|
I still think she should make "Kuma-chang Records" as her own label.
|
I dunno if that works in Japan as well... but sometimes an artist can make a deal with a music company. The artist can make the album him/herself, then let the company to sell it. In the end the copyright of the songs still belongs to the artist. That could be a good idea for hikki :P.
|
*4 *,976,790 **2,473 HEART STATION / 宇多田ヒカル 08/03/19
|
Oh, cheers for the update, riozz! Keep buying HEART STATION, peoples, haha!
|
Ugh, my faith in HS selling a million...is gone. Namie......:weep I hope it can get to at least 990k. I feel HS has been cheated out a million, butI think Utada's english album will sell a million. She seriously need to release the single soon. :heart
Astn....wut happened to u making the first post pretty? :grumpy |
I'm going to be so upset if BEST FICTION becomes the best selling female album of the year. Not only does its track list leave much to be desired, it's a compilation album based more on Namie's rising popularity than music. HEART STATION took years, and is better overall (in my opinion).
|
^Utada always owns in the charts, she's already doing absolutely amazingly for a craptastic album, don't be selfish. Namie's gone down in flames and risen so many times, I think she deserves it more than Hikki.
|
Quote:
|
^True. True. It's just that it looks like HS is nearing it's chartlife. =/ Imo, it looks like a slim chance of it getting to a million.
Quote:
True but its all of Namie's hits to Hikki's 5 hits. It's only logical that she would do well. Hikki should've released HS last year if she wanted to have similar success like BF. Well, its my theory. lol Hikki has achieved alot this year and last year. It hurts a little inside that Namie will prolly pass Hikki but when boils down to it, we can't hate her (well, I can't because I luff Namie) for being on the top of her game. Quote:
|
I feel ok if namie gets the best female selling this year as well. Right now BF is a best album and HS is a studio album, so I don't find they conflict with each other. Also, most importantly, I really really wanna see a female artist smashing the boybands into pieces this year. It is time to let female artists to top the chart. I definitely dun wanna see exile getting year no. 1. Looking at Namie's current index she may have chance to knock exile down. It may be sad to see hikki falling down from top 5, but at least HS is praised by the critics this time. Also, it sells better than her last album.
There are still about 3 and a half months before the end of the oricon year, so I think HS has still a chance to hit a million copies before that :). |
I'm just saying, I'd be happier of someone like Namie, who hasn't sold this well in a long time, had some time in the sun rather than Hikki, who always sells extremely well. Plus, Heart Station wasn't all that good an album. It was like... a step in the wrong direction imo.
Also, I don't know why I'm being called a black and white bear, but I think I'm being mistaken for someone else... |
Quote:
|
Quote:
I also don't see how BEST FICTION and HEART STATION can even be compared. Of course a best album is going to do extremely well. Hikki has still proven that she is the queen by being consistent and ALWAYS ending up near the top of the yearly album charts. :yes Namie's had YEARS of failure, who cares if she has a best album do better than HEART STATION? If you want to do a real comparison, compare PLAY to ULTRA BLUE or HEART STATION, and compare BEST FICTION to Singles Collection Vol. 1. Quote:
|
Nice first post. :) It's definitely eye-catching.
I don't think BEST FICTION will have a huge impact on HEART STATION's sales, but it's definitely stealing some spotlight away. HEART STATION's going to have to move several thousand copies per month, and with various compilation albums popping up (Namie Amuro, EXILE, etc.) it's difficult to say for sure that it can. I for one really love HEART STATION and believe it deserves higher sales than BEST FICTION, but that's just my opinion. I always get confused by the "Panda" references. Is GRACE a "Panda" too? |
:clapclap :clapclap :clapclap :clapclap :clapclap :clapclap
Austin, that is like the best first post eva. It's hotness! :laugh Omg! I luv it so much. Thankies austin. :shughug |
Why is everyone calling me Panda o_o...? I'm so confused ;_;
Also, like the first post, I totally didn't expect it when you said "pretty" but wow that's the prettiest first post in an official thread that I've seen XP |
Quote:
|
woah! the first post is awesome~all the hikki banners!! prettiest first post ever!
|
Quote:
:laugh i thought they were referring to Melon Panda, haha. |
I love your first post Astn, you made the thread opening great :D
|
I just called her that because Luv did :lmfao
|
Namie and Hikki aren't even making the same kind of music XD I'm just saying I'd rather Namie get some spotlight since she hasn't had it in a long time and Hikki's been standing in a spotlight since Automatic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnhsItvDWhI Also: GRACE is male just fyi >.>... |
^I did it because I was too lazy to spell his whole name and plus I like Pandas. :grumpy
|
Quote:
Also I forgot how much I loved that parody :lmfao |
^I love that guy's parodies
Namie deserves it because she has been falling for so long. Don't get me wrong, I actually like Hikki more than I like Namie, but I think Namie deserves some time in the sun. |
Quote:
|
I believe both HS and BF will hit the million mark, even though people aren't buying albums as much as 5 o 10 years ago...
I'll be buying both albums online, and my copies will count in Oricon lol |
@Triple D:roflmao
OMG, BUUUUURN! :laugh Kuu is so out. Okay, I'm going to stop right there. Seriously tho, I just brought Best Fiction. I can't wait to get my Namie poster. :heart |
Nice first post ^.^
I think Hikki and Namie both will hit the million mark, and I'll be happy when they do. So long as both of them hit it, I'm all good with it. Both of them deserve it! |
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
But, yeah, basically, if two albums by artists I love would sell more than one million copies in one Oricon year, that would be just amazing. <3 |
Quote:
Quote:
|
It's like, 2008 so far times 2. Yeah, and 838k - #10, whereas right now that'd get you to about #5 or #6.
|
Quote:
|
I agree with Grace on this subject.
Not only was HEART STATION mediocre compared to her past albums, Utada ALWAYS sells well, as opposed to Namie who is making quality music and was selling like crap for a ridiculously long time. But either way, HEART STATION still sold a ton |
Quote:
There is a reason why HEART STATION has done better than ULTRA BLUE, and there's a reason why Namie's music did crappy. HEART STATION is beautiful and from the heart, but it is simple and accessible for all people. Obviously Japan agrees and prefer that style. I don't see how anyone can say "Beautiful World" or "Stay Gold" are mediocre. |
LOL we can again divide hikki fans into UB lover and HS lover :P. Those who love UB hates HS, and vice versa. There aren't many fans who love both albums at the same time.
Me for example.. I dun really like UB, but I think HS is splendid. It's just personal again. Anywayz, I really dunno how Namie could be dragged into this... I'm not a huge fan of her, but I gotta say I respect Namie because she is one of those true artists in Japan. Also, how many female artists can survive and back to the top after a few years of being in the bottom (in her case, more than a few years)?? Although I dun like all her songs, I feel her heart towards the music. So yeah... I feel happy for Namie getting really good sales now... Besides, HS has been in spotlight between March and early June, so I dun see BF has any threat to HS at all. |
for me I actually like both HS & UB :laugh
it's just like that I'm surprised HS sells even better than UB in the long run . It still stummed me til now |
I like HEART STATION a lot more than ULTRA BLUE. I used to despise ULTRA BLUE, but HEART STATION encouraged me to give ULTRA BLUE another chance, and while I don't like it quite as much as her other albums, it has its gems.
I'm not sure I can completely and accurately describe why I prefer HEART STATION obtain higher sales than BEST FICTION, but I'll give it a shot. HEART STATION was a long drawn-out effort, and while it's not everyone's cup of tea, Utada took her time to create the kind of sound she was looking for. While Namie undoubtedly also works hard, BEST FICTION seemed more like an attempt to capitalize on her newfound popularity post-60s70s80s. Had Namie come out with a new studio album or something a little more musically creative, I'd have no problems with whatever her sales became. I just wish it were something other than BEST FICTION (which ought to have included SPEED STAR and Violet Sauce, but that's another topic). |
I love both HS and UB, though I tend to lean a little more toward UB. And I'm not too surprised that HS is selling more. I can see where Melon Panda is getting at with the whole BEST/original album thing. I'm ecstatic about Namie's success, and she does deserve it so it doesn't really bother me.
|
UB is the crown. UB is my absolute favorite Hikki album, and one of my favorite albums in general. Heart Station, on the other hand, is like something she crapped out >.>... Seriously, it sounds like one song cut into parts, there isn't a lot of variety. UB had a distinction between tracks, something that made them all different and special. I'm surprised it sold so much, it really wasn't good enough too. Japan has always have a strange taste in music...
