One of my favorite things about TikTok is how it has exposed me to so many cool musicians I would otherwise never get to see. This is especially true of foreign artists for me. As music listeners in the United States, we are sometimes put into a vacuum and do not pay attention to what is becoming popular around the world. TikTok has allowed me to expand my horizons and listen to all sorts of artists I would never have heard of without the app. A super cool Japanese artist that I came across last year and could not get enough of is ATARASHII GAKKO!. They are a four-member J-Pop artist(consisting of Suzuka, Rin, Kanon, and Mizyu) that debuted as a dance group several years ago. Over the better half of the last decade. ATRASHII GAKKO! Has developed into one of the most interesting and unique acts in music today. Everything about this group is riveting and important. From the way they dress to their dancing to their visuals/music videos to their lyrics, all of their art carries a deep meaning(typically centered around women and youth empowerment) that makes it so fun and engaging. From 2017-2022, ATARASHII GAKKO was pretty prolific in their output, putting out a plethora of singles and three digital albums titled Maenarawanai, Wakage ga Itaru, and SNACKTIME. In 2021, they signed with the music label 88rising to expose themselves to a Western audience. They released five very good singles in 2022(including the viral hit ‘OTONABLUE’), and they released an EP called ICHIJIKIKOKU in 2023. This EP was one of my favorite projects from last year; my mom and I even listened to it for our YouTube channel, and she was just as enthralled with it as I was(she actually ended up immediately buying ATARASHII GAKKO! merch because of how much she liked it). ATARASHII GAKKO! recently released a new album called AG! Calling, which I have been looking forward to covering. Here is how I feel about this new record. Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite songs are from AG! Calling, but also comment on how you feel about the record as a whole.
Atarashi Gakko! gets the album started on a very high-key note with the song ‘Fly High.’ This song has been popping off online over the last month or so, and it is easy to see why. ‘Fly High’ is a super intense take on Industrial Phonk Techno music. The melody for this one(if one can call it that) sounds like something I would expect to hear in a racing video game like Need for Speed. This extremely distorted melody is put over a fast-paced techno beat with an equal amount of distortion. This instrumental is pretty abrasive, but it also energizes me and is somehow sort of inviting. The vocals on ‘Fly High’ are awesome. The singing vocals on this track are solid, but I really like the rapping on the verses. Rin and Mizyu especially kill it on this one, as their over-the-top flows and inflections fit the energy of this track so well. On ‘Fly High,’ Atarashi Gakko! is talking about fighting for what you want and what you love, finding yourself, and believing that you can do whatever you want even if there are obstacles in your way. ‘Toryanse’ takes the intense Electronic of the last song and lightens it a bit. This song is still pretty hard-hitting, but it is a bit more inviting than the track that precedes it. ‘Toryanse’ has a very catchy melody that will get stuck in anyone’s head when they hear it. I enjoy the sing-songy nature of this track, as it makes ‘Toryanse’ so captivating. The beat for ‘Toryanse’ is not quite as bold and abrasive as the one on ‘Fly High,’ but it still has that tough and gritty sound that makes me want to drag race when I hear it. The vocal performances on ‘Toryanse’ are awesome. Rin and Kanon especially stand out, with Rin’s rapping giving so much life to the track and Kanon’s vocals giving the track a sweet element that is refreshing. ON ‘Toryanse,’ Atarashi Gakko! is talking about persevering through life and not letting other people or situations get you down or distract you from your goals. ‘Omakase’ has a much lighter and brighter sound than the first two tracks. Instead of having a Phonk or Techno element to it, this one feels more like Pop-House music. Weirdly, the first thing I thought of when I first heard this was one of the Reggaeton-infused House music made popular by Major Lazer back in the day. Although the melody and beat on ‘Omakase’ are pretty bright and pleasant, there are still abrasive and weird sound effects that come in and out that give the song a bit of a harsher element that makes the song pop. All of the members on ‘Omakase’ do well, but Suzuka stands out on this one. Her husky and full tone works so well with this melody; the strength in her vocals makes the song hit that much harder. ‘Omakase’ is a song that has club energy to it, which is a pretty fun and interesting thing to hear from Atarashi Gakko!. On ‘Omakase,’ Atarashi Gakko! is talking about ignoring all of the little things that get you down and dancing the night away. Atarashi Gakko! wants to let go for a night and just have fun for once. ‘Majo Yoroshiku’ has an even lighter and more pleasant sound than the song that precedes it. This is easily the quirkiest song on the record so far; I honestly do not even know how to categorize or describe this one. It is like Atarashi Gakko!’s take on 1970s Disco music. There is definitely an old-school R&B element to this track through the wind instrument-driven melody, but ‘Majo Yoroshiku’ has a very off-center beat that almost gives the song a 1990s DnB feeling. This is an extremely strange mix that I am not so sure works. I appreciate the sentiment and risk-taking on this one, but the sound is so all over the place that it almost feels anxious. I hardly even notice the vocals on ‘Majo Yoroshiku’ because of how convoluted this instrumental is, which is a shame because the vocals on this song are as great as they are on the first three tracks. On ‘Majo Yoroshiku,’ Atarashi Gakko! is singing to their fans, telling the crowd to give them back the same energy that they perform with on stage.
The intensity that we started the album with comes back in a big way on ‘Essa Hoisa.’ There is a Hip Hop element to this track that makes it stand out. The drum pattern for this one has a tempo that is somewhere between 1990s boom-bap music and a marching band(there is even a Trap section that comes in during the middle of the track). This beat makes ‘Essa Hoisa’ feel super epic; this is the kind of song to put on any workout or turn-up playlist, as it just infuses me with energy. The melody for this track is just as strong and vivid as the beat; I really love the blaring horns that provide this melody, as they make the track feel larger than life. Speaking of larger-than-life, ‘Essa Hoisa’ has my favorite vocals on the record. From the rapping from Kanon and Rin to the singing from Mizyu and Suzuka, the vocals match the energy of the instrumental and take this track over the top. On ‘Essa Hoisa,’ Atarashi Gakko! is talking about staying the course and not letting anything distract you from your goals. I wondered when the Punk Rock sound that we got on ICHIJIKIKOKU would come back, and we got it on ‘Drama,’ which features MILLI. This song has a cool and fun Pop-Punk feeling that is reminiscent of the earlier 2000s. When I hear this one, I think of artists like Yellowcard or even Franz Ferdinand. Weirdly, although I am into the Rock element of this track. ‘Drama’ does not hit as much with me as any of the first five tracks. Everything about this one is just okay to me. The instrumental is fun but nothing to write home about. The vocal performances are good(MILLI stands out for sure), but they do not live up to any of the first five tracks. I could see this one being more engaging live because of the sing-songy element of the vocal patterns on this track. On ‘Drama,’ Atarashi Gakko! and MILLI are singing about someone who makes a big deal out of everything and makes all situations out to be more important than they actually are. The Rock element that we got on the last track continues on ‘Superhuman.’ This one also definitely has a Punk Rock feeling to it, but it also has a bit of an old-school Pop-Rock sound as well. Weirdly, there is something about this track that sort of makes me think of artists like The Beach Boys or even The Talking Heads. This eccentric, retro element to ‘Superhuman’ makes this one a bit more engaging than the one that precedes it. I also do not think that ‘Superhuman’ is quite on the same level as the first five tracks, but this one does pull me in a bit more. The vocals on ‘Superhuman’ have so much emphasis, injecting the track with life and making it all the more engaging. On ‘Superhuman,’ Atarashi Gakko! is talking about how they have what it takes to get through any obstacle and challenge they come across. ‘Forever Sisters’ sees Atarashi Gakko! return to the Disco-infused Pop music that we saw earlier in the album. This one has a bit of a Dance music feeling to it as well. The synths that complement the guitar riff that drives this melody have a squeaky French House element that sort of reminds me of Daft Punk. Even though this is one of the more simple instrumentals of the album, it is also easily one of the most engaging to me. This melody and beat have a charm to them that will infuse anyone with good energy when they hear it. I love how diverse the vocals are on this one. The rapping has a bit of a gruff tone that gives some toughness to the track, and the singing vocals(especially the vocals that come from Kanon) make the song feel so bright and sweet. On ‘Forever Sisters,’ Atarashi Gakko! is singing about how close they are and how they will always be there for each other no matter what.
