CLC チャミスマ Chamisma - Mini Album Review (Type A CD Only Edition)

A big milestone in my J-Pop collecting saga was recently finally completing my CLC Japanese discography. The Korean group has released two mini albums in Japan both with multiple versions. I thought first we'd look at their second Japanese mini album チャミスマ Chamisma as it was the release that got me interested in collecting their Japanese discography in the first place. This review will look at the Type A CD Only Edition of チャミスマ Chamisma released exclusively through Tower Records Japan.

チャミスマ Chamisma Type A CD Only

チャミスマ Chamisma is CLC's second Japanese mini album and was released in 2016. The mini album is available in three editions: Type A CD Only, Type B CD+DVD and Type C CD+DVD. The mini album is exclusively available through Tower Records in Japan and wasn't released through any other Japanese stores. I brought Type A of the mini album from Bookoff via Zenmarket and the CD was in great condition. I've always gotten excellent items from Bookoff which are always in top condition. Type A of チャミスマ Chamisma comes with the following contents:

• CD - 5 Track Album
• Lyrics Booklet
• Jewel Case
• OBI Strip

Each edition of チャミスマ Chamisma has a different concept and Type A has this adorable gingham cheerleader concept. The front cover has the girls in a cheerleader pose with pom poms and the super adorable CLC logo. Honestly the group has one of the best logos in K-Pop as it's a cute kitty! The back cover contains another photo of the girls along with the track listing and production information which is standard to Japanese releases. I loved seeing a photo of the group on the back and not just a boring plain colour or backdrop.

Inside the jewel case, you'll find the adorable gingham print featured on the girls outfits behind the CD. When I first got this mini album, I was in love with the design! All the little details are amazing such as the colour scheme, hints of the cheerleader concept and the fonts used. The CD has a simple look with some logos and the mini album title.

  

Got an OBI strip with my edition which personally for me is the most important part. I'm not fussed about photo cards and I'd rather have the OBI strips. Espically when I have all editions of the single/album and I want them to match. Nowadays I only buy listings that include OBI strips and sometimes you can zoom in on photos to see if they are hidden in the jewel case if sellers don't show them in the photos. All the CLC OBI's look great when stacked together and match perfectly colour wise.

Onto the lyrics booklet which I was highly impressed with! Most groups do teh boring thing with Japanese releases and just put text in the lyrics booklet and no photos. But the CLC releases all have high quality photos and photos of each member. Take note rhythm zone and include some pictures of Ami please in her future releases! The Type A lyrics booklet has shoots of each group member in the gingham cheerleader outfit and two group photos at the end. I think the photos are super fun and match the concept and feel of the mini album perfectly. All song lyrics and production credits are listed of course.

Now for a quick review of the tracks on Type A of チャミスマ Chamisma! The title track of this release is チャミスマ Chamisma of course which is a fun upbeat pop song which is very much tailored to the Japanese market. It has that distinct J-Pop feel to it and reminds me of early J-Pop stuff I listened to years ago. I was super into チャミスマ Chamisma when it first came out that I listened to it so much that I got sick of it. But now I love it again after getting the phsyical CD. スキドキ Sukidoki is a fast paced song that reminds me of Japanese arcades and has plenty of cheers in it. I feel the cheerleader concept worked well with this release as the songs have this cheerleader feel to them. Chocolate spice kinda reminds me of early E-girls releases and is pleasant to listen to. Now 1, 2, 3 is an exclusive track to this version as it's the Japanese version. Type B and Type C contain the original Korean version. So if you want completion with this release, you'll need all three editions as each one has exclusive content to that specific edition. 学園天国 Gakuen Tengoku is an English cover of the Japanese song which I didn't know much about besides seeing it in DDR games previously. It's an interesting song and a nice addition to the mini album. Here is the track listing for Type A of チャミスマ Chamisma:

1. チャミスマ Chamisma
2. スキドキ Sukidoki
3. Chocolate spice
4. 1, 2, 3 [Japanese Ver.] (Type A Only)
5. 学園天国 Gakuen Tengoku

Here is a photo of all the three editions of チャミスマ Chamisma together and they look wonderful. I was highly impressed with the quality and design of this release and it's one of my favourite J-Pop single sets. I wish more groups did releases like this where the editions feature different editions but fit well together. Like you can tell they are the same mini album but different editions. Each edition did have a set of photocards and I have photocards from Type B and Type C. My copy of Type A didn't come with one as it was used but I'm not fussed as I don't really collect photocards.

チャミスマ Chamisma Type A CD Only, Type B CD+DVD and Type C CD+DVD

The official MV for the song can be found on youtube if you want to check it out. Type A of チャミスマ Chamisma as well as the other editions can be found on the Tower Records Online Store. Or if you're more of a streaming person, チャミスマ Chamisma is available on Spotify and it contains the Japanese version of 1, 2, 3 and the チャミスマ Chamisma version featuring Jung Il-Hoon which is found on the Type B edition as track 6.