I just feel that, with Heart Station, she took a GIGANTIC leap in the WRONG direction. It seems like she was trying to please the Japanese public that she alienated with the style of UB. Before, she seemed to be going her own way not giving a crap about what people thought because they learned to like her music, she didn't make music geared for them to like. HS, on the other hand, feels like it was geared for Japan to like and not for Japan to grow to like. It's a bad direction, the only song I thought was remotely close to where she used to be was Kiss & Cry, that was a more Hikki song, everything else was pretty much the same sounds. I don't even listen to HS at all anymore, I stick with UB and prior. |
^I really feel like there's a reason that HEART STATION has outsold ULTRA BLUE. The quality of the music is so much higher on HS and it's a very consistent disc.
ULTRA BLUE was too all over the place for me and a lot of the music was kind of a mess (sorry, but "Passion" was a nice try, but poorly executed). I'm glad Hikki didn't keep going with the self-indulgence, because if she continued that super artistic thing she had with UB I probably wouldn't been able to really get into her next album. HEART STATION doesn't require any skipping around for me, the only song I don't really like that much is "Celebrate." It's a return to form after UB, IMO, and I think Japan agrees :yes |
I doubt Japan's taste in anything seriously, after seeing what Japan creates...
God damn it Japan creates the weirdest ****. Anyway, I'd HATE for her to continue with the Heart Station style, like hate to the point of stopping listening to new things she puts out. |
^ Europeans take the cake with making weird **** for me. omg especially those random eastern European countries..the music that comes from there is wild.
I LOVE UB THO. BLUE is so good :luv2 idk why alot of people don't like it. |
^...You don't know Japan that well do you? Japan is the KING of f'd up ****. I don't trust their tastes because of it D:
UB>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>HS Yes. It's true, stop denying it. |
"Beautiful World" is awesome, that's the best track for me.
But I think "Stay Gold" is just ok, as with "HEART STATION". "Prisoner of Love" is bleh and so is "Flavor of Life". The best tracks, I think, are "TAKE 5", "Beautiful World", and "Fight the Blues". I think all the other songs are either just ok or mediocre. Mediocre: Kiss & Cry Flavor of Life Prisoner of Love her older stuff was better. FINAL DISTANCE, anyone? |
^ me too , I also like BLUE as well
but at least I suppose at the end of the day , it's good to know that Utada still has that selling power going on in here , album wise after being in the business for so long cos I know not everyone's able to do that |
Actually, Kiss & Cry is one of the few tracks on Heart Station I enjoyed ._....
I personally found that I thought I was going to love Beautiful World when previews first surfaced of the chorus. Then the full version came out, and the verses made me stop and go "...Hikki, you could have done so much better..." |
Again Grace, it's personal taste. I dun doubt you find UB million times better than HS. Like I said, UB is quite distinctive in hikki's discography. It is unique in complexity and it's not mainstream at all. However, for me hikki has making this album too complicated that it didn't really suit my taste at all. The songs quality overall is better than Distance (IMO Distance is her worst album.. that's what I call "pleasing the public" album), but it's quite difficult to get into it. (Let's say Kairo... I do agree that this song should be very unique, but somehow it doesn't attract me at all).
