Ayu: Anything Goes [XXIX]

[maxikot]

Happy 9th Anniversary Party Queen! Such an iconic album. When I got it last year it felt so good. It's just so unique and in a very good way.
Recently I subbed "Letter" so I'll just leave it here

[Evan Odinson]

Happy anniversary Party Queen! One of my favorites albums! it's on my top 5

[KPL]

I always thought that Party Queen as an album is the conceptually strongest among all her work. Unfortunately the vocal, mixing, and the arrangement for the titular track were a mess.

But the structure, the rawness of the entire rock ballad section unseen in her other albums, and the exploration of new genres, as well as the flow, makes it truly unique in a good way. This is the only album of hers where the tracks tell one story from beginning to end, in my opinion.

This period is also when her personal life news got a bit out of hand and causes major controversy. To me, in a way, the shattering of the strict separation between ayu the person and ayumi the product was quite avante garde

[tokyoxjapanxfan]

I still think PQ has terrible covers, but I was thinking how, IMO, they could have been infinitely better as textless, unedited (without the leopard print) shots.

Also, if they added a slight blur effect (like Fiona Apple’s Tidal album) it would’ve given that underlying message of not everything is as perfect as it seems. Perhaps this wouldn’t have worked for the actual images chosen, but from the same photo shoot.

Because the actual images are nice, in fact I love how Ayu looked during this era. It was the over editing that ruined them for me haha. I get what they were going for, but it feels a little too... on the nose, if that makes sense.


In terms of the music, it’s certainly grown on me over the years. But I still rank it towards the bottom of my list. But I do give it credit for being cohesive and conceptual.

[KittyKathy]

Party Queen. Her worst album ever. I'm trying to forget it exists.

[Andrenekoi]

For a while I didn't know if this or Love Songs was my favorite album from her... In the end of the day, Party Queen won the battle. Besides the whole concept, I really love how self aware she feels in the lyrics. For the first time as far as I remember this wasn't Ayu singing about how the world hurts her, but about how she can also be messed up and hurt others.

[!Lawi!]

^I still think Love songs is much stronger and refined (it's my favourite album of hers), but for me they've always worked so well together, like two acts of a long story!

Weirdly enough that's why I'm not too bothered by the poor mixing on Party Queen, it's part of its charm. Where Love songs was elevated and classy, Party Queen is almost like an experiment, much more raw and in a sense, real!

And the lyrics for the next LOVE are in my top 3 lyrics for her ever, so much sadness in that song!

[Andrenekoi]

^Love Songs still is strongly on the 2nd position of my ranking lol

[Ashen Twilight]

Originally Posted by !Lawi!

And the lyrics for the next LOVE are in my top 3 lyrics for her ever, so much sadness in that song!

Agreed! What are some other lyrics that stand out for you? For me, Ivy is right up there as well.

[maxikot]

"Reminds me", so dark and relatable. Then sth quite opposite that comes to my mind and it's Ohia ^^ A song to her child definitely stands out

[!Lawi!]

Originally Posted by Ashen Twilight

Agreed! What are some other lyrics that stand out for you? For me, Ivy is right up there as well.

So hard to make a list, she's had so many strong lyrics these past few years!

I actually never realised before trying to make a list that Party Queen resonated so well with me ahaha! I loved the lyrics to Tell me why, reminds me, the next LOVE and Eyes, Smoke, Magic (I know, you can be banned from the fandom just by mentioning this name but I love how crude and sad and critical the lyrics are), and even Party queen to an extent.

Ivy is definitely a strong contender on Love AGAIN, I thought SAKURA and petal were great too!

After that, NOW & 4EVA, NO FUTURE, Breakdown, just to name a few...

Walk actually made me cry, not the first time I listened to it, but the first time I listened to it with the translation.

