singing_robots

Hopping in real quick to reassure everyone the community isn't actually dead - I've just been snowballed under heavy work and a house move that have left me with not much in the way of free time. Sorry! I'll be back to normal asap: in the meantime, I strongly suggest just setting this song to loop. Loop forever.


【初音ミク＆桃音モモ】山田くん【オリジナル】
Yamada-kun (daniwell, Miku + Momo)

Edit: Or, you know, holy hells:


【初音ミク】お断りします REMIX【MOSAIC.WAV】
No Thank You (MOSAIC.WAV REMIX ver.) (satsuki ga tenkomori, Miku)

While we're at it - is this real? Good lord, everyone's getting an Extend nowadays.



I'm honestly very impressed with how natural some of the rises sound, but I can't get over how muddy it can be at the same time - often, simultaneously. This isn't my usual complaints about breathiness that everyone else can get over and enjoy - more a sort of thick nasal grunge at the back of his voice. Still, the midsection of the video sounds really good and I can't wait to see what producers will make of it.

I am Stel's new replacement.

You may all commence offering tribute and bowing down at my feet-- I mean HEY GUYS THERE'S ANOTHER VOCALOID COMING OUT! That's right, and you'll probably recognize the voicebank provider: Kou Shibasaki. Yep, from galaxias!, that one. She also did a collab with DECO*27 before for her album Mukei Spirit.



Ahahaha yeah she's gonna be a private Vocaloid by Internet Co. Her name is supposedly going to be Galaco and official images of her design will be released on the 28th in Japan. They're basing her design off of what was used in galaxias!, so.

Aaand they're also selling Galaco earphone jacks I guess.

Also, does anyone have any news on what the hell happened to Lui? ¯\(°_o)/¯

I sincerely apologize for this dumb, one nico video link, but I feel like it must be addressed.

Now, anybody up in this comm remember Aoki Lapis? The ones they made pillows out of?

http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm17473772
Original title: 【蒼姫ラピス】幻葬楽園【オリジナル曲】

This song, so much.

She sounds absolutely wonderful, despite my initial disliking for her soft voice. And when I checked out her tag, she surprisingly enough does have a good amount of original works from various producers. You can find her tag here: http://www.nicovideo.jp/tag/ラピスオリジナル曲

Thoughts? Comments? Anymore recommendations? Feel free to share as little or as much as you want.

Well, I never said which Friday... thanks to repeated health issues I'm foregoing a single huge post but going to go for a blitz of much smaller posts over the next week to make it a little more managable. I've still got all my links over the last couple weeks, together with a bunch of remixes and a ton of MMD.

But first and in happier news, more Project Diva! Sega have finally put up a video for the next Project Diva game - conveniently titled NEXT Hatsune Miku Project Diva - which will be released in both PS3 and Vita formats with Transfarring enabled to be able to share your content between the two. They stress that the two games are going to be exactly the same in terms of content, just maybe not in terms of resolution, and that the 'fun factor' is going to be the same regardless. Here is the site itself, while here is a bunch of information about the release (try not to wince at 'Kagamine Lin').

A lot of the advertising gumph is kind of obvious if you've already played any of the Project Diva games - the fact that notes are done to the lyrics rather than to the beat was something we already knew, Sega, and you don't have to sell it to us - while Chance Time returns as a series of Technical Zones giving you more points for completing chunks of the song. Also, yes, Vita widgets come into play, as some of the notes are scratches rather than button presses. What's nice to see is that, for the higher resolution, the models are getting a overhaul - you can already spot some differences in the shots, with some of the proportions and sizes being altered a little to work better.

One thing's for sure in any case: it is seriously, seriously pretty.



I would like to take a moment here to note that World's End Dancehall is apparently a West Side Story dance number in Chinatown, complete with Utena slow-motion sparkling close-ups and people leaping in front of the moon. I am pretty much okay with this.

