NEXT LEVEL album tracks now available on dwango.jp! (interludes revealed)

[Lady_Eowyn]

Originally Posted by maikaru

Her sounds have never matched the trends. (Maybe A Song for XX album...)

Thats why people like her albums.
As much as I like the songs now, I feel a different feeling from the Ayu songs now.
I like her old songs much more, especially for her voice.
I like her old voice, like high pitch voice, much better..
I also like her lyrics from the old better.. they are more vulnerable, and more sad.. I like that one better. ahaha

Of course, everyone thinks differently.
The people who are old fans are old fans because they enjoyed the old Ayu.
If some of them dont like the new Ayu, you cannot blame them, because they liked the old Ayu, and fell in love with that one, and didn't expect the changes in her.

Of course, the new ones will think that the new songs are great because they fell in love with the new songs, and if they dont like the old songs, then its acceptable to, because they didnt fall in love with the old songs, but the new songs. The new powerful Ayu appeals to them more, not the sad and solitary one. I understand.

I am glad she doesnt do urban thing..

Amen!

That is one of the reasons i like her. She does what she likes and may be she is not the best selling artist in Japan, but she is still manages to be succesful unlike other artists that simply imitate and do whatever is "in vogue" ... i see so many u.s. artists totally chained to that horrible urban/r&b/pop sound in order to be super succesful.. which sucks b-a-l-l-s sooo much

She is very lucky because she does anything she wants and still it will sell.

If she did the urban thing I think I'd puke and die of embarrassment. Lol.

Me too hahahaha.... but that won't happen

Electro-pop is quite popular in Japan now with bands like Perfume and a couple of other artists I think that Ayu is just trying to use some of more up-to-date ideas and refresh her music, even though I am sure (obviously) that she will keep making her rock music that many of us love.

Totally agree with you. Especially the rock thing

[ComatoseBunnySnatcher]

I'm so glad she turned back to pop!

I was getting sick of her so-called "RAWK MUZIKX". Things like Rule are fine, but after GUILTY being probably her darkest and heaviest album, this was needed alot!

[Evolution7/4]

^But its not just pop. Very experimental ala Loveppears, i Am... and rainbow, even though the sound may not be exactly like those.

[ComatoseBunnySnatcher]

Originally Posted by Evolution7/4

^But its not just pop. Very experimental ala Loveppears, i Am... and rainbow, even though the sound may not be exactly like those.

I hope it's like RAINBOW, because that album has exelent quality as a whole and flows great. I changed my mind and might probably buy the CD verswion (which is LOVE!)

[Tony G]

No offence, but saying that "techno pop" (which should actually be electro pop, there is no such thing as techno pop) is not popular is really, really stupid. Electropop is pretty much popular everywhere now, especially with guitars which Ayu has utilised in Sparkle. It's about time Ayu made a song like Sparkle, because it's way too good. Have a look around and see how many pop songs you hear have A)keyboards and B)guitars mixed with a pop vibe. It's everywhere now.

But instead of just following a trend, ayu has taken it and made an epic song like Sparkle, something totally different to what I've heard from other artists and from what she's done.

[Evolution7/4]

^me too. rainbow is very very ethereal sounding, mixing trip hop, electronica, dance/trance, and some rock.

[maikaru]

And I have to say..

To those people who think electro-pop-rock is not in seasons..
KAT-TUN's latest single RESCUE.. is that kind of style...
So I dont know what people are talking about. ahaha

Rescue reminds me of Sparkle~

[jbrat2219]

Originally Posted by maikaru

And I have to say..

To those people who think electro-pop-rock is not in seasons..
KAT-TUN's latest single RESCUE.. is that kind of style...
So I dont know what people are talking about. ahaha

Rescue reminds me of Sparkle~

Omg I just heard the song xD!

It doesn't remind me of Sparkle! But the "I don't wanna cry alone" part is catchy... (And here I thought KAT-TUN couldn't make a song I liked!)

I mean even Ayu's going with the flow of the electropop phase, she always adds a bit of herself in her music that makes it her own. I can't really think of another artist who could do Sparkle as well really...

