Vocaloid Extravaganza! (By: hwiseph)

Hello everyone, I’m hwiseph, and I’m a new addition to the Mikudb.moe community! I wanted to start out this article by talking about the songs that piqued my interest into Vocaloid. Surprisingly enough, Hatsune Miku and her iconic leek weren’t the things that attracted me to Vocaloid, but it was the duets, trios, quartets, basically anything that wasn’t a solo piece that made want to learn more about the Vocaloid community. Without further ado, let’s jump in to some of my favorite Vocaloid ensembles!

Dream Meltic Halloween

This particular song features seven Vocaloids: Miku, Rin, Len, Gakupo, Kaito, and Meiko. In the spirit of Halloween (belated, albeit), this song is perfect, talking about the magic of Halloween and the wonders of this day in October. It combines different parts and features many different solo parts. I was actually very surprised when I saw the PV. The transitions between the verses and the bridge sent chills down my back the first time I saw it. In fact, this was the first Vocaloid-featured song I heard save for Miku’s “Ievan Polkka” covers.

Mr. Music

Mr. Music is such a good tune to me, featuring Miku, Miku Append, Rin, Len, Luka, Gumi, and Kaai Yuki. From this song, I learned that different versions of Miku existed. At the time I was in middle school I think, so I didn’t pay attention to the different versions of each Vocaloid. I thought that Miku Append was a different Vocaloid entirely. Kaai Yuki is featured here too, and I think this song is the only time I’ve ever heard her. Still, her line near the end of the PV is great. The PV itself is vibrant, quite the opposite from Dream Meltic Halloween. The characters are in stylish clothing and refer to a “Mr. Music” who keeps on groovin’! It’s rather cute and enjoyable.

magnet (Gakupo and Gumi)

There’s a funny story attached to my experience with this song. I didn’t even know that the original version was with Luka and Miku, so I accepted this one as the original. Then I discovered the Youtube comments….you get the gist. Still, I enjoy this one a lot; it’s the first track where I got to really listen to Gakupo and Gumi, and I really enjoy their voices. (Gakupo is better than Kaito, sorry everyone.) This love song that embraces the metaphor of attracting magnets just pulled my interest, and it’s still one that I listen to from time to time.

ReAct

ReAct is a song about the tragic love triangle between Rin, Len, and Miku. While I enjoy the rhythm and the overall feel of the music itself, the PV really grabbed my attention because of how drastically different each producer’s vision of the PV is. This is when I discovered just how large the Vocaloid community is. Still, the dynamic text and effects used in the PV are done very well.

Party x Party

I think the best Vocaloid songs are the ones that are able to tell stories within a short length of time. The Dark Lord, Miku, is bored and tired of being alone, so what does she do? She goes on an adventure! With the help of a bard, a gunner, a merchant, a dancer, and a bartender, she’s able to go on an adventure with a full-fledged party. What will happen next? Additionally, this is the first song that made me notice how Kaito is the butt of everyone’s jokes. The use of supporting music like the brass and percussion adds a feel similar to Dragon Quest or Final Fantasy.

Phantom Thief F’s Scenario ~Mystery of the Missing Diamond~

This tune is probably the one that features the most Vocaloids. I don’t think there’s any other tunes that feature more than 10 of them. Yup. Miku, Len, Rin, Gakupo, IA, Kaito, Luka, Mayu, and Meiko are all present within the four minute PV and have a presence. The premise is also interesting: A thief announces that he will steal a diamond aboard a ship that is having an auction. With all the characters present, the diamond is somehow stolen, and one of the characters is the culprit. My favorite part is right before the key change, where Gakupo has a single line when he realizes that the diamond is missing. See the PV to find out!

OSTER Project – Alice in Musicland and Music Wizard of OZ

I’ve saved the best for last!…and these were one of the last ensemble PVs I’ve seen before I branched out into other realms of Vocaloid. OSTER Project surprised me with these two with the lengths. Alice in Musicland, featuring Miku, Rin, Len, Kaito, Meiko, and Luka, is roughly 12 minutes long, while Music Wizard of OZ is 20 minutes! However, these long times don’t detract from the enjoyment factor. The storytelling is great, putting a twist on the classic fairytales that we know, while making its own presence about music. I was very amazed at these two tracks, and I couldn’t stop watching the PV’s for a while. Since these videos are so long, I’ll refrain from putting a video here, but go check it out! OSTER Project did such a good job on these two tracks!

The theater/playesque aesthetics really stand out.

In the end, these are only some of the many songs that I’ve been exposed to in my experience with Vocaloids. I hope to learn more about them and the great songs that are out there. Hopefully, I’ll be able to share my knowledge and my excitement for Hatsune Miku and her brethren. If you’ve stayed with me till the end, thanks.

And I hope to see you another day.

-hwiseph