[English Translation]
Haruna Luna - "Candy lips"
Text by Hajime Kitano
Heart-pounding love story bouncing out of sweet lips!
Since her major debut in 2012, Haruna Luna has sung some songs for popular anime works like "Fate/Zero" and "Sword Art Online" (both young-adult novels). Her singles were mostly dominated by slow-to-medium numbers, including a solemn atmosphere-filled "Sora wa Takaku Kaze wa Utau (meaning The Sky Is High And The Wind Sings)" produced by Yuki Kajiura (Japanese composer and music producer), and her first album "OVERSKY" consisting mainly of ballads may give one a stronger impression that she is 'a mellow type singer'. However, this new album "Candy Lips" is an excellent collection of pop songs, focusing on the girly aspects of her, who is popular also as a 'younger-sister-esque' reader model for the Japanese fashion magazine "KERA."
Following the prologue of her sweet voice saying [(Let) ‘Candy Lips’ start♪], the album kicks off with the single "Kimiiro Signal (meaning A Signal in Your Color)," an opening song for the harem-style romantic comedy anime "Saenai Heroine no Sodatekata (meaning How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend)". The track describes a girl's uncontainable feelings that 'I’m in love with you/have a crush on you!' on the gorgeous sound with horns, which symbolizes the whole theme of the album. Including "Minna Zettai Kimi Ga Suki (meaning Everyone Definitely Likes You)" sung in an unusual babyish voice and a pop'n'roll "SU・KI・DA・YO" describing the bursting crushes on someone, heart-pounding love songs of a girl who is eager to fall in love come one after another. A brilliant electro-pop "Otome no Negaigoto (meaning Maiden’s Wish)," with words and music/arrangements by the Japanese music unit GARNiDELiA's MARiA (vocalist) and toku (composer/producer) respectively, is an interesting collaborative song, depicting the uplifting, exciting feelings a girl feels the day before going out on a date, with a 'girl's talk'-like conversation skit between Haruna and Maria in the interlude between choruses. Also included is a killer upper tune "Koi no Kigen wa 3nen, Ai no Kigen wa Nan Nen? (meaning Love Lasts 3 Years, but How Long Does True Love Last?)," in which spacy synth and slap bass lines run through in a cool way. Her various expressions appearing in the album keep my heart pounding!
Of course, 'mellow' tunes are also included. In addition to the lead singles of "snowdrop," a pretty winter ballad with music by Hidekazu Tanaka of Japanese creator group MONACA, for which Marina Kawano (Japanese female singer) made some sensational guest performance, and "Startear," an emotional medium written by Saku, Japanese female singer-songwriter who also wrote Runa's signature piece "Overfly," the ending track "Beautiful World" is a must-hear. This is an excellent piece with romantic lyrics (written by Haruna herself) projecting feelings of being in love upon the starry sky as well as with a heart-stirring structure starting with a sentimental melody and exploding into a speedy chorus, likely inspired by Japanese J-pop music group supercell's "Kimino Shiranai Monogatari (meaning The Story You Don’t Know)".
Be fascinated with her cute love songs and pearls of melody coming out of her pretty candy lips!
