Reborn Superstar!

Reborn Superstar! (来世は偉人) is the second studio album by Japanese metalcore band Hanabie, released on July 26, 2023 by Epic Records Japan, a subsidiary of Sony Music Japan. It was the first album to be released by a major label of a band whose previously albums had all been independently released. The album received international recognition for its unique take on metalcore, being covered in various media outlets across US and Europe, exposure which resulted in various musical festival appearances by the band on their first EU and US tours. Commercially, it received moderate success, shipping 1956 units within the first week of release and ranking 24th on the Billboard Japan's weekly album charts. The cover art was made by digital illustrator Ponko.

Background
In July 2023, Hanabie performed at the Japanese music festival Satanic Carnival. During the performance the band announced that they had signed with Sony Music Japan followed by an announcement of a new album. The name of the album and the release date was revealed via a video skit uploaded on the band's official YouTube. Four of the ten songs in the album were released prior to the album as digital singles. "Neet Game" was release in August 2022, "Pardon Me I Have to Go Now" was released in January 2023 followed by "Run Away" and "Be the Gal (early summer version)" in June and July respectively. All the songs were written before the departure of the band's former drummer Sae in April 2023.

Writing and composition
Much of Reborn Superstar! was written by Yukina and Matsuri, who composed the music as well as wrote the lyrics, except "Blast Off" which was solely composed by Matsuri and "Me, the Ultimate Invader of the Universe" which was written by bassist Hettsu along with Matsuri. A plurality of songs on the album were written around the theme of 'Space', marking the first time the band wrote an album around a particular concept. In an interview to Rolling Stones Japan the band admitted that they were aiming for a sparkly sound and used synths to this effect. The decision to have a 'space' theme was later taken during the writing process as it suited the synth heavy sound they already had in some of the songs. In another interview Matsuri stated that the songs in their earlier albums were written when the members were still in high school and consequently were rather hard edged, and in Reborn Superstar they were aiming for a different sound instead of strictly adhering to the metalcore genre. According to Yukina, they wanted to make something which "even the people who do not like metal song would be interested in". While composing the songs Matsuri designed sections where the bass parts could be highlighted because, according to her own admission, there was not enough opportunities for Hettsu to express herself in their previous album.

Songs 1–5
The first track "Blast off" is an overture with the theme of the band members departing on a spaceship. Synthesizer sounds create an outer space feel with the bass drop at the end reminiscent of the sound made by a moving spaceship. Added after writing Hyperdimension Galaxy and initially titled "Brain BGM". "Hyperdimension Galaxy" was written with a classic song structure out of awareness of being on a major label and in a pop style to convey moving into the unknown. Lyrically, about delivering music from Japan in outer space, a metaphor for people overseas. Originally a love song inspired by the Netflix drama "First Love" and which included the phrase "来世は偉人" (raisei wa ijin) used instead as the album title. Intended to feel like an anime song and, according to Matsuri, an evolved version of "Want to TIE-UP". The song was also cited by Hettsu as her favorite song on the album.

"Neet Game" has a loud and distorted sound akin to a video game soundtrack. The song has a traditional song structure in contrast to the previous single, "We Love Sweets," and electronic sounds foreshadowing the sound of the album released nearly a year later. The lyrics are intended to encourage those who left the music scene during the Covid pandemic and, according to Yukina, has the most important message. The song demo of the song was titled "Shout three times".

"Be the Gal" is about the inability to become a gal a fashion sub-culture the band members admired but were too young to adopt. Written with a summer theme to coincide with the band's major debut and to be popular at festivals and with clubgoers. It features an Arabian-style guitar solo by Matsuri who isn't rooted in metal soloing. The music video includes a dance battle between original Heisei and less flashy Reiwa gals. The demo's original cheerfulness was changed to more characteristic negativity. The "WTF" shout is a sample added to unexpectedly have a stranger appear. The fifth track "Tale of Villian" is about "justice for the villain", specifically, Ursula from The Little Mermaid who extracts souls through singing, but also cares for her underlings. The "sa" sounds indicate a loss of voice. Ocean sounds were added by Yukina, according to whom the song's dark mood masks its playful lyrics. Yukina's favorite song on the album.

Songs 6–8
"Warning!!" is lyrically, by and for Gen Z, referencing digital natives who don't have a driver's license, watch TV or read newspapers and fall asleep looking at their smartphones according to Yukina who considered the title "Warning da Z". Musically, consisting of multiple parts that transition abruptly like the fever dreams experienced as a child by Matsuri. Matsuri thought it would be interesting to have Hettsu appear unexpectedly and asked her to sing her last line to sound like a gal, increasing the sense of chaos through different singing styles. Considered an evolution of "We Love Sweets" by Hettsu due to the lack of repetition for which she credits Gaku Taura. The most difficult for and last song recorded by Chika whose sheet music contained so many notes, it looked pitch black.

