The Chinese doujin group known as 萌宅幻想 / Méngzhái Huànxiǎng has announced new VOCALOID-related products in the works. Revealed products so far include new albums and keychains for Medium 5 singer Stardust, the whole Vsinger cast, and even the Piapro characters, as well as pleasant surprises like Zhanyin Lorra!
Album FM40.4
The first major product to come from 萌宅幻想 will be the Stardust compilation album known as “FM40.4,” releasing on March 30, 2020. Quadimension previously teased the existence of the upcoming CD by publishing a certain Weibo post of a Stardust pin, featuring a brand new design for the starry vocalist. After several days of waiting, we can finally take a look at the finished project!
Finally, there is another album being called 百万花王 / Bǎiwàn Huā Wáng (King of One Million Flowers) in the works. Little is known about it besides the following illustration, which is a striking one indeed.
Quadimension has recently graced their fans with yet another piece of merchandise in the form of a set of enamel pins! The set contains badges featuring all of the MEDIUM5 cast. Let’s take a look, shall we?
The theme of this set is “Chinese New Year”, so these pins have designs matching the Year of the Rat!
Speaking of New Year’s related merchandise, Quadimension’s 2020 “New Year” Badge is finally here! This time the lucky characters to appear on it are Chiyu and Cangqiong. Don’t they just look so adorable?
It’s first time being featured on the annual “New Year” themed Badges, since the previous ones had Stardust and Haiyi on them. As to be expected, they look both super cute, and gorgeously elegant!
saazanka’s note: Today’s review is hosted by our guest, AzureKnight. Please give him a warm welcome! All of the song translations are unofficial.
Hello! Today I would like to present a review of the latest album from Quadimension’s MEDIUM5, “森罗万象(Sēn Luó Wànxiàng)”, also known as “Kaleido” in English! This album features the vocals of Stardust, HaiYi and ChiYu, and it has been produced by a variety of composers and artists.
The CD & packaging
The box which was delivered to me doesn’t look anything out of the ordinary, besides the huge Quadimension logo on top of it and… the scrawl of writing from the Taobao seller spoiling the appearance a bit.
If you are worried about the safety of the contents Quadimension has you covered! Inside the box there were layers and layers of foamed plastic with an indentation for the CD letting it sit comfortably in place.
The front cover is drawn by ATdan and Hanasa, depticting the three vocalists wearing elegant, mystical dresses inside a room reminiscent of the inside of a kaleidoscope, something which represents the overall concept of the album. The contrast between the deep purple and the plethora of pastel colours seems to be promising a magical experience to the listeners.
Once again, the back side of the cover depicts similar geometric shapes and pastel colours. The tracklist inside contains the pen-names for all composers and artists who created all of the songs and illustrations.
The booklet includes the lyrics and illustrations to all nine songs. What’s interesting to note is that some of the lyrics are colour-coded according to the singer, making it easier to follow who is singing and when. (Blue – HaiYi, Red – ChiYu, Purple – Stardust, Yellow – duet and/or all)
The Tracklist
1) 噩梦铺 (Èmèng Pù) / Nightmare Store
This is the opening song of the album created by Evalia and 瑞安Ryan. The song seems to reflect the mysterious atmosphere of the front cover illustration, especially with its unique style of tuning and editing.
2) Requiem of Excalibur
The second song invites you to the world of the British legend of King Arthur. The track benefits from the fairly unusual combo of HaiYi and ChiYu, accompanied by a choir and instruments. All in all, it delivers an extraordinary experience of listening to the timeless epic poem. Even the lyricist Uniparity said that it has been an enjoyable experience to compose the lyrics in this kind of style.
It’s worth mentioning that “Requiem of Excalibur” is the only song from the album which got its own PV, where you can see a representation of the narrative of the heroic poem.
3) 四季 (Sìjì) / Four Seasons
The third song makes very good usage of HaiYi’s voice, including times when her voice is significantly deeper. This, alongside the echoing sound effect and the piano, is what evokes the mystical atmosphere of the entire album. The corresponding illustration by 言寺马川 makes use of calm, blue tones, fitting the emotions in the track.
