I really think she can bounce back for 20th anni ;)

Now that you said, this is very common with western producers!

what's sad is how FAST she fell. like, she was still doing great up until LOVE/15th anni. and then she just... plummeted.

My terminal comes today. I can rip it if yall want. I just really want that xoxo remix. So mad that the only place to purchase it was mumo.

please rip the HACKJACK remix :love

Terminal (HACKJACK MIX)

https://www.mediafire.com/?jgr05z9g1s9mpo4

Yall gon be mad though...ain't no vocals lol

New Contest win 1 out of 3 autographed CDs of Terminal
http://109news.jp/entertainment/20141001/13175/?detail

Yup, given there's no PV, only 1 remix and no promotion, I'm not surprised (or bothered tbh). As long as Ayu keeps giving me music I'm happy! :)

Oh. My. God. I am speechless...

HACKJACK's remix is purest perfection. He literally takes "Terminal" to a whole new, even harder level. I am completely blown away.

Terminal...

No vocals? -.- Yes, I'm mad... xD

^ There is whispering and a lot of "kimi niii" throughout the entire track, though.

Ayu surprised me this time too :) Love the new mix! Reminds me a lot of "Sugar Free" by T-ara which is a good thing because I love that song too.

Thanks for ripping.

I'm gonna flip my shit if this remix isn't the remix to end all remixes

what the damn hell!?
lol

Selling a recut single with only one new remix that might as well be an entirely different song...

It's like... avex is trying to destroy any remaining confidence consumers had in them lol

Which was basically nothing after the LOVE/again fiasco anyway

How are they SO bad at this

Terminal reminds at #19 on the 3rd day of release

http://www.oricon.co.jp/rank/js/d/2014-10-02/more/3/

Hm, I don't know. I like the HACKJACK remix, but there isn't much left of the original Terminal. If it would be one remix out of many - great! But it's the only one... I don't like the single.

hahaha no kidding, I thought I was listening to Sugar Free until Ayu's whispering came in.

I'm not interessed in Terminal... because there are only 2 remixes.. but I would like to see the new XOXO Video.

^new XOXO PV ?
Is not the same music video but with some unedited scenes ?

Maybe by releasing a recut single it takes the pressure off any new single Ayu releases because it has to do better than this?! Though if they have given up on keeping singles high in the charts then why did we not have any for a few years?

Cause she didn't want to release singles anymore

Though I don't think giving us a bunch of mini-albums helped

I want to buy the single just for the gorgeous cover, and the last single I bought was talkin' 2 myself XD

Has anyone heard the XOXO remix yet? The two singles are confusing the living daylights out of me as to what is new and what isn't ~_~'

This HACKJACK mix for Terminal sounds something like she will use as a concert opener.

I'm not surprised if the first song for her next concert is Terminal, mixed with this HACKJACK mix one, just like Feel the love.

Anyway, let's forget about sales for a while and enjoy the song.

I had to call my best friend after seeing the 16, 19, 19 on daily. He introduced me to Ayu in 2006.

I think it is safe to say that Ayumi doesn't care about her career anymore. I don't know whether I should let her go or hope that something changes next year. But so far, 4 years after Ls, and a string of very, very bad decisions, I feel like a boyfriend hanging onto this relationship by a thread because I don't want to accept that it's actually over.

I found this strange video concerning the plug air : maybe it is an instrumental version of the remix ??!!! I don't know...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WuScl_lUtlk

Me for so many years lol

Except I finally got over it and now we're just casual friends again lol

Anyway, after listening to the HACKJACK remix again, I find it totally pointless. The parts where her vocals were used are super awesome, the rest is just like... yeah, like someone else said, concert opener music. And just... idk. Just kinda generic. Well made but generic concert opener music.

I think for those whom have followed/supported her for a very long time , to see her career in this state now , even I don't have words to put just how I feel

And for my case I have followed/supported her since late 2005 which's almost close to 10 years . It's insane knowing that

1 part of me want to give up & not to continue supporting her anymore but another part of me choose to believe that hopefully she still has a little bit of hope in wanting a resurge in getting her career back + not just to let things deteriorate until it can't be salvaged any longer

I don't really care about it charting so low, it's a recut single, they never do well. Colours still sold a good deal of copies so yeah (y)

Oh, grow the fucking up. She released a recut single of eletronic music aimed to DJs and you guys act like she invented cancer.

She obviously cares about her career. She may not care about her sales. I'm so grateful she releases music and does concerts every year. Of course I'd love her to do promotion like she used to, but it's too much to ask. Thank God there's TeamAyu to keep me entertained.

