This post is somewhat of a filler post I guess, as I don’t feel like reviewing anything today really. But it is a little interesting. And after reading Stereo Love’s blog it made me want to do some post like this. So here it is:

What’s in an album title? This little article will focus on the title of albums, whether it come from a song on the album, or whether it’s just out of the blue; and also what it reveals about the title track and whether it was good or not. The real question however is is it pure driven emotion, just some title, spur of the moment, or perhaps some insight? But either way there’s a reason behind it, whether it’s obvious or not. Now for some artists, the album may come from their company, however absurd that might sound; but for some have more deeper, hidden reasons. But for now, we’ll review some basic reasons, and my thoughts.
First up is Hikki!

Heart Station - Utada Hikaru

Well we all know about this little gem, right? It was Hikki’s 5th Japanese studio album. But more importantly it was named after the song off a single of her previous single. And it’s a very good title. As the lyrics mention receiving frequencies of the heart, it gives the album a personal feel. However, I personally think she was trying to express her feelings threw the music, especially about the divorce with he ex. But I guess it also symbolizes a new beginning for Hikki. Anyway Hikki mentioned that Heart Station was a good name for the album because it was the overall feel. Either way it was a fitting name. And on a last small note, the song was fantastic and one of the best allusions.

Ultra Blue - Utada Hikaru

Originally released as her 4th Japanese studio albu,m this has been the only Japanese album to not the album name, full name, to come from an song. Anyway, to the title, i’m not sure whether it was actually from emotions or anything, but my guess it was named after her favorite color, which is BLUE, and the name of one of the songs. And when she was asked a question on what her favorite color was she said it was blue, and as for the ultra part, she said that blue sounded so lonely and it didn’t specify a blue, so she then added the ultra, and there you have it. As for the song BLUE, it was pretty good, sweet, and so simple.

Exodus - Utada Hikaru

Hikki’s first full English album, well once she reached stardom. But this album really gave Hikki a chance to express herself. As for the title, like Ultra Blue, it came from a song, or in this case it was a part of the song. In order to make the album, she moved to New York to record it. An exodus is moving from one area from another, often forced to for some reason. Now in her song, Exodus 04, she sings of moving from Tokyo to a new place, New York in real life. The point was this was journey for her in many ways, and it seems to have been successful. I’d like to say that the title wasn’t really just spur of the moment, it was emotional and nice too.

Time for Ayumi!

Secret - Ayumi Hamasaki

Here we have Ayumi Hamasaki’s 8th studio album. After only a few singles, two really, this once mini-album was turned studio album. Now this album is named after one of the last tracks on this album. I personally don’t think that the title track was that phenomenal but it was good, but the album was nothing short of genius. As for the title, well Ayumi stated that she wanted people to feel that they knew her better, like they knew her secret, which is very personal and lovely. I do think that it affected this album a little bit, especially with the first track, mentioning miracles and secrets. Overall, it was an attempt for her to become more well known with her fans, if that’s possible, but it was nice and very personal, go Ayumi!

Memorial address - Ayumi Hamasaki

Well, even though I said album, i think that this mini album would be a good example of what’s in an album title. This was Ayumi’s first mini-album under AVEX, and it’s a pretty darn good one at that. Anyway, this mini-album had a lot of dark inspired and sadder songs featured, most would be added to her latests A BEST 2 albums. But this album was really about how Ayumi was feeling about her father, who left her and her mother. And that’s really a lot of emotion was put into here, especially with forgiveness, Because of You, and finally Memorial address. And it was really moving and very emotion driven and very sad when you think about it. But the title did fit the album in this case.

GUILTY - Ayumi Hamasaki

Guilty was Ayumi’s latest studio album and her latest venture into music, really rock, but music will do. This album was very emotional, especially with the last song being, and considering the album was dedicated to a friend of hers. I have no clue whether or not Ayumi felt guilty, but that was the title track and one of the songs on the album. As for the song, i felt it lacked a lot, emotion, power, and climax, but it made you feel so sad and sorry. And that’s what you feel when you’re guilty, right? I did feel that this was one of her most powerful albums to date. This album was very heart wrenching and very sad once you when hear it all, and the lyrics. You might find yourself feeling a little Guilty with this album and it’s title. But the last track was really what defined the album, rather than the title track.

BoA is up!

