AvadaKedavra Posted October 19 Posted October 19 (edited) The instrumental gives me a bit of sinister-eerie feeling. But i guess thats how love feels. Sometimes good. Sometimes. love appears That shoot in the music video in the bridge with the World Trade Center-New york Skyline is haunting specially cause this was filmed like 1 year-2 years before the terrorist attacks Edited October 19 by AvadaKedavra 1
Suilen Posted October 19 Posted October 19 Me being in the lowest scores even though it's my second favorite album in this part... That's why I need to shower Part 2 in 10s. 1
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 Just now, Katamari said: yes! get this album out of here i still lost tho with it outranking MA and MS The way I could look past Curaga's mess because she at least gave that 11 to a banger, but when you dropped that messy ballot and gave yours to mf independent??? My blood pressure, mama. 2
Kyle-x Posted October 19 Posted October 19 1 minute ago, Graves said: The way I could look past Curaga's mess because she at least gave that 11 to a banger, but when you dropped that messy ballot and gave yours to mf independent??? My blood pressure, mama.
Kyle-x Posted October 19 Posted October 19 appears is truly an incredible song, so the top 5 position is deserved 1
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 Track #2 on A Song for ×× HIGH SCORE: 10 x 11 (Kyle-x, SA*KURA, Invisibility, UrMom, Curaga, Meloetta Carey, blueberries, Maresia, AMIT, sanzo, confide in me) LOW SCORE: 8 x 4 (Suilen, Fevesy, Katamari, AvadaKedavra) HOST SCORE: 8.5 Without a doubt the star of the first album, the title track on A Song for ×× was never released as an official single but became an Ayu classic nonetheless. This song does a great job as a representative of its parent album, a representative of Ayumi as an artist, and even as a representative of J-pop as a whole. Those moments of tender softness accompanied by gentle twinkling sounds, that just build and build in intensity and instrumentation until the guitar-lead chorus blasts you with a defiant nature? What a journey of a song, and a perfect choice to serve as the first official track on Ayumi's debut album. So much of Ayu's DNA is on here, you can already see so many of her favorite tropes at play: the dramatic chorus erupting from a sombre start, or the "la la la" hooks as the song reaches the end. Sure, some of those tricks might start to grate eventually but this is the origin, the alpha, the birthplace. The song is an ode to staying strong through changing circumstances, and while that first album might not have been the runaway success of the records that followed, it was quite clear that Ayumi was something different and special from day one. Despite it's non-single status, people ate this track up. It was the opening song on A BEST, an album which remains one of the best-selling Japanese releases of all time. It's been a live staple for as long as she's been performing. It's been remixed and stretched out so much that there's a version that could suit every mood. The A BEST and A BALLADS versions certainly supersede the original album version for me, personally. But if those mixes that bring the rock influence to the forefront aren't doing it for you, then you can always try to Ferry Corsten mix that turns the whole thing into an undulating trance affair. It's an evergreen track and I cannot fault the debut for hanging on this long with such treasures on it. Suilen: in light of recent revelations, I hope it's still about her father rather than M*tsuura. Kyle-x: One of her signature songs for a reason, such a beautiful song. It always goes OFF live too, the performance at a-nation '08 is my favorite. The re-recorded version on A BALLADS is stunning. Honestly, EVERY remix of this goes off too. The crazy autotuned one on the For My Dear… single, the trance version by Ferry Corsten and the trippy one with reggae influences on ayu-mi-x are highlights. Invisibility: A true lost classic, yet its revindication with Ayu making it a live staple, make it part of her legacy by now. Finding hope in the hopeless, ugh, it's such an inspiring, vulnerable song. Curaga: The POWER in this song I get chills every time! Meloetta Carey: I'm pretending that this is the live version from her 2001 dome tour or the A Ballads version. Bad Decisions: still her strongest opening for an album. I still consider this her most vulnerable song lyrically and it's so easy to see why she became so relatable. I think we can all relate to this at some point in our lives. 1/17 2
Meloetta Carey Posted October 19 Posted October 19 appears is kind of timeless both lyrically and sonically also, 1 2
Britneyfan09 Posted October 19 Posted October 19 Whenever I listen to appears, the MSSL performance from 1999 always comes to mind with poor Ayu sneezing and coughing her way through the song ddd
Curaga Posted October 19 Posted October 19 14 minutes ago, Britneyfan09 said: SURREAL, M, and RAINBOW for Top 3 please not you calling the top 3 like that omg 1
