Epinions Recent Reviews for shimatani87

It's Barbie, b*tch.

Sat, 20 Oct 2007 03:22:08 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - While I have certainly enjoyed Tori Amos' music since discovering it a few years back, I definitely wouldn't claim to be one who follows every move she makes, waiting with bated breath for the moment a new single hits airwaves or she brings her tour my...

Blonde, Bubbly, and beautiful: Colbie Caillat's Coco

Sun, 14 Oct 2007 00:13:24 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - At first glance, one might mistake Colbie Caillat for just another pretty, manufactured pop star; after all, with her luminous blonde hair, sensible fashion, and pretty face that is scarily reminiscent of Jennifer Aniston, she could easily be another...

Heavy-handed at times, Loeb's Way is nonetheless enjoyable, thought-provoking pop.

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 01:03:34 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - When bespectacled beauty Lisa Loeb broke into the business with her 1994 smash mid-tempo ballad Stay (I Missed You), I found myself not really caring all that much. In fact, I don't believe I can remember ever hearing it, even though it was...

Winding Road - ayaka x Kobukuro: A collaboration that will stand the test of time: ayaka and Kobukuro's WINDING ROAD

Wed, 19 Sep 2007 14:53:06 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Whether one's making music in the middle of the Midwest or on some tiny, uncharted island out in the middle of the ocean, collaborating with another person is a risky, chancy thing to do. Sure, not all collaborations worldwide have sucked, but a...

kodoku no KAKERA - Angela Aki: Lonely people shouldn't be this happy.

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 23:27:33 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Success, especially in the music industry, is a fleeting and fickle mistress, which I'm assuming is quite frustrating for both artist and label alike; what's worse than having a string of high-charting hits and then suddenly taking a nosedive when the...

kinu no michi by Misachi Kyushima: With kinu no michi, Misachi Kyushima proves that good things are worth the wait.

Wed, 5 Sep 2007 00:32:18 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - "Patience is a virtue." - William Langland, Piers Plowman (1344) There is no other industry to which this timeless adage applies more than the music business. Whether one's a fan of whichever über-popular act is currently drawing the mass...

koi hanabi by Ai Takaoka: Returning in (simple) style: Ai Takaoka’s koi hanabi

Wed, 15 Aug 2007 04:12:25 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - No matter how much I gripe and complain that the artists I like need more exposure and are seriously, almost criminally under appreciated – such as Japanese acoustic-pop artist Ai Takaoka, whose eighth single (this one!) hit stores in late July – I’ve...

Keiko Matsui's A Drop of Water: Introducing East to West with a splash.

Tue, 14 Aug 2007 03:07:41 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - (Please note: this review references the 2003 re-issue of this album, not the original 1987 release.) Although her sound has grown and evolved as she's matured as an artist, one thing smooth jazz's reigning Japanese darling Keiko Matsui has always had...

Easy, breezy, boring cover girl.

Wed, 8 Aug 2007 02:13:56 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Released as a stop-gap between studio albums, Italian bella Laura Pausini's oh-so-cleverly titled Io Canto (simultaneously released in Spanish as Yo Canto) is a well-intended but ultimately mediocre attempt at dusting off the...

Apologizes to Macy Gray: I tried to like this disc and I choked. (ISYMIYSMY W/O)

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 05:18:50 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - (This review is part of the seventh annual "I'll Show You Mine If You'll Show Me Yours" write-off, hosted by MattA75.
I was partnered with snik1, who reviewed Ai Otsuka's...

An early-career gem: BoA's kimochi wa tsutawaru

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 04:52:21 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Although Korean-born BoA owes much of her Japanese success to the pseudo-R&B/pop of LISTEN TO MY HEART -- the single (and album) that catapaulted her to the top of the charts -- that single, as a whole, doesn't quite measure up to the quality...

Some homecoming this is.

Fri, 6 Jul 2007 07:45:14 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - After being away from the Japanese music scene for well over a year releasing and "promoting" her English breakthrough bid, Japanese pop darling Hikaru Utada returned to the Land of the Rising Sun with this release, her fourteeth commercial CD single...

kuroi namida by ANNA TSUCHIYA inspi' NANA (BLACK STONES): Anna Tsuchiya's kuroi namida is beautiful, unparalleled rock balladry.

