The years have been flying by, and no one could argue that more than the Japanese quintet Coldrain, especially if you count the gap between now and their debut studio album Final Destination (2009). Last year, the album celebrated its fifteenth anniversary; to celebrate the monumental commemoration the band re-recorded and remastered it for the special occasion. Alongside this, the Nagoya heavyweights played a Homecoming show at the Nippon Gaishi Hall on 10th February 2024 in their hometown where they would surprisingly debut the Ninja Kamui tie-in "Vengeance", which would be released on the very same day to help plug the release of the re-recorded album, that was also concurrent with the debut of the anime on Adult Swim.
"Vengeance" was an instant success, amassing over 56k views in its first 24 hours and 228,000 hits on YouTube in its first week alone. It became the band's quickest song to smash one million views within 40 days of its release and soared up the iTunes charts in several countries worldwide. The hard-rocking single proved to be very popular among the fans and newcomers to the ensemble, thanks to being the opening theme to the critically acclaimed aforementioned manga.
The music video connects with the song's themes of revenge and redemption, the storyline blends elements from the 2014 blockbusters John Wick and the death montage time-loop from Edge of Tomorrow, featuring the band performing centre stage in a dimly lit venue with an audience of spectators drinking. Written specifically for the japnation, the video also conjoins with Ninja Kamui's premise.
Before 2009, if you had heard of Final Destination, you certainly would have thought of the horror film franchise of the same name. However, after the release of the group's debut album, they were sure to change the conversation. The album's defining legacy collated into the fifteenth-anniversary re-recording, Final Destination (XV Re:Recorded). In recent years, re-recorded albums have proved to have had a resurgence thanks to Taylor Swift's master disputes with her old label Big Machine Records. Her situation seemingly impacted the entire music industry at large, including the rock world where bands such as Busted, Incubus, and Pink Floyd's Roger Waters all have re-recorded their iconic albums over the last two years. A lot of this comes down to artists being unhappy about the albums in their original forms and wanting to expand upon them with updated technology, and Coldrain is no different.
However, this seems to have divided fans as some argue it ruins the magic of the original, while others contend that it improves and polishes up the foundations of what came before. A lot of this also comes back to retrospect, but now a year on from Final Destination XV, one can glance back and wonder how it holds up compared to it's original release.
The anthemic post-hardcore title track "Final Destination" has been a fan-favourite ever since its inception, and the most consistently stable song in the band's setlist. It is not hard to see why, as the original's iconic smashing drum intro from Katsuma Minatani thrashes the ensemble straight into full gear as frontman Masato Hayakawa screams "GO!". The energetic guitar work by Ryo Yokochi contrasts perfectly as the vocals are consistently hooked; even through the verses, really elevating the sing-along titanium stature of the lyrical content. Not only is the song full of melodic mayhem but it's also filled with technical brilliance, showcasing how much cleaner it now sounds with upgraded equipment for a smoother sound mix.
A consistent flaw floating among recent re-recorded albums, unfortunately, plagues the Nagoya boys' latest outing, is how heavily modulated the vocals are compared to the original release. While Incubus has always been one of Hayakawa's favourite bands growing up, this has made Masato prone to copying some of Brandon Boyd's fatal flaws from Morning View XXIII (2024). Both men are naturally very talented, but the vocals have been edited and pitched to the point for the sake of sounding different. It's a sad sight to see, as these faults are further highlighted in such songs as "Counterfeits and Lies", "Someday" and "Just Tonight".
However, the record completely turns the table on its head as the Japanese rockers debut single "Fiction" has always been criminally underrated, though it has gone through many incarnations over the years. In early 2008, it first appeared on the band's eponymously titled demo Coldrain, before being released as their debut maxi-single in November of the same year by being re-recorded and remastered, while also being touched up for the album version that appeared on Final Destination. Now, here we are, the fourth embodiment sucks out all the life and raw punk rock energy it once had. The cleaner the track gets, the more deflated it becomes. Sometimes songs aren't meant to be tampered with, and there is no bigger sin on this record than "Fiction". It used to be peak early CR, however, the fourth-dated version has made it sound more generic as a result, thus making it the biggest highlight as to why some songs are better kept untouched, as the previously aforementioned punk rock classic has been completely butchered in the process.
While the overt cleanliness remains, the band's oldest song, the first ever written, "Painting" received a dire need of new life, as Kazuya Sugiyama's braising rhythmic riffs breathe oxygen into the killer track. Though oxymoronic, the adrenaline-inducing instrumentals help carry the song through. The same can be said for "24-7", "Survive", and "My Addiction". All may be bogged down by the heavily modulated vocals, though the instrumentally tight bass licks from Ryo Shimizu and an improved mix from Sam Guaiana more than makeup for it, making it all the more pleasant to listen to.
I could critique the heavily modulated orals all day, though the best song updated from the original recording is easily "Doors". Somehow, Hayakawa's melodic vocals and screaming growls are quintessentially edited and perfectly contrasted by Shimizu's thunderously grooving bass parts. It is easy to see how much the quintet have improved since their early days, and the track is epitomised by that.
The record feels so confused, making the original album with foresight feel very disjointed in vibes. Songs such as "Deja Vu" make it sound like Hayakawa is crackling with the very awkward vocals as if it were recorded by a toothbrush, especially considering the modulation merely the number prior had executed them well enough for the first time since the opener; gaping a wider hole into FDXV's inconsistent production.
Originally selected as the ending theme to Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger, it's hard not to see why "8AM" proved to be the right choice as the album's second single. Just like "Fiction" before it, the song has now undergone three separate formations since first released as a maxi-single in April 2009. A beautiful alt-rock love ballad with its music video filmed at the Nakatajima Sand Dunes has proved to be fanatically received by the fanbase, including over 2.7 million streams on YouTube and Spotify combined. A sombre number that has been tightly packed in a condensed package. The latest version has everything you could hope for, Yokochi and Sugiyama's juicy guitar work, Shimizu's groovy bass licks and beautifully synchronised kicks onto the bass drum by Minatani. Frontman Masato Hayakawa's beautifully catchy vocals are drizzled on top. While the same modulation issues are at play here, I cannot give enough credit to how fantastic Hayakawa's vocal performance is on the new rendition which perfectly showcases how much he has improved throughout his career.
To conclude the record, "8AM" exquisitely transitions into the same single that was released in tandem to promote it. "Vengeance" is an alt-metal powerhouse that kicks into high gear right from the start. The track blends catchy elements into a post-hardcore showcase, combining intricate instrumentals and drum rhythms with pop hooks. It erupts into a massive stadium chorus reminiscent of the grandeur of Camp Nou and the star power of Keanu Reeves and Tom Cruise, establishing itself as an unforgettable hard rock classic of 2024 that has grossed over 4 million views on YouTube in its first full year.
The album was originally released as a venue-only CD release limited to 3000 copies but eventually led to a full-blown digital release after phenomenal demand. At the same show, the event was recorded and is being made available for shipment this year as the band's sixth live album, Homecoming Live at Nippon Gaishi Hall.
Overall, Final Destination (XV Re:Recorded) feels like an afterthought to the colossal "Vengeance" that closes the album. Bogged down by inconsistency and production issues, FDXV is a messy record with some fantastic moments, but overall feels underwhelming compared to the original. Some argue that the original album is dated, but I feel that barely a year on the modern take on the outing is just going to be another product of its time.
