I don't think ? but she must be aware of that IMO and it must be very frustating :(
Yes this is exactly at this time that her voice has radically changed ! Her performances of Dearest & Voyage are very a mess in this Live

AT08 is awful, I've never made it through that concert in one sitting. She needed to lipsync at that one.

Maybe I should listen to End Roll before I watch any of her performances now, then it'll feel like she's back in that 2003-2006 period.

AT08 was still better than AT07, you could see she was trying to deal with her hearing a bit, I always thought CDL0708 was her absolute vocal low point(that and AT02)

^ I cannot sit through it either, and I think that is why I seem to gravitate more towards the opinion that Ayumi Hamasaki's voice is not a product of ultra-damaged vocals, but a lack of not being able to hear herself to the same degree as she could eight years ago. Her singing style has probably changed dramatically as without the aid of her left year, she can no longer properly project those super high notes from her earlier days. Well, technically she can, but not in a way that is pleasant to a listener. This is not her natural range...I think the real Ayu voice is the one we hear now.

I really appreciate recent performances where Ayu is able to sing beautifully.

I still think her voice suffered of damages ! A lot of times she has sang while she was sick ! a lot of times in 2002 and it seem that in 2007 she suffered of infection of vocal cord however she continued to sing ! But her deafness problem is also the key element of her current voice

Well, keep in mind that the video that was posted before was also used in many gossip blog links that basically say "Ayu sucks at singing!" just like when the You were... + evolution performance in 2009 was horrible. I don't think it's anything new to be honest... at least since the last 4-5 years. As someone who has been looking at 2ch for a while (as well as maybe JapanToday when they have English stories about Ayu), they really haven't changed their views on Ayu calling her Babasaki and so on.

Anyway, to the 13th thread for 2013! Kouhaku and CDL are up, uhuhu~

During Arena Tour 2002 her vocals were temporarily impaired due to health problems (a cold or whatever) and it was really brave from her not the escape and face the situation instead (no playback!).

CDL02-03 is the worst! She was very sick and you can hear it.

^
HANABI:(

Was it CDL, not Arena Tour 2002? I then take back what I just wrote to isthisLOL because I thought the concert where she obviously had health problems was AT02 -_-

I don't think it was AT02, CDL0203 had health issues without a doubt because on all the end of year programmes she was making apologises for her vocals and sickness.

OMG!
I LOVE CDL 07-08! I definitely love her performances of Together When..., fated, and especially untitled ~for her~
It really made me love those songs and I was never too impressed by them! I HATED fated. My favorite CDL besides 04-05.

well, end roll isnt a very good song to begin with sooooooo.....

but, I would like to add, her vocals sound okay here to me... its just the song thats totally boring for me.

^End Roll is amazing.

I've been an Ayu fan since 03/04 and it was actually in her Jewel TV lives that I first noticed a problem. It was only slight then though. Over the years, imo it has generally continued to get worse - however she still does have good days. Obviously the ear is part of the issue, but I have thought for a long time now that it is in combination with either damage to her voice or a lack of care on Ayu's part to really take care of and train her voice. I think its really a combination of things.

I think because we are all such big Ayu fans, that we are used to her voice being like this so that's why to some people it may not seem like she sang that bad. But trying to look from an outsiders position, she really did not sing good. From one line to the next she sounded like she was changing pitches and overall it just wasn't very pleasing to the ear.

In AT02, she was sick. She was also sick at CDL 02/03; so she gets a pass for those I think.

Yea, I agree that FNS wasn't that bad, like I said I've heard a lot worse from her not too long time ago..
It's so sad but true.. I totally agree with you. I kinda feel scared for Ayu. Her voice is everything to her.. but reality is that it is damaged, or at least it sounds very drained, dry and damaged.
same here.

Considering what we got from the last CDL TV Version, I'm pretty sure she is able to sing beautifully on the right conditions...