Old Shadows Linger

★ Next Level-Ayumi Hamasaki

Date: Sunday, May 2, 2010 | Time: 5/02/2010 08:32:00 PM

Ayumi’s newest album after the unbelievably bad “Guilty”. It’s her “comeback” album, and so far reviews have been positive. I’ve tried listening to all of them but sometimes I just can’t find them. Oh, and I also don’t review instrumental tracks (well they are not composed by Ayumi anyway, and you pay to hear her SING, right? Not actually to listen to her band’s music/and her autotune voice). And take away all the filler interludes, and this album is really short.
PS: She looks UGLY in the album cover and Rule single cover. WHEN WE ALL KNOW HOW PRETTY SHE IS!
Track listing:
2. Next Level
4. Energize
5. Sparkle
6. Rollin'
7. Green
9. Identity
10. Rule
11. Love n Hate
13. Days
14. Curtain Call

Next Level has this catchy loop playing over and over again. This is a fairly standard pop track. The chorus sounds WEIRD. 2/5.
Energize has got beeps and lzer sound effects. Ayumi sings in "Jinglish". It sounds too much like a cheerleading cute song. 0.5/5
Sparkle starts out techno. Ayumi sounds very mysterious. Weird noises aside, the song bursts into energetic yellings. Very strong dance beat, something that Lady Gaga might do. Very noisy but kind of catchy. Not my style though, especially with the “no no no” at the end. 3/5
Rollin' starts out very electronic like Lady Gaga. Ayumi sings in Autotune. I hate this song. 0.5/5
Yes, Ayumi’s MOST FAMOUS SINGLE from this album (I’m ignoring Rule, which is ONLY famous because of the movie). Green is BEAUTIFUL, with ancient Chinese music in front--similar to alan's Sakura Modern, then Ayumi’s stronger than usual voice. The chorus is catchy and emotional. My favourite song!! 5/5
Identity starts off eerily haunting with piano. Then the electric guitar kicks in. Ayumi sounds annoying, not to mention weird with her “yeah yeah yeah”. This is another rock song, with Ayumi singing “ai ai ai”. It’s just average, with no hooks. 2/5
OMG, RULE!! I hate Dragonball Z by the way. I like the unconventional, “Just go do what you want” lyrics. Ayumi sounds really aggressive and attitude. It helps that it’s very catchy too. But the music is a bit weird, with whooshing sounds. This song has grown on me, but the weird loop and meh verses makes it only 4/5
Love n Hate starts out with a countdown. The music was an energetic loop in the background. Ayumi sounds sexy and mysterious. Quite catchy. 3/5
I got my hands on the acoustic orchestra version, YAY! The music is beautiful with piano and organ and drums. Ayumi sounds very gentle and soft. Days is a typical winter love song. Very predictable lyrics about how her world is better if he is there, LOL. It’s average, though. She’s done better ballads. 3/5
What a way to end this short album. I can't wait for the curtain call! Curtain Call is a piano ballad. The piano is non-exceptional, playing about 4 different chords in the background. This song is Boring with a capital B. 2/5
Overall: This album is about as worse as A Song For XX. I don't like the new direction Ayumi is going with electro sounds. If only she can make more music like Green. Thankfully this album is the prequel to something more noble (YES Rock n Roll Circus).
Average: 25/10=2.5
Recommended tracks: Green, Rule

Labels: music review

(my last hopes. )