The two things I'd like to see before I'm utterly and completely convinced - Internet Co. vocaloids (or at least sufficient support for them to be later added), and a Rock Band-style content delivery system. With the Vita having infinitely better PSN support than the PSP, and with Transfarring enabled to allow for easier content management between the Vita and the PS3, Sega are rapidly running out of excuses for not using episodic content and DLC, rather than forcing people to buy whole new games each time they want a system update. Besides, how much more in the way of gameplay innovation can you even cram into a rhythm game?

... waaaaait...

The final linkdump to get us up to date is in progress, but something about it being sodding huge is making it take a while. (I reckon tomorrow, maybe Thursday?)

In the meantime, a set of videos popped up today to surprise me - the top thirty or so is suddenly dominated by a whole brace of tracks involving major producers making Vocaloid covers and arranges of songs originally produced by Tetsuya Komuro, one of Japan's most well-known producers, and the only producer ever to have been involved with the top 5 songs in a single week of the Oricon rankings. A little digging reveals that the album they come from is a new release on the 28th, coinciding with the rerelease of some of Komuro's finest works.

And these covers are all absolutely amazing. The producers have pulled out all the stops for this album, and the grand result is a set of breathtaking covers featuring some of the best tuning I've heard in a long, long time. Check under the cut for EZFG's badass Luka, Dios' absolutely astonishing Rin, and a delightful mathru Miku, as well as comm favorites Penguin Project and Heavenz.


小室哲哉 feat. 初音ミク / 「LOVE IS ALL MUSIC」
LOVE IS ALL MUSIC (TK, Miku)
The official introduction to the album, and an excellent way for TK to show off a little and reveal that he's still got it when it comes to belting out an excellent piano track. If he's the one who tuned Miku, then he's also no slouch when it comes to using Vocaloid - Miku's not the best I've ever heard her, sure, but she's far more than servicable and duets along with the backing singers in a gorgeous bit of soft pop.

( Videos: 1 + 8 = 9 )

This time around we're concentrating on those Vocaloids which don't get much play - expect a lot of Yukari and IA, mostly, with a side order of Iroha, Meiko and Yuki. I had a few CUL songs in my shortlist but, uh, none of them were particularly good. If I've missed any, absolutely share them in the comments, I love listening to the new guys.

Videos:


【カバー】Tell Your World feat.MEIKO
Tell Your World (IGASIO, Meiko, Pop)
And you know what? I'm going to put Meiko at the top of the post again, because I can. I'm even going to put her at the top of the post with a mere cover, and it's going to be perfectly justified because holy damn I was blown away by this. It's no Amazing Grace, but Meiko's voice is tremendously good in this tribute to the kz classic. She could stand to be a bit louder, but that doesn't detract even slightly from a stellar performance.


【Lily】ジッタードール【オリジナル曲】
Jitter Doll (niki, Lily, Rock)
God, was there ever any doubt this would rank this post? Niki's back to blow us away with a super-soulful rock track from Lily with every hallmark falling impeccably into place, from Lily's excellent tuning to a catchy track that doesn't let up. Fantastic crescendos, interesting hooks and bridges, it's just all-round great. It's boggling to me that more people don't use her when faced with tracks like this, but maybe they're just too intimidated.


結月ゆかりのオリジナル曲　ゲダツセンセイション -Full ver.-
Gedatz Sensation (deadball, Yukari, Dancey Pop)
Deadball's inimitable style applied to Yukari is a thing, alright, and took me quite by surprise when I was making the post. It's a very strange song but catchy as hell, full of strong bass and energy and a whole lot of little electronic touches. Yukari isn't going to endear herself to everyone - rather stark in tuning, much like deadball's Miku, it may not be to everyone's taste.


【 IA 】 現実的論理主義者 【オリジナル】
Realist Logician (goboumen, IA, Rock)
Before the first chorus, I would have been prepared to chalk the popularity of this video up to the excellent-quality PV provided by koyubi, but don't fall into the trap. A rather uninspiring first verse camoflages some seriously awesome choruses and crescendoes, together with some absolutely excellent soloing from IA during the requisite quiet sections. She still has a couple of issues - aside from the start of the song, there's a number of squeaky words here and there - but taken on the whole it's a deserving track well worth a listen.

