DIV - ZERO ONE

[ShanethVarosa 1209]

We could spend all night talking about the controversial albums Madrigal de Maria and Beautiful Deformity, or we could discuss how amazing Div's debut album is. 

 

Sure, the reason why we all loved xTRiPx is because their songs walked the line between hip-hop, hard rock, and pop-rock so, so well. But let's be real. Yo-Shit's vocals have become somewhat obnoxious over the years. Where he used to sing beautifully, he mostly just rap/screams lyrics and isn't the vocalist he used to be. Meanwhile, Chisa has a beautiful voice that he utilizes in every song. He can scream lyrics well, but doesn't overdo it for no reason. 

 

Not all of their singles have been as perfect as Natsu no Yukue and Taste of Life, but I can tell they have saved their best songs for the album. From beginning to end the album emanates brilliance.

 

Vanish is an incredible way to start of the album, with beautiful vocals and a great composition that is found throughout the album in songs like the title track, Chocolate Prayer, and Place. They have some slightly more experimental songs as they get really electro-rock influenced on Teddy and Asterios, the latter of which is probably my favorite song on the album. The flow from the interlude to Asterios was perfectly executed. 

 

Their catchier songs, Miseinen and Sekirarara, are a ton of fun. I don't see too many hook-oriented songs in J-rock, and they still don't fit the bill for that, but you'll be singing the melodies and saying "Sekirarara" after listening to these songs!

 

The choices for what singles to put on the album... I totally approve. Natsu no Yukue is my favorite of their singles so far (especially considering their INCREDIBLE B-Side Hotarubi). Seasons I would've liked to see replaced by Taste of Life, and Answer is a great choice due to it being their debut promo song. 

 

Finally, they have the power-pop-rock-ballad, I Swear. The song is huge. It's long, about as long as Seasons, but the difference is it keeps you interested the whole time. It's beautifully sung and interestingly composed. 

 

Overall one of the BEST albums I've heard from any J-Rock band this year. Or the last few years. COMPLETELY out of this world.

 

5/5

 

[chemicalpictures 1888]

I'm disappointed. This is average at most, no bad songs, but nothing stands out either. Answer and Natsu no Yukue are so much better than the rest, I can't even put them in the same category. Vanish and Chocolate Prayer are good tracks, but everything else is just okay. Shogo can totally do better.

[kodama-kun 25]

In short: it's catchy as hell, well-written, coherent, Chisa's vocals are awesome. I loved it from the beginning to the end. For me it's a prefect debut album.
Totally worth the money~



(Maybe later I'll write a longer review.)

[fitear1590 2414]

Congratulations to DIV!  Having just formed last year, this is HIGHLY impressive for a debut album.  In fact, it’s just a good rock album, period!  And this is coming from someone who started off with a very lukewarm impression of the band; I didn’t care for their debut mini-album much.  The following singles showed progress, even if it was a bit inconsistent.  But this album is a totally different story.

Early on in their career, I remember thinking DIV had some composition issues (夏の行方 and its B-side had almost identical choruses; unacceptable, especially on a three song single!) and that their electronic arrangements were uninspired and lacking (especially when compared to labelmates, UNiTE).  Both of these problems seem to have been addressed over time and I can say that the band is in top form on this album.  From start to finish, it’s a pretty cohesive listen.  There’s plenty of variety with well-composed, bright pop-rock tunes like “ZERO ONE” and “Place,” as well as heavier, more melancholic tracks like “ASTERIOS” and “VANISH.”  Unlike many other VK bands that make it to the full album stage, DIV didn’t feel the need to pad their tracklist with the obligatory “experimental” mainstays we all know like out of place “jazzy” track or “heavy-repetitive-track-with-growling/screaming-throughout.”  I honestly congratulate that restraint, haha. 

 

Regarding the electronic arrangements, they’ve shown some massive progress!  Whereas their mini-album featured a totally pointless “SE” track with aimless chiptune bleeps, there’s a lovely “galactic” synth sound that permeates most of this album. Sometimes, it lends an “epic” quality to the music, while other times, it creates a fun, light atmosphere like in “Chocolate Prayer”.  As Shanethvarosa mentioned, the way “interlude” leads into “ASTERIOS” is beautiful and the subsequent chaotic screeching and “wub wub” dubsteppy sounds are actually quite nice, mainly because it's used very sparingly.  That and the autotuning (another thing I generally find obnoxious) in “Teddy” are tastefully done.
 

One of the things that really sets DIV apart from most of the VK world is Chisa’s voice.  He’s not your typical, nasally, whiny, over-exaggerated VK singer.  He has a very “normal” (yet capable) voice and somehow that works for the band and keeps them grounded.  He’s able to serenade us with dramatic ballads like “I swear,” get us moving to catchy tunes like “Chocolate Prayer,” and bring some emotion out in heavy tracks like “VANISH.”  If there’s one thing that could still use work, it’s his growling.  He sounds like he’s straining himself a little bit, sometimes like he’s “barfing” out his words, haha.  But once again, the band doesn’t overuse these screaming/growling parts, so it’s hardly a problem.