Sun, 1 Jul 2007 06:18:08 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - When last I discussed fashion model/actress/singer Anna Tsuchiya, I noted how her raspy, smoky voice was a wonderful candidate for well-done rock music and that rose, her debut single for the NANA anime series, didn't do that voice justice...

Hiromi - Jun Shibata: Oh, my God! Jun's singing something upbeat! Everybody hide!

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 06:37:33 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Sometimes, for whatever reason, an artist who seems to be underappreciated by the public will occasionally find themselves thrust into the spotlight, if even for a brief moment. With the release of her fourteenth single, HIROMI, Jun Shibata became...

Innocent Blue ~chi hate umi tsukiru made~ - Mink: Playing it safe: mink's Innocent Blue ~chi hate umi tsukiru made~

Thu, 21 Jun 2007 21:15:48 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Innocent Blue ~chi hate umi tsukiru made~ is the fourth single from Korean-born artist mink (née Mi Kyung Lee). The single, which peaked at #39 on Japan's Oricon charts, charted for seven weeks and is currently mink's second-best selling single...

Genre-defying beauty: Kelly Sweet’s We Are One

Sun, 17 Jun 2007 09:01:18 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - When one decides to pursue a career in the music industry, choices must be made. One of those choices is whether to follow in the footsteps of what’s currently popular, ensuring at least one hit and most-likely decent sales, or to break out on one’...

When accents attack!

Thu, 14 Jun 2007 03:31:20 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - I will freely admit that before I picked up this release, the music of Irish band The Cranberries was almost completely unfamiliar to my ears. A quick YouTube search brought up their more famous videos (namely Linger and Zombie) and I...

Home - Angela Aki: Going Home never sounded so good.

Sun, 20 May 2007 15:08:02 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Home is the debut album by half-Japanese/half-American singer/songwriter/pianist Angela Aki. The album became an instant success, debuting at #2 (second to only Hikaru Utada’s comeback album ULTRA BLUE) and selling 121,064 copies in its...

Déja vu all over again: Tsukiko Amano's UTAKATA

Wed, 16 May 2007 13:49:59 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - UTAKATA is the third in a series of five singles (released on the same day!) put out by Japanese alternative rocker Tsukiko Amano in honor of her fifth anniversary. It peaked at #46 on the Oricon charts and charted for two weeks; currently, it is...

Destination: Stepford – Lucy Kaplansky’s Over the Hills

Tue, 8 May 2007 01:50:55 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - I’m a sucker for well-crafted acoustic/folk-pop – when it’s done well, it’s a genre that can be deeply moving, contemplative, and still retain a catchy edge; however, when an artist screws up, the genre becomes an exercise in painful “...

Jungle jazz: Keiko Matsui's Moyo

Mon, 30 Apr 2007 18:54:43 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Inspired by a recent trip to South Africa, written during said trip and recorded with some of the country's finest musicians, Moyo is internationally-renowned smooth-jazz artist Keiko Matsui's latest release, coming just over two years since...

Onna Gokoro by May: An under-the-radar delight: MAY's ONNA GOKORO

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 18:45:11 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - Although the wave of Korean performers crossing the water to try and make it big in Japan seems to have died down in recent years, there are still plenty of Korean-born artists releasing music -- to varying degrees of popularity -- in the world's...

Prima Rosa by Hitami Shimatani: Mixing old and new: Hitomi Shimatani's PRIMA ROSA

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:32:41 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - (A note: The artist for this release is Hitomi Shimatani -- a minor spelling error occurred during the addition of this album to the database.) PRIMA ROSA, the sixth original album from Japan's very-own "cover girl" Hitomi Shimatani,...

From Me To You - Yui: YUI's FROM ME TO YOU : The Beatles would approve.

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 12:53:53 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - FROM ME TO YOU is the debut album from twenty year-old singer-songwriter/guitarist YUI. A fairly-moderate hit, the album peaked at #4 on Japan's Oricon charts, selling a tad less than 200,000 copies after its release in mid-2006. The album has...

SAKURA-iro by Angela Aki: Reminiscent beauty: Angela Aki's SAKURA-iro

Thu, 5 Apr 2007 02:35:48 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author shimatani87 - After an impressive-selling debut album (which has been certified double-platinum, selling just over 500,000 copies as of this week), a successful nationwide tour and a sold-out show at Japan's prestigious Budokan concert hall, twenty-nine year-old...