Terminal charts at #29 on the 4th day of release

http://www.oricon.co.jp/rank/js/d/2014-10-03/more/4/

If XOXO plug air edition and the bundle set were sold out on mu-mo means that it's a expected sales by avex so I don't think it's a bad thing. avex must have it's own way of marketing now. So nothing to really worry about. Charting really doesn't matter anymore as long as the music is still what I like. Unless she's releasing some shitty song then it's a different thing. Topping the chart might seem nice but it doesn't really say much of the song quality which is what matters the most wasn't it?

yeah but I wonder how many xoxo copies they made? 1000? Like...come on, I want it lol

my thought exactly! shame on you saying she doesn't care :no if she didn't, why did she even release this? i feel like she's on stage of her career that she just wanna have fun! :yes yes, it has only 3 track but all of them are awesome and i'm very pleased with this single :luv2

I definitely think she cares...but to be real, ayu didn't release this. avex did.

I think its the ballad fans cracking up. She will always release singles that appeal more to some than others, but she cant make all us crazy fan happy :P . I think its a nice little single. But I love this type of music so I don't have a problem with it. But give it time. When the next new thing comes, this single will be gold in there eyes compared to her new thing

I was thining of this
"本人楽曲解説 Video/Musical Composition Explanation Video"
But as I see now... this are only some comments to the musik. So.. I don't need to see it.
Sorry... I read it wrong.

me too. I've followed her since 2001

Not only for the long time fans but also for me - the 2- years fan, I don't know how to describe Ayu in this era. Although I can see her effort, the good point in her recent music, I can't face the fact the result was so bad for the legend of Jpop...
I think that the release of this single isn't from Ayu's decision because It's lacking of everything that should be included in the single (PV, promotion, main theme) ! I'm still waiting for the her coming back and having the great time when she got the high result ... Please go on supporting Ayu as you used to ... :)

Mhhhh. What does it take to make people stop thinking Ayu does not care about her career any longer? She's been chasing her pop-colleagues pitilessly for 16 years by now, she's releasing an epic trance-anthem like "Terminal", now continuing with the only reasonable next step, making it a single release and we are even likely to get more of this in the future.

It's really fucking rude to say Ayu doesn't care about her career. I can't stand that kind of thing. For shame.

Ayu fan meltdown #768947694

I think it is easy to assume so because in the past it was clear that she had more FIRE and PASSION regarding her releases. Hell, it used to be so visual, so cross-promotional, more conceptualized and planned out. It seemed like she always had a concept, there was a LARGER picture to be seen and everything seemed consistent with getting that message across. That's what fascinated me. I have no doubt that my appreciation for strategic communication, branding, and creating concepts that reach into the depths of cross-promotional media was hugely inspired by watching the visionary "HAMASAKI AYUMI" evolve over the years as I came into adulthood. She was never an artist who was "just there," she had cultivated an entire universe around her image, her brand, her sound, and her fans. That's probably why I was so drawn to her; her image was so well crafted that she seemed to be a mirage of sorts.

Fast forward to the present, and there's little to no remnant of THAT "HAMASAKI AYUMI" today. I know people grow and change, but her brand and image has made a severe de-evolution recently and it just seems so... foreign. It's a head-trip that's for sure. In that environment she had created (which also translated well into her music, the ability to create soundscapes that constructed vast environments for the listener to become lost within), I felt unbelievably happy. I still feel the best when I can escape into her world and her music, making it part of my reality and my scenery. I often flashback to my thoughts and feelings regarding her "previous" states as they were "current" and how I compared them to that "past" and it was never quite like this. She seems virtually absent in a way. With Ayu and her music, I never felt lonely. Now it's as if an important character in my life has taken a far away trip and I'm uncertain as to when I will ever see or here from them again in the ways that I have in the past.

People can continue to act as if the fans who feel this way are overreacting, but the emotions we have are real and highly understandable. Ayu was always the megastar - anything but average - and for me she was unlike anyone or anything I had ever encountered before in my life. Now, her brand and her image seemingly continues to regress. I used to think in the past that I could never imagine the day she actually "fell" because even if she wasn't selling as much as time went on, her brand, her aura, her environment, her drive and her sense of concept continued to grow and excel. There's not much we can do but eventually I feel she may return with more passion than ever before. Even if the sales aren't there, when Ayu finds that creative drive and begins expanding upon her empire once again, I will be the first to walk through that door with pride.

Ayu is only 36. So there are at least 44 more years to come. She's got enough time to come back again and fade, come back again and fade and so on. It's been only 16 years thus far. And we as fans swore our loyalty, didn't we? Forever!

I'm hoping for Nakamori Akina to come back eventually, too. She's the uber-phenomenon of the 80ies.

