Customer Reviews

(Miss) Understood

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This album is by far the best music ive heard recently. I think Ayu's lyrics are unique ( I speak Japanese ) and this album shows that shes good with a variety of singing styles. I think shes even better than koda kumi. Highly recommended if you like koda kumi; here is a review of some of the songs off the album:

"Bold and Delicious": 5/10 Unfortunately this song was a flop and a dissapointement

"STEP you": 9/10 one of the best tracks on this album, although the lyrics are not the best

"(miss)understood":10/10 u have to love the chorus

"is this LOVE": 10/10 the same as above

"alterna": 10/10 to me, this is very addicting, especially when the guitar plays the high notes after the chorus

"Pride": 8/10 its ok, but kind of depressing

"Will": 9/10 great track

"HEAVEN": 9/10 another great track

"fairlyland": 10/10 the BEST off the album, if you are learning Japanese, this should not be too hard to understand

Other songs by her from older albums are "Voyage", and "forgiveness", which both have GREAT lyrics

For Ayumi Hamasaki who realesed this CD on 01/01/06

CD

1.Bold and Delicious:A song with a little funk mixed J-pop track, and a Run DMC style breakdown blend with Ayumi's voice. Somewhat of a change, but it eventually grew on me. 9/10

2.Step you:A great catchy dance style song, and it's suprising to hear Ayu use more english than usual. 10/10

3.Ladies Night:Familiar Title, and no it's nowhere near like the classic joint, but it's very catchy, and it sounds like Ayu does a little bit of rapping in one, but still, I'm hooked on it. 10/10

4.Is this love:Pretty nice J-rock track, and it has a nice upkick at the end, but I haven't really found it cery catchy yet. 8/10

5.(Miss)Understood:Calm J-rock song, altho I wish it had a better hook in it. 6/10

6.Alterna:A very catchy J-rock song that, in many ways, reminds me of game. 9/10

7.In the corner:Ayumi goes nice with the ip-hop R&B style beat, but the hook wasn't a Mike Tyson packa-punch out of the corner I hoped it to be. 7/10

8.Tasking:Interlude. N/A

9.Criminal:Nice slow dark style opening, and nice uprising hooks, and Ayumi flows excellently flows with the song. And a great song that suits it's title. 10/10 2nd favorite.

10.Pride:I usually I like slow piano songs, but this song, to me, felt out of pace, and it just hasn't grown on me. 6/10

11.Will:I love the piano flow, and the excellent catchy flow of the song and Ayu's voice in this song. 10/10

12.Heaven:A very beautiful piano song, and Ayumi graces the song with her God given voice, and it all blends so beautifully. 10/10 1st favorite

13.Are you wake up:Interlude(But the title makes no sence, unless there's someone named wake up) N/A

14.Fairyland:Ayumi backtracking to her classic self a bit. A uplifting songs with loads of electricty, and a sweet change of tune at the end. 10/10 3rd favorite

15.Beautiful day:Everyday I hear this angel sing gracefully, it's a beautiful day, and this uplifting song is no exception. 10/10

16:Rainy Day:An excellent way to close out a CD with such a calm flowing song, and a nice soft but catchy hook. 10/10

DVD

1.Step You:For a dance joint, the video is increadibly wierd. A guy looking into a vault seeing 4 diffrent Ayumis, but no dancing, and no energy. Unexpectedly tasteless. 4/10

2.Is this love:Strange how she walks all throughout the room and everything is crumbling, crushing, or blowing up, without any contact from her what so ever. I'd understand if she was slamming everything out of love being destroyed, but just walking around, with no energy in the video with a song with a paulse, it's just not cool. 5/10

3.Fairyland:The video starts out great, everthing I expected from a song with harmony, and a paulse, but a burning house with no paulse at the most energizing and exciting part of the song murdered my vibe. 6/10

4.Alterna:Well because of my personal feelings of hatred of the circus and clowns(THEY AIN'T COOL MAN) it was only natural that I hated this video from the start. Madanna in a circus ain't cool man, and you are the stars spelling for one person isn't all that accurate either. 1/10

