For all of the constant criticisms of Ayu's work it's easy to forget that her last really weak album was Love songs. Everything from Party Queen onwards (including A One, if the single + previews are anything to go by) has been rock solid.

Yeah, but the songs don't all have to sound the same to form a cohesive album (imo). They just have to all work together as a collective. Party Queen, (miss)understood, Secret etc. all feel cohesive within themselves despite having a pretty wide array of styles. This just feels like a hodgepodge of random tracks she selected and decided to throw together lol.

But then, for me, the LEAST cohesive albums are usually the ones where everything sounds really similar and then the cohesion is thrown off by a couple random tracks that don't fit in. Like, LOVE again having Wake me up and a couple other weirdos, or Love songs with all the non-TK songs that were produced TOTALLY differently and sounded super awkward on the album lol.

I think in part this album's problem isn't just a lack of cohesion, it's that it feels like an assortment of songs that don't even FORM an album. It's like Colours really. As much as I love everything on Colours (save for Pray ugh), it doesn't really work as an album. Except at least Colours was for the most part consistent in style. This is just... all over the place xD

I really hope you're kidding lol

It just seems weird to me that you'd think LOVE again is stronger than Love songs

You are right!!!!!! It sounds so much like 楓!!

I am in complete agreement with you!

This album as a whole will probably sound like Rock n Roll circus - all over the place. But I'm perfectly okay with that. I'm just glad she can still pull off these rock songs. And well for The GIFT, I'm not yet fond of it. These sound like typical weak ballads to me (unless the lyrics are super great or something, then I'd reconsider). My favorite is definitely WARNING.

I'm just wondering if the lyrics will be good or naw. Like if they're going to be different or the same/similar to Love Again onward. But well again I'm glad there's rock songs my god thank you so much. NOW & 4EVER was such a disappointment for a rock song.

i haven't even check out the preview....but I think I will hold until the album release! wish me luck!!!

Lyrics seem to be good so far. Not Zutto-y from what I can see.

I wonder if The GIFT will have an incredible bridge or something. I can see it building up to that. C-Pop tends to have good bridges anyway...

The Show Must Go On is like You & Me + snowy kiss to me. And as epic as the song is, it really does seem like the theme song for her tour. Does the pre-chorus refer to a-nation and the tour leading up to it?

What?!:shakehead

I also think the same, the problem I have is with the how the melody goes, Granted, her choice of where the melody goes is at times weird, questionable, typical JPop but imo NOW&4EVA's is just falls flat.

The preview so far sounds great imo, yes it's not as cohesive like MY STORY or Love songs, but it's nice. It'll be like Rock'n'Roll Circus, like someone said. And I don't mind that, it's better than LOVE again for me.

I am a bit indifferent towards the previews. Whether you liked Colours or not, it sounded new. At least for an album in the Ayu discography. But every A ONE preview is a big deja vu. They are bearable, but not blowing away. So.

WARNING: Agree to artcika this is basically Lady Dynamite pt 2. Haven't listen to that song for ages, so I hope the full track of WARNING can bring me back into the mood. Pretty sure the ugly "bdsm" - I do not even want to call - "costumes" (seriously who dressed these people) are for this PV. But, even though I am not excited to see the video, I pray Ayu can turn me on with the song only.
The GIFT: has the most confusing melody ever. It sounds allright, but oh... did I just listen to a chorus? At least this one reminded me of nothing. So, okay, I guess it need to grow on us over time.
NO FUTURE: Also a confusing melody, but less than The GIFT. It's nice though. Reminds me a bit of Naturally or so. No wait it reminded me of something else but I forgot...
Out Of Control: Middle-part Party Queen style, welcome back Call, Letter and Tell me why. When I read the titles here before I gave them a listen, I really thought this one would be rockin' or electro pop. Turns out my expectations were wrong, but whatever.
Show Must Go On: Yep this one is snowy kiss allright. I dislike this preview,, allthough the calm verse was a relievement.
Story: Nice ballad, nice arrangement, nice melody I hear so far. Just nice. Yup nice.

So yeah, I think these songs plus the Zutto single are nice together, but it sounds a bit overdone.
Still care for the full release though. My interest is not gone completely.

^ Those comments make it sound like N&4E failed because it was 'meant' to be a rock song and didn't live up to that. Not sure what sort of song it's 'meant' to be but it's definitely one that I enjoyed thoroughly. My only gripe with it was the fact that it sounded slightly out of place as an album closer.

And yes, Love again is CLEARLY a better all round album than Love songs for me, even if certain individual tracks off LS were slightly better than some off LA. At least a third of the tracks on LS are on my list of least favourite Ayu songs ever.

NOW & 4EVA is more of an 'anthem pop rock' track IMO. I love the bridge.

YES, THIS! Thank god I wasn't the only one who found it very I've-esque. The arrangement is like straight out of C.G mix's playbook... but with budget, lol. The melody is way more Ayu, but still reminds me of I've a little. I can even name the I've song this preview makes me think of: EMPTY by MELL. I can almost hear MELL going "I'm empty~" at some spots in the pre-chorus.

