100% with you on this!! its just different in japan i guess. :tired i wouldnt want to be an artist there.

Well, on the US the singles are used to pump the album sales up, not the singles themselves like on Japan^^...

I dont even understand why Utada cant release a single yet. Seriously. Just send a song, any one to radio stations...like with CBTM...dont even need to promote or do anything...why is it so hard x_x

Because Utada is not a worker like Koda or Ayumi who release their material often (the largest gap is a couple of months I guess). Who knows, maybe she lost creativity or will to work. But yeah, I'm always for quality over quantity. It's just the things that Utada release between major releases are unbelievable boring and tiring. The example is this old re-relased single. I mean who the hell wants that (sorry to people who actually like it).

^Its ok. I'm pretty sure no one liked it :innocent

She didn't release that single, her old label did...
And I'm pretty sure TITO 2nd single is going to be released soon...

^Well,

This One (Crying Like A Child)/Dirty Desire shouldve been out by now...unless this whole rumor is just an elaborate hoax

Yeah, I guess so. Compared to Exodus, TITO just sounds so tame. I like TITO a lot too, but while it has a lot of good tracks, it doesn't have songs that stand out as much as some of Exodus'. Oh, and Exodus' lyrics are MUCH better! :yes

I like Hotel Lobby, but I prefer Kiss & Cry lol. Animato is wonderfully dark and Kremlin Dusk is just brilliant! I love 'You Make Me Want to be a Man,' 'Devil Inside' and 'Exodus 04' too, amongst others.

Yes, I'm having a lot of fun :laugh :shimmy

I think Exodus was better musically...but it just turned out so forced. It wasn't who hikki is at all. Its like she tried so hard to make lyrics that sound creative and appealing at the same time...which just made a big mess. This Is The One is much easier to relate to...its more realistic...and its just a more approachable album...I mean first time listeners wont be like...WHOA...what a weirdo chick....awkward lyrics...and its still very hikki...

DEEP RIVER, i get what u mean. Although I like Exodus' lyrics, because I find them quirky and interesting, there are times when it feels as if she's trying a little too hard to prove herself as something more than an RnB artist (the obvious perpertrators being Intro and Crossover :thud). That would be the only flaw I find in Exodus (other than a couple of songs I skip over). Yes, I love TITO for it's accessible songs, but after a while it all feels a little too conventional and that's where Exodus' "unclassifiable" style really excels. Maybe in a couple of days/weeks, when Exodus' new-ness wares off, I'll change my mind...but for now, I'm enjoying it.

Yeah...its really sad to me that Hikki's 2-album contract with IDJ is now over...with both the lessons learned from Exodus and the lessons learned from This Is The One (which is basically...promote your work while it isnt stale...HELLO)...I could imagine her making it big with a 3rd attempt. I have a feeling that Hikki doesnt really want to try again...but you know...I hope she atleast releases a single from TITO anytime soon...secretly I am still hoping for her success :meditate

^ But i doubt it, because, face it, Hikki really doesn't give a **** about fame in the US. she's rich in japan, and can live forever with releasing stuff in japan every once in awhile with little to no promotion and using her fame to live off of...

if her heart isn't in it anymore, it just isn't ;<

we can always hope...

@ DEEP RIVER: Oh really? I don't know anything about her contracts... That's a bit sad, because I've always thought that if she could somehow strike a good balance between Exo and TITO, like something that doesn't sound very generic, but isn't so consciously wierd, she could really make it big. But after 2 (let's face it) commercial failures, it's hard to Keep Tryin' :P
Also, the American market is more inclined towards up-beat, dance songs (if I'm not mistaken), while ballads/down-tempo that aren't by superpowers like Mariah and Beyonce don't usually chart very well.
That being said, I hope This One does well, it's a really pretty song! :yes

^I hope This One is even a single....its my favorite song off the album...people complain that it shouldnt be a single because its another ballad and CBTM was already a ballad...but lets be honest...nobody even remembers CBTM...If the rumors are true and it is the next single paired with Dirty Desire...that'd be great (although personally, I wouldve picked This One/On and On)

It seems as if she gets a brilliant idea of making it in the US, then makes a good album, by all means, it is pretty decent! And then does hardly any promotion, and kind of doesn't bother with it anymore... like "nah, it wasn't that fun after all, so I'll njust retreat quietly back to my dungeon"
Pretty ironic, 'cause the album is called This is The One...
And it really isn't. At all
I guess it could have been, if she actually bothered to promote it.

can someone gimme a clue where to find hikki jacket scans and lyrics translation?

I prefer TITO over Exodus, even if I DO love Exodus... Cuz IMO TITO sounds more mature, while Exodus sounds too raw...

I love both Exodus and This Is The One. I think they're similar to Ultra Blue and HEART STATION. Both Ultra Blue and Exodus are experimental albums while TITO and HEART STATION are toned down pop albums. Maybe its just me though XD.