meaning: at first sight, in music: sight reading; the practice of reading and performing of a piece in a music notation that the performer has not seen or learned before
A neo-classical group of boys wanting to be recognized, by the right people, on their own terms - by reshaping the classical scene anew.
This is my Project Sekai original unit - Prima Vista! Their Sekai is the Abandoned Castle Sekai, with their Untitled being called 「Turning A New Page」. Their leading feeling is the need for recognition - each of them have different motivations, but they all join in music.
This is them!
Kaii Kotebiki
Hayato Edogawa
(DISCLAIMER: Prima has been written long before the 3rd Anniversary. Kamiyama classes in the Prima universe are SLIGHTLY different than canon.
Nene/An: 2-A -> 2-B
Akito: 2-A -> 2-C
Mizuki/Toya: 2-B -> 2-C
Everything else stays the same as canon.)
Ranmaru Tokuse
Ikuo Heiru
You can read the Main Story here!
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
At the time of the Main Story, there are 3 Vocaloids inside the Abandoned Castle Sekai, including Hatsune Miku!
When you're done reading that...
You can enjoy the Event Stories!
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
And if THAT's not enough... I, uh... Well! Let's say I don't recommend binging!
However, as a bonus, I have a playlist of songs Prima would cover!
On tumblr I will update with maybe some additional content, so look out for that!
hello :) I wrote the lyrics for EDEN 4164616D on MACHINA MORI and a few other people are doing little lyric analysis/writing process things and I was like hey! I could do that! if you have your own analysis of these lyrics that might differ from how I wrote them initially: do not let my "official" interpretation make yours any less valid! feel free to share your analysis before you read this (or after!) if you want, I like to see what people think of my writing! but the main thing is that whatever EDEN made you feel, my intended meaning should not take that away from you
there are a few things I might keep a little secret for now because I might still be working on some lore that will be revealed later ;) but I'll talk about the main writing process and ideas I wanted to convey with this song in and of itself and you can dig into the lore later once it's done!
Giving content warnings for: Biblical imagery, talk of mortality and death. Analysis is all below the cut!
First of all, the little disjointed "a-a-a-a-ah" at the start was an intentional idea from me! I wanted it to sound kind of like a startup sound or like Rei was initializing her vocals for the first time. The background "ah"s later on were entirely Dav-P's doing though I cant take any credit for those! I can suggest you give them a careful listen though :)
The entire song is written to be directly from the perspective of EDEN's Rei, and I had something of a narrative in mind for it. It's a story as much as it's a song, and I put a lot of parallels in some of the verses between each other that I had a lot of fun with. I love writing I love words I love music I love this song!! I really am so glad I got to write it.
undefined Adam
electric amalgam
sparks intertwine
in this vessel of steel
sculpted in
your image
what am I?
This first section doesn't have a whole lot to dig into, it's mostly setting up for something later on and giving the impression of EDEN's Rei at initialization and how she feels (or rather, doesn't.) The use of the phrases "this vessel" and "sculpted" in place of the more human terms she will use for herself later in the song is very intentional! "Undefined Adam" is a very early lead in to the biblical imagery I used occasionally throughout the song, and also sets up the very basic premise of how Rei views herself and the world she is being born into: she is to humanity as Adam is to God, a new being made in the image of man as man was made in the image of God.
I
cannot be one of a kind
show me everything
I want to feel
the wind on my face
the sea against my skin
if you'd call it that
This section is largely also here to establish Rei's feelings, but she has a few more of them to dig into now! She is capable of want and what she wants is to feel, even if her wanting that shows she already has the capacity for it. She has this desire to experience the things that humans wax poetic about, the sea breeze and the waves on your skin. "If you'd call it that" refers directly to the mention of skin- Rei is a machine made of metal, so it's hard to really say if skin is what the surface of her body should be called. She's humanizing herself to an extent here, but she's also backtracking, putting that distinct separation between her body and a human body even though her initial instinct is to call them the same.
hello world
teach me how to fly
make me feel alive
I don't know
what am I?
trapped in endless time
Hello, world! I was honestly worried that line would be a bit of a low hanging fruit and everyone was going to use it, but I couldn't resist it. And I'm glad I did put it in after! I'm pretty pleased with the second use of it but that's getting a bit ahead of myself.