NO FUTURE is my favourite out of the previews. Aside from that, I mostly like the previews though I have to say The GIFT sounds super dry and corny, and jfc the yay-yay-yay's at the end of The Show Must Go On's chorus sound shrill.

why is everyone so obsessed with cohesivness, doesn't it feel like you're listening to ONE HUGE track? Because that's how Love songs and LOVE again sonded like to me (don't even get me started on Colours lol). Probably the reason why i enjoyed them for like a week and then got borred really quickly, cuz they just don't excite you in any way. I dunno i mean i look at albums as a sort of a perspective of feelings and emotions of an artist over a certain period of time, unless they do it for a specific project. To me it also seems a little too polished when everything sounds very smooth, like i start questioning the artists creativity then. Unless, of course they were in the same mood for a few months, then it's a whole other story lol
To me a good album is something where more than 8 tracks could stand on their own as a story after story and not something that that one song u take out on it's own, looses the character and any sense of what's going on there because they need the rest to continue the telling. i take it more like a book of a collection of different stories that are bound just by a period of time rather than a common theme. i'm not into stuff that takes 15 chapters to tell ONE story. lol And these so far to me sound like they coukd stand each as their own without the rest.

If you think of Party Queen as a concept record, sure. It follows this progression after the end of a relationship. From the party phase where she feels so happy to be free and single (Party Queen, NaNaNa, Shake It<3) then into confusion and anger (call, Letter, reminds me), then to sadness (reminds me, Return Road, Tell me why), then avoiding the things she normally does to give herself time to heal and learn to move on (the next LOVE, Eyes, Smoke, Magic) and then ends on a reflective song that sounds like Ayu but still somehow different (how beautiful you are). But that's about it. It's starkly incohesive if the concept wasn't there to hold the record together.

Still, when you think about it, it's a brilliant concept to follow Ls with.

I will argue that Ls is a more cohesive record than PQ. The songs share some variety, but it's Ayu's sound. Every song on there is about love in some way. Whether it's songs like Love Song, Sending Mail, Last angel, blossom, Sweet Season, November, and Virgin Road which talk about loving someone specific... or it's MOON, which was written after Ayu's pet passed away... or it's Thank U, about her fans. I think Ls was better compiled, though I wish the interludes didn't sound so cheap.

I hate to argue that sales are a good indicator of good albums, but if you look at Ls to RnRC's sales, it sold about 17% less than RnRC overall. PQ to Ls, PQ sold about 47% less. LOVE again sold 40% less than PQ. and Colours sold about 40% less than LOVE again. So, while I think a huge huge part of this is lack of promotion and a number of other factors, I think PQ and everything since PQ hasn't been well received by fans. And I think you can look at the drop from single to single, album to album, and get a good idea of whether a bad release is causing more lost market. She's going to lose a percentage of sales from one album to the next regardless, but a huge drop of almost 50% just a matter of months after spending two weeks at #1 with a mini-album that sold almost 70% more copies doesn't always mean that no promotion made it bomb.

I think a good example to look at is someone like Kyarypamyupamyu. Nanda Collection debuted at #1 with 100k in sales (~275,000 total), but her follow-up Pikapika Fantajin sold about 1/4th as many copies (~70,000 total). And she promoted it too.

But you can look at single sales for Ayu, for example. Look at Ftl/Mgr, which sold about 37,000 total. Then a full year later Z/Lm/W sells almost 36,000. I think she keeps more of the market if the release is well received by existing fans.

As an aside, I've said it before, and I'll say it again, because it bears repeating: We will honestly have a good idea of how A ONE is received by looking at Koda's sales. Koda has just barely outsold Ayu since GUILTY and Kingdom were released (Dejavu was the only exception), and I think WALK OF MY LIFE is going to be a stronger, better record than Bon Voyage.

As an aside, I like bringing up sales because I like the numbers and statistics part of the discussion. It's just fun to see how these numbers stack up over time and to try to predict them. I think A ONE will be a Top 10 record, but I'm concerned it will actually debut in the bottom half of the Top 10. Also, I think Ayu and Koda will top out at around 35-40,000 each this year. But that's better than my estimates for Ai Otsuka. I think LOVE TRiCKY may barely sell 2,000 copies.

^ The whole LS album sounded cheap. All of TK's compositions (apart from the title track) sounded like cheap globe rejects.

And uh, hate to break it to you bud, but every single frigging one of Ayu's songs is about Love so that's not really saying anything.

Aural cohesiveness is kind of irrelevant when it comes to Ayu. Regardless of what record she puts out, there will be an upbeat track, a ballad, a rockish track, a more cutesy one. It's a formula that's worked for her since My Story (seriously).

No doubt some records have more of a 'concept' than others (Party Queen, Colours, I'd say RAINBOW as well) but for the most part, I find it more productive to evaluate her albums in terms of "did I enjoy listening to the whole thing or not"

^It's a formula that worked for her since A Song for xx actually.
There always were songs who could be considered as cute, rock, ballad and up beat at least in most albums.

I think that even evolution could be considered cute (because of the voice/the way ayu acts in the PV) or just look at the lives,, SIGNAL, Fly high and AUDIENCE too (and I suppose WE WISH?). Not as bluntly as ANGEL'S SONG, and HONEY but still..

Ok, I couldn't resist with the previews. For me, warning and Show must go on are the best, but no future is weird but primising?

I think I've got bittersweet feelings about this album, and I usually like everything ayu releases, but this one... ufff... I don't know what to think. It can be A ONE dissaster or A ONE EPICNESS. Time will say.

I tend to not count A song for xx because I think they were trying many many different things, as one is prone to do, for a debut album -- but you are right, it does fit the description as well.

Don't think the same really holds true for Loveppears - RAINBOW though. Fly High and Audience weren't really cutesy until she started making them 'cute' when her concerts become That Particular Formula (rock/bondage, cute/sexy, pretty/ballads, u know what I'm referring to)

I'm not saying these things as criticisms of course, I still very much enjoy all her concerts and albums even though I know exactly what to expect.

