Well, this kind of came out of the middle of nowhere: KOTOKO’s fourth album for Geneon, “Ipsilon no Hakobune” (イプシロンの方舟) recently showed up in a listing on Japanese music site Neowing, along with the information that the songs BLAZE, Real Onigokko and Hayate no Gotoku! will be featured. The album’s due to come out October 14, and further information will be posted as it comes along as per usual.
Also, in similarly KOTOKO-related news, some friendly Japanese pirate has thrown up the short version of daily-daily Dream! on Youtube for your listening pleasure. Pretty quick, if I do say so myself.
Edit – further news, as provided by Sekka in the comments section:
“Epsilon no Fune”, as the album is apparently actually romanized, has a tracklisting up on its amazon listing (including scene, hands-down one of KOTOKO’s worst songs in years, and a surprising amount of new songs considering that it’s a modern Geneon release) already – anyone who has any idea how all this information came out at once instead of being cruelly teased along as per usual can feel free to share their theories. At this rate we’ll have full credits for the thing by tomorrow night!
Also, the new eroge Futa-Ane (link NWS, obviously) from oddly-named developer bootUP! is set to have an I’ve-produced theme song featuring a ‘new singer’. It’s unknown if this means a singer new to I’ve (as was the case with Rita on Little Busters!), a new singer entirely (like the mysterious Asami Miyazaki from satirize) or just IKU making her eroge debut, but we’ll find out soon enough. Composed and arranged by Maiko Iuchi, lyrics by KOTOKO.
愛撫―I've Sound Blog― 
This is cool.
By: 電波の世界 on 07/31/09
at 21.18
daily-daily Dream doesn’t sound too denpa but it’s good. Although I can’t say that I’m liking it…
Wow after some years, KOTOKO will finally release an album!!! >o< I'll be waiting for this one! <3
By: fred on 07/31/09
at 21.25
Epsilon’s Ark? Now I am entirely curious on the content of this album as a whole.
By: K.N. on 07/31/09
at 21.47
Wow, shouty shouty. Not bad though, I guess.
By: Pi-pi-pi on 08/01/09
at 02.54
daily-daily Dream is certainly good, but rather disappointing for me. KOTOKO should have sounded cute… and she only half-cute here… -w- and C.G mix could have done better ~_~
anyway, new KOTOKO album is always WELCOME… xD~
By: 黒い雪 on 08/01/09
at 06.52
Why you just can’t accept she is simply….cool? If she would act cute, plp would say….eh…again Kotoko is acting too cute….. This time she’s preatty and cool, nobody can say she is not withouth being supid….
By: Maiku87 on 10/02/09
at 14.49
anyway sorry for double post…
SPYGLASS TV-CM has been released…
By: 黒い雪 on 08/01/09
at 09.38
Oh my god, the end of the CM… Kaorin’s pretending she’s on a boat, haha.
By: K.N. on 08/01/09
at 10.38
Um, here’s some Eroge news.
http://www.bootup.jp/futa_ane/sp_highlights.html
bootUP’s next game Futa*Ane (NSFW!, but that page is okay) will have I’ve doing the theme song. Will be composed by Maiko with KOTOKO writing the lyrics. The singer.. is a new singer?! Is that right??
I’m quite surprised by this..
By: Sekka on 08/01/09
at 10.59
Also! イプシロンの方舟 (Read as: Epsilon no Fune, according to Amazon) tracklist is up at Amazon!
1.リアル鬼ごっこ
2.BLAZE
3.ハヤテのごとく!
4.scene
5.ε~Epsilon~
6.RI←SU→KU
7.-∞-DRIVE
8.HELLION
9.Geoglyphs
10.雨とギター (Ame to Guitar)
11.モネラの絆 (Monera no Kizuna)
12.限界打破 (Genkai Daha)
13.タイトル未定 (<– The title is not known for now)
From the looks of things, 8 new tracks!! (9 maybe on the undecided one) Very cool!! The titles sound interesting too~!
