Poll Results -November ‘09 Part 1- November 21, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~Poll Results.add a comment
What should Koda Kumi do with her career?
| Answer | Votes |
| She needs to take a little break and rediscover who she wants to be as an artist. | 23–70% |
| Her whore-tastic songs are the only thing keeping me going! *desperation* | 8–24% |
| That old skank needs to f***ing retire already! | 1–3% |
| What are you talking about!? She’s in the prime of her career! Everyone would die without her! *extreme denial* | 1–3% |
My vote went to: She needs to take a little break and rediscover who she wants to be as an artist.
This poll actually really surprised me. I knew that the majority of people would want her to take a break and everything, but I had no idea there were people who actually thought Koda was in the prime of career as of now. I can see why some people want her to retire though, but avex wouldn’t let that happen. Also, even if she did go on a break, she still would put out the same garbage she’s putting out now. Face it, she is never going to make any more songs like Cutie Honey, Get it On, or Love Goes Like…. This new single does not sound promising at all. In fact, the only song that I actually liked out this entire era so far was ECSTASY, and that wasn’t even that great.
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In some other news, I would like everyone to help me what my graduation song should be! Lyrics don’t matter as much as the melody since the people who are going to be listening to it won’t even understand it. Since I go to a small school and have a small class (made of 12 people as of now (which is sad since we used to have 22)), we get to pick our own individual song or songs for are section of the presentation we are creating. It’s going to be intense, but I know I want to do a Japanese song. So if you guys could leave any input on what that song should be, just leave a comment! Thanks!
Ayu and avex are such *insert bad word here* November 16, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~Writings/Rants.2 comments
I am extremely made at both Ayu and avex (mostly avex) for very understandable reasons. To understand why, you have to know the entire story, so here we go…
* * * * *
It all started when information about Rule/Sparkle was being released. I found out it was being released on my birthday so I HAD to get it [avex and their sneaky marketing plans 
]. I ended up getting just the CD version which I purchased from YesAsia (which I’ll talk about later). The reason why I bought that version was because in the beginning of February, information about NEXT LEVEL was released. I knew I had to get the USB, and since it came with the PVs, I wouldn’t worry about getting a CD+DVD version of Rule/Sparkle. When it first came out to pre-order at YesAsia, I asked my parents if I could use their credit card, and they wouldn’t… so I ended up sneaking around and used my brother’s (oh, he was ok with it), but the time I got back to it a few days later it was sold out. I was so PISSED!!! I thought the USB looked amazing! Luckily for me, avex made a second edition version of it which I immediately ordered on the 26th of February.
After waiting for a month, I was expecting my order to ship pretty soon… but it didn’t. I ended up getting it on the 17th of April, almost a month later after it was released. I was pretty angry since I paid for the fastest shipping (and I also got an Asia 2008 Tour key chain!) They said they were searching for suppliers or something of that nature. When it did finally arrive, I tore open the package and put the USB in my computer. I listened to the album over and over, watched the PVs endlessly and studied the album art to a tee… so I exaggerate, but I was really excited. I was also happy that there was almost 1.5 GB of free memory on it. For the rest of the school year, I used that flash-drive to fulfill my download needs (especially since I have dial-up, which is why I used the school’s computers (FYI: AOL SUCKS!)). This year… something tragic happened.
