User blog:CureHibiki/Hibiki Reviews: Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure! Vocal Album 1

I'm back to review this vocal album that I thought would soar high into the sky but instead, it took quite the nose dive that I really wasn't expecting. So without further ado, the review of Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure! Vocal Album 1 Linkle☆Melodies is about to begin!



All of you are familiar with the vocal albums, right? Well, to follow tradition, Mahou Tsukai gets its own Vocal Album and it failed to deliver. The album was released on July 13, 2016, and I thought this would be the best birthday present ever. But nah, it was lackluster. The cover is beautiful. The background is blue with what looks to be a rainbow and some clouds at the top as well as the fact that the girls seem to be flying in the sky even though, I have no idea how they are. Must be Kotoha's magic as Riko does have a shocked expression on her face. The gold border seems to be a thing in Mahou Tsukai CD covers as it seems to be used in all the unique covers we have seen so far. The good thing is, these gold borders each have their own little unique design.

There are ten tracks on the album and majority of them are very bland or boring. There is only three really good songs to me. Unlike the other vocal albums, the opening and ending do not make an appearance on the album which is a breath of fresh air as I hated that idea where the OP&ED was added to the album as they already appeared in their own single. What was the point of adding them to their own single if they were gonna appear on the vocal albums? So I'm very glad that Mahou Tsukai ditched that idea. I thought it was a nice touch to have Mirai's song open up the album and Riko's song to end the album. It was different from the usual Cure's songs all in a row then we move onto the other songs. I'm very disappointed in the lack of a group song between the three Cures as I was more disappointed when I realized that Magic Âla・Thanks! was a childish group song and not one of those really good songs like Conditions of Being a Princess and Happiness is the Password ~Yes! Happiness Charge!~.

Riding Towards Our Dreams Together♪
Riding Towards Our Dreams Together♪ is Asahina Mirai's song and it suits her perfectly. Not only that, it was the best song to put as number one as in my own opinion, it is one of the best songs on the album. It has a fun and memorable tune as I haven't listened to this song in forever, and as I write this sentence, I am singing the song to myself! I love this song even more when I read the lyrics. They are so beautiful. I personally think that Mirai is singing to Riko about how much she loves her and is so glad she had met her. What makes it even more obvious that she is singing to Riko are these two lines:

''I want to definitely find that missing thing tomorrow As two people are better than one, you know''

Remember episode 1 when Riko says she is okay with finding this "important thing" alone and Mirai stands there for a few moments before catching up with Riko and tells her that two people are better than one when it comes to finding that something? That scene? I squealed when I translated this because it was so cute and such a nice throwback! I am so glad Misao Yuki wrote the lyrics! Misao Yuki is brilliant at writing things like this! Takahashi Rie is brilliant as always when it comes to portraying Mirai and her singing voice is on point! These voice actors are amazing at doing something like this!

Sparkling☆100 Carats of Miracles
Sparkling☆100 Carats of Miracles is a duet between Cure Miracle and Cure Magical and it is a beautiful song but not my favourite song on the album. This song is a brilliant representation of their relationship of the Cures and I love how they mention their different Styles in the chorus. So, thumbs up, Kumiko! There really isn't much to talk about for this song as it is just an alright song. It's not outstanding or brilliant, it's just one of those nice songs you can listen to now and then. One amazing thing about this song is the instrumental break before the final chorus. Did you guys notice that it is exactly like their Dia Style transformation theme? That was really unexpected and I was impressed. Thumbs up to that Hiroshi!

The Secret♡Dream Waltz
The Secret♡Dream Waltz is Mofurun's song and once again, it isn't my favourite. It is very childish, which suits her very well but this really isn't something I enjoy listening to. Saito Ayaka is amazing at speaking and singing in a high pitched voice but I am not a fan of singing voices like that. They make me cringe and turn the song off as it makes my ears hurt. But I got through it and it is definitely not my type of song. I love Mofurun but her song ain't for me. I do like the lyrics for the song though. It is very cute because of how Mofurun sings about playing with the other toys while Mirai sleeps but when she wakes up, all the toys probably go back to staying still and Mofurun says "good morning" to her. This reminded me of Toy Story a lot!

Sparkle!
Sparkle! is Kotoha's song and it is a memorable song but it isn't my favourite~ I don't hate it, it's such a fun song to sing along to as well as listen to, but there just happens to be better songs then it. The song suits our childish Kotoha very well. Kotoha is a child at heart and this song does a very good job at showing that. And I think she is singing to her dear Mirai and Riko who she loves dearly. It is kind of obvious that she does because of some lyrics:

''Let's be together I would hate to not be with you guys''

Obviously Kotoha isn't a fan of being away from Mirai and Riko who are probably like her parents in her eyes. That is probably how a child thinks as who wouldn't want to be with their parents? Hayami Saori does an amazing job at portraying this childish girl and my god, her voice when she sings as Cure Felice. More on that later!

Happy! Lucky! Lovely DAY!
'''Happy! Lucky! Lovely DAY!''' is a group song sung by Jun, Kay and Emily. It is a catchy song, enjoyable to listen to but I got sick of it easily. And my god, Jun's singing is terrible! Who told this girl to sing? But whatever, I can ignore that as Kay and Emily are good singers. Wait? Kay and Emily? They both sing? They sound exactly the same! There is no way to know who is singing which part with these two girls. The song isn't that memorable in my opinion. I can't really remember the tune and I personally think it didn't need to exist. I really think this should have been the spot for the Cure's group song but no~ Toei gave these guys a song instead. The lyrics are okay - they give us an idea of the Magic World but it sounds so much like the human world that it is still meh.