Not to mention, the entire album is NOT electropop (from what I hear) it sounds like this album is mixed with a lot of other genres but just happens to have a few electropop tracks in it. I don't think that's anything to get your undies in a bunch over.

[SunshineSlayer]

Originally Posted by Uemarasan

Scratch what I said. Eurodance/euro-pop/eurobeat peaked in Japan in the mid to late 90s, and maybe a bit of 2000-2001. I forgot about Super Monkeys. But the early 90s were definitely NOT euro-pop. Maybe shibuya-kei. Euro-pop hit its stride when the Para Para game came out, Avex capitalized on the upcoming trend, and club-going entered the mainstream.

And see I disagree. Parapara may have been a popular underground trend, but there weren't a lot of big selling parapara albums in comparison to other genres. The mid 90s were definitely THE time for euro-pop. By the time LOVEppears came out, the trend then actually was R&B (with singers like Utada, Kuraki, and MISIA being huge). So actually when LOVEppears came out, it was going against the trend. Whereas now, Next Level is going with the trend.

The only case of R&B music selling well these days is EXILE and I think their sales have more to do with them being a boyband than it does with them doing R&B. Lord knows there are a ton of R&B style artists in Japan that don't sell hardly at all.

Originally Posted by Uemarasan

For instance: Whatever and Sparkle. They don't sound alike exactly, but structurally they are very close and share a lot of musical elements. Next Level (the track) has the upbeat, driving sound of Trauma, Too Late, and Immature, Rule has the heavy bass of PSII and monochrome, Green has the Asian sound of End Roll, and Days is in the same league as Love refrain and Who. The one distinct element in LOVEppears (the relentless, restless techno-like pacing) is apparent in all the Next Level tracks available so far, even Days. But again, it's all subjective.

I totally don't think any of those sound anything like each other.

[jbrat2219]

Originally Posted by maikaru

And I have to say..

To those people who think electro-pop-rock is not in seasons..
KAT-TUN's latest single RESCUE.. is that kind of style...
So I dont know what people are talking about. ahaha

Rescue reminds me of Sparkle~

Omg I just heard the song xD!

It doesn't remind me of Sparkle! But the "I don't wanna cry alone" part is catchy... (And here I thought KAT-TUN couldn't make a song I liked!)

I mean even Ayu's going with the flow of the electropop phase, she always adds a bit of herself in her music that makes it her own. I can't really think of another artist who could do Sparkle as well really...

Not to mention, the entire album is NOT electropop (from what I hear) it sounds like this album is mixed with a lot of other genres but just happens to have a few electropop tracks in it. I don't think that's anything to get your undies in a bunch over.

[danielquasar]

Originally Posted by tokyoxjapanxfan

^um, actually, you do still here about seasons and m, especially if you're at karaoke. and especially if you ask casual ayu fans what they're favorite songs are. they're usually not going to say any new ones. i still enjoy them, but they aren't the same...SEASONS was/is an amazing song that obviously struck a chord with the Japanese public that her recent singles haven't been doing. *shrug*

i'm worried for this album now... but i'm amazed that people already cancelled their orders without even hearing the songs in full, that's amazing that without even hearing the songs you've decided that you don't like it.

They have cancelled because apparently having 4 interludes is a deal breaker.

I swear the more I read these kinds of threads the more I'm SICK of jpop fans. They seem like spoiled brats more so than fans.

Ayu can do whatever she wants with her music. It is HER artform. Yes fans buy it but it is hers in the end.

Fans complain about not having a full albums worth of new songs, yet they buy the singles? If this was american music style and the singles released AFTER the album than they'd have what they wanted BUT this is japan. They release singles first and about 6-10 new tracks on the album.

SERIOUSLY, quit *****ing. If you don't want to pay $30 bucks for 6 more full songs than dl it here and quit ****ing complaining.

And don't say you support Ayu by buying it because if you really were supporting her than you wouldn't *****.

Sorry I had to rant. I'm having a bipolar moment. LOL And this isn't directed at you, tokyoxjapanxfan

[mangoo_x3]

WOW AYU! WOW!

4 interludes? That is so STUPID! I rather have the album take longer to release to have more songs than having FOUR INTERLUDES!!!!!