4) 恒星坠落之时 (Héngxīng Zhuìluò zhī Shí) / When the Star Falls
Once again we can see the brilliant result of a collaboration between KIDE and Creuzer, which reminded me of their previous work entitled “ArroganT” (part of Quadimension’s album “Fairytale”). The singing duo of Stardust and ChiYu successfully manages to enchant the listener with their voices, which feels like they’re leading you into an eerie realm. That unusual experience ended up goving me a pleasant feeling of fulfillment, and made me more eager to continue listening. To top this off, illustrator “kieed” has showed his mastery in the form of a spectacular illustration, to match the song.
5) 静止时间 (Jìngzhǐ Shíjiān) / Time Standing Still
This collaboration between 瑞安Ryan and 胧音Long is always going to feel special to Quadimension, as it was actually the debut of 胧音Long! The song utilizes ChiYu’s powerfully deep voice to an impressive extent, since she is even able to growl. It’s the absolute best way to showcase her abilities in a song, as her voice develops from soft all the way to far lower tones.
6) 带我逃跑 (Dài Wǒ Táopǎo) / Take Me Away
This song in particular is very light and calm, just like HaiYi’s voice itself. So of course not only the choice of HaiYi as a vocalist is perfect, but the tuning work couldn’t be better.
I would also like to note that the duet between erazedfx and 瑞安Ryan (who created this song) have released their own album “止谎剂”, featuring three MEDIUM5 sisters at the recent Shanghai Comicup 25! I’d definitely recommend checking this out too.
7) Talking to the Rain
The composition of this song is interesting, since both Stardust and Haiyi have their own individual parts that they sing separately, all the way until they begin to work together in perfect harmony. The bell-like ringing in the background appears to gently support the vocals, making it seem like a match made in heaven.
It is worth noting that this song is the first one which has been illustrated by 枫叶 / Maple, who had previously only created art for merchandise in Quadimension’s albums!
8) 尘埃 (Chén’āi) / Dust
Just by looking at the remarkable illustration by -匙- / Shi for this song, you’re able to grasp the overall atmosphere of the song. It is serene, calm and unhurried, and just by listening to it, you can almost picture Stardust swaying and singing happily with the soulful, pleasant melody.
9) 斑驳 (Bānbó) Mottled
In contrast to most of the other songs I’ve covered here, “Mottled” begins as a very powerful song with a furiously rapid tempo! It is Zeno at his best; the combination of all three characters’ vocals ends up creating a fascinatingly feisty aura – a brilliant way of showcasing the infinite opportunities provided by their voicebanks, as well as the SynthesiserV engine.
I have to say, one of the nicest aspects of the album is the fact that it both opens AND closes with songs where all three of the vocalists sing.
The merchandise
One interesting feature of Quadimension’s albums is the fact that there are different editions of the album that you can buy, depending on how much additional merchandise you want and how much you’re willing to pay for it.
The full tier list is as follows:
¥60 – Basic set – Album and 5 postcards
¥110 – Peripheral set – Album, 5 postcards, an artbook, and 3 pin badges (75mm x 75mm)
¥135 – Singer set – Album, 5 postcards, artbook, 3 pin badges and 1 button badge (you can choose to have one with either Stardust, HaiYi and ChiYu)
¥190 – Deluxe set – Album, 5 postcards, artbook, 3 pin badges, all 3 button badges and an A4 clear file.
¥220 – Steelbook collectors edition – Album, 5 postcards, artbook, 3 pin badges, all 3 button badges, an A4 clear file and steelbook cover.
Here are the super cute enamel pins:
Even though I was supposed to get all three can badges with my set, I only ended up getting one, which had ChiYu on it. This is most probably because mine came from Taobao, though I’m not really sure. I’m sure you’ll admit that the badge is super pretty though:
In their previous album (“Fairytale”), the badges were different, in that they were decorated with golden stars and had a smooth texture (as opposed to the slightly textured one I got this time). Having this kind of subtle variety when it comes to the merchandise is actually quite nice!
Next we have the postcards! Each one has an official illustration from one of the songs in the album:
And here is the artbook!
The artbook not only contains illustrations though – there is also information about the song producers and lyrics! As you can see, the book has a lovely luxurious look, especially because of the use of deep blue and gold.
