Secret ALBUM: Discussion

[Joey4u615]

I can't seem to bring myself to go to each of immel's song threads, so I figured I'd make a general one for those like myself. these are my personal favorites on the album...

"Not yet" - Nice instrumental, I like the trance/techno touches. It flows into "until that Day" quite nicely.

"until that Day" - my favorite track on the entire album. i'm a person that loves the sound of a guitar and the various guitar sounds really intrigue me on this track. i was immediately drawn to this one when it began, i have no complaints on this one, it all flows amazingly.

"1 LOVE" - again, in my opinion one of the best tracks on the album. i'm not sure if it lives up to all the hype BUT it is really nice to listen to although i was somewhat underwhelmed.

"kiss o' kill" - the last of my three favorites ["until that Day, "1 LOVE", & "kiss o' kill"]. it has a really unique sound and is a really powerful song - I can't wait to see this one performed live.

"taskinst" - I didn't enjoy this one as much as "tasking" from (miss)understood, did anyone else feel the same way?

overall, I think this album is one of her strongest yet [if not her strongest]. I really like how her newer pieces have more of an american sound to them [as opposed to half empty jpop sounds that they play on alot of anime series]. when i'm listening, alot of times the guitar sounds remind me of some of the rock songs they play on the classic rock stations on the radio. i'm very pleased with this album and am excited to see these songs sung live, my only complaints are in the instrumentals, ie: "LABYRINTH" and "taskinst".

[etheruraura]

This album is great. I love the new album tracks. Even though some of the new album tracks are better than the others, I still like the other ones a lot. And the strange thing is - I actually like the single tracks now. When you fit them into the big picture of the entire album..they seem a lot better. I can't explain it, but I certainly don't think they're as bad as before, I like them now.

Overall: 9/10. I love this one.

[immel]

I'll make a general review of my feel of the album as a whole in here, then. I was thinking of making a thread like this one, too.

I think that the entire album flows very well, the songs follow on each other perfectly, with one exception. Beautiful Fighters should never have been invented.

I'm not too fond of the Born To Be... - Beautiful Fighters - BLUE BIRD combo, but I don't think it could have been solved any other way than stuffing them all together right there.

Most songs start out quite calmly, just like most songs end calmly, so they flow into each other effortlessly.

[HanabiChick]

Not yet - It's not what I expected, I like most of it except the last 10 seconds or so.

until that Day... - Strange track. Not sure if I like it or not yet. Seems like a weird copy&paste job of different styles with no good transitions between them.

Startin' - I like this version better, now this I can listen to, I quite like it.

1 LOVE - Exceeded my expectations, love it, love it, love it.

It was - Thought this would be more pop, I was pleasantly surprised, like this one.

LABYRINTH - I love the full version even more than the preview, wonderful track.

JEWEL - Love it, fantastic ballad.

momentum - The preview annoyed me, but the full song doesn't. It's okay, not as good as it could be because it's neither ballad or pop song, and the mix of both doesn't work for me. It's a relaxing song, but one you could get quickly bored with. Sounds like it could have been a track on RAINBOW.

taskinst - Wow, wonderful, best tasuku interlude yet, though it's placed incorrectly, should be really after BLUE BIRD for a better transition.

Born To Be... - Said all I have to about this, my opinion hasn't changed.

Beautiful Fighters - Weak. Next.

BLUE BIRD - Nice song, best song of the singles this year.

kiss o' kill - So much going on in this track, one of the best songs I've come across in the past few years.

Secret - Gorgeous ballad, reminds me of Moments a lot, love it.

Overall good, but Beautiful Fighters and Born To Be... weaken the album. Dump those and it would ROCK.

[*Petit*]

What surprises me with this album is that I love all tracks even though her rock songs usually aren't my favourites.

I love the energy and rouch upbeaness of the first part of the album .

I don't know how well I feel that LABYRINTH fitted though.

It was reminds me a LOT of HOPE or PAIN.

I*ll get more down later.

All in all I'm really happy though. I think it shows that GEO really was a step in the wrong direction... =/ I hope it'll never happen again.

I think this will have more "grow-time" than (m) u did and thus perhaps ending up being one of my favourite albums.. I have been around since moments, so this is only my third studio album, and even though I still like her older stuff a lot, I think this may be another highlight in her career.

[*Petit*]

What surprises me with this album is that I love all tracks even though her rock songs usually aren't my favourites.

I love the energy and rouch upbeaness of the first part of the album .

I don't know how well I feel that LABYRINTH fitted though.

It was reminds me a LOT of HOPE or PAIN.

I*ll get more down later.

All in all I'm really happy though. I think it shows that GEO really was a step in the wrong direction... =/ I hope it'll never happen again.

I think this will have more "grow-time" than (m) u did and thus perhaps ending up being one of my favourite albums.. I have been around since moments, so this is only my third studio album, and even though I still like her older stuff a lot, I think this may be another highlight in her career.

[ExodusUK]

Thank god for a general thread.

Anyway yeah I love the album.

[mishidabo]

overall this is a good album.. i think we havent seen such a strong music from ayu since i am... i'm pleased by the results of this album

[Nu-NRG]

10/10
I can't see myself skipping any new songs and normally I would skip
but all the new ones are JEWELS :p
if it weren't for the 3 B's it'd be better

[Nu-NRG]

10/10
I can't see myself skipping any new songs and normally I would skip
but all the new ones are JEWELS :p
if it weren't for the 3 B's it'd be better

[~X2RADialbomber~]

It's a very good album, but it does not come under a favourite of mine.

[elepop]

So hard not to download.