Around a month ago, the USB somehow became corrupt. I don’t know how it happened. In the morning around 7:45, I was adding a rar. file to my USB for safe keeping. Later that day around lunch, I put in the flashdrive expecting it to work, but it didn’t. For those of you who have one, you know that when you put it in, if you go to My Computer, there are two disks added, REMOVABLE and NEXT LEVEL, both of which are part of the flash drive. Also, after you put it in, a quick action icon for NEXT LEVEL pops up and the folder for REMOVABLE opens. Well, this time they didn’t. After that revelation, I went to My Computer and found the most disturbing thing I have ever seen: the NEXT LEVEL and REMOVABLE disk drives were replaced with Removable disk, both of them! I immediately tried to solve the problem by unplugging my flashdrive then putting pack in. That obviously didn’t work, so then I tried opening them, but it said that neither of them were formated. I then tried formating them, but that didn’t work either. When I tried formating the drive that would be NEXT LEVEL, it said the disk rights was protected, which is understandable since the album was put on an undeletable part of the USB. I also looked at the amount of memory that was on the what-would-be-NEXT LEVEL-drive only to discover that there was around 500 MB of free memory on when there should only be like 4.6 MB (since the album/PVs/album art took up the rest). I knew for sure then that the entire thing was lost. As for the other drive, the computer did attempt to format it, but it ended up saying that the disk was unable to be formatted. One of my friends tried to figure it out to no avail. He actually proposed that I drill out the inside of the USB and replace it with another one so I would still have to case. I was like, “Hell no bitch!” I knew something had to be done though…
I know this is going to sound so ridiculous, but I ended up buying another NEXT LEVEL USB, for twenty dollars more though (that was for shipping and packaging). I had to end up buying from CDJapan since YesAsia was sold out. I actually just got the album Thursday after a week of processing and a week of shipping. The shipping was probably that much since it came from Japan while the first USB came from YesAsia North America. Oh well, I’m glad I bought it. It is just really important to me which is why I am never opening this new one.
So the reason why I’m mad is because I don’t feel avex released a quality product. It’s not really Ayu’s fault, but it is her album. Whatever, I’m just happy I found another $70 flashdrive instead of having to buy a $150 flashdrive on eBay.
Now I feel like ranting about my experience with both companies, but I’ll (attempt) to keep it short.
* * * * *
Overall, my experience with YesAsia was a much more positive experience than that with CDJapan. The pros would be a) their site is more user-friendly as in it was more aesthetically pleasing than CDJapan’s site and b) they package things to make sure they don’t get destroyed. Seriously, they have layers upon layers of bubble wrap around the package. They also ship it in a heavy duty postal box, even if your order isn’t that big, as was the case when I ordered Rule/Sparkle. The thing that I really didn’t like about them is that it took forever to finally ship that NEXT LEVEL flashdrive. I can understand why it could take so long since my order was for the 2nd printing edition and they probably had to get supplies from Japan, but seriously? Almost a month later? I had a good experience when they shipped Rule/Sparkle though since I received it three days after it’s release.
As for CDJapan, my main arguments for would be a) unreasonable shipping prices and b) poor packaging. I had to pay a little more than $20 for them to ship the flashdrive to my house and I didn’t even get the best type of shipping (it was registered shipping, the second best). I was not going to wait four-eight weeks for five dollar shipping. That is ridiculous. The shipping I purchased still took 4-12 days, but I got it in six. As for packaging, I’m surprised the case wasn’t shattered into pieces. They have it wrapped in a piece of cardboard which isn’t even in box form and the actual CD case is in a little compartment in the folded cardboard. The case is then wrapped in ONE layer of bubble wrap. It was a little ridiculous. From now on, I’m ordering from YesAsia (which I would have this time if the USB wasn’t sold out). I’m even happier I’m ordering from them now that their sales count towards Oricon.
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I have come to the conclusion that writing “little” rants like this is much more fun than reviewing albums and singles (as you can tell due to my lack of updates). I’m still going to review things though, so don’t worry.
Poll Results -October ‘09 Part 2- November 2, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~Poll Results.4 comments
Out of these four, who do you consider the Empress of J-Pop?
| Answer | Votes |
| Namie Amuro | 18–50% |
| Ayumi Hamasaki | 16–44% |
| Utada Hikaru | 2–6% |
| Koda Kumi | 0–0% |
| None of these Bitches! | 0–0% |
My vote went to: Ayumi Hamasaki
I admit, I am a complete Ayu stan and I’m really mad that she lost! She and Namie both deserve it though. I’m actually surprised that Namie got as many votes as she did… I guess everyone is really excited for her new album. I’m also surprised that Utada Hikaru only got two votes. I thought more people would vote for her than Namie. I’m happy that skank Kumi didn’t get any votes though. Kumi is like the trashy skank and Namie is more of the classy skank. Oh, this is my time-line of who was the Empress of J-Pop if anyone is interested.
