Thoughts on GUILTY

[Tiina]

I really don't understand the whining about a cd that "only" has 14 songs and 10 real songs while 4 are interludes.. You ppl have been spoiled! In the western music industry very few artists push out albums with more than 12 songs, I guess the average is about 10. So be happy and enjoy the 4 "extra" songs.

As for my thoughts about GUILTY: I (don't) like it so much. I have to admit that I'm not a hc-badass-ayu-fan, but I like her music and I reckon this wasn't her best, not even close. Few good songs but some of them sound just like copies of her previous work (Together when.. and (don't) leave me alone for example). My fav song from Ayumi are upbeat and happy and going and GUILTY just isn't like that -sad and depressed songs are great but a whole album of that? Not for me. It's not bad.. It's just backround music, something to listen while I do schoolstuff etc. And I wouldn't really call GUILTY a rock album, IMHO it's closer to rock-ish pop.

[Huaka]

Well, I finally received the album from my boyfriend who came back from Japan earlier this week. After cutting myself off from listening to the leaked files and pvs I'm now finally able to listen to it! Yay! I'm going to review it as I go along.

1. Mirror: 10/10
Wow, this song has a very interesting marching band beat before it totally jumps into some hard rock. Great opener to get your attention.

2. (don't) Leave me alone: 9/10
So she's making synths and rock in this song, hmm? It seems to work for the most part as it flows pretty well but I wish it had a stronger chorus/hook. The acapella bit at the end was a bit random. Pretty good but just a few minor things would have made it better.

3. talkin' 2 myself: 9/10
Ah, I remember buying the single for this. I loved the rocking guitars and verses/choruses. The pv for it was pretty good too, but it needed something a bit more. Though I think I overplayed it too much so I got kind of tired of hearing it. Some parts sound a bit messy in areas.

4. decision 9/10
The other song on the single, I don't know why they put the two of them right next to each other, I already heard them on the single this way, and a different sequence might have been better. Still, this is a good song but it has the almost exact same melody/arrangement. I love the vocal bridge though, that part is always awesome to me.

5. GUILTY: 10/10
From the previews this was my favorite song and it didn't disappoint. The beginning reminded me of Mirror and it probably would have flowed better had it been placed next to it with (don't) Leave me alone being the song to break up talkin' 2 myself and decision. Still I love this song. I like how her voice sounds over the background music before the guitars break in. Awesome song, I love it so much!

6. fated: 6.5/10
I don't know what to say about this song because I really don't care for it. Her voice sounds rather dry and lackluster without that much emotion in it (well to me anyway). It tries to build itself to a grand climax but it just doesn't go anywhere and leaves you going, "What? That's it?" The ballad to put it mildly is kind of boring, and I liked its upbeat counterpart much better.

7. Together When...: 10/10
At first when I heard this ballad I didn't like it that much but after watching many lives and going through repeated listens I grew to love it and now it's one of my most played songs as of recent. The arrangement is a refreshing change from the norm and I love the emotion she puts in it.

8. Marionette -prelude-: 9.5/10
Heh, another one of those creepy interludes. I like it, gives me slight chills. Reminds me of, "The Picture of Dorian Gray," where the person receives a portrait of himself and wishes he didn't grow other but the picture did. So, whenever he does terrible things over the years it shows up on the portrait but not him, which come back to haunt him as things get worse and worse for the character until finally he goes nuts and slashes the painting. He falls back and starts bleeding, having stabbed himself and dies, while the portrait goes back to looking young. Haha. Reminds me of that. Kind of weird, huh? Wish it didn't have that upbeat sort of end, kind of messes with my image. LoL.

9. Marionette: 9/10
The prelude flows very nicely into this song. It's sort of slow with epic sounding choruses. It's actually pretty good but I liked the prelude slightly better than the song.

10. The Judgement Day: 8/10
This songs has some weird creepy sort of beginning reminds me a bit of the Phantom of the Opera, but then it jumps into a fast, upbeat dance track that I wasn't expecting. Awesome! but I wished she did more than just go lalala and that it was slightly longer. Oh well. Still a good interlude.