THE FACE - BoA

BoA’s 6th Japanese studio album and and another no. 1 album. This album is really different compared to the previous albums above. I mean there was no title track here whatsoever. However, this was a little more expressive. The album contained many different types of genres of music, song wise. And it seemed to be a little more personal for BoA. But it was a chance to know the many faces of BoA, hence the title I think. It was pretty good, but I guess it was spur of the moment. Not much to add besides that.

That concludes this section of What’s In An Album Title??? Check back later for part 2!

YOU was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 2nd single. It was released on June 10, 1998 and reached number 20 on the charts with 12,340 copies sold. In all this single has sold over 78,260+ copies. This was the second single in the A Song For XX Era.

Tracks:
1. YOU
2. YOU (Acoustic Version)
3. YOU (Instrumental)

Review:
YOU, the original version. As most of you know earlier this year Ayumi released Mirrorcle World, and on it was a new version of YOU. Now I really loved that version of YOU as it was very mature sounding and rock influenced. But here we have the very first version of YOU. Some drums open up this original rendition of YOU, followed by some of lovely sounding instrument. Then Ayumi begins to sing, in some very nice little vocals, it’s amazing what a few years can do, and it’s a little high. The verses are okay, not really that exciting. The chorus was as phenomenal as ever, even though Ayumi’s vocals were high as ever. Although I must admit that I liked the newer version much better as her vocals matured, this was kind of a setback, but it’s been like 10 years. It’s still a nice song though,

YOU (Acoustic Version) the acoustic version. A piano and violin open up this version. Besides having no rock influences and being longer, this song is very ballad-like, rather than acoustic. The song was driven by the piano, rather than an acoustic guitar. This version seemed very dull compared to the original.

Overall Review: YOU was very immature to say the least. I did like the single, but after hearing the new version you almost loathe the original as Ayumi’s vocals were so high and little. This single just goes to show you how much an artist can change over the years. Still, this isn’t bad for a second single.

Final Grade:88B

Mirrorcle World was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 43rd physical single, 44th overall. It was released on April 8, 2008, exactly 10 years after her debut single “poker face” and reached number 1 on the charts with 149,797 copies sold. In all this single has sold over  166,295+ copies. This single is her first single since Bold & Delicious / Pride to not have the number 1 position on the daily charts for the entire first week, but it is currently the highest first week sales of a solo female artist. For the first two days, it had high sales and was number 1 but then dropped until the seventh day where it later reached number 1, and after the first few days of being number 2 it shot back up, the most logical theory is that her second Asia Tour helped the boost in sales. This is also marked as her 10th anniversary single, celebrating her 10th anniversary in the music industry. Because of this, two of her B-Sides were recorded, much like A BEST. This single came in 6 different editions. Two were Deluxe CD+DVD editions featuring YOU, and the other was with Depend on you. Another two were the CD+DVD editions featuring YOU or Depend on you. Finally a CD only edition featuring either YOU or Depend on you was released. But all editions featured the B-Side Life.

Tracks:
YOU Edition
1. Mirrorcle World
2. Life
3. YOU (10th Anniversary version)
4. Mirrorcle World (Instrumental)
5. Life (Instrumental)
6. YOU (10th Anniversary version-Instrumental-)

Depend on you Edition
1. Mirrorcle World
2. Life
3. Depend on you (10th Anniversary version)
4. Mirrorcle World (Instrumental)
5. Life (Instrumental)
6. Depend on you (10th Anniversary version-Instrumental-)

Review:
Mirrorcle World, the introduction turned full song. Mirrorcle World is the the full song created from GUILTY’s intro Mirror, whether or not Mirrocle World was first that has not been stated yet; but, it’s unlikely. Many people have expressed how they wanted her introductions to become full songs, this is the first song to do some. On the other hand, some people believe that this is somewhat of a re-cut single, with the exception of Life. The song opens up with an array of string instruments for almost a minute, although in that one minute the music manages to sound so sad. Shortly afterwards that dial-up internet connection noise begins along with that ominous carnival music. Ayumi then sings the first part of the song, mainly the original Mirror. The chorus follows next, and it sounds riveting. The guitar riffs and that rock & roll vibe comes into play. The lyrics mention if she imagined this future, or if she wished for it. Afterwards, the new part of the song begins followed by another chorus. This time the new chorus sounds even better, mostly because the little English in it and the bridge following it. The bridge is a mixture of guitar playing, yet it seems different, and some light mystical sounding music. Then Ayumi’s vocals become softer as she sings yet another verse followed by a mirror shattering, and then some all English words. By then though the rock aspect of the song has come into play. The original chorus then follows, and it includes some English this time. At that point the song takes on the original verses of Mirror as it ends with Ayumi asking “Or…?” What a phenomenal song that’s all I can say.