Seiko Matsuda: 1980-1996~~~~~hitomi: 1996-1997~~~~~Namie Amuro: 1997-1999~~~~~Ayumi Hamasaki: 1999-2008
I believe that as of now, the title is a toss-up between Ayumi and Namie ever since the realease of BEST FICTION. It all really depends on how successful her new album is, but I believe it’s going to sell more than PLAY. To me, however, Ayumi Hamasaki will always be the Empress!
Don’t forget to check out the new poll!
Alive/Physical thing October 18, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in Koda Kumi.Tags: Alive, Alive/Physical thing, Koda Kumi, Kuu, Physical thing
6 comments
Eye Candy + Random Thoughts
These covers seriously have to be the best covers I have seen all year. After the atrocious covers that was 3 SPLASH, I thought Kuu would be turning into another Ayu-junkie, but luckily that is not the case. Kuu just looks so serene and at peace and her hair does look like it was cut by some butch lesbian! When I first saw the background for some reason I thought of Mars. Everything just looks so desolate and Kumi is the beautiful flower growing from nothing. The covers = EPIC WIN!
* * * * *
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Alive
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Physical thing
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TRICK (from TRICK Tour 2009)
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Joyful Smile (from TRICK Tour 2009)
Alive is something completely new to Kuu. her ballads are either really sappy or ULTRA FAIL grand ballads, but this song takes a more soothing, low-key route. The music is really pretty and very celtic (which actually thew me off guard). I don’t like how the verses and chorus just flow together though and Kuu’s voice at times is a little too overpowering for this type of accompiniment, but for the most part it’s very collected. It might be a little too unique for some people (and I still don’t think it’s her best ballad), but it’s a rather nice listen.
As always, Kuu has to sex things up, and thus, Physical thing was born. Well, it actually was thiefed from Nosheen, some has-been. This is pretty much *skanky whore* at it’s best. Actually, I really don’t find this song appealing at all. Kuu is trying to hard. One part I really hate about this song is when Kuu says, “Get for real! SIMPLE!.” So pointless… I do like the second part of the chorus where Kuu shows some sort of emotion in her voice. The whole “Physical thing” concept is just so stupid. She needs to have a club hit that actually deals with something important. =P
And now we come to the much anticipated TRICK, but it’s just a live version from her latest tour. I was still exctied, but when I actually heard the song, all my hopes were dashed. All it is the the crowed cheering incessantly and Kuu rambling about song things (and I think her voice is SOOOOOOO annoying). Then it just plays the same beat over and over and over again. After all that nonsense, a dumb verse is thrown in and it’s pretty much pathetic. When the last chorus comes in. Kuu starts trying to sing with the chorus and she just sounds like an idiot. If you are going to actually sing, sing the whole thing. If a studio version is going to be added on to her next album, many changes need to be made.
GOD! Why did they have to add this song of all songs they could have added!?!? I never liked Joyful that much, and in the live version Kuu just sounds congested half the time. Then after the chorus she speaks what she just sang. Ya, I think they heard you. She also does the most annoying attempting-to-be-cute-but-fails-horribly noise at the beginning of the bridge. The kissing thing she does at the end is stupid too, but I’m glad she shows some humility and says thank you to the crowd, but I’m pretty sure she was forced to do it. She definitly should have put show girl on thise single since that was the song that represented TRICK, but oh well.