( Videos: 4 + 11 = 15 )

Okay, let's go. There's going to be several posts over the weekend: looking at the size of my shortlist, I'm going to say we'll have two roundup posts, and somewhere in the middle a special roundup for all the underdog vocaloids that didn't make it far into the rankings proper but did make it into my shortlist. I'm trying to focus a little more than usual on rarer songs and those that didn't make it all the way up to the ranking, so this shouldn't just be treading old ground.

Also, a bit of news I'd forgotten to mention:

- I'm not exactly sure of the rules for it, but many nicovideo videos now stream properly and are searchable, loading substantially faster than their more recent counterparts. It seems like it happens to videos that are more than a certain age old? There isn't really any indication it's searchable until you try it, at which point you'll get a spinning loading symbol and the Nicovideo TV. In any case, it's about time.

- Here is a video of Miku performing a jingle for a news show live on air to the slightly stunned faces of all involved. Extra prizes to anyone who can tell, just from the PV, who made it.

Videos:


【MEIKO with Families】アメイジング・グレイス【Vocaloid Gospel】
Amazing Grace (Nanameue, Meiko + Ensemble, Trad.)
If you glossed over this on the ranking thinking it was just another general cover of Amazing Grace, I implore you to go take another listen to it because it's significantly and absolutely fantastic. If the frankly amazing Meiko doesn't do it for you - despite taking top billing with some of the most amazing tuning I've ever heard from her - then the second half and crescendo will. There's really nothing to describe how uplifting it is to hear a full-on acapella Vocaloid track, especially when it sounds this good. Guaranteed to bring the biggest goddamn smile to your face.


【鏡音リン】狐ノ嫁入リ【オリジナル曲】
Rain Shower, While the Sun Shines (OSTER, Rin, Big Band Ethnic Rock Opera?)
Listening to the start of this song, you would be forgiven for thinking that Oster had returned to the operatic, orchestral bent of Alice in Wonderland, but this tremendous song soon breaks its way through that misconception and into a tremendous song that completely defies description. One part eager and energetic rock track, the other traditional Japanese, the other other an operatic forte by a splendidly tuned Rin, this is a fantastically original track and a seriously good listen.


【GUMI(40㍍)】 春に一番近い街 【オリジナルPV】
The Closest Town In Spring (40m, Gumi, Pop)
Purestrain 40m back on absolutely fine form, an utterly fantastic piano-and-guitar song that's jaunty and upbeat and perfectly evokes the coming of spring. Peppered full of gorgeous solos, there's nothing I can say against this whatsoever, beyond hoping that 40m doesn't get stalked by someone recognizing the locations around his house.


【初音ミク】ひよこと天秤【オリジナル曲】
Chick and Scales (furu, Miku, Theatric)
I defy you not to smile at this track, maybe consider getting up and dancing along with it? A legitimately hilarious and wonderful video encompasses this absolutely boggling and bombastic track, confusing and wonderful in equal measure. From a kazoo-and-duck-call introduction to a Miku singing at a breakneck pace to a big band melody heavy on the tuba and drums to an energetic and exultant chorus to the entire second half of the track, words can hardly describe how much sheer fun this track is to listen to.

( Videos: 4 + 13 = 17 )

MMD/Other:


【IA・ミク】ヘッドフォンアクター×ネトゲ廃人シュプレヒコール【Mashup】
Net Game Chorus x Headphone Actor (sa, Miku + IA, Rock)
sa is still at it, producing some of the most insane and most inspired mashups around nicovideo. While I don't honestly think anything will ever beat his absolutely breathtaking version of Calc x Interviewer, this is a solid entry to his stable and a lot better than some of his other recent works. The speed of both tracks play off each other to produce a frantic, barreling ride that simply doesn't ever stop or let up. Unfortunately, the harmonize point is at 2:50, which leaves the second half of the mashup feeling a little like a let down - still, great work.

( MMD/Other: 1 + 4 = 5 )

Next up, the underdogs and their recent songs in a special spotlight post.

I'm not actually dead - an assortment of RL business left me with no time the last couple of weeks, and even the three concert posts crept up on me without warning, so my apologies there. Two catchup roundups are underway and sitting in my notepad - the first should be up tomorrow, roughly hitting last week or so, and there'll be another one Thurs or Fri to get us fully back up to date.

