'M(A)DE IN JAPAN' out June 29th + 2015 TA TOUR (TA ver.)

[Tomoyo]

This album was F-ING FLAWLESS! I'm so glad we got the album this early because now I know for a fact that it's an amazing album. I didn't really enjoy A ONE as much as I thought I would, probably due to it being really heavy on the ballads, and although i love Ayumi's ballads, too many of them make the album really boring for me. and I'm like this on all the albums I listen to. On A ONE I only listened to like 3 songs, the rest I just kind of skipped. This is my little mini review of MADE IN JAPAN. These are my opinions and mine alone ^^

01. Tasky - I actually really LOVED this intro. it's my favorite since tasking from (miss)understood in 2006. I love how it plays into the song, some of her interludes don't really go with the song after to me and i think they are oddly placed, but this one is AMAZING. I LOVE the use of the Japanese strings. It's an amazing opening to the album.

02. FLOWER - O.O was all i could do when i first listened to it. It's so different from anything I feel we've had in an ayu album in so long. When I first read the lyric snippet of this song I really thought this was going to be a ballad. The continuation of the strings from Tasky is flawless. I'll admit the chorus threw me off a little, just because she did that little whine thing I first heard in Love Song and like Love Song it threw me off, but it's very quickly growing on me! This is a legit rock track, and this blows WARNING out of the water.

03. Mad World - I expected this to be the rock track from the title, but Ayu has further proved that THE TITLE OF THE SONG MEANS NOTHING lol, I love the piano in this song, it's so beautiful, This sounds very western 2000's to me, which I love so much. The chorus is simple, and beautiful. To sum it up Mad World may not be one of my favorite tracks on the album, but I won't skip it, like i did with 3/4 of A ONE.

04. Breakdown - Very pretty opening for me. This is the first ballad on the album. I was very surprised to see this title. I always expected this to be a more rock track like Mad World, but I do love it. Her medium Ballads, like this song, have always been some of my favorites. Although her mixed ballads: progress, Last minute ect, are my favorites. But this isn't a straight ballad so I am still able to enjoy it.

05. Survivor - My VERY FIRST thought of this song was: This is gonna be awesome! by the first few seconds then it became "WHAT THE EVER FUCK IS THIS SHIT?!" the chanting is so weird to me and I would personally prefer it not be there. I feel like it throws off the song like a lot. But the vocals are really great! I love the arrangement! I'm hearing "Fly away" and "Try again" which makes me really excited for the translation. To sum up, please dear god release a version of this song without the chanting. I feel like "we'll be right back with an awesome ayumi hamasaki track after this short commercial break"

06. You are the only one - The second ballad of the album, and the second longest track of the album. I do wish the other songs were longer, especially FLOWER. I would have been perfectly fine with a seven minute song for it. If i had to say I had a least favorite song on this album, it would probably be this one. It's just very bland to me, compared to the others. But I still don't skip it like I do. She sounds amazing, Her rise in octaves is flawless!

07. TODAY - This song is a little boring to me too. but it's still kind of cute. It's feels like a happy ballad to me, this is without reading the translation. It's very SEVEN DAYS WAR to me. I don't have much of an opinion about this song, but I do enjoy it.

08. Mr.Darling - I wasn't too fond of the title of the song, but I don't mind the song itself. It's very cutesy. I love the acoustic guitar, it sounds like this song could have been on Love songs. This song sounds very Michelle Branch to me most of the time. It's a very cute song.

09. Summer Love - After Summer diary I was expecting something more like that, I was not expecting an EDM track like Lelio but I was very excited! I have to admit the beat does actually sound VERY KPOP, but It's nice to have a legit SUMMER SONG like we use to have on her albums! I actually really enjoy this song. I know some people have compared this to Koda Kumi but I don't think that at all. I love this track and I think it's adorable!

[Zeke.]

Originally Posted by Tomoyo

This album was F-ING FLAWLESS! I'm so glad we got the album this early because now I know for a fact that it's an amazing album. I didn't really enjoy A ONE as much as I thought I would, probably due to it being really heavy on the ballads, and although i love Ayumi's ballads, too many of them make the album really boring for me. and I'm like this on all the albums I listen to. On A ONE I only listened to like 3 songs, the rest I just kind of skipped. This is my little mini review of MADE IN JAPAN. These are my opinions and mine alone ^^

01. Tasky - I actually really LOVED this intro. it's my favorite since tasking from (miss)understood in 2006. I love how it plays into the song, some of her interludes don't really go with the song after to me and i think they are oddly placed, but this one is AMAZING. I LOVE the use of the Japanese strings. It's an amazing opening to the album.