* * * * *
Alive/Physical thing… what can I say about you? Well, I think this was the best single she has released since TRICK, but I really hope it’s the last single she releases before her next album. She just gives as the same thing every year. I’m glad she decided to do Alive though. She needs to do something like that every year and hopefully those unique songs will replace her dumb winter ballads. I’m surprised Kuu can actually sing live unlike Ayu. By that I mean she is able to sing like she sounds in the studio. I think she can perform better though. She should go on hiatus with Ayu so they can do some soul searching and actually find some inspiration for new material and not just throw every piecer they get the public’s way. Sure, they might lose their popularity along the way, but I’ll still listen. Would you?
3 Moon Goddesses out of 5
Poll Results -October ‘09 part 1- October 17, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~Poll Results.add a comment
What do you think of Namie’s Vidal Sassoon campaign?
|
Answer |
Votes |
|
Girl please! The Bitch neva left! *snap* *snap* *snap* |
15–63% |
|
Damn Girl! The Bitch is BACK! |
6–25% |
|
I like it! So Artistic… |
2–8% |
|
It looks like Ami Suzuki and TK (Tetsuya Komuro) had a baby… *shudders* |
1–4% |
My vote went to: Girl Please! The Bitch neva left! *snap* *snap* *snap*
This Vidal Sassoon campaign has undeniably boosted Namie’s popularity, just look at the sales of BEST FICTION after her songs from 60s70s80s were used in the VS commercials, even that single’s sales were pretty amazing. I have always liked her, but I’m really glad BEST FICTION blew up as big as it. She really deserves it.
CHECK OUT MY NEW POLL!
On another note… I wanted to thank Aikorin from Disco-munication for making even more banners for me that represent Namie in her current Vidal Sassoon campaign using pictures from her MY LOVE and COPY THAT cms. I plan on using an amazing COPY THAT banner first!
My OBSESSION! -4- October 8, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~My OBSESSION!.Tags: Ayumi Hamasaki, globe, Jolin Tsai, KEIKO, Maaya Sakamoto, Superfly
4 comments
This really isn’t an OBSESSION, just a little thing on some amazing songs that some of you might not have heard before that I really like. These are five songs that give me chills when I hear them or make me really excited and sometimes both and hopefully when you hear them the same will happen to you!
WARNING!!!
SOME SONGS ARE NOT J-POP RELATED!
(it’s C-pop)
*wait till the end og the article to DL all songs in one file*
1. Flower Butterfly -Hua Hu Die- by Jolin Tsai
I first hear about Jolin Tsai when NEXT LEVEL was released since they were comparing her and Ayu together and saying how Tsai’s album was doing so much better than Ayu’s (in Taiwan). I do think her new album, Flower Butterfly, is actually worse than NEXT LEVEL due to all the crap-tastic ballads found on it (which she is supposedly famous for). This song,
however, is better than every song NEXT LEVEL (well, it may be tied with Sparkle). It’s just like hardcore electro pop at it’s finest. It was a little hard getting used to hearing Chinese (it seems a lot more graceful than Japanese and everything blends together somewhat), but after ten listens I finally got used to it. Jolin’s voice can be a little irky at times when she hits the higher notes, but it’s still not that bad. I love it when the distorted voice comes in since it seems a little sorrowful or whatever. She is the only Chinese artist I have listened to (besides alan’s Chinese songs) and I plan on keeping it that way.
2. Moments by Ayumi Hamasaki
It just would be a post if I didn’t bring up Ayu! and no, this is not the Moments everyone loves and treasures, but a more epic version located on 
MY STORY Classical. This song is just really amazing! I just love how it builds up and then explodes into the chorus. Ayu also sounds purer and more emotional in this version (even though I think she didn’t re-sing it). I wish she would do music like this instead of dumb electro pop…
3. get it on now feat. KEIKO by globe
Ya, I know ewww, Tetsuya Kumoro, the rapist of music industry’s lackey/ a bankrupt pedophile. I feel ashamed for listening to this group and I feel
sorry for Namie Amuro who became famous thanks to this jerk! Anyway, the reason I even listened to these people is because I was listening to a Dream album and they covered their Can’t stop falling in love (plus Ayu’s M and BoA’s Every Heart) and I really liked it. That, and after hearing A song is born (the one that Ayu and KEIKO collaborated on), I thought her voice wasn’t that bad… Anyway, this song starts off really weird with a guy whispering and a freaky ass voice saying roooow (like wow with an r). Then the songs gets pumped with attitude when the chorus starts and I LOVE IT! This song is a weird one though. It like a fusion of piano and trance. I still think it’s amazing.
