LYNCH BALLAD

[Ro plz 1290]

Def was fishy bout it via the preview but the full track is
actually really good. It packs a punch, the style has been done before
but I like the fresh feel i get from it and Hazuki’s vocals are
just…BOMB. Its not the best thing they’ve done but I gotta give it
props. Now to Crystalize…let me just start off by saying……..HOLY CRAP.
THIS IS WHAT I missed from them in their last two albums. I felt like I
was Listening to a new revamped/awesome version of An Illusion. One of
the best songs they’ve put out since Shadows… and it just gives off this
hardcore/chill/party-ish(the clapping-ish part) type mood. I really
hope KING RECORDS gives them more lee way with their music while
incorperating new ideas into their sound. I’m very bitter with them for
making them put out their last two rushed albums (It was said by Hazuki
that this was the case with IC). But these last 2 singles give me hope
in them. Lets see where this goes.

 

Overall rating

8/10

[Augie1995 325]

Amazing single, I do believe this is better than LIGHTNING in my opinion which was a pretty great single! With this single alone, my decision on the DEATHGAZE vs. LYNCH topic has been reassured~!

 

BALLAD, it's not exactly a ballad in itself but it's tempo is quite slow compared to the usual songs. I love the guitar solo how it sort of flows from the main guitar melody and the following lyrics after "それでも心はどうして (Why is my heart still?) are absolutely beautiful. 

 

Crystalize packs such a punch and is in line as a favorite song of mine now. That guitar riff with that super strong drum beat is so awesome, 2 seconds in I was already headbanging to it hard that my headphones flew out xD

 

All in all, an absolutely great single from Lynch, can't wait to see what they have in store for us next!

 

P.S, anyone else notice that both songs start of with Hazuki taking a huge breath in? hahahaha

[Jigsaw9 6783]

I've really given up on these guys after the snooze-tastic INFERIORITY COMPLEX album, so I didn't bother to listen to the previous single, and almost this one either... which would've been just wrong, because this is pretty nice stuff! The A-side has a beautiful guitar melody that sticks with you and it's just a plain 'pretty' song. The B-side is a bit more upbeat, really diggin' that breakdown and the subsequent part. This is what I've been missing - not going back to their roots but making memorable and catchy music with their current capabilities. Good job!

 

Score: | okay songs, nice overall atmosphere

[Eraser 66]

I totally agree with the 3 reviews above. Although I've never thought they "suck" (even their worst releases were "really good" to me), we were coming closer and closer with every releases to the point where I'd have to say I don't like this anymore. Fortunately, BALLAD stopped this tendency.

 

First of all, the title track is great. It's something I could listening to all day without get bored of it. Even though it's not a "real" ballad, it gives you the same mood that "real" ballads do, so I can see where the title coming from. Yet it's catchy, the lyrics is well-written, and the chorus is pure awesomeness. Perfect song for February.

 

Before I'd say anything about CRYSTALIZE, I'd like to state I usually don't give a fuck about b-sides. Most time they just sounds like weak filler tracks without any real purpose, so to me it's like single = a-side only. lynch. is one of the really few exceptions when I'm actually looking forward to hear their b-sides just as much as their a-sides (and when they upload their new PV on YouTube, I don't think I've heard the whole single). As far as I can remember, they always made amazing jobs in the past, and CRYSTALIZE is just another awesome b-side in their discography. This is something that most Japanese bands should learn from them.

 

All in all, this is pretty much a perfect single to me (my biggest problem is the black bars on the cover, and I think this sums up really well how great the music is). Not their all-time best, but definitely a step-up from INFERIORITY COMPLEX and LIGHTNING (though I really, really, really loved THE MORNING GLOW), which weren't half-bad either. Maybe I sound like a stupid fanboy, but whatever...

 

One more thing in the end (a bit off-topic): I hope they won't release a new album this summer. Seriously, just take the time you need. Release another single instead, and wait with that album till the end of the year (maybe the summer of 2014 would be even better, but I doubt King Records would let them to take such a long break, and I guess I couldn't wait that much either ). Anyhow, I think a 3rd single before the full-album would be the best choice this time.

[Zeus 7997]

Score:  | How many times can you remake "An Illusion" before it gets old?

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Despite the fact that LIGHTNING was almost universally panned, I liked it. It was a change of direction for lynch. after an album that was very one-track minded. This doesn't mean that I needed a new version of it.

Let's summarize BALLAD in a few words: a focus on singing, piano, guitar tap abuse, standard song arrangement, less raw aggression. All the good parts about Inferiority Complex's ballads are still here and they sound better when they aren't sandwiched between aggressive numbers. The rest of the single is not memorable, outside of an awkward breakdown in CRYSTALLIZE there just to stitch the song together. Nothing on show here makes me want to go back once its done. 

This is mostly due to all of their midtempo songs sounding like a new version of an illusion. They've had that problem ever since they first released ADORE. Every song that falls in the same vein since has been less and less impressive, including this. 

 

Not great, not terrible but a step above average. So, lynch. in a nutshell.