こんにちは (渡辺麻友, 多田愛佳, 平嶋夏海, 岩佐美咲)
4. バレンタイン・キッス (Instrumental)
5. ソミソミラシラ (Instrumental)
6. 初恋よ こんにちは (Instrumental)

DVD INFO: 16:9LB, Region 2, Duration: (1) 4:14 (2) 6:00 (3) 4:05

1. バレンタイン・キッス (Music Video)
2. 夕陽のいじわる (Music Video)
3. バレンタイン・キッス (Dance Shot Version)

Back in 2008, AKB48 founder/producer Yasushi Akimoto wanted to revive the subgroup “Ushirogami Hikaretai” (a popular subgroup of Onyanko Club featuring Akiko Ikuina, Makiko Saito and Shizuka Kudo) but this time for AKB48 under the name “Watariroka Hashiritai” which would consist of five members Mayu Watanabe, Natsumi Hirajima, Haruka Nakagawa, Aika Oota and Ayaka Kikuchi.

With a total of six CD singles released, Akimoto has added two more members to the group, Misaki Iwasa and Misa Komori.  And together, will now be known as “Watariroka Hashiritai 7”.  And for a brand new start, for their seventh CD single, Akimoto has the group doing a cover of the 1986 hit “Valentine Kiss”, originally sung by Sayuri Kokusho which was written by Akimoto while a member of the idol group Onyanko Club.

And just in time for Valentine’s Day!

“Valentine Kiss” debuted at the #2 spot on the Oricon Charts (like the original song) and also happens to be the best selling CD single for the sub-unit to date.

And possibly seeing the CD single to do well on the Oricon Charts, Pony Canyon has released the single in three different versions.  Type-A and Type-B will come with a different third track, a DVD (Type-A will have a dance version of “Valentine Kiss”, while Type-B will have a “Making Of Valentine Kiss”) and special limited edition card (with a member on the front and a written message by that member on the back) while the third version will be the theater edition with no DVD but will feature Mayu Watanabe’s solo song “Yuuhi no Ijiwaru”.

The version that I will be reviewing is the Type-A version in which the insert comes with the lyrics and production credits.  My version came with a card with Natsumi Hirajima wearing a “Watariroka Hashiratai 7” sweater and a message featured on the back.  Also, included is an event ticket card.

The first track is “Valentine Kiss”, a song that has been covered several times since its 1986 release.  But this time, a more idol sweetness that Watariroka Hashiritai 7.  A cute Valentine’s Day track about a girl wanting to share Valentine’s Day with her boyfriend and she saved the tastiest chocolate for last and that is her “Valentine Kiss”.  And wanting to give a kiss with no make-up, an honest kiss.

The second track on the single is “So Mi So Mi Rashira”, a jazzy pop number by the group.  The song is about a girl who is with the guy that she likes on Valentine’s Day and she can’t help but hum “So Mi So Mi Rashira” and she wants to confess her feelings to him.  And she wants to hear his heart beat and one day, together they can sing the same melody of “So Mi So Mi Rashira”.

The third track on the single is “Hatsukoi yo, Konnichiwa” (Good Afternoon, First Love) which is a Team B AKB48 song but for this version, the track features Mayu Watanabe, Aika Oota, Misaki Iwasa  and Natsumi Hirajima.  The song has the style of a classic ’80s idol pop song. Catchy and sweet, the song is about female classmates hoping that with the new class division, the guy the like will be in their class.   It’s a one-sided love and they wonder if they will have a special relationship with the guy.

The next three tracks are the instrumental versions of the songs.

As for the DVD, fortunately Pony Canyon is including three videos than just one.

The first music video is for “Valentine Kiss” and featuers the girls in red, white and black videos, performing and dancing in front of gears that make chocolate hearts.  And we see the girls singing and kissing the chocolate, and also working in the factory making chocolate.  It’s a cute video featuring all seven members.

The second music video is for “Yuuhi no Ijiwaru” (which translates to “The Unkind Sunset”) and is a music video featuring an ’80s style setting with Mayu Watanabe (normal) watching her pop version on an ’90s music pop show.  Members of Watariroka Hashirai 7 and the music show announcers can be seen cheering for her during her performance.  This is a solo Mayuyu song and this song can only be found on the Theater Edition version of “Valentine Kiss”.
The third music video is the dance version of “Valentine Kiss” which features the group dancing in front of the machine gears.  So, no scenes of them singing in the pink background or kissing and presenting chocolate.

Overall, “Valentine Kiss” is a catchy, sweet pop single from Watariroka Hashiritai 7.   First, before getting into the single, I feel the addition of Misaki Iwasa and Sumire Sato is very good.  Especially with Iwasa who is one of the better vocalists of AKB48.  Her addition is a good balance to the more sweet style that we usually hear from Mayuyu, Harugon and Rabutan.  So, I’m glad that she was added to the group.

As for “Valentine Kiss”, I do prefer the original much more, mainly because the original is much more consistent vocally.  But I do like the cuteness and randomness of the vocals of Watariroka Hashiratai 7 and it lends a more idol and sweet presence to the song.

But the coupling tracks of “So Mi So Mi Rashira” and the Watariroka Hashiratai version of “Hatsukoi yo, Konnichiwa” were also fine additions to this single.  You get three solid idol pop tracks but for Type-A, fans of Mayu Watanabe will enjoy it for her the music video of her solo song “Yuuhi no Ijiwaru.  I love the ’80s touch they gave to this music video and in some ways, with “Valentine Kiss” and the “Yuuhi no Ijiwaru”, it’s like a nod to Akimoto’s ’80s idol group, Onyanko Club.

While “AkKanbe Bashi” is still my favorite Watariroka Hashiritai song, I still enjoy this Valentine’s Day CD single from the group and find it worth recommending!

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