ANYWAY, let's talk about the new songs. WARNING was very very good. As good as Until that day and 1Love from Secret (which, to me, are some of her best 'rock' songs).

It's always fun when people have opposite tastes: these two are one of my favourites!
I can't get how for example Shake it can be considered better.

I'm surprised that I've managed to restrain myself from listening to the previews.

You guys have very different reactions to the songs I'm now completely unable to guess what they actually sound like :laugh

@hayasaki thanks for sharing the previews!!

I just love how No Future made me want to jump out of my chair and run. i need it right now!! My personal highlight of the album.

Story sounds nostalgic and heartwarming. Hopefully the song builds up and we have more high notes on the bridge / last chorus. I can imagine myself sitting down and thinking about warm memories while listening to this song. My 2nd highlight

The Show Must Go On is a more exciting version of snowy kiss, but i don't like the repetitive "the show must go on..yeaayeayyeay". I like the verse thou

WARNING -> i picture this an exciting opener. I don't know whether the lalala will get annoying along the way

Don't really care for the GIFT -> I just can't understand why would she choose this song, but maybe the lyrics will resonate better. It's a big meh right now.

Out of control seems to be a filler song for me -> it sounds like something in Party Queen and similar to Life.

Hearing the previews got my hopes up quite high for A ONE. Ayu has done everything (even slight rapping) in her discography, so some songs do sound similar, and these songs have a bit of this and that. But it does have the Ayu sound and feeling.

Her albums were not loaded down with love shit before Ls. RnRC, for example, had a shit ton of self-reflective (Microphone, count down, Last Links, RED LINE, Don't look back) party, fashion-forward songs (Lady Dynamite, Sexy little things, Sunrise). 8 of the 15 tracks had nothing to do with intimate relationships. Everything from RnRC back to A Song for XX is a variety of stuff, from isolation to anxiety to freedom to music to personal stuff. Ls, however, was her first album all about relationships with another person or her dog or her fans.

Even Colours is drenched with love crap. From Ftl to Wifl to Pray, Angel, Mgr, N&4E. Over half of that record is about love.

I think the album formula has been pretty solid with her since Duty. Duty had upbeats like (vogue and AUDIENCE), ballads (SEASONS and SCAR), rock (End of the World), and a cutesy track (girlish).

And I'd love to agree with you on the "did I enjoy listening to it or not" if it wasn't honestly 100% subjective and affected by everything from mood to life circumstances to whether you're in need of food, medication, or something else. There are some good albums out there I don't enjoy listening to. There are also some bad albums I actually enjoy.

I do not like Namie Amuro's FEEL or Uncontrolled, but both were very well received by fans. I also absolutely love Secret though I don't know another Ayu fan who thinks it was a good record. So, I tend to lean on more concrete, popular opinion/review/sales-based information rather than say "Oh, I didn't enjoy this album so it's bad." But I will let numbers speak for themselves. Numbers usually speak for a lot. And a consistent 40% drop in sales from album to album, from PQ to La to Colours, tells me fans didn't want another record like Ls, and definitely didn't want THREE more consecutively. :P

It's also interesting to look at her drops over the years.

04-06 From MS to (m): ~30% drop.
06 to S: ~34% drop.
08 to G: ~15% drop.
09 to NL: ~33% drop.
10 to RnRC: ~16% drop.
10 to Ls: ~15% drop.
12 to PQ: ~47% drop.
13 to La: ~40% drop.
14 to C: ~40% drop.

Like, we are all well aware of how she kind of peaked at A BEST and very slowly descended from there, but she had a sudden huge drop with singles starting at forgiveness in 03 and with albums at Memorial Address / MY STORY in 03-04.

It's even more crazy to think she tallied 25 consecutive #1 singles after her peak, in the middle of these huge drops in sales, in the middle of the announcement about her hearing, in the middle of her pulling back on being a "product" for avex.

Anyway, I don't think the numbers for A ONE will be amazing, but I hope for a reasonable drop this time at least. Like, I'm shooting for a 20-30% drop at max, that 35,000-40,000 range in sales. If she somehow manages to sell closer to Colours, I'll be shocked. I think FW will be somewhere around 25-30k. But still. I seriously want to see Koda's numbers. But I am going to have my own little mini heart attack if Koda's first week is shockingly abysmal... like, imagine how crazy it would feel to see Koda do less than 20k in the first week?? It would just feel weird.

Yeah. Numbers. NUMBAHS. I love 'em. But I still support Ayu and Koda anywho. I just want A ONE to feel more complete than any of these records over the last few years. I get PQ having its place, and La was good because I beat it into my own head that it could be a good record (though two years later it really, honestly, unfortunately just is not). And I know everyone hated XOXO, and I danced my butt off to it because it was really different from anything Ayu has done, but Colours was really just a sloppy album... I mean, very sloppy. Like they did all the decision-making after Ayu had her wisdom teeth pulled and before the drugs wore off. But I'd like see A ONE be a decent record for Ayu's sake... because one day she's going to have to look back at her career from 2010-2015, and you know she's going to notice how bad the fonts on her covers are, and she's going to wonder where the fuck her arm disappeared to on the cover of PQ, or why she was rubbing a shoe on her face in another cover of PQ, or how many xanax bars she was on to be too damn lazy to come up with a name other than LOVE again for an album that included all the tracks from two mini-albums titled LOVE and again, one of which wasn't even technically a mini-album. That's going to hurt. So I hope A ONE is where Ayu said, "You know, I'm drawing the line at everything before here." And then we can say that CDL 14-15 was her last trashy thing from this era.