At the end of artbook, it was nice to read the comics created by Maple (枫叶). You can also see the illustrations which were used for the enamel pins inside!
Surprisingly, I got an additional A4 clear file (as well as the one with the main illustration), which actually made me really happy. I feel like this made up for the missing badges in my set, to be honest. Plus, I love kieed’s artwork, so that’s definitely a bonus!
As another bonus, this all came with a paper shopping bag, which has the main album illustration on it. The quality of the bag is actually really good too!
Conclusion
All in all, I can’t really complain about this album. There is a wide variety of songs, all having their own unique story and sound, so there is definitely something for everyone here. This album is a perfect representation of how Quadimension has worked on improving the quality of their products, and also how more and more people – including producers and artists – have grown to love Stardust, Haiyi and Chiyu over time. “Kaleido” is definitely a worthy addition to MEDIUM5’s repertoire of albums, and I’d strongly recommend it to anyone interested in voice synthesisers, even if you’re new to the world of Chinese voicebanks.
Hello! Here’s saazanka, one of the VocaSphere writers: Usually, I’m in charge of writing news, but today I had the pleasure of reviewing a brand-new album of EHAMIC: “Anniversary ☆ Hearty Songs”!
Hello!
saazanka here, one of the VocaSphere writers: Usually, I’m in charge of writing news, but today I had the pleasure of reviewing a brand-new album of EHAMIC: “Anniversary ☆ Hearty Songs”!
In short, “Anniversary ☆ Hearty Songs” is a special fan-album celebrating AHS VOCALOID & VOICEROID’s 10th Anniversary, released back then at The Voc@loid M@ster 43 event and created with love from Japanese and overseas fans. Despite this album being an unofficial work, it even has special talk sessions with voice providers and many more! It’s a total must-have for any AHS fan’s collection!
The Album
The artwork cover depicts adorable cakes topped with AHS character portraits surrounded by flower pots and a guitar presented at the cosy, most probably quiet café. That scene gives off welcoming vibes for anyone who wasn’t able to attend the “Anniversary ☆ Hearty Session ～AHS VOCALOID 10th Annivesary Fan Gathering～” event, granting you the opportunity to celebrate altogether!
The logo uses a fairly simple and straight-to-the-point font. The name of the album has been chosen by the fans via a Twitter poll. The winning entry has been my favourite and it makes me glad to see it as the final one and as one of the people who voted specifically for this one, I’m glad to see it in the final product. When it comes to the booklet it has a huge variety of beautiful illustrations connected to each vocalist. Giving an impression of mini-artbook rather than usual booklet. Moreover it contains a truly heart-warming “Creator’s message” section: It gives you a sense of harmony, and shows the true love towards the AHS.
The albums starts with “パーティーがはじまるよ/ Party ga hajimaru yo” and “おいわい！せっしょん★ぱーてぃー！！/ Oiwai! Session★Party!!“. I was positively surprised to hear Nana at the first track which serves as a great opening. It has a delicate, yet elegant vibe, as if the audience is introduced to the event, and then Yuuki takes over the gentle mood with her upbeat song. One cannot simply ignore these and listen to them without a smile!
Next tracks include Kizuna Akari, with ちょむP / ChomP ‘s “アニバーサリー/ Anniversary” catching my interest. It follows the album’s happy theme, and Akari’s vocals, who sound way more cheerful than Yuzuki Yukari, fits it perfectly.
By the way, Kyaraai’s art absolutely takes the cake. It was my favourite artwork from the lyrics booklet, and seeing it in the official PV for this song makes it even better.
“starting a new life” is a happy song using both VOCALOID and VOICEROID packages of Akari, creating a unique result. It was a really positive surprise to see the talking part, and I think that there should be more well-known songs that feature such unusual software duets.
