Thoughts on COUNTDOWN LIVE 2007-2008 Anniversary

[UHPlus]

Originally Posted by ayufan89

I know by posting this it would make everyone here hate me, but honestly her vocals were just OFF during Surreal and the last few songs before the encore. And it's quite obvious STEPyou is pre-recorded. In fact evolution also sound pre-recorded to me. The texture of the voice in Step you just sounds so different, if you compare it w Ladies Night. She might have pre-record it cos of the costume change after talkin' 2 myself and she would be breathless after all the running and changing to sing Step You properly.

yes only a true jpop listeners will not hate u ...

those who are blinded by ayumi will curse and deny u...

^ and do u know u can pre-record live version of the songs first ? u can sing it live beforehand+some altering and play it out during the concert and just follow it... it make u feel like it's live with breathing sounds but when compared to the 'real' raw vocal performances in other songs...u can tell the different...

i just dislike ayu fan like u...maybe even if ayumi convince in some interview that she's not singing live, fan like u will still deny it... (maybe ayumi is possessed? and said unreal stuffs?)

[alternarist]

why are we arguing about senseless issues? the concert is already over and done with. Hello? its 2008. the concert is in 2007.

UHPlus, if you are here to bash ayu, then why are you in an ayu forum with thousands of posts? instead wasting ur time arguing with others about a singer which u dont even like. I am sure u have more things to do. If u think that ayu only sounds good in DVD then so be it. what for convincing other fellow ayu fans that she sucks? it's just childish to make everybody think the way u do.

TH. To be frank, u shld not feel that u noe a lot of things and comment on every single person's reply on every single issue. if u didnt continue with UHPlus, i am sure the argument wouldnt have started. Others may have bad comments about ayu and thats their problem. We have no right to them what is right and what is wrong or whatsoever or to ask pple to shut up when bad comments are received.

Peace guys. Can we jus wait quietly for our ASIA TOUR 2007 DVD and also the concert of ASIA TOUR 2008?

[UHPlus]

Originally Posted by alternarist

then why are you in an ayu forum with thousands of posts?

err...cuz i'm a hard-core ayumi fans like the rest of u (or maybe more) before...

that's why i joined this forum + ayunite! in singapore ^_^

[alternarist]

Originally Posted by UHPlus

err...cuz i'm a hard-core ayumi fans like the rest of u (or maybe more) before...

that's why i joined this forum + ayunite! in singapore ^_^

so i presume u must be feeling quite dumb to like ayu before...

but thats BEFORE.. so now.........?

[salutcben]

Hi there. i see that it's the battle of the giants here. I don't want to take position, just write my thoughts about this concert, isn't it the title of the thread.?

To be Honest, i'm a huge fan of Ayu since 2004, and from her debut to 2005, i've seen her voice becoming more and more powerful and beautiful, LIVE i mean. But since fall 2006, it's like she's going down and down. And this year is the worst LIVE year i've heard from her. Every TV perf has been from hearable to awful.

I've one thought, you can tell me what you think about if you want, maybe it's stupid. Maybe it was in Ayu's mind her last year as an artist, and she has stopped her trainings ans stuff, i mean one year without any single, doesn't it look weird to you?? Only two singles this year, and right before Nagase break-up. I think this event made her realize that she doesn't have anything else than music from now on. So she came back to it, you just have to see the T2M TV perfs, she always looks tired and without any pleasure to be here.

So i think she continues doing music BECAUSE that's the only thing left in her life since Tomoya's not here anymore. And i think it's not the best reason to continue, like she wants to be busy, in order to not get depressed. I feel that something has been broken in her. That makes me feel sad.

By the way, for this CDL, i just can say that I found it absolutely boring, very flat, without any good moments, maybe only the untitled one, and i begin to wonder if any of you except UHPlus and others have good EARS, because most of the show was Off notes and hard to listen and watch, even with FAN-EYEs. I will definitely not buy this DVD even if i know that it will be a lot better vocaly, cause of editing. This show doesn't get me any interest anymore. And yes, it's obvious that the Step you part is pre-recorded, i've really heard the SAME one before.

and truehappinness, you're a so deaf and blind Ayu-fan, that it's funny and stupid in the same time.