Life, the sad yet positive soft rock ballad. Soft rock yet again, by this time some fans are already rocked out especially with songs like fated, GUILTY, Talkin’2 Myself etc., but NOT this time. Life is better than all those songs in so many ways, so this time it’s good. The song opens up with a guitar solo, that seems softer than usual. Ayumi then begins singing in a lighter tone. And the verses sound so beautiful, especially this part of the song sounds like a ballad. Then the chorus begins and it sounds so magnificent, and is catchy in its own way. The guitar then plays into the next verses where the music is softer and resembles a ballad. Another fantastic chorus follows and it sounds so great, mostly happy though despite how sad the song is. The guitar plays yet again into the final chorus, which sounds so gorgeous and Ayumi’s vocals are full of power. Afterwards the music begins to fade as the song ends. I loved this song because Ayumi’s vocals were so strong and full of emotion, power, and Life. The lyrics were so beautiful too, and they weren’t masked by the music. It also reminded me of SEASONS, a hit from 2000, so that’s a great plus. Hopefully this song will have a PV, it certainly deserves one.

YOU (10th Anniversary version), a new recording of a popular song. YOU was originally released as one of Ayumi’s first singles, and times have changed single those 10 years ago, especially her voice. This version is more rock based than the original and Ayumi’s vocals are deeper, and a lot more powerful in my opinion. So because of that, I will not mention anything else about the original song. The song begins with a lovely guitar solo, that sounds so soft and not harsh like in Decision. Shortly she begins singing the first verse in some beautiful vocals until she sings the chorus. The chorus is mainly a combination of the guitar, drums, and perhaps the piano. It sounds so beautiful too, even the guitar playing sounds magnificent, and despite it not being that catchy it’s amazingly good. Followed by the guitar the next verses begin followed by the second chorus, which sounds as good as the first. Afterwards the piano leads into the final chorus, which is without the guitar until the second half, and it sounds better than the first which is hard to believe. But the lyrics were so superb in every sense of the word. It mentioned “the spring wing, summer clouds, the autumn sky, and the winter beach” so beautiful and vivid, well the whole lyrics anyway. This song is much better than the original, that’s for sure.

Depend on you (10th Anniversary version), a new set of vocals on a rock hit. The original version of this song was released as a single, and compared to the new version it’s quite different. Again the vocals are different and the guitar is different in this song, and the length of the song is longer. The song begins with a steady instrumental provided by the guitar, followed by Ayumi singing the chorus, which is then followed by a more powerful guitar solo. Afterwards a few more verses are sung, which actually sound great. Then the chorus returns, and it sounds so great, my favorite part about it is that it’s so catchy. The next few verses are sung she gets to the next chorus which is followed by the bridge, which is a guitar playing with the drums. During the final chorus the instrumentals soften to a point where only Ayumi’s voice is heard, following that, they return and Ayumi’s vocals become stronger. And the song ends with the guitar playing. A much improved version of the original.

Overall Review: Mirrorcle World was a sad, yet profound single. All of the tracks were rock oriented, giving it a more central rock theme, rather than two complete opposites. I liked how there were six different singles to chose from, especially the covers, but I think it would’ve been better if the songs were on one disk, but that’s marketing for you. But still, this is one of Ayumi’s best singles in years and puts Talkin’2 Myself to shame. What a memorable way to begin her 10th Anniversary and new Era.

Final Review: 100A+

LOVEppears was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 2nd studio album. It was released on November 10, 1999, just 11 months after her first studio album, and reached number 1 on the charts with 1,201,879 copies sold. In all, this album has sold over 2,562,130+ copies in Japan, and over 3,000,000 according to Avex. This album caused a bit of controversy because the cover featured Ayumi topless, with just her hair covering her breasts. From this album, two re-cut singles spawned, Fly High and kanariya. And this album contained two discs, the first was the original CD and the second was mini compilation disk.

