this

btw is her facial expression weird? I don't think so lol.
That's just photo's angle that makes her face 'strange'

You would make some sense if it weren't for the fact that these covers are essentially identical in basic concept to (miss)understood, which is before GUILTY and therefore "normal Ayu standards."

I dont think many people were looking for an actual circus ( I know I wasn't), but if what she said about the album content is true and if some of the Pvs are as dramatic as they seem, the covers don't really carry forward any real emotion, espicially not that of English Rock.

i just don't see (m)u in these covers :S
i think the concept is a bit diffirent, (m)u was her covering her face and looking straight in the camera with a giant fur coat and puffy hair. and the other version was that awefull big smile into the camera
These are allot better that (m)u in my opinion, in this CD only version you still get to see a bit of the phonebooth and her waist (unfortuantly this still doens't compensate for her bland facial expression)

I would sooner go for a comparisment with My story, then (m)u

maybe i'm the only one who doesn't see the (m)u cover back in these, but it's just my opinion

i like these! goodness ive been gone all day and havent gotten to see these ^___^
well the first one is preferred as i love her face and expression in it a lot

the second one is just kinda simple pretty but nothing special. but we can see more so i like that part of it.
i like the CD+DVD only cover better than (m)u, loveppears, memorial address, guilty, asfxx, secret . . .
i think its so pretty and different for ayu. and i like seeing something different from her. ^____~

god know why some people dont like the first one. XD

Wow, I really don't know what to say. If anything, Ayu's been on an upward trend and there's been like two or three people who absolutely hate what's been gvien to us so far, haha.

I suppose it's all up to the individual when it comes to whether or not they like something, but some people really just seem to hate anything that's "new" from Ayu, and that doesn't look like it's going to change any time soon. I don't expect it to after all.

Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!! I love them!!! I love both, but the CD+DVD is my favourite!! Oh they're so beautiful!!!

Well, that's totally true. But it's not the same people with every release (usually.)

Like, I normally am pretty pleased with what Ayu does. This is the first time I'm feeling this way about her new releases. I was disappointed by NEXT LEVEL and assumed that I'd be satisfied by the next single. Well Sunrise was fun for a while, but got old, and Sunset was always boring to me. You were... seemed to be a rehash of all the past winter ballads, except not as good, but I was really pleased with BALLAD.

Now the album is about to drop and I haven't been satisfied with any information we've gotten thus far, aside from the caps of the PVs. I think they look promising.

I just hope I'm not going to be continually let down by Ayu and if RnRC does disappoint me the way NEXT LEVEL did, that will be two albums in a row. :(

I dunno, I personally think that whenever someone gets let down by an Ayu album, it's because their tastes are changing and not necessarily because Ayu is declining since a lot of other fans seem to enjoy X album that X person hated. So it's not necessarily her fault, but yours ultimately.

Maybe Ayu is just done with the whole inovating style.
I don't necessarily see it as a bad thing, i see it more as ayu setteling down in a certain style that she seems to enjoy herself with.
Besides i don't really think you can blame her for it after 12 years being on top, maybe she is looking for a bit more comfort and safety, i don't expect ayu to be on top of al the trends anymore, there is a younger generation of artist that can to that, as long as Ayu just stays true to herself and does what see wants and feels comfortable with it. Ayu wil always be an individual in the J-pop industry and what she has done wil not dissapear, i jut hope people wil be able to see that and look past it to see the Ayu that is here now. i'm not lowering my expectations, i'm just fitting them towards Ayu.

As long as Ayu is enjoying herself, i think ll be able to hear that in her music and see that en her perfomances and that is why i love Ayu. m not saying i love everything she does, but is easier to appriciate her efforts if you can feel them, that's pure.

lol what on earth are you talking about? We have short previews of two songs, some pictures/covers and song titles.. I understand if you don't like them but how can those things "confirm" some sort of downward slope will continue?

I love the CD DVD COVER OMG i'm so glad this is the one I ordered:love:love:luv2

I believe with time we all change and that goes for Ayu as well if she starts making music different than when in the My Story era etc it is of our own choice and will to follow it or not. That goes for Ayu as well She creates music that appeals to her during these times of her life.

I have yet to be disappointed with an ayu release I'm not saying I absolutely love every single song, because off the new single I love Ballad the most - Personal taste is all - My favorite album is Guilty and I'm no new ayu fan I've been a fan for years, Something about Guilty was so addicting for me where as I have read lots of ppl didn't like that album so much which is fine by me :)

I think she is still trying to be innovative, but things aren't as in our face as they were back when "X" album came out if that makes sense. I feel like people just compare too much when it comes to Ayu, and after 10+ years in the industry, I feel as though any comparisons between works before 2003 and works made now are just... unnecessary considering the changes she's gone through since then. Ayu's still Ayu and those are parts of her discography, but I feel like each album is like a "child" that should be treated as an individual, not to be constantly compared with the other children, but loved for what it brings to the table and so on.

It's not my taste changing. It's her music, and the changes in her music recently have happened to be changes that I don't like. That's my fault that I don't like them? That sounds pretty off base to me. We don't force likes and dislikes upon ourselves.

It's not my or Ayu's fault that I was disappointed with NEXT LEVEL and may end up being disappointed with Rock'n'Roll Circus.

That's sorta what i was trying to say, that she is inovating in her own way and that she wil still be an individual in the Jpop industry in her own way.
And as long as she enjoys herself and stays true to herself i wil try and appriciate the effort ... it's impossible to absolutley like everything she does, because there is always the issue of taste

cute!! (:

I don't think it's been a downward trend at all... to be honest I've liked/disliked all her album covers equally since.... probably MY STORY, I'd say. NEXT LEVEL was more interesting than usual, it was a very pleasant surprise. This one shows slightly more creativity in graphics and text placement, so it's a pleasant surprise too. But it's still not anywhere near the level of "Duty" through "A BALLADS."

And I agree that I'm happy as long as she's true to herself, but I don't think she IS being true to herself. I think the amount of control she gives to other people on her staff has become too high, I think she needs to be more hands-on with approving some of her team's creative work, even if she's not so hands-on with actually creating it. I somehow doubt Ayu and the graphics people had a meeting to figure out how these covers were gonna look, you know?

How does the covers being in the same "concept" mean that they're good? So what if they're meant to be the "same"? These pictures aren't good. Even though the CD only (miss)understood wasn't that great, they were still better than these. Period.
Sorry, but you're point doesn't make sense to me at all. Nice try though.

The bottom line is that YOU CAN'T PLEASE EVERYONE. Even if someone is the perfect example of perfection, someone will disagree. We're all individuals here and have our opinions. I for one love the new stuff, as much as the old stuff, I appreciate the differences and her growth and phenomenal dedication to her work, and I just hope most people love the new album. I think I will. :)

Then what about the people who do like NEXT LEVEL and will probably like Rock'n'Roll Circus? If there are hundreds of people saying that they like both albums and you're one in a handful who are so opposed to it... isn't something wrong there?