#kazehiki beta

[odayakajanai]

Vocaloid Songs You Might Have Missed - December 2023

Welcome back to my blog. Just like that, it's the last post for the year... never mind that it's already 2024. But for this longtime fan, 2023 was the best year in ages for Vocaloid music.

Something I mentioned in an earlier entry is that so much Vocaloid music over the past few years has felt like bait for singers to cover. (And to paste their avatars over in the videos... I'm far from the first person to notice this!) I don't mention this entirely to be a hater, but to contrast with the type and quality of release I've seen this year. Many of the 'vtuber bait' songs I poke fun at are truly great and destined to live on forever in Vocaloid history, but I've always felt a difference between songs that use vocal synths in the absence of a human singer and those that lean into the synthetic nature of the voices and the characters that represent them.

Over the past few years, a renewed interest in idiosyncratic voicebanks like Adachi Rei, Utane Uta (entirely synthetic), and the MAIDLOIDs (derived from a h-game moan synthesis engine) has coincided with technological advancement: the entry of SynthV, Neutrino, and CeVIO voicebanks have been fuel for an explosion in new music -- a genuine Vocaloid renaissance.

SynthV Teto has been particularly instrumental in all this since her release in April. In mere months, SV Teto has catapulted at least one producer into online superstardom, and an associated reevaluation of UTAU Teto has seen her behind some of the biggest songs this year. Nostalgia was part of the reason 2023 was the Year of Teto, but the SynthV voicebank, which totally maintained Teto's character while shaking off the computer-y crunchiness, is an achievement well worth the fanfare it received. With December's release of SynthV GUMI, are we in for a similar treat in 2024?

Anyways, last month's post is here, and this month's is under the break.

P.S. Speaking of nostalgia... did you know that Dixie Flatline is back?

Full playlist here, individual tracks below.

心酔 / あすわど feat. 重音テト Standard voca-pop rock, but something about the stuttering drums and a finely tuned Teto is *chef's kiss* more than enough for me.

死んだっぽいぜ / クソ犬 feat. 知声 I'd never heard a Vocaloid producer take on this kind of rock, somewhat reminiscent of pre-Warner Devo and a dead ringer for ZAZEN BOYS at their best. I also never expected to hear a Maki cover of "Lithium," so this producer is my current king of breaking new ground.

アサルト / いおぎりょう feat. 知声 Ryo Iogi's Teto hyperpop from September is one of my favorite tracks of the year, and I've been anxious to hear something new from him. Like the last song on this list, Chis-A's voice lends itself well to a good grungy guitar riff.

かくほ / よかど feat. 足立レイ Like Chis-A, Rei's voice pairs naturally with a certain kind of music... usually the skittery electronic dance-pop kind, so it's refreshing to hear a Coaltar of the Deepers-esque song featuring her.

sh*ellll;gar~ey / あずきねこp feat. カゼヒキβ, 初音ミク Finally, Kazehiki Beta hyperpop!

エビチャーハン! (You’re Telling Me A SHRIMP Fried This Rice?!) / Jamie Paige feat. 初音ミク Jamie Paige is behind just about every English Vocaloid song that I like (sorry Crusher-P, but I'm not an edgy teenager anymore), so I wasn't surprised to love her celebration of the Snow Miku 2024 "Shrimpku" design. And it's always funny to hear Miku say fuck.

ルナシー / 報瀬 feat. 初音ミク, 重音テト There's something so satisfying about hearing a "traditional" vocasynth sing alongside one of the next-gen, realistic-sounding ones. I love getting hit back-to-back with a crunchy melismatic Miku call and Teto soaring smoothly in response, especially paired with an uptempo saxophone riff that makes me want to shout ᴶaᵃaˢₒⁿ ᴰₑʳᵤᵘᵤˡₒᵒₒᵒ.

ドキドキ / tiputica feat. AiSuu I can't find anything about this artist. They have a Twitter account with one post about this song, zero followers or follows, and that's it. If anyone out there has more information on this artist, hit me up.

マジカルメモリー / in the blue shirt feat. 初音ミク in the blue shirt isn't new to Vocaloid, but he's much more known among netlabel followers for his sunny, sample-driven plunderphonic pop. His Miku music follows that feeling.

今日のずんだはみなごろし / ちから feat. ずんだもん,東北ずん子, イタコ, きりたん, 四国めたん, ナクモ I barely know where to start with this one. Like, uh, most people who don't listen to Pentatonix, I'm not particularly fond of a certain brand of a capella music, but when it's done this well, with such a satisfying complexity of harmony and counterpoint, and for Zundamon's birthday of all occasions, how can you not fall in love?

