ON REPEAT

GHOST - Hoshimachi Suisei 𝅘𝅥𝅮

"I'm sure even my silhouette is transparent, its form misshapen
But at least I can scream until my voice gives out
Even as I cling to it desperately, it will be my proof
See? I'm just like a ghost"

i don't listen to much hololive music. i only really consistently like IRyS' stuff (since she's my oshi). admittedly, i don't keep up much with the non-EN side of hololive since there are too many streamers to keep up with. but the past few months i've been dipping my toes into the playlist that contains the entirety of hololive's music. haven't listened to much but i haven't found much i really love.

i originally found GHOST through IRyS' cover. i listened to the first few seconds and knew i was in for something crazy, so i stopped to look for the original.

i've never seen any of suisei's streams before so i came in with no expectations of her voice.

and... wow.

i'm totally blown away by this song. it's incredible.

the pacing kinda feels like an anime OP but also has the structure of j-rock songs that i love. the backing guitar uses these beautiful extended chords, like in math-y emo type rock (i'm thinking tricot and such).

the bassline and drums are fucking AWESOME(!!!). good bass is an easy way for me to be onboard with a track. i don't pay attention to drums much but hooooly. drums set the pace in this track so well. i especially love how, in the first part of the chorus (1:07), the drums roll and roll and roll, release, hold steady, then the song crescendos into the resolution. amazing.

those aforementioned rolling drums have the arpeggiated synth fluttering atop, and suisei's vocals feel like they take flight.

another touch i love is during the second verse (1:50). the filtered drum break phases into bright guitar with that delayed effect. all atop that incredible bassline.

i've been going off about the instrumental, but i can't understate how amazing suisei's voice is in this track. it softens and swells so precisely, and her use of vibrato is tight. her vocals become so powerful at climactic moments. at 3:45, before the chorus, her singing swells, then drops off. that pause really brings the impact for the last chorus, and she beautifully goes out with a bang.

anyways, i don't really know how to end this. i really love this song and have cried to it a few times -- it's really incredible and i can't believe i haven't found it sooner. i'll continue to keep up with suisei and i'm happy that she sees the success that she does; she deserves it.

give it a listen:

published 2022-12-20

tags: music, review, hololive, vtuber

DISCLAIMER: i am not a writer or a critic. i just like writing about stuff i like. dont mind the grammatical errors.