— かよぴぃ☆新曲 end of the road☆12/14 下北沢LIVE🎸✨ (@67Dreamfactory) October 18, 2019
The whole album has segments build with different singers, and it’s time to move to songs with SF-A2 miki. The next track is called “ヤラズノレイン / Yarazunorein”, created by OzaShin (a.k.a. 虹色ぺぺろん / PeperonP). I remember being really pleased when hearing it for the first time: This song made me like miki more than I used to, and the instrumental is simple, yet catchy and enjoyable. The tuning is pretty cute, and even if I usually don’t fancy such voices, I think that it perfectly suits the 10th Anniversary occasion, and I really liked it in the end: It felt really refreshing, like a warm, spring breeze. As it comes to miki, there’s also another song of hers, “花咲く / Hana Saku” (Flower Bloom) by Happy (Rocketlam). It welcomes you to miki’s world and I believe that it could be a wonderful introduction to her songs. This song is a perfect music for studying and when you need to focus. It’s a relatively short track, but it’s certainly one of the best parts of the whole album.
Now, let’s begin with Tohoku Zunko’s part. “Anniversary ☆ Hearty Songs” has granted her with two solo songs in total, starting with “ミライツヅリ / Mirai Tsuzuri” (Writing the Future) by きゅおんママ / sound9th, and “御徒町音頭 / Okachimachi Ondo” by EHAMIC himself. The first one is a soothing melody that will help you relax after the exhausting day, and may will make you feel a bit nostalgic. Tohoku Zunko’s vocal was the best choice here, as our green-haired vocalist gives the song a nice feeling. The next song is adopting the style of traditional Japanese folk music. I would love to see this song get an original PV! No matter if it’s in the style of the usual 2D one or 3D one, I’m pretty sure that Zunko would look really cheerful. Whilst listening to the song, you can feel the happiness she is conveying which makes easy to imagine her smiling face.
As for the special features here come the “おしゃべりアニバーサリー～桜乃そら編～ / Oshaberi Anniversary ~Haruno Sora Hen~” (Anniversary Talk ~Haruno Sora Session~) and “おしゃべりアニバーサリー～結月ゆかり編～ / Oshaberi Anniversary ~Yuzuki Yukari Hen~” (Anniversary Talk ~Yuzuki Yukari Session~), which are my favourite parts of the CD. Personally, I have a soft spot for voice actors and their VOCALOIDs interacting together in any way, and this CD shares two portions of talks between Haruno Sora and Kikuko Inoue, Yuzuki Yukari and Chihiro Ishiguro. These chats were born thanks to the VOICEROID technology, which I find really impressive. You can witness voice providers wishing all the best to their “children” directly, and it serves as a nice form of break between songs. I loved both parts, with Haruno Sora’s one being simply lovely, and Yuzuki Yukari’s one being positively silly. I smiled while listening, and wish for more future projects like this.
Now, let’s talk about the solo songs of these VOCALOID girls.
The first track of Haruno Sora is “あざやかなはるのそら / Azayakana Haruno Sora” (The Radiant Haruno Sora) by モモじろう / momojiro with lyrics by 桃白 / momo_shiro. Since I’ve seen the artwork for the song I simply loved it! I feel as this song is perfect for me: I like expressive colours, and the mature, yet cheerful tuning fully showcases the strengths of Sora’s voice. It’s yet another song I wish to get a proper PV in the future, because it’s totally worth it. Our colorful vocalist may still be a newbie in the VOCALOID scene, but let’s wish all the best for her!
The second one is called “As Hope Stars” by KAI. I know this producer for few years already, and seeing his name featured in the album was a pleasant surprise. I usually listen to his works featuring Yuzuki Yukari, and I was so happy to see him using Sora’s voicebank. I look forward to the future works of his using various vocalists. This track made me realise how refreshing it is to hear your producer changing the usual singer from time to time. In fact this motivated me to look for covers of his works featuring our VOCALOID five.
Speaking of Yukari, here comes her part which is my favourite song from the whole album: It’s “A Holy Story” by xi’an. I find that this song has a calm, magical atmosphere, and it made the biggest impression on me. It gives a completely different vibe from the other songs, and even Tohoku Zunko’s soothing vocals cannot match it. “A Holy Story” takes you to a different world, where you can reflect on everything with ease, and witness an elegant performance of the songstress. Compared to her sister vocal, Kizuna Akari, it creates an impressive contrast embracing the difference in the atmosphere as well as the tuning of the song.