[Toniayu123]

Party queen is one of my favorites albums from her, if not the most. Not so long ago I made a list of the number of songs I loved on all her albums, and Party Queen was the one with most tracks lol I find it really cohesive in every possible way. Musically is great, lyrically show us a really human Ayu I truly love, and visually I find it really different and attractive. I love the covers, I find them quite unique among her catalogue, but it really pisses me off the fact that they used this photoshoot that was initially made to be used on a book instead of the original Party Queen one. If only they used those pictures, it would have been her most beautiful cover ever, a perfect mixture between a beauty shoot and a concept, and awesomely done. I’m glad we got to see those pictures on the super Ayu photobook, but really, who had the idea to replace those shots for the ones used??

Completely unrelated but, I recently started appreciating aeternal?? What is happening to me right now?

[Aderianu]

So straight, so straight, always misunderstood
Nobody really understands you
But you try, you try
It’s ok even if you’re uncool
I like you just that way



Everyone has one or two things
Which they wish they could forget
But what they cannot forget
Is the pain of knowing that they cannot afford to forget




Others call it interesting and ridiculous
How we were together
No matter how understanding anyone looks
As they talk about us
Yes, the two of us cannot be understood by anyone else



Why do you always shoulder everything
On your own, suffering alone?
Why do you take all the blame for this
Saying it’s all your fault?



That thing which they call love
Just where can I find it?
What does it look like?
How much do I need to pay?
Hey, where did you buy it?




You don’t know
how beautiful you are

[pedronekoi]

The only thing I hate about Party queen is that it looks like she have only one arm on the cover.

[BlackSilence]

I posted snippets of a few Ayu songs. And um i'm not sure but, i think i got a curiosity sparked from my co-workers. Mind you i work in an alternative clothing online store. All them chicks are hardcore goths But Ayu has some dark rock tracks so....If they let me play the j-rock playlist at work, i might get some interesting audience tomorrow

[Evan Odinson]

Originally Posted by BlackSilence

I posted snippets of a few Ayu songs. And um i'm not sure but, i think i got a curiosity sparked from my co-workers. Mind you i work in an alternative clothing online store. All them chicks are hardcore goths But Ayu has some dark rock tracks so....If they let me play the j-rock playlist at work, i might get some interesting audience tomorrow

Sounds great, let us know their reaction if they let you play that playlist!

[summerain]

Originally Posted by !Lawi!

Weirdly enough that's why I'm not too bothered by the poor mixing on Party Queen, it's part of its charm. Where Love songs was elevated and classy, Party Queen is almost like an experiment, much more raw and in a sense, real!

That's what I like in title track arrangement. It feels empty and messy, something the atmosphere of the song requires. There is something wrong with that "rose-coloured and golden" world and that awkwardness was translated into the sound of those first three songs (also, I really enjoy the arrangement of Shake it, it's very different and aggressive) very well.

Love Songs is my favorite album ever from her, but Party Queen is my second favorite. I think Love Songs-Party Queen-LOVE again trilogy is my favourite part of Ayu's entire career, the time she was most bold and tried to do stuff that wasn't necessarily beautiful or "enjoyable" for everyone and conveyed her feelings with sincerity (sometimes it was too painful, like Party Queen most confessional tracks, but really brave at the same time).

Originally Posted by Toniayu123

Party queen is one of my favorites albums from her, if not the most. Not so long ago I made a list of the number of songs I loved on all her albums, and Party Queen was the one with most tracks lol I find it really cohesive in every possible way. Musically is great, lyrically show us a really human Ayu I truly love, and visually I find it really different and attractive. I love the covers, I find them quite unique among her catalogue, but it really pisses me off the fact that they used this photoshoot that was initially made to be used on a book instead of the original Party Queen one. If only they used those pictures, it would have been her most beautiful cover ever, a perfect mixture between a beauty shoot and a concept, and awesomely done. I’m glad we got to see those pictures on the super Ayu photobook, but really, who had the idea to replace those shots for the ones used??

Completely unrelated but, I recently started appreciating aeternal?? What is happening to me right now?

