Contrail (song)

"Contrail"
Buildings with airplane contrails against a blue sky.
Single by Namie Amuro
from the album Feel
Released May 19, 2013
Format Digital Download
Genre Dance-pop
Length 4:14
Label Dimension Point
Writer(s) Nao'ymt
Producer(s) Nao'ymt
Namie Amuro singles chronology
"Big Boys Cry"
"Beautiful"
(2013)		 "Contrail"
(2013)		 "Tsuki"
(2014)

"Contrail" is a song by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro from her second English-language and eleventh studio album Feel (2013). The song was written, composed, arranged and produced by Japanese producer Nao'ymt; the song was the only song that was produced, composed and written by him.[1] The song was conceived when Amuro was in transition of creating English-language songs for her albums Uncontrolled and Feel. Amuro's management hired songwriters to write tracks in English and Japanese so she can favor one of the languages and not to approach an Western audience through pop culture; in this case, "Contrail" is written and recorded in Japanese language.

Musically, "Contrail" is a dance-pop and electronic music track that utilizes instrumentation of synthesizers, keyboards and drum machines. The track was often noted for its Americanized appeal, which was a similar trait throughout the parent album. The lyrical content talks about personal courage, strength and hope, referring to the actual effects of contrail. The track incorporates both English phrases and the track title while the entire track is recorded in Japanese language. The track achieved favorable reception from critics, who praised the songwriting and production, though minor critics were crucial towards the composition.

Commercially, the song was successful in Japan. Despite being ineligible to chart on Oricon, the song charted on Japan Hot 100 and peaked at number eight. The song was certified platinum by Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of 250,000 digital units. An accompanying music video was shot in downtown Los Angeles, California at Pershing square featuring Amuro walking through the city with children, all adding special effects towards the coloring and lighting.

Background

In 2009, Amuro released her ninth studio album Past Future (2009).[2][3] The album achieved favorable reception from critics and was a commercial success, shipping over 600,000 units in Japan and was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of that exact amount.[4] As she decided to promote the album in April on her nationwide tour of Asia, Amuro had announced that her following studio album would incorporate English-language and Japanese-language. This resulted in her tenth studio album Uncontrolled in 2012. However, it actually resulted in only five songs being recorded in English due to the vocals on certain tracks sounding better in English.[5] Overall, the album achieved yet again favorable reception from Japan music critics and was a commercial success, achieving sales of 500,000 units in her native Japan and was certified double platinum.[6][7]

After the success of her tenth studio album, Amuro announced that she would release a second English and Japanese-language album. In early 2013, Amuro started a sub-label with Avex Trax entitled Dimension Point and released her first single from the label; "Big Boys Cry/Beautiful". The single became one of her lowest charting single on Oricon chart to date. In 2014, Amuro re-recorded "Contrail" on her ballad compilation album Ballada, which celebrates her releases of ballad-inspired songs.[8] For the album, "Contrail" was recorded as a bonus track exclusively for iTunes, Amazon.com and on physical formats in Japan only.[8]

Composition

Music styles

Inspired by the effects of contrail, the single artwork is inspired the picture above.

"Contrail" was written, composed, arranged and produced by Japanese producer Nao'ymt and was written for the Japanese TV series Flying Public Relations Office; the song was the only song that was produced, composed and written by him.[1] All the instrumentation, including synthesizers, keyboards and drum machines were all handled by Nao'ymt.[1] On the parent album Feel, seven tracks are all recorded in English-language and feature minor Japanese phrases; "Contrail" is one of the only tracks not recorded in English and is strictly Japanese lyrics.[1] According to Amuro, she stated that throughout Feel and her previous album Uncontrolled, the songs recorded in English were not to be viewed as her approach on an international audience, but rather the songs sounded "better" in English and that English-language written songs, including "Contrail" were written.[9]

Musically, "Contrail" is a "fresh" and "cheerful" dance-pop and synthpop song that samples ambient sounds including cheering and clapping.[10][11] Utilizing some of Amuro's previous J-pop musical inspiration, the track uses the instrumentation of synthesizers to create a "monotonic" and "cold" sound throughout the verses, and when the chorus appears, the song is "off-guard with the powerful and melodic chorus [...]"[10] Compared to her single "Hands on Me" by The13thGeek.net, the reviewer commented "The song evokes a summer feel similar to [Hands On Me] but with a more relaxed and laid-back approach."[10] Patrick St. Michel from The Japan Times had discussed the slight Americanized influence throughout the parent album and tracks like "Contrail" and stated "And nearly every track indulges in electronic trends, sometimes besting the American competition."[9] Takashi Inomata from Watsin.jp also talked about the crossover between Western and Eastern influences throughout the song and stated that the song has "increased" this influence.[12]

