''Lily of da Valley'' is the fourth full-length album by Japanese
rap rock
Rap rock is a music genre that developed from the early to mid-1980s, when hip hop DJs incorporated rock records into their routines and rappers began incorporating original and sampled rock instrumentation into hip hop music. Rap rock is co ...
group
Dragon Ash
is a Japanese rap rock group founded in 1996 by Kenji "KJ" Furuya and Makoto Sakurai.
They were one of the first groups to popularize hip hop in Japan. Dragon Ash is a member of Mob Squad, which is an affiliation with the bands Source and Endi ...
; released in 2001. The album was preceded by the release of three singles, including "
Shizuka na Hibi no Kaidan o", which was used as the ending theme for the 2000 film ''
Battle Royale''. The
limited edition
The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition or expanded edition are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as b ...
features "Episode 2" featuring Shun and Shigeo as a bonus track. The album also contains the hidden track "Hanakotoba".
In the language of flowers,
lily of the valley
Lily of the valley (''Convallaria majalis'' ), sometimes written lily-of-the-valley, is a woodland flowering plant with sweetly scented, pendent, bell-shaped white flowers borne in sprays in spring. It is native throughout the cool temperate No ...
represents the return of happiness.
Critical reception
Ted Mills of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
called the album a step down from Dragon Ash's preceding album ''
Viva la Revolution'' (1999), writing that it was disappointing that the band's success following that album had "narrowed their focus" into making either "hardcore metal/hip-hop" tracks like "Let Yourself Go, Let Myself Go", or "soulful hip-hop" tracks with "female backing vocals" that follow the formula of another of their hits, "
Grateful Days". While conceding that this does not mean the tracks "aren't exciting", Mills concluded it did mean that "the group has decided to turn the amps up to 11 without moving ahead".
Commercial performance
''Lily of da Valley'' debuted at number two on the
Oricon Albums Chart
The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon A ...
, and was the 28th best-selling album of 2001 in Japan.
It was eventually certified double platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969.
The RIAJ's activities include pro ...
in March 2001, for shipments of 800,000 copies.
Track listing
All songs written by
Kenji Furuya unless otherwise stated.
#"Intro" (Bots) – 1:08
#"21st Century Riot" – 2:37
#"Glory" – 5:00
#"
Amploud" – 4:16
#"Bring It" – 4:32
#"Sunset Beach" – 5:22
#"My Friends' Anthem" – 3:07
#"Yuri no Saku Basho De" (百合の咲く場所で) – 3:54
#"Aim High" – 3:40
#"Revolater" – 3:24
#"Deep Impact" featuring Rappagariya, Yamadaman, Q, – 4:32
#"
Shizuka na Hibi no Kaidan o" (静かな日々の階段を) – 4:29
#"Lily of da Valley" – 5:53
#"Outro" (Bots) – 1:17
#*"
Hanakotoba" (花言葉) (hidden track) – 8:45
Limited edition
The limited edition version of the album features a bonus track added after "Outro", with "Hanakotoba" attached to the end of the track.
#
"Episode 2" featuring Shun & Shigeo from – 2:42
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
Dragon Ash albums
2001 albums
Victor Entertainment albums