サンタの眠る夜 / ぐーすかぽー feat. 初音ミク The holidays have just wrapped up, and while there's never any shortage of Vocaloid Christmas songs, ones that are actually enjoyable to listen to are few and far between... though I think there's a new market opening for New Years music!

Trajectory / ごーぶす feat. KAITO Hey, it's KAITO's first appearance on here! A chill ballad with a beautiful rnb chord progression.

え？ちょっと待って寒すぎない？ / asanuko feat. 鏡音レン Speaking of rnb, I think I've mentioned on here how much I love Rin for rnb/garage. asanuko's song is funny as hell, and I'm sure I'll be singing it under my breath as the winter chill continues to settle in, but mostly I'm impressed at how good Rin sounds for this kind of music.

夜空の再構成 / ヨハク feat. 初音ミク This style of song/video has been getting popular recently... electric piano, rapid-fire bass, intricate drum programming, synth leads that twist and turn around the melody, and all of the chord/time information you could ever hope for. A little showboating for music nerds, but it's stimulating enough and I do like it.

ボクにあいそうなはこ / MIDy feat. カゼヒキβ Finally, Kazehiki Beta hy-- wait a second.

ずんだ体育大学コール / さたぱんP feat. ずんだもん, 春日部つむぎ, WhiteCUL, 四国めたん, 白上虎太郎, 青山龍星 The Zundamon gods demand a sacrifice of joke songs, so here it is. See if you can count the references in the zunda dances.

＊･ﾟ+｡園にて.ﾟ / ukaihi feat. 初音ミク ukaihi is 3 for 3 on making it onto this list. I'm sure #4 will make it on here, too... if they don't become popular enough for most people to come across their music first!

絵空事未来 / 真島ゆろ feat. 初音ミク Where the ukaihi song seemed to float, this one skips. 真島ゆろ is one of those producers who can change styles from song to song, and this take on a sasakure.uk-gone-lighthearted style is a winner.

ナイトランナー / d0tc0mmie feat. 重音テト Osaka mentioned... d0c0mmie did a great job capturing a feeling with this one. The laid back - but quick - drums bring back memories of running around Namba with friends way too late into the night.

ハイパー. / ikomai feat.Ciちゃんβ My favorite submission from #PVSF2023R -- so obviously the video is great, but the original track from ikomai blew me away. I think my taste in music is easily read from my blog posts, and this kind of song is nothing out of the ordinary for me, but the Jacob Collier style turnaround at 0:58 knocked me out.

エグい速度での俯瞰 / もっちりしたパン feat.可不, ナースロボ＿タイプT Nurse Robo Type T and Kafu doing what they do best -- talking and mirroring a superspeed jazz fusion piano riff.

NSFW Bonus - メスガキヨーデル / enunichime feat. 重音テト First of all, I have never heard a vocasynth yodel before, and I was not expecting it to sounds this good. Second of all, you can't be making songs about this white baby.

[takoyakidonuts]

GekiyakuV & KazehikiV Release for VOCALOID6! Others from VX-B Announced for VOCALOID6!

In a slew of excitement and anticipation, Yamaha has made many announcements today relating to VX-B, VOCALOID6, and Kazehiki and Gekiyaku! Announcement Video Regarding the VX-B plugin and Voicebanks for VX-B In the announcement, it was revealed that alongside GekiyakuV’s and KazehikiV’s VOCALOID6 Release, the VX-B plug-in will eventually make it’s way to commercial release and will be included…

[vocalsynthbdays]

happy birthday Kazehiki(utau) !!!!! [nov 6]

(vocaloid art)

Kazehiki is a japanese synth originally created by Kurukuru Suuzi, and released in 2015. kazehiki is also voiced and illustrated by Kurukuru Suuzi. kazehiki was given a limited release on 23 aug 2023 for the new vocaloid beta engine (VOCALOID β-STUDIO). his vocaloid vb was developed by yamaha in collaboration with KUZUTOKAZE. kazehiki is 12yo and 140cm tall. he is dead and wishes to pass on to heaven, but cannot as he needs a pair of angel wings to do that, which he does not have. he always has a cold and is permanently sleepy.

i know Kurukuru Suuzi does not allow reposts of their art, as it says so on the website featuring all their utaus, but i figured the vocaloid art would be fine ? since its being used for a commercial product ? im not too sure, the machine translation on their website is a little difficult to understand

[neurotoxinart]

Kazehiki

[utau-bowl]

We getting out of the Utau engine with this one!!!!

