New album 'Colours' out July 2nd
 

Covers


Tracklist


Composers/arrangers


Behind the scenes shots from 10 day shoot in LA


Preorder links + bonuses

hell i'm so excited

I am so glad I haven't listened to the whole album yet because I'm one of the ones who misunderstood how many songs would be on the album :laugh

I'm definitely looking forward to the PVs too. I want the CD+Bluray.

oh, my god.... the dude, Darkchild...he did MJ's Xscape didn't he..... no wonder I love Angel so much, because i absolutelly love Xscape. Man I even have those songs one after an other on my playlist lol Man i am slow...lol But then i get a question... the arrangement for Xscape is so ritch and full of sounds, why didn't he do more with Angel? That song would have sounded even more amazing with strings and all that fancy jazz even with keeping the electro stuff in just changing up a bit on some parts to make it more ineteresting.

there's only 10 tracks? wow,lame.
still looking forward to it however.

Thanks for the thread, now I'm waiting for the covers :)

The tracks he did on MJ's "Invincible" were all like that as well. Lush, rich arrangements. Heavy bass.

"Angel" seems more minimalist than a lot of his work. I think he knew with Ayu to not go the "urban" route.

So the album really has leaked more than a month in advance.
I give props to Ayu for wanting to get out her material to the fans but a month leak is still... unsettling?

I'm still a bit excited to see the videos, covers, etc though

^^it is rather inetresting to see how producers actually can get into someones head and do what the actual artist would want exactly. Because Angel to me sounds very Ayu, while Xscape sounds totally Michael. I'm a bit mindblown here xD

Angel is a bit on a different path, so i guess that's why, but now when i think of/listen to it closelly it still does have tiny sounds that you cannot really hear clearly but they blend in very seamlesly into the overall arangement. *blinks*

It's probable that Angel/Terminal are sort of intentionally minimal for the most part. The songs feel like siblings.

I assume because of the showcase. So people could know the songs still a bit. Just in case not everyone wants to have the new songs presented at the showcase. I think the early leak + the fact that she's showing new songs before the release is the reason the showcase is more expensive.

Idk, that's then only way I can make sense of it because it's so unlike avex

__________

I really wanna know what that room with the mannequin is for now,

Only 10 tracks? It almost feels like a mini-album

Oh I didn't see the A interview :)

I totally want to see that interview. And the internal conflict

No interludes? This is a first

I've left a couple of songs too. I knew that these were the new songs but I was kind of hoping for a couple more songs and some interludes. I'm not disappointed as such because I knew that was unlikely but I just thought it would be cool- using the showcase to sort of do singles (the free cds) and then add a few more tracks to the album as a bonus/surprise.
I wonder if this will become the norm now?

I don't like it

I already did my own track list since we had all the songs but not the order I had to figure out the best way for me to place all these songs (plus other 2):

01. Feel the love
02. Merry-go-round
03. Lelio
04. Terminal
05. XOXO
06. My Way
07. What is forever love
08. Angel
09. NOW & 4EVA
10. Hello new me
11. Pray
12. You & Me

This album is the final proof that ayu does own the directions of her career at this point. Colours just has nothing to do with the usual Japanese Music Industry.

I thought there owould be some introlude of interlude LOL

I have the feeling that the Angel's PV is similar to Missing's one !
The sky, the flying scene ... :(

^Perhaps this time it's Ayu flying herself??

Woo, more random flailing men in the sky! LOL

It's interesting that there are no interludes/preludes? I've just now noticed that

I'm kind of depressed that we only have ten tracks. But there are no interludes which is new for her. All we need is the covers. This album basically leaked a whole month early.

the lack of interludes is sad, yes.

Especially when we finally have songs worth having cool interludes for.

I really wish Now & 4eva was getting a PV.

I just hope these PVs aren't like NaNaNa and Shake It.

long shot, but I'm hoping for dancing in xoxo and lelio.

Lelio, Terminal, NOW & 4EVA (wow... the title lol) and Pray are the gems of Colours!

So, she's really going for the 10 songs tracklist. I kinda hoped for a surprise song or something, but it's so nice like this too. Everything is new and fresh.
Now, she just needs to rock the covers!

