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1 THE introduction 3/10
This is just bad and doesn't deserve a spot on an Ayu album. It doesn't at all work as an intro or get me excited to listen to the rest of the album. It definitely doesn't work as an intro to Microphone either.
2 Microphone 7/10
This song is pretty cool. It's definitely fun and energetic, a nice way to start the album. It could have been better at some parts, such as the verses which I find a little lackluster. Her vocals are also not very strong here. You can really hear her struggling in the chorus. Overall, I don't think this song is any better than any of her past rock songs.
3 count down 6/10
Awesome verses... and then we get to the chorus. It's really missing some oomph. I like this song though, even though it could have been much better.
4 Sunset ~LOVE is ALL~ 2/10
Uggggh, this is most definitely Ayu's second worst song ever. It's so boring and emotionally detached... And worst of all, it goes on forever and ever. The only reason I rate this above a 1 is because it's actual music instead of footsteps or something, and I suppose it is pretty even if it is pathetic. But Ayu, why did you have to put this at the beginning of the album? You're only on the fourth track and you already made me wanna stop listening and killed the flow. Oh wait, the flow was already dead as soon as the album started.
5 BALLAD 5/10
Incredibly boring but really, really pretty at the same time. Once again she sounds emotionally detached and sleepy. I thought I would hate having to listen to this back to back with Sunset, but I actually just feel so relieved that Sunset is over. ...And now I'm bored again.
6 Last Links 9/10
Finally, a song that really impresses me. And the sad thing is, even though this is a huge relief on a modern Ayu album, this would probably have been one of the weakest tracks on any of her past albums. :| Moving on, I do feel like she killed a part of this song with the way she sang it. But it's nice and simple without being totally boring, which is a really big accomplishment for Ayu recently.
7 montage 3/10
lol This does not flow at all. It sounds bad after Last Links and it sounds bad before Don't look back. You know what, this just sounds bad being on an Ayu album period. It's not bad music but it's not Ayu album interlude material. It's just unforgiveable imo because not only is it not thoroughly amazing but it doesn't help the flow either.
8 Don't look back 7/10
I thought I would hate this song because the preview sounded so ugly to me. But the full song is much better, even though it's basically a giant run-on chorus. The arrangement works very well. I like that the song overall is haunting without being obvious or trying too hard. It also doesn't feel like it's 10 minutes long, which is a huge plus nowadays.
9 Jump! 4/10
Musically I think this is the worst of the interludes, but I rate it above the other two because it actually flows well into Lady Dynamite, so it did half of its job.
10 Lady Dynamite 8/10
Catchy and fun. I thought I would hate it from the preview, but the full song somehow managed to save itself. The verses are really strong, but the chorus could be stronger. Overall one of the best tracks on the album.
11 Sexy little things 6/10
I am torn about this song. :| I enjoy everything but the chorus, but there are so many cons: I hate the chorus so much, each part of the song is messily attached, it sounds like it belongs on NEXT LEVEL which is my least favorite album.
12 Sunrise ~LOVE is ALL~ 6/10
This song had so much potential, but it was killed by its arrangement. It falls way short of its bubbly summer song predecessors, and it's also part of her worst single release ever.
13 meaning of Love 6/10
This song is pretty and gentle, reminiscent of rainy day. But it's also incredibly boring just like BALLAD and Sunset, so that makes three really boring ballads on one album. :| I do prefer this to the other two though.
14 You were... 7/10
This is a typical winter ballad for Ayu. It's nice, but there's nothing that makes it stand out compared to her past winter ballads. Not to mention, she struggles a lot in the chorus. It has redeeming parts though, like the very beginning and the very end. And it's practically the only ballad on this album that doesn't bore me to tears.
15 RED LINE ~for TA~ (album version) 8/10
I like RED LINE even though it's a clone of MY ALL/all her other past songs like this. MY ALL had killer verses, but it can't beat RED LINE imo. It's lovely and simple. I love the "la la la"s at the end, and I do like the added ending, even though it makes the song unnecessarily long.
Overall, this album just barely manages to beat NEXT LEVEL for me. Its strong point is that it has much stronger album tracks than NEXT LEVEL and is longer all around. But it has serious flaws. Like for example, the fact that Ayu seems to have lost all sense of what flows and what doesn't flow. Her albums used to have amazing flow, and now their flow is just pitiful. The interludes are horrible, and this is coming from someone who loved all but one of Ayu's interludes prior to this album. :| The album also boasts her most boring ballads to date and pretty much all of her weakest tracks ever. It's terribly inconsistent, because some of the songs are awful and some of them are really nice. I just don't think it works as an Ayu album. There's no consistency, flow, or cohesion. It sounds more like a compilation album or even a Kuu album.
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