Colours covers!

[Chibi-Chan]

Originally Posted by Polyrhythm

Sad, but I can't help but picture Namie lounging on a giant futon somewhere, sipping champagne and laughing at this mess.

Honestly... Namie was NEVER know for her creativity... be it music, covers or PVs... Her management team is brilliant - but that's it.

Don't get me wrong, I like Namie and I'm always curious for her new releases, but this whole Koda/Namie is so much more creative, they put more thoughts on it etc. etc. is just nonsense. Koda/Namie are fun and entertaining performers with fun and entertaining music and from time to time with a beautiful ballad - but their artistic level isn't anything near of Ayu or Utada (I don't even really like Utada, but it's not hard to admit that she's a true artist).

[orangeakira]

Originally Posted by Chibi-Chan

I don't even really like Utada

blasphemy.

[Zeke.]

Well Ku and Namie may not be as creatively visionary as Ayu, Ayu herself has been anything but in recent years. That's what is frustrating. Ku and Namie come off as having things much more polished and in control, with nice concepts lightyears beyond recent Ayu releases.

In a nutshell, it seems like the balance between marketing, concept, quality of songs and PVs, creativity, and finalized product are all off balance. I'm the kind of person who appreciates the "if you're gonna do it, do it right/go all out." It seems Ayu used to have this mentality, but lately it seems she's releasing just for the sake of releasing. It seems like more of a "job" for her now than the well-rounded expression it used to be, through and through.

[Kuronekomi]

Originally Posted by Chibi-Chan

Honestly... Namie was NEVER know for her creativity... be it music, covers or PVs... Her management team is brilliant - but that's it.

Don't get me wrong, I like Namie and I'm always curious for her new releases, but this whole Koda/Namie is so much more creative, they put more thoughts on it etc. etc. is just nonsense. Koda/Namie are fun and entertaining performers with fun and entertaining music and from time to time with a beautiful ballad - but their artistic level isn't anything near of Ayu or Utada (I don't even really like Utada, but it's not hard to admit that she's a true artist).

I totally agree with you! I like Namie and especially Ku but they're completely different from Ayu. She is a complete artist with full control of her career with all the bad and the good things that may come. I don't get the same idea from Kuu and Namie: a lot of team work behind them (this is not a bad thing either, just different)

[November4]

Originally Posted by Chibi-Chan

Honestly... Namie was NEVER know for her creativity... be it music, covers or PVs... Her management team is brilliant - but that's it.

Don't get me wrong, I like Namie and I'm always curious for her new releases, but this whole Koda/Namie is so much more creative, they put more thoughts on it etc. etc. is just nonsense. Koda/Namie are fun and entertaining performers with fun and entertaining music and from time to time with a beautiful ballad - but their artistic level isn't anything near of Ayu or Utada (I don't even really like Utada, but it's not hard to admit that she's a true artist).

Actually Namie has been much more creative the past few years. Kuu has always had strong themes with each album and tour, too. Ayu just rehashes and hasn't done anything inspirational since her 50th single.

[ALfromHELLSING]

10 tracks on the album 5 editions. Makes sense.

Want good covers? Buy the damn candle edition you'll never use.

Originally Posted by November4

Actually Namie has been much more creative the past few years. Kuu has always had strong themes with each album and tour, too. Ayu just rehashes and hasn't done anything inspirational since her 50th single.

Yeps, she had strong themes since Black Cherry.

[Andrenekoi]

Originally Posted by Polyrhythm

I see avex has now given her the budget of BENI/Otsuka Ai/other nobodies.

Sad, but I can't help but picture Namie lounging on a giant futon somewhere, sipping champagne and laughing at this mess.

Nah, she is too busy buying J-Lo left overs and recording videos where she dances basic choreography in front of cars for the release of her next album...

[NintendoHTF1242]

Originally Posted by Andrenekoi

Nah, she is too busy buying J-Lo left overs and recording videos where she dances basic choreography in front of cars for the release of her next album...

And yet she still slays your faves.

and tbh when i first read your post i didn't read what you were quoting and thought you were talking about Ayu.

[xLuna&1LOVE]

Originally Posted by November4

Ayu's releases seem very last-minute slapped-together. I think she's just having her version of a "break" since L, doing what she wants and not taking her work too seriously. ^_^ Makes me wish this era was over already but the album hasn't even been "released" yet lol...

O hell no!!! :O Eventhough I do agree her recent work is nothing compared to whatever she achieved 'back in the days', I love the fact she is always trying to do her own thing. Like working together with Western artists is something I really support. I think she is definetely taking her career seriously by taking surprising chances. Even if that does result in drastic changes in genre, producing team, lifestyle and look...
No I really do not think she is the last-minute kind of artist. She knows exactly what she is doing.

[KPL]

Originally Posted by xLuna&1LOVE

O hell no!!! :O Eventhough I do agree her recent work is nothing compared to whatever she achieved 'back in the days', I love the fact she is always trying to do her own thing. Like working together with Western artists is something I really support. I think she is definetely taking her career seriously by taking surprising chances. Even if that does result in drastic changes in genre, producing team, lifestyle and look...
No I really do not think she is the last-minute kind of artist. She knows exactly what she is doing.

