[1994] IKKO (Ikuko Kawai) - Self-titled || Full Album

Tracklist: 1. REJOICE [0:00] 2. STRIKE THE STRINGS [5:08] 3. NIGHT IN BLUE [10:30] 4. MELISMATA [16:04] 5. HEAVEN ~ FRIDAY'S CLASSICS [21:47] 6. Ame wa Yami-sou ni mo Nai [28:39] 7. Aishite Mangetsu [32:26] 8. Saigo no Kuchizuke [37:33] 9. Motto, Anata ni Chikazukitai [42:52] 10. Fere no Koujou nite [46:23] 11. REPRISE [49:12] Arranged by: Shiro Sagisu (1~11) Martin Lascelles (1, 3) Keiichi Oku (4) Tsuneyoshi Saito (7) Ripped/scanned from my CD copy An acquaintance of mine had asked me about this album long long ago, as apparently there weren't any full rips of it online during the time of purchasing? Maybe like a sample or two but that's really it. Anyways, this is an interesting release that contains house-styled tracks for the first half and pop/synthpop for the second half. I'm not actually that big of a fan of anything Sagisu did past the 80s (with a few exceptions), but this exceeded my expectations a little bit. The first half isn't bad but it does get repetitive rather quick—I think I'd have to be in a certain mood to want to listen to them. "HEAVEN ~ FRIDAY'S CLASSICS" is super good though, probably the only track from that bunch that I really like. The second half? Probably the most surprising, because vibe-wise it is EXTREMELY different from the first half. The tracks here IMO are actually a lot better, especially "Ame wa Yami-sou ni mo Nai" and "Saigo no Kuchizuke". The last two tracks of the second half (before the "REPRISE") are good closers as well—in conclusion, I honestly wish the first half of the album had the same type of music as the second half. Would have definitely enjoyed it a lot more otherwise. Anyways, enjoy!