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#41
28th March 2012, 04:47 AM
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After listening to it nonstop for a week, I can finally form an opinion of this album. I think this might be the worst album quality and conception wise since her first rap one.
Positives: Some songs are fresh, the album is pretty addicting. Negatives: the lack of A-single/album quality songs, cover, only PQ/NaNaNa/Shake It fits the title, bad pvs except RR, too much fillers, repetition from other songs? A-single quality: Return Road, Album quality (like Jewel, Microphone etc): NaNaNa, reminds me, How beautiful you are B-single quality (Aka album fillers): Party Queen, Shake it <3, call, letter , Tell me why Worse than fillers: all the interludes, Smoke Eyes Magic, the Next Love The problem might be that this is her most fillerific album to date. Only return road can be used as a-single and maybe NaNaNa because it's incredibly addicting. The other 2 album quality songs are pretty standard ayu quality that I expect from her. The B-sides are all pretty addicting, but they're kinda generic. The call and letter music composition are both copied & pasted from Last Links/Hope or Pain. Although those songs are great, the fact that they're using almost the identical composition/guitar rifts makes it really sad.  I think the major factor that blogged this album down are the worse than fillers category. The interludes do not add anything to this album; it’s not my cup of tea haha. I don’t feel the ayu-magic like when she did sparkle, don’t look back, B&D, GREEN (when ayu ventured into many genre of music before) etc and reinvented it in her own way in SEM & the NL. The results lead to a mish-mashed of genres like many other Ayu Albums, but this shouldn’t be the case since all these songs were recorded relatively at the same time. This album should have been a mini album with the fillers axed, or at least be renamed as “Filler Queen”. PS. I do enjoy this album a lot more than GUILTY, but I think GUILTY’s quality and cohesiveness blows this album's quality out of the water. V*Edit: Ops thanks, I meant cohesiveness not coherent lol! Yeah I think this album is easy to understand. Last edited by TeddyGrahams; 28th March 2012 at 05:04 AM. 
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#42
28th March 2012, 04:54 AM
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^I really don't get it... this one of her most coherent albums to date theme wise... maybe even her most coherent...
But ok...
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#44
28th March 2012, 05:35 AM
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but GUILTY had so many of those boring filler rock tracks...I was bored. Cohesive yes, but boring for me. Like Love Songs.
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#45
28th March 2012, 05:40 AM
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I just realized that one main thing I dislike about this album is titles.
If reminds me would have diffrent title, it would immaditalety felt like A-single track to me. I would call it Dark Room or sth more "heavier". NaNaNa and Shake it feels like random cute pop songs from young girlsband, I would call NaNaNa sth more "partier" and Shake it more partier and "rockier" cause it doesn't sound anything like light-party rock song... I would also change the next LOVE for sth more ironic, cause it's typical Ayu-filler/b-side track name, and the song itself could do an a-side for me 
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#46
28th March 2012, 05:50 AM
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#47
28th March 2012, 07:56 PM
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After listening to the album at least 30 times, I have to say it has grown on me considerably.
I don't like to listen to any song by itself, but rather as a whole. Sometimes I tell myself I don't even like the songs due to this fact, but I actually can't go through a day without listening to the album at least once. I can even stomach Eyes, Smoke, Magic and NaNaNa completely. I'm addicted to this album, in other words. I really feel the concept, which is multiple musical genres mixed into a theme unified by Ayu's lyrics (that's what I believe to be the concept). If there is a song that I can just listen to by itself, its HBYA. I love a cheesy, yet moving, ballad any day!
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#48
28th March 2012, 08:01 PM
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I still love this album...
after listening to it every time I go somewhere it still doesnt lose my interest. I have grown to like the next LOVE.. i do not love it, but there is just something so personal about it from ayumi... I still hate Eyes, Smoke, Magic... I skip it, dont even thing it is there half the time... I used give it another shot though... Shake it... I just dont really care for this song... I like and listen to it, but I just feel it is a poor man's rip off of NaNaNa... its sad, because I think its just because I listened to NaNaNa first... (this happened with evolution and UNITE! but after years I have grown to love both songs, so I think this will happen with NaNaNa and Shake It.)
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#49
28th March 2012, 08:09 PM
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Listened to the album quite a few times through now, and I still LOVE it.
Except for the next LOVE and Eyes, Smoke, Magic, which I always skip. But with the newness slowly fading, I definitely think this is a solid album.
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#50
29th March 2012, 05:49 PM
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Finally received my copy and listening to Tell me why at the moment. But so far, the songs are not as bad as I have thought based on many negative opinions... Guess I have 5 more songs till completion before I can really judge
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#51
29th March 2012, 06:07 PM
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I listen to the first 3 tracks very often... Return Road and hbya quite frequently too, Tell me why sometimes... and the rest , nah not really.