Tracks:
1. Introduction
2. Fly high
3. Trauma
4. And Then
5. immature “Album Version”
6. Boys & Girls
7. TO BE
8. End roll
9. P.S II
10. WHATEVER “Dub’s 1999 Club Remix”
11. too late
12. appears “Album Version”
13. monochrome
14. Interlude
15. LOVE ~refrain~
16. Who…

Review:
Introduction, the second beginning. This is the introduction to LOVEppears. It begins with some dance music, that sounds a little like computer errors, and has some heavy electronica beats. During the last 22 seconds or so Ayumi begins singing a little, and the shortly it ends. Despite it not being that great it does ease the transition from this to the next song.

Fly high, the up-beat keyboard tune. The song begins right away as Ayumi sings the chorus the very instant the song starts, with the guitar and keyboard accompanying her. Then she sings very fast in a distorted voice, and it sounds pretty good. Then she sings a few verses very quickly again until she sings the chorus. The chorus is very short, and yet it sounds so addictive and so catchy. Then the distortions begin again until the next verse followed by the chorus again. I loved how the music sounded so up-beat, the keyboard was a fantastic instrument, and the vocals were great. The bridge is a mixture of the keyboard, some synth music, and some great mixing. No wonder it was released as a re-cut single.

Trauma, a fast light rock song. This song was released along with three others to make the single A. This song features a fast beat, and guitar powered music. The chorus sounded great, but it could’ve been better and catchier. The verses great here, and her vocals were great. This isn’t exactly her best song, but it could’ve been worse.

And Then, the hot dance track. The song begins with some synth music, followed by Ayumi’s soft voice. She sings somewhat quickly and then some dance beats can be heard shortly. Despite this being a dance song, the song moves slowly, I guess it’s the effect of the music. The chorus here sounds so great with the guitar and the keyboards, and the vocals. The vocals could’ve been better, during the chorus they sounded just a little stressed. But despite all that, this is still a great dance song.

immature “Album Version” a new mix. This is a remix to some extent of the original version found on the appears single. This version differs from the original version, most notably in the guitar and keyboard music. The guitar plays a role here like in the original but it’s softer, and has a higher pitch. But otherwise this is the same song, the vocals are all the same. But here they sound better, then again so does the music. A much better version of immature.

Boys & Girls, the pop sensation with guitar power. This song was released as a single and became her first million selling single, and second number 1. Ayumi opens up the song with some ad-libbing followed by a guitar solo, and later the chorus. The chorus here sounds so amazing. It’s so up-beat, happy, and pop, not sugary pop but it’s close. The first verse begins with the keyboards, and it sounds so great, and catchy for once, and the glass breaking was brilliant. And the vocals are superb here, but they sound a little different than now, but still superb.

TO BE, the piano powered acoustic ballad. A beautiful piano playing followed by a acoustic guitar opens up the song. From there Ayumi sings the first few verses which sound pleasant, and so beautiful. Right before the chorus, a guitar plays for a second and opens it up. Then the chorus begins, and it sounds so beautiful. It’s almost perfection with the piano playing along. And it’s so catchy somehow. Another beautiful ballad.

End roll, the beautiful soft rock song. It was one of the A-Sides that made of the single A, an impressive single for Ayumi. This song begins with a tambourine followed by a piano. This song has somewhat of a ballad quality to it, so I guess you could say it’s a ballad, but I say soft, very soft rock. Anyway, the chorus of this song sounds excellent, the vocals are superb, and the music is fantastic. Not a bad song at all.

P.S II, the follow up to Powder Snow. This song begins all powerful with some thumping, and drum beats, and there it sounds really dark. But once Ayumi begins singing it starts to get better. Her vocals here are soft, and not the best, but they’re good especially when she hits the high notes. The chorus sounds all right, but I’ve heard so much better. During the later half of the song, violins are present and it sounds a lot better, and gentler. I’ve head so much better from Ayumi but what can you do.

