Maltine Records, set to celebrate a decade of existence in the very near future, aren’t stopping regular activities. They are set to release their next collection (and first from a Japanese artist this year) from Tokyo’s LLLL very soon, but today all parties involved the first song from it, “Futo Subete Yume To Shiita.” The guest vocalist is a bit of surprise (well, not really if you consider Maltine’s history with idols), as Ano from the vaguely new-wave idol group You’ll Melt More, a pretty forgettable group whose most interesting moment is the song where the guy from Polysics sadly reminds us it has been 12 years since that group last exciting music. Here, Ano fits in wonderfully amongst LLLL’s slower sounds, the chirpiness of You’ll Melt More replaced with a convincing melancholy. The song itself doesn’t build up as much as it expands and retracts rapidly, drum ‘n’ bass percussion zooming in, which seems to push everything else into hyper-speed with it (see Ano’s voice, tripping over itself). That the ending isn’t a resolution…just warp speed…makes it all the better, a welcome bending of expectations. Listen above.