02. FLOWER - O.O was all i could do when i first listened to it. It's so different from anything I feel we've had in an ayu album in so long. When I first read the lyric snippet of this song I really thought this was going to be a ballad. The continuation of the strings from Tasky is flawless. I'll admit the chorus threw me off a little, just because she did that little whine thing I first heard in Love Song and like Love Song it threw me off, but it's very quickly growing on me! This is a legit rock track, and this blows WARNING out of the water.

03. Mad World - I expected this to be the rock track from the title, but Ayu has further proved that THE TITLE OF THE SONG MEANS NOTHING lol, I love the piano in this song, it's so beautiful, This sounds very western 2000's to me, which I love so much. The chorus is simple, and beautiful. To sum it up Mad World may not be one of my favorite tracks on the album, but I won't skip it, like i did with 3/4 of A ONE.

04. Breakdown - Very pretty opening for me. This is the first ballad on the album. I was very surprised to see this title. I always expected this to be a more rock track like Mad World, but I do love it. Her medium Ballads, like this song, have always been some of my favorites. Although her mixed ballads: progress, Last minute ect, are my favorites. But this isn't a straight ballad so I am still able to enjoy it.

05. Survivor - My VERY FIRST thought of this song was: This is gonna be awesome! by the first few seconds then it became "WHAT THE EVER FUCK IS THIS SHIT?!" the chanting is so weird to me and I would personally prefer it not be there. I feel like it throws off the song like a lot. But the vocals are really great! I love the arrangement! I'm hearing "Fly away" and "Try again" which makes me really excited for the translation. To sum up, please dear god release a version of this song without the chanting. I feel like "we'll be right back with an awesome ayumi hamasaki track after this short commercial break"

06. You are the only one - The second ballad of the album, and the second longest track of the album. I do wish the other songs were longer, especially FLOWER. I would have been perfectly fine with a seven minute song for it. If i had to say I had a least favorite song on this album, it would probably be this one. It's just very bland to me, compared to the others. But I still don't skip it like I do. She sounds amazing, Her rise in octaves is flawless!

07. TODAY - This song is a little boring to me too. but it's still kind of cute. It's feels like a happy ballad to me, this is without reading the translation. It's very SEVEN DAYS WAR to me. I don't have much of an opinion about this song, but I do enjoy it.

08. Mr.Darling - I wasn't too fond of the title of the song, but I don't mind the song itself. It's very cutesy. I love the acoustic guitar, it sounds like this song could have been on Love songs. This song sounds very Michelle Branch to me most of the time. It's a very cute song.

09. Summer Love - After Summer diary I was expecting something more like that, I was not expecting an EDM track like Lelio but I was very excited! I have to admit the beat does actually sound VERY KPOP, but It's nice to have a legit SUMMER SONG like we use to have on her albums! I actually really enjoy this song. I know some people have compared this to Koda Kumi but I don't think that at all. I love this track and I think it's adorable!

I had the same thoughts about Survivor, lol. I still haven't made it through the track. It might be my least favorite track of hers ever. It's so embarrassing. I'm trying to be less of a hoarder with my music files cause I am drowning in them and this could be the first Ayu track I just completely rid from my files. Ironic that it's called survivor and it might actually be the one song I completely kill off from her entire discography.

[Tomoyo]

Originally Posted by Zeke.

I had the same thoughts about Survivor, lol. I still haven't made it through the track. It might be my least favorite track of hers ever. It's so embarrassing. I'm trying to be less of a hoarder with my music files cause I am drowning in them and this could be the first Ayu track I just completely rid from my files. Ironic that it's called survivor and it might actually be the one song I completely kill off from her entire discography.

I like it enough to not delete it. I have gotten through the song a few times to see if the chanting grows on me, but like the beginning of Winter diary, it's not gonna happen lol

[truehappiness]

Have we done a TA group order for an album before? Is it usually quite a lot of people?

[spanishfan]

Originally Posted by truehappiness

Have we done a TA group order for an album before? Is it usually quite a lot of people?

For Feel the love single and best live ayupan, misa-chan made it, but that was way cheaper than this Album TA-Version

[truehappiness]

I can see Survivor being super fun live tbh. a-nation staple here we come.

