IKEDA introduces new SHADE 3DCG video masterpiece “AMANOJYAKU”

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Posted by :Scott On : April 15, 2013
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Category: Featured Articles, Video Reviews

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IKEDA’s little witch: searching for a magical connection to her long lost mother

377-Perverse-2VIDEO REVIEW  - Written by Scott

In early summer of 2011, Vocaloid fans were treated to a very unique hyper-realistic 3D video technology that had never before been used for Vocaloids.  It was a video called Corruption Garden, featuring Megurine Luka, produced by Vocaloid video producer IKEDA.  The detail and pure realism of the video was so advanced that it largely eclipsed almost everything that had been produced to that date.

Now, nearly two years later, IKEDA has produced another Shade 3D video, a masterpiece of cinematography and storytelling which carries the title AMANOJYAKU.  With vocals provided by Megpoid Gumi, IKEDA introduces a fairytale story with a plot that might be best described as “Touhou meets Harry Potter”.

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Hatsune Miku: We Believe

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Posted by :Scott On : April 9, 2013
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Category: Featured Articles, Video Reviews

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VIDEO REVIEW – Written by Scott

“Redial” – Music & Lyrics: kzlivetune

Director: Takashi Murakami (Kaikai Kiki)
Key Animator, Character Design: mebae
Animation Production: Kaikai Kiki Sapporo STUDIO PONCOTAN
Choreographer: Ken Maeda
Concept design for musician’s studio : STAG
Costume design, background pattern for dance scenes: galaxxxy
Editor: Hidemi Li

She appears alone, a shining smile on her face and a sparkle in her eye, surrounded by dozens of characters who are clearly frozen, caught in a morass of ambiguity, unable to express their feelings, an oasis of inspiration in a desert of indifference. She sings, she dances, and in no time the world around her begins to loosen up. The characters arrayed about begin to move and sway. The world discovers life once more.

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The Definitive MikuStar Review of the 10th MikuMikuDance Cup Competition!

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Posted by :Scott On : February 17, 2013
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Category: Music Reviews, Special Feature, Video Reviews

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Children Records

“Children Records”

MUSIC/VIDEO REVIEWS / SPECIAL FEATURE  - Written by Scott

Well it’s that time again when the final entries for the MikuMikuDance (MMD) Cup have been uploaded to Nico Nico and the creative talents of hundreds of amazing MMD artists are on display.  The twice-yearly competition, a worldwide showcase of the absolute best MMD arts, brings out the most creative, inspiring and sometimes off-the-wall offerings in 3D promotional video.

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RaikuP Shines a Brilliant Spotlight on SeeU with His New PV “Arirang”

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Posted by :Scott On : December 30, 2012
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Category: Video Reviews

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VIDEO REVIEW  - Written by: Scott

Arirang-3It seems that it’s become a memorable event every time that RaikuP releases one of his videos into the Vocaloid community.  That’s no surprise when you consider that, in a very short space of time, RaikuP has earned a reputation as one of the finest MMD producers in the world.  With that in mind I was looking forward with great relish to setting eyes on Raiku’s newest project.  Once again I was blown away.

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English Cover of Keeno’s Iconic “Glow” Delivers a Mix of Fond Memories and New Insight

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Posted by :Scott On : October 13, 2012
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Category: Music Reviews, Video Reviews

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NeruDra-P’s MikuMikuDance Band from the classic MMD PV “Glow”

MUSIC REVIEW / VIDEO REVIEW – Written by: Scott

Glow (Original Song and MMD PV)
Music & Lyrics: keeno, Movie: NeruDra-P

Glow (English Cover)
Vocal & English Lyrics: Mes, Illustration: sakir様, Background: 147様, English Movie: おむ様, Mix: むつえもん様

Fitting English lyrics into a Japanese vocaloid song is never an easy thing.  The cadence and sentence structure of the Japanese language does not lend itself well to an English translation.  It’s further complicated by the expectation that the lines within the English lyrics will form some sort of rhyming combination.  A direct translation of Japanese rarely if ever conveys the true meaning that the composer intended.  Because of this, a good English cover sometimes calls for near-psychic ability to understand what the artist wanted to say.  When all of this is factored in, it’s no surprise that there are very few fans who can pull off a successful English cover of a vocaloid song that ends up retaining both the feelings and meaning that the original artist wanted to share.

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Did You Ever Want To Hug a Song?