Secret is up there as one of my favorites ever from her...

To think it was a mini album at one point... so strange.

As far as recent numbers go, a large part of it is that there simply is no promotion. People don't know something new is coming out and there are nearly no tie-ins of note to let people know songs are out there. It also doesn't help that the market in general is becoming idolcentral. There is no denying Ayu is selling less than ever before, but so is just about everyone else.

I'm liking what I'm hearing from the HQ previews, the sound of the album sort of reminds me sort of a mix from the past few albums, as in some of the songs could of fitted in with those past albums.

WARNING chorus reminds of the type of song that could be used for a Panasonic CM.
The GIFT I this this will do well live at her tours (I actually don't mind the sound of The GIFT, I like it better than the sound of Out of control).
NO FUTURE 'Like a doll' comes to mind but I think that's just the instruments used in the song but its much better than Like a doll
Out of control Not much opinion on this song yet
The Show Must Go On I could see this used as an opening to an Anime (I do get the snowy kiss feel too from it, but I love the sound of snowy kiss)
Story I could see this as being the ending song to an Anime

My two most favourite songs so far are WARNING and Out of control, from the sound of the songs from the HQ preview.

I want those 2 tracks to be full songs t_t

Sad but true. The music giants were too slow to get with the times with the age of the internet. Its pretty much the music industry's fault to were it is today. But going on 17 years non-stop, ayus doing very well. Not many solo/bands can last the test of time

Lmao is this a joke?

To me, Love songs doesn't feel all that cohesive because it's basically 2/3 TK, which all has a very distinct sound, but the rest is sloppily produced and sounds nothing like the TK parts. Whereas PQ is very consistent in its (bad lol) production and has a little bit of everything without too much of anything and is set up in a manner that flows very well etc. All the songs on PQ feel like they belong on PQ, while on Love songs there are tracks that sound totally different from the rest, in this case in terms of production not genre/arrangement/whatever

I am trying to resist listening to the previews, but I am happy that it seems that Ayu has returned to the classic "ayu" sound and emotion.

all these comparisons make me want to bulge similiar songs in playlists together

The Previews sound great!

I'm disappointed. Four ballads, plus one midtempo and Last minute? I love Last minute and I'm sure I will like Warning and No Future. But as a whole this album won't do anything for me.

lol i know right. ayu has made it abundantly clear with albums like MY STORY, (miss)understood, Rock'n'Roll Circus, and Colours that she has no intention to be defined strictly by one type of 'sound'. imo Ayu is up there with some of pop music's greats in terms of being a musical chameleon.

Loosely tying things together allows listeners to more easily produce their own impressions and interpretations of an artist's work. tbh I have no need for "concept albums" like the ones pretentious indie acts shove in your face (literally, shove in your face, by explaining to death in interviews pretty much every aspect of the album from its conception, meaning, etc. which not only takes the fun out of being able to attach your own personal experiences to the work, but also shows how wildly insecure the musician is. I've always liked how Ayu is purposely vague and feels no need to over-explain the minutiae of her musical decisions)

from WARNING:

Yes, you don't know
I don't show you
You don't know the real me
I don't feel like sharing
I don't plan on exposing myself
I'm mine only

Well, this IS kind of what happens when you do a triple ballad single just beforehand. There was no way she was going to not have a few ballads in there that were new.

Not really... Nobody's holding a gun to her head saying there have to be new ballad tracks on the album lol ESPECIALLY not 3/half of them.

I wish Last minute would've gotten the same treatment as Out of control. It got way too digital after the first chorus.

Out of control has CMJK written all over it.

I know, but this is Ayu we're talking about here. She's never really not had new ballads or midtempos on albums. Her fewest is probably NEXT LEVEL or FIVE.

Okayish, listening to previews.

The GIFT sounds NOTHING original. It sound just like beloved/untitled/untitled2/random ballad.

WARNING is pretty awesome, I even like "lalalai~" part, I don't dig the "circus" atmosphere of guitars, but still, it's a strong, huge track

No future is very catchy, is pretty like Like a doll ~part 2~ but more uptempo and more emotional. This track sounds like LOVEppears/Duty era, really. Very oldschool feeling!

Out of control... The verses sounds pretty boring/forgetable, but I like rocky-emotional chorus which reminds me of Letter/call (yeah, I really like whole Party Queen album which) When I will hear music in HQ, i should appriciate it more :)

Show must go on really sounds like snowy kiss 2. I almost sang ANATAAAAAAAAAAA WO.... lol. It's not bad... I don't have feelings about it because snowy kiss is TOO LONG and it bores me.

Story sounds like another sappy ballad ~part 293918273821738~

the main problem of them are those songs are pretty much SIMILAR to some from her past albums. But WARNING and NO FUTURE have pretty strong catchy melodies.
and ballads are pretty weak... LOVE again had some pretty memorable ballads - Sweet scar is one of her original ballads since BALLAD on RnRC... Also Ivy and Melody had pretty much catchy choruses. Those two are pretty forgetable. Same instruments as always, emotional chorus etc.

when has Ayu NOT released an album comprised of mostly ballads/midtempo pop-rock tho? NEXT LEVEL is really it. An album full of STEP you's is NEVER GONNA HAPPEN. It didn't even happen with Colours, an album full of Western producers! the only true upbeat songs were XOXO and Lelio, the rest of the songs had ballady/slower tempo sections.

Thank you!!! I always felt that ayu should sing songs like MELL's

Ugh, if I've ever produced an album for ayu it'd probably be her best album and I could die saying I lived a good life after listening to it.

