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MY SUGAR CAT Release Date: 2006.07.26 Peak Position: #14 Label: SONY MUSIC ASSOCIATED RECORDS Product Code: AICL-1761; AIJL-5297 (Vinyl) First Press: Picture-labeled disc |
After the bluesy and boring “CRY NO MORE” and the New Orleans charity single “ALL HANDS TOGETHER”, Mika unbraids her hair and lets go of the southern-sounds of Louisiana to float into the relaxing Caribbean with “MY SUGAR CAT”, a “sugar blues” love song with a hint of summer. With her southern-love finally washed out of her music, has Mika garnered another classic? Has she really gone back to her cool-smooth-modern-jazz-fusion roots? Only one way to find out…review!
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1) MY SUGAR CAT
“MY SUGAR CAT” has a slight reggae-beat combined with the charm of Mika’s older and beloved songs (“seppun” in particular). I absolutely adore Mika’s voice here, which matches the feel and the melody of the song perfectly with very sweet and smooth singing. The melody is nice, calming, and pleasant to listen to and quickly makes “MY SUGAR CAT” a perfect summer-love song, which is very welcoming after her last two singles. Yet, unfortunately, the song is missing a much-needed “wow” factor to take it onto the next level. There’s no outstanding vocals, no wonderful bridges, and nothing that really makes this song stand-out. In other words, it’s quite plain and plays it safe.
Rating: 
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2) koishikute [longing]
“koishikute” is actually a cover of a song by Okinawan folk trio BEGIN. It continues with the tropical feel of “MY SUGAR CAT”, but has a bit quicker in pace. I like it a tad more than “MY SUGAR CAT”. Having not the privilege of listening to the original, I can’t compare the music and vocals of Mika’s cover. However, I really like the carefree beat and I love the melody created by the instruments involved. I especially like the background vocals of the song, which really help in imagining a tropical island during the sunset. As a side-note, this won’t be the last you will hear of BEGIN or this song: a movie based on the band entitled “Koishikute” is set to release next year.
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3) MY SUGAR CAT (Instrumental)
4) koishikute (Instrumental)
Conclusion: As much as I like “MY SUGAR CAT”, when I listen to it I always wait for a climax that just never happens — and that is a disappointment. It’s too laid-back to make a strong impact, but that may be part of its charm as well. Unfortunately, this single was not able to stay on the Oricon Top 30 for a second week, and is, so far, her lowest-selling single to date. However, I must say it’s my favorite post-NANA single with a nice summery feel and calming vocals. Well done.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
My favorite post-NANA single as well. But still didn’t like it. Japan is really going through a reggae-loving stage right now so I think she was trying to catch the wave and hope to sell some more because of it. But failed. I personally don’t like reggae-to slow, BUT many of my friends adore it so I will listen to it. And ‘MY SUGAR CAT’ wanted to make me sleep more than any other Bob Marley song I have heard. ^^; sorry Mika still think you are beautiful with a beautiful voice though~!!!
man, mika can branch out into so many types of genres, she just had to pick reggae lol. She sounded good with rock, blues, and pop. I think I preferred the pop jazzy ares the most like “seven” and her ballads. She’s got the best voice for ballads. This single was just.. odd lol.