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Posted by :Scott On : July 22, 2012
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Category: Guest Writer, Video Reviews

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Illustration by Yunohachi (http://piapro.jp/cuma0x0), Image link: (http://piapro.jp/t/VsLN)

Phil Klitgaard practicing with Bluebird in 1970

VIDEO REVIEW / GUEST WRITER

Crescent Moon & Monster featuring Hatsune Miku

Music & Lyrics: Harry, Guitar: Naoki Harashima, Bass: Koji Kunitomo, Drums: Satoshi Fukai, Illustration: Rumina, Movie: scotch

Introduction by: Scott

VocaSource is honored to have as a guest Phil Klitgaard, who has seen the American music industry from a truly “historic” perspective as a drummer for the folk-rock/country-rock band Bluebird (later known as Grand Theft) from August, 1968 to March, 1974.  He has maintained an interest in music ever since and fell in love with Hatsune Miku when he was first introduced to her just over a year ago.  His review of Miku’s new PV is below.

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A Hyper-Realistic Hatsune Miku: High Tech Render, Low Intelligence

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Posted by :Scott On : May 26, 2012
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Category: Video Reviews

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VIDEO REVIEW – Written by Scott

The Singing Passion of Hatsune Miku (Hatsune Miku no Gekishou)

Music & Lyrics: cosMo@bousouP, Producer: Kotobuki, Animation: M-RS

In previous video reviews I have presented some of the best there was to offer in the way of vocaloid video productions.  You will usually find me raving about “this creation or that creation” and it’s true, I prefer to review the good stuff rather than the bad.  But just to prove to you that I don’t think every vocaloid video is good, I wanted to provide you with a review of one video that definitely warrants a rating on the bottom end of the scale.

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“FINAL DANCE” Hailed as the Finest Vocaloid Promotional Video Since Tripshots’ “Nebula”

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Posted by :Scott On : May 20, 2012
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Category: Video Reviews

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FINAL DANCE Tda Miku Append

VIDEO REVIEW – Written by Scott

Final Dance

Music & Lyrics: Banqo Arakawa (rest or stay?), Arrangement: kors k, Animation: Aono. Y

As a vocaloid follower and the owner of a Hatsune Miku fan site, I see a lot of videos on a weekly basis.  Though I usually don’t mention this, I generally rate each video I come across on a scale of 1 to 5, and since this is MikuStar, it made sense to use a five-star system.

Most videos are 1-star, and are quite frankly awful (enough said).  A fair number of videos can be rated 2-stars, which is marginal, meaning generally poor quality but with some redeeming feature or two.  Videos rated 3-stars are good (but perhaps have the odd technical flaw), and there are a few, perhaps one or two a week, that could be rated 4-stars, which is excellent, and certainly worthy of being part of anyone’s collection.

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A Glimpse into Miku’s World

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Posted by :Scott On : March 17, 2012
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Category: Video Reviews

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300-Tell-Your-WorldVIDEO REVIEW – Written by Scott

Tell Your World (The Official Video)

Music & Lyrics: kzlivetune, Animation: wakamuraP, fantasista utamaro and TAKCOM.

In a previous video review I had asked the question “Where does Hatsune Miku go when she is not performing?”

A cynical few might snicker at that question.  After all, Miku is just a software program, right?  Yet for the millions of fans worldwide Miku has always been so much more than that.  She embodies the collective expression of our creative dreams.  Through Miku we see the imaginative inspiration of many others, ranging from the amateur basement musician or artist all the way up to those who represent the epitome of talent in music, illustration and video, and it inspires us to be creative ourselves.  Miku fills our journey through life with beautiful music and brings joy to a world that oftentimes feels bleak and forbidding.  In all ways that matter, Hatsune Miku is indeed real, as real as she needs to be.

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VocaSource Discovers Conclusive Proof that Hatsune Miku is an Angel

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Posted by :Scott On : February 19, 2012
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Category: Video Reviews

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300-One-Way-1VIDEO REVIEW – Written by Scott

One Way featuring Hatsune Miku from the CD Armonia

Music: Aura Qualic, Lyrics: spikin (Trinity Note), Animation: TiltP, Mastering: Blue Twinkle, Doujin Circle: CC*=Style

Those who ponder the entity known as Hatsune Miku sometimes find it difficult to advance beyond the belief that she’s nothing more than a piece of software.  I wish to offer a much more uplifting explanation for her existence in this world.

300-One-Way-2Hatsune Miku is an angel.

I don’t mean metaphorically speaking. I mean the real live hallelujah thing.  And for those who doubt me, I have proof.

One might wonder where Miku goes when she is not performing.  Does she just get sucked back on to a hard drive somewhere?  Or does she reside in the musical equivalent of heaven?  Consider the facts:

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