If you’ve been following VESPERBELL (ヴェスパーベル) since their debut, you already know they don’t do things halfway. YOMI and KASUKA have spent six years building one of the most distinctive identities in the virtual singer space — and their latest official music video, 放-HANATE-, uploaded on June 1, 2026, is another emphatic statement of exactly who they are.
The single itself was released digitally on May 3, 2026 under RK Music, and now with the full MV finally here, the song has the visual context it deserves.
The Sound: Rock With Real Emotional Weight
The title 放 (Hanate) means “release” or “let go” in Japanese — and the track delivers on that meaning completely. This is a song that feels like something breaking free. Composer Mitsuru builds the arrangement around a driving, muscular rock backbone that moves with a sense of urgency from the very first beat. There’s nothing tentative about it. The guitars are forward and aggressive, the rhythm section is locked and relentless, and the whole thing is constructed to hit with maximum impact on the chorus.
Lyricist Arima Emiri (GOLDTAIL) gives the song a vocal script that matches the sonic intensity — lines that push against constraint, that reach outward with force rather than asking permission. The writing doesn’t moralize or over-explain. It just releases, exactly as the title promises.
What keeps 放-HANATE- from being simply loud is how intelligently the dynamics are managed. The verses pull back just enough to give the chorus that sense of eruption — the kind of payoff that makes you want to immediately replay the track to feel the build all over again.
YOMI and KASUKA: The Contrast That Makes VESPERBELL Work
VESPERBELL is a virtual girls rock duo consisting of YOMI, who possesses high expressiveness and a powerful voice, and KASUKA, whose universally appealing pop vocals charm all — the duo energetically pursues both cover songs centered around rock and original compositions. On paper those two vocal styles sound like they might clash. In practice, especially on a track like 放-HANATE-, they’re what make the duo so compelling.
YOMI’s sections hit with the kind of raw force that cuts right through the arrangement. There’s a controlled ferocity to her delivery here — she’s not just singing loudly, she’s singing with conviction, and the difference is something you feel rather than just hear. KASUKA brings a brightness and clarity that gives the track its melodic hook — her lines are the ones that stay in your head after the music stops. Together they create a push-and-pull dynamic that keeps the listener engaged from start to finish.
Neither voice dominates. Neither gets lost. That balance is harder to achieve than it sounds, and VESPERBELL continue to make it look effortless.
The Music Video: Visually Sharp and Completely In Character
MV direction by がむ (Gamu) and illustration by アカネグモ (Akanegumo) give the video a visual language that matches the song’s intensity without overcomplicating it. The aesthetic is clean, bold, and confident — exactly the right call for a track this direct. There’s nothing soft or ambiguous about the visual presentation. It knows what the song is saying and it says the same thing with images.
The result is a package that feels cohesive in a way that matters — where the music, the vocals, and the visuals are all pulling in exactly the same direction.
Six Years In and Still Accelerating
VESPERBELL debuted on June 7, 2020, and made their major label debut with Warner Music Japan in June 2024. The trajectory from their debut covers to where they are now with 放-HANATE- is a clear line of artists who know exactly what they want to sound like and keep getting sharper at delivering it.
Their fanbase — called BELLS — has followed them from those early YouTube days through live events, anniversary concerts, and now a steady stream of original releases that show no sign of slowing down. 放-HANATE- is the kind of track that rewards that loyalty completely. It’s VESPERBELL at their most direct, their most forceful, and their most themselves.
Turn it up. Let it go.
Track Credits
- Title: 放-HANATE-
- Vocals: VESPERBELL (YOMI × KASUKA)
- Lyrics: Arima Emiri (GOLDTAIL / 有馬えみり)
- Music: Mitsuru (ミツル)
- MV Direction: がむ (Gamu)
- Illustration: アカネグモ (Akanegumo)
- Label: RK Music
- Single Released: May 3, 2026
- MV Uploaded: June 1, 2026
▶ Watch: VESPERBELL — 放-HANATE- (Official Music Video) on YouTube
