thoughts on miss understood album

[[taskin.ayu]]

Not enough new material, but still a VERY good album. XD I loved all the new tracks! And the interludes were interesting. xD Ladies Night has already made it to one of my fav tracks. It's so catchy!

Anyone notice that the "Hey!" was different in alterna? I prefer the single version better. D:
Also, the lyrics after the bridge lost the second layer where she sings without the distortion. xD

[ImpactBreaker]

Originally Posted by Phantoma

And in the bridge of 'criminal'.. WTF is that distorted sounding instrument?

I'm not sure either but it was genious, I love it, makes the song so much more mysterious and melancholic. I think that's one of the best parts of that song.

[[taskin.ayu]]

Originally Posted by ImpactBreaker

I'm not sure either but it was genious, I love it, makes the song so much more mysterious and melancholic. I think that's one of the best parts of that song.

Yeah! It sounds so original and different. This is definatly her most experimentally different album since RAINBOW. xD

[lotusoka]

So yeah... I absolutely adore criminal and (miss) understood.

[freedreamer]

Looks like most of us love this album while a minority dislike it...Im gonna let the album surprise me...Havent download any full songs except (miss)understood (which i deleted; not that i dont like it but i wanna wait for my copy) and rainy day...

[yamogi]

this album is better than My STORY, especially (miss)understood,criminal,tasking.
I LOVE this album, an excellent work from ayu

[MariachiGurl2005]

Originally Posted by bpulse

I KNOWWW!
I LOVE this song! In the beginning i was like: Fly High?O.o

i know huh? i love that song! so 80's *0*

i find the album to be okay, not what i was expecting but it has cool songs, like ladies night =3

[yamogi]

Originally Posted by [taskin.ayu]

Yeah! It sounds so original and different. This is definatly her most experimentally different album since RAINBOW. xD

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, i LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE the violin-like instrument in all track, especially in criminal

[Ryoko]

I'm having a hard time resisting downloading, but I'll restrain myself.
I wonder why people keep on comparing Ayu's songs to old songs? Saying they have the same chorus, melody, etc, Ayu ripped it off of someone else, stuff like that. It's interesting to know, however, no doubt. But there are hundreds of songs that sound like other, older songs.

But anyway, I'm hoping this album is as good as everyone says it is. I hope it's as good as I am..., if not, I'll just wait for her next album to see how it measures up

[truehappiness]

This album is definitely one of the biggest surprises this year xD

I think that next year.. she'll surprise us even more xD

I wonder if we'll ever get a CREA-only album :O

[fantaisie.sign]

Originally Posted by ImpactBreaker

sorry but Ladies Night is just AMAZING!!!

had to say it LOL

And I didn't even like the preview at all

Impact, you're my new best friend. *hums "Ladies Night"*

Originally Posted by Phantoma

And in the bridge of 'criminal'.. WTF is that distorted sounding instrument? Also, the piano melody in that song sounds awfully familiar..

Oddly, I thought of the AO version of "Powder Snow" when I heard the piano. It's not exactly the same melody, but for some reason I keep thinking about that song.

[IRIS_intense]

Originally Posted by ImpactBreaker

sorry but Ladies Night is just AMAZING!!!

had to say it LOL

And I didn't even like the preview at all

HELL YEAH!!Go Ladies!!
Its definitely a new genre for Ayu and I Love i!!

(miss)understood rocks..i like it and i think i like it more when i get the lyrics and translation..and the guitar solo here was just AWESOME!!Go Yoshio!! *that was Yoshio right?*

In The Corner..er..was OK..i didnt quite like it coz it sounded too..common..or somethin to me..and i didnt quite feel the melody so..

tasking and Are You wake up? are just soo..ADDICTING..i couldnt stop listening to it..i really hoped she'd have more songs like these interludes..

Anyway..the intrument used in criminal in the bridge part totally suprised me.. i mean, i was expecting a rockin guitar solo instead they used a weird one..

I still like MY STORY than this but Its really good!! A new album with a New genre of sounds..if only she didnt put in too much of her singles..

[tl1029530921]

the single tracks surpassed my expectations, actually. I really likes (miss)understood and In the Corner..my least favorite was probably Beautiful Day.

[Reya Dawnbringer]

Originally Posted by ImpactBreaker

sorry but Ladies Night is just AMAZING!!!

had to say it LOL

And I didn't even like the preview at all

Completely agree.

I think this is the first time I've listened to an Ayu album and only been able to find ONE track I don't like (that being Beautiful Day). This album's awesome, especially considering I didn't really like the singles released this year at first.

[TeamAyu]

The whole thing about being "Western" I don't get is how everyone dislikes it when JPop sounds "Western" but if Japanese pop music wasn't westernized wouldn't we be left with Enka?

I hope I'm asking that right because Japanese music is pretty "western" in general as in it's been highly influenced by Western music.

[ayumaria]

Well, well, it will be on my local store for sale about 2 month(s) later... Maybe I can get it on February 2006, too bad... they never sold the DVD album... have to satisfied with the CD version... Meanwhile, will bear with the mp3(s)... And, don't forget that nicely booklet... won't miss it...

Overall, yet another masterpiece from ayumi hamasaki....

End of post...



ayumaria.

[momobean]

Originally Posted by Demure_Dusk

Yes! I'm so excited. Personally I think it's her best album after "I Am...". It's a breathtaking album and I am extremely excited about it.

I like it way better than I am...

