Just imagine...a veteran vocal group from decades ago collaborating with a songwriter and producer famous for a trendy music genre from a few decades ago. But that's what we get with Yasuharu Konishi（小西康陽）writing and composing a song called "Atarashii Uta" (A New Song) and Duke Aces（デューク・エイセス）tackling it at full throttle. And indeed, it's the familiar voices from yesteryear singing about creating that song for that significant other against a wall of Shibuya-kei sound goodness.
Duke Aces first covered "Atarashii Uta" on the March 2002 Pizzicato Five tribute album "Sensou ni Hantai suru Yuuitsu no Shudan wa. ~ Pizzicato Five no Uta to Kotoba"（戦争に反対する唯一の手段は。-ピチカート・ファイヴのうたとことば-...The Only Way to Oppose War ~ Words and Music by Pizzicato Five）. The project was released on the 1-year anniversary of P5's disbanding. The Duke Aces' cover was once again put out years later in 2017 as a single.
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The original "Atarashii Uta" can be found on P5's 11th studio album "Playboy, Playgirl"（プレイボーイ プレイガール）from October 1998 with the Divine Ms. Maki Nomiya（野宮真貴）singing with Hisashi Kato（加藤ひさし）of The Collectors. The arrangement is "slightly more subdued" but still an exciting trip around town. Kato and Nomiya teamed up as well for "Nagame no Ii Heya"（眺めのいい部屋）.
One more version of "Atarashii Uta" can be found as a twee technopop take with Nomiya behind the mike once more through the special album "Haishin Muke no Pizzicato Five ~ Sono San Nomiya no Maki"（配信向けのピチカート・ファイヴ その3 野宮の巻...Pizzicato Five for Streaming Part 3: Nomiya） which came out in November 2021.
I think "Atarashii Uta" ("New Song") really encapsulates the Pizzicato Five's classic upbeat, lounge-infused pop, with vocalist Maki Nomiya’s airy and stylish delivery complementing the lush, layered instrumentation. It showcases their love for blending vintage pop with modern production techniques, making it in my opinion a perfect representation of their Shibuya-kei aesthetic.The song is an excellent example of their signature Shibuya-kei sound, blending elements of lounge, jazz, bossa nova, French pop, and electronic music. The lyrics of "Atarashii Uta" reflect Pizzicato Five’s recurring themes of new beginnings, nostalgia, and personal reinvention. The song expresses a hopeful and forward-looking perspective, as if embracing the possibilities of the future while reminiscing about the past.The title itself, "New Song", seem to me to suggest a fresh start or a new chapter in life a sense of optimism if you will and the lyrics I think convey a dreamy, positive outlook, encouraging the listener to move forward with excitement.
ReplyDeleteHello, Brian. Usually when it comes to a P5 song, it's sometimes about having those fun times in the big city but with "Atarashii Uta", it's actually quite romantic with the guy in his old favourite café thinking about that lass and coming up with that new song.
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