[underratedvocaloidtournament]

Kazehiki song:

Qing Su song:

propaganda under the cut

Kazehiki:

Kazehiki is so cute in another world he would be all the rage, it’s unfortunate! He is more popular on the jp side and has a beta vb for Vocaloid! Everyone please look at his art! He has so many cutey designs!!!!

Alt song 1:

Alt song 2:

Qing Su:

Qing Su is a very ambivalent voicebank who's amazing for soft songs by default, but whose Power vocal mode blows everything out the water. She brought something incredible to Dreamtonics' roster when she came out, but her being a Mandarin Chinese native voicebank makes less English-speaking fans pay attention despite interesting range.

Alt song choice (unsupported language):

[noisytenant]

newww haraguchi sasuke

(doesnt know enough about this genre) minimal club...?

his most energetic songs will always take the lead in my heart, but i like that you never know what to expect from him. overall very listenable

the vocaloid beta studio thing was kind of confusing when it was announced but it's interesting to see kazehiki+gekiyaku beta in use. the way the voices blend is interesting and fitting with the tone. considering beta studio closed on april 1st (unless it's still usable by existing users) this song may be a while in the making? could there be others in the sasuke archive

the lyrics are also really minimal and relatively easy to parse but need to sit down to make sure im not missing anything

i wish i could get over the hurdle of vsynth rap/spoken parts but i just dont like them.

overall an enjoyable addition to the sasuke collection, not much else to say

[prosekai]

LOOOOK gekiyaku and kazehiki are in the vocaloid beta site!? my 2 fave utaus!?!??!!?

[aira-riri]

Tbh I was REALLY hoping the vocaloid beta studio vocals would be anon and kanon, since they were some of the first voicebanks i ever heard about (magical symmetry is stuck in my head to this day)

But it's ok, i like gekiyaku and kazehiki too :')

[kaleidiope]

VOCALOID β-STUDIO?!?!?!? BETA PROGRAM!??! KAZEHIKI!!?!??!?!

[funkbeat]

i am NOT gonna be a little hater but i'm not sure what to feel about gekiyaku / kazehiki vocaloid beta. i don't know if i want them there

[odayakajanai]

Vocaloid Songs You Might Have Missed - September 2023

Hi, welcome to my blog. I'm a long-time fan of the Vocaloid scene. In recent years, numerous Vocaloid star producers have broken out and become household names in Japan, while others have cornered the utaite market and find continuous viral success on YouTube and Nicovideo.

I want to highlight some of the best yet-to-be-discovered music being produced with Vocaloids and other vocal synths.

More under the break.

This is a personal list, so I'm mostly avoiding certain kind of song that I call "vtuber bait." I've struggled for weeks to articulate what that means, because I'm wary of saying that everything I don't like is "vtuber bait," but it's the kind of thing where you know it when you hear it, right? No hate (mostly) but there's just so much of it out there.

I left some notes on the most standout or interesting songs on the list, but I'll throw my weight behind every one of these being worth your critical listen. Finally, excuse the broad categories. It's mainly for my own organization, but it's also no fun to start a song expecting one thing and getting a face full of distorted gabber kicks.

Full playlist here, individual tracks below.

Pop

フールフールフール / ゆきち feat. 初音ミク Reminds me of namigroove. A lot.

Daze Heat / Rulmry feat. 初音ミク

.mp3 / イナナキ feat. 花隈千冬、重音テト

下の階の人へ / ノアミユウ feat. カゼヒキβ Lo-fi hip-hop beats with interesting chords and one of the stranger vocal synths currently out there.

愛してるときは同じ言葉で / Eiguft feat. 初音ミク

天使のニューゲーム / 阿修 feat. 鏡音リン

点 / Aa feat. 花奏かのんβ

死刑執行 / ドラネコ feat. 小春六花、ずんだもん Zundamon execution song.

Ranunculus / NoR feat. 初音ミク

Rock

リビングデッド / タオ feat. 初音ミク This song and the previous one are probably the closest to "vtuber bait" on the list. What's the throughline: song structure? A thumbnail image that suits drawing your own character in its place? I don't know.

焦燥 / kinoue64 feat. 初音ミク This one actually came out as a single earlier this summer, but was out with the album in September. It's rare enough to get Miku shoegaze at all, let alone anything this good, so I figured I could bend the rules a little.

ブリキの心臓 / Kay Kamio feat. 花隈千冬

Electronic

八月 / サセガワ feat. 初音ミク Miku over a 2 step beat.