Good things come to those who wait...!

The mixed emotions are understandable, but if all the last eras are so 'disappointing', then I am not sure what keeps you waiting tbh

^. It's not the fall in sales driving that lack of fandom, but they reflect the lack of investment on her part. The real fall was after her marriage to Manny. Around then, it seemed that her string of high-profile relationships became her new career. (Rather than new singles, she released new boyfriends.)

We had FIVE. FIVE respectfully followed Ls. It sold relatively well, going platinum and spending two weeks at #1. While we were disappointed there wasn't a new single, the album was still very much Ayumi. I still remember the chatter on AHS about beloved being bland but ultimately being one of the most memorable tracks. Some people were ecstatic over progress. We unanimously jaw-dropped at BRILLANTE.

Party Queen
The real fall started with Party Queen. It wasn't Tim, and it wasn't the shake up of her dancers around that time. It was that PQ had no singles prior to its release. It was that PQ was--and even still is today--the most inconsistent record Ayumi has released. How someone came up with the idea of putting dance-pop, electronica, rock, hard rock, R&B, dubstep, cool jazz, swing jazz, and classical music into a 14-track album with no singles, no live performances, and only one digital single is beneath intelligent planning. It is the Daybreak of her albums; the album that we can all find a good song or two on but ultimately have to facepalm when it comes up in casual conversation. (We were all shocked when GUILTY hit #2, but GUILTY was and remains a solid example of Ayumi Hamasaki as a person and an artist.)

Apart from a few songs, the lyrics on every track were a poor reflection of Ayu's talent as a lyricist. If you don't believe me, re-read the lyrics to Party Queen. (Hint: That's the %@$%! TITLE track.) The PVs were a nice attempt to make a boring album interesting, but you can't save a bad song with nice promotion. (Japan isn't the United States. The only reason Pitbull has a career left is because the majority of the music buying population in the US eats up the image of wealth. So all you have to do is put Pitbull in a $10,000 suit with a few hookers and cigars, and he becomes "talented". if you put misono in a million-dollar dress, people would still think she sings like a dying camel.)

Of course ABC deserved his first #1, but it would have happened another time if the same drive and thoughtfulness that had been slowly fading over the years did not unexpectedly disappear. The sales reflected a lack of investment: PQ collectively sold less than Love songs' first week sales.

LOVE, again, LOVE again
So, after A SUMMER BEST arguably came as an attempt to try to keep the consecutive years of #1 album releases going, we end up with a new mini-album announcement for LOVE. We collectively sighed at the fact it wasn't a mini-album, but a single marketed as a mini-album.

LOVE debuts at #4. Compared to L, it sold around 60% of L's sales. Compared to FIVE, it sold less than half of FIVE's first week sales. again comes one month later--another single marketed as a mini-album--and debuts at #7, ultimately selling less than LOVE sold in its first week. The only real take-away from the entire 15th anniversary releases turns out to be A Classical, which becomes the first #1 classical album in Oricon history.

LOVE again was more coherent than PQ, but the album was lacking in the details. First, the only PVs were for songs released within the three months prior to the album. None of the album-only songs had a video. You & Me, a song intended for the A SUMMER BEST collection, had been tacked on. If you bought LOVE and again, you were only getting the Melody PV and 5 new songs. (Think BoA WHO'S BACK?) Really, we had some beautiful PVs for Song 4 u and Missing, but we were ultimately left with videos that were lacking in substance. (This has been a long-running problem though.) The whole "Love" theme had been present in this album, PQ, and Ls, and even the news was tired of the LOVE this, LOVE that, new boyfriend today, independent woman tomorrow, new boyfriend the next day, independent woman again by Friday at every turn.

LOVE again sold like a stale concept album: It collectively sold less than PQ's first week sales. It made it to #1, which may be a testament to the power of releasing a few singles before putting out a new album, building up interest and giving people something to look forward to. (It may also just be good planning / luck.)

Feel the love / Merry-go-round, Pray, Colours
We had a very quiet 2013 after LOVE again. We had two DVDs and then news of Ftl/Mgr came. The first new single in 3 years. We got the covers. We loved the covers. We got the songs. We loved the songs. We got the PVs. We were all a bit happy to see something interesting again. Ftl/Mgr was not going to be a #1 single. Hell, if Namie Amuro can't land a #1 after one year of no singles in this market, Ayumi is not going to do it either. But Ftl/Mgr was a good first step in getting back to the right direction.

Pray was announced around the same time. I hoped, like many of us, it would be single 52. It turned out to be a digital single, which was disappointing only because, even for a ballad, it was one of her most solid recordings in years.

