My personal sound and creative direction analysis of Girls Revolution Project as of November 2024!
心世紀・罪十罰
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I feel like the sound of GRP is a very forward-thinking and refreshing J-pop style, with an emphasis on idol and VOCALOID-inspired sounds. This is evident in their producer lineup which features primarily VOCALOID producers and idol song producers; especially, they feature producers who may not be highlighted as often in Kamitsubaki’s precedent.
A lot of GRP songs focus on the treble aspect of the vocal and instrumental range. With the focus on treble sounds, it creates a soundscape of clarity, lightness; sometimes shimmering, sometimes floating – this focus is part of what makes it have a “refreshing” feeling.
Song structure a lot of the time feels very VOCALOID-inspired as the forefront of inspiration. By this, I mean most of the songs have a sort of 2020s VOCALOID-esque feel and length – short, effective, catchy, stylish. This I feel is one of the core tenants of GRP’s style, and shows the way they diverge from Kamitsubaki precedent in some ways. There's also flavors from the diversity of different idol styles and popular J-pop styles, infusing the VOCALOID song structure with different aspects you wouldn't normally otherwise hear in VOCALOID trends. Overall it's aimed towards a slightly different audience than what Kamitsubaki fans may be used to. It's possible to compare the philosophy behind the sound to Asu and Aru, but the sound itself of course is different.
The songs that I'd say trend to Kamitsubaki’s style precedent more, especially in terms of structure and sound layering, are Fake Night Cinderella, Funeral Flower, and Return to this World. In my personal opinion, these are the “strongest” songs in terms of production. All of these are the debut songs for Sinseiki, Tsumitobatsu, and the entire group respectively. I’d say it's the choice to use this more style to show that a song is more important, and to link them to their core identity in Kamitsubaki. The other songs trend towards GRP’s new signature style based on 2020s VOCALOID song structure.
While the production trends towards VOCALOID, the vocal style is a blend of idol styles and Kamitsubaki’s signature vocal direction. Compared to the rest of Kamitsubaki, GRP has clearly younger voices – likely ranging around 17-22 years old. On top of this, they all have very unique singing styles. It's truly a treat to hear their uniqueness and skillfulness – the Kamitsubaki vocal signature – with the age range of their voices, when others in the same age range wouldn't quite sound like them in terms of technique. In solo songs and covers, their voices have clear unique quirks to them. In group songs, their complementary nature comes out more, adhering to a more idol-style direction.
The music composition and production complements and highlights this youthful, fresh, and unique aspect of their voices and appeal, while also showing off their skill. It really gives you the impression they are next-generation artists – the latest sounds from the J-music soundscape, and the youthful yet skillful unique voices – this is GRP.
Overall, GRP is an expansion of Kamitsubaki’s soundscape to a new audience and style, while still adhering to what makes Kamitsubaki unique – especially in the vocal style and details in production direction.
