I got my cd on new years day actually around 12 something. I was suprised it came on that day.
As a whole, I like the cd, though a few songs are meh. I'll do an in depth review.
1.) Philosopher - I actually like this song a decent amount. Not the best on the cd, but its pretty good. Not the video I would have picked for the PV, I definately would have picked Winter Farewell. But its pretty good. Nice guitar parts, solid vocals. The solo is good in it and not overly long. It works pretty well.
2.) Cradle - Heard this a few times before actually. I like it alot though. It's nice and powerful. Decent song. Yet again, not amazing, but its a solid song.
3.) Mizerable - I really liked the original version with Seiji. And this version is no different. I like it better than the first two songs out of all of them so far into the cd. I like Seiji's vocals, and I also like Juka's vocals in the song. Though Im not sure which person's voice I like better, I think Juka sings it better technically as in reaching the parts better than Seiji did. Overall, definately an awesome song. One of my favorite Hizaki solo's in this song.
4.) Hover Mind - My least favorite on the cd. First off, I think it's a really bad use of Juka's voice. Secondly, I was dissapointed because out of all the songs he had to write on the cd, it was this one. I like the music for the most part. But I just dont like the vocals too much. Its not a bad song per se, I just dont like it much personally.
5.) Everlasting Dream - Then comes Everlasting Dream which is an awesome song. Very different from what Juka had usually sang. He doesnt sing more operatic and just sings it more like a rock song, and it really works well. The song is just really solid. It reminds me of a Hizaki song mixed with some old L'arc en Ciel. Another very good song on the album. Awesome vocals, nice guitar parts. Awesome drumming and bass. Just a good song all around.
6.) Solitude - Another song I really liked before as well. I could be wrong, but it seems a little heavier than the original. In the original, the english I think was a little bit better, but still, its not saying much. Both of their english isnt really that good. But otherwise, I love Juka's vocals in it. Especially the harmonized parts. And my god, at like 5 minutes into the song, I loved it in the original, and love it even more in this version where its just the vocalist singing. Amazing part. I like everything about this song. Fromt he voacalist to the synth. Awesome song.
7.) Cant read Japanese Kanji - Another different, yet cool song. It kinda has an evil feel to it, and the synth really works well. Kinda sounds like it has a little bit of middle eastern/Indian flavor to the synth. Not my favorite, but it is a good song.
8.) Overature - Nice little instrumental as usual. Nothing really different like some of the other remakes on here. But, its still a nice peice none the less.
9.) Ritual - Better in every way over the original. God, I cant beleive someone said they liked the original because by all means, Fuki from Blood just really couldnt sing. Though neither of them can speak english very well, I'd rather hear Juka doing it. Or just about anyone else. The only part that sounds really odd is when he sings all high and operatic. It;s not that it sounds bad per se, but it sounds weird. Overall, I think you can hear every instrument in this song better. And I think the solo in it is a little different if Im not mistaken. Pretty good song
10.) Winter farewell - I think this is my favorite on the cd. It's just very grandiose at parts and epic at parts. And I love myself some epic music. And then with the vocals. Very warm with nice piano behind the vocals during the verses. The chorus is also very nice as well. I also like the little synthy stuff in parts of the song. Its definately a nice ballad. This I think could have been a really awesome PV. A nice video of them in Winter and throughout the video, it would slowly fade into spring with flowers everywhere and stuff. Nice ending and everything. Awesome song.
11.) Kamijo song - Short little outro. It's nothing really amazing, but its nice a relaxing, plus I think its fits as a good ending from the previous song. Its decent.
Overall, I like the cd. There are a few meh songs, like two, but for the most part its a solid cd. Nothing like, OMG BEST CD EVER. But its a good cd.