Another double-request feature is upon us! Let's see our songs for this week by Yusri Khairi and kathy!
Wahoo~ Ondo (わっふ～音頭)| Version |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | x3 (224) | x3 (287) | x7 (379) |
Taiko PS2 3, CD Full Combo
150
Ondo -> Namco Original
wondoClosing the 'Namco Games Ondo' trilogy of songs is this console-exclusive track from the old PS2 days, dedicated to the 'Dream Traveler' Klonoa. Klonoa's iconic phrase is 'Wahoo/Wa-hu' (which he says while doing double-jumps), so it makes sense for a song of his to include the shout! If you want to know more about this franchise, see our previous SotW feature about the two actual Klonoa songs on Taiko.
Wahoo~ Ondo is composed by Kakino Kanako (柿埜嘉奈子), the same guy behind STEPPING WIND (also a Klonoa song) and Omochi de Mambo. Both singers for this song are also related to this platforming Namco franchise, as Tsuyoshi Kobayashi (小林毅) is one of the main designers of the first Klonoa videogame (Klonoa: Door to Phantomile) and Arai Yoshihiko (あらゐよしひこ) is in charge of the character design for all the Klonoa games, including the titular hero himself!
All the pattern gimmicks from the Ondo songs (particularly from the Mappy one) also appear here as well, but being the fastest one of the trio makes it for a more lively play through the song and its many note cluster spacing changes.
Mata Ai Mashou (マタアイマショウ) SEAMO| Version | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiko DS1 | x3 (66) | x5 (112) | x4 (211) | x5 (358) |
| Taiko 10 | x3 (66) | x4 (112) | x4 (211) | x6 (358) |
Taiko 10, Taiko DS1 100 none seamoAnother interesting licensed song with an interesting Taiko chart that pops up for a couple of games then disappears forever. Mata Ai Mashou (lit. See you again) is a hip-hop song by Seamo. It sounds like the name of a band, but it's not; Seamo is the nickname used by Japanese rapper Naoki Takada (高田 尚輝).
It's interesting to note that his alias didn't always sound this nice; Naoki started out in 2004 using the far more cheesy alias Seamo-nator (thank heavens that name was dropped soon after!). Throughout his career, Seamo has produced more than 20 singles and collaborated with several artists, most notably with female duo group Bennie K, which was his first shot at stardom in 2005. He has also lent his skills to several anime theme songs, including one for the hugely popular Naruto Shippuden. Mata Ai Mashou was released in 2006 and is Seamo's best-selling and most successful single to date.
The Taiko chart is interesting as it is one of the only Oni 5* charts to have such complex streams, featuring 4 and 6 note clusters (going into backbeat a lot; a common occurrence for hip-hop songs in Taiko), and includes several handswitching areas as well. Yes, it's at BPM 100, but still, it's way too hard to be lounging at this difficulty tier! Arcade Taiko 10 bumped up its rating by one star and kept the incredibly low scroll speed from the song's debut on Nintendo DS, which makes for a challenge in note readability as well.
