While 葉月 (HAZUKI) is mostly known for the darker style that borders between rock and metal with lynch., his solo works take a completely different approach with a symphonic style. And 葉月 (HAZUKI) wouldn’t be himself if he didn’t take some of the theatrical performance he displays in lynch. with him in these solo productions, effectively taking the visual style of these works to a different level of theatrical.
The new single “蓮華鏡 (Rengekyou)” is not his first release, but at the moment of writing it is the most recent one. This single consists of three tracks: “睡蓮 (Suiren)”, “CRYSTALIZE” and “ALLIVE”.
A keen eye will spot that two thirds of this release is made up by lynch.-songs. But if you thought these songs are here as filler, you might want to reconsider. There is a good reason these songs were paired together on this release, but we’ll get into that a little later.
The single comes in two different types: a limited version with a photo book and a Blu-ray featuring his solo performance at NAKANO SUNPLAZA HALL on December 12 2021 next to the single itself, and a regular version with just the CD containing these three songs.
However, for this review we will only look at the regular edition of the release, since these are “new” works.
“Imagine an eternal dream”
First up on the chopping block today is 葉月 (HAZUKI)’s original work “睡蓮 (Suiren)”, or “water lily” in English. A slow-paced symphonic ballad that highlights the piano and violin while 葉月 (HAZUKI) reveals a story of overcoming grief and growing wings in a dream-like state that paints the illusion of calm water. A picture that fits the mental image of a water lily perfectly.
The music video for this song is quite “simple”, but even in it’s simplicity it compliments both the music and the story being told perfectly by translating the feelings of both grief and loneliness into a visual format with a hint of Japan’s traditional architecture.
“CRYSTALIZE” was originally released in 2013 as a part of lynch.’s album “BALLAD”, and at that time it was a higher paced rock song. The reimagined version by 葉月 (HAZUKI) is also a symphonic version, but keeps a similar rhythm with a powerful drum-section that supports the dreamy lyrics a lot more than the original did at that time. The theme of loneliness once again returns through a story of memories of a loved one that is lost, but not forgotten.
Closing off the single is “ALLIVE”, which was released as it’s own lynch.-single in late 2020. Once again 葉月 (HAZUKI)’s symphonic reimagination puts more emotion and power to the longing love song described within the lyrics, yet keeps the familiarity for the listeners that know the original version perfectly. As the final song of the single “ALLIVE” perfectly closes off the theme of a dream-like world, concluding the three phases of the single’s story with a message to the lover the character telling the story is thinking of.
Conclusion
By combining his original song “睡蓮 (Suiren)” with “CRYSTALIZE” and “ALLIVE” from lynch. 葉月 (HAZUKI) paints a dream-like story about grief and love in a unique style that compliments both the lyrics of the older works and empowers the lyrics of the newest work.
For the listeners who are familiar with the original versions of “CRYSTALIZE” and “ALLIVE” it might be interesting to check the single just for these two songs already, and see how a different style conveys different emotions and puts power to the words of these songs in a way like only 葉月 (HAZUKI) can convey as an artist.
The relation between these three songs is lost completely if the listener isn’t familiar with the Japanese language, but when we as listeners aren’t familiar with the words, we judge the music on it’s sound alone. And based on sound alone “蓮華鏡 (Rengekyou)” is an amazing single that touches a different emotion with each song through the use of the symphonic style.
Release information
Did this review spark your interest into getting your own copy of this release? In that case we’ve listed some information below to get you started:
 (Regular edition) ¥1540 | 01. 睡蓮 (Suiren) 02. CRYSTALIZE 03. ALLIVE | |
 (Limited edition) ¥9900 | Disc 1 (CD) 01. 睡蓮 (Suiren) 02. CRYSTALIZE 03. ALLIVE | Disc 2 (Blu-ray) 01. ETERNITY 02. D.A.R.K 03. けもの道 (Kemo no michi) 04. 軽蔑 (Keibetsu) 05. ミウ (Miu) 06. 飾りじゃないのよ 涙は (Kazari janai no yonamida ha) 07. エロティカ・セブン (Erotika sebun) 08. Ray 09. 至上のゆりかご (Shijou no yurikago) 10. ain't afraid to die 11. ALLIVE 12. Another day comes 13. PHOENIX 14. 玉響の灯 (Tamayura no Akashi) |
Artist: 葉月 (HAZUKI)
Release: 蓮華鏡 (Rengekyou) (single)
Release date: January 25, 2023
CD number: KICM-92122 (limited edition) / KICM-2122 (regular edition)
雪 (Yuki) is the owner and driving force behind Arlequin.
She originally started the project in 2009 as a photographer under the name of Arlequin Photography, but developed an interest in journalism and translation ever since. Because of these interests interviews and reviews were added to the project, until it eventually hit the limits as a "photographer" in 2021, and Arlequin Magazine was added to the mix.
雪 (Yuki) is a native Dutch speaker with a graphic design degree, which means she is also the main person behind Arlequin Creations.
After all these years she is still the main person who does interviews the interviews and live photos that you see on Arlequin, but also a large chunk of the reviews and behind-the-scenes work and communication goes through her.
She speaks Dutch and English on a native level, but also understands Japanese and German.