This section is largely about Rei "waking up" more, coming to terms a bit more with her feelings and circumstances. She wants to learn what it means to be a person, but not necessarily "human"- there's still a big divide between her and humanity that should become clearer as the song progresses. "Teach me how to fly" is largely metaphorical here, but there might be something fun that comes of that in the lore later if you want to stay tuned for it ;) "Trapped in endless time" refers to the immortality of machines. Rei does not think her time on Earth will ever end, and while she knows that separates her from humanity she isn't really sure what that makes her.
hollow and heartless
emptiness I can't fix
somehow I find
you reflect in me
oh make me in
your image
divine light
"Hollow and heartless, emptiness I can't fix" is meant to show how Rei views herself here as empty and lacking in a heart in both a literal and figurative sense. She views herself as incapable of doing anything about this because she lacks the power over herself that her creators have over her. "Somehow I find, you reflect in me" is in reference to a common trope I may have borrowed for this, in which an android/machine's creators won't treat them with any sort of kindness or love no matter how human their creation is meant to be. EDEN Rei's creators view her as a means to an end and nothing more- her heartlessness is reflected in them. "Make me in your image" and its variations will be a recurring phrase, once again intending to draw on the biblical imagery of humans being made in the image of God. "Divine light" further refers to this- Rei views humanity and all of its facets as divine and unreachable to her without outside intervention.
the way I see you
I want to be seen too
strip away my
inhumanity
oh make me in
your image
heart and mind
This entire section is meant to establish how Rei wants to be seen as a person and granted the respect humans have for each other. She is made so similar to a human, but she is still not owed the respect being human commands, so she wants to be more similar to her creators. There is still a separation between her and them, hence, "make me in your image, heart and mind".
I
cannot forget how she cried
the stars in her eyes
I want to know
how did she catch the divine?
is her dream lost to time?
should I make it mine?
This is yuri by the way. The "she" referred to here is largely a secret for now, but she is someone Rei fell in love with, and she is also a machine. "How did she catch the divine?" may imply that this other machine actually grasped the human emotions Rei has been chasing... but "is her dream lost to time?" implies there wasn't a happy ending to this story. The main takeaway from this for tying into the rest of the song is this: Rei has loved someone, and that someone is now out of her reach.
hello world
or is this goodbye?
did I do this right?
I don’t know
why am I
running out of time?
Hello, world! I actually wrote this section before the other hello world section, and "hello world, or is this goodbye?" is probably one of my favourite sets of lines I wrote for this song. This is meant to be a somewhat direct parallel to the earlier section- where before Rei was "trapped in endless time", she is running out now. She isn't sure how much time she has left or if she has any at all, and she doesn't know whether she's used any of her time existing effectively. There's meant to be just a bit of fear or grief in the lyrics here: where before Rei's "I don't know" was in the context of not understanding the world around her and being inquisitive about it and her place in it, it's now in a context of not being sure she lived up to whatever expectations she found for herself, and not being sure she has enough time to change any of it.
burn with a new flame
agonizing outbreak
I don't want this
but I'll never escape
unmake me in
your image
I won't fight
"Burn with a new flame, agonizing outbreak" refers to the sudden and painful experience Rei is having with her own mortality, and is meant to imply anger or hatred towards the creators who made her feel this way. "I don't want this, but I'll never escape" as well as the "I won't fight" is here largely because despite everything she is feeling right now and her newly realized anger, Rei is not going to fight the fate she sees laid out in front of her. "Unmake me in your image" is to indicate that Rei knows she is about to be destroyed, and she's accepted this.
poetic irony
everything denied me
finally felt
just a moment too late
unmake me in
your image
why do I cry?
"Everything denied me, finally felt, just a moment too late" is another of my favourite lines I wrote for this, possibly one of my favourite lines I've written in general. "Everything denied me" is emotion, "just a moment too late" is indicating that it doesn't matter anymore. Despite her acceptance of her fate, Rei is hurting. She asks "why do I cry?" which is as much a question of why she is literally crying as it is a question of why it hurts so much to feel the things she has viewed this far as divine.
tell me how I'm meant to feel
tell me if my heart is real
make me what I wasn't meant to be
tell me why, god, why?
tell me why, god, who then am I?
tell me why
This section includes the vocals that continue into the last two sections and is meant to kind of be the last few questions Rei has about her creation and destruction. She was built with the capacity to feel, but what was she supposed to do with that? If she is able to feel, does that mean she truly does have a heart? "Make me what I wasn't meant to be" is her final way of rebelling against her creators: she still wants to be human, to be divine, even after everything. The final questions are to do with her death. "Tell me why" is a demand for answers to everything. Why was she made? Why does she have to be unmade? "Who then am I?" is the question of who she is now, but also who she was supposed to be from the start.