5.Heaven:Ah, a step out of unfamiliar territory, and into fresh fresh air. This was a excellent video for the song. A very suitible environment, and people in soul form around. excellent.
10/10 1st favorite

6.Bold and Delicious:Man I wish I knew the day Ayumi was in New York while doing this video, so I could have got an autograph and a pic. But it is a nice video, Ayumi riding on the back of a truck, all around New York, and, of course, dressed in glamourus fasion. 9/10 3rd favorite

7.Pride:Even thoughI don't really like the song, I like the video, because it definitly suits the feel of the song. 9/10

8.Rainy day:Definitly a spot on video for the title. Ayumi sitting in her place while it rains, with a calm song going on. It's just a nice feeling. 10/10 2nd favorite

9.Ladies night:Not the way to leave a lasting empression. Ayumi running all over the place, seeing her evil twin or whatever, and she's controlling an army of bald headed wemon. C'mon do you think I found G.I. Jane attractive. 3/10

Making of clips:

1.Bold and delicious:Side Story: It's pretty cool looking at the behind the sceenes of this, and she speeks a bit of english at times, and it's cute wen se walks her dogs. 10/10 1st favorite

2.Step You:Nothhing really all that special, just showing how Ayu became the 4 hers, and how rain was showered by plant waterer. 5/10

3.Is this love:Ayu using CG graphics to make stuff break and stuff without her getting hit. Not much interaction. 4/10

4.Fairyland:A lot of fun and interaction in this behind the sceens. It shows the dancing routines, and the house burning. *Sigh* 9/10 2nd favorite

5.Alterna:To be honest, I just found nothing to like in this at all 1/10

6.Heaven:It was pretty much a boring sit down, and not a lot of interaction. 3/10

7.Pride:Well this had some interaction where someone fell down. Ha ha, that's funny. Anyway, I found it pretty good. 7/10 3rd facorite

Photobook:

On my way:Ah a nice extra added bounus. Ayumi in the book is cute, elegent, and sexy in this ince 80 pg. book. And there's some wnglish in it too. 10/10

Ayumi Hamasaki's 8th album (Miss)Understood is her 8th CD, and the 5th I've purchased(I am, Rainbow, Memorial Address, My Story), and still, it's amazing how her CDs are still charming me every time I pop it in. And she has a boatload of varitey loaded in this realese. The only thing I don't like is when my friends confuse this with Pink's CD Mizundastood. But I get over that. Those who love J-pop or Ayumi should grab this, and those who are starting with Ayumi, I always recomend starting with I am.

Peace

(Note: Some of these songs begin with capitals, some don't, some are all in capitals or one word is. Please note these aren't typos. They are the way they are officialy written.)

Whilst many people mant tsk-tsk over this new Ayumi album, I find it highly refreshing. On Bold & Delicious we see just how far Ayumi can stretch creatively and her 'Bold'ly take a step in the new direction. In STEP you we hear a catchy dance track with some english in it. In Ladies Night we hear a song similar to My name's WOMEN off her My Story CD, since it's influenced with the female empowerment and sounds almost like a flashback to the 80's. Is this LOVE? turns to be a rocky song, showing a side of Ayu we don't see as much where she is hurt and almost regretful. (miss)understood is a calmer rock song, but still enjoyable and shorter than the other. alterna is the last true rock song on the CD, which isn't as rocky as Is this LOVE? or as calm as (miss)understood. There are two wonderful interludes on this CD: one titled tasking, full of strong violins and a catchy beat to back it up, the second called Are You Wake Up?, which though the title is wonkey is full of nice guitar and a tambourine creating a great rythme. There are a few ballads on this CD also. HEAVEN is a lovely song with many instruments in it, and this song is a power ballad so it's not too mushy. Pride is full of violins, piano and is a strong power ballad, though stronger than HEAVEN. criminal is another and the (final) ballad, more influenced by the piano than the violins, you can picture this song showing the ups and downs of a criminal. Will sounds very(traditional)Japanese influenced and unlike the others is almost poppy. fairyland sounds just like you'd assume it to, it is full of dancy music, though almost sounds like a ballad at some points. Beautiful Day is a feel good song, which doesn't appear to be in one specific genre. rainy day is a calm peaceful song, which seemslike each beat is a drop of rain itself. In The Corner is an R n' B song that like alterna contains violins thoughout. This song isn't what you would expect in many R n' B songs in America or Canada though. Prepare to be amazed with this CD if you can have an open mind or get over the fact it's in Japanese.

