Are fans not satisfied?

[elepop]

I think some people are taking everything way too seriously.

Some can't stop complaining about every single song. Okay, "B & D" is something new. Maybe you don't like it. But have you ever thought of Ayu? Maybe she LOVES that kind of song. Maybe she always thought of singing a song like that. Maybe she wanted, for once, to sing a song she likes instead of what the fans like. Maybe I'm completly wrong.

I don't know. I think some fans expect too much and are never satisfied with anything she makes...

[hiro]

Originally Posted by asongforXX

I think some people are taking everything way too seriously.

Some can't stop complaining about every single song. Okay, "B & D" is something new. Maybe you don't like it. But have you ever thought of Ayu? Maybe she LOVES that kind of song. Maybe she always thought of singing a song like that. Maybe she wanted, for once, to sing a song she likes instead of what the fans like. Maybe I'm completly wrong.

I don't know. I think some fans expect too much and are never satisfied with anything she makes...

What's wrong with complaining? hahahahah

[elepop]

Originally Posted by hiro

What's wrong with complaining? hahahahah

There's nothing wrong with complaining. But gees. If every fans can't even just accept the songs Ayu works so hard on and just complain about every little thing because it's not their taste and they're not satisfied, well she might as well just retire. It would be fun for her to only make music her fans like instead of music she likes. In mean, the woman can't please everybody. She has a life to you know.

[*Petit*]

I don't think it's right to criticize her for not always making "deep&meaningful" lyrics. To me, lyrics are supposed to either contrast or go along with the theme of the musical piece, if the music is fun and carefree, why are lyrics "bad" or "bland" if they reflect it. I always thought the lyrics for AUDIENCE were really good, because they reflected the mood of the song perfectly.

[hiro]

Originally Posted by asongforXX

There's nothing wrong with complaining. But gees. If every fans can't even just accept the songs Ayu works so hard on and just complain about every little thing because it's not their taste and they're not satisfied, well she might as well just retire. It would be fun for her to only make music her fans like instead of music she likes. In mean, the woman can't please everybody. She has a life to you know.

I don't feel i have to accept it just because Ayu worked on it. I don't think its logical to say you like a song based on the fact someone worked hard on it. You either like it or you don't. More effort doesn't mean better music.

[Vinylfantasy]

There's a big difference between being a fan and obsessively liking everything she releases. I still support her and her musical choices but I don't necessarily have to enjoy everything that comes out of her mouth....

[Rickumi]

Originally Posted by Vinylfantasy

There's a big difference between being a fan and obsessively liking everything she releases. I still support her and her musical choices but I don't necessarily have to enjoy everything that comes out of her mouth....

u said everything.

[PickleCookies]

I second Steven's post.

[Ayane]

I'm not dissapointed. I think it's good thing that she's exploring different types of music genres. I like it that she's still inventive and able to come up with new stuff because people will get tired of listening to the old ones again and again. I'm just dissapointed that she didn't compose lots of songs this year. I hope her new album will contain some CREA composition. Oh well, you can't please everybody.

[jerms]

I don't think this has been a terribly bad year for Ayu, even though I do think STEP you is as puke-worthy as Greatful days was.
But, I definitely don't like Ayu as much as I did in the I am... days, and it's not because she's "experimenting" or whatever, I think it's really just because her music is often boring now. How many of us REALLY want to hear another HAL arrangement??? I just wish her music didn't sound so perfect/polished/fake...Memorial address is SUCH an amazing song; her voice cracks, the background singers aren't autotuned, etc. If she did more songs like that, I'd be "satisfied". My dream Ayu album would have tasuku and Shingo Kobayashi doing all the arrangements, and Ayu doing all the lyric and music composing herself.
That being said, I'm excited for Bold & Delicious, even if it's only because it's something she hasn't done before.

On a side note, I love your Aimee Mann sig ImpactBreaker.

hahaha. greatful days > step you imo. 'memorial address' the album is my personal favorite despite it's lack of quantity (i wish moments was on it). . . . i could care less when it was released.

[Mad_Cactuar]

Well, now I'm satisfied with Bold And Delicious! She managed something different yet beautiful at the same time.. Lets wait for the lyrics and Pride's PV now..

[mui-gei-tal]

i'm not dissatisfied...her new singles don't "disappoint" me or what not.
i'm just glad that she is still here in the pretty pony~pretty pony~pretty pony~ music industry...
especially with neg. reports of how she is declining and all~
also, i like how she is exploring her music options. you may never know, maybe the next single, she'll start to rap and then do some major dance offs.

to conclude, i'm just glad the world still has ayu making music.

[ImpactBreaker]

evolusean, I agree with a lot of the things you mention about her changing. However, that's no excuse to say AUDIENCE is a tribute. The lyrics are cheap, be it a tribute or not (what if B&D is a tribute as well?), and it was ayu who wrote them, and she made it in the Duty era, a moment you even mentioned her lyrics were deeper.
And well, I'm looking at the bigger picture, I know that her songs have changed and that her lyrics in a way too, but I also know her past was not all made of gold, she has written cheap lyrics before (AUDIENCE), she has some old songs that aren't exactly masterpieces. She had her flaws in the past, some of them she improved, others not, she got other different flaws, and her style changed, for worse or for the better depending on fans tastes. But that's what she has always done, since ASFXX is completely different from LOVEppears and that one is completely different from Duty and so on.

And it makes sense -- how much can she have left to write about? She's done being lonely, being confused, being angry, being sad, being happy, being in love, being lost, being shy, being weak, being strong, and every combonation of those. In great depth, I might add, and detail.