4. Ai wo Komete Hanataba wo by Superfly
After seeing how they (well, she) dominated the Oricon Charts, I thought I would give them a listen and I liked what I heard. This music is way different then what I normally listen to (which is mostly pop-rock). The reason I
chose this song is not because of it’s originality (since it really has none), but because I just find it really catchy, which is weird since it’s a little slow. I like how Oichi has so much power behind at her voice, but can also sound soft at pleasant. This is definitely my favorite song from them. I also love how hippie-ish their style is. This stoner chick at my school would appreciate Ochi! She is more of an emo though if anything… but she like a peace/vegetarian/pot head kind of emo.
5. Chibikko Fooku by Maaya Sakamoto
This is my favorite song from Maaya and is also from my favorite album from her, SHOUNEN Alice. It’s acoustic like most of Maaya’s songs, but this song has something really special about it. It’s just so heartbreaking and 
emotional I can’t help but love it. My favorite part would be when she says, “aaah a-aah a-aah a-aah.” It just sounds like she is on the verge of tears. It almost makes my want to cry, which is really weird considering that it is a song in a language I don’t know, but whatever. Maaya really suprised me too. She really doesn’t look like the type of person that would have somewhat of an anisong voice, but it’s not that unbearable as Aya Hirano or Yui Sakaibara’s disgusting high piced anime voice. In fact, it’s not bad at all. If there is any song that could get you into Maaya Sakamoto, it would be this one or Hemisphere.
I hope all these songs are songs you like too. It’s fun just talking about random songs that you like and that you want other people to experience. Hopefully I have introduced some og you to some new artists or some new favorite songs. Oh, and before I forget….
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I will NOT be reviewing any C-pop or K-pop. This is strictly a J-pop review/ranting site.
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These songs are only to be used as promotion.
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Don’t forget to vote on my Polls, Naturally page! It will be changed around October 14th!
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-some other junk-
My OBSESSION! 1-3 September 25, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~My OBSESSION!.add a comment
My OBSESSION -3-
Ok, Koda Kumi’s cover have been kind of meh as of late (has anyone seen 3 SPLASH?). When I heard she was releasing a new single I was a little intrigued, but not splurging about it. That was until the covers came out! 
It’s like OMFG SO AMAZING! There like her MOON covers which is a good thing. Too bad Alive and Physical Thing don’t sound amazing. =(
My OBSESSION! -2-
You know what? SCREW SUNRISE!! Sunset ~LOVE is ALL~ is a lot better. So what if it’s the same song only in a ballad form and different lyrics. It beats out all the ballads on NEXT LEVEL by a long shot (and I used to love Days). I can’t wait for this single to come out now!
Sunset ~LOVE is ALL~ full song download
Oh Ayu, of course I trust you! (as long as you don’t release anymore sh!t songs! *coughnextlevelcough*)
My OBSESSION! -1-
Well, my current obsession would have to be Ayumi’s new song Sunrise ~LOVE is ALL~. I actually downloaded the full song and it is pretty amazing! I like how it is different than her other summer songs (ie: Blue Bird, glitter, and fairyland). She is still riding the electronic band wagon though, but luckily her voice isn’t all vocodered over. The guys don’t sound annoying either.
Download it here!
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=EOQCK8F3
Thanks to http://pokerface.blog.hr
ALSO VISIT THIS BLOG FOR ALL YOU AYUMI HAMASAKI NEEDS!!!!
Oh and why can’t Ayu’s single/album covers be like this?