"I am the Most Powerful Invader Girl" describes an alien invasion of Earth of which Earthlings are unaware and is used as a metaphor for the band traveling the world from Japan. Hettsu, who is referred to as an alien in the song, discussed writing an entire song after contributing lyrics to "We Love Sweets". Matsuri, wanting to fully utilize Hettsu's voice, composed the song like a Hettsu solo project and thought it would be unexpected to have it be fully-programmed. Upon hearing the demo, which included the line "everybody on Earth," Hettsu thought the song had an alien theme, but found the lyrics difficult to write. Hettsu believed the song's rap feel required rap vocals and wanted to include "별" (byeol), Korean for star, because the music also reminded her of K-Pop. Hettsu likens this to seeing light from a distant star whose fate is unknown on Earth. Matsuri thought it would be funny if this song, unusual for the band, became a hit on TikTok only for people to discover their true style.

"Tousou" is about a high-speed police song with vocals alternating between Matsuri and Yukina whose lyrics were inspired by detective dramas, such as "Police24 O'Clock", "Bayside Shakedown" and "Abunai Deka", and the movie Catch Me If You Can. In the last chorus, the vocals alternate between Yukina and Matsuri as if they're chasing each other. Matsuri added the opening siren to be playful and downloaded a newscast from a free site. The music video was shot with expensive cameras tied around the waists of the members who therefore ran slowly, making it difficult for Matsuri and Hettsu not to overtake Yukina. Hettsu's explosion is a reference to the ending of a Drifters skit. Matsuri wanted to contrast this song with "Pardon Me I Have to Go Now", the previous music video and next track, and hopes it resonates with listeners of Hanabie's first EP, Cherry Blossoms Are Blooming. The first song recorded by Chika.

Songs 9–10
"Pardon Me I Have to Go Now" is a Japanese-themed song using Japanese instruments and phrases, such as "Suremasu" which is used by Anya from the anime Spy x Family, and named after a phrase used when leaving work. Originally called "Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu" with the lyrics containing the phrase "mame mame soramame" instead of "peko peko." The choreography was improvised by a make-up artist when the director requested dance moves for the music video in which Hettsu plays a chore person, Matsuri the sister who enjoys working overtime and Yukina the "peko peko sister", even though none of the members had experience working as office ladies. First released as a more chaotic follow-up to "Neet Game" and placed at the end with the heavier songs of the album, according to Hettsu, as a sequel to "Tousou" to no longer run from but confront reality.

"Today's Good Day & So Epic" is the first Hanabie song in a major key and was written to end the album on a happy note. Named after Good Day, the band's agency, and Epic, the band's label, to coincide with their major debut. Yukina added "epic" after learning its meaning, but worried her agency or label would disapprove. The lyrics convey the image of a concert with a circle pit around Yukina and everyone working together. Also features vocals by Hettsu who was asked to sing the day before recording due to Matsuri's throat problems. Composed with the melody first and, according to Matsuri, showcasing Hanabie's punk and easycore influences, especially Chunk! No, Captain Chunk!.

Release and promotion
Prior to the release of the album, a promotional event "Orihime Who Ran Away" was held in the month in July. The event was based on song "Tousou" which was released as single in the same month and would also be included in the album. As a part of the event the band members hid across various locations in Tokyo, while the fans tried to find them based on hints posted on the social media. The winners were received event exclusive merchandise as rewards as well as a pictures with the members which were also shared on the band's official X account.

Reborn Superstar was released by Sony Music Japan under their sub-label Epic Records Japan on July 26, 2023. Two version of the album were simultaneously released: a 'regular edition' which only included the audio CD, and a 'limited edition' which was shipped with a Blu-ray containing behind the scenes footage and interviews with the members. The album was sold through various online and offline outlets including Amazon Japan, Rakuten Books, All Tower Record Store, Seven Net Shopping and the band's official website. Additional rewards were included with the album based on the outlet it was bought from. In Germany, the album was released on August 26, 2023, via Century Media.

Critical reception
Reborn Superstar! received overall positive reviews upon release with critics praising its unique take on metalcore. Eleanor Goodman of Metal Hammer, pointing to the fusion metalcore sound of Hanabie, remarked: "Mashing furious, stomping metalcore with dizzy electronica and fun, colourful aesthetics, Hanabie are the breath of fresh air metal needs". While Metal.de commented upon the album's colorful aesthetics and intense metalcore sound remarking "Hanabie underpin their Japano madness with crashing metalcore, Reborn Superstar! is contagious with its energy". Soundmagnet praised the album's 'Harajuku-core' sound for being unconventional and innovative. Critic Susan K. while writing for Soundmagnet also pointed out the fusion of electronic and metal elements and tempo changes in the album drawing comparisons with Maximum the Hormone.

Personnel
Credits are adopted from the album's liner notes.

Hanabie.

 * Yukina – harsh vocal, clean vocals
 * Matsuri – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, clean vocals
 * Hettsu – bass guitar, clean vocals
 * Chika – drums (track 1–2, 4–8, 10)

Other musicians

 * Sae – drums (track 3, 9)

Technical personnel

 * MEG – production, recording engineer, mixing (track 1–5, 7–10)
 * Takumi Fukui – mixing (track 6)
 * Hiromichi Takiguchi – mastering
 * Shoichiro Inagaki – recording engineer
 * Shunsuke Tareda – recording engineer
 * Nobuyuki Murakami – recording engineer
 * Hiroyuki Hasegawa – recording engineer