RTS15 Roundup

Another event has arrived! This year seems like a quieter year, with no new official releases by ZUN. I was hoping for a new Sealing Club album, but not this time…

On the Western side of things, we have:

• Fearless Desire, an album by Sieudiver that also features a bunch of other artists. Find the official site here!
• Broken Borders, the final release by Matutinum Miserabilis. You can find it here!
• WHAT’S GOOD, by Find Your Way. Listen to the demo here.
• Probably some more albums. If I’ve left you off, leave a comment and I’ll add you here!

I’m skipping this event, unfortunately: I’m trying something new, and it needs a bit more time to be polished up. By an unknown coincidence, Diao ye zong is also skipping this event. RD did write a track from nayuta’s new album, though.

What albums will I be buying from this event? At the moment, it’s looking like my definite purchases are ShinRa-Bansho’s 2 new albums, Iroha-ya’s album, and touhoujihen’s new album. I will also pick up TOHO BOSSA NOVA 7 if it has a digital release. After that, I’m considering Lampcat’s album and Bartender Reimu 4.

本リストは好みの順にランキングしていません。

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1. ONSEN PROJECT’s “ORIENTAL-GIRLFRIEND”

XFD || Official Site

i was so sure that sui-ten would be this circle’s only album but it isn’t and whoa whoa i am freaking out right now it sounds so good

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2. ShinRa-Bansho’s “Synchro 2” (シンクロ2)

XFD || Official Site

This is the second compilation album of ShinRa-Bansho’s event-limited singles. That’s a pretty loose description, though, since 3 of the tracks are brand new. The demo wasn’t out while I was writing this, so I can’t gush about how good it sounds, but it’s not too big of a deal.

The circle also released its first original album, キラメキ居残り大戦争 (Kirameki Inokori Daisensou). The theme is sport vs. culture, or Ayaponzu* vs. Ayo. Sorry Ayaponzu*, but I’m with team Ayo for this one…

Finally, ShinRa-Bansho covered ‘Share the World’ from One Piece for the Shonen Jump tribute album 週間少年J～友情と努力と勝利のアニメソングトリビュート. The original is one of my least favourite openings, but kaztora makes it sound great and kind of jazzy.

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3. Iroha-ya’s “Iroha-ya Collection”

XFD || Official Site

I discovered this circle a few events ago through their album ‘Nothing is Over.’ I bought it on a whim and it fast became my favourite Old Adam/Dr Latency arrangement album (or should that be the only album…?). The circle is back with another release, and this one is a compilation album of past hits. It’s the perfect album for me since Nothing is Over is the only album by them that I own. It’ll be a great way for me to become familiar with their back catalogue.

If that isn’t enough, the second disc features remixes of Iroha-ya tracks! It’s a star-studded lineup featuring Foxtail Grass Studio, As/Hi, and Cajiva’s Gadget Shop, amongst others.

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4. “TOHO BOSSA NOVA 7,” published by ShibayanRecords

XFD || Official Site

7 years. 7 bossa nova albums. Some people may be getting tired of these by this point, but I know I’m certainly not. It’s hard to say what sets this one apart from the others, since each album features a different set of arrangers.

We’ve got 3 vocal tracks, and 2 of them have been arranged by Shibayan. He’s spoiling us this time!

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5. touhoujihen’s “ComfortLove”

XFD || Official Site

Only 3 tracks this time, but they sound so cool! The official site calls this album’s sound ‘sweet, sweet love rock.’ I think that’s a pretty accurate description. Even though it’s love rock, it’s not as peppy as ヤサシイウタ (A Kind Song). Instead, it has a tough core, emphasised by track 2, and track 3 feels almost DnB.

Is this a new direction by NSY? If it is, I’m more than happy with it. I want to stay on this train!

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6. Lampcat’s “one for all”

XFD || Official Site

It’s a new circle!

At least, I think they’re new. This circle is led by a person called sasakusa, and it features vocalists Norin (のりん) and Ukuna (うくな). The production values are through the roof. The crossfade video is so professionally done, and according to sasakusa’s Twitter, the album has actually been advertised on the street…?

Sound-wise, it’s cute but with a bit of bitterness hidden beneath the surface. I was a little on the fence, but after listening to the demo and ‘autre’ a couple of times, I’m hooked. This circle is now my new obsession.

You can listen to the full version of ‘autre’ here.