By: Sekka on 08/01/09
at 11.57
I got my (apparently incorrect) romanization from POPjisyo, eat me.
By: 愛撫 on 08/01/09
at 13.56
Ya I seen it on her wiki earlier >>happy<< n_n
By: TELL on 08/01/09
at 16.30
This is what I call great, great, great news!
I hope that there will be a limited edition with a PV for this new album. This year’s gonna be a good one for I’ve fans.
Even though I already own Real Oni Gokko, BLAZE and Shishitenhakki singles, I still can’t wait to get this promising album ^^.
By: Pedropinilla on 08/01/09
at 18.02
Perhaps the unknown single is a maxi CD she will release slightly before the album launch~???
O=
By: TELL on 08/02/09
at 04.13
@pedro>> you’re right about that. Finally a smart move!! o.o was waiting for that in years. XD I think the “untitled” songs would have the PV — well that’s just a wild guess though. xD
By: fred on 08/02/09
at 06.44
My first thoughts whilst listening to that short ver. of “daily-daily Dream!” were “sh*t, there’s really no hope left for C.G mix if even his pseudo-Denpa songs resemble each other now…”. So, not very excited on the full version, “bumpy-Jumpy!” on the other hand *is* quite lovely…
As for KOTOKO’s 4th Album I *really* hope it will turn out better than her previous one (that was the laziest job done on an I’ve Vocal Hime Album in my view even beating MELLSCOPE there IMO).
News tidbit that got me most excited here though is the new vocalist thingie…I seriously hope that has nothing to do with IKU. If it’s really ment in the veins of the collective soon about to introduce a new face/voice just thinking of the possibilities makes me all impatient on that aside of that all-so-uninteresting and plain new bootUP! project. *wink* fripSide’s nao is free now *wink* Yeah, I’ll never give up the hope for these two Sound Labels to collaborate on some form or another (but seriously the “new fripSide” doing the upcoming Railgun Anime theme and on top is about to get a Geneon page started supports this wishful illusion of mine at least on marginal amount ^_^)
By: littleharlock on 08/02/09
at 14.04
fripSide and I’ve already have sort of collaborated though; Sat produced a song on IKU’s “Yuauea”, after all.
By: 愛撫 on 08/02/09
at 17.17
That album completely sucked. The only good songs were the ones Kazuya worked on.
By: SAME on 08/03/09
at 02.42
NICE! The album sound really good, lots of new songs and some now-old ones. I’m really looking forwards to this, besides, “Epsilon” sound like a UZU-MAKI-like kind of song (though it may be a SORMA fluff).
Is it just me, or did I’ve got all crazy with DttF and forgot there was still life after it? Let us hope that unnecessary (and apparently ignored) pause served as inspiration for Mr. Takase, Mr. Nakazawa and Maiko (after masterpiece, she does deserve a(n umpteenth) new chance).
By: NumberXIII on 08/02/09
at 21.19
^(wow, ignore all my grammar and spelling mistakes xD)
By: NumberXIII on 08/02/09
at 21.21
New I’ve singer eh? I’m also very curious of this one as well. But I would be happy if they could just get Reina back on I’ve. She has a very great voice and yet, she was not given a chance to perform more songs. -_-a
By: fred on 08/03/09
at 06.17
so lets say, “We want Reina!” ? XD~ *bricked~
looking at the titles, i have a hunch that some of the new songs will be denpa =3
By: Yuki88 on 08/03/09
at 18.46
Probably~! x3 hopefully Epsilon would be something as win as UZU-MAKI (the song not the album) or Re-sublimity. XD I have a hunch either Takase or Nakazawa will be behind this song.
By: fred on 08/03/09
at 23.36
That’s the beauty about different tastes, you know, because for me, both MELLSCOPE and UZU-MAKI are very good albums and for the same I only hope the best for this new one from KOTO-chan.