Your Own Magic
Your Own Magic is Kochou's song and excuse me as I go to bed as this song is a snooze fest. The song is really boring that I'm not a fan. I'm not a fan of slow songs. I dislike ballads because they're so slow and meh that I tend to just skip them within seconds. But, I do like some ballads if the tune is ear catching enough. However, this song is a typical ballad like song that I skip right past. The only good thing about it are the lyrics as they're very beautiful. But I just now, find myself trying not to get bored as I read them. I do know that Kochou is singing to Mirai and Riko, though. Very interesting, Kochou...

Beauty of truth
Beauty of truth is a song sung by Batty and Sparda with some dialogue spoken by Gamettsu. This song is actually quite interesting. This is pretty much my guilty pleasure. I love the jazz vibe that comes off and my god, Sparda's voice is deep and so good to listen to!! Same with Batty's singing voice. It isn't the best villain song out there but, it is pretty unique as I can't remember any other jazz like songs in the franchise. I am a little surprised that Batty, Sparda and Gamettsu got a song together as they hardly interacted with each other at all and they didn't even like each other! Gamettsu shouldn't really be in this song. He does nothing but talk. I wished he was singing as well. I have a theory they tried to make them sing but his voice actor wasn't the best singer so they gave up and told him to talk instead. I'll be so happy if I'm right!

Words of an Emerald
Words of an Emerald is Cure Felice's song and my god, this is the best song on the album! Why do the late comers always get the best songs? Everything about this song is amazing. From Saori's voice to the amazing instrumental. I find myself singing along the second the song starts playing and that my friends - is a good thing. I don't really know Cure Felice that much except for the fact that she is more calmer than her alias, Kotoha. These lyrics I'm going to assume suit her but one line has got me thinking:

The words from the princesses makes me believe in magic

Um, what princess? Wait, "princesses"? Are there many princesses in the Mahou Tsukai world? Does Felice know the Go! Princess team? I know I shouldn't be thinking too hard about this but come on! Maybe Ha-chan sees Mirai and Riko as princesses? Hmm, that might be plausible...

Saori is an amazing voice actress and she is nailing her role as Ha-chan. As Felice, she sounds nothing like when she was Kotoha. All traces of child-ness is gone and now Felice sounds more grown up. And it is amazing how Saori does this all by herself. And when she sings, she sounds perfect for our mature Felice who sounds like she ready for a fight! Okay, maybe not but she sounds epic and beautiful all at the same time!

Linkle☆Melodies
Linkle☆Melodies is a "bonus" song sung by Kitagawa Rie. And it is wonderful. I love this song so much because the melody is so pretty to listen to and Rie's voice is amazing. The choir in the background really gives that magical vibe unlike all the other songs we have heard. Remember how I complained about the lack of witch like vibes in the songs for Mahou Tsukai? Well, it seems like Toei heard me and made this song suit what this series is about. The lyrics are alright but I'm a little unsure of what sort of message Omori Shoko was trying to convey. However, that is okay as I can ignore that little factor because the song and Rie's voice is so fascinating and amazing.

Aspire to Ride with Magic
Aspire to Ride with Magic is Riko's song and it is so beautiful but not the best song to keep my interest. However, it is memorable as I can still remember the lyrics! The song very much suits Riko and the lyrics do a very good job at conveying Riko's personality. I interpret this song as Riko being able to do her best, despite failing, because of Mirai. That's right! Just like how Mirai sings to Riko, Riko sings to Mirai. Need some evidence~?

''It was not a coincidence that we met that day Even if I failed, we just laughed We tightly hold hands as we are really strong''

Is it a coincidence that these two both mention when they first met? Probably? Who knows but if I am correct, these two did laugh when Riko made some mistakes. And my lord, they do hold hands tightly, tighter than Cure Black and White do! Even though, Cure Miracle and Cure Magical are weaker than Cure Black and Cure White in my honest opinion. No one can beat Cure Black and Cure White in terms of strength!

Horie Yui's voice is a nice voice, I've heard her normal singing voice, and it is so pretty! Look up "Horie Yui - Asymmetry" and you'll see what I mean. However, when she starts singing as Riko, I'm not as amazed by her voice like I usually am. But it is still amazing and she is singing as Riko so, I'm letting it slide~ When Horie Yui sings as Riko with Hayami Saori and Takahashi Rie, she sounds good, so I'm not too bothered by her singing voice.

Conclusion
If I had to describe this album, it really isn't the best vocal album in the franchise. It had it's fair share of really good songs (Riding Towards Our Dreams Together♪, Words of an Emerald and Linkle☆Melodies) but then it had some mediocre ones (The Secret♡Dream Waltz, Happy! Lucky! Lovely DAY!, Your Own Magic and Beauty of truth). I personally don't like this vocal album as much as all the others and some of the songs I called mediocre, I had kind of liked at first until I gave them another listen. I'm a little sadden by the lack of any group song for the Cures but I was ecstatic with the news of the OP and ED being absent. Now the rating, it saddens me to rate it like this, but I'm giving it a 5 out of 10 stars (★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆). It's just a really bland album which was outweighed with more "meh" songs then actually good ones. All I hope for is for better songs in the new Character&Drama Song Album and I'm sure they will be as the songs in this series had been slowly improving.

What's Next?
Hmm...it's still Mahou Tsukai related and it came out two weeks ago. Yes! That's right! Join me soon as I review, ♪Let's Sing With Everyone♪ Pretty Cure Party!!