Following the usual formula, Yukari has two solo songs. It’s time for “Connection Perilla” by かねイルカ / Kaneiruka with lyrics by 謌名波 / Kanami, and arrangement by Project irukanami. Similar to Akari’s “starting a new life”, it features usage of both VOCALOID and VOICEROID packages at the same time.
It’s slightly different for Nekomura Iroha who only gets one original song. I’m sure that the fans of her will forgive the creators for this sudden modification: Not only is the song itself (entitled “スターチス / Statice”) by Roa of a really high quality, but Iroha has hidden a special surprise in her track. It’s a sweet-sounding piece easily making you forgive the lack of the second song. You can easily imagine as always clumsy Iroha overly excited about the preparations for the celebrating event completely forgetting about her singing duty which fits her image. Sounds cute, isn’t it?
Before I’ll move on to the next part, let me tell you a secret: I haven’t listened to Hiyama Kiyoteru before, because I don’t listen much to male vocals. My favourite voices from are usually female ones, so I didn’t know what to expect when I started the CD for the first time, and now the vocalist in mention has arrived. It turned out that “Let’s お花パーティー / Let’s Ohana Party” (Let’s Have a Flower Party) has dispeled my doubts completely! It’s a short track, but before I noticed it, I started to replay it over and over. EHAMIC and PSGOZ did amazing work here, and it’s quite an eye-opener to me! The pitch is impressive, and makes you want to stand up and if you haven’t met Kiyoteru before, just like me, then this track is a perfect example of his abilities. Still being hesitant? Then may I introduce you to the next track, “変わる未来と変わらぬ愛を / Kawaru Mirai to Kawaranu Ai wo” (The Changing Future and Our Unchanging Love) by 越黒リタ Koshikuro Rita. I guarantee that your impression of Kiyoteru will change in a positive way.
The solo songs section is almost over, and it’s high time for group chorus. “自由奔放な祝歌（架空戯曲「時揺れの国」より） / Jiyuu Honpou Iwauta” (Kakuu Gikyoku “Toki Yure no Kuni”) (Freewheeling Celebration Song, from the fictional drama “Toki Yue no Kuni”) consists of Kaai Yuki, Hiyama Kiyoteru, Yuzuki Yukari and Kizuna Akari. I think that this combination isn’t a common sight, so listening to them was quite intriguing. It’s a short track, but combined with the music and all vocalists, it’s definitely worth listening! Litsar did an amazing job!
If you wanted more of Macne Nana in your life, then this song is perfect for you. “あなたとほほえみささやかに / Anata to Hohoemi Sasayaka ni” by モモじろう / momojiro makes me go back to the Tohoku Zunko part, because it feels as soothing as it was in Zunko’s case, but this time, it features more of lively parts. I wish this song could be placed earlier, because I’m worried that the fans may skip it while listening to the album: It’s almost at the end, so it’s easy to overlook. AHS fans, make sure to give a warm welcome once this track will be officially uploaded to the streaming sites in the future!
“Amnion” by 小金井ささら / Koganei Sasara is the second song of Kaai Yuuki. I was surprised when hearing it for the first time, because unlike “おいわい！せっしょん★ぱーてぃー！！/(Oiwai! Session★Party!!)”, this song is really calm, accompanied by a quiet, barely audible voice of Kaai Yuuki. I can see it as a worthy addition to the soundtrack of some RPG video game.
So finally I present you with the last song called “おめでとう / Omedetou” (Congratulations) composed by tamachang with lyrics by isshy. There are a lot of singers here! To be exact, they are: Nekomura Iroha, Yuzuki Yukari, SF-A2 miki, Tohoku Zunko, Hiyama Kiyoteru. It’s a simple but lovely song. Furthermore, seeing Iroha once again was a pleasant wonder. I think that it’s a perfect ending song, which follows the similar atmosphere of a previous one. With its sophistication it feels like an ideal conclusion for the album. I like this change, because with this, it’s like we started the party with a kick, but we ended up on a graceful note. It gives a sense of unity between the fans and AHS VOCALOIDs.
