My Kind of Perfect

Angela Aki – Hajimari no Ballad / I Have a Dream

06/13/2011 at 2:55 PM | Posted in Angela Aki | Leave a comment
Tags: angela aki, hajimari no ballad, i have a dream, single

~Single~

Angela Aki – Hajimari no Ballad / I Have a Dream

1. Hajimari no Ballad

2. I Have a Dream

3. CREEP

Hey look, it’s one of the first singles I’m reviewing somewhat on time. AMAZING!

Quite possibly, Angela Aki can do no wrong. “Hajimari no Ballad” does sound somewhat like the usual fair from Angela but at the same time, by the end of the song it feels like a breath of fresh air. I suppose that’s just what Angela is able to do with a song. It’s epic and uplifting and there’s piano and percussion and strings and it’s all very fantastic. Anything groundbreaking for Angela? Not really, but it’s a nice listen regardless, like I said, Angela is flawless.

Score – 8.5

When I saw “I Have a Dream” all I thought of was Susan Boyle. But this has nothing to do with Susan Boyle so… Anyway! It’s starts off quite calm, just Angela and her piano and eventually some strings come into play. When the chorus comes along, it sounds like there is a male backing singer which is something rare for Angela but I didn’t have a problem with it. The song was just alright, but then the bridge comes in, Angela starts repeating “I Have a Dream” as electric guitar slowly builds over everything and percussion comes in. Angela starts repeating this one line over and over again, building up her vocals each time as the music builds around her, and then it suddenly stops, back to just Angela and piano and she repeats the line one more time. It’s an amazing ending and makes me LOVE this song.

Score – 9

What would a new Angela single be without a cover? Yup, this “CREEP” is a Japanese cover of the original Creep by Radiohead. It starts off with breaths from Angela and then piano and vocals start while the breaths continue. This version, of course, is very understated and not that similar to the original at all. The echo, and emptiness really give the song an interesting atmosphere especially in the bridge where Angela really shows off some vocal ability followed by contrasting, very quiet, almost whispering vocals, and then Angela singing in English. A very interesting listen

Score - 8

Final Note

As much as I liked Ai no Kisetsu, I find this single to be a much stronger start to a new era and it gets me really excited.

Overall Rating