The original photoshoot for Party Queen is so beautiful and well done, but it doesn't click with the spirit and atmosphere of the album. Those pictures are the expression of opulence and shows some loneliness of it, but Party Queen is all about decadence. The actual photobook translates pretty well the rawness and messiness of the album. It makes you uncomfortable, like some paparazzi shoots that invades someone's privacy.

[!Lawi!]

^YES! I love the 'fakeness' behind the apparently bubbly atmosphere of Party queen (the song)! She obviously made it even more obvious (maybe a bit too on the nose) with the 'I am a lonely queen' lines she added in one of the concerts, but even in the original album the idea is clearly there, that line being in NaNaNa.

I think you may have finally reconciled me with the loss of the original photoshoot
I like that explanation, that the cover is intended to be uncomfortable too!

I guess I never saw Love AGAIN as part of the trilogy but it makes sense. I've always found Love AGAIN unintentionally sad because it sounded like she was trying to replicate an album/a relationship. I probably don't love it as much as the other two but it was so exciting to have another trilogy of clips, and there are a lot of good tracks on there too!

[summerain]

Originally Posted by !Lawi!

^YES! I love the 'fakeness' behind the apparently bubbly atmosphere of Party queen (the song)! She obviously made it even more obvious (maybe a bit too on the nose) with the 'I am a lonely queen' lines she added in one of the concerts, but even in the original album the idea is clearly there, that line being in NaNaNa.

I think you may have finally reconciled me with the loss of the original photoshoot
I like that explanation, that the cover is intended to be uncomfortable too!

I guess I never saw Love AGAIN as part of the trilogy but it makes sense. I've always found Love AGAIN unintentionally sad because it sounded like she was trying to replicate an album/a relationship. I probably don't love it as much as the other two but it was so exciting to have another trilogy of clips, and there are a lot of good tracks on there too!

Of course she didn't planned those three albums like a trilogy, but it fits so well as a narrative and I love to interpret this way.

For me, Love Songs is Ayu reflecting about all the types of relationship (romantic, with music and career, her mother, her fans) in a dream-like perspective, while Party Queen is the decadence of love (including self love). She uses party and alcohol to escape from the cruel reality of loss, but then she faces the ugly truth, reflects about her flaws, think about a cynical point of view of love (the next LOVE), a child's point of view of a disfunctional family core (Eyes, Smoke, Magic) that could explain this cynicism about love and finally gives herself forgiveness (how beautiful you are, that is a love letter, maybe to herself and for us fans at the same time).

LOVE again closes the trilogy bringing a more mature take of love, not cynical like Party Queen, not over-romanticized or idealized like Love Songs, but more down-to-earth love. She's looking at the past and allowing herself to love again (and that's why I like You & Me closing the narrative, because it's a song about a love from the past, with good and sad memories, but she's choosing to keep the good ones with her).

Other cool thing about it: the album starts with Wake me up and ends with Ivy-You & Me. LOVE again's photo book starts with her in the bed, waking up, continues showing her rolling over the bed and it finishes with Ayu leaving the bedroom (like Sweet scar PV, when she leaves the allegedly comfort of her house and go outside without looking back), maybe signaling she's ready to live her life fully once again.

Oh, if I'm not wrong, during "Party Queen" promotion, she did some interviews and people was asking her why the album was called Party Queen and she said is her "position" on society and that's how she's perceived by the people. However, some people was not getting the point of the loneliness of the "party queen" role and that's why she was more "on the nose" — which I generally don't like when artists in general do, but damn, that break is so good at the tour! haha

[tokyoxjapanxfan]

The funny thing about party queen though is... no one really perceived Ayu in that way? (A crazy partier that is.)
Drama queen would have been a more apt title in reference to how she’s perceived. I mean based on her social media presence it doesn’t even look like Ayu has friends outside her colleagues lol. Not that that’s an issue, but I mean, it’s not like she was Britney of Paris or Lindsay-level party girl.

If she made it like a character or alter ego a la Madonna’s Erotica album or Sasha Fierce I wonder if I’d have been more interested in it lol.