Status: A little change… September 21, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in ~Announcments, ~The Newcomers.8 comments
Well… I have decided that there are just a few things that I want to change before I continue to blog. What are those things? Well, let’s see…
I have added a few things to my About page so be sure to check that out. I also have decided to get rid of the My OBSESSION! page. I do not update it enough so instead I have decided to just make that idea in a random post format. I’m also thinking about creating a bi-weekly or monthly poll of random J-Pop amazing-ness. The questions could very from something serious like: Do you think Ayumi Hamasaki should retire? a) No, she is my goddess. b) No, I like making fun of her songs too much. c) Yes. How old is she anyway? Like 52? and d) Yes, her big eyes and fake vibrato voice have been harming the J-Pop world for to long. and just plain silly things like: Does Koda Kumi cause global warming from her slut-tastic grinding? a) Is it hot here or is it just me? b) What the hell is global warning? c) Yes, alan should take her to the back room and have her shot. d) *some scientific nonsense*
Sounds fun doesn’t it? If I do decide to create a poll thing, It will start in the beginning of October. This idea will also need a lot of support from you guys so comment with additional thoughts and opinions. I’m also goingto wait two days until I move what I have on the OBSESSION! page so you guys have time to brace yourselves (intense, I know).
ALSO!!!
I want to introduce two new artists that I’m going to feature on this blog:
Yes, for now on I’m going to be reviewing hitomi. The first songs I have heard from her were SAMURAI DRIVE and Japanese girl. Sure, her vocals may not be the greatest (I describe them as twangy), but a lot of her songs are really catchy and for some reason it seems like her voice speaks to me. I pretty much think she is amazing. When I have some time to review past albums, I’ll review her album LOVE CONCENT.
Just like it the picture says, I’ll also be featuring BENI. I have read reviews about her singles this era for BITTER&SWEET, but I have never listened to her. Just didn’t seem like someone I would like, but for some reason I decided to download her new album when it came out and I actually liked some of the songs on it. This is the perfect case of don’t judge a book by it’s cover (I know, how corny). I’ll try to find some time to review that album, too.
I’m also thinking about using a new banner too! Of course it’s one of the banners made by Aikorin from DISCO-MUNICATION, a blog of fangirling craziness and amazingness. Seriously, I have no clue how she makes them. Trust me, I have tried myself. I think I’ll switch in the beginning of October.
*insert blah blah blah here*
SWEET BLACK September 19, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in Maki Goto.Tags: Maki Goto, SWEET BLACK, SWEET BLACK feat. MAKI GOTO
6 comments
Eye Candy + Random Thoughts
Uhhh… what was Maki and Avex even thinking when this was taken? This album is supposed to represent Mixi, a modern girl’s magazine and Avex, the artist rapist of the music industry. When putting the two together, one would think that it could be Maki in like a cocktail dress or something holding a roll of duct tape or some rope with an evil psychotic look on her face. Apparently these two genius companies come up with the idea of a Native American photo shoot. The worst thing about this photo would definitely have to be Maki dress. It very ugly and should just be used as a dust cloth or a gaudy tablecloth you would find at an old ladies’ house. The way how they actually braided her extensions into some weird quilt strand looking things is gross, too. The fake butterfly is also another pointless touch and the same goes for the feather poof sticking out of her head. Avex should just shove those feathers up their #%$. The font is yet another low point of the photo. The font and the little design around it was edgy and everything else is a tranny Native in an ugliest dog contest. Maki’s face looks nice, but that’s about it.
* * * * *
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Queen Bee with BIGGA RAIJI
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Lady-Rise
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Candy
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TEAR DROPS with KG
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Mine with KEN THE 390
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Fly Away
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Plastic Lover
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with…
Well, at first I extremely hate Queen Bee with BIG RAIJI since that guys coarse ass screaming is very annoying. It seems at points he is actually slurring his word. After around five listens you get used to it, but it can still be troublesome at points. It’s sad too because I think the chorus is actually catchy, which is suprising since it is a really superficial song. Boom “>Boom “>Boom Boom Boom Boom! Also when it get’s all ballady during the bridge, that jackass just ruins the moment with his annoying rapping. I HATE IT WHEN HE SAYS QUEEN BEE OVER AND OVER AGAIN!!! Seriously this guy needs his throat slashed, but every other aspect of the song besides him is great!