[UHPlus]

Originally Posted by alternarist

so i presume u must be feeling quite dumb to like ayu before...

but thats BEFORE.. so now.........?

yes..i felt dumb why i was so crazy of ayumi before..maybe i found better....much much better ^_^

[Raleigh]

Originally Posted by Huaka

Yeah, no artist deserves such condescending crap such as this. BoA, Hikki, Namie? Please, they don't sing perfectly every time. I've heard a lot of cringe-worthy performances from all of them. You could say us Ayu fans are blinded but you're doing the exact same thing for your favorite singers, so I wouldn't say such hypocritical bs.

I second this. Seriously it's beyond annoying listening to people whine like this. I'm the first to agree that this concert didn't have the best vocals but everyone has bad days. CDL is usually a less professionally put concert than the usual Arena Tour so you cannot expect something top-notch.

Everyone has their share of their bad performances. Namie looks so bored while dancing and Hikki's performances are sometimes quite boring. I am aware of when the performances are not perfect but I accept it since many artists cannot even perform live (like Leah Dizon)

[alternarist]

Originally Posted by UHPlus

yes..i felt dumb why i was so crazy of ayumi before..maybe i found better....much much better ^_^

then pls leech on the better one instead of disturbing the peace and harmony AHS enjoyed for so long..

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

[Cys86]

Originally Posted by alternarist

then pls leech on the better one instead of disturbing the peace and harmony AHS enjoyed for so long..

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Well, UHPlus has his right about some people who treat Ayu as a God!!! Come on she is just a singer with a great talent to write lyrics and not such a great vocal talent as, for example, Mika Nakashima (that's my choice) Everything about Ayu was definetely better back in 2001, 2002, ... but now she has changed.

We need such people in the forum becouse I can't stand such constant comments as: "Ohh, Ayu is soooooooo cuuuuuuuuuuuuuute", "Ayu is lovely", "I love Ayu"

[kiseki89]

Well i have only seen 2 cdl and i have to say this year's vocals for some songs are not that good eg t2m, and surreal.

But then there are other songs like TW and STEP you that I think are pretty good. and I don't think they are pre-recorded - after all she did sing both songs pretty well [on my standards] on domoto kyoudai..

I'm surprised no one questions RAINBOW well the front part before the countdown, ... I think it's even better than TW...the back is a little out though

evolution is good but it's expectd... i thought it is an annual must sing song...

Hmmm Humming sounds very flat...

*PS: does anyone know if i can get a good version of fated's intro?

[Halla]

I could understand the critique towards ayu's vocals if she were to compared to someone like hitoto yo, chihiro onitsuka or hitomi shimatani. but to namie amuro of all people? puh-lease lol

I liked Namie's 2006 tour "BEST live style", but it's loud music over very prominent backing vocal track with namies thin & strained vocals on top. not exactly anything that great when it comes to singing. I did like the tour anyways tho.

I'm still dling the CDL myself.

[Kilyk]

I am downloading it now! I hope her vocals are good! :]

[FuNsTyLe]

From the 3-4 clips I've seen uploaded her, she sounded out of tune alot of the time. It was not good. My ALL was horrible. She was running around and singing loud at the same time, also singing out of tune for albout the whole song...it did not sound good. So I really didn't bother to watch the Rest. And ohh, Sotsugyou Shashin sounded aweful! Really bad, it was actually uncomfortable to listen to, cause everytime there was a high note, I worried she would not reach it. And she didnt.
Sorry Ayu, this was really bad... She has had lots of awesome performances, but this concert was way off.

[Raleigh]

Originally Posted by Cys86

Well, UHPlus has his right about some people who treat Ayu as a God!!! Come on she is just a singer with a great talent to write lyrics and not such a great vocal talent as, for example, Mika Nakashima (that's my choice) Everything about Ayu was definetely better back in 2001, 2002, ... but now she has changed.