And damn, I miss MELL.

Anyway, No Future is going to be the new love of my life, I just know it lol.

well, Party Queen had only ONE typical "sappy-crying" ballad :D and it was kinda unique bcause of lack of those songs.

also when (miss)understood was realased, it only included rainy day as a new ballad track, and I can't even call it a typical sappy-ayu ballad... (mainly bcause its a cover/adaptation of sweetbox song). (miss)understood also is kinda lackish of ballads - HEAVEN was so strong, she didn't have to put another one XDDDD (ofcourse people can argue about Will/Pride/criminal but for me, these aren't ballads.)

Party Queen too!!! Tell me why, the next LOVE, and hbya are the only ones I'd really consider ballads there. And isn't FIVE basically all ballads? lol I mean the only one that isn't a ballad starts off ballad. I don't mind the midtempo stuff, it's the bloating of generic ballads that reeeally grinds my gears

^ Honestly, although I didn't like GIFT or Story much, I feel like the "generic ballad" / "midtempo" card is thrown out a bit too much. My personal sense is when you've hundreds of songs in your discography, it gets harder and harder to differentiate yourself stylistically. I think rather than dismissing certain songs because it 'sounds generic' it's worthwhile to listen out for how they are different. Sometimes you won't find much, but sometimes the payoff is quite good.

I think the Zutto/LM/Walk single is a good example of something that I was ready to write off at first listen, that I gradually grew to love with repeated listens, identifying different interesting nuances in her voice, the melody, the words.

I think it's pretty apparent that Ls is just not my cup of tea whereas you have a persistent hardon for it, so it's best that we just agree to disagree since we won't convince each other otherwise.

I think everyone is talking about ballad but giving to the word different meanings. For exemple I wouldn't consider the next LOVE a ballad. And a lot of people here is talking about ballads as "everything is slower then a rock song".

I'm not sure on what is the precise definition of ballad but for exemple for me even LOVE again have a reasonable number of ballad. On 15 tracks, I would consider real ballad just Ivy, untitled for her story 2, SAKURA and Sweet Scar (and maybe Gloria). Melody and petal for me are mid-tempo jpop songs, not ballad. The rest is defenitely not ballad at all. So it would be 5 on 15 (7 on 15 if we consider Melody and petal, still less then half), I think is an ok number. With Colours I would says just Angel and Pray. The other "slower" songs (What is forever love?, Merry-Go-Round and Hello new me) are midtempo pop song.

For A ONE we have three from the single + The GIFT and Story that is sort of an half (expecially if we consider Last Minute both rock and ballad) but for now we have still 2 unveiled songs.

All of this to say that I can't really see this overflow of ballad in Ayu's last albums. It's still less then the half and in this group of ballad there are a lot of different style (Sweet Scar, SAKURA and Angel are totally different as songs).

But maybe is just beacuse I don't really know what makes a ballad a ballad. :P

@js_surrealism: They ARE generic though lol. They're basically as by the numbers as ballads can come and tbh at this point they're all just starting to sound really contrived. It's really hard to call these anything short of generic when she has such unique or intricate ballads like RAINBOW, HANABI, Moments, etc. in her arsenal. Mind you, I'm not expecting EVERY song to be a RAINBOW/magnum opus/masterpiece, but I would really appreciate it if, if she REALLY has to release 80% ballads and only 2-3 upbeat tracks per album, they at least could be differentiated and didn't sound like they were picked out of the "how 2 basic jpop ballad!!!" guidebook. Ballads like Tell me why or even Sweet scar at least bring something a little different to her discography. But I can't think of much else in recent years that wasn't just a run of the mill strings or piano arrangement sweeping-melody contrived-empassioned chorus affair and it just gets so old.

My problem isn't ballads in general (MY STORY is my favorite album for example). It's the type of ballad and the fact that she's basically just recycling the same song over and over again. I mean, even Show Must Go On is basically literally snowy kiss. Just because she has a huge discography doesn't mean she has to release the same song over and over again, when she's already shown she can still deliver new sounds.

I feel like she's just getting too complacent and DESPERATELY needs new composers.

^and it may not be the case that the show must go on could top snowy kiss. I've been waiting for snowy kiss part 2 but now I know that some things are better left not touched (just because you can doesn't mean you should).

Wouldn't expect anyone here to be able to identify "nuance."

"The Show Must Go On" is already being mythfied in the fandom as a "snowy kiss" rehash and the full song isn't even out yet.

WARNING - It's alright; but her voice sounds awful when she does the "La-la-lai's" lol

The GIFT - zzz

NO FUTURE - Pleasant on the ears

Out of control - zzz

The Show Must Go On - This is literally snowy kiss lol

Story - zzz

From the fun and fantastic Colours to basic-ass A ONE. Meh. I'll still buy it cause I want my CD collection to be complete lol and I kind of dig Last minute so there's that.

Unless the entire rest of the song is entirely different, it's a snowy kiss rehash.

My friend is a huge fan of Bz, he told me that the new recording (ayu said: not for the album) is Bz duet. He showed me promo pic in a store with handwritten kanji, i cant post cause im on a phone, anybody know the news? Is it comfirmed?

I mean, fair enough. lol

Quite a dramatic overstatement to say the song is "literally snowy kiss" tho.

I personally can remember the entire melody in the preview of TSMGO without getting it confused with snowy kiss.

The most trouble I ever had confusing the melodies of songs was with the choruses of BALLAD and BRILLANTE, which both begin very similarly.

