{single} aluto – Michi ~ to you all

February 12, 2008 at 10:40 pm | Posted in aluto | 4 Comments

aluto – Michi ~ to you all
aluto – 道 ~ to you all

(released July 11th, 2007)

1. 道 ~ to you all [Michi ~ to you all]
2. 風とただ 前をみた [Kaze to Tada Mae wo Mita]
3. ハリボテ積木 [Haribote Tsumiki]
4. 道 (violin version)

aluto’s 1st single. Their name is also spelled “alüto” (from their CD covers) but I’ll refer to them as “aluto” for typing convenience. The title track is the 2nd ending theme for Naruto Shippuden (sigh, shounen shows get a lot of the good stuff). An interesting thing about this single is that the track order musically illustrates the passing of a day.

Michi ~ to you all‘s acoustic guitar and violin bring in the sunrise after a calm vocal & piano intro. Michi has a cheery “wake up” mood tempered with a sense of sadness and the chorus melody sounds a bit nostalgic. Vocalist Fujita Daigo’s voice has a relaxed quality and melds perfectly with the music for the more emotional moments. My favorites are the non-verse/chorus melodic bits – “nee, wakaru desho?” and “dokomademo.” As far as instrumentals go, the choice of all-acoustic accompaniment gives the song an honest and refreshing feel.

Kaze to Tada Mae wo Mita sounds like the perfect song to set the scene for a midday or afternoon picnic. Music-wise, it’s more or less the same style as Michi, but this track is a lot more lighthearted, with more “swinging” than driving choruses. Fujita’s high notes sounded a bit hesitant at some parts but did not detract from the vocals in general. The violin seems to have a more prominent role here, with fiddler-jig-like solos. Oh, and the chorus melody is rather catchy and makes me want to dance every time I hear it.

Haribote Tsumiki is a nightfall-esque ballad, with the acoustic guitar reminding me of the stars in the sky. The background music is a lot simpler with mainly guitar and violin pizzicato. The vocals are laid bare and sound great that way, although a piano would have been nice. I liked the sparse backing vocals in the choruses which I think are sung by violinist Satou Honoka, and the smooth ending with Fujita holding “kimi…” by himself. The downside is that the song is a shade too calm, and while pretty, runs the risk of becoming boring.

Michi (violin version) hands the spotlight over to Satou. She simplifies the melody a little bit, rhythmically, to make it flow better. Satou’s playing is wonderfully fluid and expressive. I loved her chord harmonies the most, and I envy her sense of pitch for being able to pull them off – and slurred, too! My only gripe is that she needs to play out more; aside from the solos that were in the original Michi, the melody didn’t really stick out. But overall, this is one of the best instrumental adaptations of a vocal song I’ve heard.

Favorite Track: Michi ~ to you all

Overall Grade: A