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7. Cajiva’s Gadget Shop’s “Encounter Xanadu Battle (EXB)”

XFD || Official Site

This is dark. Almost haunting.

This album features arrangements of the extra boss’ themes (and also Desire Drive, because why not). Most of the tracks are remastered versions of past tracks, but there are some new ones in there, too. We’ve got the usual vocal samples, along with the usual tribal house sound, but everything sounds polished and effective. The first track stands out to me, along with the sixth track.

Cajiva’s Gadget Shop just so happens to have a BOOTH shop, where you can pick up digital copies of past releases! Convenient!

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8-10. DDBY’s RTS15 collection

All demos available on DDBY’s official YouTube channel

We have three really solid releases from DDBY this time! The one on the left is the third in the ‘Wilderness Pilgrim’ series (荒野の旅人). It’s a Sealing Club album, and all the tracks have a traditional, acoustic feeling to them, though a bunch of different genres are represented. The second track reminds me of something from Xenoblade Chronicles, and since that has one of my favourite soundtracks I’m right on board.

The album on the top right is ‘All the Tracks are Battle Arrangements’ (全曲バトルアレンジ). It’s a very functional title but it’s pretty much a continuation of the ‘Gensokyo Drive’ series, which in my mind is a continuation of the ‘Synth de Touhou’ series. More importantly, it’s a Highly Responsive to Prayers album! How cool is that? Some of the harmonic choices make me feel a bit uneasy so I’m not as fond of this one, but I love the vibe.

Finally, we have Bartender Reimu 4. This is also a Highly Responsive to Prayers arrangement album! It’s a lounge/jazz album, and the demo is very promising. It’s slightly more expensive than the other 3 at 1500 yen, but it also comes with woodwind sheet music for tracks 7 and 8. If you cover it, the circle wants you to send an email with a link to the video and your Twitter handle, and they’ll feature the video on their website.

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11. TUMENECO’s “Re:TMNC Acoustic Collection”

XFD || Official Site

This album features acoustic arrangements of past TUMENECO songs, as well as re-recordings of tracks featured in past albums in the re:TMNC series. Some of them are overlapping: for example, this must be the third time we’ve seen Auld Lang Syne. I love that track, so I could listen to a dozen versions and not get tired, though!

I think there are some new tracks in there, but don’t take my word for it. If Renko x Merry is your thing, you can’t go wrong with this, since even the non-Sealing Club tracks are about the Sealing Club.

That album art is so adorable, too!

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12. “Fairy Tale” by 彩音 ～xi-on～

XFD || Official Site

I’ve written about some of xi-on’s albums before, but I’ve never really paid close attention to them. I suppose that’s what makes this album stand out for me – the production values are quite high, and each track sounds so refreshing. This one has a country homestead in the hills feel to it. It’s very rollicking. Also, even though track 7 is an arrangement of ‘The Refrain of the Lovely Great War,’ I firmly believe that the arranger had ‘Eternal Spring Dream’ in mind the whole time. Anyway, this is a nice, relaxing album.

(It also helps that I’ve been playing Ni No Kuni II lately and this album gives me similar vibes…)

The most exciting thing is that xi-on now has a BOOTH site where you can purchase digital versions of their back catalogue! The convenience of a digital download is the sort of thing that will make me pick this up someday.

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13. wujiu’s “LOVE&CLOWNPEACE”

XFD || Official Site

I just realised I’ve been calling this circle ‘wuju’ all this time. Whoops (^_^);

I like this circle because their music is so… down to earth. It feels like the sort of music you’d listen to at a pub, with smoke drifting through the air. I find myself returning to the 4th track the most. You wouldn’t expect those two themes to sound good together, but they really do. Also, I love the whistling in the last track.

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14-15. Pizuya’s Cell’s “Event Horizon” and “縁に佇む思い出話” (Reminiscent Talk Loitering at the Edge)

[PSYC-0024] XFD || Official Site
[PPPP-0021] XFD || Official Site

I don’t have much to say about Event Horizon, since it’s in the gothic rock style we’ve come to expect from this circle. There’s also no classic legend track…

The piano album is also exactly what we’ve come to expect from godwood. Notably, this album is a compilation album of all the event-limited piano singles. It includes some of my favourite themes like Two Words and Phantom Factory.

