It's also the sense that Namie is not of her own making. She goes in, sings some songs that have been chosen for her, and goes and promotes them. For Namie, I just get such a strong sense that music is her work...and then she goes home, and it's not like she's stressing over what to do next. She has a strong team around her that guides her every move. I'm not judging her -at all- for that, but that is basically everything that an idol is. She's not an artist, which is totally OK.
I like Fantome, but it's not very memorable for me (at least not yet). It's worlds ahead of her last two albums, which to me, were a departure in a direction I just wasn't really into. I wish there were a little more pop to this album, which I think would have made it more interesting. Like I said in another post -- this album feels like a very adult-contemporary version of Deep River to me.
|