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Hiyadam - Capture Land [アルバムレビュー]
5 days ago
Capture Land Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/album/04FG.....TwWQfd_Sq_cgNg
Hiyadam released his sophomore album, Capture Land, this week. As it has been 4 years since Antwerp Juggle, it was exciting for me to see what direction this new album would take. The first impression was that on this release, every song has a different guest artist, comprised of an all-star list from the mainstream Japanese hip-hop scene who've amassed a considerable following over the last 5 years or so. Ranging from the more pop-sounding styles such as Salu, Yo-Sea, and Vividbooy, trap stars like MonyHorse and Villshana, newcomers and also the only solo female collab Elle Teresa, more dance-hop-oriented styles such as JUBEE and Yurufuwa Gang, to the grittier, more aggressive styles of Ralph and Jin Dogg. The only names I was surprised not to see appear were both Watson and JpWavy, though considering the oversaturation of these two in recent times, this is also welcome. Although I'm not a fan of her solo material, it was also good to see Elle Teresa getting a feature over artists such as Awich or CyberRui, who seem to always be the go-to choice when wanting a female vocal dynamic.
Although Hiydam mostly sticks with the 'Hip-House' formula that he made his own back in A.J., the new material seems a lot more subdued this time around, which I don't believe plays to his strengths. The album was obviously constructed to appeal to as many varieties of Japanese hip-hop listeners as possible, and as such, the album's cohesiveness suffers slightly as a result. There are definitely highlights and fillers, most of the highlights being the singles he's slowly pushed out over the last couple of years, such as E:Motion, Honey, and Dirty, but the slow release of these standout tracks over such a long period of time also hurts the album as it makes it seem like old news and arguably would have been better suited for a greatest hits album further down the line.
Collaborations with artists like Ralph are also definitely phoned in and missed opportunities. Ralph's proven on his own more dance-themed collaborations with the Yurufuwa gang that he's capable of moving out of his comfort zone of just drill and grime, but instead this sounds like he's imitating bars written by Hiyadam, and the backing track, sad to say, is also painfully mid.
Speedstars with Jubee is probably the best of the new tracks, as it takes advantage of Jubee's more high-tempo rave sound, which he's predominantly known for, and that meshes quite well with what Hiyadam regularly puts out. Considering their previous track together, MESS, was one of his better single releases, it's unsurprising that these two have worked well together once again.
My personal favourite standout track from the album would be MAD with another previous collaborator, Yohji. This song definitely retains the vibe of Antwerp Juggle while still sounding like an evolution in his development. A dancefloor banger, it could be played in clubs worldwide and get a positive reaction regardless of language barriers.
So while I would say this is definitely a more polished and higher-production release than Antwerp Juggle, it's also better to see this as a collection of internet hits with some bonus new material rather than a drastic change of direction, as was the case with his earlier EPs, in which he was still finding himself. I'd imagine that having blown up since switching to a hip-house style, this would explain the absence of older collaborators such as JPWavy and Higher Brothers from 7 years ago and his unwillingness to go backwards or change a formula that works. Also, possibly because those two acts also hugely eclipse Hiyadam nowadays in fan following themselves.. there is a lot of label politics involved in track collaborations after all!
While it may well be another 5 years until his next full-length release, it will be interesting to see if he goes for this genre a third time around or does decide to do something more experimental.🐻🎧
Hiyadam released his sophomore album, Capture Land, this week. As it has been 4 years since Antwerp Juggle, it was exciting for me to see what direction this new album would take. The first impression was that on this release, every song has a different guest artist, comprised of an all-star list from the mainstream Japanese hip-hop scene who've amassed a considerable following over the last 5 years or so. Ranging from the more pop-sounding styles such as Salu, Yo-Sea, and Vividbooy, trap stars like MonyHorse and Villshana, newcomers and also the only solo female collab Elle Teresa, more dance-hop-oriented styles such as JUBEE and Yurufuwa Gang, to the grittier, more aggressive styles of Ralph and Jin Dogg. The only names I was surprised not to see appear were both Watson and JpWavy, though considering the oversaturation of these two in recent times, this is also welcome. Although I'm not a fan of her solo material, it was also good to see Elle Teresa getting a feature over artists such as Awich or CyberRui, who seem to always be the go-to choice when wanting a female vocal dynamic.
Although Hiydam mostly sticks with the 'Hip-House' formula that he made his own back in A.J., the new material seems a lot more subdued this time around, which I don't believe plays to his strengths. The album was obviously constructed to appeal to as many varieties of Japanese hip-hop listeners as possible, and as such, the album's cohesiveness suffers slightly as a result. There are definitely highlights and fillers, most of the highlights being the singles he's slowly pushed out over the last couple of years, such as E:Motion, Honey, and Dirty, but the slow release of these standout tracks over such a long period of time also hurts the album as it makes it seem like old news and arguably would have been better suited for a greatest hits album further down the line.
Collaborations with artists like Ralph are also definitely phoned in and missed opportunities. Ralph's proven on his own more dance-themed collaborations with the Yurufuwa gang that he's capable of moving out of his comfort zone of just drill and grime, but instead this sounds like he's imitating bars written by Hiyadam, and the backing track, sad to say, is also painfully mid.
Speedstars with Jubee is probably the best of the new tracks, as it takes advantage of Jubee's more high-tempo rave sound, which he's predominantly known for, and that meshes quite well with what Hiyadam regularly puts out. Considering their previous track together, MESS, was one of his better single releases, it's unsurprising that these two have worked well together once again.
My personal favourite standout track from the album would be MAD with another previous collaborator, Yohji. This song definitely retains the vibe of Antwerp Juggle while still sounding like an evolution in his development. A dancefloor banger, it could be played in clubs worldwide and get a positive reaction regardless of language barriers.
So while I would say this is definitely a more polished and higher-production release than Antwerp Juggle, it's also better to see this as a collection of internet hits with some bonus new material rather than a drastic change of direction, as was the case with his earlier EPs, in which he was still finding himself. I'd imagine that having blown up since switching to a hip-house style, this would explain the absence of older collaborators such as JPWavy and Higher Brothers from 7 years ago and his unwillingness to go backwards or change a formula that works. Also, possibly because those two acts also hugely eclipse Hiyadam nowadays in fan following themselves.. there is a lot of label politics involved in track collaborations after all!
While it may well be another 5 years until his next full-length release, it will be interesting to see if he goes for this genre a third time around or does decide to do something more experimental.🐻🎧
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