Conclusion
“Anniversary ☆ Hearty Songs” is an excellent AHS 10th VOCALOID & VOICEROID’s Anniversary compilation, which features all kinds of music: relaxing ballads and catchy, birthday tracks. Every fan of AHS will surely find something they’ll like here. Personally, I’m really happy with the final result. As a person who followed the project since the initial announcement, I feel utter happiness holding the physical album in my hands. I look forward to the future projects of EHAMIC, and I’m sure that they’ll be even more enjoyable. I would love to see 20th Anniversary project, and the vision of it makes me wonder about the future of the VOCALOID and VOICEROIDs.
Let’s end the review with proper cheers: To the next 10 years of AHS!
Where to purchase
The easiest way to purchase the album is via online BOOTH page of EHAMIC. You can check it out under this link.
Quadimension always thinks about their fans, and now they have granted us with Christmas keychains! Following last year’s Stardust & Haiyi, it’s time for all the singers to take the stage. They aren’t limited solely to the Medium5 group, and ZERO, their originator, appears here as well!
Quadimension always thinks about their fans, and now they have granted us with Christmas keychains! Following last year’s Stardust & Haiyi keychains, this time all the singers take to the stage. They aren’t limited solely to the Medium 5 sisters, because ZERO, their originator, is included as well!
If you’re still hesitating about your Xmas present, this will be a perfect match for you or your dear ones. Let’s enjoy the new look of the Medium 5 singers, and have a peaceful Christmas!
A bit of trivia: the video features a remastered version of the “樂園－Atlantis－” track from the 亚特兰蒂斯Atlantis album, using Haiyi’s SynthesizerV voicebank!
One of the companies preparing for the biggest doujin event, Comiket 97, is none other than AH-Software! This time they collaborated with The Chara shop to create the most unique merchandise.
One of the companies preparing for the biggest doujin event in Japan, Comiket 97, is none other than AH-Software! This time, they collaborated with The Chara shop to create the most unique merchandise.
The illustration used for the products was created by 文倉十 / Ayakura Juu (a.k.a. Haino), Yukari’s original illustrator. It features a cute Yukari in a stylish mix of her default outfit with a wedding bride theme, creating an interesting combination. It’ll surely catch the heart of every fan!
ST Media has granted us with quite a surprise today: Their VOCALOID4, UNI, get a brand-new album! It’s an information that will surely make her fans happy, especially after a lack of news with her recently.
ST Media has granted us with quite a surprise today: Their Korean VOCALOID4, UNI, is getting a brand-new album! This is news that will surely make her fans happy, especially given the long wait since her last album.
The album is called ” 24시간의 교향곡 – 상록수feat. 유니” ( 24-siganui Gyohyanggok – Sangnoksu feat. UNI), and is set for release at December 16, 2019. The producer of the songs is none other than 상록수 / Sangnoksu, and the album itself is being presented by ST Media and milkyway TRAXX.
You can preorder this album right here, and what’s great about it is that international shipping is also available! Foreign fans of UNI will be able to receive it by using EMS service, when domestic orders are handled by courier for 2,500 ₩.
Pre-order period: November 27 through December 14, 2019
Price: 18,000 ₩
Preorder bonuses
10cm x 15cm postcard of the album jacket illustration
Download card
※ Bonus goods available on a first-come, first-served basis.
As you may know or not, Haiyi was released early, on September 6: About one week before her scheduled release. To celebrate, Quadimension’s official tuner, Haru.jpg (also known as Napstina)
As you may know or not, Haiyi was released early, on September 6: About one week before her scheduled release.
To celebrate, Quadimension’s official tuner, Haru.jpg (also known as Napstina), has published new cover of “pick me up“, MIKU WITH YOU 2018 song contest winner!
This cover features Haiyi’s new, SynthV voicebank.
She used to have four voicebanks in the past: Yet now, her package contains only normal database and a falsetto one.
Do you enjoy new voice of Haiyi, refreshed by SynthV engine? We hope so, let listening to her be like a comfy drizzle during a hot day.
If you wish to use Haiyi and to support Quadimension, you can buy Haiyi here
Let’s enjoy their new, bunny look, and make sure to treat yourself with a mooncake, either as a Quadimension keychain for your collection, or as a real one to taste. It’s up to you!
VocaSphere 