01. Carnaval
Great start to this album...and one that sets the tone immediately. The title is also a bit of a giveaway... Yep, this is largely a Latin-themed album. This song in particular is quick and features the usual intense strings and clapping. We're off to a steady start.
02. Eyes on you
A pop song that is a little bit on the quicker side. I could be entirely mistaken, but I believe this song features the first male vocals in a Nakamori song (provided by Ken Hirai). It's a nice little song that is fitting from her first album on this side of the year 2000.
03. Carmesi
More full-on Latin pop. I love the beat of this one. The flow is tight and Nakamori handles it like a champ...are you surprised?
04. The Heat ~musica fiesta~ (Album Version)
This is the album version of the lone single from this album. Well...kinda. I'll explain later.
It's a catchy song, but I'm not entirely sold on this version of it. Sometimes album versions go again the laser-focus of what makes a single version a hit. The extended bits are just...there. As for the song itself, it's not my favorite single...and probably not the song from this album I would have chosen to be the single. It did well, though, peaking at number 20 on the Oricon weekly chart.
Oh, and the rap break-down actually isn't horribly cringe like it tends to be in a lot of Japanese songs. It's largely in English and sung by X-LARGE from Korea. Not a bad song...and it's certainly catchy, but not one I seek out very much.
05. missed U
Oh Jesus... Early 2000s drivel with a fake-ass Timbaland beat. Yeah, I don't really dig this one. It's alright and certainly a good reminder of how bad we had it fifteen years ago...
06. Resonancia (Interlude)
I nice little instrumental interlude...
07. Kaze to Taiyo
A pretty good track of more Latin pop, but doesn't really have much to stick out from the tracks before it. Really, just a solid groove.
08. ibiza
Some great horn work on this track. The name should be a dead giveaway at what type of song this is. This one would have made a decent single to be perfectly honest. It's super-slick and really has those driving horns to give it a strong presence.
09. Deseo
Ehhh...this one is more early 2000s weirdness. Overbearing beat over some random loops. It doesn't really take off or go anywhere...it just maintains.
10. Lost words
A slow-mid song with a questionable choice of piano tone. It's not a bad song, though...just a little bit unusual. Heh.
11. Siesta (Interlude)
Another nice little instrumental interlude. It's incredibly short...
12. It's brand new day (URU Latin Mix)
Ah, so remember how I mentioned I would get back to talking about singles from this album? Well, It's brand new day was actually released independently as a digital single in 2001. Yeah, it was pretty experimental at the time...especially in Japan. It was later given a physical release, but this is notable for being the first song from Nakamori in the 2000s.
This is actually a remix version as the name suggests. It's a very crisp song that was modified slightly to fit the tone of the album. Incredibly chill...it's a really good song.
13. Bonita terra
A nice acoustic song to bring this album to a close.
OVERALL: This album was clearing the slate once again for Nakamori. She had left Tokuma in 2000 and was now signed with Universal Music, which is where she is still signed to this day. The album is definitely fresh and exciting, if not a little bit dated sounding. The heavy use of featured male artists is a little bit unusual, but look at music today. It feels like every pop song is X featuring Y and Z.
I love the energy of the album and the freshness of it. When you look at Nakamori's full catalog, Fushigi is the mysterious haze and Resonancia is the hot and sunny vacation getaway to Spain. The vocals are incredibly prominent and not very deep. Extra points for some extreme consistency.
I don't listen to this one all that often because I think I really have to be in the mood for it. It's still Winter when I'm writing this, so I guess I'm at the wrong end of the calendar. It's a good album...maybe give a little during warmer days, though.
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