With the album leaking one month early, I'm really afraid to find out how many copies she'll manage to sell. Like, really scared.

+1 really love Pray lately, I dunno why. It's refreshing among the other tracks on the album.

i need covers now. But i am scared, cuz her covers have been a photography heaven with graphic hell latelly xD i wish they'd for once get their shit together with this lol but they probably spent too much on producers to aford a graphic artist who spends 15 minutes more on this than before xD

The covers should be very colorful, like NEXT LEVEL.

Anything remotely like NEXT LEVEL is welcomed!

Dancing like nanana and lady dynamite or choreography like real me and inspire? I don't remember the last time she actually had a choreographed dance scene in a music video so I'm hoping for something awesome.

^like Real me/INSPIRE. These songs definitely call for it. But I won't get my hopes up.

^^ I really loved her choreographed dance scene in the Rule pv! it might not be the most elaborate choreography but I loved the fact that she was dancing at all! I'd love something like that again.

I want another sparkle. I really just want to see ayu in latex because that will give me life. She can do whatever dance/movements she did there, but better lol

Are you sure this is the final track list? 10 tracks seem odd for Ayu for a full album

These are the total track numbers for her non-mini studio albums including bonus and hidden tracks

A Song for XX: 16
LOVEppears: 17
Duty: 12
I am...: 16
RAINBOW: 16
MY STORY: 17
(miss)understood: 16
Secret:14
GUILTY: 14
NEXT LEVEL: 14
Rock 'n' Roll Circus: 15
Love Songs: 16
Party Queen: 14
Love again: 15
Colours: 10

Well damn. It's the shortest studio album she has, and it doesn't even have intros/outros/interludes. You're right, that is pretty odd.

Duty is the second shortest, even if you take out the intro, it still has one more song than Colours. I really really hope we get hidden tracks.

It's still a similar length to other albums like NL. It's just different that she doesn't have interludes, unlike the rest of her albums. I'd like to know why specifically, even though I have guesses. There's a lot I'd like to hear about this album direction though and the choices. Like in an interview.

Judging from the tour reports, XOXO will probably have choreography as will Lelio. Angel will probably focus on her aerial stunts.

From hayasaki:

I've listened to the album tracks & I absolutely love all of them. :love

I think it was a fantastic idea for ayu to work with these well known producers, because they've created such incredible songs! :) It's not easy to choose just one favorite song, lol. They're all just so amazing in their own ways! I'd have to say, though, my three most favorites would be: "Lelio", "XOXO", and "What is forever love". :) I think "Lelio" is such a cool song, and incredibly catchy! "XOXO" is so cute & fun to listen to. :heart "What is forever love" is absolutely lovely. I enjoy listening to "Terminal", "Angel" & "NOW & 4EVA" as well & I think they're really great songs, too. :D

I'm so happy that we have these songs, along with the other songs that we've already heard (which are amazing songs as well, but I'd say "Merry-go-round" is my most favorite. I don't think I'll ever get tired of listening to it, lol. I just love that song!) It all makes for such an incredible album. "Colours" is totally one of ayu's best albums & I'm very happy with it. :)

im gonna be leaving the PVs for the album :)

Honestly she can easily insert interludes to segment Hello new me, Pray, NOW & 4EVA lol.
And her naming of interludes are beautiful HAHA

Angel feels like the Marionette of the album. She's bringing the PV to the audience. I like that. haha

Ayu's gone to the quality over quantity direction this time IMO. I'm loving all tracks except maybe WTFL. I'd still give it a chance to grow on me.

I was just walking on the streets earlier while listening to Terminal. It felt like walking on runway for a fashion show. OMG

Really excited how the pvs will all turn out to be after looking at the photos~! :D

I KNOW RIGHT?! And when I listen to Lelio, I just want to dance and bob to the beat o gosh.. >< Infectious music

edit: just heard the album songs in order, I actually it flows pretty well! I think Pray and Hello new me should have swapped places hahha

If you take out the interludes NEXT LEVEL has also 10 songs, GUILTY has 10 and a half (because Mirror is not a full song), Duty, Secret and Party Queen have 11 each, R'n'C has 12, and so on...

If you look that way it's not much different than some of her other albums, just that this time she decided to not put interludes in it. I'm ok with it, I like the interludes of her albums, but I don't think we need interludes just to make the tracklist look bigger...

I'm one of those who doesn't care about interludes. Not at all.
So I'm really happy about an album without them.

I think in some cases interludes are indeed used to make the track list look bigger (NEXT LEVEL, GUILTY) but they can serve a really good purpose. See: RAINBOW and MY STORY. I would've loved an introduction track called Colours, 1-2 minutes long and "everlasting dream" x "Terminal" if that makes sense. A dreamy trance song then open with Feel the love. <33

Terminal and Angel sound like really long interludes to me LOL
and i think people just want more sounds so the album can be their money's worth (even if it means absolutely skipping the interludes one week after having the album)

Has anyone thought about the album's runtime yet?
Ayu's albums are usually bloated with 60-70 minutes worth of material.
This album is about 47 minutes, give or take. It's not that bad. I don't think the number of songs should be judged, but the runtime of the album.

And on the topic of interludes, maybe Ayu realized that most albums don't include interludes and she wants to advance musically, as much as I like her interludes.
I'm personally happy with the album. It's not bloated and half of it is non standard Ayu.

Hey, did anyone realize the album goes from happy to dark? Just an observation...

Feel the love / XOXO - super happy
What is forever love / Hello new me - happy
Pray / Angel - bittersweet
Terminal / Merry-go-round - dark
Lelio / NOW & 4EVA - darkest & loudest

I sooo wish she had a song called Colours now. She could get so creative with the lyrics, compare each color to an emotion or something. <3

Hey, I don't skip them! :P Though I realize I may be in a very small minority, I really enjoy Ayu's interludes and really think they fill out her albums very well in most cases. I still listen to interludes like "taskebab" and "The Judgement Day" just on their own, without having to play the album, "THE introduction" is one I occasionally play before rock songs come on (both Ayu and non-Ayu) and I always include interludes when I listen through a whole album.
So I am sad that there are no interludes for this album, but I still enjoy the album's full length songs enough so I will buy it if I have the money for it (which I'm not sure about yet).

The interludes is something I associate a lot with Ayu so it is kinda sad for there not to be any on the album. Although we get an album every year anyway so it won't be long until we get another album (with interludes hopefully!)

Can't wait to listen to Colours!

I'm one of those who love interludes to the point of putting them on playlists tbh~ :laugh

But oh well.. I guess she really wanted something different under every aspect from the very beginning.

New music genres with western producers.
New title for her "usual" arena tour, though this year is shorter - isn't it?
No staple songs like evolution, SURREAL and Boys & Girls - so far, at least.. :o
No encore.. :mischief
No interludes/intros for the new album. 10 tracks is the way. lol

It does look like a let's-make-it-all-different-this-time plan to me haha~ :laugh

^The tour has +- the same number of songs she usually performs...

I think they were referring to the number of dates.

Anyway, I seriously hope Ayu's covers are nothing like that mess her competition is releasing. Sure, they may be colorful, but Itano Tomomi.... get some help.

:yes

Oh, ok!^^ It's just that some people were saying the show itself seemed shorter!

Yeap, she is performing +- 1/3 of the dates she does usually

I find What is forever love pretty depressing !

As for colours lyrics, have a look at Key, I think there's something like that !

Taking off the interludes:

A Song for XX: 15
LOVEppears: 15
Duty: 11
I am...: 14
RAINBOW: 13
MY STORY: 14
(miss)understood: 14
Secret: 11
GUILTY: 10
NEXT LEVEL: 10
Rock 'n' Roll Circus: 12
Love Songs: 13
Party Queen: 11
Love again: 13
Colours: 10

I can't wait to see the covers!

LOVE again has THIRTEEN? Why does it feel like that album is much shorter. o_o

Shorter? That thing is so boring it sounds like it's 3x longer to me!

I adore Ayu's interludes and I almost never skip them (the only problem is that a lot of times their positions in the tracklist are questionable imo, lol), but as I said, I'm happy Colours doesn't have any. Brand new start and stuff.
I hope she keeps the pace and tries something new and risky with PVs and covers too. Kinda like she already did with Feel the love PV (even if I hated the result, lol).
And I can't wait to see what she has to say about this project in interviews! I want to know her point of view about all of this!

