Ack Phhht!

The new single by all-girl Japanese rock band Scandal is out today.  The song is called “Shōjo S” and is an opening theme for the anime Bleach. There are several versions being released, a “normal” 3-track version and two “special edition” versions with different covers and track listings:

Normal Edition

1. 少女Ｓ [Shōjo S] (3′11)
2. ナツネイロ [Natsuneiro] (4′33)
3. ＦＵＴＵＲＥ (3′36)

Special Edition A

1. 少女Ｓ (3′11)
2. ナツネイロ (4′33)
3. ＳＯ　ＥＡＳＹ (3′23)
4. 少女Ｓ（Ｉｎｓｔｒｕｍｅｎｔａｌ） (3′11)

Special Edition B

1. 少女Ｓ (3′11)
2. ナツネイロ (4′33)
3. ＦＵＴＵＲＥ (3′36)
4. 少女Ｓ（Ｉｎｓｔｒｕｍｅｎｔａｌ） (3′11)

To be honest, I don’t like this nearly as much as their last single, the fantastic “Sakura Goodbye”.  There’s a lot to like here — the sinewy guitar intro, the vocal interplay on the chorus, the subdued backing “oohs” on the second verse — but the pieces somehow don’t quite click together for me (though something about the chorus makes me suspect that there’s potential in there for a kick-ass dance remix).

Anyway, judge for yourself, here’s the video: