As expected, we're surprised at this news. But yeah! New Utada album for the first time in...EIGHT YEARS! :O

it's on cdjapan now :D
http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/TYCT-60101

^ Thank you!! Finally!!



Now if KH3 would come out someday too...

The Tokyo Game Show is happening 2 weeks before the album release! I Wonder if there will be a KH3 announcement :love

yassssssssssss!!!! she's finally coming back :D

I hope the cover will actually contain her :D

There won't be. Square already released their planning for the fiscal year os 2017 (up to march, 31 2017) and KH 3 is not listed. So the game will be out april onwards

I totally forgot about KH3. What about the new eva movie? Do you think the theme song will be in the new album?

Her head shot for Ultra Blue was divine tho.

I don't mind her head shots, that's her style and she looks amazing.

I'm so excited for new music, I wonder how many people are going to
act like they did with Hanataba and Manatsu.

Yassss! Although its a bit late i'd think of this as a birthday gift lol. I hope Hikki will announce a tour. The last time she had one, I was still a student and really have no money to attend. For once, i'd want to see her live too.

After DEEP RIVER, it's my fav!

DEEP RIVER's head shot was the best :D.

How many of you have preordered the album already? :P

So we already know three songs. Hopefully there won't be (too many) interludes.

MY BODY ISN'T READY OMG

YASSSSS finally!!!! super super excited

Knowing hikki, I think the max interlude we'll see is one. I hope it'll be something like Bridge :D.

In the Flesh Live is now up on iTunes US, Canada and Mexico!

I love Hikki's albums because she doesn't use interludes that much. It's only a good thing because it means there's more room for full awesome songs. Not that her interludes suck tho. I think they've always been amazing. I can't even choose my favorite lol. xD

^no thats still not true. There is room or about 17 songs on an album. Having a interlude or not does not make a full song appear out of nowhere. People gotta stop that dumb thinking.

I agree that it's illogical to think otherwise. My problem with some artist's interludes is that it takes away from the flow of the album as opposed to actually helping the album be fluid. I don't think Utada has this problem at all though.

Hikaru Utada brings a full-length album for the first time in eight years! This is her sixth album and includes "Hanataba wo Kimi ni (theme song of TV drama "Toto Neechan")," "Manatsu no Toriame," "Sakura Nagashi (theme song of "Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo")," and more.

Release date: September 28

From cdjapan

on that I agree, but that is a whole different story and if people mean this, they have to phrase it differently. Same goes for singles. Leaving an a-side of an album does not mean we get an extra song.

How legit is the word that her new album is called

[the U testament]

The U Testament.

If that's what it's really called, that's legit. I like it.

http://www.jpopasia.com/news/utada-h...nt::19653.html

according to this source haha!

In the article they said there will be no promotion for the album. Like, at all? I get no tv appearances, since she seems very private since her hiatus. But nothing?

I'm pretty sure the title is actually a joke lol there is a link at the bottom of the jpopasia article leading to the blog randomjpop who makes biblical joke names out of everything (e.g. namiesus, koda kehova etc.)

This website uses Random Jpop as its source for this news. If you read the original article from Random Jpop, you'll see that he's just saying that this new album will be a "testament" for Hikki, so "The U Statement" is like he calls her album, it's not the official name.

Well... This is actually pretty standart for her. Her comeback singles and blockbuster tie-ins aside, she never really promoted all that much.

Will she have any promotion?? Like a digital single, or something to tease us with what is to come?

Her new album is called Fantôme, contains 11 Tracks. All of them have Japanese titles.

http://www.utadahikaru.jp/sp/release/images/fantome.jpg

http://www.utadahikaru.jp/sp/release/

This looks like it's going to be quite different for a Hikki album. I'm really really excited.

I'm in love with this cover and the concept.

That's so exciting. I'm not a huge fan of the font, but the picture they used for the cover art is beautiful. I like that it's blurry.

The other photos she took are stunninggg!! Love the hair

I can't explain how much I am looking forward to this.:heart
Having Utada back after so long. I am not used to it.:laugh
I am feeling the hype! I MUST know what the songs sound like.:dead2

Here's the tracklist:

For some reason I forgot that Sakura Nagashi existed, I was a bit surprised when I saw it in the tracklist :laugh

HYPED!!!

Love the cover but can someone make a textless version? I hate that it's not cohesive with all her other textless covers lol

IDK how I feel about the cover lol

She looks absolutely stunning in the promo pics:

http://i2.wp.com/aramajapan.com/wp-c...tome-promo.jpg

http://i1.wp.com/aramajapan.com/wp-c...me-promo-2.jpg

About the tracklist, I don't like japanese titles at all, but what can we do? Nonetheless, I'm excited.

She looks like her mother sooooo much here. OMG this album is going to be a tribute for her mother like 90%. i can sense

She looks so stunning with this new hair :D.
And I love the tracklist!!!! Can't wait!!!!!!

HEART STATION is not textless :P.

I wasn't expecting news on the album quite let so chuffed with the cover reveal and tracklist! Loving the hair!

I AM SO READY. Loved the album title, song titles, cover and promo pics, especially the promo pics <3 she looks stunning! I'll definitely grab a copy of this album.

Must be. The title means ghost, and she made herself (or her hair at least) look like her mother. Also that she looks quite blurry on the cover picture. Everything is beautifully haunting...

lol I didn't even think of that XD Still... it's not as offensive as the font on this cover haha

...I'm literally speechless. everything is just so beautiful! :weep Especially Hikki in those promo pics! :luv2 I'm really liking the album cover, title & tracklist, too. :) Super excited for this release! Welcome back, Hikki! :heart

Wow! Loving those pictures!:inlove
She does look very much like her mother here. I'm sure at least one track will be about her mother's death.
I'm glad to see Utada on the cover of her releases again and new pictures of her. I hope to see her star in a new music video too.:yes

I hope this album will sound Ethereal and Haunting.

I love the pictures!

And I don't mind that the titles are in Japanese. If she's returning to her roots, this would be an interesting album!

I'm actually really taken back by the quality of the pictures. It feels kind of dream-like.

I'm very excited for the album!

I prefer the promo picture than the actual cover...

she looks sexy..hardly got this vibe from Hikki...so maybe she want to changes her image for a little bit.

The cover is the best she's ever had. The vibe is so strong! I'm amazed and shocked. How can you not be happy with this?

^^She was pretty sexy back in... 2000 - 2001. Wait & See pv, CYKAS MSta performance, etc ;). But I think she's has a maturer feminine vibe this time.

True. HS's text is more stylish than this one lol :D.

The cover and her new profile photos were shot by famous French photographer Julien Mignot ...

I really love his work ...

https://www.instagram.com/julien_mignot/

With this context, I have come to appreciate the cover. NOW GIVE ME THE MUSIC

Well, Manatsu no Tooriame and Hanataba no Kimi Ni are about that.

awesome! Ehm .. ok! Where are the previews? :-)

love everything!

i thought of her mother instantly too.
the photographer's work is really atmospheric, moody, very something Hikki would seem to be drawn too. oh damn. the booklet could be stunning too. (* O*)
can't wait for everything else to come!!!

YES @ THAT COVER
YES @ THE TITLE
YES @ THOSE PROMO PICS

I am actually speechless omfg

lol the cover looks positively fanmade. but who cares? she could put a pile of turd on the cover and i'd still buy it. excited for the new music!

What's with that blurry cover? doesn't the photographer know how to take sharp photos?

Isn't that a pre-designed Photoshop filter?

Why are all titles on japanese?

Why are the promo shoots so much better than the cover?

So many questions, such a downgrade from the glorious ULTRA BLUE...

^The blurriness might have to do with the theme of the album. The title means ghost, and she made herself like her mother in the cover, so that could be the reason.

And I really think the titles in Japanese do not downgrade the album at all...

The titles being all in Japanese "might" probably have something to do with the album being presumably a tribute to her mom who was an enka singer. It might sound senseless but I hava a strong feeling about this.

And yeah, its too early to say that this album is such a downgrade from Ultra Blue. Are you saying this cover-wise?

I love everything about the new album, and the whole theory about it represent the memories of her mother. It's so neat and atmospheric, I love those kind of stuffs.

I can't wait to hear the new tracks!

What's bad about japanese titles? There are translations and romanizations all over the internet already and if that isn't enough learn japanese...

:shakehead

To be honest I never was impressed by a Hikki cover before, but this one looks really great! And I love that she's using Japanese titles. It's such a great language, it's a shame so many artists use English for titles 90% of the time.

Definitely agree.

