When I received my 5th J-pop cassette Mix from my friend in April of 1996, I was blown away by not just one but two new Hirose Kohmi songs, two new Mr. Children songs, and a couple of songs from a cool rockin’ band I’d never heard before, DEEN! What a terrific group this was!
In a way it was like getting a crash course in DEEN goodness because the two songs that opened up side two of that cassette mix were just about their best songs ever: the catchy whimsical HITOMI SORASANAIDE and the dramatic rock ballad LOVE FOREVER!
Lead Singer Ikemori Shuichi’s vocals always sound great, and I have to say that in LOVE FOREVER, they’ve never sounded better, especially the parts that are double tracked and he’s harmonizing with himself! And that B-GRAM music style of the band sounds so much like ZARD, it almost feels like he’s subbing for Izumi while she takes a breather!