Information on Colours comes along and interest divided faster than Moses could part the red sea. Ayumi decided to work with western producers on almost every track. Why was this a big deal? Well, because the album isn't J-Pop. It's some hybrid of US-Pop, produced by a bunch of people who don't have any market in Japan. (Just like BoA's self-titled album wasn't BoA. It was some hybrid of US-Pop, produced by people with less talent at electronic music than most K-Pop producers.) Either way, some of us are excited to hear tracks like XOXO and Lelio. Then there's her collaboration with Urata Naoya, who we can all agree has pretty much used Ayu's popularity to be noticed as something other than an idol group member. (Anyone remember JUNO?)

Then Colours is leaked, on purpose, over a month before its release. By the time the album hits shelves, it's been weeks since everyone has heard every song, seen every video, and had hopes and fears either confirmed or denied. The videos were at least different. They consist of: XOXO, in which Ayu, now a middle-aged woman, wearing hooker heels and lingerie while riding a young guy cowgirl style on the floor of a club with her best friend who is also just as obsessed with selfies; Angel, in which Ayu in a beautiful dress lurches and over-lip-syncs the lyrics before being helped into God's handy-dandy human lifting machine because apparently she's too heavy for THREE angels to pick up...?; and Lelio, in which Ayu honestly takes second place to cheap video effects which can make her dancers disappear but somehow cannot make Ayu a reasonably good dancer.

But there are two core problems with Colours: A) Colours is not a J-pop album. B) Japan does not have a market for oversimplified American pop music. Namie's style will sell. K-pop will sell. capsule will sell. But RedOne and Armin van Buuren... frankly... do not have the talent to produce for the Korean or Japanese EDM markets.

Moving forward...
I've taken the time to type this out because I think my line of thought will help explain from where my comments evolved.

Since Love songs, Party Queen, LOVE again, and Colours have each sold cumulatively less than the prior albums first week sales. That's a HUGE drop in interest we're talking about. To put this into perspective, MIKA NAKASHIMA, Kato Miliyah, BoA, Otsuka Ai, Utada, Koda Kumi, and even some idol groups have not recovered from sales drops that steep. (For example: GIRL NEXT DOOR tried to rebrand to save their group after Destination cumulatively sold less than half of NEXT FUTURE's first week sales.)

The reason Terminal's charting matters is because, regardless of being recut, this is an actual single. Do you realize how rare it is for an artist to sell more copies of their next release?

I can only think of a few instances. The first being MIKA NAKASHIMA's VOICE, which came after her career plummeted from the disaster of the YES era. And Namie Amuro, who had to reinvent her entire career after STYLE. If you can think of anyone else who has managed to bounce back after a very bad release, please let me know. Until otherwise, however, I have to believe this single is like a terminal diagnosis for Ayumi's career because it's extremely rare that J-Pop artists bounce back from a huge sales drop.

The fact this single actually made it to press is a sign that, as I said, I'm like a boyfriend hanging on by a thread because I don't want to accept that it's actually over. Think of Terminal as getting a Hallmark anniversary card... with no personal message written in it. It's like your partner knew it matters to you, but instead of taking an extra few minutes on the card, they just picked the nicest one off the shelf, put it in a nice envelope, and gave it to you because it's what they felt like doing. You want to appreciate the thought, but you know they feel like what they did is good enough even it's obvious it isn't.

EDIT: Wow, it took me awhile to put this together. This is all my perspective though, and I hope it's respected as just one experience. But still, the general drop in AHS interest in Colours and now... well, Terminal is so unpopular no one has bothered to make an Oricon thread for it... That doesn't seem wrong to some of you?

Sometimes I wonder if ayu's really the one who created everything and had all of the ideas or the details which is what people care about. Obviously no one does everything, but I wonder if she did as much as we think she did. Idk idk. The execution of the concepts, details, and music...idk. she seemed very compelled to just do everything, even if she was tired and etc. It's an interesting form of passion.

Like in that interview when she talked about doing her own thing now that she finds more appealing than what other people want, it makes me wonder what she was doing before. Like, maybe she should listen to people again, but the right people.

How comes that the meaning of consistence on an album is defined by the number of live performances and singles? With that definition the last album of BoA that contains 100% single songs and no new songs is REALLY CONSISTENT? :mischief lol, your comments are ridiculous to say at least

Party Queen was THE album that called my attention to come back to ayu after 2 years (Secret) It really bring something NEW at this point of her career that she has 200 songs that sounds the same ;) so go f*ck up someone else music please

@orbitalaspect, there are threads made in the chatroom about possible ways to interpret/understand the albums. These contain a lot of (interesting) information of facts and questions, because the members looked mainly from an objective perspective. Not kissing the starter's ass, but these threads were genius.
I really suggest to have a look there.

