I think the album reminded me of old Hikki in terms of compositions. they seem old-school Hikki, I really like the album

I feel lke she's a very particular person and I believe she's a real nice friend. On the other hand, in this doc we only see her in her working environment, so it does make sense she looks too rigid or unpleasant.

I mean, she has to make sure every single aspect of her craft is respected and that everything goes the way she wants it too. After all, it's her name and her art at stake.

Yes! I agree completely. The album has those big pop melodies that were missing from the more subdued material on Fantôme and from the original material that was on Singles Collection Vol. 2. It feels like the successor to Heart Station that I've been waiting for.

Its not just this doku. except for her instagram which is celebrate, i never found her to be appealing as a person. But i dont care anyways - I'm here for the music.

Well, Hikki was never really famous for being nice or charming, did she? People complains about her not being down to earth and humble from times to times.

Considering she is one of the best pop musicians alive in the world right now, I couldn't care less about how friendly she is :B

They're releasing a limited number of Hatsukoi on vinyl.

This is what I've been asking for! Maybe they'll go back and do the last 3 album as well. I need them.

Thinking whether buy it or not... I don't collect vinyl (and doesn't have a player to play it), but it sounds great...

I've been asking for this since day 1!!! Pre-ordered. Can't wait. :heart

I have a small vinyl collection, most of which is Hikki stuff. Recently I was lamenting to my boyfriend what a shame it was that Fantome (especially) didn't come out on vinyl. So I immediately pre-ordered Hatsukoi! :laugh

Allow me to gloat for a second:


It's going to feel empty without Ultra Blue, Heart Station and Fantome in there. :/


On the topic of her in that documentary: she seems very serious. There's definitely a lot on her plate when it comes to all the tasks she takes on for her music. And she doesn't have to do it all either. She could very easily pass those responsibilities on to other people, but her vision of her music and her self seems very clear and honest, and she wants to make sure that the end result represents her self to the world in the way that she wants to. She is doing her best through the entire session to explain the unexplainable to the team. Trying to get a very specific emotion or moment from someone creatively is difficult enough, and when there is no one word to define the feeling you're looking for it's even more difficult. I thought she did a good job of directing towards what she wanted, explaining her intentions from multiple angles, and knowing when to pass on ideas and trust others with their skills.

I say all this coming from spending about 10 years in a creative management job. It is not an easy job. Her approach to it was realistic and respectful of the other artists involved. It's often remarked upon in this thread how emotionally bare her work sounds at times. You can't argue with results! :) I loved the doc for that and her discussions of her seeking her personal truth. Really great piece.

Ahh I want DEEP RIVER's vinyl! lol. That should be the one to collect! To me it's still her best album :D. And I still don't understand why the heck Toshiba changed the colour of Distance from greenish (teal/aqua/turquoise?) to that ugly deep red (burgundy...? I'm not good that distinguishing colours lol).

I'm still struggling whether or not to order Hatsukoi's vinyl...

Anywayz. I think the hiatus transformed her into better form. I forgot where she mentioned it, but she said that she didn't really use real instruments when arranging songs before because she couldn't explain to the musicians what she wanted. I guess now she can channel her feeling to them :yes.

The Deep River vinyl I got second hand, and it arrived completely sealed. I haven't been able to bring myself to open it all these years...:tired

HAHAHA I looooooove the Distance cover for vinyl! I wish they did little changes like that to all of the covers. It had a weird effect on it that looks awesome!
I'll take a good picture for you.

EDIT:

^ it looks like the cover is painted!

I love the vinyl cover of Distance. I think it's much more beautiful than the regular one

Hmmn, the actual product looks better in real life. I only saw the smaller picture before so I didn't know it has the painting effect :).
How much was that second hand DR vinyl? It's great that the seller didn't open the vinyl at all :D.

:love the distance vinyl cover really is beautiful.
glad you guys like it1 :D

i think it cost me about $50-60 CAD, this was quite a few years back.
it's great and not so great that it's still sealed. i really want to listen to it, but just cant open it! hahaha

I bought a sealed Deep River back in 2015/2016 and the cheapest one I found was $200 USD!!! I opened mine though! It's all mine. Never would I ever resell.

They are sooooooooo expensive now! I got First Love and Distance around the same time for about $100 each. First Love was the most expensive, but I had the expendable income at the time. No Regrets. :D

This waasss...around 2005-2006 I think. Right after Exodus promos I went on a rampage to get it all.

The only thing I'm missing from my Hikki collection is the First Love 3cm single. Still haven't managed that for some reason.

I need to eventually get Distance and First Love. I get notifications for them on Discogs all the time now though usually between $50 and $100. I've only got Deep River, the Hikari promo, and all the Exodus singles on vinyl. And soon to be Hatsukoi :D

I wish I could afford to get the singles :P. I only had two singles (and both were not Japanese versions...). You should take another pic with all the singles and albums haha.

ebay is a great place to get cheap older singles!

Here are some photos for you: