VALSHE is mostly known as Ryouseirui, because of her ability to be able to sing in both male and female voice types. This has put a lot of people on the wrong foot already, because her appearances don’t immediately suggest that VALSHE is a woman either!
VALSHE has several releases to her name already, among which V.D. seems to have made the biggest impression on her fans. It also contains her sixth single, Butterfly Core, in which she finally showed her own face in a music video after all these years. Before that you only saw an illustration from Hakuseki with blonde hair and blue eyes. RIOT is the fourth mini-album, released last summer, from the band VALSHE, which started as an utaite on Niconico in 2009.
Tracklist:
1. silencio
2. RIOT
3. COUNT DOWN
4. MONOLOGUE
5. PANIC ROOM
6. RADICAL COASTEЯ
7. LUCKY DAY
silencio is a great intro song, because it’s fully instrumental. It also creates a perfect bridge to the powerful RIOT. Aside from that the cheerful song LUCKY DAY is a perfect ending for the mini-album, making you close it with a smile.
The song that stands out the most has to be RIOT, a powerful and also the most catchy song of the entire mini-album. VALSHE’s voice comes out the best in this one as well, since she plays with both her male and female voices and she uses her main voice the most. RIOT is a badass song and the preview of this was already visible on the cover of the mini-album. For the ones who rather listen to the heavier songs, RADICAL COASTEЯ is a great recommendation, because the song is a solid instrumental work from start to finish!
The fact that VALSHE can sing very well is already audible in the song RIOT, but also in the song MONOLOGUE, in which you only hear her female voice. MONOLOGUE is a typical ballad, beautifully dressed with tones coming from the keyboard. The song makes you want to grab a lighter to wave around while it’s lit like you would during a concert, and it’s a welcome change in this mini-album.
Most of the songs on RIOT have been written by VALSHE herself, all the lyrics are in Japanese but the titles are in English. I had hoped for a combination of Japanese and English myself in these songs, but this didn’t make the album any less good. The mini-album has a mix of powerful songs combined with a dance vibe. The fact that VALSHE makes use of a real band ensures that this album has a more solid position on the musical ground. If you’re not familiar with VALSHE yet, then RIOT is a great place to start!
Rating: 80/100
