G5 2016
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Album Title: G5 2016 |
| Record Label: G5 Project |
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| Catalog No.: VIVI-0010 |
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| Release Date: November 2, 2016 |
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| Purchase: Buy at iTunes Japan |
Overview
G5 2016 is an original album released under Masahiro Aoki’s ViViX label featuring guitar compositions from the G5 Project, which is a series of artists that include Masahiro Aoki (as his alias Godspeed), a2c (of MintJam), Nike, Takajii, and YAMATO. What sorts of styles can we expect on this album and is it worth a purchase?
Body
The album opens up with Aoki’s “Determined,” featuring a mix of twangy acoustic guitar, cinematic orchestral sweeps, and electric guitar. It makes for an excellent combination and the orchestral components help boost the guitar’s melody giving the tune a sense of purpose. Nike’s “Act of God,” on the other hand, has more of a J-rock/metal sound, combining synthy accompaniment with heavy riffs and plenty of e. guitar solos. The melody itself is also quite good and the dynamics of the piece gives it a ton of energy and a lot of staying power. “All in the Demon,” by Yamato, is a djent piece with lost of gritty bass work that gives the tune an aggressive feel. This is balanced by softer acoustic and ethereal elements throughout the piece. The end result is an edgy, yet beautiful tune with a great lead melody. Of particular note is Takajii’s “Destino,” an acoustic piece dominated by Spanish guitar that gives off a very soft, romantic feel mixed with a more playful tempo. The melody itself is gorgeous and the atmosphere of the piece gives me vibes of a coastal town.
Aoki returns with “Surge,” an ominous and dark rock/orchestral tune that features a very assertive sound, much like that of an RPG boss battle theme. As the piece progresses, there are moments of heroic sounds, particularly in the melody, that juxtapose nicely with the more chaotic elements of the piece. In addition, there are some acoustic sections that help break the tension of the piece. Takajii also contributes a second tune with “Outburst,” a twangy rock tune with frenetic energy. The mix of softer and heavier elements helps give the piece a nice dynamic listen with a great melody that has a bit of a J-rock sound to it. The album closes with a2c’s “Across the Horizon,” another orchestral rock tune with a very airy and free sound to it, despite this feeling coming from a primarily e. guitar driven melody. The classic rock feel, the fantastic melody, and the moments of orchestral moments with only subtle guitar work also help to give this piece a nice engaging flow.
Summary
Much like its predecessor, G5 2013, G5 2016 is an extremely well-produced album featuring a variety of rock styles that is sure to please anyone who is a fan of acoustic and/or electric guitar. All the artists manage to highlight the guitar, even if other elements are present. Although it is only 7 tracks long, it is well worth the admission price, especially if you purchase the digital copy available. If you have been a fan of Masahiro Aoki/Godspeed’s work in the past, this is certainly not an album to miss either, as the other members of the G5 Project really manage to impress as well.
Do you agree with the review and score? Let us know in the comments below!
4.5
Posted on March 14, 2018 by Don Kotowski. Last modified on March 14, 2018.
About the Author
Don Kotowski Currently residing in Philadelphia. I spend my days working in vaccine characterization and dedicate some of my spare time in the evening to the vast world of video game music, both reviewing soundtracks as well as maintaining relationships with composers overseas in Europe and in Japan.
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