アイドレイン / NAL feat. 重音テト

ドリミンガル / うめみや feat. 可不 Umemiya giving some serious Yasutaka Nakata energy.

sui / ukaihi feat. 初音ミク

film / 初音ミク、ナースロボ＿タイプT

KEEP YOUR HEADACHES / いおぎりょう feat. 重音テト Finally, Teto hyperpop!

虫我 / Kolaa feat. 言和AI It feels like the Chinese synths are way more rare in the wild, or maybe they're just walled in on bilibili. This one is insane.

PC_Angel / Kizuari feat. 初音ミク There's a lot of skittering programmed drums on this month's list, but I think this song has my favorite. Kizuari (and kinoue64) both got a shoutout on Patrick St. Michels' excellent Make Believe Mailer last week. Their albums can be purchased on Bandcamp.

感情透過性 / 橘しとら feat.初音ミク

[takoyakidonuts]

New Details and Voicebanks revealed for VOCALOID β-STUDIO with UTAU's Gekiyaku and Kazehiki making an appearance!

Yamaha has revealed more information on the previously covered VOCALOID β-STUDIO today including some demonstrations and information on the voice banks you can use within it! VOCALOID β-STUDIO Concept Demo There are many different features as well as voicebanks to use within the plug-in including voicebanks for UTAUs now VOCALOIDs; Gekiyaku and Kazehiki! Gekiyaku’s design for VOCALOID…

[valentinesweetheartspecial]

If no one tells me who made the Kazehiki preview song in vocaloid beta studio I will lose my shit

[odayakajanai]

Vocaloid Songs You Might Have Missed - October 2023

Hi, welcome back to my blog. I’m a longtime fan of the Vocaloid scene. In recent years, numerous Vocaloid star producers have broken out and become household names in Japan, while others still find continuous viral success on YouTube and Nicovideo.

I want to highlight some of the best yet-to-be-discovered music being produced with Vocaloids and other vocal synths.

Last month's post is here, and this month's is under the break.

And remember... it may be Miku's world, but it's always Teto territory.

Like last month, I've separated the songs into three rough categories, more for my own organization than anything else. All of these songs are worth your critical listen, but I've left notes under my favorites or on anything I found particularly interesting.

Full playlist here, individual tracks below.

Rock

Sink / __ natural feat. 重音テト The year of Teto continues... is what I keep saying following her SynthV release, but __ natural has been a Tetohead for years. The producer has released a few albums of these cool but groovy rock songs mainly featuring the eared robot.

瞬間、日記を欠いて / こえだ feat. カゼヒキβ

サマー・レイニーデイ / イマニシ feat. 可不

106.7の魔法 / qqぃqq feat. 初音ミク qqぃqq seemingly came out of nowhere with these off-kilter, weirder-end-of-the-Shibuya-kei-spectrum Miku tracks. Well, that's kind of how it always happens with Vocaloid producers. I first discovered their work through their entry in this summer's VocaColle: an excellent cover of いよわ's 一千光年.

Electronic

cry/lie/dye/sky / 衿 feat. カゼヒキβ One level of bitcrushing away from Kazehiki Beta hyperpop.

えらいこっちゃや / スドーゴージ feat. 重音テト

Faze / ShareotsuP feat. Mai with Ryo Inside me, there are two wolves: one of them craves RnB-tinged garage à la Patrichev's Angelfish...

くらげ / しろにゃん feat. 初音ミク ...and the other one lives for a pared down, harder UKG. This track was released on a Vocaloid UKG EP that I'm dying to get my hands on.

だっさいね / Shu feat. 重音テト Eagerly awaiting this one to get added to one of the Bemani games.

構築している / ukaihi feat. 初音ミク ukaihi returns to this list for a second month! The last producer to debut with back to back bangers like this must have been マサラダ.

よるあさごはん / ながそば feat. 重音テト Maybe my favorite for this month. More Teto, of course.

Pop

���ごーーーん!!!!! / さたぱんP feat. 初音ミク What if every Vocaloid song happened at once? And what if it had the most frenetic animated music video you've ever seen? Look no further.

毒キノコ食べて死にたい / バーミーズ feat. 初音ミク ENG: 'I want to eat a toxic mushroom and die.'

ハードモードじゃ頑張れない / 状態異常 feat. 初音ミク

電気クラゲは君の夢を見る / 泡月 feat. 初音ミク

アクリルディスコ / ANO feat. 初音ミク

ゆらにゅす / manika feat. 初音ミク I love stumbling on these songs that make no other impression besides being well-crafted, simple pop.

フーセンガム/ ピピ feat. 初音ミク

HAPPY SLOW LIFE! / Roshi feat. 初音ミク

[utau-bowl]

Video of a producer using Kazehiki's Vocaloid beta!