• Submissions
  • Support Us
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
  • nl Nederlands
  • en English
AVO Magazine - One click closer to Japan
  • AVO Magazine
    • AVO Magazine, who?
    • About us (日本語)
    • AVO Magazine presents
    • AVO Magazine Podcast
    • Join AVO Magazine’s Discord Server
    • Support AVO Magazine
  • Staff picks
  • Music
    • Japanese Music News
      • Concerts and festival news
      • Musical Snack
    • Curtain-raiser
    • Weekly MV Roundup
      • About: 7 New Music Videos You Need To Check Out
  • Japan-related Events
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • Reports
  • Colophon
  • Contact
    • Submissions
    • Join the AVO Magazine team
No Result
View All Result
AVO Magazine - One click closer to Japan
No Result
View All Result
Home Reviews Music Reviews

CD review: Cuushe – Butterfly Case

Francisca Hagen by Francisca Hagen
6 February 2014
in Music Reviews, Reviews
Reading Time: 4 mins read
A A
0
Cuushe - Butterfly Case

The CD itself has been out since September, but last week American recordlabel “Dilated Time” released a Black Vinyl 2LP version of the album. And even though it’s not a new release, I still felt like I had to review it anyway.

Cuushe is nowadays known as a modern dreampop singer. Last year she had a tour here in Europe that I unfortunately had to miss. But since then I have been keeping a close eye on her. “Butterfly Case” is her second released album and consists of 10 tracks.

 

Cuushe - Butterfly CaseTracklist:
01. Sort of Light
02. I Dreamt About Silence
03. Butterfly
04. I Love You
05. Twilight
06. I Miss You
07. Lost My Way
08. Swing Your Heart
09. Steamy Mirror
10. Hanabi

 

The album starts with “Sort of Light”, a song that uses a repetition of a melody throughout the track. The moment Cuushe starts singing I get goose bumps. Her voice is soft and echoes while repeating the lyrics a couple of times. The repeated melody and lyrics can, however, really get stuck in your head, something I personally don’t mind.

The second track, “I Dreamt About Silence”, manages to keep up the dreamlike feeling the album started off with. It brings you into a relaxed state and drives away any thoughts you might have at that point, completely clearing your mind for a while.

That relaxed feeling didn’t last long though as the third track, “Butterfly”, was more upbeat. Instead of the dreamlike vibe of the last two tracks, this one made me want to dance. In the track Cuushe sings in two parts, one part on the foreground and one part is backing vocals. The two eventually get together in the refrain, complementing each other to create a nice whole.

The fourth track “I Love You” wasn’t new to me. I already heard it through the video clip that was posted online. In the track, multiple layers of Cuushe her voice can be heard. The track seems to break away from the rest of the album. As the music goes on, the song seems to liven up. At first everything may seem like a pile of scratched together sound and that may have been the case, but in the end, it’s a really sweet and nice song.

http://vimeo.com/78174038

When you get to the fifth track, “Twilight”, you will be surrounded by the electronic melody and the almost monotone voice of Cuushe, which both work perfectly in harmony with one another.

The next song, “I Miss You”, starts where the previous track left off: snapping of fingers. However, Cuushe her voice is not as strong as in the other tracks, and there are certain points where the instruments take the upper hand. Which aren’t bad things. Better yet I think the song ends too quickly.

“Lost My Way”, number 7 on the album, appears to be a calm relaxing song at the start. As soon as Cuushe starts singing after a minute the opposite seems to be the case. The melody then starts to bloom and several layers of Cuushe’s voice create a background choir like feel. It makes for a really nice piece.

At track number 8 there’s “Swing Your Heart”. The melody was very confusing when the track started. I thought Cuushe had suddenly switched the genre of the music halfway through the album. As soon as she starts singing however, my confusion is gone. It still fits amazingly well with the rest of the album as it turned out to be a relaxed, slow and sweet song yet again.

“Steamy Mirror” seems to start with raindrops, though I would rather describe it as waterdrops falling as you’re taking a nice shower. The sound of the track is sweet and warm, as if Cuushe sits next to you while you are taking a relaxing, hot shower.

The last track of the album is “Hanabi”, Japanese for fireworks. But does it also end the album with a bang? The music is heavier than the rest of the tracks and I most certainly like it! The ending sounds like she put in some sounds of old filming devices, as if to tell she’s looking back at the past. It definitely is a great song to conclude the album with.

The titles of the album suit each other really well and seem to be telling a story about the feelings one has as they fall in love. The dreampop gives off spring and summer vibes to perfection. I can totally imagine myself sitting in the sun, with a cool drink, listening to this at full volume. That would be the perfect experience to listen to Cuushe in my opinion.

And even though summer is still far away, please keep this album in mind.

You can buy the album through recordlabel Flau on iTunes. You can also stream and/or buy it on bandcamp.

