The drought is ending!

[synchrostorm]

After the smorgasbord of new music during the first months of the year, the past 10 weeks have seen a corresponding dearth of interesting releases.  I don't think I've ever downloaded so few new singles or albums over a three month period.  But with the advent of summer of course comes the next wave of 2007.

Chihiro Onitsuka - everyhome:  Chihiro's

Comments

[dobledorje]

Ah, our tastes diverge again. Not so much in how we're assessing things but just the fact that we're looking at different things. Despite her reputation, I've never even looked up Onitsuka Chihiro, and Shimatani Hitomi I decided a long time ago I could do without. And I have no idea who Yumi Shizukusa is!

"Kiss & Cry" I found disappointing. I've never listened to Exodus so I don't recognize the sample everyone mentions, but the melody sounds dull and the track DOES sound underproduced. She hasn't really come up with a good single since "Keep Tryin'" in my opinion. As for "Freaky," I guess it sounds OK but I can see what you're saying about her image sort of interfering with her music, you know? And it sounds like the single will be a repeat of last year's, with one decent song pulling three crappy songs along. But well, I haven't downloaded any Koda since 4 Hot Wave, anyway.

Now we just have to wait and see if "glitter" and "fated" are worthy of being Ayu's first single in a year.

[synchrostorm]

You should check out Hitomi S' new PV! It's addictive! I'm worried about Ayu's new single ... I quite dig the snippet of "glitter" from the golden kiwi CM (it has the buoyancy of old-school Ayu-dance), but the preview of "fated" sounds worryingly mediocre. It has a ponderous, heavy-handed feel that's a little too reminscent of "part of Me". We'll see.

[dobledorje]

I never knew you didn't like "part of Me." I kind of wish "fated" had the brooding, dreary vibe of "alterna" just to go all out with the "fairyland" single comparisons.

I liked those kiwi CMs. I thought the guy was kind of hot and I liked his voice D:

[synchrostorm]

I quite like "part of Me", I just don't think we need two songs like that back-to-back. Although that's what you said about "momentum" and poM. I also was going to mention that there was no way "fated" was going to match up to "alterna" as the summer single B-side. And I *really* hope "Secret" is somehow remixed and not just a pointless re-release. I know "Secret" the album didn't sell so hot, but I hardly think the song was so great that it had to be put out there one more time.

[dobledorje]

Supposedly online stores listed a HAL remix for "Secret" initially, so I guess it will get the remix treatment. The problem is a lot of Ayu's uptempo tracks already sound like HAL tracks (either they write them or they arrange them). I don't understand why she doesn't just dump them.

I did watch the Hitomi Shimatani PV and kept thinking "This is ska. Stormy, are you aware this is ska? Since when do you like ska?" Ska-pop, at best. I didn't dislike it but you know, Shimatani doesn't really appeal to me that much vocally or image-wise. Although at the same time it did leave me wondering why Ayu won't break out of her musical mold. I certainly don't see her doing any ska-lite or following in Koda's "BUT"/Namie's "Hide&Seek" footsteps. Well, maybe she'll do it in a remix...

[synchrostorm]

I'm not a fan of ska in general, but catchy is catchy. I certainly didn't like the song when I first heard it, but the PV completely won me over. Kawaii!

Ayu tried to break into a new direction on m(u), and look at the backlash that happened against "B&D". Since then, it's all been retreads, unfortunately. I hope she doesn't play it safe for too much longer...