WHATEVER “Dub’s 1999 Club Remix” pure dance and club. This song was released in two versions and began the LOVEppears Era. One version was dance, and the other was more rock. But the dance version was used on the album. This version is longer and features heavier dance beats and music. The chorus is all right, and the vocals sound OK. But the one thing I couldn’t stand was the fact that the music seemed to drown out Ayumi’s vocals. I think the J version would’ve been a lot better, we’ll leave it at that.

too late, the energetic dance song. Here we have another song that was in the single A, and to be honest with you it’s getting very boring. Ayumi uses some great voice distortions and some great vocals. The verses were just OK. And the chorus, all I will say is that it could’ve been better. But the guitar instrumentals were good.

appears “Album Version”, another one? This is the album version of the song appears, but to be honest with you it sounds the same. The opening sounds a little mysterious but the jingle bells make it sound so great. The chorus was fantastic and catchy, especially with the guitar playing. A brilliant song, that’s for sure.

monochrome, the synth sensation with a guitar and the keyboard. This song, like the previous three was released as the single A. This song begins with some heavy synth music that sounds a little dance like. The chorus here sounds great, and it’s quite light hearted in one way or another. But it generally sounds good. This was my favorite song from the single A.

Interlude, a synth filler. This is an interlude, and all it does is ease the transition. It’s mostly synth with some beeping, almost computer like.

LOVE ~refrain~ a reincarnation. This song is a re-written version of the song LOVE ~destiny~. The lyrics were rewritten and the music is different, but the melody is the same. This song wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, it’s more R&B than anything. The beats are slow and yet so relaxing. And it reminds me of LOVE ~since 1999~ mostly because of Ayumi’s vocals. The chorus was pretty good, but it could’ve been better. The entire song could’ve been a bit better, there was no climax at all during the song, and it sounded so repetitive. But it’s better than LOVE ~destiny~, I’ll give it that.

Who…, the heavenly ballad. A lonely piano opens up the song by playing so sadly. But after a few seconds it is accompanied by a guitar followed by a few beeps, that are programed in. Then Ayumi ad-libs in a very high voice but then begins to sing. Then after the verse is over the chorus begins. The chorus sounds so beautiful and heavenly, the vocals are perfect and the music is so lovely. The keyboards and guitars here sound so magnificent and so majestic. During the final chorus you can hear some people sing ahh, which actually fits in nicely.

kanariya lit. Canary, the first hidden track. This song wasn’t listed on the track list because it is a hidden track. Who… was under ten minutes for a reason, after a good thirty seconds of silence this song begins to play. It begins with an acoustic instrument playing followed by some English from backup vocalists and a guy. From there Ayumi begins singing in such a beautiful voice, and during the verses you can hear that guy sing in English, or rather sing a word. Later the chorus begins, and it sounds so beautiful, and it’s so catchy. But it sounded so sad, but I guess it should, the lyrics mention how the canary’s voice just wasn’t crushed and that they didn’t cry. This was released as Ayumi’s first re-cut single, and it managed to reach number 1 on the charts, the first in history. A depressing, yet impressive way to end LOVEppears.

Overall Review: LOVEppears was a supreme sophomore album. The singles from this era were so thrilling and riveting. What’s better is that the new tracks on this album weren’t half bad. But if there were more new tracks it’d be better. Most songs featured the keyboards and the guitar naturally, and the mixing and arranging was great. It was also the first album to have re-cut singles, a huge sign of popularity. I must commend Ayumi on this album, nothing short of genius.

Final Grade: 97A

& was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 29th single. It was released on July 9, 2003 and reached number 1 on the charts with 287,002 copies sold. In all this single has sold over 690,000+ copies. This was also the first single in her Memorial address Era. This single contained three A-Sides, making it another H except with a B-Side.

Tracks:
1. ourselves
2. Greatful days
3. HANABI ~episode II~
4. theme of a-nation ‘03
5. ourselves (Instrumental)
6. Greatful days (Instrumental)
7. HANABI ~episode II~ (Instrumental)

Review:
ourselves, the thumping guitar tune. The song begins with an island feel and a piano but changes into guitar powered song. Ayumi begins by singing a verse, or chorus, and to be honest with you it sounds so strange, not Ayumi at all. But after that it gets better. The chorus sounds pretty good, especially with the distorted voice right before it. And Ayumi sounds happy, so that’s always a plus. Despite all that I really couldn’t get into this song. The ending really killed it for me. It’s one of Ayumi’s strangest songs.

Greatful days, the up-beat summer track. This song begins with some drum like beats followed by a la, la, la, la… and it actually sounds good, then a distorted yeah and wow can be heard. Afterwards AYumi takes over the vocals, which are pretty good, and with the fast moving music it all fits. Right before the chorus the music becomes faster with pauses and then the chorus begins. The chorus is very up-beat, pop, and very catchy. From there a few more verses are sung followed by the final choruses, which sounds fantastic. The bridge of the song sounds a little like club/light dance music. The happier of the four for sure.

