Single review: “BLUE BLAZE / BELIEVE” by Faylan

Faylan is a female Japanese singer from Saitama, Japan, who has had many of her songs appear in video games and anime. BLUE BLAZE / BELIEVE is her 19th single.

Release date: 23rd of October, 2013

Track List:
1. BLUE BLAZE
2. BELIEVE
3. BLUE BLAZE (off vocal)
4. BELIEVE (off vocal)

(So much capitals…)

1. BLUE BLAZE
Here is yet another Blazblue tie-in song, and will it live up to the standards of it’s fellow Blazblue songs? Well, Faylan seems to have nailed it yet again. Fast, sharp, and pounding techno-rock opens up the song. The techno-rock is extremely dynamic and vibrant, don’t forget catchy. Sometimes, it even reaches the levels of heavy metal. Faylan’s powerful voice is back but sounding even better than usual, sounding more fierce than ever before. There is  much more elements involved in this song, an uproar of dubstep mixed in with the techno-rock makes this very chaotic but amazing. Even with all of the chaos, there are a few quiet parts, well, not very quiet exactly. Towards the end, we are greeted with Faylan counting down with a flurry of dubstep until we get a mouthful multiple guitar chords destroying everything while still making it sound so epic.

2. BELIEVE
So it starts off with some epic violin-ing and some major chanting too! (Thank you to Yuki for teaching me that word) Faylan soon enters the fray, and in a good way too. Her vocals coupled with the chanting choir in the background singing in english, creates a very uplifting symphony which sounds amazing! It’s very spunky to say the least, well I guess it has to since it’s very up lifting. Faylan is backed up with her choir for the most part of the song, which gives it this gutsy tone to it, plus, with the powerful instrumentation,   it  sounds very strong throughout the entire song.

Wow… Just wow…. Faylan seems to be releasing really great singles recently. And it just seems to get better. There’s not a single reason to get disappointed with this single in my opinion. Both songs are very strong and impressive with what they do. Although, it seems like the BlazBlue tie-in song wins yet again, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t listen to BELIEVE. I have to say, this is probably the most fun I had reviewing.

Rating: (Of course it’s a…) 5/5

Single review: “wonder fang” by Faylan

Faylan is a female Japanese singer from Saitama, Japan, who has had many of her songs appear in video games and anime. wonder fang is her 18th single.

Release date: 24th of July, 2013

Track list:
1. wonder fang
2. Blue sanction
3. wonder fang (off Vocal)
4. Blue sanction (off Vocal)

Moira: Regular
Austin: Georgia

1. wonder fang
Wow, that’s a very impressive start to the song. It starts off with the type of vocals we know Faylan by. Hoorayyyyy! ‘wonder fang’ immediately begins with a short, violent guitar sequence right before Faylan appears with strained vocals, almost sounding like she has phlegm in her throat or something. That’s not very nice Moira, I don’t mind her vocals, I find it quite normal. But they do seem right for this kind of music… Enough about that, moving on!! The verses before the chorus (pre-chorus?) have a nice dark, energetic energy to it that sounds really good. Although, I do admit that I’m not a huge fan about how she drags out the ‘fang’ in the chorus’. Most of the track is made up of aggressive electric guitars, and powerful drums, but that’s pretty much it. The only thing noteworthy about the arrangement is its forceful nature, but there is really nothing else worth mentioning about it. I guess I’d have to agree with you there, but it is a pretty good song all in all in my opinion. Yes, as a whole, it’s pretty good, but it’s probably not something, out of her whole discography, that I’d keep coming back to.

2. Blue sanction
Hooray for a BlazBlue song!! I have to love this one, which I do. It starts off with a sort of mysterious tone to it, with of course some heavy drums and electric guitars added too. The first few seconds during the first listen already made me think that this would be the better song of the single. Her vocals in this do not sound strained, unlike in the A-side, and the arrangement utilizes synths and the usual strong rock instrumentation to produce an engaging combination that plays well with Faylan’s voice. The chorus in this is much more better than the previous, it’s got more of a gripping arrangement in it that really just grabs my attention. It’s fast, it has a strong rock tone in it, dark-ish vocals from Faylan, what more could you ask for?? Complex vocal melodies make this song that much more appealing, and I feel as if Faylan is putting more effort into this than wonder fang. I’ve got to say, it’s got an odd ending, (It ends as it begins!) nevertheless, it’s still a very impressive song, it’s got pretty much everything I love, plus a game tie-in too!

We get everything we expect from Faylan, dark vocals with some powerful instruments. It’s everything I love (as stated before). Once again, the song with the BlazBlue tie-in is better than the song with the anime tie-in… BlazBlue always has awesome tie-ins, (Like how you like Asami Imai) This single is a treat for everyone who knows Faylan’s songs and it something very awesome for people who are new to it, well it’s awesome for everyone. Unless you don’t like rock or anison… But if you do, here you go! :D

Rating: 3.5/5

Single review: “Dead END” by Faylan

I prefer the purple one, but Moira insisted on this one

Faylan is a female Japanese singer from Saitama, Japan, who has had many of her songs appear in video games and anime. Dead END is her fourteenth single.

Release date: January 25th, 2012

Track List:
1. Dead END
2. Soukyuu no Hikari
3. Dead END (Instrumental)
4. Soukyuu no Hikari (Instrumental)

1. Dead END
Here is opening number two of Mirai Nikki and the first song of the single. It starts off with some synths and some (good) screeching, electric guitars, then soon after the vocals come in. I was so shocked when I looked at the lyrics for this song and found out that it’s all in english. I knew a bit was in english, but not all. Anyway, this song involves a lot of guitar rifts and techno beats added to mix with the vocals which is done really well. Dead END isn’t as dark as Blood teller but it’s certainly more rock-y. This song has a swift and rapid beat to it which I really love. Faylan hits a few high notes in it as well but usually keeps her vocals at a low register. I found the part where the instruments dumb down a bit and her voice suddenly hits you, really odd, but after a while, I got used to it. So, all in all, this is an impressive song and I’ve been addicted to it for a while now. If you like fast and rock-y songs, you’d definitely like this!

2. Soukyuu no Hikari
Was shocked to find that this song is the opening for the Japanese fighting game that I just love, Blazblue Continuum Shift Extend. It starts off with a guitar rift which steadily increases in speed and volume with the addition of a few instruments such as the drums really sets up the song as a quick and fast-paced song. Faylan’s voice doesn’t stay low for long in this song, she constantly hits some high notes and keeps her vocals high, but not too high. I think I will just say that there is a lot of variety in her voice in her song. It’s more faster than it’s A-side partner and it keeps it constantly throughout the entire song. Soukyuu no Hikari is an impressive song that is fast and it really has an edge to it.

Faylan’s Dead END is a striking single put together with two fast and rock-y songs where both songs are very catchy. I’m really loving this single!

Rating:5/5

Austinatious out!! :)

Note from Moira: Austin decided to post this review, which was initially from the previous set of reviews, in anticipation for the upcoming releases that he is about to review. In other words, he felt like it because he is waiting for the singles he will review to be released. :p