Quadimension’s latest compilation album, ไธๆๆณๅ Jungle Rules, has begun taking pre-orders starting February 28, 2020 at 8:00 PM (CST)! The album contains 9 tracks featuring Stardust, Cangqiong, and Shian.
The Chinese doujin group known as ่ๅฎ ๅนปๆณ / Mรฉngzhรกi Huร nxiวng 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 ่ๅฎ ๅนปๆณ 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 ็พไธ่ฑ็ / Bวiwร n Huฤ Wรกng (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, “ๆฃฎ็ฝไธ่ฑก(Sฤn Luรณ Wร nxiร ng)”, 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 andโฆ 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) ๅฉๆขฆ้บ (รmรจng Pรน) / Nightmare Store
This is the opening song of the album created by Evalia and ็ๅฎRyan. 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) ๅๅญฃ (Sรฌjรฌ) / 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 ่จๅฏบ้ฉฌๅท makes use of calm, blue tones, fitting the emotions in the track.
4) ๆๆๅ ่ฝไนๆถ (Hรฉngxฤซng Zhuรฌluรฒ zhฤซ Shรญ) / 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) ้ๆญขๆถ้ด (Jรฌngzhว Shรญjiฤn) / Time Standing Still
This collaboration between ็ๅฎRyan and ่ง้ณLong is always going to feel special to Quadimension, as it was actually the debut of ่ง้ณLong! 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) ๅธฆๆ้่ท (Dร i Wว Tรกopวo) / 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 ็ๅฎRyan (who created this song) have released their own album “ๆญข่ฐๅ”, 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 ๆซๅถ / Maple, who had previously only created art for merchandise in Quadimension’s albums!
8) ๅฐๅ (Chรฉn’ฤi) / Dust
Just by looking at the remarkable illustration by -ๅ- / 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) ๆ้ฉณ (Bฤnbรณ) 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:
ยฅ60 – Basic set – Album and 5 postcards
ยฅ110 – Peripheral set – Album, 5 postcards, an artbook, and 3 pin badges (75mm x 75mm)
ยฅ135 – 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)
ยฅ190 – Deluxe set – Album, 5 postcards, artbook, 3 pin badges, all 3 button badges and an A4 clear file.
ยฅ220 – 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 (ๆซๅถ). 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.
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!
MOEYU will be debuting many new VOCALOID-related merchandise this Singles’ Day, November 11, 2019. What’s more, many of those products are now open for pre-order at reduced prices! See below for a summary and links to product pages!
Hatsune Miku Bluetooth Speaker & Mobile Charger Set
Album ๆฃฎ็ฝไธ่ฑกKaleido x1 Song illustration postcards x5
For ๏ฟฅ110 RMB
All of the above Illustration book x1 75mm giant can badge x3
For ๏ฟฅ135 RMB
All of the above Brooch x1 (your choice from among Stardust, Haiyi, or Chiyu)
For ๏ฟฅ190 RMB
All of the above Brooch x3 (Stardust, Haiyi, and Chiyu) A4 clear file folder x1
For ๏ฟฅ220 RMB
All of the above Custom-made metallic casing x1 Numbered card x1
Pre-Order Bonus
โปAvailable only while supplies last
Album cover postcard x1 Special A4 clear file folder x1 ** Paper shopping bag x1 **
** Only for purchase options costing at least ๏ฟฅ110 RMB
Weibo Campaign
If you have a Weibo account and share the below post, you can be selected as one of two winners who will receive all items contained in the ๏ฟฅ190 RMB set above! Winners will be sent their prizes on November 6, 2019.
MOEYU has a special offer to those who pre-order the Stardust gashapon figures designed byย ๆซๅถ / Fengye.
The first 1,000 people who pre-order them between October 1 and October 20 will receive a numbered card as a free gift! (Design to be revealed, and numbered based on the order of deposits paid)
Furthermore, if the below Weibo post gets 300 shares, then 2 lucky Weibo users who shared the post will be selected at random to receive a set of the figures and a Stardust plushie for free! And for every 300 shares it gets after that, MOEYU will offer up another set to be given out! Selection will take place on October 12, 2019.
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
VocaSphere 