For fans of Japanese music L'arc-en-ciel will be a recognisable name, in fact they will be one of the most recognisable names. The group, which formed in 1991, have been one of the most successful in Japanese history and have managed to have success not just in their homeland but internationally with notable sales in Europe, America and other parts of Asia.They might not be the most successful Japanese band but they are a big deal both at home and over-seas.
In 2012 the band had their 20th anniversary celebrated with a tribute album (well technically 2 but the less said about "Vivid Covers" the better). This album featured not only Japanese bands covering L'arc-en-ciel but also a number of internationally renowned artists such as Vince Neil (Mötley Crüe) and Boyz II Men, showing just how big the appeal of L'arc-en-ciel was.
The album kicks off with the aforementioned Vince Neil doing his own version of "Blurry Eyes". Like many of the songs on the album the Japanese lyrics have been dropped with the artists given the opportunity to re-interpret the song in their own way, which Neil has done excellently to give us a brilliant version of the track that keeps enough of the original track to be familiar but changes plenty to keep the track fresh and not become a "remake".
Following Neil's rendition of "Blurry Eyes" we then get Australian Orianthi doing her version of "Neo Universe". Again the track has been given English lyrics, as opposed to either the Japanese lyrics or translated lyrics, and it's been given a solid make over by the Aussie.
Although the first 9 tracks on the album are in English one really stands out as being something a little bit special and that's Michael Monroe's cover of "Heaven's Drive". It's the 8th song on the album but really should have been the opening track due to it's attention grabbing riffs, Monroe's amazing re-imagining of the lyrics and the way he spits them out. The track, which was originally an excellent one, is possibly the only one which has actually been improved here due to Monroe who has done a really amazing job and made the song his own.
Following the 9 English covers we then get a French cover of "Flower" by Clémentine a Japanese based French musician who has appeared on Japanese TV numerous times. To say Clémentine has re-imagined the song is an under-statement with the track only baring a small resemblance to the original though it's become a really beautiful and relaxing track. A re-working that works marvelously and shows of just how talented the Clémentine is.
After the 10 tracks which have been covered by international artist the album then features 4 Japanese re-imaginations by artists who, like L'arc-en-ciel themselves, are well known Japanese artists.
The first of the Japanese covers is by Polysics who do a cover of "Seventh Heaven". The band have put their own twist on the track by giving it a bit of a "Mr Roboto" make over, a song they had previously covered. The track is full of synth sounds and has been sped up notably adding to the Polysics feeling of the track though of course there is still a lot of the original that's recognisable.
The second of the Japanese covers is by SID who did "Shout at the Devil". They have re-imagined this though in many ways it's the weakest of the 4 Japanese covers and is unfortunately sandwiched between the Polysics track and a a tremendous Hemenway version of "Caress of Venus". If the Michael Monroe track is the best "English" re-imagining then it's hard to argue with Hemenway taking the honour for the best Japanese cover. Strangely in many ways Hemenway have incorporated a fair amount of English lyrics in their track though over-all the track is just amazing.
To close the album we end with a Totalfat version of "Driver's High". The original "Driver's High" is one of the best L'arc-en-ciel tracks and although the original is better than this version it's a perfect way to end the album. Like the original this version keeps the high pace of the original and is near identical in terms of lyrics.
As a fan of L'arc-en-ciel I've got to say that overall this album is really wonderful. It's not flawless, I wasn't a fan of several of the English version of the tracks and I'd have loved a cover of "Daybreak's Bell", though really it is picking flaws on what is a genuinely smashing tribute album to one of the most amazing Japanese bands out there.