While I'm at it, some news!

- The Crypton twitter got, uh, a little busy recently! Aside from confirmation of Meiko Append and talk about Miku English coming out 'by the end of the year' (a little off from Crypton's original timeframe of, you know, last year...) it also seems that whoever was in charge of it Thanksgiving Weekend decided to start tweeting while drunk, rather sulkily taking swipes out of a potential business partner and then having to apologise rather profusely.

- Miku's Google+ page has announced a colloborative project with Google to try to get Vocaloid listeners into participating in production. Or at least learning about production. Maybe? It's a little hard to tell, as Crypton still seem kind of incapable of getting someone other than a machine to do their Facebook and Google+ translations. The release is here, and it seems like the idea is that they're going to reveal the producer they're profiling on the 13th and, one assumes, go through their creative process. In the meantime, viewers are encouraged to watch the 39s video and figure out who the producer is!... which is a little tricky, when there's no lyrics and not a lot of instrumentation...

- Speaking of the big Google: the official, full-length video for Tell Your World is out, produced by Wakamura. Visually, it's a substantial treat, if a little busy on the eyes; Wakamura is one of the best in the business for using MME and some of the things he can marshal the engine into pulling off are breathtaking - see the spacescape at the end of the video for a prime example. But the rest of it leaves a little to be desired - facebook camera angles and poses, a lack of any real substantive dance or action... it doesn't do anything, and I think that's a tremendous shame after the short version managed to be so heartwarming and inspiring. If you extended the Google version out to four minutes and just roped in as many bits of fandom as you could into it, I'd be deliriously happy with it as a PV.

- Suzune Ring's got a couple new demos out, the first concrete information we've had on her in some time: Village Girl Dreaming (Nico) and Ice World (Nico), both by LambdaSK and a whole host of people at Vocanext. The thing is, I honestly can't muster up much of an opinion on these just yet - the voicebank doesn't seem refined enough to really garner an original opinion on the content, it's still at the stage of being a generic female Vocaloid voice. I do appreciate the wah-wah and the farmyard animals, though, don't get me wrong.

- So, if you wanted Miku on your iPhone, Sega is here to provide with Miku Flick. The preview video, as well as reaffirming that I'm heartily sick of Koi Suru Vocaloid, suggests the gameplay revolves around Ouendan-style stylus movements where you flick a given hiragana in a specific direction. If you're the sort to go for that, the JP iTunes page is here, though an english-language version is in the works.

- A smorgasbord of Gumi news: for one, the Native version (i.e. the V3 upgrade for her normal voice) is now on sale for the substantial cost of 11k yen. In slightly more bizarre news, peperon is helping out with a colloboration between... Lawson and Gumi... seems a bit random to me, but hey! It kicks off on 3/14, streaming music and offering downloads in most Lawson stores for a month, provided you have the smartphone, the technology, and the access to Japan to use it.

- This might be the most ambitious bit of ascii art around. Here's the reduced image if you're having trouble visualising it in full.

- Uh... I guess Peru now has a stadium named after Miku? Is... is that what I'm seeing here?

- A presentation on the 'Open Source Nature of Vocaloid' was performed at the SXSW Music Festival, a sentence I didn't expect to type any time soon.

- Staggeringly, Aoki Lapis of the I-Style Project, the company able to produce a thousand promotional shows without any actual content to display, will be released on the 6th April to what will surely be a horde of adoring fans. She's also just finished up in a charity event for the Japanese Earthquake Anniversary, which is all well and good, but... ... but even Crypton doesn't do this many events and appearances and they actually have product released. Is I-style one massive hallucination? I keep being unable to believe it!

There was Meiko. shu-t, easily Meiko's biggest supporter, eases right on into the live show with Change Me, and finally we have the full Crypton lineup at a Thanksgiving Concert. The rest of the set list is here and as per the posts below I'll be adding to this one as I find more pictures and sources. Please feel free to chime in if you've got any scoops!

( More pictures: )