I'm glad to see many people enjoying the album. None hate it so far!

[alt.total-loser]

Not yet - Good. I would have kind of liked it to be a bit shorter.

until that Day... - VERY good. I liked how it took almost 2 minutes to get to the chorus instead of 40 seconds.

Startin' - ... It's okay. Never cared for it much.

1 LOVE - Very good. Though I like the first half more than the second.

It was - Okay. I didn't think it would be very great, anyway.

LABYRINTH - LABYRINTH > Kaleidoscope

JEWEL - Love. One of her better ballads out of ALL her songs.

momentum - Decent. Nothing too great. Moving on.

taskinst - One of her best interludes ever. I love the way it sounds~

Born To Be... - I LOVE this song. So powerful and awesome.

Beautiful Fighters - plzdiethx

BLUE BIRD - Nice, as far as poppy summer crap goes.

kiss o' kill - ... it's alright. Makes me think of something off Duty; which isn't exactly a great album to remind me of, heh.

Secret - I actually thought of Moments, too, when I listened to this. The emotion in her voice is what gets to me~ <3

Beautiful Fighters needs to die and this could beat RAINBOW. =) Her voice sounds so incredible, too. She really has come a long way.

[~*Mabushii*~]

I'm only into the second song (until that Day) but so far.. wow!! i'll give better thoughts later if I have the chance

My copy gets here in a few days but I'm waiting till Xmas <3

[waltz#2]

Such a good album. We're lucky she made it full-length. And I don't mind the single tracks, not even Beautiful Fighters. The interludes are full of win too. I'm not sure if it's my favourite album, but it's very high on the list.

until that Day... and kiss o' kill are my favourite tracks. If I had to pick a least favourite, it'd be BLUE BIRD.

[immel]

The only track that I will be skipping continuously on this album is probably Beautiful Fighters.

Firstly I don't like the song, secondly it doesn't fit. At all.

[Larisa-chan]

I'm lazy and will go song by song later on, but for now, this album really is her strongest work since I am... It only took what, 5 years? =P

EDIT: Okay time to review track by track
1. Not yet Alright, well this probably is her strongest interlude track ever. It's beautiful, has a wonderful use of synth and nice acoustic guitar sounds in it. Such a great beat. 10/10
2. until that Day... Yes, is this evolution 2.0, and I mean that in a good way. It's an amazing rock track that is infused with many more musical elements~ The tempo is awesome and I love the part at 3:35. The beginning still reminds me of a rock song I've heard in the past! 10/10
3. Startin' Yeah... the opening song for some video game that Kumi Koda should've song. Well, it is a rockish song with annoying DJ scratch sounds added. I don't really like the flow of the song, either. Any jpop artist could release this, sadly 3/10
4. 1 LOVE A very cool hard rock song, but I feel the flow might be a bit off on this.. and yes, it does remind me of songs that Kumi Koda and Rina Aiuchi have done in the past. However, the guitar solo is wonderful. Just take out the JUST ONE LOVE bit o.o 7.5/10
5. It was This one took some time to grow on me. It's a bit Americanized rock, but it's done very well. I can listen to this over and over. It has a very dramatic and cool feel to it. 8/10
6. LABYRINTH I really do like this interlude even if it is similar to kaleidoscope. It's very soothing and relaxing, and still makes me think of The Neverending Story when they go to the Ivory Tower XD 9/10
7. JEWEL Ayu's ballad of the season, akin to Dearest, Voyage, CAROLS, and HEAVEN. Still, this has a sweet melody and it's a song you can listen to over and over. Better than CAROLS but not as good as HEAVEN 7/10
8. momentum This does remind me of M, except for upbeat! I wish it were more melancholic and sad, but I do love the arrangement and use of instruments. It makes the song sound very complete. 7.5/10
9. taskinst Another brilliant interlude with an awesome use of synth and rock music. It's so cool sounding. 10/10
10. Born to be... LOL I think this shouldn't follow taskinst. Taskinst would be better put right before kiss o' kill. The song has grown on me, but it's a bit obnoxious with its YAY OLYMPICS theme. 6/10
11. Beautiful Fighters This song belongs on a Barbie Doll & Friends CD. Enough said. This song has no place in this sort of album. 1/10
12. BLUE BIRDAyu's typical summer song, which is also very sweet. I really did enjoy this song and don't really have any qualms with it except it's a bit forgettable. 7/10
13. kiss o' kill Should have taskinst right before it. Oh my god, this is a brilliant gem hidden in between mediocre songs. I love the intro with the lalala voices, the organ is powerful, and this song bursts into a dramatic rock song with some unique sounds. 10/10
14. secret Although this is a sweet & beautiful song, I feel that any jpop singer could sing it! 6.5/10

Overall, I think I would give this album an 8/10 The only "big" problem I have with it is that it's too short

My favorite albums rankings:
1. I am... 10/10
2. LOVEppears 9.5/10
3. DUTY 9/10
4. Secret 8/10
5. MY STORY 6.5/10
6. (miss)understood 6.5/10
7. Memorial address 6/10
8. RAINBOW 4/10
9. A Song for XX 2/10

(really 5 & 6 are interchangeable, MS and MU both have an equal number of songs I love and hate on them...)

[PrincessAyu]

Originally Posted by HanabiChick

Startin' - I like this version better, now this I can listen to, I quite like it.

What changed? o_o

[ImpactBreaker]

LOVE all the tracks a lot!!!

until that Day is SUPERB AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And the interludes can't help but get better and better and better at each new album. I'd never think any other interlude would rival "Catcher In The Light" but "Not Yet" does