志方あきこ - Harmonia [2009]

Akiko, you were doing very well until "風と羅針盤". It was soothing and beautiful with the combination of Celtic and Japanese folk that I loved so much from Navigatoria, but with the newer vocal style. But then, "風と羅針盤" ventures waaaay too far into the pop area. Whoa, EXTREMELY uncharacteristic evil feeling in "調和〜焔の共鳴〜"... not sure if I like it. Songs like "久遠の海" really re-ground the album in it's beauty and soothing appeal. However, this is definitely a new direction in many ways... I'd even say that the album leans a bit more towards Pop than New Age and/or Folk. It's neat that she switches between the new vocal style and the more airy style that I prefer. I wonder if the more recent soundtracks she's done has affected her writing style. All the negatives aside, this is still a very good album with a fair amount of easy-going Classical Japanese and Celtic influence. Wow, "謳う丘〜Salavec rhaplanca.〜" is one hell of a journey. Overall, there are only a few songs that change the style significantly. It's a good album, but I still prefer Navigatoria.

Rating: 7.75

http://www.vagrancy.jp/

All ratings are out of 10. Rating may not be a whole number.

志方あきこ - RAKA [2006]

She's changed her voice a little to be less airy... which is initially a disappointment to me since I LOVED her voice. However, after hearing one song, I know that I will grow to accept and love the new vocals. The album starts much in the vein of new age, but the second track jumps head-first into the Celtic style that she seems to be most comfortable with. "金環蝕" is a bit surprising since it is not at all calming, it's much more epic and quick-paced; it also is missing that small Japanese element that I loved from Navigatoria. "春告げ〜Raggi di primavera〜" calms things down SIGNIFICANTLY and, very rarely, a hint of Japanese Classical in the vocals. The cover of "Ave Maria" is interesting. Overall, there's more up-tempo and attempts at being a bit more epic, but there are still plenty of soothing and calm songs. It's certainly not as good as Navigatoria, but still wonderful.

Rating: 7.75

http://www.vagrancy.jp/

All ratings are out of 10. Rating may not be a whole number.

志方あきこ - 廃墟と楽園 [2003]

This album builds off of 緑の森で眠ル鳥. It's in the same Celtic style, but with more refined songwriting. Akiko's voice is just as beautiful and soft as ever. This is more soothing than the previous album as well.

Rating: 7.5

http://www.vagrancy.jp/

All ratings are out of 10. Rating may not be a whole number.

志方あきこ - 緑の森で眠ル鳥 [2001]

This definitely has more of a Celtic feel to it. It's not that calming, but it's wonderfully written and great for when I want to listen to Irish Folk with some Japanese tweaks.

Rating: 7

http://www.vagrancy.jp/

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志方あきこ - Navigatoria [2005]

Ahhh, now this is more like it. Seemingly New Age at it's core, but also naturist and even rock. However, what I find the most charming thing is her voice: very restrained and almost polite, with Japanese folk subtly mixed in... and she's quite an incredible singer. It's like a gentle scalp-massage. Great album all the way through. I will certainly be putting this in my regular rotation. Creative, very soothing, beautiful, catchy, very well-produced, but lacking in variation of the songwriting style. It's so obvious that a massive amount of care and work went into the writing of this album. Wonderful. Well done, Shikata, well done.

Rating: 8.75

http://www.vagrancy.jp/

All ratings are out of 10. Rating may not be a whole number.