You can see that the packaging says Neowing.... yup, I got one of my friends to carry this back for me from Japan so that I could save on the shipping cost. :D Unfortunately though, as you will see in later photos, the jewel case got a little cracked in her luggage even though she was nice enough to leave it in it's original packaging to try and protect it somewhat. But since this was a favour, I couldn't ask her to hand carry this and since the CD itself is fine, then it's okay with me. I'm not that anal. :)
This is the OST for the NHK historical documentary series on various episodes in Japan's history. I've watched a few episodes but it doesn't come with English subtitles and my Japanese isn't good enough to comprehend quite a bit of what is being said. The music for the series is mostly Western Classical, Eastern Classical, Rock, Pop, New Age and World Music thrown in the mix. It's really good stuff if you like good genre mixing. I, and at least two of my friends in Japan, really like the music for Rekishi Hiwa Historia and this was a CD I was always going to buy. The only reason why I didn't pre-order this was because I was feeling a little broke when it was released and also because it's a minor release, hence, no first press bonuses that I just had to have. :P
The music isn't HUGELY different from any of the previous Rekishi Hiwa Historia OSTs which isn't surprising since this is OST3 of a series so the music isn't going to be jarringly different from it's predecessors. That said, there are enough differences in the tracks and several stand out tracks that I already liked on first listen. If you like soundtracks, instrumentals, dramatic music and this kind of genre mixing music then it's more of the same good stuff and definitely worth picking up if you're a fan.
The vocalists featured on this release include Kajiura Yuki herself, Kalafina, Yuriko Kaida and Remi who's also associated with Sound Horizon. Kalafina's been involved in Rekishi Hiwa Historia's soundtrack in some form or another since the first release. On this CD, they provide the vocals for the opening theme song "Storia" and the ending theme song "Yume no Daichi". "Storia" is one of the vocal unit's earliest song but the version included in this release is the TV version which has not been official released on CD till now. Yuriko Kaida is a Kajiura Yuki regular and has featured in a ton of her releases since the days of Noir.... maybe even before, I'm not sure. Remi is a new addition to Kajiura Yuki's list of vocalists. She was also involved in the Sword Art Online ost and is the vocalist that Kajiura Yuki used the most in this soundtrack.
The above are all the rest of the un-boxing photos. Like I said, it's pretty bare-bones. There isn't a single photo of Kajiura Yuki or any of the vocalists on the front and back covers, and also none in the insert booklet. There is a short message written by Kajiura Yuki and a 1 1/2 page message written by the Chief Producer of the series. The design is also not a huge departure from the previous OST releases.
But if you like this kind of music, then this is a CD you will buy for the music and not for the packaging. This won't be moving hundreds of thousands of copies since instrumental OST albums rarely do but for the Kajura Yuki fan and those of us who like this part of her music as well, this is quite a treat. :)
Oh... as I am writing this, I am listening to the OST and Kalafina's Yume no Daichi just came up. Lovely harmony!!! This song was not instant love for me. It did take a little time to grow on me but listening to it now... I can't help but just love the amount of layering and how their three voices just complement each other so well. Lovely!!
Also, my usual line... if you can afford this release and if you like the music, then please do buy this album to support both Kajiura Yuki and Japanese music industry. :)
Click this link to go to the place I usually get my CDs from. :)
Rekishi Hiwa Historia OST 3
Also.... in case you didn't know, you can preview samples of every track on this CD on that page as well. Although, in my opinion, the samples don't do the tracks justice.
I also bit the bullet and ordered the Hanako to Anne OST CD, the FictionJunction Nanri Yuuka BD and Ieiri Leo's "a boy" live BD. Those plus the Kalafina THE BEST "Red"/"Blue" albums and the Kalafina "Heavenly Blue" single are going to make me sooooo broke... hence, no Radwimps live for me. :'( I'm still considering flumpool's live though because that's in August and I think I may be able to afford it by then.
Okay.... time to sleep, I definitely need to sleep soon. I didn't sleep well last night at all and I had a horrid time at work as a result... so I need to try and do some catch up now. I hope you enjoyed this post. You can probably tell that I had a bit more time on my hands this time since it's not just a wall of photos you see. :P Okay... time to go... :P oyasumi. :)
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