Wishing the best!

There is little more I can add to the other reviews - this CD is definitely one of Ayumi's BEST. All of the songs are uplifting, and are also sufficiently diverse. Ayumi amazes me with the number of songs and CDs she manages to come up with in this incredibly short time. And over 80% of her music IS top notch. Even when some of her songs use music parts of European/American songs, she (or rather her producers) still manages to turn it around and make it classy and original. Hats down.

If you are into JPop, chances are you are well acquainted with Ayu's music and already past the 'cheesy' and 'weird' first impressions of JPop in general. My recommendation is then - hesitate no more, you will LOVE this CD.

If you are new to JPop, then I'll first give you a little context. The two biggest JPop stars are Ayumi Hamasaki (Ayu) and Hikaru Utada (Hikki). Personally, I think Hikki is more prolific singer (in terms of quality) - her songs are always original whilst Ayumi's tend to regurgitate the same music themes. However, if we take into account all aspects of each of these two stars, Ayu takes the prize easily. She simply delivers more - not only in terms of quantity, but 'show' wise. Therefore I would urge you not only to stop at this CD, but to check out her videos, her concerts and some general programmes on her (and her effect in Japan) - Ayu is simply a furore to be behold! Plus the videos will help you with the transition to JPop. I think JPop is as much a feast for the eyes as is music to the ears.

If you want more quality, have limited tolerance to cheesy stuff and want something that pushes Pop boundaries, you will not regret getting as much of Hikki's as you possibly can. Especially, if you haven't had good encounters with JPop yet, Sakura Drops is bound to change your mind about the genre.

To get back on the CD, I am not going to evaluate every single track as this has been done already several times before me and my opinion generally matches the previous reviewers'. The only songs where my taste diverges (maybe because I am a guy) are Bold & Delicious, Ladies Night, and STEP you - they didn't grow on me.
In contrast, my favourite song from the album is (miss)understood. I am lost for words to describe the sheer emotion and determination that pour from this song. I also love the fact that it there is no repeated chorus (no 'standard hook') - just the style of singing. It's very original and very refreshing. Alterna is also hellishly good rock tune!

So get this CD and form your own impressions. And then perhaps come back and share them with us.

What i got was 2 discs. the first had all the songs for (miss)understood. The disc also had an extra 2 songs on it. The second disc had the song (Moment) in 4 different styles and 10 other songs with that. The second disc is sortof a combination of songs that are on her other albums. They are all spertacular and I would highly suggest getting them if you like Ayumi Hamasaki. It's not a hard cover case but does have some pictures of her in the inner folds. I love all the songs and I think you would aswell if you got these discs.

Her songs are incredible on this album. My favorites are "Heaven" "Bold and Delicious" and "Ladies Night". The songs on this album have a lot of variety so you never get bored. This is one of my favorite albums by Ayumi Hamasaki.

There's no doubt that Ayumi Hamasaki is one of J-Pop's greatest singers. She's sold just as many albums as her English speaking contemporaries, has released more albums then most and released over 40 singles, yet a lot people haven't heard of her. This is a huge shame as her music is brilliant, unique and experimental.

"(miss)understood" is my second favourite Ayu album after "GUILTY." It's a got cool rocky feel to a lot of the songs that really appeals to me. This album was released in 2006 and is a great example of good J-Pop.
Album rundown:

