Little Glee Monster - Hokago High Five iTunes single

Artist: Little Glee Monster
Title: Hokago High Five
Release date:  29 OCT 2014
Type: single
Version: iTunes

Packaging: None. The cover is aACll that the iTunes version has of the booklet.

Tracks:

1. 放課後ハイファイブ (Hokago High Five)
A great song to headline the group's major debut release with the fun of the song and of course plenty of chances for the girls to show off their vocals. There is a great amount of energy with the song and it has an oldies vibe to it. It is also really catchy and just a joy to listen to overall.

2. 空は見ている (Sora wa Miteiru)
This is the song that the girls sing for the video that they made with the cups. I believe this is one of their more shared videos so fans should be familiar with it. And if you wanted the song that was featured in it you now can. This was the song that had me in love with the group so I was beyond ecstatic to find it on this release. The girls' voices are front in center in this one that keeps the instrumental simple so you have no trouble hearing the harmonizing. It is a really nice mid-tempo song that I am still just completely in love with.

3. ダイアモンド (Diamond)
This is probably the most contemporary J-pop sounding song on the single and helps just show the range of the group. They sound great in the song and I love that it has a bit of a "cool" sound to it and the girls' voices do well to match it as most have those deeper voices that make them sound more mature than they are. It has a nice energy to it even though it is not a light and poppy song. Really enjoy this one, but then again I have loved all the original songs this group have been given so far.

4. I Want You Back
The song from the Jackson 5 that at least in the U.S. has a recent surge in popularity once again thanks to being a part of the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack. Of course the film had not been released in Japan by the time this was released so the inclusion of it may have been a coincidence, or the producers of the group have an ear tuned to the U.S. market. In either case it is a nice cover from the group and a good fit for the group considering their ages. It is also one of their English covers that has some pretty good pronunciation so it does not sound very Engrishy.


Overall: A strong major debut from the group that really gives fans a good idea of the group's own style. Their mini-album was mostly just covers so this is a nice switch with only one song being a cover and the rest being original songs. It also helps show that the group can do much more than song covers.

Just really loved this whole single and cannot wait for their next single that will be coming out in March. There is really little else that I can think of to say about this release other than how much I loved it. I just hope more and more people discover this group, especially with the collaborations they are doing, as I hope to be following this group for many years to come.