For HS... I dun really think hikki's tryin' to be please the general public. More likely I feel like she has stepped out from her melancholy (I'm not saying she has depression.. but she wasn't that super happy in her life back in UB I think). I think she wants to make a happier album, so she chose to make something soother than UB. If we compare UB and HS, they both use similar arrangements (sync instruments all over the place), but HS is less complicated than UB. This is one of the reasons I prefer this album more. While the lyrical contents are still beautifully written, the mood is softer and I feel calm when I listen to this album. That's is how I see between UB and HS. I admit that the single songs in UB are much better in taste, but the album songs had too much thoughts going thru. HS's single songs are weaker in terms of music uniqueness, but in overall the album flows much better. I still think DEEP RIVER is her best album. Unique singles, wisdom thoughts, album flow... It's like she combined the songs to tell a story.. |
Quote:
I really liked the cover and promo images for UB. the booklet pictures are :heart. |
Quote:
For me I also liked UB more than HS. UB has really strong songs (like Passion, Be My Last, kairo, This Is Love, COLORS, Keep Tryin' etc.) It's a really complicated album and that's what make is so special and easy to like for me. I loved it that hikki went the complicated way and was a bit sad that she didn't get it into HS. HS is so public friendly that after the first listen omgness to this album I wasn't listening to most of it afterwards. From time to time I like listening to one of the songs but except for the good single songs I don't really listen to the album tracks (and HS/SG songs). I don't know what happened but maybe because it's too public friendly the ethereal pop style in just became really generic. If it pops up in shuffle (when I shuffle or not selecting songs) I won't pull next but I'm not paying attension to the song. I think bringing namie here is very ridiculous and comparing BF and HS is more ridiculous. BF has songs on it and quality songs so if namie succeed with it it's really good for her even if it's a compilation (though I thought that there are some lack of songs but it doesn't matter). |
Quote:
|
^OMG you guys.....total war between UB and HS....seriously both albums were great in their own way. Ultra Blue was the beginning and had Utada being experimental in it which was produced a nice album overall, though a few songs we're just weird, mainly "Nichiyou no Asa" plus it had some "Old" songs I mean "COLORS" and "Dareka" were pretty much a while back before the album. I'll agree though that they could have placed the songs better but it was still nice album
HEART STATION, however was her knowing the ethereal sounds and working with it. Even though the album should have added more since it was more or less mainly singles. Each single did bring a new sound from her. Even "Boku wa Kuma" was something we never knew she'd do, and she spoke French ^_^ "Niji-iro BASU" was a great song, it felt like it summed up all her works. R&B beats from the start to the ethereal sounds to what becomes one at the end, I think it's her best song. "Celebrate" was also a needed track because it's like a "Keep Tryin" track, it's there to make you happy since most of HS was mentally sad. If there's anything that I want to see. I want her lyrics to be more from Exodus's point of view than anything. I love Exodus and just how each song had a purpose to it, especially "Hotel Lobby's" talk about prostitution. Now why bring Namie to the mix, seriously.... Either way I was disappointed by the album and I question why didn't they put her biggest songs IMO on there "Violet Sauce", "Come", "The SPEED STAR"...I mean seriously, if you're gonna have an album put the biggest tracks on there too. |
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
Whenever I look at the DEEP RIVER cover, I feel like she is the ancient goddess :P. LOL
|
I love how everyone suddenly knows exactly what Japan likes.
Yeah and ULTRA BLUE and HEART STATION aren't even that far from each other. They're quite similar, in my opinion. As for quality, again, they're really similar. They both have their perks and flaws. I'm kind of inching towards HEART STATION, but even if I am, ULTRA BLUE is right next to it. D: |
^ maybe she could mix the two, call it "ULTRA STATION, or "Blue Heart"
|
^ LOL!!! That's so funny! But yeah, I guess I'm one of those who loved both UB and HS! But to be honest I think I'll love everything she does... I swear listening to 'Eclipse' makes me go to sleep so easily! I agree that Deep River is her best album yet! And I also find it... insane to be comparing BF to HS!
|
DEEP RIVER was the best for me too, but HS is my 2nd favorite. i'm not even tired of them yet, lol.
|
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
|
I really like HEART STATION and ULTRA BLUE, but DEEP RIVER is my favorite Hikki album. :)
|
HEART STATION's definitely got consistency. The whole album flows together the way an album ought to, but each track shines in a different way. I remember Utada once talking about the album in an interview. She said something like, "It wasn't that I was simplifying the music, but growing musically." I can't remember the exact words.
