BEYOOOOONDS - 眼鏡の男の子

BEYOOOOONDS - 眼鏡の男の子

Lyrics (作詞): Hoshibe Sho (星部ショウ)
Compositions (作曲): Hoshibe Sho (星部ショウ)
Arrangements (編曲): Okubo Kaoru (大久保薫)



I think this is the first traditional Japanese + idol music song H!P has dropped in a while. I know for a fact its the last one I have heard since Doitsukoi by Kobushi Factory (which was another Hoshibe Shou song (although I did not know that back then). My Japanese culture knowledge is… limited and I’m not exactly sure how to place this song. It gives me major Ondo vibes, but it may just be mis-placed Meiji period music or something. I have no idea. I just know the music is familiar and very associated with traditional Japanese music. The main rhythm in both the percussion and the melody really gives me Ondo vibes.

Ondou music examples (ondo is a style of folk music、its a kind of minya)

This song is the debut song of the theater focused Beyooooonds, the super group made from 3 smaller groups. It has a a short drama paired with a song, its a great concept. The new group Beyooooonds is holding some of the future utahime’s of H!P. Most notably, imo, Yamazaki Yuhane. If you like vocalists, pay attention to her…

The lyrics for this song are so great, a cute little number about having a crush on a guy the protagonist knows nothing about and has not met. A typical H!P protagonist as she ends up not being with the guy who she fancies. She wanted to take his glasses off herself and see his naked face, but another girl does it first. Then when she sees the naked face (and the supposed girlfriend), she plays it off by saying he looked better with the glasses on.

The aesthetics of the video are to die for. Its like Showa era Josei or shoujou manga. Straight up Flower Comics!

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Song Structure

76 BPM
Narration
Drama

Intro - 5 bars (½ bpm)
Intro - 8 bars
verse 1a - 8 bars
verse 2a - 8 bars
chorus 1a- 8 bars
chorus 1b - 8 bars
post chorus 8 bars -
pump up - 8 bars
rap - 8 bars
verse 1b - 8 bars
verse 2b - 8 bars
chorus 2a - 8 bars
chorus 2b - 8 bars
silence - 1 bar
bridge - 12 bars (½ bpm)
chorus 3b - 8 bars
re-loop 2 bars
chorus 4a - 8 bars
chorus 4b - 8 bars
outro - 8 bars (starts with the carry over Jyan from the chorus)

Bridge notes
line 1 - bass A B E D G
Line 2 - bass A C E A, B Eb, E B E, Eb D, A G B
Line 3 - bass C, B Eb, E Eb D, G,
Line 4 - bass A B C B C, A B C A B D E

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Composition

The melody is in a minor pentanoic scale of E. It consists of the notes (E G A B D E). I’m sure there is a Japanese name for this scale, because I’ve heard it so often, but I don’t know it atm…

So this song is amazing, the genius of Hoshibe Shou! Anyways, so the song goes through about 4 or 5 aesthetic changes. From Japanese folk music to idol pop and even R&B! OMG… So the song, composition-wise, is mostly just a simple bass line and a wonderfully rhythmic melody. It has the “matsuri beat” in the rhythm of the melody. That matsuri beat is so infectious. Its on the same level as some African beats. But its fantastic for sure. The bridge is the most spectacular composition feat, he starts with the pentatonic scale we have been in the whole song and he slips into western music scale and then back to the pentatonic all in the bridge.

I think this song is a testament to the power of the basics. There is nothing that Shou does composition-wise that is super fancy (besides the bridge). Although I will admit that the song structure is quite complex with a variety of “sections” just thrown in because it suited Shou’s fancy. Playing the song is easy. However, Shou’s genius is shown by how he is arranging these simple parts in a way that is breath-taking. The bass and the melody are very simple. The bass line can be learned in seconds. But its the lyrics and the rhythm that give this song its life.

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Arrangement

This song had a nice variety of instrumentation because of the genre hopping it did. We start off with the synth shinobue, taiko, hyōshigi, and sanmisen. Then moves to a digitally produced sound. That keeps the bassline and the melody to create a journey that is fantastic.