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 HIGHEST SCORERS 1. Kyle-x - 9.628 2. blueberries - 8.882 3. AMIT - 8.706 4. Maresia - 8.382 5. AvadaKedavra - 8.059 LOWEST SCORERS 1. Fevesy - 4.059 2. sanzo - 5.294 3. Bad Decisions - 5.5 4. Invisibility - 5.765 5. Graves - 5.882 Average 7.065 Adjusted average (no b-sides, no interludes) 7.121 1 3
AvadaKedavra Posted October 19 Posted October 19 I regret not giving this a higher score. All the artist have a signature song and i feel like this is her signature one The song representing the artist the most. Is just so powerful. This is my favorite performance of ayu all time. This is the performance i show everyone everytime someone is askin me about....Whos ayumi hamasaki? Im sorry but the rest of Jpop singers cant pull this off....They dont have the stage star power for it 5
Kyle-x Posted October 19 Posted October 19 I love her style during the appears promos, the mini skirt and boots are such a serve 【❤欢迎关注我❤[SDTV] 浜崎あゆみ - Boys & Girls + immature + appears (1999.12.31 CDTV Special】 【精准空降到 07:41】 https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1144y1j7GT/?share_source=copy_web&t=461 2
Katamari Posted October 19 Posted October 19 6 minutes ago, Graves said: The way I could look past Curaga's mess because she at least gave that 11 to a banger, but when you dropped that messy ballot and gave yours to mf independent??? My blood pressure, mama. Independent remix is a bop what can I say maybe I will give this album another chance but I am outsold
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 I can hear god.gif The way every debut track has a better version off of the album...
Kyle-x Posted October 19 Posted October 19 A Song for xx you clung on until the bitter end and we thank you for your service 1
Suilen Posted October 19 Posted October 19 It's great the debut got 2 top 10 placements but it was still kinda done wrong. For My Dear a hymn. 2
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 Also, so far... LOVEppears - 8.193 Memorial address - 8.142 MY STORY - 7.624 RAINBOW - 7.466 A Song for xx - 7.065
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 Track #1 on A BALLADS 11 x 3: @Kyle-x @Bad Decisions @Fevesy HIGH SCORE: 10 x 6 (Graves, UrMom, Meloetta Carey, blueberries, AMIT, AvadaKedavra) LOW SCORE: 5.8 x 1 (Curaga) HOST SCORE: 10 Not a bad showing for the extras, is it? What to say about RAINBOW? How about the fact that it isn't even on the album it was named after? Indeed, seems that Ayu only included a code in first-pressing editions of the RAINBOW album that allowed fans to hear this track in instrumental form on her website. They could even send her their opinions on it. Ayu used the fan reception to craft lyrics for the song, preparing it for a release a year later on the A BALLADS compilation. I guess one album's loss was another's gain. So, what about the song itself? It is bliss. Pure bliss. Heavenly music. I believe the chanting at the end of the track is a chorus of angels backing her up, truly! The song starts in a crawl, inching forward with a slow build-up. Instruments gradually join the band until the song coalesces into an explosion of music. A chanting background chorus, an array of instruments and percussion, even some subtle synths join the party... It's a blast of emotion. Ayu even closes the song with some English. I don't believe there is another song quite like this in her discography, at least not one as effective. I think the RAINBOW album is all the worse for not having this track as its beautiful centerpiece. The imagery around the A BALLADS release is all so striking, with the multiple Ayumi all offering each other gentle comfort? I'd go as far as to say it might be her best album cover of all. The music video is another home run, turning that album cover concept into a full blown mini-movie. It's absolutely one of her best. Song, video, album... nothing about this package is anything less than stellar. Mother. Suilen: not being from the namesake album sort of gave it a special status, and while it's definitely good, people can get a bit extra. Kyle-x: Perhaps the best song ever recorded? I mean the production, the lyrics, the vocal delivery… everything is a thousand out of ten. The PV is just perfection as well. Invisibility: Iconic outro lyric will be iconic. The way this song never stops building ugh. Curaga: I like the somber beginning with the piano better than the uplifting ending for some reason. Meloetta Carey: The fact that this isn't on the album is weird. I get why it isn't, but when you consider what made the cut for that album...🙃 Bad Decisions: one of THE Ayu songs. What else is there to say? It's beyond perfection. AMIT: a masterpiece, the progression on this song is insane, it's like catharsis in musical form. 3
Kyle-x Posted October 19 Posted October 19 This performance where she's serving Christmas tree is pretty cool 2
Kyle-x Posted October 19 Posted October 19 Noooooo my 11, so close yet so far away.... but I can't be mad at top 3
Graves Posted October 19 Author Posted October 19 Which means... SURREAL vs M Duty vs. I am... 2000 classics showdown. What team are you on?
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