Ayu is probably the only artist I know that has more than 2 interludes. STOP WITH THEM UGHHH!

And don't say you support Ayu by buying it because if you really were supporting her than you wouldn't *****.

We are fans. What are we suspose to do? Praise her on everything she does? If we praise her on everything she does? I'm pretty sure everyone has their opinions on this and we should speak out about it, I am pretty sure Ayu would like to hear our honest opinons. People canceled their orders because they think it is not worth it. We buy singles to support her but its not like all of Ayu's fans buy every single single, just the good ones (the ones we like).

[SunshineSlayer]

Originally Posted by maikaru

Her sounds have never matched the trends.
(Maybe A Song for XX album...)

Thats why people like her albums.
As much as I like the songs now, I feel a different feeling from the Ayu songs now.
I like her old songs much more, especially for her voice.
I like her old voice, like high pitch voice, much better..
I also like her lyrics from the old better.. they are more vulnerable, and more sad.. I like that one better. ahaha

I would say that even a Song For Xx wasn't following the trend either. At that time there was still the remnants of Europop and then also R&B was begining to become big, but A Song For Xx really wasn't either.

Now that I think about it, I agree that I don't really think any of her past albums went along with what the current musical trend was except for seemingly this one.

Originally Posted by maikaru

Of course, the new ones will think that the new songs are great because they fell in love with the new songs, and if they dont like the old songs, then its acceptable to, because they didnt fall in love with the old songs, but the new songs. The new powerful Ayu appeals to them more, not the sad and solitary one. I understand.

For me, I was a new fan sometime in 2004, so I actually wasn't there for all her really big hits like Seasons, Boys and Girls etc etc., but I still hear them and think that they are superior even to the songs that came out when I was just starting to be a fan (Moments, inspire, carols etc). So at least for me, I actually do think that those songs from the past are simply better. Luckily though, so far Ayu hasn't released anything that I hate - just maybe a few I dislike. But at least the majority ranges from like to love for me.

Originally Posted by Coelacanth

Especially since the Japanese seem to finally be catching up with Western music trends.

Is that really a good thing though? imo, its not.

[danielquasar]

Originally Posted by waterballoon

All right! Let's do some math shall we?

A Song For xx:
Hana
FRIEND II
Wishing
As if...
POWDER SNOW
SIGNAL
from your letter
Present

Total NEW album tracks: 8

LOVEppears:
Fly high (re-cut single later)
And Then
PS II
LOVE ~refrain~ (which was like a remix of LOVE~Destiny~)
Who...
kanariya (re-cut later)

Total NEW album tracks: 6, 5 if you exclude LOVE ~refrain~

Duty:
Duty
End of the World
SCAR
AUDIENCE (re-cut single later)
teddy bear
Key ~eternal tie ver.~
girlish

Total NEW album tracks: 7

I am...:
I am...
Connected
Naturally
still alone
Daybreak (re-cut single later)
no more words
Endless sorrow ~gone with the wind ver.~ (remix of Endless sorrow)
flower garden

Total NEW album tracks: 8, 7 if you exclude Endless sorrow ~gone with the wind ver.~

RAINBOW:
WE WISH
Real me
Heartplace
Over
everywhere nowhere
Dolls
Close to you
+

Total NEW album tracks: 8

Memorial address:
ANGEL'S SONG
Because of you
Memorial address

Total NEW album tracks: 3 (but this is a mini-album so whatever)

MY STORY:
About You
my name's WOMEN
Liar
HOPE or PAIN
HAPPY ENDING
walking proud
HONEY
Replace
winding road
Humming 7/4

Total NEW album tracks: 10

(miss)understood:
Ladies Night
(miss)understood
In The Corner
criminal
Beautiful Day
rainy day

Total NEW album tracks: 6

Secret:
until that Day...
1 LOVE
It was
JEWEL
momentum
kiss o' kill
Secret

Total NEW album tracks: 7

GUILTY:
(don't) Leave me alone
GUILTY
Marionette
MY ALL
untitled ~for her~

Total NEW album tracks: 5 (Together When... excluded cos it WAS released before the album)

So, we can see that her album tracks have usually been ranging from 6-8... NEXT LEVEL has 6 new album tracks, so I hope that whoever who's feeling ripped out or pissed of the 4 interludes to please calm down and at least wait for some preview to decide if you want to cancel your pre-order!