I like the promo pics better than the pic used for the cover, but still liking everything so far. So excited!

I'm sorry did we forget that she's a Japanese Singer?
I have no idea why people are complaining about the Japanese tittles.

The cover is horrible but the promo pictures are amazing, and she looks stunning.

The cover is fantastic; I like that it's different and evokes more of a feeling than her other covers. It's not something I've ever really seen before - a blurred image. And it works with the mysterious feel and eerieness of it all.

And I think people are disappointed in the titles being Japanese cause having English titles on Japanese tracks makes them sound a bit more ominous. There's like a mystery and dual communication going on between what the artist is conveying and the summary of the track.

^Seriously this cover is one of her worst along with Easy Breezy and First Love

Concept-wise.

I feel sorry for what happened to her mother but it's just that this concept doesn't appeal to me at all.

I think the cover is stunning, I actually like that it isn't textless, however, not so sure about the font choice, it doesn't bother me tho. I love the fact that there are not English titles and the alleged concept of the album is also very interesting and fitting of the cover. Overall, I'm very excited for this release :D

That's your opinion. The way you put it sounds like it's a fact. And it's really not.

She's gourgeous in all her pics. I wonder what direction her next PV will take.

Seriously, it makes no sense to me.

Idk, Japanese titles are capable of doing the same as well. I actually get quite excited when I'm looking at a tracklist in general and see that one song or two written in kanji. For me, because it's so much more common for Japanese artists to title songs in English, I always feel like there's a specific reason for and meaning behind abstaining from English. So seeing Utada's entire tracklist in Japanese is a bit unconventional (for mainstream pop artists that I know at least) and gives me good vibes.

Never been a fan of her but I do agree that the whole release seems to be a tribute for her late mother. And I love that so much about her that I'm going to buy that album. Fan or not but this needs support.

And I love the Japanese titles. There should be more of them in the J-pop world.

I could see how japanese titles could be inconvenient if you can't read or understand japanese but I don't think it is wrong of her to do that.:confused
This is japanese music afterall. It's the music that is important anyway.
But it is somewhat strange that for her entire career almost every song has had an english title but suddenly this whole album is all in japanese. But it isn't a big deal. At least for me it isn't.

There was just one (or maybe two?) complaining, but it was a strong complaint so it feels like there are many people complaining lol :P.
Those Japanese titles actually make the album more cohesive, and some of them excite me so much, especially 荒野の狼, 忘却, and 人生最高の日.

You don't have to listen, I can understand why it's not a concept for everybody, but it's her way. Besides, it's either this or she stays retired so...

I also don't like the cover.
It looks like the photographer wasn't able to make a proper pic, so they just took a blurred one. I get the concept, but this looks unprofessional.
The promo pics are nice.

I'm just a very causal listener, so I'm interestedb how I will like the new album.

I'm wondering if the album will be more ballad driven.

^I hope not :< based on what we have so far, I'm hoping for something along the lines of Deep River / ULTRA BLUE

tbh Sakura Nagashi and Manatsu no Tooriame are so flawless I wouldn't even be mad if it was a ballad fest. Utada's melodies are strong and her arrangers know how to tug at the heartstrings. BRING ON THE TEARS UTADA

I thought she arranged her own music?

MTE. I'm also super fond of Hanataba wo Kimi ni. I have a feeling she'll throw in an experimental track or two at least. I think the cover is perfect for a kind of haphazard contrast in genres. Anything is possible, really.

I love the cover, it seems ethereal. It would be even better without the text though

What the heck? This is her worst cover, like ever. Even the promo pics are better :shakehead:irked

but I love this :love:luv2

This one is actually my favorite pic from this era so far.

It looks like the album is going to be an SHM-CD as well.:yes
That's interesting. I don't think I have heard an album in the format.:think
Now I am looking forward to this even more.

Oh yeah lol I totally forgot. Makes it even more amazing fuck me up Utada girl

"Fuck me up Utada girl" lmao :roflmao

Damn, I love how messy people get when they expect Utada to be some random j-idol and she is Utada instead xD

I like the cover the way it is. At least she expresses something with it.

thats a pretty rude comment tbqh The photographer has a nice range of works - all very simple but incredible stunning shots. if so, it is probably Utada who wanted it this way.

People believe only magazine shots are valid as "professional photos". There's no range.

Here it goes, people getting butthurt and the album hasn't been even released yet....