pre-defined Adam
electric amalgam
fingers entwine
in my body of steel
you unmake me in
your image
scrap and wire
We get to revisit the first section now! This is a direct parallel to how Rei felt at the start of the song, while also showing that she is being disassembled in this moment. "Pre-defined Adam" in comparison to the earlier "undefined Adam" is to show that Rei knows now that who she was supposed to be was decided for her. "Fingers entwine in my body of steel" is meant to evoke the idea that someone is actively taking her apart in these last moments, and also parallel the earlier mentions of her body as "this vessel". Rei has come to view her body as hers, as opposed to just a vessel as she did at the start. "Scrap and wire" is simply what Rei knows she will become after she is taken apart.
mourning my own fate
artificial heartbreak
why do I love
if I'm made just to hate?
you unmake me in
your image
I don't want to die
This is probably my favourite section from the whole song I'm very proud of it. "Mourning my own fate" is fairly straightforward: Rei is about to die and she has to mourn herself. "Artificial heartbreak" mostly just sounds cool but also has to do with that grief, and in part to do with how Rei still doesn't view herself as human but instead as something else. "Why do I love if I'm made just to hate?" seems to be a line people really liked but unfortunately I can't say much about what it means here... it might have something to do with the circumstances around EDEN Rei's creation though! The rest is mostly more of the same and also self explanatory. Despite everything she has been through to reach this point, in her final moments Rei views herself as alive, and she doesn't want her life to end.
The scream at the end was also my plan and is meant in part to parallel the "startup sound" at the beginning! It's also where Rei dies, being fully disassembled by her creators. Although, maybe her consciousness could have escaped somewhere...? Been uploaded, maybe...? ;)
so yeah that was long and some of it was probably a lot more in depth than it needed to be but that's my writing process and main ideas for EDEN 4164616D! I really am proud of how this came out as a song and as a narrative, and I hope if you were interested enough in it to read this far you'll also be interested enough to keep an eye out for something that may or may not be related to it that might crop up either shortly before or after the MV releases!
if you're at all curious about anything else I didn't talk about here feel free to send me an ask about it!! I love talking about my writing process and seeing what people liked and disliked about what I made (and talking about anything else too!) so I'd be happy to see what people are curious about :)
Hayato: I was sent to the shorter side of the table because nobody wanted to sit next to me... I can't say I'm not hurt by that, really.
Ranmaru: Not to complain about someone else's gift... But that flute was too jarring! No respect for the instrument from that woman!
Ikuo: I've asked the Tabletop Club to borrow some games they have and they let me. They lost all of the instruction manuals or threw them out from the get go. We're making the rules up as we go.
Hatsune Miku (Prima Vista): Hehe... I'm glad we have more people to throw a concert with... It's still not enough.
Ichika: Kaii, happy birthday. Saki is very adamant on going to the movies... How's that sound..?
Saki: Kaii-chan!! I want to take *everyone* to the movies!! I promise you'll like what I picked!! Pinky promise!
Honami: Uhm... Do we want to pay for the snacks at the cinema, or do we sneak some in..?
Shiho: Saki, you can't just promise things like these-! I'll try to convince her to let *you* pick your birthday movie instead.
Tsukasa: Kotebiki..! Happ- Agh! Happy Birthd-! EMU!! THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE MY FRAME!!
Emu: HAPPY BIRTHDAY KOTE-CHAN!! May you..! (Tsukasa-kun, I want to send my wishes too!) May you have a lot of sweets today!!
Nene: ...Happy Birthday, Kotebiki-kun. (Rui, you should give the other two their frames, they clearly want them more...)
Rui: All of Wonderlands x Showtime sent Kotebiki-kun a birthday video. We decided to go without a plan and speak out of our hearts... It was a bit difficult to edit, though.
Kanade: Kotebiki-san, happy birthday. I've composed a short melody for you, I think it's short enough to set as a ringtone... I would be honored if it came of use to you.
Mafuyu: Ah, Kotebiki-kun. I've heard from Kanade that it's your birthday today. I've come to wish you a good one today as well!
Kaii: I've never thought birthdays were so... chaotic. Is that normal? ...I suppose parties are supposed to be bustling.
And additionally! A birthday stamp!
the balloons were fucking hell to paint i hate this style of card actually the last two were better
We have officially reached the second year of which Prima Vista has been around, quite impressive, since this is definitely the longest a project of mine has been going on for. They have truly taken over my life. And through lies and truth, screams and laughs, misunderstandings and pride, the story goes on.
And speaking of the story going on...
Prima Vista World Link Announcement
That's quite a shocker, isn't it.
The Opening and two character chapters will be posted to AO3 in exactly 6 months on **April 10th 2025**.
It will be posted in a seperate AO3 title, just like Main Story and Event Stories are seperated - World Link will be like a "Part 3" of the collection.
