Eve (stylized as EVE) is the debut[a] studio album of Showta. The album was released on March 5, 2008.

Eve
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 5, 2008 (2008-03-05)
Recorded2006–2008
GenreJ-pop
LabelKing Records
Showta chronology
Eve
(2008)
Blue Bird
(2013)
Singles from Eve
  1. "Negaiboshi"
    Released: July 26, 2006
  2. "Trans-winter (Fuyu no Mukōgawa)"
    Released: November 22, 2006
  3. "Hito Shizuku"
    Released: April 4, 2007
  4. "Kimi ni, Kaze ga Fukimasu Yō ni"
    Released: July 25, 2007
  5. "Haru na no ni"
    Released: January 23, 2008

Background and release

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Eve is the debut studio album of Showta. The album was released on March 5, 2008 under King Records. The limited edition included a DVD consisting of all music videos released from his first five singles.[3]

Showta described the album as having "different voices", mentioning that he sings from different perspectives in each song, including a "pure-hearted young male protagonist" and a woman.[4] He selected Eve as the title as a reference to Adam and Eve, representing how his performances surpassed gender and allowing him to sing from the sound and perspective of a woman.[5]

Music

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Aside from containing new original songs, Eve compiles songs from Showta's previous singles released from 2006 to 2008. His debut single, "Negaiboshi", first released on July 26, 2006,[6] was described as being sung from the perspective of a "pure-hearted young male protagonist."[4] Other singles included "Trans-winter (Fuyu no Mukōgawa)", which was used as an insert song to the live-action television adaptation of Damens Walker;[7] "Hito Shizuku"; "Kimi ni, Kaze ga Fukimasu Yō ni", the ending theme song to Ichiteru!;[8] and a cover of Yoshie Kashiwabara's 1983 song "Haru na no ni."[9]

Along with "Haru na no ni", the album also included cover renditions of other songs, such as Caoli Cano's 1995 song "Gozen Ni-ji no Angel", which Showta's producer had wanted to release after having him do demo recordings of several kayōkyoku songs.[4] "Sausage", which was later re-released as a B-side to Showta's 6th single, "Hikaru no Gen-chan", was described as a "warm R&B song."[10]

Reception

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The album debuted at #115 in the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart, charting for one week.[11]

CDJournal described the album as having a "healing effect" and felt that Showta's clear voice suited the elegant and acoustic sound, recommending his cover renditions of "Gozen Ni-ji no Angel" and "Ichikōnen."[12]

Track listing

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Album
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Negaiboshi" (願い星 lit. Wishing Star)Masumi KawamuraHiroo Yamaguchi
  • Takao Kosai
  • Shingo Kobayashi
 
2."Gozen Ni-ji no Angel" (午前2時のエンジェル lit. Angel at 2 PM)Caoli CanoCaoli Cano  
3."Haru na no ni" (春なのに lit. Even Though It's Spring)Miyuki NakajimaMiyuki NakajimaMasayuki Sakamoto 
4."Tameiki Button" (ため息ボタン lit. Sigh Button)Mikio SakaiMikio Sakai  
5."Watashi no Haru ga Hajimaru" (私の春がはじまる lit. Spring Begins For Me)Ren TakayanagiKei Yoshikawa  
6."Yubikiri" (ゆびきり lit. Pinky Promise)mavieH-Wonder  
7."Ichikōnen" (一光年 lit. One Light Year)Masumi KawamuraH.Wonder  
8."Sausage" (ソーセージ)Jun IchikawaJun IchikawaJun Ichikawa 
9."Trans-winter (Fuyu no Mukōgawa)" (Trans-winter 〜冬のむこう側〜 lit. Trans-winter (The Other Side of Winter))Sonomi TameokaSonomi TameokaDaisuke Kahara, REO 
10."Kimi ni, Kaze ga Fukimasu You ni" (君に、風が吹きますよ lit. May the Wind Blow Towards You)Gorō MatsuiAkimitsu HonmaCMJK 
11."Hito Shizuku" (ひとしずく lit. One Drop)Taiyō Morito, Juli ShonoHideya NakazakiHideya Nakazaki 
12."Kokuhaku" (告白 lit. Confession)Masumi KawamuraOh Seok-jun  
13."Negaiboshi" (Winter Version, bonus track)Masumi KawamuraHiroo Yamaguchi  
Limited edition DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Negaiboshi" (promotional video) 
2."Trans-winter (Fuyu no Mukōgawa)" (promotional video) 
3."Hito Shizuku" (promotional video) 
4."Kimi ni, Kaze ga Fukimasu You ni" (promotional video) 
5."Haru na no ni" (promotional video) 

Charts

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Chart (2008) Peak

position

Oricon Weekly Albums Chart[11] 115

Notes

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  1. ^ Official descriptions for Shouta Aoi's discography lists his work released under the name "Showta" as separate from his current work, i.e. while Unlimited is his overall second studio album, it is the first album released under the name "Shouta Aoi" and official descriptions list it as his debut studio album.[1][2]

References

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  1. ^ "UNLIMITED". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  2. ^ "SHOWTA.BEST(初回限定盤)". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  3. ^ Hiraga, Tetsuo (March 5, 2008). "SHOWTA. インタビュー PAGE1 自分の歌が大っ嫌いだった". Hot Express (in Japanese). Retrieved May 8, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ a b c Hiraga, Tetsuo (March 5, 2008). "SHOWTA. インタビュー PAGE2 僕のすべてだけじゃ 足りないんだ". Hot Express (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 28, 2008. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  5. ^ Hiraga, Tetsuo (March 5, 2008). "SHOWTA. インタビュー PAGE3 それが僕". Hot Express (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 28, 2008. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  6. ^ "願い星". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  7. ^ "Trans-winter ~冬のむこう側~". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  8. ^ "君に、風が吹きますように". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  9. ^ "SHOWTA.、"ビジュアル系歌謡曲"で80年代ヒット曲をカヴァー". Barks (in Japanese). January 22, 2008. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  10. ^ "SHOWTA. / 光(ひかる)のゲンちゃん ミニ・レビュー". CDJournal (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  11. ^ a b "EVE". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 29, 2021. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  12. ^ "SHOWTA. / EVE [CD+DVD] [限定][廃盤] ミニ・レビュー". CDJournal (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2019.