[Zeke.]

Originally Posted by Akutenshi

I didn't realize what I said would spark this conversation.

First, people can express their feelings however they want. Nobody NEEDS to always say "in my opinion", because everybody should be cognizant enough to know we all state our opinions. It's redundant and unnecessary. As long as you aren't personally insulting anyone, it's okay to say something is bad, because that is your perspective, just like how people say something is good is theirs.

Second, it is completely okay to not blindly praise everything your favorite artist does. I can't remember which user stated it, but yes, a majority (notice I said majority, not all) of the ballads they stated sound basically the same. The same generic wind chimes, the same synthetic strings, the same piano, all of it. And if people love that, great! I do not. And my opinion as a fan is just as valid and warranted as the ones who love every ballad she does, but don't like when she experiments outside of her "Ayu" sound (Party Queen, Colours for example - I remember the outrage and criticisms of long time fans when those came out for not being "true" to herself, while I myself loved and found them refreshing).

I love a great many of her ballads, but they don't all have to be arranged the same way. You Are The One is a great example of a recent one that does add some different, unique flair. I wish she'd do that more. As for Pray For You, I wish she'd have more horns and flutes implemented. As I said in my comment, it was a nice change.

You can have a style or sound and not beat it to death.

X1000 on having to tack “in my opinion” onto everything. People used to say that so often to me that I ended up putting “IN MY OPINION.” into my signature so it was appended to literally everything I posted. Lol.