Communication!!! (Normal Edition)(Japan Version)

Gone this time around is the soft R&B style of her debut single Softly, which fit well with Leah's vocal style and was a perfect first step to establish a genre for her. Instead, her record company chose to have her spread out to a generally more mature sound, while also giving her a cleaner, bubble-gum pop image. The opening track Step Into My World (Track 1) wraps up that new image in an easily digestible package. With an easy-to-remember hook and a light, upbeat vibe, Step Into My World is as likeable as bubble-gum pop goes, even though Leah's struggle in the vocal department is already beginning to show.

Working more to Leah's vocal is single Vanilla (Track 5), which features a bubble-gum pop style similar to Step Into My World. However, the composition by composers ha-j and Yoshihiko Chino (who has worked with female pop idols such as Aya Ueto and Yui Aragaki as well) doesn't quite strain Leah's voice, making the song a more comfortable listen than the opening track. The reggae-pop track Love Sweet Candy is also in a similar vein with the other bubble-gum pop tracks, presenting a sweeter and livelier side of Leah. The composition is easy on both Leah and the listeners, and the inclusion of reggae in the arrangement also makes Love Sweet Candy an interesting standout among the other tracks.

One of the biggest challenges that Leah tackles in Communication!!! is her transition into rock. The centerpiece of the album is Lost at Sea (Track 7), which not only features Leah's lyrics (one of the few without a co-lyricist), but also Leah as a co-composer with Yoshihiko Chino. Lost at Sea is an admirable attempt by Leah to present a more mature image of herself with its relatively dark lyrics and a strong composition. However, Leah's voice struggles to the point of slurring through her own English lyrics, which are surprisingly competently written (sans a strange inclusion of Japanese in the bridge). Even though she performs slightly better in the album's other rock track Without a Good-bye (Track 4), it becomes apparent in Communication!!! that rock will not take over as Leah's genre of choice.

Leah does attempt to further her image while staying in her musical genre of choice in the album as well. The American-style R&B dance track Love Paradox (Track 2) is an example of that, as the composers and producers (who also worked on Without a Good-bye) fit Leah's style with a bombastic arrangement while taking the primary emphasis away from vocals. A little more ambitious is the English-language dance song Nothin' to Lose (Track 6), which again features Leah as the sole lyricist. However, Hiro's busy composition causes Leah to speed past her own lyrics, which is filled with contrived analogies of love to gambling terminology (Leah is originally from Las Vegas). The most effective R&B track comes when Leah finally slows down a little bit in "Not Too Bad" (Track 9). Written completely by HIRO, the smooth R&B track gives Leah a chance to show her more flirtatious side with her voice and further prove that R&B is her strongest genre.

While Leah's record company is trying its best to inject Leah's music with maturity, they may have done so a little prematurely. Leah is still a relatively new singer, and her voice has yet to mature to the heights of the genre she attempts in the album. At this relatively early stage, Leah's producers should take advantage of her stronger genres in order to first establish her as a capable singer. Instead, Communication!!! exposes her weaknesses too soon and makes her future direction as a pop singer even harder to see. For now, Communication!!! marks an admirable effort by both Leah and her record company team, but it shows that there's still plenty of room for improvement before Leah reaches her potential as a true Panasian superstar.

Recommended Tracks: Step Into My World (Track 1), Love Sweet Candy (Track 3), Vanilla (Track 5), Not Too Bad (Track 9)

by Kevin Ma