Ayu: Anything Goes [XXIII]

[Andrenekoi]

Originally Posted by voltron

Any time she has had a major shift in her sound or style you also have people who either love and are drawn to it, or who absolutely hate it.

True.

I think Love again and Party Queen are almost universally considered bad. Also, certain individual songs like Winter Diary. It feels like the minority actually loves them. And there seems to be a general consensus that her recent releases are worse than her old releaes.

Check out the poll about "album you used to hate and now you love", Party Queen is winning there. RAINBOW was also a pretty divisive album during it's release and now it's pretty much loved.

And of course even the worst releases has their admirers for any artist, but more often than not is VERY easy to point out what is considered the best and worst release by a pop musician, and this is not as easy for Ayu.

Ayu has her most and less popular releases, but a sizeble amount of people will love or hate pretty much everything she released to date.

[KittyKathy]

Originally Posted by voltron

With Ayu, I've noticed a lot of people prefer what was new when they became a fan - which makes sense. For example, you rarely see someone who became a fan early in her career (say, LOVEppears) who stans for something like R'n'R Circus. But people who became fans during R'n'R Circus time thing it's the best thing since sliced bread, and everything before and after is awful. They also tend to think that that is the type of music they want to hear from her. I also think that Ayu has such a wide spread when it comes to age of her fans, and that definitely plays into things too.

I became Ayu fan in 2014, and I prefer her older albums. My favorite is I am... So, this theory is not entirely correct.

[EndOfTheWorld]

I think generally amongst longtime fans, music after Love Songs is considered lower quality. And yes there are those who feel differently but we are speaking in general. But I remember before then, My Story seemed to be considered the weakest album.
As for the theory about loving the era that you entered, I think there is some truth to that. I started following Ayu closely around A Complete/NEXT LEVEL and Guilty-Love Songs is a cherished time for me. But as I became more familiar with the material from the late 90s and early 2000s, those albums have become my favorite for a variety of reasons. But the late 2000s and 2010 is my second favorite time.

[DonkeyKongRemix]

I became a fan a year before GUILTY, which was when I started really paying attention to her releases. And then it remained my favorite.

So, I definitely stand by that theory.

[ayumi_croatia]

I listen to LOVEppears, FIVE and Love songs a lot these days.

God help me if I ever decide to put Party Queen or LOVE again on repeat though.

[Earth_maiden]

I can't get enough of "Anything For You" from A ONE. So underrated

[Amalgam]

Rock N’ Roll Circus and Love Songs are my most listened to albums at this point.
I became a fan in 2005 and I can appreciate the older albums, but the put on high pitched voice for ASFXX/Loveppears works against those albums. I find that Memorial Address and onwards is where I really enjoy the material Ayu has put out.

[Mr. Talkin2myself]

^ for me, I crossed ayu path shortly before Next Level was released. I feel as a super fan of ayu. Bad or not, in the end I will have a time in my life where i can’t stop listening to songs which I absolutely disliked.

I don’t like her voice in her early years and truely believe that her newer released songs has a deeper meaning to it than her old stuff. Nevertheless, Pokerface is one of my most played songs in her discography.

What I want to say is, despite considering every detail, I can’t say that I like or dislike an entire album. I’d say I rather prefer to listen to an album as a whole than others.

[Andrenekoi]

What were the eras that made people grow apart from her? RAINBOW, (miss)understood (mainly cuz of Bold & Delicious), Party Queen/LOVE again... any other?

[tokyoxjapanxfan]

Bold & delicious was an interesting time.

Every performance she has done of that song, she looks genuinely happy and like she's having fun. And it's still often used on tours. Far more than Pride. I think Ayu personally really enjoys it. So it's interesting that so many fans dislike it haha.

I think on her part it took a lot of guts to release it as a single. And that was something I really admired about her at the time.



Since Love songs, however, she's put out rather safe music and videos. Which is, for me, the beginning of my loss of faith in her releases.

But around Colours I'd say it was the worst for me. She seemed completely uninterested in her fans and being in Japan and even her releases in general.

Like she was going through the motions only.

[Andrenekoi]

^I believe she was trying too hard to fit in the trends ans expectations, by going full EDM and making it less personal during Colours, and the final result ended up being colder as she has less emotional atrachment to the release.

[EndOfTheWorld]

I love the Music Station performances of Bold & Delicious. Her vocal performance was impressive. I always enjoy it live but the single version I still don't really care for.
I was pretty hyped for Colours honestly. But it didn't turn out the way I thought it was going to be. I'm still sad about Angel. I really like that song but the engrish just distracts me.

[Miduhyo]

I haven't posted in this thread for a long time but I've revived from the grave just to say:

I really like Bold and Delicious.

I always have.

I always will.

And now I shall go back to the shadows. You'll know you've found me if in the distance you start hearing YAYAYAYAGAGAGAGADADADADAWOWOWOWO faintly echoing through the black.

[mi|kshake]

Originally Posted by Miduhyo

And now I shall go back to the shadows. You'll know you've found me if in the distance you start hearing YAYAYAYAGAGAGAGADADADADAWOWOWOWO faintly echoing through the black.

This quote has made my day!

Bold & Delicious is nuts but I love it! I was listening to Sweetbox's original the other day and despite clearly being the same song I like how Ayu's version is different. It just has more oomph and GOES FOR IT!

I'm still sad about Angel.

So am I...because I don't like that song.

Nah, well it's listenable, it just sounds like it isn't Ayu's song.

[Sky High]

Bold & Delicious is fun song

[cosmicfirefly]

When I first started listening to Ayu I used to hate Bold & Delicious until I saw Arena Tour 2006, and since then it's become one of my favorites. Sometimes I end up liking a song after hearing a remix of it or seeing the live performance for some reason. As for songs like Angel and petal, I almost wish she'd give those new recordings and mixes, they could be so much better.

[tokyoxjapanxfan]

I'm so happy the topic was brought up. I actually thought everyone hated it xD
I like how the song kicks in during the second half of it.

Also how there's never been a song comparable to it since. It really stands out.

[Xianghua]

I remember lots of people on the forum hated Bold & Delicious at the time it was released. And I think I was annoyed because of that for some stupid reason, lol. I really like the jazzy version she uses in concerts these past few years. It's fun!

And regarding the sweetbox version....Ayu's version definitely has more life to it. So I'm glad she recorded hers with a "louder" sound.

[ohsixthirty]

I actually loved B'n'D when it first released. I can even remember the feelings I had whenever I first heard it. Honestly, I was blown away that she could release something SO different than the rest of her discography.

That said, it's a pretty intense track and now I usually skip it.

[Evan Odinson]

I'm not a fan of B n D (studio) but I LOVE live versions, so much fun and energy