Lyrical content

Lyrically, the song references the use of contrail and the lyrical depiction is about courage and hope.[11] Nao'ymt commented that the song was about "carving" yourself throughout your past and having the strength and faith to.[13] The song starts off with keyboard and synthesizers through a duration of fifteen seconds.[14] Amuro's vocals become softer and are whispering throughout the verses. She then sings the English lyric "What is Life?" in an louder voice and throughout the chorus, she uses Japanese language until the end where she sings the word "Contrail".[14] After the chorus, it then repeats the opening verse with softer vocals and production. During the bridge, Amuro's vocals are processed by vocoder to create a "robotic" tone while singing the lyrics "I didn't know then, what I know now,".[14] The English translation was considered "poetry" by Otakudx.com reviewer Paris and exemplified the lyric ("the answer is to look within myself, at home there is no meaning") and ("you run through like a baby kicking in its mother's womb") through the Japanese lyrics ("kotae wa jibun de sagasu') and ("kakenukeru taidou")[14]

TBS Japan interviewed Amuro, Nao'ymt and Aki Isoyama, the producer off the TV series, about the song inclusion. Amuro felt that the production off the track represents a "positive view on the world". She commented "So when I'm listening to the song ["Contrail"] on Sunday night, when I wake up on Monday morning, I am happy."[13] Isoyama discussed Amuro's input towards the track by saying she possessed "strength" and "modernity" towards the track and felt proud off the result.[13] Nao'ymt had commended Amuro's vocal delivery on the track and said that she possessed so much "strength" and felt the theme about the song was looking towards the future and looking back at the past, referring towards Amuro's musical career.[13]

Release

"Contrail" was released as the second single from the studio album and second digital single in Japan on May 19, 2013 on iTunes and Amazon.com exclusively.[15] According to Japanese outlets, Amuro had contemplated on a physical release to promote "Contrail" and the album properly. However, after producers from the TV series Flying Public Relations Office had approached her to record the single on their show, she accepted and she scrapped the released on a physical edition.[16] She believed that the digital and release on the TV series would be enough to promote the single.[16] According to the producer, he felt that the use of "Contrail", which references contrailing, shared the same use for airplanes that were used in the series.[16]

An alternative ballad version was used as the introduction on the Flying Public Relations Office series which premiered at 9pm Sunday nights in Japan.[16] The teaser music video was released on June 6, 2013.[17]

Reception

Critical response

"Contrail" received favorable reviews from most music critics. Dave Circone from NekoPop was critical on Amuro's English-language tracks for the "obvious lyrics" and pronunciation, but stated she "softens the sharp intelligence she displays in [“Contrail”]"[18] A reviewer from the online publication The13thGeek.net was positive in their review. The review off the track stated "The song is so good that even the non-Japanese speaker will want to learn the lyrics and just blare out the powerful chorus along with her [...]"[10] A reviewer from the online publication CDJournal was positive towards the track and album overall. The reviewer had praised the production and praised Nao'ymt for "exhausting" the "goodness" out of Amuro's vocal abilities.[11] A reviewer from Jpop Asia was positive towards all the tracks on the studio album, saying that "every track is good."[19] A reviewer from HMV had discussed the parent album's new consistency levels and felt it contained a "variety" of genres. In saying this, he extemplief "Contrail" in being an improvement throughout the album's consistency.[20]

Inomata from Whatsin.jp had praised the parent album for its "vivid" and "strong" production and commented on "Contrail" for being more "aggresive spirit" that "capture the fresh air that comes through."[12]

Reviewing the version from Ballada, Daisuki Music was very positive towards the song and felt that it was a "wise decision" to include it on the album; "A wise decision considering the massive success of the track last year which helped bolster the sales of “Feel” and reminded everyone that yes, Namie is still around and yes she is definitely here to stay [...]"[21] A reviewer from CD Journal, who reviewed the Ballada version was positive towards the "dramatic" change in the original, which they referred as an "sexy electro" and "symmetrical" tracks. They praised Amuro's vocal abilities and the background music.[22] A reviewer from HMV, who reviewed Ballada, praised the ballad version of "Contrail" and felt that it was the best ballad decision on the compilation album.[23]

Commercial response

Because "Contrail" was released as a digital track in promotion for Feel in May 2013, the song was ineligible to chart on Oricon and G-Music in China due to no physical format release. However, the song charted on the Billboard Japan Chart. The song had debuted and peaked at number eight on the Japan Hot 100, which was a commercial success.[24] This became her second song out off her discography to have only peaked on a Billboard chart and not on Oricon, the first being "Damage". The song was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for digital sales off 250,000, her third single after "Sit! Stay! Wait! Down!" and "Fight Together" to have been certified platinum in the same decade.[25]

The song, along with her single "Big Boys Cry", appeared on Billboard's annual Billboard Year-End chart for Japan Hot 100, with "Contrail" peaking at number sixty-five and the latter peaking at number ninety-two.[26]

Music video

"Contrail" was directed by IKIOI in downtown Los Angeles, California in June 2013. This became Amuro's first single to date to have been directed in North America.[27] The video starts off with slow motion off several daily movements, then starts the vocals with Amuro walking down a street in a bright rainbow colored dress. Throughout the song, it features many people, specifically American people, doing daily things and featured them in sad-like expressions. When the chorus starts, the video features Amuro and small children marching through a bridge in a small town.