On the topic of her 'classics', when she performed Mirrorcle World and SURREAL at some TV live last year, you can see that the audience, including the hosts were all singing along to SURREAL. I know SURREAL is a classic, and I can't deny that A LOT of her older songs are true classics.

I respect her work ever since 1998, and songs like SEASONS and M are really gems of her career. However, I don't think it's right to keep using these 'classics' as a yardstick to judge her newer work.

For example, SunshineSlayer (I'm not picking on you, just that you made a lot of good points here. ), said she LIKES Days, while still liking the past classics. So of course, it means her newer songs still have an appeal.

To a fan of Ayu who say started in the Secret era, it's obvious that the newer songs would be more appealing to them. I'm an Ayu fan since like Secret, but I discovered NOT through the new songs, but through ourselves actually (well if ourselves is not considered an older song, then never mind)... and before I came to this forum, my iTunes was filled with songs like:

Trauma
YOU
evolution
M

Yeah you get the gist. Old songs. Her older songs are awesome, but it's not fair to think that her newer songs "lack in quality" or whatever just because they are being compared to the Classics. IMO, evolution can NEVER EVER be replaced, because it sounds so damn unique and yeah SPECIAL! So I don't bother hearing to new songs and trying to compare them to her older works and thinking she has gotten worse or something.

I think for NEXT LEVEL, all these new things (EnergizE sound like a mesh of HONEY & ANGEL'S SONG; cool by the way, Curtain call being a 'gospel ballad', Sparkle's "shallow/thoughtless" lyrics)... are really new things she's trying. She has already mentioned that she's taking lyrics, music style and all that to a NEXT LEVEL in the official site, so I suppose when listening to the previews, we should be "prepared" for like something new/fresh/different? Hahaha.

Ayu is the one singer (besides Madonna IMO) who constantly re-invents herself. She doesn't it every album ala Madonna, but at least she changes things up. I would be yawning if NEXT LEVEL contains songs that are similar to M and SEASONS and what have you. The fact that she's changing and all that... I think it's quite cool.

Sure, the new songs MAY not be as good as the older works, but I don't know what to expect either. I think if I were Ayu, I wouldn't be able to produce songs half as good as evolution (lol). So yeah... we should still be grateful; the fact that she's already deaf in her left ear... going to LA frequently (suffering from jet lags and all that even)... and still working hard for an album!

Since we can't do anything anymore to change anything, why not just sit back, and take a listen to the previews (when they are leaked)? For one, Days is her best song to me (whether that is a biased opinion is uh... oh well) but I don't go thinking 'Days is the God, evolution suxxxxx!!!111'! It's unfair to her if anyone thinks like that.

What I'm saying, embrace change, especially for Ayu, since she's so apt at it.

And lastly, Ayu is the only artist who I've ever heard who had interludes in her albums, so embrace it.

---

Er anyone who has heard the previews, what kind of genre is LOVE n' HATE? Rock?

Haha As I read this post I felt like I was reading something I wrote. Me and you both came into liking Ayu the same way. Same start time and same song.

[JinHamasaki]

Okok, oldddddd fan here. I haven't listened to any of the previews but I am usually pleasantly surprised...

The very first song I heard was way back in 2000 and that was "Trauma". I remember seeing this artist - ayumi hamasaki - topple the charts with ayu-mi-x II Non-stop Mega Mix, ayu-mi-x II US+EU, ayu-mi-x II JPN, LOVEppears, AND a single (don't remember which one) while more poor Amuro-san was getting whipped out with GENIUS 2000 (it barely lasted long...)

And what did I think? I *HATED* Trauma. YUCK. Too high, weird music, and all in all - strange.

It wouldn't be until SURREAL, which totally captured me. I was hooked. I could play it *ALL* day long. It was like a roller coaster, ups, downs, highs, lows, fast, slow, turns, twists, the whole she bang. It was really innovative, interesting and *cool*. It's funny because this was Ayu's high point. I was spoiled with evolution's rush, Endless sorrow's sorrow, Dearest's love, I am...'s completeness, Free & Easy's drama, H was fun, RAINBOW was ethereal, Memorial address was short and sweet.