11. glitter: 7/10
This song is so happy and sugary that when it comes on you're like, "What the heck?!" Sort of disrupts the thematic flow that she had going on but after a while you sort of getting into it. I don't really care for the intrusive engrish she throws in here and there. It has its sort of appeal though as you get caught up in the chorus, but its previous predecessors were much better.

12. MY ALL: 10/10
A nice pop song that isn't littered with overt rock influences. I actually rather like this song, I had it stuck in my head from the countdown performance, and the real thing is just as good. It's a good happy song to calm you down after the in your face sugary-ness of glitter but still keep it on a up note. Very good.

13. reBIRTH: 7/10
Another interlude. It's kind of dry and serves no real purpose really but it's decent. There's nothing that stands out about this track to distinguish it from its predecessors from other albums, so it kind of brings down the album just a bit.

14. untitled ~for her~: 10/10
Oh, what a wonderful way to end this album. It's soft and simple with Ayu's beautiful vocals singing with emotion and sincerity. The lyrics were touching as well. It's not over-dramatic or trying to be something it's not. It is what it is and I love it for it. It's not a wonder why I cried to this song when she sang this live because it's an honest reflection of her feelings and you can't help but channel her pain.

Overall, this album was great. Much better than Secret, which I didn't care for much after all. I wished the glitter/fated single was never made as it brought the album down a lot but the rest of the songs more than made up for it.

Final Score: 8.5 ~ 9/10

[Mirai Noah]

I finally got my hands on my copy!!


1. Mirror: 9/10
I love the melody, but the marching band beat is kind of weird for me.

2. (don't) Leave me alone: 10/10
Love this one. Probably my favorite non single song.

3. talkin' 2 myself: 10/10
I love, love, this one. My favorite from the singles

4. decision 9/10
This one's great too, but I don't like that it's after talkin' 2 myself.

5. GUILTY: 8/10
I don't like the melody of the chorus that much (I like the people taking in the background though), but the rest of the song is good.

6. fated: 8/10
This song has to grow on me, but it's still enjoyable

7. Together When...: 9/10
Very emotional ballad... but the chorus' melody reminds me of another some of hers.

8. Marionette -prelude-: 9/10
Nice creepy prelude.

9. Marionette: 9/10
Very awesome. I like the dramatic epic sound of the chorus.

10. The Judgement Day: 9/10
Nice interlude!

11. glitter: 8/10
This song really, really had to grow on me. But now I like it.

12. MY ALL: 10/10
Love this one. It's a happy pop song.

13. reBIRTH: 9/10
I like the interlude. I thought that it was going to be a real song, before I checked the tracklisting.

14. untitled ~for her~: 10/10
I love the strings, and her emotion.

Overall, I love this album! I like it waaaaaaaay better than Secret.

Final Score: 9.07/10

[bondingo]

After finally listening to the entire thing, here's my opinion:

1. Mirror- 10/10: Probably her best album opener yet
2. (don't) leave me alone- 7.5/10: I like it but it still hasn't grown on me enough to love it
3. talkin' 2 myself- 10/10: I've loved this song since the first listen
4. decision- 8/10: Very good, but not quite as memorable as some of her other rock songs
5. GUILTY- 8/10: Also very good, but I don't totally love it
6. fated- 5.5/10: Still don't like it
7. Together When...- 9/10: Beautiful ballad
8. Marionette -Prelude-: 10/10 Very eerie interlude
9. Marionette- 10/10: I'm absolutely in love with this song
10. The Judgement Day- 7/10: Very interesting how it shifts from dark, like the track before, to peppy, like the subsequent one
11. glitter- 6/10: Mediocre, and very out of place pop song
12. MY ALL- 6/10: Also mediocre and almost too upbeat for the album
13. reBiRTH- 8/10 I feel like I've heard a million interludes like this, but it is nice
14. untitled~for her~- 8.5/10: Very pretty, reminds me of Key~eternal tie ver.~

Overall- 8/10 Certainly not her best, but it's still a good album. I still feel like there aren't enough new tracks though, especially when I don't like all of them.

[ayuzlove]

i was really lucky to get my hands on this album cos its the last in the shop and i nv regretted buying it!

1) Mirror - 8/10
very interesting music with a good twist. Though i dun really appreciate it well, but its still pretty nice.