I agree. if anything I think ayu can be pushy rather than lackluster. When she got an idea she delivers that concept rather than having the team polish the product to the degree she used to (pre-RAINBOW era I guess) or to the extent Namie does now. Therefore, the image/product of ayumi hamasaki is flawed now, because it's more integrated and honest.

Remember ayu used to say that ayumi hamasaki and ayu are two different things? - as one is the product and the other is the person. Well I think with the increasing publicity of her private life and the simultaneous strengthening of her control over her own career, that boundary is fading away more and more,,,

[November4]

Originally Posted by xLuna&1LOVE

O hell no!!! :O Eventhough I do agree her recent work is nothing compared to whatever she achieved 'back in the days', I love the fact she is always trying to do her own thing. Like working together with Western artists is something I really support. I think she is definetely taking her career seriously by taking surprising chances. Even if that does result in drastic changes in genre, producing team, lifestyle and look...
No I really do not think she is the last-minute kind of artist. She knows exactly what she is doing.

Let's be honest, this release IS quite last minute. We had the songs even before the album name, the remix album is announced a day before the release, the covers 2 weeks before the album, a last-minute tracklist, an incohesive concept because of Pray and Hello new me (though I love those songs a lot).

The same happened with LOVE again: "Lol let's just release 2 mini albums and then suddenly slap them together with some old demo tracks to make a full album!"

Not to mention Ayu flies back and forth between Japan and LA every 2 days. It reminds me of American Horror Story: Coven where they were filming and writing the episodes WHILE the show was airing. Which resulted in a terrible season that made 0 sense and they just dropped storylines midway because the audience didn't respond well to them. Remember Ayu said she was working with western producers, then got a positive response to Pray and she suddenly changed her mind and decided to add more classic J-Pop to the album.

Maar niets persoonlijks tegen Ayu, ik zei het meer in het algemeen over deze release. Het is waarschijnlijk meer avex trax's schuld die een slecht marketing team geeft aan Ayu. ~_~;

[Benikari47]

Originally Posted by Andrenekoi

Nah, she is too busy buying J-Lo left overs and recording videos where she dances basic choreography in front of cars for the release of her next album...

Did you even listen to J-Lo's new album? It's absolute crap, ain't got nothing on FEEL.

And as good as the songs are, let's not act like Lelio and XOXO doesn't sound like Jen leftovers too.

Originally Posted by js_surrealism

Nah the NL cover was pretty tacky and lame.

Haha yeah, they do look pretty tacky. But they stand out in a good way imo, and she's serving some serious face!

[pepper]

the best concept cover of ayu was A BALLADS. (also RAINBOW, but well, this cover is classic) From album covers I adore GUILTY and FIVE one. There are too many singles covers I like, but I always was fan of INSPIRE and Bold&Delicious/Pride one.

but well remember there was (miss)understood cover and Sunrise/Sunset ~LOVE is all~ horror

Colours cover is not thaaaat baaaad. Better than Love songs and LOVE again ones.

[ayujarl]

nice covers although I expected more COLOURS

why did the CO blocking her eyes in CD+Blu-ray >.>

[pepper]

the only bad thing about this covers is design. They cropped the photos pretty bad, they ruined the bluray version... the typo would be good if they would stay in CD only style.

[marcoba]

She looks amazing <3

[ava_dreams]

love love love them!!!! She looks glamzilla and fits all the music in it we heard so far

[jyujiw]

I don't really like Rainbow covers at all. Her face seems like she's going to sneeze pretty soon.
And I never understand that sprinkles of water. Imo the love of it can be explained by something called nostalgic feeling, this is something that acts in this forum frequently

And really, I'm not the one that wants to bring fire or something, but are we really going to discuss the quality of the covers and "high budget" of Namie's covers? None of her cover singles catch up my interest since "Break It!".
WTH is "Sit! Stay! Wait! Down!" / "Go Round" / "TSUKI". Her magazine shoots are a thousand better than her covers...

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Seems like the most hated is the one that Ayu loves the most. hahaha
I want them all in full resolution

[sitara]

Originally Posted by jyujiw

I don't really like Rainbow covers at all. Her face seems like she's going to sneeze pretty soon.
And I never understand that sprinkles of water. Imo the love of it can be explained by something called nostalgic feeling, this is something that acts in this forum frequently

like the rainbow cover because it has a clever concept (the booklet on the other hand is a mess) photo manipulation and not an *actual* rainbow on it. i can see that people put proper effort in this, its not just a fashion shoot

that being said, despite liking the rainbow cover, her face always looked stoned to me
s cross eyed

well, good for ayu, at least many seem to like the new covers.

[KPL]

Originally Posted by sitara

like the rainbow cover because it has a clever concept (the booklet on the other hand is a mess) photo manipulation and not an *actual* rainbow on it. i can see that people put proper effort in this, its not just a fashion shoot

that being said, despite liking the rainbow cover, her face always looked stoned to me
s cross eyed

well, good for ayu, at least many seem to like the new covers.

Yeah so nice the image of rainbow is transformed creatively into something else.

But I think the booklet is quite nice too. Diverse yet at the same time quite cohesive