Okay, so the single arrived today - 6 days! I'm actually really impressed it didn't take longer.
The album booklet is simple enough - it's printed by Jasrac, the same people who printed the Ophelia single. I'll scan the lyrics later, but the production is as follows:
Lyrics: Kaya
Music: Hora
Arranged by Hora, Kei Suzuki
Recorded & Mixed by & Mastered by Kei Suzuki (SYNC Live)
Recorded & Mixed Studio at SYNC LIVE Studio
Art Direction & Design: Kaya
Quick first thoughts about the songs:
Lapis Lazuli - I was honestly a little disappointed by the preview - but the song is thankfully a little better then I expected. It does sound more Schwarz Stein then Recurrence Of Hallucination, but in a newer direction. It has this bitter-sweet sound - there's the synth string introduction which is pretty; it makes me think of cherry blossom, which is a little unusual. I guess the main difference is how this doesn't sound so much EU-EBM influenced. The verses have some of the same synths used on Reign which is kinda cool. Overall it's a standard track, but decent enough.
Rise To Heaven - I actually didn't love the original. It took a while to grow on me. This version is actually pretty cool - it's far more dancey then it's predecessor, tweaks and sounds added here and there. Kaya's vocals are kinda cool and he goes a little deeper in parts. I think since he went through vocal training post-SS he's a little more comfortable singing a little higher, but I'd say this track is pretty enjoyable. If you don't like Lapis Lazuli, you'll probably really like this.
I haven't had a chance to listen to the instrumentals yet, but I think Rise To Heaven will probably be my favourite out of the two.
I did like it - though I'm hoping that LL was a kinda 'ok we're going back to SS style, we'll make things a little different so we can find out where we're going' before they release their next maxi-single in July -- I'm hoping it'll sound a little darker, less Current bitter-sweet, more along the lines of Succubus/Creeper (I'm expecting Succubus may be the next B-side due to the name of their gigs, but I'll keep an open mind).
Anyone else get the single?