Rating: 90/100

Tags: 20132013album
ShareTweetShareShareShareShare
Francisca Hagen

Francisca Hagen

Never satisfied, always exploring. Started with AVO in 2003. Now active as a writer, reporter, reviewer, promoter, photographer, interviewer and presenter. Can be found regularly at conventions and concerts in the Netherlands and sometimes elsewhere in Europe or even in Japan. Big passion for Japan and music, can be made happy with coffee. (click on Soundcloud logo)

Related Posts

The photo depicts the four members of TAMIW in the middle of a street at night. The members are dressed in stylish outfits and are standing towards the camera lens, making it an up-close photo with a carefree attitude. Photography by Emiri Habaki
Music Reviews

Music Review: TAMIW – Farewell Party

by Peter Dennis
1 July 2025
Colourful artistic cover of TsuShiMaMiRe 20th full-length album バンドは水物 (MIZUMONO), featuring the three members at that time, vocalist and guitarist Mari, bass player Yayoi and drummer Maiko. There are masks drawn on their faces and on top of it the band name and album title in a font that seems like splashes of water.
Music Reviews

Music Review: TsuShiMaMiRe – バンドは水物 (MIZUMONO)

by Peter Dennis
11 June 2025
Illustration of the four members of Seventeen Years Old And Berlin Wall. It is a minimalistic illustration, with a hazy/cloud effect in orange and blue colours mixed in with a white background.
Music Reviews

Music Review: Seventeen Years Old And Berlin Wall – Distance (EP)

by Peter Dennis
16 May 2025
The photo depicts the (support) members of FATHOMLESS SKYWALKER dressed in a gothic-inspired metal style in a dark lit room, probably located in an (old) factory with red lighting to amplify the atmosphere. Photo by Ato4 Sound Factory (@ato4soundfactory)
Music Reviews

Album Review: FATHOMLESS SKYWALKER – Anthems of the Resilient

by Peter Dennis
12 March 2025
The photo shows the members of Violent Magic Orchestra, outside what appears to be a European city at night. Most probably the photo was taken in Norway. The members are all posing differently and dressed in black, all are wearing the same band shirt.
Music Reviews

Album Review: Violent Magic Orchestra – DEATH RAVE

by Peter Dennis
12 March 2025
Next Post
「真昼の月(Mnemiopsis leidyi)」 & 「夜の太陽(Bolinopsis mikado)」

AVO interview with Benicco

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

About AVO Magazine

AVO Magazine is more than just an online magazine about Japanese music and culture. In addition to covering Japan-related events in Europe, AVO Magazine also supports and organises them. Under the banner AVO Magazine presents, several concerts and festivals have been held, including AVO J-Rock Festival (2013) and AVO J-Music Festival (2018), featuring performances by Japanese (indie) musicians. More information about AVO Magazine can be found here.

Have news related to Japan or Japanese music you'd like to share? Feel free to send us an email.
Support AVO Magazine with a digital cup of coffee

Recent Articles

  • MAN WITH A MISSION to celebrate 15th anniversary with European tour in October
  • Live Report: Space Rock Lands In Bedford with Acid Mothers Temple
  • 7 New Music Videos You Need To Check Out (Week 27, 2025)
  • Isiliel’s 2025 world tour “Moonbow Rebellion” continues in Europe
  • Interview with PSYCHIC FEVER: A chat about their latest release, international growth, touring Europe, and gelato

Affiliates

JPU Records

1_General CDJapan
Facebook Twitter Instagram Soundcloud Threads Bluesky Youtube Discord

AVO Magazine

Online magazine since 2012 and based in the Netherlands. AVO Magazine is a Japan-related entertainment website with information about events in especially in Europe. There is a big focus on Japanese music. Other contents we publish are reports, reviews, informative articles, and interviews. AVO Forum, founded on May 16, 2003, served as the foundation for AVO Magazine.

Contact (Francisca Hagen): hello[@]avo-magazine.com

Please do not use text and photos made by AVO Magazine without permission. An email is easily created. Let's support each other!

Affiliates

JPU Records

1_General CDJapan

Featured on

  Lucydafirst - Crate Culture Podcast LOGO

AVO Magazine Approved

  • ANGURA
  • Arlequin Photography
  • Get Your Genki
  • Idol is SHiT
  • iPod of mine
  • J-POP streaming
  • Japan Jams
  • Japone Artists
  • The Sushi Times

Copyright © 2012 - 2025 AVO Magazine

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • AVO Magazine
    • AVO Magazine, who?
    • About us (日本語)
    • AVO Magazine presents
    • AVO Magazine Podcast
    • Join AVO Magazine’s Discord Server
    • Support AVO Magazine
  • Staff picks
  • Music
    • Japanese Music News
      • Concerts and festival news
      • Musical Snack
    • Curtain-raiser
    • Weekly MV Roundup
      • About: 7 New Music Videos You Need To Check Out
  • Japan-related Events
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • Reports
  • Colophon
  • Contact
    • Submissions
    • Join the AVO Magazine team
  • nl Nederlands
  • en English

Copyright © 2012 - 2025 AVO Magazine

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.