I feel like DEEP RIVER was her most mainstream album - First Love and DISTANCE were R&B-flavored, and ULTRA BLUE and HEART STATION were ethereal/synth-styled. My favorite album of hers would be HEART STATION, simply because I loved it the moment I started listening to it as an album. Before the album came out, I was sure I'd hate HEART STATION because the singles didn't appeal to me very much. They were, as many have said, boring; they just didn't stand out on their own. When I began listening to the whole album on my iPod, starting from Fight The Blues, something just clicked. I can definitely understand why some listeners despise the album, because I once felt the same way, but after listening to the album as a whole, my opinion completely changed. (That sounded corny and way too mushy. It wasn't meant to, though.) |
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
|
Quote:
But Deep River is by far the best imo |
Deep River is the only album I can stomach all the way through. For the most part, I don't really care for her music.
|
^Because it's Japan's taste :3. My opinion of it is that it's a pile of crap. I adore her first four albums, I love every track on Distance and DEEP RIVER, and I love most of First Love(though, I haven't listened to it in a long time), and an EXODUS is okay too. I just don't like Heart Station. Separately, the songs are fine, but together, I just don't like it.
|
to be completely honest, i've known of utada since 2003/2004 and i only ever listed to these albums: ULTRA BLUE, Exodus, DEEP RIVER, & HEART STATION. :weep but i've heard all of her singles. either way i like the music utada puts out, and it's really far from being bad music to me. maybe i'm just an easy and casual listener. if i like a song, i like the song. i don't really try to find bad things about it. as long as it sounds good, i like it. :P
:dead2 *will leave thread now...* |
Because I'm not a fan. I only listen to her music when I find something that appeals to me, which is usually very sporadic in intervals.
|
POL sounds like FOL~episode II~, and Boku wa Kuma sounds like all the other tracks.
|
i really don't think POL sounds anything like FOL (ballad). honestly. :no POL sounds more dramatic while FOL sounds more..calmer? and slower.
|
Quote:
|
POL sounds like FOL?..lol just noticed it's POL and FOL, i think they like two different songs, i mean...they're kind of ballady, but they have two different styles to them~
|
Quote:
|
was that comment even necessary Haruka? =/ Hikki's music is the best **** that you'll ever hear and still luv for many more years. I see you'll still luv and play Simple and Clean/Hikari/all the gawddamn UB songs. >_>
As for her albums, I never remembered this many folks hate'n HS. >_> Seriously, I can't. HS is one the hottest album this year and just because she ain't 30 and sayin' garbage like, "Poppin' my body or coochie or wuteva that hell I should pop." in her songs just to young folks to like her stuff doesn't make the album bad. :rolleyes HS does have a amazing flow and although I think Fight the Blues wasn't a great opener for the album, it still connected well with the rest of the album. I really can't say much for BF since it's a best album but I do think she should have put TSS and VS on there and gotten rid of her most horrible songs ever created (WMWM/CSCEIS). :rolleyes @Grace: Dude! Seriously! Namie's stuff is good but it ain't hot ****. The only thing that was hot from her was 60s70s80s. =/ You see that she just created to garbage songs that had craptastic PVs. O= Seriously, I hadn't been that disappointed in her since she released BDC. How that song ended up being her "comeback" single is beyond me?! O= |
Everyone has a different perspective on things. Not everyone has to feel it any ONE way.