‘Arigato’ keeps the Funky Disco tone of the last track and injects it with a quirky show-tune feeling. This one reminds me a lot of some of Atarashi Gakko!’s biggest tracks from back in the day. It has a Jazzy element to it that is similar to songs like ‘OTONABLUE,’ which really makes it stand out on this record. As fun and strange as the instrumental for ‘Arigato’ is, the best thing about this track is the vocals. I love how the deep and husky tone of Suzuka contrasts with the higher tones of the rest of the vocals, as this makes ‘Arigato’ such an intriguing track. ‘Arigato’ is a song where Atarashi Gakko! goes back to their roots and nails it. On ‘Arigato,’ Atarashi Gakko! sings from the perspective of their fans, talking about how they are inspired by Atarashi Gakko! for their individuality and hard work. ‘Hero Show’ is the second song with that Jazzy Funk sound that so much of their music before this album had. Like ‘Arigato,’ this song almost has a show tune feeling to it; I would love to see it performed live because based on the sound of the instrumental and the vocals, I know it would be such an animated performance. The keyboard that drives this melody somehow feels retro and modern at the same time. This is a track that sounds like it could have both come out of the 1950s and the 2050s. Like so many moments on this record, the best thing by far about ‘Hero Show’ is the vocals. Suzuka especially kills it on this track, showing off her range and hitting these deep notes that help the song feel so impactful. On ‘Hero Show,’ Atarashi Gakko! talks about being in love, calling their partner a hero that makes everything in their life better and makes sense. Atarashi Gakko! closes out the record with the lead single that has been doing numbers on social media in the months since it has come out. ‘Tokyo Calling’ has the same kind of raucous industrial energy that we got on the first two tracks on the record. I was wondering when the album would go back to that boisterous sound, and it does so in the very last track. ‘Tokyo Calling’ is a massive Industrial Dance banger with an insane amount of abrasiveness and boldness. It is the kind of song that will pump anyone up when they hear it because it just has this insane energy that is so infectious. As highkey as the instrumental is, a lot of the intensity on this track comes from the vocals. Throughout ‘Tokyo Calling,’ Atarashi Gakko! shouts the lyrics, giving this song so much power and vigor and making it a super fun and fierce track. On ‘Tokyo Calling,’ Atarashi Gakko! talks about how things around them look bleak, but they still need to push through. Even if the world seems like it is getting worse and more dystopian, we need to keep hope and keep fighting for the things that we love. Atarashi Gakko! needed to close AG! Calling on a monumental note, and they were able to do so with ‘Tokyo Calling.’
One of the biggest things that has made Atarashi Gakko! so cool over the years is the charisma of its members. Up until this point, a lot of the music they have made has been strange, boundary-pushing, and eclectic, but one thing has always shined through; that is the talent and poise of Suzuka, Mizyu, Kanon, and Rin. That point is more prominent than ever on AG! Calling. In my opinion, this album was not as sonically engaging as some of the last few releases. In terms of instrumentals, I feel like AG! Calling was a bit of a step backward. There are some cool instrumentals on this record, but for the most part, I feel like this album was a bit more cookie-cutter than their past works. Maybe that is because they are trying to appeal to a wider audience, which I can understand. In doing so, I feel like a bit of the spark that made the music so interesting was somewhat lost. Still, though, this album is very entertaining because of the vocal performances. In so many instances on AG! Calling, the vocal performances are what make these songs captivating. Overall, AG! Calling does not quite live up to some of Atarashi Gakko!’s previous records, but the aura of the group’s members makes this album enjoyable for what it is worth.
EAST SIDE VIBES 