Might be my bad for being on a J-Pop forum, but aside of Ayu there is no asian singer I follow. Examples of others leave me ice cold, so you are probably right when you say they do better/worse.

But your very long post did not really answer my "what keeps you waiting" question. Yes, I do understand people feel angry, sad and frustrated with the way things are taken care of in Ayu's career. But 16 years is a long time. And she still produces, she still looks for ways to deliver her music and yet she still cares. The only thing that has changed is her expression. It does or does not connect, but the solution to that problem is to respond to her subjectively. But ask me and I find her latest albums still as conceptual and emotional.

Therefore I agree that saying Ayu's career is currently 'terminal' is overreacting. As being the "boyfriend holding on the string" there are many ways to feel different, like the first step would be acceptance or changing perspective in a more objective/neutral view. Ayu is not over. Not yet.

Life is much easier if you just follow her for her music and take anything else as a bonus. She's a singer after all.

You're free to say you prefer the old days but, for pete's sake, don't say she doesn't care. She has all the money in the world. She could sit on her ass all day, but no, she still gives us albums. And look at the effort she put into learning the tissue dance.

On a completely different note, I was confused why I couldn't find the single on iTunes, but it's released under 'Ayu' instead of 'Ayumi Hamasaki'.

If she goes back to listen to other people and release overly safe generic tracks, I prefer her to keep on "fucking up" her own career. IMO Ayu is at her best when she is not trying to please stupid prude uncreative people.

Everytime I'm pleased with her stuff, I come into her and see people melting down.

edit: And let's be honest, most people aren't really annoyed about her aesthetic choices... They are annoyed about her sales.

Sales are nice but not the deciding factor in me being a fan. I'm just happy she is still releasing music. I wish this single had more remixes on it. Since it didn't, I need a remix album(s) please! Legit good remixes. Not the vocal track with an unimaginative remix spin on the music.

I understand this feeling too and I thought much about it, because for one point once it felt more like the Ayu mega-manager who wrote the lyrics (maybe) andd controlled the execution (maybe) was changed and this we got the different Ayu we got. what if she actually was like this from the start?

She can try new things while staying true to her sound; there is a TON of variety over the course of her career yet it remained true to her image and brand in one way or another.

In the case of what keeps people holding on, it's because she still showcases her brilliance every now and then or slips a glimmer of hope and/or excitement into what are for the most part less-than-thrilling tracks. For example, Party Queen had reminds me which for me was so classic Ayu. Wake me up I believe is one of her best songs she has ever released and it was another case of "yes, this is who I fell in love with" - it was compared to Sparkle but it definitely was no copy-cat track. Tell All was another case of classic Ayu (although that bridge is atrocious). BRILLANTE, etc. There are MANY cases where Ayu releases something that clearly has her sound written all over it among a bunch of "new" material and the songs that show some sort of familiarity about them (just the SLIGHTEST) are always the most raved about. She can still try new things without abandoning her sound. It's still there, it's just less and less likely to come by. If I wanted something COMPLETELY different, THEN I'd go listen to another artist. That's the thing, Ayu is the only artist who can deliver "her sound" and I can't find that sound anywhere else - even though she is producing it less and less, the chances that SHE create something that infuses that magical HAMASAKI AYUMI sound into it is 1 million times better than any OTHER artist doing so. It is her sound and her ability to evolve that sound while remaining true to it that I've come to love for a large part of her career.

She is a J-Pop artist. I listen to her because she has always made really great J-pop. Colours was anything but...

It's like if you have this really great jazz musician you listen to and suddenly they started making country music.

Honestly her music in her last albums is great, I don't like all the songs, but I like many of them. She is doing different things, we can hear a classic Ayu album (Love again) and an album with EDM (Colours). Since the beginning she tried rock songs, electro-pop songs, ballads, cute songs, she is an artist with a lot of possibilities.

The problem are the bad music videos, her lacking of promo (tv performances, radio shows), her recycled covers and her scandals. I don't think the music is a problem, the problem is the management IMO.

I'm so annoyed by these "her career is over" comments right now that I will just say that I haven't listened to these remixes because I've lost my interest in Ayu again lol.

People have been saying that since (miss)understood and she's still going lol

I don't think her career will ever be over. (that is until she decides to stop making music).

Is her career of a high selling musician over. Yes... has been.
But even Colours did rather well for a solo female artist.
Nothing like what she use to do, but like most solo artist right now, they just are not selling high numbers anymore. Oricon is outdated and needs to get in touch with the digital age.