If I have any real complaints about this album, it’s the choice of old singles to include.  夏の行方 is a solid enough choice (though as unrealistic as it is, I would’ve absolutely preferred B-side 蛍火 [hotarubi]), but I find SEASONS and ANSWER to be the band’s two weakest single tracks.  “SEASONS” has so much that I should love (the twinkly, soft piano throughout), but the “hooo-oooh” background voice annoys me and I find the bouncy guitar riff that leads us into the verse (starting at about :38) to be so meh.  As Shaneth said, “TASTE OF LIFE” might’ve been a better fit, since there were some other poppy songs on the album and they worked just fine.  “ANSWER” is a track I find decent at best.  It could’ve benefited from an arrangement overhaul, considering the band’s newfound mastery of the synths, but alas… This rerecording doesn’t sound much different.  In fact, none of them really do…  The only major difference I could detect was the background arrangement of "SEASONS" sounded (unfortunately) more subdued in certain parts.

But if the album’s biggest weakness is its old songs, that’s probably a good sign of the pure progress the band is making!  

Review Breakdown:
+Great compositions; restraint shown when necessary

+Almost all of the new songs are better than the three old songs
+Cohesive sound throughout album, but with enough variety
+Chisa is a highly capable vocalist
+Wonderful improvements in the synth/electronic arrangement department

 

-Chisa could work on his growls
-Old singles are the weakest tracks; shame that two of these songs end the album

   
An extremely solid debut! Certain to make an appearance on my my Album of the Year list!

[Flash-Fab-Supernova 88]

FLASH-FAB-SUPAA-REVIEW~! SUTAATO~!

 

TRACK ONE: VANISH: A cathartic dirgey ballad with powerful vox. It's an interesting starting point for an album honestly. It almost feels like a song that should be at the end. It's very very very very good~. 4.9 SUTAAZ OF LOVE.

 

02: ZERO-ONE: Welllllllll welll this is the pv song and it's nice. Chiisa is such a DIVA at all times and it is nothing but LOVE. 4.5 sutaaz~!

 

SURII: Natsu no Yukue: This song is weird but I like it. As Fitz Earz has stated, the b-side Hotarubi has an extremely similar chorus to this song from the single and like like. It's totes true you guys. I almost feel like Hotarubi was written before Natsu no Yukue and then they made Natsu no Yukue after it to make a more single sounding song and buy into the summer romance song. The lyrical content between the two songs, if read seperately and the music unheard, you wouldn't imagine it was done by the same band~. I like this track though u gaiz~! FOAA SUTAAZU.

 

FOAA: Sekira RARA: WHAT A DISCO POWER HOUSE DIVA TRACK OH MY LAWD FIVE STARS FIVE STARS. Oh I'm using stars now? BETTER GO BACK AND GIVE STARS TO THE OTHERS.

 

FAIBU: Hmmmm.... 0.0

 

666: ASTERIOS: PERSONALLY I THINK THIS IS THE BEST TRACK ON THE ALBUM. IT'S MY FAVORITE.

 

SEVENTH: TEDDY: This track is almost like if the opening track Vanish was turned into a dancey hard rock song. Totally fits the vibe of the album with it's catchy chorus and auto-tuned vox. This is a really great song that will probably be great live and pump the crowd up~. THERE IS NO LIMIT~! THERE IS NOO LI~IMIT~!

 

88: CHOCHOLATE PLAYER: This song is just cute but it's not all that great but it is pretty cool~. Picks up around the chorus. Pretty great track~.  4/5

 

NEIN: PRACE: This might be the first track that's a 3. It is pretty though just... Meh.

 

BEN10: MISEINEN: This song is just delicious to the ear holes. <3 4.7/5 sutaaaz.

 

11:11: I SWEAR: This song is pretty. Really pretty. Heart wrenching pretty. ;O; <3 OMG IT'S SO PRETTY~. PRETTIEST BALLAD OF THE YEAR. <3 <3 <3

 

TELFTH: SEASONS is pretty. 5/5

 

THIRTEENTH: ANSWER rocks. 4.5/5

 

​GREAT DEBUT. Lots of Disco Diva Dance Rock and it's really nice on the ears and so pretty and flamboyant~. One of the best debuts in a while~! Soooo pretty. ;O;

 

[YuyoDrift 1540]

Listening to this album and I have to say, its pretty good. 

 

I like the vocalist's singing throughout the album. Very soothing to the ears.

 

Very strange but I get the same feel as I did when I heard Ayabie a decade ago. 

[seratonin 43]

good album the only thing that kills it for me is that this band is not only boring at lives, but try to perform exactly like it is on the album recording, and can't even do a good job of that.
i'll never enjoy a good live of these songs unless a band makes a cover

[togz 2004]

best release of 2013 in my opinion.