|
and listening to POL and FOL, you get two different feelings
FOL, well for me i feel really sad but for POL, i feel the courage to keep fighting, something like that and listening to HS, i think it's the greatest album of 2008! one little album packed with so many different styles, is really amazing! |
Quote:
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
i was kinda disappointed with the songs on BF, i never heard namie's past song..but basically, mostly the songs were just fast,upbeat, and i feel like listening to the same song over and over again~ i mean it's ok for a fast,upbeat songs, but it's a best of album...does that mean namie have no ballads! only like 2 on the whole album
at least with hikki, she gives variety |
Ah-uh.. I feel like hardcore hikki fans vs (hardcore?) xxx fans again.. Except this time it is not ayu, not kuu, but namie. :P
As for the HS debates... Well it's not always that you will love every single piece of music from your top idols. Grace could love... or like each song on HS, but when it grouped together he might find they're similar or whatsoever. This could be a turn off factor for him and he probly considered this as a crap. Nothing major. It's really about personal taste. And DDD could think that HS was extremely good because he found out that the songs there were different from each other, yet the flow so well.. So their opinions are really the opposite and I dun see there's a way to convert each other. Oh well I think it's OK to express what you feel about particular album (or even a piece of music). After all it's freedom of speech. But just keep the heat down a bit would be better. I really feel like watching DDD vs. Grace for the whole page (when it's actually not, but you msgs stand out from the remainings LOL). And I dun really see Namie has anything to do with hikki. Like I said, I'm not Namie fan and I only like a couple of her songs. I do believe that she has her own magic (music wise) to attract people. @Luv: Yeah... Where are all the HS lovers? I remember there are half UB and half HS here... but it seems like many HS lovers are gone :P. |
^You deserve an internet =D
Personal preference, I can't stand Heart Station as a unit. I like the songs, I like the meaning behind it, but listening to it bores the hell out of me. Plus, I don't think the songs are anywhere near as good as her past songs. Meanwhile, I believe UB was perfection in an album. It's my opinion, and I'm going to share it, that's what "discussion" is, is it not? |
Yes, HS is much calmer than her other albums. I can't listen to the whole thing at once, I have to skip around or rearrange the track listing otherwise I get bored. But I still love all the songs, especially FTB, HS, and POL. They really resonate with me!
|
Quote:
|
Quote:
I'm going to jump on the same boat because I think Heart Station is my least favorite album in her discography. The songs on the album are too consistent and sound bland and boring because of how subtle they are. I don't hate it and I'll keep the mp3s on my Ipod, but I'm just going to state I don't enjoy it as much as her previous work. |
I have to agree about that HEART STATION isn't one of hikki's best albums.
I already explained why I don't like this album as a whole much and I really listen just to the single songs (excluding HEART STATION/Stay Gold) because the albums tracks sound really safe and generic. Something to satisfy the public and not complicated or less mainstream friendly like Deep River was (for me) and ULTRA BLUE which makes it boring and not so moving. Distance was also really public friendly but all of the songs had really different feeling from each other. I guess it might be just the ethereal pop doing. hikki really loves that style but I hope she can do some future songs a bit differently like she succeeded on DR and ULTRA BLUE. |
^Sadly, Hikki has abandoned us and went off with Kuma somewhere.....
|
she last blogged on august 1st.
|
^Ewwww. That pic is a hot mess. </3
|
^Hikki doesn't have time for a scanner, ok she is very busy playing teaparty with Kuma.
|
Strangely, that pic reminds me of Usagi from Sailor Moon. D:
@Triple D: Someone should lock that bear in a basement until Hikki finishes the album. Ugh, she's too distracted by him. >( |
Artists must always make time for scanning! Scanning is the only way it looks pretty on the computer! As an artist, I know this, yep yep.
|
^...you do know that Hikki's a lazy ass right? =/ (well, at times anyways.)
|
Quote:
She will probably cry that she wants her kuma back. |
Quote:
btw, HEART STATION is a great composition :D |
That picture that Hikki draw and colored is SO Japanese. :laugh Rather good, though, in my opinion. Well...decent. XD I wonder if someone modeled for it.
|
Actually, it reminded me more of that red haired girl in Evangelion. And I don't even watch the show >.>
|
I remember something about Saint Seiya, I think o_o; She likes that although I could be woefully out of date on that.
But yes, the picture definitely looks like Asuka from Eva, imo. |
Quote:
|
Hikki should draw herself for her next cover. It'd be awesome.
|
| All times are GMT +1. The time now is 12:33 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2026, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.