Introduction to Chapter 14 Shou The Message
Chapter 14 Shou The Message is the title for the album by Japanese pop music group Morning Musume. The album was released in 2014 which was the last full year of work with Morning Musume for its band leader Sayumi Michishige. This was also the last studio album for members Riho Sayashi and Kanon Suzuki. Many of the members in this album were and are still very young because they were born in the 1990’s or later. Michishige is the only member that was born in 1989 so at this time she was 25 years old. Chapter 14 The Message shows a development in the career of Morning Musume that sees them really explore the electronic music territory and this may be something that some music fans may roll their eyes over because they might think that the electronic sound on this album is overdone and it certainly is. That is something that we will discuss later in this review. The full English title for the album is Chapter 14 The Message. I wrote all the song titles in English so that it would be easier for readers to follow along.
Songs List (Titles are translated to English to make it easier for readers to follow along)
- TIKI Bun
- Password is Zero (0)
- You Create Tomorrow
- A Glittery, Shining Star
- The Truth About Becoming Lovers-I Definitely Don’t Want to Know
- What is Love?
- I Am What I Am
- Humorless Conversation
- You With a Smile Are My Sun
- No One Can Replace You
- We Become Adults Will We Be Adults
- Beyond Time and Space
How Does the Album Chapter 14 The Message Begin?
The album features an electronic influence in TIKI BUN as well as the song Password is 0. The group should include more song titles in English so that fans can read about the group easier and this would attract more fans for the group outside their native Japan. Japanese is considered by the United Nations to be one of the world’s hardest languages to learn and master. It is a tough language just like Finnish so interpreting the lyrical themes of the songs without lyrical translations is going to be challenging for sure. TIKI BUN has a few parts where there are English lyrics such as “here we go!” Upon closer inspection and analysis it may sound like the girls are saying “cheeky bun.” Of all the songs in this album this was the hardest one for my ears to get used to.
Is this album memorable in the decade of the 2020’s? You make that judgement because it is tough for me to say with any certainty. TIKI BUN is one of those songs I did not really enjoy at first but it has grown on me. The song speeds up and has this sort of video game kind of sound to it. It sounds like they are saying cheeky bun. How funny is that? Some of you may get a laugh out of this song. Then comes the best song in the album “Password is 0.” Even though there is repetition in it, the song is one of the catchiest and upbeat you will ever hear! The password may be zero but the song is a big vibration booster! You can listen to this album to bring up your vibration so that manifesting whatever you want becomes much easier. This is not an article on manifesting but if you need a quick mood booster, Chapter 14 The Message is one of those albums that will work very well! It is really not very common for fans in the United States to even be familiar with Morning Musume.
The Truth About Becoming Lovers – I Definitely Don’t Want to Know is one of those songs that actually has English lyrics in it. You can hear the dialogue as the woman says “what is this crazy rock music?” I Am Who I Am is a song in which even though time passes and the colors can change with each season, we have to have enough strength so that we do not allow others to use us.
A Few Interesting Facts About Chapter 14 The Message
- Even though the album sold only 30,783 copies which is the official stated number, it still became the highest selling album of Hello! Project in 2014.
- This is the only Morning Musume album that is a non-compilation album in which Sayumi Michishige was the band leader for that she does not have a solo song for.
SEE ALSO: “First Time” Album Review
Morning Musume “Second Morning”
Final Thoughts About Chapter 14 The Message
Warenai Hanashi which is song #8 and depending on the translation can mean Humorless Conversation has some rap style vocals. I grew up listening to rap music at first! If We Become Adults, Will We Be Adults is song #11 and has an interesting rock feel to it. Beyond Time and Space is the last song on this album and it has some very good piano sweeping or tapping if you want to call it that.
And then, to offer such a big contrast compared to the album’s first two songs, You Create Tomorrow is this much softer and piano influenced pop song and the girls keep on singing the words “I love you.” Perhaps it is no coincidence that the first member pictured inside the CD’s booklet is Sayumi Michishige. I would say that the group felt that her image should go in the booklet first because of her popularity and influence. You Create Tomorrow in English is a song that is about living life in a way that means that you imagine how you want your future to look like without falling prey to the gossip of others. The song’s message is about falling in love but also the song is trying to say that things do not always work out the way that we want them to. The power to make what the song refers to as fun dreams is possible to humans. You Create Tomorrow is one of those songs that offers a break from the electro pop feel that is on this album. “You With a Smile Are My Sun” is one part of the triple sided single along with the song “No One Can Replace You” and “What is Love?” Those 3 songs make up what is Morning Musume’s 55th single.
Overall Chapter 14 Shou The Message is a decent album. However, the electro pop influence that dominates the album is a bit overdone and this is one of those attributes that contributes to the somewhat lack of musical variety. The strongest songs include Password is 0, What is Love?, and the last two songs. In the song called TIKI Bun, it sounds like the girls are saying the words “cheeky bun” so some of you may laugh at this. Even with the constant singing of the words “zero, zero, zero password is zero” Password is Zero still remains one of the group’s best songs.
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