It’s like BLAZE, I can’t get tired listening this song that is, in fact, into my top ten favorites of KOTOKO; besides, we knew since the beginning that if a new KOTO-album would arise some singles would make its way to it…
Anyway, for our enjoy, there’s a two disc limited release with a PV and making-of and, of course, after almost three years without a brand new album of my favorite I’ve lady, the pre-order’s already in ^^.
Be happy my friends, so far 2009 is beating the past year and it seems that is not going to stop…
By: Pedropinilla on 08/04/09
at 05.48
>> Lia << nuff said
By: TELL on 08/11/09
at 11.43
O= new vocalist… I hope their good~!!!
I still want SHIHO to return =/ :. her DIVARATS album was very good +_+
MOMO wont because of P.O.R…
…..
Still Im SUPER sure it’s a brand new face
…..
SEE IF ITS IKU… ugh~!!!
By: TELL on 08/04/09
at 13.21
@Pedro> yes we have different tastes but really if you’ll examine her best album songs are not really much on UZU-MAKI (that’s why I specified only the song and not much the whole album although I like at least 3 songs there and don’t expect being to be there. ;D) — I like MELLSCOPE better if you ask me.
And BLAZE is… okay. xD I’m not saying it’s gawd awful terrible but it’s not going to be the star of Epsilon no Fune just because it got the most memorable anime tie-in or whatsoever. Real Onigokko is 100x better. >,>
And I would like to hope for a bigger improvisation for this album. This is after all for the most prolific I’ve utahime.
By: fred on 08/04/09
at 17.57
What can I say fred?… if the true is that I agree with your words. My point is that every album from KOTOKO reflex, perhaps, her feelings at that very moment and the dark aura in UZU-MAKI is part of her too.
I’m not saying that in this fourth album we’re gonna have samba or reggeaton ^^ but the music coming from this lady is a placer to me.
Real Oni Gokko better than BLAZE???… though I like the song there’s not a different opinion about it, the movie song kicks hard the shana intro ^^. And, of course, that the remarkable songs of this album shoud be some among the new ones.
By: Pedropinilla on 08/05/09
at 17.47
I thought Real Onigokko and BLAZE where both awesome…
By: TELL on 08/08/09
at 07.19
True that …true…finally some other dog defending KOTOKO from these wolfs….
By: Maiku87 on 10/02/09
at 14.57
The KOTOKO Geneon Site has the full tracklist of Epsilon no Fune up now. Track 13’s title is: LITTLE BABY NOTHING.
I find that title odd. Wonder what that’s gonna be like..
By: Sekka on 08/04/09
at 18.22
It has Kazuya takase singing on it…..
By: Maiku87 on 10/02/09
at 14.58
wo0t LITTLE BABY NOTHING ~~ sounds cute X=
By: TELL on 08/05/09
at 07.02
daily-daily Dream would have been a great song for me, but it doesn’t throw anything new to the table. I can imagine C.G. Mix thinking “what good is changing something that has already been perfected?” Only problem is, it eventually gets boring. But I’ll let this one slide for now.
By: RSSRII on 08/08/09
at 23.31
[…] 08/12/2009 by Baki I found my old KOTOKO album today and then I remembered my middle school days when I had songs like Re-sublimity and radiance on repeat. Suddenly I realized that KOTOKO and the other singers at I’ve Sound haven’t produced anything major lately (although KOTOKO’s 4th album is coming out soon) […]
By: I’ve Sound « triangler on 08/12/09
at 15.24
@^^^: the movie and the departed to the future
By: TELL on 08/18/09
at 10.58
okay this may be out of topic, but i have been dying to know about Asame Miyazaki (from Satirize). been searching for it but no luck. she just sounded great in that track, i’m still listening to in till now. anyone who have some info about her pls reply. i’ll appreciate it.
By: elleFX on 08/29/09
at 07.04
Sadly, Asami Miyazaki remains one of the mysteries of I’ve – there’s a rumour that it’s a pseudonym for KOTOKO, but nobody’s really been able to confirm that and the rumour itself seems kind of dicey at best. I’d love to share information about her, but there just isn’t really any to be shared.
By: 愛撫 on 08/29/09
at 16.21