2) (Don't) leave me alone - 9.5/10
very catchy music. Though its a bit repetitive, but it is this repetitive that makes this song even better! And ayumi looks really pretty in the pv

3) Talkin' To Myself - 9.5/10
Powerful song with powerful chorus! Awesome is the word!

4) Decision - 9.5/10
This song does not catch my attention initially, but after listening a couple of times, the chorus juz leaves a very deep impression in me! Great song!

5) Guilty - 8/10
Another song that i dun really appreciate, though its pretty unique.

6) Fated - 8.5/10
Pretty nice song, but does not really give me a strong impression.

7) Together When... - 9.8/10
After listening to this songs a few times, this song juz grows on me exponentially! A really sad song which makes me feel emotionally each time i listen..

8) Marionette -Prelude- - 9/10
Creepiness is the word! Links very well to Marionette!

9) Marionette - 9.8/10
Definitely the best song in the whole album. Powerful dark song with the perfect atmosphere..and the pv juz geatly enhance the awesomeness of this song!!

10) The Judgement Day - 8/10
Similar to Mirror.. the beginning part of the music sounds like Silent Hill cos of the metallic sounds...haha

11) Glitter - 9/10
Happy and cheerful song..but not as good as My All.

12) My All - 9.5/10
Very catchy song which makes me feel uplifted and happy! Fantastic!

13) Rebirth - 9/10
Though many people seem to hate this song, but i still think its a really good interlude! Very soothing and melodic, but is not as great as Kaleidoscope.

14) Untitled ~for her~ - 8.5/10
Cannot appreciate this song well enough...but nevertheless a nice song.

Overall - 8.97/10
An excellent album...but Duty is still a little bit better

[prussian blue]

i got a feeling that this album wont have much sales and after listening to its preview i really dont feel WOW... it just so simple... only some tracks impressed me...
the cover is nice but not the cd+dvd version... it just scary y'know? the expression of her face is horrible! but not the cd only version...
some tracks does impressed me like mirror, marionette~prelude~, marionette, MY ALL and untitled~for her~... the rest of the track are just ok... like (dont) leave me alone, talkin 2 myself, decision aren't very good enough...
i know rest of you lke these songs very much but not for me...
quite dissapoint with this album... the same feeling with DUTY...

[tinka69]

1. Mirror: 9/10
If I must say, a great way to start of the album. Love the synths she puts in the background.

2. (don't) Leave me alone: 9/10
I really like the way this song came out. The break down is good, and the hard beats after it make me feel a bit nostalgic. As if I was listening to an old led zeppelin song. >_< lol i have no idea where that came from. O.o

3. talkin' 2 myself: 4/10
I never really liked this song. Ayu tried to make it sound rock but failed miserably. Again. If she wants to make songs with guitars in it, she needs to do it right. Actually, my mistake, not her, the person who wrote the music...

4. decision: 6/10
Bit boring, but the bridge gets you into it, and then it grows on you a bit more each time.

5. GUILTY: 7/10
One of Ayu's best chorus arrangements in my opinion, but the rest is kind of boring.

6. fated: 8/10
I love fated. When the single came out I was a bit 'meh' but it's now one of those songs I can listen to repeatedly.

7. Together When...: 6/10
It's okay, i guess.

8. Marionette -prelude-: 7/10
When I first listened to this track, for a second, I thought I was playing Final Fantasy 9. Zidane and Garnett running around the ice cavern, but then the evil mage comes out and puts everyone to sleep...O.o ahh! creepy...

9. Marionette: 8/10
Sounded like it was going to be a great song, but then...the chorus happened. *flop* But then it started up again! And it was great! Until *flop* the chorus, and then the bridge! And I was so happy! and then the final chorus... *double flop*. eh.

10. The Judgement Day: 8/10
What can I say? Great prelude, good to see Ayu's experimenting.

11. glitter: 7/10
Even though it doesn't quite flow with the album, which doesn't really bother me that much because it's glitter, and glitter's so happy and...ahh it makes me feel all good inside! (that sounded really seedy...)

12. MY ALL: 7/10
Good song. But sounds like a Glitter b side or demo.

13. reBIRTH: 7/10
...final fantasy 8????!??

14. untitled ~for her~: 5/10
Song was boring, lyrics are another thing.