HANABI ~episode II~ the depressing rock song. This song begins with a forest like opening followed by a guitar playing. From there Ayumi begins singing with sad yet beautiful vocals. The chorus then comes around and it sounds so amazing, the shear power of it is so impressive. The English in the background sounds so great, a nice touch for once. And despite it sounding so sad it’s pretty catchy. The lyrics are so beautiful here mentioning how the memories go up to the sky and then disperse like beautiful fireworks. The entire song was great, much better than ourselves, especially with the rock elements. This is the sadder of the songs on this single, that’s for sure.

theme of a-nation ‘03, the theme song to A-Nation 2003. The song begins with some Indian music, really Native American. Then Ayumi’s vocals pick up speed and tone, and from there the song becomes a beautiful ballad. The song is quite beautiful, but that’s about it. Although at the end, the music sounded more oriental and better than before. Still, not her best B-Side.

Overall Review: & was another outstanding summer single, one of many now from Ayumi. The A-Sides were so different yet again, but so good. The whole summer theme really seemed to be heard throughout the songs in one form or another. The B-Side wasn’t that great, but it was tolerable. A superior way to begin the Memorial address Era.

Final Review: 95A

No way to say was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 31st single. It was released on November 6, 2003 and reached number 1 on the charts with 176,229 copies sold. In all this single has sold over 371,171+ copies. This single is also known for having seven tracks total, a rarity nowadays since most have had four of less. It was the third and last single in the Memorial address Era.

Tracks:
1. No way to say “Original Mix”
2. No way to say “Acoustic Version”
3. SEASONS “Acoustic Version”
4. Dearest “Acoustic Orchestra Version”
5. Voyage “Acoustic Orchestra Version”
6. No way to say “Vandalize / Realize Mix”
7. No way to say “Original Mix” -Instrumental-

Review:
No way to say, the beautiful winter ballad. The song opens up with a guitar followed by some synth music and an orchestra. Ayumi then begins singing in some much improved vocals as the piano accompanies her. Then the chorus comes with a drum beat opening it up. The chorus sounds so amazing with the music and just the vocals, Ayumi shows so much emotion in her voice and her pronunciation is great, and it even sounds catchy. The guitar then plays throughout the song, well the acoustic one, and Ayumi begins singing again. Then the second chorus follows, from there the last two choruses are sung. The bridge was a guitar solo with the background music.

Overall Review: No way to say was winter bliss. This single is just what Ayumi needed, especially after the disappointing forgiveness. The title track was phenomenal, the vocals were perfect and the music was beautiful. The remixes could’ve been better, but then again they were acoustic versions, which destroys the original. This is still a great single, that can’t be disputed. It was a magnificent way to end the Memorial address Era.

Final Grade: 100A+

appears was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 11th single. It was released on November 10, 1999 and reached number 2 on the charts with 273,760 copies sold. In all this single has sold over 290,550+ copies. This single was released on the same day as her second studio album album LOVEppears, and was limited to 300,000 copies. The cover caused a bit of controversy since Ayumi was half naked with her breasts being covered by her hair. This also happened with the cover of LOVEppears. This is also the last single in the LOVEppears Era, unless you include kanaryia and Fly High.

Tracks:
1. appears “99 Greeting Mix”
2. appears “Scud Filter Mix”
3. appears “Dub’s Eurotech Remix”
4. WHATEVER “Ferry ‘System F’ Corsten dub mix”
5. appears “JP’s SoundFactory Mix”
6. appears “HAL’s MIX”
7. immature “D-Z DUAL LUCIFER MIX”
8. WHATEVER “Ferry ‘System F’ Corsten vocal extended mix”
9. appears “Keith Litman’s Mix of Truth”
10. immature “JT Original CM Version”
11. appears “99 Greeting Mix” (Instrumental)
12. immature “JT Original CM Version” (Instrumental)