The next song that comes is the naughty Lady-Rise. Maki is a fierce bitch in that video. Anywho, this song is pretty catchy and Maki’s vocals are more controled than what I usually hear from her. She still manges to make this song cute with the last line of the chorus though. I also think that it’s weird that this song follows the average song rules as in it goes: verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge (however short it might be), and double chorus and still manage to be under three minutes. This song is still amazing though even though I have been listening to it for a long time.
Candy takes the album on a darker synth route. I like dark songs a lot so this song makes me happy. It took a while to get used to though since I think it has a weak arrangement and chorus isn’t really eye opening or catchy. In all reality it just seems like an extension of the verses. My favorite part would be when her voice becomes all distorted and she says “(something something) candy?” or maybe it’s “give me, free me”. I also like the part where she just goes “Oooh OhOoooh”. This is actually a little bland now that I think about it more…
Then we come to the promotional song for the album, TEAR DROPS with KG. I actually really like this song. It’s pretty much an average mid-tempo ballad. During the verses, Maki sounds really emotional which is nice. KG’s vocals aren’t really that great. It just seems like he is pushing it and he sounds a little gruff (plus I don’t like male singers, especially male Japanese singers). This song does have a lot of potential, but it just is climatic. It’s catchy in its own way, but it’s still not OMG EPIC WIN! Still, I think it’s one of the better songs on the album.
Ewww… Mine with KEN THE 390 just sounds really bad. Maki’s vocals sound all high pitched and really thin, especially during the chorus. When she first sang this song at a-nation ‘08 when it was called Hear Me, it sounded way better. She actually had deep vocals which I definitely prefer over this. Still, the arrangement doesn’t seem to work for me. A plus for the song would be the KEN’s singing, but it’s only a positive since he is the best male singer on this album. In conclusion, not that great….
FINALLY!!! Sure I might have been listening to Fly Away since it first came out in January, but after all these months it is still one of my favorite songs from Maki. Her vocals are also really spectacular. She needs to sing like this more often. I do admit though that the begin is little but of a WTF moment, but now I think it just adds to the amazingness of the song. Another reason why I like this song even more now is because we finally have a great catchy song on this album. I don’t think this song was half-assed in any way!
Ok, this is a little different. Plastic Lover takes a more electro pop route and it doesn’t really turn out that great. I have no clue what she is saying in the chorus besides “can you feel it” and “sunshine” (which she says like sunsheen, but she might even be saying something else too). This song also suffers from a weak arrangement. Nothing is catchy at all and that is a real problem for me, but I think this might have to be one of those songs that will just have to grow on me.
The album ends on a sweet note with with…. I have always liked this song even though it seems like during the verses, Maki just decided to go note jumping and the producers decided it worked. This song isn’t all that amazing (like the rest of this album), but I do think it’s very calming and cute. It’s not so bad to have that every now and then, is it?
The Songs That Didn’t make it
- Golden LUV
- CRAZY IN LOVE
Yes, I decided to include these songs in my review because I know if I don’t review them now they will never be reviewed. Anywho, Golden LUVis a song that really fits Maki voice. The synths during the verses is also pretty cool, but the brass that comes during the building up to the chorus and during the chorus is the best part. I’m not sure if it real or synthetic though. Maki needs to pair up with ravex again if they release anything else. This song definitely should have been added to SWEET BLACK. That album needs a hot song like this.
Maki teams up with DJ Mayumi and some other stupid guys who aren’t really important. All you need to know is that their vocals suck even under a vocoder and that they should also have their throats cut. Maki’s parts, however, are truly heavenly… well until she gets to the chorus. All it is is Maki repeating Crazy in Love over and over again and she can’t speak english to save her life. The only reason she sounds somewhat recognisable is because her voice is filtered. It’s sad that Maki doesn’t get another verse afterwards because that is the part of the.