I think there is a difference between haters and people who are just disappointed.
People, like Zeke., were explaining why they LOVE Ayu but are somewhat disappointed the last few years. I know that sometimes people can be annoying when expressing their frustration over and over again, but to be fair and honest: people are in general easily annoyed by people who express an opinion which differs from their own.
There are also a lot of people here at ahs who are annoyed by people who love everything Ayu does.
This time I found people to be polite and speaking about their personal feelings regarding their fandom, except for a few who where bashing Ayu but were only writing one sentence.
I think it would make for a better "discussion culture" (can one say this in english?) and ahs a better place if we could just ignore the haters, but take those seriously who are just explaining their feelings regarding Ayu's career right now. To shrug every "negative" comment off just hardens the fronts between the "I love everything Ayu does right now"-people and the "I don't like what Ayu does right now"-people. That's why I don't like to come here atm, people are constantly bashing eachother. I wish for ahs to be a place were people bring on arguments, why they like/don't like something, and are being respectful to eachother.
I mean, discussions can be entertaining and interesting this way, because sometimes other people are able to bring on arguments you've never thought of before.
Just my two cents. ;)

Personally I'm also very disappointed regarding Ayu. I don't care for sales, I have nothing against her music the last few years and I think her concerts are even better than before! It's not like everything is bad for me. But the way she's handling herself in public annoys me. I fucking don't care who she's dating or who she marries. I fucking don't care! I don't want all those informations shoved right into my face. With her latest marriage she didn't do this anymore, but with Mannie it was the point where it started for me to go downhill.
And what does annoy me even more is that she has this habbit of pitying herself on fb and/or twitter a lot the last years. Party Queen era was the peak, though.
Furthermore I can't stand her PVs after R'n'R Circus. There are a few I like, but nothing I love. In the past I used to love them or be at least entertained by them, now it's always this "wtf" moment or simply "I don't care". Or there are great ideas for her recent PVs but the execution is terrible, what leads again in a "wtf" moment.
I don't know, I'm just constantly disappointed by her actions/behaviour the last few years. I admired this woman so much back then that it hurts that she changed so much. And back then everything seemed perfect to me, like Zeke explained there seemed to be a bigger concept, now they are executed in such a poor way.
There are people who don't see it the way I see it and who think everything is perfect the way it is. You guys are free to feel this way, but I'm free to feel the other way around.
There is no use in telling people who are disappointed to "let go", because it's not like we hate everything Ayu does, there are still a lot of things we love, but it just feels different now.

This is a new official kindda remix by Armin Van Buuren (released in A State of Trance episode 679) : it is a mashup of Ayumi Hamasaki vs. Idina Menzel - Let Terminal Go (Armin van Buuren Mashup)
Here is the link :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLwcuFNMEEM

Nothing really new but as Armin made it...enjoy !

This so much lol

That's pretty cool!

Well said! I do feel the divide between the people who are content with Ayus current state and those who aren't. I also often feel like those who are content with it throw it out there in a more assertive way and somewhat bring about this implied attitude that they are above those who do feel differently. Like "well I still love everything she does so I'm a better fan than you".

This thread is getting tl;dr.

I like the hackjack remix. I'm pleasantly happy that I purchased the single, even though it's release and history is kind of a trainwreck.

Seriously.

It does get really tiring having your opinions reduced to "YOU GUYS THINK SHE'S AWFUL BECAUSE HER SALES ARE BAD SO YOU'RE IMMATURE!"

Like, no. There's a much bigger picture here. It's not just one single or one release's low sales that lend to the idea/standpoint/notion/possibility/WHATEVER that she's not putting as much effort into her work or that her career is in a pretty bad place. It's the culmination of years of weird stuff and awful decision making. I really wish certain members would stop trying to negate some very genuine concerns by belittling them to make them look petty and unfounded. It's childish.

One person's garbage is other person's treasure.

There's a huge difference between "I didn't like this/that/anything since MY STORY" to "This bitch is crazy/She doesn't care about her career/She is listening to bad people" etc.

You and anybody else are free to dislike anything you want, but it gets really annoying when people come over here trashing everything like everything is bad from an objective (and not subjective) point of view, or like they are having tea with her on the afternoon and can say for sure what's on her mind regarding her career or how much she cares.

You don't know shit, on the same way people who are satisfied knows shit about how is she feeling about her career.

Yeah, it's hard. Because you want to think that everything in the past was more her and that the present is more other people doing things for her. Because it seemed like she used to imply that. But with what she was saying about doing more what she wants and thinks is better lately, instead of doing everything that other people suggest, it makes me feel like she wasn't who I thought she was, or didn't do what I thought she did. And like, I don't want to believe that. What she does now is nice and all but things like the music videos for colours baffle me. But I guess this is ayu.

