I LOVED YESTERDAY was YUI’s 3rd studio album. It was released on April 9, 2008 and reached number 1 on the charts with 285,407 copies sold. In all this album has sold over 353,350+ copies. This is YUI’s second number 1 album and her second album to be released in CD and CD+DVD editions. This album contains singles from My Generation / Understand to Namidairo. And none of the B-Sides were included on this album. There are a total of 10 new tracks, not including her first digital single.

Tracks:
1. Laugh away
2. My Generation
3. Find me
4. No way
5. Namidairo
6. Daydreamer
7. Love is all
8. I will love you
9. We will go
10. OH YEAH
11. My friend
12. LOVE & TRUTH
13. Am I wrong?

Review:
Laugh away, the up-beat digital release. This song was originally released as a digital single to promote the album, and from the looks of it it worked. The song starts off with a lovely little orchestra of violins followed by the guitar. The song itself is very up-beat and it’s quite happy. The verses are somewhat long, but they are sung so quickly. It’s the chorus that’s the best. It’s fast paced and very catchy.
You can’t help but want to sing, especially during the lines with the English. Yet again the acoustic guitar plays a role in this song, and a good one at that. The verse right before the chorus features a little English, so that’s a nice addition, it really sets the mood. The final chorus here was great, but it’s the last verse that’s really the best, it’s short, simple, and to the point. What a dynamic way to begin the album.

My Generation, the up-beat English inspired track. I was so happy to see this song on the album, especially after it took a long time for her to release some good singles. This song features the guitar, acoustic guitar, and drums. The verses seem long, but take hardly anytime to sing. The choruses are fast, up-beat, and so addictive. With that guitar playing in the chorus and the frequent use of English this song is easily the best song released as a single, and one of the best tracks on the album.

Find me, the first actual new song. The song begins with that familiar acoustic guitar playing, and YUI begins to sing shortly afterwards. YUI’s vocals seem soft in here, and yet they still sound great, especially with the soft music. But the chorus comes and YUI’s voice begins to sound a little more powerful. Here the music is a little faster and it features some background vocals. And the guitar playing at the end is a real treat. From there on it just repeats.

No way, the short aggressive rock tune. The song opens up with a small acoustic guitar playing followed by an aggressive guitar solo. When YUI begins to sing she sounds almost angry at a few points. The chorus here is fast moving, catchy, and backed by that familiar guitar. The little English at the end is a nice touch, and then the song ends. Well I guess you could call it an interlude with some vocals. Unless the song was ment to be that short. Anyway, it’s not that bad, just too short.

Namidairo, the depressing yet lovely ballad. This song was released as the last single in the era, and thus ended the era. It features primarily acoustic music with some beautiful violins playing. The chorus sounds so sad and the lyrics are so lifting almost. This is an improvement from her other ballads, but it’s not that the best. But, she’s improving which is the most important thing.

Daydreamer, the rock spirit. The song begins with a somewhat fast electric guitar solo. The vocals here move fast along with the music. The verses are sung in a quick manner, and with some great vocals. The chorus is so fast, and with the guitar is sounds even better. It’s also very addictive, especially with the little English, and with a guitar solo at the end. I really did like how it sounded so great, with the rock elements rather than the acoustic guitar.

Love is all, the high guitar tune. A slow guitar solo opens the song, followed by steady drum beats. Then YUI begins to sing the first verse, which sounds kind of boring and dull to be honest with you. It’s when she sings the chorus that her vocals sound better, they’re higher and seem to carry more emotion. The chorus sounds pretty good, it’s not that catchy, but again it’s the vocals that really make it. This song is all right but at this point it seems so repetitive and it’s starting to lose that “wow” factor. But it did have a great guitar solo, even though it seemed short.

I will love you, the steady rock song. The song begins with some drum beats followed by the guitar slowly playing. The song itself is very slow paced in a sense, either that or mid-tempo. The verses seem to pass by so quickly. The chorus sounds nice with great vocals, lyrics, and with the guitar playing constantly. YUI’s vocals here seem monotone at a few points, and it’s getting annoying. I think the only thing saving the song is YUI’s vocals and the lyrics, the music just isn’t that great. It could’ve been a better song.

We will go, the fast guitar powered track. The guitars and drums open up the song followed by YUI singing. The drum beats are pretty catchy, which is a good thing for the chorus and the verses. The chorus sounds OK, but it’s not that spectacular, I’ve heard so much better. The vocals sound great, despite how the music is. But sometimes it seems that YUI’s voice is being drowned out by the guitar and drums, so that gets irritating very quickly. But despite the fact that this is one of the shortest songs on the album, I wanted it to end quickly. Not her best work that’s for sure.

OH YEAH, the hustling and bustling rock song. This rather up-beat song begins with the guitar playing followed by YUI’s vocals. Compared to her previous songs on this album, I actually like this one. It seems different from all of her other tracks. The guitars and the drums don’t get annoying here, which is a great plus. The verses move so fast, but not as fast as the chorus. The chorus moves fast, and so do the vocals, it’s catchy in a way, especially with the ad-libbing. And with the little English it gives the song a little push. Who knew that YUI’s vocals could sound so innocent and cute?

My friend, the acoustic backed ballad. This song begins with some very lovely but sad violins playing followed by the acoustic guitar. The vocals here seem so calm and so nice. The chorus here sounds so amazing, much better than any other ballad. It’s even a little catchy, the violins give it that ballad feel and with the acoustic guitar it makes it even better. The verses are beautiful too, and they seem to go by so fast. Words really can’t describe this song, you need to listen for yourself. It’s one of her best ballads that I’ve heard.

LOVE & TRUTH, the depressing and heartfelt ballad. This was released as the second single in this era. I personally didn’t like this song that much. The vocals sound nice, but it’s just the overall music. I like the climax before the chorus, and the vocals but like I said it was just the music that really killed it. But, everyone is entitled to their opinion. I just think that this could’ve been better.

Am I wrong? the mid-tempo acoustic song. The sounds of an acoustic guitar song open up the song, along with some drums. YUI’s vocals here are pleasant and she sings the first verses so well. The chorus seems pretty catchy, to a point. The instrumentals here are superb in every sense, and it sound so full of life I you can believe it. I think that the song is good, but it seems so repetitive like all of the other rock songs. It was still a great way to end her newest studio album.

Overall Review: I LOVED YESTERDAY was acoustic magic. I loved a few tracks on the album, but then others just bored me. The album seemed very lackluster and repetitive at most points, because all of the music felt the same, not all really but most. Using the same instrumentals and format doesn’t help the album that much. The album began so great, but just flat-lined at the end. I was hoping for a lot more than this but what can you do. YUI needs a bit of variety in my opinion.

Final Grade: 87B