A lot of her past lyrics could actually be quite confusing and with breaks, sometimes not even having a conclusion to it (I actually like that though). To me it sounds she's being a little more objective with her lyrics recently, I think I can get the messages more easily now. I'm not sure if that means her lyrics have cheapened, but I can say she still can make rather good lyrics. She doesn't only talk about happiness at the moment, About you is proof enough of it (there are several other new stuff as well). I also disagree that she has worn out everything she could talk about. All of the subjects you pointed out can be felt by the same person in several different situations and felt in several different ways. If I were to write down my feelings about personal experiences roughly to make songs, I would have material for thousands of lyrics, anybody has, but I don't have ayu's talent to write it down on paper the way she does. That's one of her real talents, to pick several things of her personal life and write it down into lyrics the way she does.

[jerms]

Her lyrics really are going down in meaning, though. And it makes sense -- how much can she have left to write about? She's done being lonely, being confused, being angry, being sad, being happy, being in love, being lost, being shy, being weak, being strong, and every combonation of those. In great depth, I might add, and detail. But "MY STORY" was very watery, it didn't dig quite so deep and wasn't as gritty. Of her singles since then, only "alterna" has really had powerful lyrics. "STEP you" has average J-pop lyrics; "is this LOVE?" is great, but a very different style for Ayu - it's kind of a story song more than any of her others; "fairyland" is sweet, and there's nothing really to attack about it - it sets a mood, more than expresses emotion, which is fine; "HEAVEN" ... I love the song, but I'm not so sure how genuine the lyrics are - I get the impression she wrote mostly from the film, rather than personal experience, or at least embellished her experience to meet the movie's story; "Will" has 2 good lines, really, and then just a lot of imagery.

since when was being depressed and mentally unstable the only way to be deep and meaningful? you can still have good lyrics that are happy. (although i agree, STEP you and bold/delicious are pretty lame imo). i wouldn't say things are exactly changing though; alterna was a masterpiece and real me was tacky. the order is random, it's not one thing or another.

[LEOyumi]

I'm really enjoying 2005 releases, B&D is wonderful for me. And yes, I love the lyrics, the video, everything about it. I'm really satisfied about her recent releases.

^ I think the lyrical depth is only an issue if people assume that Ayumi will always be "deep" in her songs. If there apparently isn't a meaning, then it would make Ayumi like the (unfairly) maligned artists who just do fun songs, and that's somewhat disappointing to some fans. This has nothing to do with the lyrics of Audience, it's just a general observation from mod-ing.

[*Petit*]

Originally Posted by devilayu

^ I think the lyrical depth is only an issue if people assume that Ayumi will always be "deep" in her songs. If there apparently isn't a meaning, then it would make Ayumi like the (unfairly) maligned artists who just do fun songs, and that's somewhat disappointing to some fans. This has nothing to do with the lyrics of Audience, it's just a general observation from mod-ing.

ANd just why they would assume such a thing remians an unanswered question, I mean, she's always had some carefree lyrics on each album.

[eriko]

i prefer the past ayu, with all her rock songs and maxi singles with lots of remix, her past looking was better i think too

my favourite song will stay "surreal"

[Piccolo]

It seems a lot of people are comparing her lyrics in the past and present and talking about the heavy changes in them. Personally, I read the lyrics for enjoyment and I find them interesting to analyze and what not, but when I listen to the song I do not particular pay attention to the meaning of the song, rather then the emotional effort put out in her voice. Instead of lyrics of which I'm suppose to understand, her voice becomes an instrument to me. When people say her songs are getting weaker and emptier, it kind of bothers me because I feel her singing has improved significantly, and her songwriting abilities have remained equally good. I enjoy her earlier voice, but I really do like her voice right now. I also like the direction of her new songs. I think she really does a good job on her newer pieces. I'd take fairyland and alterna over daybreak and dearest anyday of the week.

Like I said before, things like lyrics don't particularly affect me since I do not know japanese. I think I speak for a lot of people here when her vocals become an instrument as opposed to words we are suppose to understand. I also think that some of the meaning and emotions are lost through translations when they're put into english. So you can't say "these lyrics are cheap and meaningless" because perhaps we have missed something. Maybe it's just me, but I find a lot of her lyrics really odd, but not in a bad way. I feel most of her songs have many meanings, and are really open to debate and discussion of what they really mean based on the translations (masa, wataru) I have read.

If this doesn't make sense or lacks organization then I apologize, I'm just writing what I feel based on what I've read in this thread. I hope you all get what I'm saying though.

[*Petit*]

Originally Posted by Piccolo

Like I said before, things like lyrics don't particularly affect me since I do not know japanese. I think I speak for a lot of people here when her vocals become an instrument as opposed to words we are suppose to understand. I also think that some of the meaning and emotions are lost through translations when they're put into english. So you can't say "these lyrics are cheap and meaningless" because perhaps we have missed something. Maybe it's just me, but I find a lot of her lyrics really odd, but not in a bad way. I feel most of her songs have many meanings, and are really open to debate and discussion of what they really mean based on the translations (masa, wataru) I have read.

If this doesn't make sense or lacks organization then I apologize, I'm just writing what I feel based on what I've read in this thread. I hope you all get what I'm saying though.

I totally agree with you. And I think you make a lot of sense. Well put. =) It's really how I feel too, one of the things I find/found unique about ayu, how she sung when I first heard her songs gave me some impression of what the song was about (along with the arrangement and all that), and when I checked the lyrics.... They were almost always like the impression/feelings I had from listening. I really love ayu's ability to do that, I haven't ever heard any other singer that does is equally well.