[truehappiness]

Yep, that's why I'm concerned. The Feel the love single I participated in but not the ayupan... however this is another story, lol.

[rainbow_smile]

Wasn't there also one for Colours?

[oaristos]

I can totally imagine Survivor having a really powerful performance!

[tokyoxjapanxfan]

The guitar solo in Mr. Darling is everything

I wish the ending wasn't cut off so quickly. Those little bubbly sounds are really nice lol.


The chanting in Survivor is really frustrating
I'd have loved it had they not been there. Or if it were Ayu's voice.

I loved the chanting in Hanabi 2, but in this song, meh. Though a video for it could be cool (if they had the budget lol)

[Tomoyo]

overall this album has been better to me than anything since Love songs that was the last time I got super excited for an ayumi album. Although I do love all of her music, A ONE was a bore to me and it's probably the album I listen to the least out of all of them, but this album exceeded what I was expecting. Although I do miss her 15-17 track albums.. i wish she would do a longer one, even if it took more time.

[Akutenshi]

Survivor is one of the freshest songs she's done in a long time and it's the most brilliant track on the album, hands-down. There's nothing embarrassing about it and it makes a ton of sense, melodically.

[truehappiness]

I can put up a thread gauging interest first... cause if it's quite a few copies, it will be a lot of money on a credit card, haha. Or maybe just here.

You know...

This album is like an amazing endless dessert buffet that you never have to leave. Plate after plate of pure pop confection, I love this~

[aliceshields]

I listened to tasky, and holy sh*t it made me goosebumps

[blackmage]

Originally Posted by aliceshields

I listened to tasky, and holy sh*t it made me goosebumps

Right? I felt the same way. tasky made me extremely excited for the rest of the album, in a nostalgic way it was reminiscent to how old Ayu albums made me feel when I would first listen to them, brought me into a world or atmosphere.. Ayu's vocals, the songs, the quality.. this album is great. I'm going to be obsessed with it for some time.

[4Seasons]

OP, I think the title should be edited as "M(A)DE IN JAPAN". I think that's the official title, really. Look at the avex website.

BTW, this is the first album since Party Queen where Ayu actually has a message to convey, right? She's making a statement about the modern era and life and rules. I suck at describing it, but I feel like she made this album with such a vision in mind. Colours (which I LOVE), A ONE, sixxxxxx and LOVE again were just music for the music. I feel like this is finally an album with a vision and a message again (reading the lyrics, and the music and everything).

I hope we get a great cover to tie it all together.

[truehappiness]

Originally Posted by 4Seasons

OP, I think the title should be edited as "M(A)DE IN JAPAN". I think that's the official title, really. Look at the avex website.

BTW, this is the first album since Party Queen where Ayu actually has a message to convey, right? She's making a statement about the modern era and life and rules. I suck at describing it, but I feel like she made this album with such a vision in mind. Colours (which I LOVE), A ONE, sixxxxxx and LOVE again were just music for the music. I feel like this is finally an album with a vision and a message again (reading the lyrics, and the music and everything).

I hope we get a great cover to tie it all together.

It's a little conflicting. MADE IN JAPAN is how we see it sometimes but other times we see M(A)DE IN JAPAN or the MDE IN JAPAN so I think it is simplest to just keep it MADE IN JAPAN since the tour is keeping it that way too, I think.

[4Seasons]

Originally Posted by truehappiness

It's a little conflicting. MADE IN JAPAN is how we see it sometimes but other times we see M(A)DE IN JAPAN or the MDE IN JAPAN so I think it is simplest to just keep it MADE IN JAPAN since the tour is keeping it that way too, I think.

Hmm how will we know in the end which one it officially is? Wait for iTunes or..? :/ Wrong tagging irks me haha.

[oaristos]

Originally Posted by 4Seasons

Hmm how will we know in the end which one it officially is? Wait for iTunes or..?

iTunes is not very reliable when it comes to Japanese music because they change the titles to the American English standard most of the time.

I'm gonna keep using the tag as MADE IN JAPAN because the parentheses make it look tacky. I just don't accept it

[Brett.Mason92]

Originally Posted by oaristos

iTunes is not very reliable when it comes to Japanese music because they change the titles to the American English standard most of the time.

I'm gonna keep using the tag as MADE IN JAPAN because the parentheses make it look tacky. I just don't accept it

Throw in your stan card and burn it


Kidding, I love how easy going members are and how welcoming many are too with this album release