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This was one of my most anticipated releases of the year and after listening to it, it actually becomes one of my biggest let downs of the year (I’ll just put you next to 3 SPLASH and Alive/Physical thing). There were songs that I did like though, but even the majority of them had parts in them that I extremely hated. I was expecting Maki to come in and take over Kuu’s throne of skanky, STD possessing sluttiness, but this album just failed… hardcore. It’s sad because I was really rooting for Maki, but right now I just feel indifferent towards her. Whatever girl…
2.5 gaudy Native tranny impersonators out of 5
- Fly Away/Golden LUV
- TEAR DROPS with KG
- Lady-Rise
- Candy
BALLAD ~Namonaki Koi no Uta~ September 8, 2009
Posted by Ashen Twilight in alan.Tags: alan, BALLAD ~Namonaki Koi no Uta~
11 comments
Eye Candy + Random Thoughts
I’m starting to get really mad at alan now. Up until Gunjou no Tani, all of her covers had her name in that funky font (which I liked), but now she has just done away with it. Also, alan must have a fetish for bubbles. Why else would she let someone but such a pointless object on her cover? alan, however, looks pretty even though I think she looks better with her hair let down. It also looks like there is a tear drop about to run down from her left eye. It’s fitting for the title which is nowhere to be seen, keeping the flow of past covers. The yellow spots on the blurry background are gross. Well the good things about this cover would be: a) alan, b) tear drop. The bad would be: everything else. Oh well, as long as she doesn’t disappear from the music scene I’ll be happy.
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BALLAD ~Namonaki Koi no Uta~
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Shiawase no Kane (2009 ver.)
The single opens up with yet another grand ballad from the ballad queen who does nothing but ballads called BALLAD ~Namonaki Koi no Uta~. Seriously she does nothing but ballads, but at least most of them are good ballads. Anyways, this song starts with a pretty, airy vocals from alan saying ” La La La, So Long”, I think. Whenever that part shows up in the song I’m happy. After that she does a half-ass wail, but I’m glad she can still do it. The verses aren’t that spectacular, but I don’t think there is really much one can complain about. The chorus is really amazing. It’s like desperation and guilt had a baby (baby music! (waaa stupid HOUSE NATION, I hate that song!!!!)). I like it when alan sounds sorrowful because it adds so much more to a song, though I think she does sound nasally at times. I can’t really complain that much about this song, but I can say that I think I liked Kuon no Kawa better. I don’t know why…
Now things go downhill with Shiawase no Kane (2009 ver.). The first thing I notice is that there are no bells in the beginning (and in the chorus) like there were in the original. alan also sounds better than she did in the original, especially during the chorus. The part that makes me mad is that there are no drums after the first chorus like there were in the original. Oh, and what the hell alan!?!? Why are you adding all this extra shit during the last chorus? I liked this song when alan was singing it in a straightforward, mater-of-fact way, not singing all these little extras. This version definitely has more prominent violins than the original. The original also had electric guitar in it, also. It also had a sense of hopelessness to it. I think I’ll be sticking with the original even though that song is a little plain itself.
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BALLAD ~Namonaki Koi no Uta~ was definitely the upside of this single, like every A-side should be. The B-side was just horrific though. I thought when something is remade, it gets better. Obviously alan and her producers missed out on this fact and decided to suck up an already plain song even worse, but I don’t care. BALLAD more than makes up for Shiawase no Kane (2009 ver.) so I’m happy with that.
3.5 bubble fetishes out of 5
In other alan news, I’m really excited for her unannounced next single that was featured in an add for thing that looks like a milano cookie.
I like the alan in the black outfit. =) The song also sounds really neat, too. I’m happy were getting something upbeat from alan that isn’t a piecer (ie: My Stage)