I'm surprised with the reaction towards Colours, tbh. I gave up on Ayu after Party Queen but the moment she dropped the Merry-go-round preview I was all up on her again.

I personally really like Colours. Merry-go-round is one of my fav ayu songs now. And the booklet shoot is everything lol. But whatever, we all have different opinions lol. I get more concerned with other smaller things in ayu's career since I still enjoy her music a lot.

I wish this Terminal single had a little more to it though. Since I like Terminal a lot. And wouldn't mind more remixes.

On the contrary my dear, it's the complete opposite. Being satisfied when an artist is doing mediocre projects like ayu's current single for example. It's honestly sad, i mean even if you compare her works and concerts from now and two years ago. The difference in quality is clearly seen. Now a fan who sees these changes and complains because they know that ayu can do better. That is the characteristic of fans who genuinely care and believe in her. Those fans truly want ayu to give 100% on her music like she used to or even more. But those who see ayu half-a*****her music and actually say it's ok because that's ayu right now. When something it's clearly wrong . Those fans don't know sh** and don't believe that ayu can do better.
:rolleyes I've seen ayu's best and this years mess it's it.

AHS loves drama so much:-) Some of you take the fact that she never stops releasing new music and touring FOR GRANTED and focus on little things. That's why you will never be happy with Ayu, you don't appreciate what she's giving to you. I wonder how you'd feel if she goes on hiatus like Utada.

I can understand the stagnation in music, I can understand that. but what happened to having nice PVs? they don't have to be too meaningful like Free&Easy or too romantic-heartbroken like Days, but why can't we just have normal camera and normal light and normal effects and medium budget? why can't we get a normal PV director? it's so messy

I thought the PVs for Colours were pretty normal? I enjoyed all 3 of the album PVs.

I wasn't pleased with Colours at first but then I suddenly got do addicted to it, and it sounded awesome. It doesn't reach my top 5 favorites though. MY STORY and RAINBOW are still more awesome but Colours isn't a bad album at all.

That's what I've heard lol. Usually I just ignore those kind of comments but today they piss me off so easily. I just have to control my temper though and keep the rage post somewhere deep inside me because I'm not going to fight here with anyone. :D

Again, you act like there's 0 evidence and fans are just pulling complaints out of thin air just to gripe about something. And that's not the case. There's plenty of evidence that says she doesn't care, as I'm sure there's probably evidence that says she does care, although I haven't really seen any. I mean, granted, there's no way we can ever know for 100% certain, but that doesn't discount all the evidence pointing one way or the other.

I just don't get why you think the situation has to be SO black and white. It isn't. It really isn't.

In any case, I'm not even the one who said she didn't care about her career in this thread lol. I do think her career is in a really sad place, and she doesn't seem interested in making it any better at this point. I mean, she seems content with how things are going. And I genuinely think that her career isn't her priority anymore. I'm not saying that's necessarily a BAD thing for her. I'm not trying to villainize her. That's just how I see it.

Is the english version of Terminal on the single?

No, just the original mix (the album version), the dub mix and the remix.

Oh, I thought the english version was supposed to be on there. Thanks for the info!

So does that mean we'll never hear it?

^I guess not. Would have been interesting though.

So, point me what's OBJECTIVELY poorly done. Not with "me no likes" but with "this is technically bad because this and this."

You are the one thinking the situation is black and white: If you like the release, she cares. If you don't, she doesn't. I dislike plenty of stuff she did, and I would do a lot of them on a totally different way, but I'm pretty sure my likinh or disliking doesn't measure the effort put.

I thought 5k and no it's worse...

24 - ● Ｔｅｒｍｉｎａｌ 2,889 2,889 14/10/1 AVT
浜崎あゆみ 24 1

lol... No. Just no. There is PLENTY of stuff that I don't like that I think she put effort into, and plenty of stuff that I like that I don't think she put much effort into. I like Colours, but I don't think she really put much into it. I hate talkin' 2 myself and decision, but I don't think they're objectively bad or that she wasn't trying; I just really don't like them. I absolutely do not fall into the camp that thinks music is entirely subjective, or that everything I like is automatically good and everything I dislike is automatically bad. There are so many standards of quality that are largely objective and should be adhered to that she misses the mark on time and time again. It's not a simple matter of "I don't like this so I think she doesn't care about her career anymore" as I've said multiple times now that there are plenty of legitimate reasons to form that opinion. But thanks for trying to discredit and trivialize my argument again.

too much to ask, but maybe avex will realize that they only have themselves to blame. I believe this would have sold considerably well if

A)more tracks on the single (remixes)
B) PV
C) ACTUAL FUCKING PROMOTION
D) any kind of concept and just not a pretty cover.