Girl, get out of town.

Don't do this 2 me.

I dunno i just want to get this comfirmed, the picture says "collaboration single with ayu, in april" xd maybe i missed some fake news?

Ololo I know few people who will faint just after reading news

http://i.imgur.com/USpIg5w.jpg

Mm.. it's not fake..

"And... B'z's first collaboration single partner in April... that utahime?!"

I dunno who else they call 'utahime'.

I'm always dramatic lol.

I don't think they're really that identical, but they feel similar enough that she really doesn't need both. (If we could go back in time and delete snowy kiss that'd be fine too tho.) It's a bigger issue for me because I absolutely abhor snowy kiss and never wanted to have to hear anything like it ever again.

I can't tell Walk apart from Story at all honestly...


LOL @ Ayu collabing with B'z

I cant upload the pic, arghhhh
Edit yyyyep thats the pic, thank you!

<3<3<3

I wish Ayu was shooting PVs for Warning, No Future, and The Show Must Go On. I love her ballads and all but I would rather she did PVs for uptempos...

I have some trouble clearly explaining my thoughts here (my english...). You just said everything I want to say as regards her recent work!
She also DESPERATELY needs new arrangers too. The songs sounding the same is also because of them.

You mean you guys don't like it when all of her songs sound the same as one another?! Holy smoke!

lmao.

I guess the best way for me to describe it is with Ayu's rock songs. They all have VERY distinct personalities, all of which are able to convey who Ayu is as an artist, without sounding "the same" and without going too far over the edge to the point that it loses the "Ayu" flavor.

^Exactly.
Rock Ayu is what caught me.
Rock Ayu is what's keeping me at her sides.

If she ever stop doing rock songs, I think I quit.

I don't think she'll ever quit with the rock just as she will never quit with the ballads. She may outgrow the EDM though.

See, I totally and completely understand everyone's concerns/complaints. I think what you just said and what others are saying is totally legit.

BUT...For me, I am just a sucker for her music. Even if I know that technically it's not up to the same par as some of her greater music, I typically can still listen to it. Granted, there are still some songs of hers that I do not care for. But, her "generic" ballads work just fine on me since I think they're pretty. XD

There is pretty much only one song of hers that I absolutely refuse to listen to...Teens...I cannot STAND that song. There are a few others of hers that I can't stand listening to but I think that's the ONLY one that I refuse to give my time.

Just hearing the previews. I do like what i've heard.
Album sounds more J-pop than COLOURS and i appreciate that (i love that later as well).
I adore Zutto/Last Minute/Walk so i will probably appreciate A ONE.
From the previews i like all the songs (except maybe The GIFT). most momerable songs are The Show Must Go On, WARNING, NO FUTURE.

By songs

WARNING : Her voice is a bit weird but i like the song. The chorus is cool.

The GIFT : A bit boring to be honest. I adore most of Ayu ballads but this one is typically like the ballads of her that i don't really care... Hope the PV will make me appreciate the song better.

NO FUTURE : Instrumental is cool and i love the chorus. I like what i heard but preview quality is awful. Anyway it's my fav preview for the moment.

Out of control : Okay song. It will probably grow on me.

The Show Must Go On : The beginning does sounds like snowy kiss. I appreciate the "show must go on" parts. Some parts reminds me also "sending mail".
I think i will love the song.

Story : i like it. So far the best new ballad out of the 3 songs. Chorus is cute.

I'm the 1% that REALLY LOVE The GIFT.

I think the instrumental is sweet.

She really just needs to stop whoring out Yuta Nakano as an arranger, and she'll be on the fast track to songs that are at least somewhat more distinctive again. He is a literal one trick pony when it comes to ballads. She does this all the time, she finds an arranger that she likes and she sticks with them FOREVER until the fanbase gets fed up, and she moves onto another one. Sure, she'll have other arrangers do a few tracks on each album, but there's usually one predominant one. It used to be CMJK and now it's Yuta.

As for the previews, I loved all of them except for TSMGO. If she's going to rehash her own sound, I'd prefer they sound like this than the forced trite that was LOVE again.

I think the real problem is that, for the longest time, I loved her music for it's music. I mean, sure I loved Ayu, but I loved her BECAUSE of the music she made. Say if someone else had been making that music, I would have loved it just as much. It was the MUSIC that was so damn good - Ayu just happened to be the one who made something of such substantial quality!

Now, I pretty much just listen to her because I've already established my connection with her as a fan. I listen to the songs because of her. She is the main attraction and her music is just kind of there for me to consume. If anyone else were to release half the shit she's put out, I wouldn't even give it a second thought.

I think, ask yourself that question. Are you truly listening to her for the music, or are you listening to it for the simple fact that she's the one who is making it? The fact that her name is tacked onto it. I think really that's what it's all about. If you have not asked yourself that question, then you really need to, and I think you'll finally understand the divide between AHS'ers.

^Listen to her because of her music. That's why I don't listen to MY STORY for example.

Well I don't necessarily think there is anything wrong with the later reason, as there are plenty of songs by Ayu that didn't initially grab me, many of which I have grown to love over time; but I do believe it helps to shed some light onto various issues. My absolute favorite tracks, my all-time number ones, the songs I consider "the best of the best," are all considered as such because of the appeal they have, with or without Ayu (although her deliverance on the vocal is unique to her and therefore does factor into things somewhat) and the majority, if not all of these songs, are at least 5-10 years old.

but there are only 4 PVs in this album and 3 have been confirmed to be Zutto..., Last minute and The GIFT. I really hope the last one (the SM-isque pic she posted on Twitter) will be WARNING or NO FUTURE. but some said it's most probably The Show Must Go On... >_<

I listen to her and pay attention to her because of everything she stands for.

