Kayo Aiko's Third single...
was released on November 17, 2004. The title is 'Fantasy'. There is no c/w.
This single was the first of four singles she released in four consecutive weeks. The covers for all four singles feature a red rope that winds from left to right, and when the covers are placed side-by-side, the rope continues from one cover to the next.
Similarly, the PV's for all four songs are intertwined with vignettes of four different stories, centered around a large hotel.
In the first video, for Fantasy, Aiko plays a club girl who goes out with a gang of friends, male and female. They have a toast with flute-glasses at a table (but Aiko was 18 when this was filmed, so presume these drinks are non-alcoholic). They toss a balloon around their hotel suite and blow off 'champagne-popper' noisemakers. They participate in a giant dance sequence which features what I've always referred to as the 'oh my god, I stuck my hand in the fryer!' dance. See the PV and you'll know what I mean.
This Aiko character is cool, she's happy, and she's out having a good time. But apparently the ruckus that's coming from her hotel suite is bothering another guest. Another Aiko character bangs on the common wall and is trying to say, 'keep it down over there!' We'll find out what that's all about in the next PV.
Fantasy was featured as the ending theme for the TV Tokyo show GAME JOCKEY. I don't know what this show is about, so help me, if you can.
The song itself is a bit of a departure from Aiko's usual style (if she has one), the longest song she's ever recorded (5:38), and even if it wasn't intentional, it's an homage to Avex's early days, awash in Eurobeat.
The original version was recorded by Virginelle, and I've already pointed out where to find the song, but you can find it here. Besides the Eurobeat and the melody of the song, it's very different from the original, much more modern. Aiko starts the song with a run-through of the English-language chorus:
Carry on too many times for love / I only played as ever with your heart
I don't know, it's like a Fantasy / You're only mine, oh what a melody.
The PV is best in full-quality (buy the Aiko Kayohaku DVD!), where the rainbowed lens flares can show up in perfect focus, and you can see all the sparkle in Aiko's eyes. I'd take her to any club she wanted to go to, but over here she'd get a little turned off by all the bump-n'-grind that goes on at our clubs. So, it's back to the hotel room...
[Original post date 2009-Jan-17]