So does that put me as an "old" fan? It seems the old fans like pre-Memorial address era...MY STORY was all right. I really LOVED miss(understood), Secret was so exciting that I kicked myself to Tokyo just to see it in concert. Guilty, I'm not so sure about. Whereas I loved some of the songs (Marionette, Mirror, untitled ~for her~, (don't)Leave me alone, I barely play Guilty, MY ALL, fated, glitter. I do agree that there were a bit too many interludes (that I never really played more than a few times). Although I was a little disappointed to see 4 interludes on the most interesting titles (Load of the SHUGYO sounds like such a rockin' track, and disco-mmunication sounds awesome), I think Ayu still has an excellent taste level. Part of me inside thinks that Ayu was pushed to pump out an album before 3/31, which is the end of the fiscal year for businesses. Hence, she was whisked away to LA so she can really try to focus and pump out something quick.

I guess I will have to wait until the album comes out, but I feel like Ayu has always has had an electronic "vibe". No, it was never like "womanizer", "just dance", "when I grow up", but it had that "vibe". too late had a vocoder, tons of electricness, but it still had that stamp of "Ayu" that made it distinctive and unique. So I don't think Ayu is making songs to fit a trend, she is just making songs she enjoys and hopes you will like. Ayu is one of the few artists that will do what she likes!

Unfortunately, I have a hunch that a big part of Ayu's music went out when DAI/Ayu had that disagreement and stopped working together. I really wonder what was going on. Her best selling single in the past few years is BLUE BIRD - a DAI composition (although I don't think it's anything special...).

-edit: now I sort of remember what I was going at. I have to be honest and say that Ayu has a lost a little bit of her trademark. The Ayu "rock" -evolution, NEVER EVER, UNITE!, July 1st was really refreshing. Now it seems to have big bass, guitar riff, etc. Memorial address and Because of You were great when they came out because it was different at first. But then you hear GAME, talkin' 2 myself, Rule, decision, Life, 1LOVE (which I really adore), About You and they all kind of jumble up together...

Then you have the Ayu pop: glitter, BLUE BIRD, fairyland, MY ALL, HONEY, when before it was vogue, UNITE!, monochrome.

And ballads have been split into soft ballads (CAROLS, Days, Jewel, Together When...) , power winter ballad (No way to say, Days), when before you had something SEASONS and Dearest, romantic like Voyage, butterfly-in-your-stomach Who... She was really good at mixing a ballad melody with a contempory electronic, like in appears, PS II, M which REALLY set her apart from your typical Jpop female.

So has ayu overstreched and covered every genre? No, there's a way to keep a genre and make it fresh and anew, she's done it before. But now she seems to be stuck. I felt like this past year was her "break" but I think she needs to refocus by listening to music in the past and formulating something on her own. Namie did that with 60s70s80s and look at her now. (NOT saying that Ayu should take that route, though.)

[SunshineSlayer]

^ That's ok, it was a good post anyways!

[bluegie]

Well, sometimes I dunno what the goal of my post is as well. I wrote a lot in a message, and I got lost in the end of what I wanna say/confess. But as I read through your post I know what you're talking about.

I didn't really like LOVEppears in the beginning. If my brother didn't buy the cd I would not be hooked on by ayu. I didn't really turn myself to be a real fan until the trilogy. I think that really was the time to see ayu climbing to the top of the hill. That was a really good time. Then Duty came out, something so different from LOVEppears (by that time I was already in love with La). It took me at least 2 months to hook up with Duty.

That really was the the moment when ayu trying different things. And I'm kinda glad that she is trying out something new at this moment... or maybe I should say she revisits her old self with a new twist. .

[Jwiz]

Hmmm i do hope Ayu will collaborate with DAI again because i love most of their works (especially when even CREA joins in)...

[(miss)understood]

I skip posts that look like essays. It's just too much to read. But I guess I agree with all of you. or whatever

[SURREAL__RAINBOW]

Originally Posted by Jwiz

Hmmm i do hope Ayu will collaborate with DAI again because i love most of their works (especially when even CREA joins in)...

same!!