Review:
appears “99 Greeting Mix” the pop spirit with a little guitar flare. This is the original version of the song, just named differently like the single of this time. The song opens up with some jingle bells followed by some synth music and later a piano. As soon as the piano begins to play Ayumi begins to sing the chorus, although at this point it isn’t as good, mostly because the music isn’t that good. But afterwards the music picks up and becomes stronger and then the verses begin. Then the chorus returns, but with better music and here it sounds so much catchier. Ayumi’s vocals here are excellent, especially during the high notes. The song basically repeats after that. This song isn’t half bad once you get used to it.

immature “JT Original CM Version” the rock and roll track with a little synth. This song begins with Ayumi singing and the piano accompanies her, followed by some synth music. After a few seconds Ayumi begins singing again until the gets to the chorus. The chorus sounds pretty good, especially with the beginning where she sings it fast then slows down. From there the rock part of the song takes over. Another interesting track for an interesting single.

Overall Review: appears was an revealing yet inspiring single. The title track was superb in every sense of the word. It was so catchy and so amazing. I also liked how it mentioned lovers in the song, kind of nice. The B-Side wasn’t as good, but whenever are B-Sides as good as the title tracks. What an unusual yet great way to end the LOVEppears Era.

Final Grade: 98A+

A was Ayumi Hamasaki’s 10th single. It was released on August 11, 1999 and reached number 1 on the charts with 508,940 copies cold. In all this single has sold over 1,630,540+ copies, making this her second and million selling single and this is also her best selling single. It also hold the record for the longest CD single in Japan. A is also Ayumi Hamasaki’s first and only quadruple A-Side single to date. This was also the fifth single in the LOVEppears Era.

Tracks:
1. monochrome
2. too late
3. Trauma
4. End roll
5. monochrome “Keith Litman’s Big City Vocal Mix”
6. too late “Razor ‘N Guido Remix”
7. Trauma “Heavy Shuffle Mix”
8. End roll “HAL’s MIX”
9. monochrome (Instrumental)
10. too late (Instrumental)
11. Trauma (Instrumental)
12. End roll (Instrumental)
13. End roll “NEURO-mantic Mix”
14. monochrome “Dub’s full color Remix”

Review:
monochrome, the keyboard and guitar synth song. The song opens up with some synth music followed by some hip-hop like beats, periodically the keyboard will begin to play followed by the guitar. From there Ayumi begins singing, which doesn’t seem that great. But when she begins the chorus her vocals sound a lot better. During the chorus the music seems more light-hearted and a lot better for the song. The chorus sounds pretty catchy despite it not going going to fast. After the final chorus the bridge begins, which is a guitar solo. Then Ayumi ends the some with a few words and la, la… Monochrome in English means one color, well I really don’t think that this song was one color, it was more of a fusion, and it was a lot better than I expected.

too late, the fast, energetic dance song. The song begins with a few dance beats followed by a drum roll and some more synth beats, and the guitar. Ayumi then begins singing in a distorted voice that reminds me of Boys & Girls, and it’s then that it sounds quite catchy. But afterwards she begins the next part where her voice isn’t distorted. Then she begins the chorus, which isn’t very catchy to be honest with you. After the final chorus ends the song becomes more dance beat oriented and continues for the another minute until she sings again. This isn’t her best song to date, let’s leave it at that.

Trauma, the light rock tune. This song begins with a guitar playing two notes it seems followed by a few more instrumentals. Then out of no where the chorus begins. The chorus moves pretty fast and quickly but it’s not really that catchy. But I love how she sings the last work, dragging it out longer, a nice touch. The verses sound mediocre and nothing more. Ayumi’s vocals were great for the most part. I just wish that the song sounded more exciting, oh well it’s one of many on this single.

End roll, the soft rock addiction. This song begins with the sound of a tambourine followed by some synth music and piano keys. From there it changes into a quicker paced song. Ayumi then begins singing a few verses with some great vocals. The chorus follows afterwards and it sounds so beautiful, the guitar begins to play, very soft at first, and it’s so catchy, again Ayumi displays her excellent vocals. During the second chorus the guitar becomes a more distinct instrument and becomes more powerful. The bridge is a guitar solo that sounds pretty good, but I’ve heard better. Not a bad way to end the single.

Overall Review: A was a a beautiful pallet of colors. Mostly due to the fact that all the songs sounded so different, yet managed to come together to create a beautiful single. I’m not to sure about the remixes, but that title tracks, or A-Sides, were fantastic for the most part. Another great additional single in the LOVEppears Era.

Final Grade: 96A