Review: Screw- BRAINSTORM

Tracklist:

1. BRAINSTORM

2. Fester

3. L'Oiseau bleu

4. 雨夜ノ独奏者

I really dislike the PV to BRAINSTORM, I don't think it does anything for the song or for Screw for that matter, however, apart from that, BRAINSTORM itself is actually a pretty decent song. The most intriguing part of this song for me is the soft music and spoken vocals in the introduction. I do think that the main riff to this song (mainly 0:42 to 1:02), along with the chorus are both quite catching. The instrumentals and vocals are equally good, the guitar solo caught my attention, and I especially enjoy the guitar/drum/bass lines from 2:13 to 2:31, as well as the skip in music at 2:48. Having said that, I consider this a nice song, I mean I like it, but it's also......almost a little dull, not Screw's best work, I'd say it's right along the same lines as their last three or four title tracks. Well-played, relatively catchy, but not outanding.

I really have to say how appreciative I am of Fester. Going from BRAINSTORM to this is like recieving instant gratification. While I don't think that this a particularly amazing song, there is an immediate skyrocketing of liveliness, which I have to say, I was longing for the entire first track. I can feel the energy and everything is so much more pumped up, even the vocals. My favorite part: 1:27 to 1:42, it's a subtle break in the heavy instrumentals and I also very much like the drum and guitar lines here. And though I'm not normally in like with songs comprised of a lot of screaming, I actually really enjoy that element of the song, along with the more or less "rapped" parts.

Now, I don't love L'Oiseau bleu, there is one thing about it that I find a slightly irking (only because that's automatically the first thing I'm drawn to). Upon approaching the first "When I close my eyes, I can/can't see your face" chorus perhaps Screw could act a  little more cautiously, it seems like they just kind of jump into it, and it's a bit of an awkward transition. However, there is something about this song that I find quite captivating. First of all, I like the chorus, it's kind of heart-wrenching. and the lyrics are lovely and frankly, rather sad. Second, I think the intrumentals are very well done, some of the best being from 1:23 to 1:55, which contains some nice drumming and some that Spanish-style guitar that I find has been cropping up in a lot of J-Rock music lately. There is also a great dual guitar line playing underneath the chorus, as well as (of course) the guitar solo, which is definitely noteworthy. And finally, I think these are some of Byo's better vocals, at least on this single.

Lastly, if I've ever heard a swing-based instrumental song, it's  雨夜ノ独奏者. In that aspect this song is very well done, and I whole-heartedly enjoy it. One great thing about most swing-esque songs is that the bass line tends to be very prominent, and is especiallly prevalent during the introduction/conclusion and underneath the chorus, thus making that my favorite part of this.Unfortunately, I think that outside of his screamed/growled sections (i.e. 2:24 to 2:37), Byo's vocals fall a bit flat this time. In essence, I would absolutely love this song if.....the vocals were different?

Conclusion: I really like Fester. Yeah.

My Grade:  3.5/5