AHHH GUYS !!!
am i the only one who like every single tracks in (MISS)UNDERSTOOD ???
what my opinion is that THE ALBUM is AWESOME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! when i listened to the previews of my story, rainbow or memorial addreses i didn't feel as excited as NOW .....ohh GOD i can't wait for the album !!!!!

You're not alone, I think it's one of Ayu's best

[SunshineSlayer]

Ok, I've now heard the full album and here is my track by track review - thankfully the full versions(for some of the songs) were better than the previews let on:

1. Bold and Delicious - This song is fun and a change of pace for Ayu, but really it's just good for jamming along in the car to and something just keeps me from completely liking it or completely hating it. 7/10

2. Step YOU - The first time I heard this song was in concert and I didn't hear the studio version until a few weeks later. (It's minorly cool that I was in the first group of people to ever hear the song^_^) Anyway, I loved it right off the bat. Yes the lyrics aren't all that deep, but the song is very fun, catchy, has some great rocking moments, and a great music video. 9/10

3. Ladies Night - The preview for this song annoyed me to no end; it sounded way to cluttered and just the same thing over and over again. (why do they have a knack for putting the worst parts of the song in the previews?) I did like the full version considerably better, but it is still very repetitive, especially towards the end. And is that Ayu speaking in English in the background throughout the song? 'cause if it is, her pronounciation was great. This song also sounds better in the car than it does at home. 8/10

4. is this LOVE? - Pretty akward transition between Ladies and this; such a jarring change of style - an interlude would have been welcome. Anyways, this is a great song. It's a hard rock ballad that is so hard that it nearly borders on metal. 9.5/10

5. (miss)Understood - Not too bad. Being that it is a CREA song though, I did expect it to be a little better. I like the rock style.(I think Ayu is most comfortable in this genre) The only problem is that this comes off as a fairly generic rock song until the guitar solo and the melody isn't nearly as strong as what she is usually capable of in these kind of rockish songs. I do love when the guitars come in mid way through though.(I'm a big fan of 70s and 80s style Arena rock) The solo kicks in at around 2:20 but the problem is, is that it barely has a chance to get started before Ayu starts singing again. It's going great and then all of a sudden BOOM it's over. Yoshio is a talented axeman, I hope that for the lives they extend that rapid guitar solo and let him do some kind of melodic solo before Ayu begins singing again. 8/10

6. Alterna - This was the only song or actually the only song in like the last two years from Ayu that made me sit back and go "wow." I hope Ayu explores this more melodic, dark rocker side of her in the future, like she did in this song and Criminal. Only full song on the album worthy of a 10/10

Is it just me or are the "Heys" different on the album than on the single? I prefer the ones on the single.

7. in the corner - While I like the very ending and closing notes to this song, the thing as a whole just comes off as flat and generic and as others have mentioned - sounds like BoA(which unless it is BoA Do the Motion quality - it is not a good thing^_^) The track I will skip over the most. 6/10

8. Tasking - My favorite interlude track since the ones on Rainbow. Oh why couldn't this have been a full song? - 10/10

9. Criminal - Alright, that's it. I want Ayu to do an all rock/classical album with a bit of techno thrown in. Songs like Tasking, Criminal, and Alterna are just too good to be relagated to be put in the same album as songs like Beautiful Day and in the corner or even Bold & Delicious - they make those songs seem amateurish IMO. Anyway, if you couldn't tell, I love this song. 10/10 I know I said alterna was the only 10 song on the album, but I just relistened to it and the super distorted guitar solo encouraged me to bump the rating up from 9.5.

10. Pride - At first I thought this song was alright, but the lyrics made me bump that up to great. So, great lyrics but could be better in other places - the song just doesn't completely click as much as it could. 8.5/10

11. Will - I loved this song immediately. Once again a great collaboration between Ayu and DAI. 9.5/10

12. Heaven - I was never completely blown away by this song. It's pretty but is lacking something that other ballads like Dearest, Seasons etc. had. It's grown on my somewhat but I'm far from head over heals for it. 8/10

13. Are You Wake Up - Another excellent interlude. Couldn't this have been the full song instead of Beautiful Day? lol. 10/10

14. fairyland - Not bad, but not a favorite either - wish she were performing something else at Kouhaku. 8/10

15. Beautiful Day - Just BARELY better than in the corner, but there is still something about it that just, I don't know, it's too bland I guess.... 6.5/10

16. Rainy Day - I love this song. It's simple and reptitive, but not in a bad way. So much so that I barely notice the repitition while listening to it. 9/10

Average rating: 8.5/10

It's hard to say where this ranks among Ayu's albums for me - it's not the best, but not the worst either. It has some great highlights, but then also has Ayu's two worst album tracks ever released IMO. Still though, Ayu even on her worst day doesn't get anything lower than a 6 from me.

btw, I commend anyone who actually read this whole post. You get a cookie.

[Raleigh]

Wow. I am happy you did get such a positive review for miss understood and that you are currently loving it from what I'm seeing!

[hiro]

Originally Posted by TeamAyu

The whole thing about being "Western" I don't get is how everyone dislikes it when JPop sounds "Western" but if Japanese pop music wasn't westernized wouldn't we be left with Enka?

I hope I'm asking that right because Japanese music is pretty "western" in general as in it's been highly influenced by Western music.

I think when they mean "Western", they mean it strays too much out of the J-pop sound and more into the sound of North American popular music. There is definitely commonality between the two BUT anyone who has been listening to j-pop for at least a year now should be able to distinguish something about the two that is distinctly different aside from the language.

I have to admit, some of these new songs remind me too much of early 90s and late 80s songs from the US.