Ongaku Cafe (The 2000s): Arimura Miki – Mauve ~color of love~ (November 2007)

I admire Arimura’s acting and her modeling career and I just feel she needs a certain type of song and also maybe some coaching to help build her as a vocalist. A little more passion, emotion, something that just doesn’t seem to plain in the delivery.  Unfortunately, I have to give this CD single a “pass” and hope the second release is much better.

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ARTIST: Arimura Miki (有村実樹)

CD SINGLE: Mauve ~color of love~

LABEL: J-MORE

CATALOG #: YICD-70037

DURATION: 17.3 minutes

Released on November 7, 2007

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1. Mauve ~color of love~
2. nocturne
3. Mauve ~color of love~ (instrumental)
4. nocturne (instrumental)

DVD: Region 2, 4:3, Duration: 6 minutes

1. Off Shot DVD

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Reviewed back in November 2007

Actress and model Arimura Miki (“Ushi ni Negai Wo: Love & Farm”, “Kirakira Kenshui”, “MAY be Happy” and “Bengoshi no Kuzu”) has begun her singing career and I figured that I’ve seen quite a few singers go from acting to singing and interesting enough the last succesful one that comes to mind is Uchida Yuki, Tomosaka Rie, Fukada Kyoko and then there was Hirosue Ryoko who comes from the same talent agency (FLaMme) as Arimura and Hirosue Ryoko didn’t exactly have the greatest vocals but her voice was just “kawaii” and fun.

Arimura Miki’s “Mauve” was a song that I was anticipating because she’s a beautiful actress but was curious to see if the transition from actress to singer would work out.

And after hearing her sing “Mauve”, instantly the voice of Saito Yuki (the singer of “Kanashimi yo Konnichwa” from the first season of the 80’s anime series “Maison Ikkoku” and also an actress) came to mind. It’s almost the same.

Whether you consider that a good thing or band thing is up to one’s interpretation but I could say that I enjoyed “Kanashimi yo Konnichiwa” because it was cute and matched the sense of the anime series. As for Arimura’s “Mauve”, Hmm… I just felt that her vocals and the pop music, I don’t know… It didn’t win me over at all. I just felt that it lacked energy, it lacked passion in the way the vocals were executed. Some may come away thinking it’s cute, the same way I felt about Saito’s “Kanashimi yo Konnichiwa” but I wasn’t feeling the need to listen to the song for a second time (and I listened to this song a half dozen times already).

The coupling song “nocturne” is actually a lot better than the title track. It’s a mid-tempo song and I like her usage of the French for the lyrics “Un deaux trois, memoire” and it’s totally synth pop but definitely a song that drew me in and much more enjoyable than “Mauve ~color of love~”.

The remaining two tracks are the instrumental tracks for both songs.

The DVD unfortunately doesn’t show the music video for “Mauve ~color of love~” but does come with the off shot which features an interview of Arimura talking about how she enjoys singing and behind-the-scenes footage of Arimura at the Avex offices and the shooting of the CD cover and photos for the CD insert, singing at the music studio while “Mauve ~color of love~” and “nocturne” is playing. Also, video footage of Arimura walking the runway modeling various outfits.

As for the CD insert, the insert features the lyrics of the two songs and pictures of Arimura. Two insert flyers were included. One promoting the JJ Beauty lab and the other featuring how Akimura was able to style her bangs and a promo for K-Two Aoyama.

With each actress that debuted as a singer, there was always something energetic. Tomosaka Rie when she debuted with “Kushami” and showcased her sexiness and bubbliness, Shibasaki Kou showcasing her vocals and energy, Uchida Yuki and Hirosue Ryoko showcasing their kawaii vocals and cuteness, sometimes Arimura looked and sounded as if she was singing karaoke for a friend.

Granted, some of these actress turned singers were not exactly the greatest vocalists but many became chart toppers because they had something that music listeners can be hooked on to. Tomosaka Rie collaborated with well-known musicians, Uchida Yuki of course had TK, m.c.A.T. and Hirose Kohmi and Hirosue , Fukada and Shibasaki had strong acting careers and definitely on top in the talent pool when they released their first CD single.

I felt that Arimura’s first CD single was just average. Didn’t have the extra something that would knock my socks off after listening to her debut CD single and make me want to listen to the CD single over and over again. Not just her vocals but the music was average.

I admire Arimura’s acting and her modeling career and I just feel she needs a certain type of song and also maybe some coaching to help build her as a vocalist. A little more passion, emotion, something that just doesn’t seem to plain in the delivery.

Unfortunately, I have to give this CD single a “pass” and hope the second release is much better.

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