LOL yeah true. For me I guess it feels short because I can't remember all those boring tracks. xD

That's what I was gonna say XD

:roflmao

this is sooooo true, maybe she named this album colours because this album is different than any album she released so far (without interlude that she always had since the 1st album).

(For me) Love Again seems so short because I have up to press "Skip" for half of the songs on the album.

wow even Duty had 11 tracks. I always thought it was her shortest album

+1

It's really stupid that Memorial address was ever considered a mini-album and I never refer to it as such. The decision was based purely on marketing.

Before the CD format came along 7-11 track albums were the norm because that's all they could fit on one LP.

FIVE is a true mini-album.

omg the dislike for LOVE again... I loved all of that album except the interludes. *goes into hiding*

Love again is a great album. Not her best IMO. But she doesn't release awful albums. I think if love again were released in a different context, I would have more love, but with love songs already being a thing, I think the direction of it made people tired of it. Even if they may be decent songs.

I like it to, but I don't ever listen to it because I'm not feeling it lol.

^I don't think Love again is a bad album, just pretty boring... I find the concept and the exectution of the concept to be pretty amazing (IMO from LS to LA the concept was always on point), but the songs aren't that memorable for the most of it...

But Ayu's bad albums tend to be (way) above average pop albums anyway

Love again is really a boring album, not bad, but boring. It was the first one that I didn't care about to buy it :lol

I think it was pretty much because the best music were released before the album itself, so, the "original" songs for the album didn't justify the purchase.

-------------

Anyway, I'm dying to see a snippet of the PVs, they're apparently shaping to be good again since NEXT LEVEL ones.

I had no idea a new album was coming out. I'm glad I've not been aware of any of the individual tracks since they have all been released already. I'll get to listen to it as (mostly) new since I already heard Pray, Feel the Love, and Merry-Go-Round.

When I heard Angel and Teriminal, I thought Ayu's going to release her own "Ray of Light".

I like the majority of ayu's interludes, so I'm really sad rhere aren't any this time around. :/

i dig LOVE again. IT R.O.C.K.S.

I'd always pick Love Again over Colours. It simply doesn't do much for me...Too many avg. songs somehow.

I like all songs in LOVE again, and I love the ones from the mini-albums, but when you put everything together it gets kind of boring because of the similar styles, that's how I feel about that album...

I used her interludes to complement my playlist, acting as transitions

About LOVE again, I stopped listening until glasses, tracks after that are snooze fest

Hope she'll reveal covers on Wednesday

Don't hide you. I love this album too (and as you, I'm not fond of the interludes). ;)

Meh.. i'll just make my own introlude for the album. I'll use the Blasterjack remix, cut it after the build up and insert feel the lobe right after a lá CDL lol

A lot of Japanese fans on some board complain that the new album is too short. They also want to see A interview but the price of candle edition is too high and they don't need this candle at all.

^The candle is insane, like what's an expensive candle gonna do to you except to be burned and to be smelled (if it's aromatic) lol

Yeah I made things like that when I had the time like cutting the slow beginning of You & Me or the super long evolution intro for some cases of playlist.

Omg can you please post a download after you do that?

I didn't know the CDL intro was an official remix :laugh Nice idea, I'll do that too~

rickyspelbos already make the Feel the Love (CDL version) lol

http://www.ahsforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=120088

And it going smooth very well into the tracklist :3

THIS.IS.AWESOME haha!! Thanks for notifying and thanks to rickyspelbos who made this awesome mash!

I've added Tell All and My Way to my tracklist/playlist to make it longer.

wow no interludes finally! An album with pure awesome songs and nothing else!

I thought Lelio will be after Feel the love.. but its ok save the best for the best! :P

I like the album title too! Colours or Colors oh whatever. Reminded of RAINBOW.

Wow!

Seriously, no interludes? That's new! So excited for the packaging!!! Go Ayu!

There's a candle edition? Dear lord. :thud

I wonder if that candle edition will feature a different cover for each of its two versions..

Pretty sure it will.

Does anyone think the candle edition will be available in Taiwan?