01. Bold & Delicious
This was actually the first Ayumi song I ever heard and my introduction to J-Pop in general. This song is a GREAT album opener, it's fast paced, upbeat and just mental in general. That's a good thing, it's very catchy and the chorus is great to wail along to. "Boooooooold and delicious!" Brilliant.
02. STEP you
Another superb track, this song has a great attitude filled chorus. It teams this with fluffy poppy verses to make a mixed track. The thing is, the song sounds rocky when it starts but kicks into the poppyness at the verses. The chorus is incredibly catchy too and this is one of the highlights of the album.
03. Ladies Night
Everybody thinks this song is a J-Pop cover of Kool & The Gang's song, but nope, this is all original. It's in the same vein though, very upbeat and dancey though. It's also very catchy with a great singalong chorus, interesting vocoded vocals and great music.
04. is this LOVE?
This song starts off with a piano, then kicks into an upbeat rocky number. Ayu really seems to have gone for the rock feel for this album. This song has softly sung verses and hard hitting rock chorus.
05. (miss)understood
The title track and an interesting song at that. This song is softer then the previous ones and a bit slower, with a guitar backing. But again, it kicks into a rocky chorus that speeds the song up a bit. Unlike one of the other reviewers, I find this song to have a very catchy hook. I like this one, because it's not over the top.
06. alterna
I love the music in this track. It's 5:29, but the fact that it goes on for over 5 minutes doesn't matter because it's a great song. Another rocky number, this one is really catchy and quite different. The electric guitar is very prominent in this track. The chorus has a great hook too.
07. In The Corner
This is one of my favourites on the album! Not counting the interludes, it's the shortest song on the album (3:22). It has such AMAZING music, I just adore it. This one is incredibly catchy and Ayu sounds great on it. A simple little song with the most amazing running music hooks in the background. Simply put, excellent.
08. tasking
A little short interlude, this clocks in at 1:26. This is one of many "tasking" named interludes on Ayu's albums and I think it's the best one. I just like the music and it's a nice bridge between the two songs on either side of it.
09. criminal
My other favourite track on the album, if you skip "tasking" it directly follows my other favourite. This is the first full blown ballad of the album and it's just gorgeous and moving. The piano on the track is just spell binding and the tune is familiar. Ayu's vocals are incredibly strong on this track too, but still soft. About 1:20 into the track, it kicks into a rock ballad. A stunning song, and one of the highlights.
10. Pride
Another ballad directly follows "criminal" and as I listened to the opening, I thought it wasn't going to be nearly as good. As I got into the song, I found that wasn't true at all. This song has an amazing chorus that is very catchy for a ballad. And the song isn't nearly as slow as the beginning makes it seem. More instruments kick in before long and that chorus comes on. Ayu's vocals also sound great on this. Another great song.
11. Will
A theme on this album is excellent music to accompany Ayu's vocals. This one is no exception, another great musical track. Ayu sings very fast on this song and the chorus is again, extremely catchy. This one is not as fast as the other rock tracks on the album, but is still upbeat.
12. HEAVEN
Another ballad like song, this is more midtempo though. This has great "la la la" bits in it and a great moving chorus. Ayu's voice flows over this one nicely and the instrumentals are great.
13. Are You Wake Up?
Bad grammar in the title but a cool little interlude anyway. It's almost like a mini song in it's own right though, at 2:05. I love the music on this, it has such interesting instruments. I love the vocoded "get your hands up" bits during it.
14. fairyland
This song is definitely one of the danciest songs on the album and sounds a bit more like classic Ayu from her first couple of albums, then the Ayu of today. This song is extremely dancey and upbeat and very catchy. With a name like "fairyland" you'd be expecting a ballad, but this one is nothing like it.
15. Beautiful Day
Yet again, great music. This song has a bit more English then the other tracks on the album, with Ayu singing "it's a beautiful day, it's a beautiful day" on the catchy chorus. This one is upbeat also, and is a bit more pop then the rest of the album. I like it.
16. rainy day
A BRILLIANT closing track to the album, this is another of my favourites. This song is just incredibly beautiful, it has amazingly sad music and Ayu's vocals sound better on this song then the rest of the album put together, especially in one note in the middle of the song. This song is quite sad, but chorus is uplifting at the same time. A gorgeous song and yet another highlight.

As you can see, none of the songs on this album got a bad review from me, I genuinelly like every single song in some way. This is a stellar album.

Top songs for me are:
In The Corner, criminal, rainy day, STEP you, Bold & Delicious, Pride, alterna and Are You Wake Up?