I've come to terms with the fact that her albums are likely only to have one brilliant song. I still love her anyway..just wish she would have stricter and tighter quality level when it comes to picking songs.

Sure Ayu's older albums weren't full of brilliant songs but they weren't littered with such offensively bland filler level songs such as The Gift, Hello New Me, Beloved, and I can't even remember the others as they aren't as recent but are oh so dull.

^Hello new me and Beloved were both minnor hits and among her recent strong sellers and The Gift is most like taking the same road.

Most of her public, most people people from her core market are into this kind of music, and there's no way she will stop pleasing her to start pleasing the 15, 20 western people that buy everything she releases after finding her by chance on the internet.

Most of the people on this forum is not part the group who buys most of her stuff, and going after us would most likely destroy her career for good.

totally!

Same here. And it doesn't hurt that she makes music I enjoy!

its usually her lyrics that attract me, and the tunes of her songs and after being robbed a few years ago (just moved and it was all in a few big boxes) and losing all my collection of hers (i buy most of her stuff too, not things like nail books, but I had the huge ViVi book) I started from scratch and I would start all over again, though now I back up everything now of hers. Her songs just have a way with me that can help me cheer up or help when times are bad

I think people who are in her core market are gonna buy whatever the fuck she puts out. This is the shit she releases that has potential for mass appeal, whether you're a "fan" of her or not. It's a given that her "fans" will listen.
That's a really nice thing to say, because she does stand for great things, but it's the fact that she was able to spark such a fire within me, the fact that she was able to make such a huge impact and impression on me BEFORE I became more aware about who she was and what she stands for, that made/makes her great. The moment someone makes such a huge impression on you, when you have absolutely no obligation to them, have no knowledge of them, or any other pre-determined factors affecting the effect you're experiencing - that speaks volumes.

It's like if you're child does something. Paints something, gives you something, etc. You love it - you have a genuine love for the subject matter and its a genuine emotion - but it stems from the relationship more so than the subject matter itself.

I still love Ayu, but damn it was really a trip when I loved her for what she stood for AND for the material itself. When she appeals to both of those aspects within my mind, that truly is a marvel.

I sometimes have a biased towards her music simply due to the fact that her name is tacked onto the song. It totally makes her seem like a product, when you think about it.

But, my reasons for listening to what I listen to differs depending on my mood. For the most part, I like to play her music because I like to have it in the background while I draw. That's the main reason why I listen to music in the first place.

Recently, though, I've learned to constructively listen to music. I know this is the case because of my undying biased towards Girugamesh. I may seem like a devoted fan to Ayu, but Girugamesh is the one I throw my money at whenever possible. AND YET, I can't bring myself to buy their latest music because I don't care for it. I learned then that my ears are starting to hear more than just the name of the artist.

I love music. Simply put, you know? I like to find people I can stand to listen to. I honestly do love most of Ayu's music and it's not just because it's her writing it. I am just that much of a fan of what she sings. I'll even think I hate one of her songs, but it'll grow on me.

The main case of something not growing on me is Party Queen, though. It's the odd ball in her discography that I could never quite come to love. I don't hate it but it's not really my thing.

That's not really what he was asking.

He's saying do you continue to follow her releases now because you find the music interesting and worth following, or do you follow her releases now because she's Ayumi Hamasaki when the music otherwise, under any other name, wouldn't really draw you in all that much.

MY STORY isn't a relevant example because it's old as fuck lol

I think I am at the point where as a fan, I may not like everything at first but I will grow to like it in time, so I don't really worry about it too much. It's a great feeling to find artists that you can listen to just about all their albums and enjoy them all.

This is a long response...so spoilers are bae right now

It wasn't an assumption is was a legit question for everyone to ponder. I'm really curious about that.

I will never stop loving Ayu. She has had such an impact on me, to put it in words is just inconceivable. When I discovered her, it was like I had discovered the embodiment of everything I loved. Every style of music, every interest that I had - she was it all, rolled into one. A marvel you can imagine. I think the difference is, back then, it was such a shock. I was not expecting to find one single artist who satisfied every music related passion of mine. But now, I know what to expect, and I can't help but continue expecting that.

Well for me... I love ayu's voice, I don't care about lyrics much. She has a way of singing that really conveys emotions. So, no matter what kind of song she sings, as long as i can feel her heart through her voice , i love it. I don't think i answered your question though :P

XOXO troll

If I don't listen to MY STORY because I find it boring as fuck, I don't listen to Ayumi's music just because it's Ayumi's.

And I still don't get why you threw an irrelevant example in unless you were just trying to annoy him lmao

It could be because it is ayu herself. If it were anyone else I would pass up the music without a thought, especially if it came from artists like Nishino Kanako. But with ayu I always check her music and I've liked 95% of her discography, with things getting shakey with the later released. I'm inclined to believe that I listen to music for the MUSIC, but it's also a combination of that and the artists persona (isn't it normally?). For Nishino Kanako, I get this generic basic vibe so I don't normally check her out. But if she had a good song I would overlook my feelings about her. For miwa, I think she's another basic guitar chick but I overlook that because Kimi no Deaeta Kara was so hot. In both these cases it's defintely the music which overpowers my dislike of the artist as a person.