^It's a single aimed at DJs, probably based on the contract they had with the producer, they weren't expecting much more sales than those they actually get.

I really don't understand that logic. A single aimed at DJs would involve more remixes to appeal to those who spin various genres. Not one trance song with a slightly more edgier trance version.

Anyways, my problem like I have mentioned is Ayu can remain true to her sound and still do different things. She did it her whole career. I mean, look at ALL her rock songs. For me, they are all different - they all bring something new to the table. For example, during the string of rock material on A BEST 2 -BLACK-, I never feel like it's repetitive; I always feel like "YES, I love this song!" - I have absolutely no feelings of comparison as each song plays because they stand so well on their own and bring something slightly different to the table that the others don't. They each have their own vibe. This continued with 1LOVE, talkin' 2 myself, and what seriously feels like the magnum opus of rock songs "Microphone" - released how many years into her career and she's still able to make the rock genre sound fresh!? Reminds me was also a nice salute to the fact that she can still expand upon that Genre. Not to mention sending mail which is probably the most emotional rock song. And most recently, Wake me up. Wake me up might not be as hard edged as the others, but it did a great job of expanding on the attitude she presents when performing a rock number. The guitars are still present but take a background seat.

Remember how fans went crazy for BRILLANTE? What about Missing, snowy kiss? It's because these tracks show a certain familiarity about them. Although the problem with love again is that it was the first time most of those songs were truly copycats of previous releases. Although missing is nice and snowy kiss as well, it's the first time I feel like "well I'd rather be listening to momentum" "well I'd rather be listening to sending mail". Same goes for that other track that is similar to marionette. Love again sounds like early demo tracks of previous works for the most part.

The reason I truly love ayu is because she has a unique ability to expand her sound without completely abandoning it. She truly has created her own genre. When she, for the first time in 10+ years begins to fall short of achieving this, it truly is a shock. I mean, THATS what made her unique all these years. How many artists do you know who are capable of such a balancing act - walking the line of new and old so perfectly well for 10+ years, without going a COMPLETE reinvention?

Ok.......:eviltongu.. The reason for the "me no likes" Reply has nothing todo with your entire post. I honestly just wanted to reply to one sentence based on your post. If that makes any sense. FYI I'll use technical, objective and subjective writing styles. When Its within my wishes or asked by a college professor. You fit neither categories so that's you get, a general "me no likes" reply. :rolleyes

I read a google-translation of an article and it says she lost a record of singles in the top 20

And I thought the undead godtada thread had some drama...

I liked this single I was sad there wasn't an official instrumental

^ Yes, I totally need the instrumental version of the Original mix! The Dub mix is not the same. Therefore, I'm hoping for an exclusive Terminal release on iTunes (Terminal - The Remixes | Remix Side/Extended Side, something like this). Extended mixes, remixes in general, Original mix -Instrumental- and the eagerly awaited English version. Get it on, now.

Will we ever get to hear the xoxo remix ???

How can you believe she is the only one who created the brand "AYU" ?? she said herself that AYU was created by a lot of people ! When she was at her peak she had an ARMY of collaborators who worked and were the best in their respective fields for her she wasn't the one behind every ideas or concepts she simply couldn't (look at Dearest MV and you will understand what I mean...) but nonetheless she was implicated in everything at 100% for sure! She represented by herself in 2001 if I remember well 15% of the whole market to make it simple billions and billions of yens ! it was just impossible for her to take every decisions by herself you know it's like a BIG company ... that's why now she is "free" she is not anymore what she used to be commercially !! She doesn't have the same pressure and she doesn't have the obligation anymore to satisfy anyone else !

I understand your statement and even agree with you ! I can't believe that the one which has made MV like Walking proud, alterna or endless sorrow is the same which made XOXO or Shake it for exemple ... but it's just another side of her and she is influenced by other people !

When you watch the making of her concerts you can see she is not a puppet ! she is not the one who make everything because she can't but she looks at every single detail ^^

Was this release postponed again?! I'm not seeing it on oricon Daily...

joking hahaha

I don't even care that single failed. It's pointless.

Im so confused on the release...
There was no effort put into this at all? Maybe this is just things to come... like
Look. I don't even care anymore. Here's a pretty song!

I can't believe this is all happening...

Sunrise Sunset
ayufans: Is it too much to ask for a good cover?

Terminal
ayufans: Is it too much to ask for more remixes?