Fables of Farewell (Review by Deathspark)

Onto the 46^th album, I see a familiar name. EmpathP is one of those talented producers who can make Vocaloids sing English properly, which is good news because we definitely would like to see more English songs in the Vocaloid scene. Fables of Farewell, hm… I’m curious, so I better jump right in to see what’s up.

Album: Fables of Farewell
Genre: Calm/Acoustic/Techno/Rock
Link: http://empathp.bandcamp.com/album/fables-of-farewell
Tracks: 26 Tracks
Song Highlight: Knot or Not? (Track 5) and The two met at the traffic light (Track 9)

No intros in this album, didn’t expect much.

What I like

Knot or Not? (Track 5) combines Miku’s Japanese strength and Avanna’s English advantage in one song. How was the combination? I liked it honestly. It made me feel calm, I understand a few things here and there, and Avanna was actually doing well in this song. I understood every word, and Miku’s voice was charming in this song. I loved how Miku’s voice was so soft, combining with Avanna’s deep voice, making it a perfect duo. This song was so calming, so beautiful, it could make me cry if used at the right time, such as a good dream, sort of.

The two met at the traffic light (Track 9) was amazing, like, extremely charming. The singers were Miku and, Namida? Apparently, this is another Vocaloid that just isn’t famous, even I didn’t know! Here, a quick look at her! If I didn’t know her, then I believe she’s extremely rare. When I mean rare, I mean not many people know her. I love this song, I loved how the duet went so well, like they were meant for each other. Apparently the artist made it because he got a car accident, ouch. Anyway, I loved how this song felt so calm and beautiful, it reminds me of an extremely happy/sad scene from a movie. Judging from its subtitles, I can safely assume that I can put this song to its proper use!

What I don’t like

Unluckily, there are certain songs I’m not a huge fan of, which is not surprising because it’s Vocaloids singing English, they can’t be perfect. Looking at the date, 2013 when this album was released, I can cut some slack on the English songs, so I won’t comment too much about it. Avanna is an English focused Vocaloid, not the best, but I won’t say she can’t do the job well either. She’s not very famous, so I’m not surprised if you don’t know her.

To be fair, this song was released just, this year. So, cut some slack, experimentation is needed to master something. I’ll be fair again however, the song above is more focused on nightcore/rave-ish feelings, so not much of Avanna, but I will agree that pronunciation of Avanna in this song is good, at least it’s tolerable if you ask me.

However, there are actually Japanese songs in this album, therefore I can pass judgement the way how I always should. The songs weren’t really attractive enough for me. They were either dull or not very good, so that’s all I’ll say about them. If I didn’t like them, it falls here anyway.

A few exceptions I’d like to make since I hoped that the song was done vocally with a real human instead. Second Star (Track 4) would be much better I believe if a real vocalist took on this song. This song was apparently sang by, Oliver? Another not so popular song, but seriously, I thought the singer was a girl. Snap, do we have a Justin Bieber for Vocaloids…? Anyway!

I actually liked Miku’s English version, huh. Miku can take on English, a little… Anyway, where can we find a real vocalist…? Well, I didn’t find a proper one, a good example, so I’ll just say, I’ll stick to the Miku version. But honestly, still not the best. Good try however!

Anonymous (Track 6) was alright, but even with Anonymous feat. Kenji-B (Track 10), I couldn’t truly enjoy it, sadly, but I have a feeling some of you may like it, so please give it a shot!

Conclusion

Take notes! Tracks 17 – 26 are instrumentals. I don’t intend to review them because I’ve already talked about the originals. However, I will say that some of them are good for background sounds, especially if you need a certain song for a game or something! Take notes, especially on songs like Goodbye to a Childhood Friend (instrumental) [Track 18], Second Star (instrumental) [Track 20], Knot or Not? (instrumental) [Track 21], merry-go-round (instrumental) [Track 24] and Leaving Donna (instrumental) [Track 26].  The two met at the traffic light (instrumental) is very situational, so give it some thought on these songs!

Anyway, this album features a lot of calm songs and a pinch of variety here and there. Highly recommended if you’d like a taste of a few unfamiliar Vocaloids!

Should you buy this album? : Perhaps? (70%)
Will Deathspark buy this album? : Might want to think about it… (55%)

It’s noteworthy, but I won’t say it’s extremely good, so I’ll safely say I don’t mind paying for this.

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