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16. Speaklow’s (スピークロウ) “窮境フュージティヴ” (Predicament Fugitive)

XFD || Official Site

This has an intense k-waves lab feel to it, but it’s by a completely different circle (I think). That’s probably enough to give you an idea of what this album is – it’s full of traditional, kind of celtic arrangements. Interestingly, there are some other genres in there, like jazz, which keeps it interesting.

Having said that, I’ve included this album because it features a great arrangement of Eternal Short-Lived Reign. I love that theme.

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17-19. BUTAOTOME’s RTS15 collection

(Demos available on official sites)
[Needy] XFD || Official Site
[Wiccan] XFD || Official Site
[Peace] XFD || Official Site

BUTAOTOME is here, with not just 1, but 3 albums! The first one is ‘大貧民’ (Extreme Needy), and it’s a reference to the traditional Japanese card game Daifugō. I don’t have much to say about it, since it’s so similar to what we’ve seen from this circle before.

The second album is ‘Wiccan Music Room’ (魔女たちの音楽室). It’s a collection of smaller singles based on the three witches. It’s kind of like ‘異端審問’ (The Inquisition).

The final album is ‘Touhou Peace.’ It’s a collaboration with COOL&CREATE and TAMAONSEN, which is pretty cool.

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20. Hari Music’s “飛鳥之憶 ～ あすかのおぼえ” (Recollections of Asuka)

XFD || Official Site

I pointed this circle out a few events ago when they released an album of live recordings of their music. Unfortunately, this album doesn’t feature live recordings, but it’s a Ten Desires album so I’ll cut them some slack. Ten Desires is made for an orchestral soundscape, and I look forward to hearing an eventual live recording from the circle.

There’s so many arrangements featuring True Administrator here! Take notes, other circles!

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21. Foxtail-Grass Studio’s “つきよがたり。” (Moonlit Tales.)

XFD || Official Site

I really loved the four season collection this circle made a few years ago, but since then they’ve kind of fallen off my radar. During an event where so many circles are releasing traditional, instrumental albums, what makes a circle stand out? In this case, I like the way percussion is used, including the glockenspiel and the xylophone. It’s an area that’s easy to neglect.

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22. Konpeki Studio’s “SACRIFICE X SOUL”

XFD || Official Site

Like clockwork, Konpeki Studio has produced an album for the next main Touhou game in the series. It’s a Ten Desires album, too!

I’ve kind of paid attention to the last few releases from this circle, but this album seems much more… confident than the others. There are a few different genres in here, ranging from rock to pop, and there’s even a couple of ballads in there for good measure.

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23. Girls Logic Observatory’s “Spring Spring -Four Seasons Library vol.1-”

XFD || Official Site

Ayaponzu*!

Well, it’s not fair to just mention her. This is a pretty cool album overall! The 4th track in particular is addictive. Track 6 is also so smoooothhh…

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24. Moja stick’s “モジャが二人を分かつまで” (Until Moja Do Us Part)

XFD || Official Site

That title is so cool. Just putting that out there.

As for the album itself, it’s a Perfect Cherry Blossom only album, and there’s a mix of both male and female vocals. The tracks have so much… attitude! The album has a gritty, ‘authentic’ feel to it, which I think is really cool.

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25. TOHO no RAN’s “東方の乱第一戦、演奏音記録” (TOHO no RAN 1st Fight, Live Performance Recordings)

XFD || Official Site

This is exactly what is says on the tin – recordings of live performances. We’ve got Pizuya’s Cell, モノクロ殺人現場写真, 少女理論観測所, and 石鹸屋.

The quality’s not the best, but if you’re a big fan of those circles, it’s worthwhile to look into this album. I think songs always have a different atmosphere when they’re sung live!

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26. IOSYS’ “天空キャンディ☆スター” (Heavenly Candy☆Star)

XFD || Official Site

Asanaaaaaaaa!

This looks like a kind of collaboration album, featuring vocalists from a bunch of different circles. It’s also a Hidden Star in Four Seasons only album, which is nice.

Still, Asana is here and she’s in charge of Illusionary White Traveler, which is my favourite HSiFS track. I wish she could join ShinRa-Bansho or something…

We’ve also got a new ROCKIN’ON TOUHOU album, but Asana isn’t on there so I didn’t list it here.

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That’s it for another event! There’s a bunch of stuff I didn’t cover here, including Akatsuki Records’ new releases, TAMAONSEN’s new release, and FELT’s new release. There’s also a new Hatsunetsumiko’s release, which is sounding awesome. Let me know in the comments section which albums you’re looking forward to!