most disappointing album for me. But the first 3 tracks are just 
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#52
29th March 2012, 06:28 PM
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Received it yesterday, and have listened to the whole album nine times so far. I was really confused at first listen, i didn't know whether i was disappointed because i was expecting something better or idk, i felt this way till the next LOVE started, from the first seconds this song made me go all omgyesyesyesyes, and same for Eyes, Smoke, Magic. Seriously those two are perfect, and i don't even love jazz usually haha. In the end i thought people have been overreacting about Timmy singing in the songs, i love his rapping in NaNaNa (one of my fav songs btw omg this song is beyond perfection) and his chant in Return Road. So right after i listened to the album again and still didn't know what to think about it. And then i listened to it again and i suddenly realized its awesomeness. But there is still something ~bothering~ me, the reminds me~Return Road~Tell me why part makes me feel so depressed, i really love the songs but listening to them makes my chest hurt, they sound so harsh, bitter, painful, ew ): The only songs i feel like skipping are call and Letter, i like them but to me they are quite Last Links ~episode II~ (especially call) so yeah i have to be in a certain mood to really enjoy them. I like taskebab and a cup of tea even though they are not her best interludes, serenade in A minor is pretty boring in my opinion. I cried while watching how beautiful you are pv, which surely means a lot since i'm not the kind of person who cries often anymore. I hope i won't end up hating this album due to overplaying though~
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#53
29th March 2012, 07:13 PM
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My (not so wise and not so elaborated) opinion about the songs again, having played the album for 2 weeks (while having 9000+ plays of Return Road on last.fm OMG):
Party queen - GREAT opener aka LET'S DRINK *****ES. (actually, she's basically saying that: "We need a drink ★".) <- okay not but still.. So desperate yet so awesome! (I've to admit that I like the LIVE version more. It's nicer and there are more instruments; more lively. AND when ayu says 'kampai' for the second time it's almost like she's blasting someone with the same gun from Virgin Road PV. "kamPAAAAAAAAIII".) NaNaNa - Dark upbeat song I LOVE IT. Love ayu's first part, so full with attitude somehow (even though it's autotuned almost to the standards of western artists). So fierce, and then Timmy starts singing. SO ANTI CLIMATIC, want to scare cats now and bully them. Whatever. I will never introduce this song to my friends ever. (the PV is horrible except for the sexy ayu dancing during her first heavily autotuned part). edit; I also don't like that this song is directed to GORGEOUS BOIZ only. Guess GORGEOUS BEAUTIFUL girls and ugly boys and girls are left out this time! Sorry guys, ...( Shake It ♥ - Rough and upbeat again! It's almost like Party queen. But I'm not really digging this song, it's weird. This, you play when aliens come to abduct you. Oh- and the "I ♥ Girls" is confusing too. (And I really hear Timmy say "Turn me on" after the chorus during the, 'Shake It, Shake it LaLa' taskebab Like the intro! Oh I like the first 51 seconds, don't like the part after it. So stupid get it out of my face. call Oh my this is SO nice, but very boring. NEXT prease. Letter I like this song too, but it's so forgettable. Like when someone with a very complicated name introduces herself / himself to you, and you like forget their name in 7 seconds, but 30 times worse. reminds me - YES, THIS IS WHAT I WANT. Give me upbeat rock songs! Her vocals are PERFECT in this! Though the 'lalala's' at the end makes me wonder whether she had enough inspiration for the lyrics or not. BUT NONETHELESS, it's very good! Return Road - THIS IS MY FAVORITE SONG FROM THE WHOLE ALBUM! Everything is so epic, I ADORE the chorus! Then the soft part, which is awesome too. Then the CHORUS AGAIN, YES! Then the weird break or something, piano smashing, Timmy chanting. Not liking that, but it grew on me, since I wanted to (@(%*%(@)@)@ whenever I heard Timmy chant during that beautiful song. This was my most anticipated song too (I overplayed the preview + PV preview), so therefore I was terribly disappointed with the Timmy chanting. Ah whatever. AND WHAT I ALSO ADORE is ayu's 'Yeah, yeah' so freaking amazing! DO WANT! Tell me why - Wouldn't ever expect this to be an ayu song. So weird and different. nah, Not liking it. -now it all gets boring- a cup of tea - not my cup of tea. the next LOVE - Hmmm.. This is very very very interes.. no get it out of my face now. Eyes, Smoke, Magic - see 'the next LOVE'. Serenade in A minor Deserves a D-. how beautiful you are - AH beautiful song! Love the arrangement (GOOD JOB JIMMY). I also love the chorus, really appealing background voice! (Though I'd rather had have someone correcting ayu's English on some words). I think ayu meant that we literally had to get drunk during the first track (Party queen) -on a Saturday night-. I can see how being in an altered state can make 'the next LOVE and Eyes, Smoke, Magic' seem like MASTERPIECES. Might try it.
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My posts often contain OPINIONS! (: DISCOGRAPHY • ayumi hamasakiDISCOGRAPHY • shoko nakagawa DISCOGRAPHY • kyarypamyupamyu Last edited by RayJason; 29th March 2012 at 09:07 PM.
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#54
29th March 2012, 07:36 PM
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#55
29th March 2012, 08:15 PM
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PEOPLE WHY U NO LIKE THE NEXT LOVE AND EYES SMOKE MAGIC?
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#56
29th March 2012, 08:38 PM
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hello! i'm new here - finally decided to join after trawling this place for years for news etc. thought this thread was just as good a place to start as anywhere.
i personally love the album. even "Eyes, Smoke, Magic" and "call" have grown on me now, even though i thought they were the album's weakest points at first. it's not her best, but then nothing will ever beat "I am..." for me. having said that, lyrically it's one of her best albums to date. all that aside, "Shake It ♥" is my jam atm. that song is dope as! i think the reasons people have given for not liking the album are actually quite cogent. but i know she's gonna KILL these songs live.
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#57
29th March 2012, 08:50 PM
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#58
30th March 2012, 12:44 AM
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#59
30th March 2012, 01:27 AM
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the next LOVE i can't understand the hate for though. it's so gorgeous/sexy.
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#60
30th March 2012, 01:53 AM
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Eyes, Smoke, Magic and the next LOVE are both amazing, in my opinion. Eyes, Smoke, Magic in particular I absolutely adore. It's so interesting.
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