A top notch album and a great outing for Ayu. Ayumi Hamasaski is one of the world's most successful and amazing singers and I really wish more people would open their minds and try J-Pop and her in particular. This album is awesome and one of my favourites by Ayu.

This is a CD I can listen to all week without getting bored, great voice and the melodies of the songs are awesome.

This is the Ayu album to buy for those with a heavy metal bent and don't want it straightened. She goes back to her heavy rock roots with this one (and it's about time, too!) 'alterna', 'ladies night', and 'is this love?' are genuine headbangers, and would stand their ground with Maiden or Priest. This is actually surprising, given that it was supposed to be an R'n'B album at the outset, which makes me wonder what a premeditated heavy rock album would be like!

At first I was very disapointed by this CD. But after a while it grew on me. It's a great CD to listen to while you go for a walk (as long as it's sunny out!)

(and just to let you know, I can't really give an in-depth description, so if you really want to know more, just listen to it yourself!)

Bold & Delicious - when I first heard the clip for this song, I felt betrayed. I though "How could you do this to us, ayu?! Turning on us like that..." But it ended up growing on me. 9/10

STEP you - loved it at first, not now, but still a good song. 8/10

Ladies Night - one of my favourites on the CD. It was a cover of SWEETBOX, and I've never heard the original, but I really love this version. Part of the lyrics aren't in the booklet though, which really bugs me. 10/10

is this LOVE? - hated it at first, but now I love it. It's as rock as she get's. Great verse, great chorus, and I've even come to like the guitar solo. 10/10

(miss)understood - not really much happening in this song... it has an alright chorus. A weak track. 6/10

alterna - is spanish for "choice". My feelings for this song change frequently. I currently love it. 10/10

In The Corner - another SWEETBOX cover. It's kind of R n B sounding. It's alright, nothing special. 8/10

tasking - a good interlude, but not as good as the other one on here. 9/10

criminal - a slow type of song that get's really loud (but still slow) at the chorus.I like it. 9/10

Pride - at first I didn't like it, but it grew on me, and now I consider it a strong track. 10/10

Will - and we get to hear some more music composed by ayu! Yay! The music at the beginning and the verse remind me of that movie Amelie, and "Anne of Green Gables" or something. Another strong track. 10/10

HEAVEN - her best ballad to date, and my number one favourite song from this album. Love, love, love it. 11/10

Are You Wake Up - yes, the title doesn't make sense, but it's still a very happy sounding interlude. Would go well with any slide show. Hmmmm, that gives me and idea... 10/10

fairyland - what can I say? Sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't. Right now, I give it a 10/10

Beautiful Day - this song makes me happy no matter what's going on in life. 10/10

rainy day - a great way to close the album. Her voice is at it's best here, and the music box is so pretty. 10/10

total - 150/160

which rounds out to 93%. A very good album. Keep up the great work, Ayu!

Extra curricular information:

Songs composed by GEO of SWEETBOX (covers, all lyrics written by ayumi)
Bold & Delicious (arranged by CMJK)
Ladies Night (arranged by CMJK)
In The Corner (arranged by CMJK)
Pride (arranged by CMJK)
Beautiful Day (originally titled "Beautiful Girl")(arranged by tasuku)
rainy day (originally titled "Another Step")(kind of hard to see the name of the arranger. Yuta something)

The rest of her songs: (all lyrics - ayumi hamasaki)

STEP you - music: Kazuhiro Hara
arrangement: CMJK

is this LOVE? - music: Miki Watanabe
arrangement: HAL

(miss)understood - music: Tetsuya Yukumi
arrangement: tasuku

alterna - music: Shintaro Hagiwara, Sosaku Sasaki
arrangement: CMJK

tasking - music & arrangement: tasuku

criminal - music: Kazuhiro Hara
arrangement: Kazuhiro Hara

Will - music: CREA (ayumi) + D-A-I
arrangement: tasuku

HEAVEN - music: Kazuhito Kikuchi
arrangement: Yuta Nakano & KZB

Are You Wake Up? - music & arrangement: CMJK

fairyland - music: tasuku
arrangement: HAL