The second verse features many shots off unhappy people struggling with their life. The second chorus features Amuro and the children throughout closed traffic on a high street.[27] It features children with brightly-colored clothes and all off them are holding and playing instruments under the blue sky. When the final chorus is about to start, the public stare towards the sky and it features rainbow-colored clouds and start to become happier and brighter. The final chorus finishes with Amuro and the children dancing throughout rainbow-colored special effects at Pershing Square.[27]

Track listing

  1. "Contrail" - 4:14

Credits and personnel

Charts, peaks and position

Charts

Chart (2013) Peak
position
Japan Hot 100 (Billboard)[24] 8

Year-end chart

Chart (2013) Peak
position
Japan Hot 100 (Billboard)[24] 65

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Shipments
Japan (RIAJ)[25] Platinum 250,000

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Liner notes off Feel by Namie Amuro. July 2013.
  2. ↑ "安室奈美恵、ニューアルバムを12月16日リリース - OOPS!" (in Japanese). Retrieved November 12, 2009.
  3. ↑ "安室奈美恵:2年半振り、オリジナルアルバム発売決定！安室12月16日新專輯曲目 @ ~NAMIE 安室奈美惠 AMURO~ 不安於室~ :: Xuite日誌" (in Japanese). Retrieved November 12, 2009.
  4. ↑ "安室奈美恵、デビュー以来初の上半期アルバム1位". Oricon. 2010-06-24. Retrieved September 11, 2010.
  5. ↑ "安室奈美恵 『Uncontrolled』インタビュー" [Namie Amuro Uncontrolled Interview]. Kanako Hayagawa (in Japanese). Billboard Japan. 2012. Archived from the original on July 4, 2012. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
  6. ↑ ゴールド等認定作品一覧　2012年6月 [Works Receiving Certifications List (Gold, etc) (June 2012)]. RIAJ (in Japanese). July 10, 2012. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
  7. ↑ "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" [Oricon Ranking Information Service "You Big Tree"]. Oricon. Retrieved January 9, 2014. (subscription only)
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "NAMIE AMURO: FEEL | OtakuDX". otakudx.com. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Namie Amuro "Feel" | The Japan Times". japantimes.co.jp. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Review: Namie Amuro - FEEL. Retrieved on 17 July 2013.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Namie Amuro / [digipak] CD / DVD. CDJournal. Reviewer unknown, July 17, 2013.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 (in Japanese). WHATS IN WEB? Album Review | Feel | Namie Amuro. Reviewed by Takashi Inomata.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 http://www.tbs.co.jp/soratobu-tbs/news/news130313.html
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Namie Amuro - FEEL. Otakudx.com. Retrieved in February 2015.
  15. ↑ https://itunes.apple.com/jp/album/contrail-from-album-feel-single/id649694321
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 http://ringing-song.net/drama/contrail.html
  17. ↑ 安室奈美恵（Namie Amuro） / 「Contrail」(from ALBUM「FEEL」)MUSIC VIDEO-short ver.-.
  18. ↑ Namie Amuro – FEEL (Review) NekoPop.com. Retrieved on July 21, 2013.
  19. ↑ "[Album Review] Namie Amuro's "FEEL"". jpopasia.com. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  20. ↑ FEEL (CD + DVD): Namie Amuro | HMV Online. www.hmv.co.jp. Retrieved on 24 February 2015.
  21. ↑ "Album Review: Namie Amuro “Ballada” | Daisuki Music". daisukimusic.com. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  22. ↑ "NAMIE AMURO / Ballada [デジパック仕様] [CD+DVD]". artist.cdjournal.com. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  23. ↑ Ballada (CD + DVD): Namie Amuro | HMV Online. www.hmv.co.jp. Retrieved on 24 February 2015.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 "Japan Billboard Hot 100". Billboard (in Japanese). June 17, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "レコード協会調べ　1月度有料音楽配信認定" [Record Association Investigation: January Digital Music Download Certifications] (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. February 28, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Japan Hot 100: 2013 Year-End Charts | Billboard". billboard.com. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 http://tozanabo.com/archives/28966653.html
  28. ↑ iTunes - Music - Feel by Namie Amuro. iTunes.jp. Retrieved in February 2015.