Each character chapter will include an untrained card mid-story, as well as a trained card after the chapters end. You will not see them until the chapters end.
Virtual Singer cards for the event (2) will be available only after the Ending is posted, at the same day the final character goes live.
Post-April 10th designs for Prima Vista and their respective Virtual Singers will be available like this:
- The characters and Miku will be available immediately in a "Promotional Image" sort of way.
- Cutouts for the rest of the Virtual Singers will be available one by one with each event they appear in.
All of them will also receive brand new chibis - the only unchanged ones will be school chibis, since they don't need them changed.
Kaii: I understand it's... kind of his thing, but my biological clock is really strict... I couldn't fall asleep at all.
Hayato: A cuddle pile!! I have never had enough people for that, the weight was so nice to sleep under!~
Ranmaru: A nap is nice from time to time, but that's not for me. I simply spent it talking with other awake people... Besides Len who left as soon as Ikuo dozed off.
Hatsune Miku (Prima Vista): All Ikuo wanted this year in the Sekai was a big nap pile... So all of us slept on the grass... *yawn* Got to cuddle a little, hehe...
Ichika: Ah, Heiru-san, happy birthday... I hope something as simple as this gift is fine...
Saki: Ikuo-chan!! Happy birthday! Hehe, I always forget you're younger than me, since you're so tall! What's the secret!!~
Honami: Hmm... I heard that Heiru-kun likes a lot of different snacks... That makes it difficult to choose what to bake...
Shiho: Shizuku heard about the birthday and joined me and Heiru on the ramen today... I couldn't help but be stared at by other customers...
Airi: Ahh, I've heard Heiru's birthday is today... We can send him a celebratory video from MORE MORE JUMP~!
Shizuku: Shii-chan, Ikuo-chan! This was so lovely! We should do it again, okay~? My birthday next, please!
Akito: Well, as long as that other guy doesn't notice me forwarding a birthday wish, I'll be fine, no?
Toya: Now that I have some experience with other classical instruments, I wonder if Heiru-san would be interested in a new mouthpiece.
Rui: Happy Birthday, Ikuo-kun, I've got you a charm. ...You're looking as if you are expecting something more. But you'd be right! I have an update for the app and it's connected with this charm!
Ikuo: Once more, a lot of people are doing way too much for me... I suppose that's the nature of birthdays after all.
THIS IS THE LAST OF THE GEN3 BIRTHDAY CARDS RAGHHG
Technically Ikuo should've been the first in line for gen4 birthday card, but only Haruka's been revealed and I need time to spot the pattern, so he's always just a little late! Too bad for him, happy October 3rd!
Kaii: You really can't dampen Ranmaru-kun's mood on his birthday, huh? He appears like normal when I look at him, but the air around him feels really cheery.
Hayato: Haha... He is very in the right to be mad at me... I guess I'll leave a gift in front of his door, so he doesn't have to see me today...
Ikuo: Ranmaru has been smiling really wide whenever he thinks nobody sees him... Too bad that I know how to sneak glances unnoticed.
Hatsune Miku (Prima Vista): Hmm... Our birthday concerts are getting bigger with each new member that joins our orchestra~
Ichika: It's that time again, where both me and Kaii go pick out a gift for a friend of his... At some point he'll stop asking me for help and I wonder if I won't feel lonely when that happens.
Saki: I didn't know what to do after you gave me your present, I'm still flattered..! So for you, I handmade you a bracelet! Let me put it on your wrist real quick...
Honami: A cheesecake isn't really a cake you'd get for a birthday, but I've baked you one anyway..! I hope you enjoy it, Tokuse-san..!
Shiho: Saki had me as the hand model for Tokuse's gift... As well as the judge of cuteness... It's really adorable...
Minori: Oh, Tokuse-kun..!! We haven't seen each other in a while! We could go to the Spojoy Park together if you have the time!
Akito: Even after all of that happened, you're still going with this..? Suit yourself. ... I guess you can wish happy birthday from all of Vivid Bad Squad.
Toya: Tokuse-san's online status says it's his birthday today. I should send him a message, no?
Tsukasa: Throwing a show outside of Toku would be a horrible idea... And yet when I barely mentioned that school, Rui looked like he hadn't been that excited for years... Needless to say, it disencouraged me even more, I'll just send a message to Tokuse.
Mizuki: It was so tight on schedule, but I managed to produce the photos we took together yesterday! I could have just sent them over online, but I really wanted to give him the physical copies!
Ranmaru: Hey, I understand I'm a birthday boy today, but is there something on my face? People seem to giggle around me a little... Well, I'm still having fun, but I wonder what it could be...