We need such people in the forum becouse I can't stand such constant comments as: "Ohh, Ayu is soooooooo cuuuuuuuuuuuuuute", "Ayu is lovely", "I love Ayu"

Um.. that's your perception. A lot of people here don't treat Ayu as a "god" they just like her. Some people are oldtime fans and have grown out of it and are quite capable of having their own opinion. I think it's more like you guys are making a mountain out of a molehill by claiming that she was "better" in the past with the argument of her vocals on one specific event. Sorry but that doesn't make really sense.

Also if you can't stand people liking Ayu you're in the wrong forum mate. Most people come here because they love Ayu so you won't stand being around here much

[kiseki89]

Originally Posted by FuNsTyLe

From the 3-4 clips I've seen uploaded her, she sounded out of tune alot of the time. It was not good. My ALL was horrible. She was running around and singing loud at the same time, also singing out of tune for albout the whole song...it did not sound good. So I really didn't bother to watch the Rest. And ohh, Sotsugyou Shashin sounded aweful! Really bad, it was actually uncomfortable to listen to, cause everytime there was a high note, I worried she would not reach it. And she didnt.
Sorry Ayu, this was really bad... She has had lots of awesome performances, but this concert was way off.

I agree that MY ALL is not good, but that's the middle part - where her voice sounds like she's crying and singing at the same time... Er she's not, right? The part before and after the thanks is ok though

But i disagree with Sotsugyou Shashin - it's very nice.. I think that's the most perfect one, at least 98% of the notes are hit

[Isthan]

I think the concert was okay.

I really liked the performances of STEP you, Ladies Night and SURREAL. The costumes for those songs (tartan dress and red leather outfit) were great too! And Ayu looked amazing in every performance, that short hair is simply the best. The only costume I didn't like was the encore one... too big.

As for lip-syncing STEP you... hmm, I don't really know. It did sound much alike to Arena Tour's version but then again, I've never seen Ayu lip-synch before... Well, even if she did, it doesn't bother me that much. The performance was great, I really loved it.

As for vocals then... some were good, some were less good. But she was crying often (especially in untitled ~for her~ and MY ALL) so it's no wonder.

The concert as a whole, hmm... it's okay, as I mentioned before. It's not her best but not her worst. And I have high standards anyway, as I'm comparing everything to my two favs, AT05 and AT06 . The main issue was the vocals but those can be edited for the DVD, right?

[Luther10]

Originally Posted by UHPlus

err...cuz i'm a hard-core ayumi fans like the rest of u (or maybe more) before...

that's why i joined this forum + ayunite! in singapore ^_^

You said BEFORE, so what are you now?

Ayu was completely off tune in Surreal, that had to be a technical problem, may be it was her ear phone volume or something else. She couldn't hear the music and that's why she went off tune. Quieter songs she did much better, not counting the ones she cried heavily in of course.

[Luther10]

People really need to watch the complete concert from beginning to end before criticizing Ayu, and you'll see how much heart and effort she put into this.....

Some of you actually said you found the concert boring???, this is so unbelievable. I'm beyond words...

[Cys86]

Demure_Dusk, I'm just comparing old Ayu (till the MY STORY period) with the present one. And the difference is pretty big, anyway I'm oldtime Ayufan as well and I'm just trying to be objective in the matter of her present vocal. And the arguments about the vocal are not based on this one performance only.

Sorry for the last comments, maybe I overreacted a little bit, however on every forum there are AyuFanatics. BTW, I love Ayumi, but I do not idolize her, I just love her music and I amdire her hard work, like a true fan.

[Raleigh]

Originally Posted by Cys86

Demure_Dusk, I'm just comparing old Ayu (till the MY STORY period) with the present one. And the difference is pretty big, anyway I'm oldtime Ayufan as well and I'm just trying to be objective in the matter of her present vocal. And the arguments about the vocal are not based on this one performance only.

Sorry for the last comments, maybe I overreacted a little bit, however on every forum there are AyuFanatics. BTW, I love Ayumi, but I do not idolize her, I just love her music and I amdire her hard work, like a true fan.

Well guess her vocals have changed. I don't mind it much since I like it and was never huge on the vocals thing. On the other points yeah I have the same feelings as you. Sometimes I don't like her stuff too. Like I prefer her "darker" material. Hell I wasn't that satisfied of her 2007 and I sure hope next year will be better.