Riku’s New Single “The Regret Was Left Behind”

Not every rock song is defined by its guitar parts, but in a larger-than-life work like that of Riku’s new single “The Regret Was Left Behind,” they’re at the heart of every soulful moment in the track. Riku gives a stellar performance behind the mic in “The Regret Was Left Behind” that doesn’t require adept knowledge of Japanese to fully appreciate. He’s marvelous at capturing the essence of a big stadium show inside speakers of virtually any size, and to me, this is as fine an example of his style as we could ask for.

The first few bars in “The Regret Was Left Behind” center on the building anticipation in the mix, all of it originating at Riku’s lead vocal, but we aren’t pushed to the edge of our seats for nothing. There’s no denying his skills after witnessing his performance here.

The Regret Was Left Behind” culminates its fragmented tension in a chorus that gives all of the spotlight over to the vocal. I think it says a lot about who Riku is as a performer that he’s capable of sounding as smooth and charismatic in this single. And while he’s limited by the four walls of the studio, he still sounds ready to come undone at any moment in these verses.I’d love to hear Riku play this song live in the future, and in the right venue, I think it could get just about every person within earshot excited about stadium rock again. Blending elements of pop and rock takes a certain amount of finesse, and in “The Regret Was Left Behind,” it becomes undebatable whether or not this is the type of musician who should be experimenting with hybrid concepts of a heavy sonic value.

He’s got the voice to appeal to the masses and the musical brawn to concentrate his artistic development around a style that needs someone to breathe fresh life into its core aesthetics. That all adds up to certain satisfaction for rock enthusiasts who seek out “The Regret Was Left Behind” this month.

Mindy McCall