I like ayu as a person. With some exception but she is human and makes mistakes. Because of this i look at her music with a neutral-happy tone and will listen to her music regardless. But of course there are exceptions. Some music just isn't good (that 5%) and doesn't click with me even though I like her. I think ayu's music IS her, and that's a big part of me listening to ayu. When I first listened to her I always noted how she was depressed and angsty and I liked that. I've moved on from that stage and her music has appealed to me less but I still appreciate it for what it is and still listen although not as much. I know if someone like Nishino Kanako sang one of ayu's songs I would probably pass it up without thought. I guess it really is an image for ayu's music. But there are of course anomalys.

I really really love primavera's take on her opinion. I too felt kinda the same with her, because lately I realized that I have been paying attention to the nuance (I didn't know what this feeling called before until I read it here) of her music, that itsy bitsy of music layers and instrumentations that made her music rich and different. And I also agree that personal taste and preferences also affects my decisions of her music like when I dislike Tell All because of the weird melody and messy arrangements.

I also agree about this, sadly she'll never let go those kind of materials :(

I listen to her because of her music, I remember it clearly I know her when I started to delve in JPop thanks to Hikki and was looking for other materials. I admit I don't get her image back then (it was during I am...) so I dismissed her but then I accidentally listened to Dearest and got hooked. It was so beautiful and graceful, I fell in love instantly. Her lyrics also factors as why I'm one of her loyal listeners because I got what she wrote and feel, and so far there's only few artists (next to none) in my library who's on par with her writing. Up until now I still would always have disagreement over the image she portrayed from time to time, it turned me off bit but her music is what made me stay (e.g NEXT LEVEL album).

@terra: I'm glad you feel me. I know everyone has different answers, views, etc. There's so much that makes a song good. And lol, Tell All frustrates me. It has all of this potential and I can still enjoy it. But they really messes it up a lot. I'm hoping the new mix is better


When you say "you'll finally understand the divide between AHSers" when you discover the answer to your question, it makes an assumption. But I'll assume that wasn't your intention now. You have a legit question and it's good for people to think about it. In fact, I think they should know where they stand. But you already seem to have ideas about the answers and what they mean for people based on what you said, what you asked, and the way you worded things. But maybe I'm making too many assumptions now, so don't mind me lol ;)

It's okay, I gave my answer already. I need to not write walls on this page.

I firmly believe that if someone is hanging on to ayu (or any musician really) based on unrealistic and dated expectations after she's constantly disappointed, it's sad. Because music is beautiful and there's always more to explore and hopefully enjoy. But I mean, what do you lose I guess? I'm not going to tell anyone to stop listening to her if they want to keep putting themselves through it to find the occasional good song. It must not be that awful I guess. And I understand that for some people who can't find other artists they like as much or who brought the same things to them, it sucks, but they keep listening. It's still sad to me though and unfortunate.

It's her latest album I really disliked... ;)

Why do you make it sound like a song with mass appeal is not actually a good song?

For the record while I hated Hello new me, I think beloved is one of her best ballads ever.

I also find it rather disingenuous to make arguments about listening to music 'just for the music and not who performs it' simply because that is just impossible. How does one isolate a song from its performer and gauge his response to it when the first time (or first many hundred times untll someone covers it) they hear the song is by its original performer?

It's kind of like how many boy bands and idol groups have excellent songs written for them, but many self-professed music snobs will not touch them with a 10 foot pole because idol, because 'silly'.

For that same reason I think it's perfectly legit for people to like songs because Ayu does them, because there are certain songs that are only special because Ayu does them. Songs like Love song or Microphone immediately lose any significance if someone else does them. Just like how nobody can do Utada's First Love properly.

So, if our like/dislike of her songs are always going to be based on the extent to which we think it's a 'good' song for her (is it innovative enough? does it fit her image? do I want her singing about sex?), it still just boils down to an issue of taste, doesn't it?

I don't think there's anything 'sad' about holding on to a relationship with an artist. Simply because even if the music stagnates, the artist doesn't. Singing M in 2001 and singing it again in 2015 post 2 marriages has completely different significances to it. Similarly, the experience of listening to it is different. There is always something there to uncover, if you're willing to, and if you're a diehard fan - you're gonna do that, and you will be rewarded for that. It's fairly rude and dismissive to suggest that the relationship is sad just because you can't derive the same joy from the artist that you would like to.

I thought she already decided for Warning PV ?

＜CD＞（通常盤3形態共通）
01. a Bell
02. WARNING
03. NO FUTURE
04. Anything for You
05. Last minute
06. Zutto...
07. Out of control
08. Story
09. The GIFT
10. The Show Must Go On
11. Walk
（全11曲収録予定）
※”Team Ayu”限定盤 / 数量限定生産盤
12. Tell All (2015 mix)
＜DVD/Blu-ray＞
・Zutto... (video clip)
・Last minute (video clip)
・The GIFT (video clip)
・WARNING (video clip)
・Zutto... (making clip)
・Last minute (making clip)
・The GIFT (making clip)
・WARNING (making clip)
（全8映像収録予定）

"a Bell" like seriously

a bell sounds like an opening?
anything for you sounds like another ballad.
so only WARNING & The Gift will have PVs. can't wait!

"a bell".. imagine it's just a 3 second bell sound..

So here are my thoughts on the hq previews:

ayu has new 3 Magazines up!

2015/04/12
「bea’s UP」

2015/04/07
「S Cawaii!」

2015/04/01
「DREAM PAPER」

I don't even know how she can top her last bea's UP appearance, but I'm excited she's doing some mag promo for A ONE! :luv2

The title looks normal to me.

yay for the magazines^^ I hope she will at least have 1 or 2 TV lives too ._: