Ai Kawashima [Ashiato] (Third Album)

Kimi ni…..
My Love
Sakura Bojou
Crying (album version)
Someday
Kareshi
Sochuu Omimai Moushiagemasu
Akai Kutsu no Mimosa
Taisetsu na Yakusoku
Dreaming World
Kyuusei Shu
compass
Ashiato

The album starts off with Kimi ni…... I’m on the fence with this track, because I like it, but then again I don’t like it. The piano arrangement is nice if not predictable. Ai’s vocal performance on the other hand is just very hit or miss and mostly miss, I mean I don’t know what it is, or if its just me, but the tones she makes with her voice are just very annoying. It almost put me off this song completely, but I like the pace, the flow and its not really a bad song.

The next track on the album is the up-tempo My Love. I’m actually pretty surprised that this isn’t down-tempo, but it was a welcome change and so soon? The arrangement is pretty up-beat and sparkly, though just like the previous track, predictable and a bit anime-ish. Ai’s vocals weren’t as annoying thankfully, but she sounded rather odd trying to keep up with the music and I just didn’t buy it, it was a pretty tired vocal performance. This isn’t a bad song either, but unlike the first track, I don’t really care for this and can’t see myself listening to it again.

The next track on the album brings the pace back down with Sakura Bojou. This song seemed very long to me, but even though it seemed long I wasn’t ready for it to end, which is surprising seeing as how I’m talking about Kawashima here and I don’t really like her voice. The arrangement was calm, not anything interesting, but it went with the flow of the song and didn’t distract. Ai’s vocal performance was the usual, but I’m impartial to it in this track and thought she did a decent job.

The next track on the album is the down-tempo Crying (album version) This isn’t a bad song, but it just plays without being felt. The arrangement is a simple piano piece, but I thought it was a little too simple and the ‘ping’ sound I kept hearing was very distracting. Ai’s vocal performance was bearable in a sense, but I honestly didn’t care for it, it just passed over me. The chorus is basically the only part of this track that I somewhat remember. Its also longer than the previous, but thankfully just like ’sakura bojou’ it didn’t seem long. I guess this is one of those songs that will have to grow on me, but I doubt I’ll be listening to it again.

The next track on the album calms things down with Someday. This song is pretty plain, but the flow is nice. The song didn’t really do anything arrangement wise and seemed to be there just to give the song something to stand on. Ai’s vocal performance was light and surprisingly nice. This song seemed long to me for some reason, which is strange because it is long, but it wasn’t long in a irritating way, but a ‘hmm? this song isn’t over yet’ way.

The next track on the album is Kareshi. This is quite possibly the most interesting song on this album so far. The arrangement is rather cute-sy in a mild way and even though it doesn’t do much it did keep the song interesting and a bit lively and upbeat. I thought Ai gave a pretty good and consistent vocal performance as well.

The next track on the album continues the breezy pace with Sochuu Omimai Moushiagemasu. This is another rather upbeat track that is nearly as interesting as the previous, if not moreso. I actually like the arrangement, not so much sparkly, but pretty nice and at one point it was a bit lovely? I thought Ai’s vocal performance was fine, she did sound like she was just getting over a cold, because her vocals had this strangely weak tone to them, but otherwise I found it bearable.

The next track on the album is the smooth Akai Kutsu no Mimosa. I actually really like this and it stood out, by not really standing out at all. The arrangement is very lounge and blue-sy and it made me think of smoke. I loved how laid-back and sensual it was. Ai’s vocals were surprisingly nice, I actually had no problems with her in that department. This was a pretty cool track.

The next track on the album keeps the down-tempo pace going with Taisetsu na Yakusoku. Well… this is a rather uneventful track. I actually thought I was going to like it, because it started off on a somewhat good note and then it just went nowhere and fast. This is such a tedious listen. The heard it a thousand times before arrangement just dragged and Ai’s vocal performance made me think of YUI, it was so monotonous. This song is boring and too long to have nothing going for it.

The next track on the album is the whimsical Dreaming World. I’m really surprised that this song was a bit over four minutes, because it honestly played like a six minute song. This is a track that you don’t really pay attention to, but you think is a pretty all right song once it fades. The arrangement is typically sparkly, but its of course fitting. Ai’s vocals were decent, it did seem like she was trying to sound dreamy a lot, by elongating on certain parts in the song and I thought that was kind a annoying and weird, but otherwise it was a fine vocal performance. The choir that came in towards the end was nice as well.

The next track on the album is the nice Kyuusei Shu. This song also seems longer than it actually is. I actually quite like this. The arrangement is the most interesting I’ve heard on this album, the smooth Jazz like qualities of it really appealed to my ears and put me in a very serene almost blissful mood. Ai’s vocal performance was pretty darn good as well, possibly the best I’ve heard so far as well. This is definitely the stand-out track, if only because it completely separates itself from the rest of the tracks on here.

The second to last track on the album is compass. I’m wondering if this song was suppose to be good, because I spent over five minutes wondering if it was ever going to go anywhere. The arrangement is the piano, it plays prettily, but is very simple, it eventually becomes background noise. Ai’s vocals are decent I guess, but did nothing to stand out and I found I hardly cared for it, pretty weak. This track is forgettable.

The last track on the album is its namesake Ashiato. This song isn’t bad, but I really dislike Ai’s vocal performance. The arrangement consists of an acoustic guitar, nothing amazing, but its nice on the ears. The problem is it makes Ai’s vocals stand out in glaring relief and I really don’t like the annoying tones she does with it, reminds me of that thing Ayu insists on doing with her voice in everyone of her songs nowadays. I just don’t like her voice and this song makes it stand-out too much. The arrangement was nice, Ai’s vocals weren’t. This was a quiet albeit weak ending to the album.

-GRADE: B-
Rating: ** stars

Ai Kawashima’s third album Ashiato was decent, but I wouldn’t listen to it again. I don’t really know what to think of Kawashima, I’m starting to think she was better when she first started out, because her material now is a drag. I admit, there were a few songs on this album that I genuinely liked, but overall this album was rather boring and forgettable. It was also a chore to get through and I found myself wondering if I really wanted to continue reviewing her music, because she honestly doesn’t appeal to me at all. I don’t like her voice and though she does a genre that I like, her music is more often than not tedious. I liked her first album and this album wasn’t as bad as it could have been; some tracks did appeal to me. I’m going to give Kawashima one more chance, but honestly I don’t think I’ll ever become a fan of her (perhaps her mini albums are better?).

*This is an old review, this is the first of a slew of reviews I did before I decided to go on my hiatus. [April 7th, 2009]

Ai Kawashima [Kakera/Flag] (16th Single)

Kakera
Flag
Taiyou Densha

Ai Kawashima’s 16th double a-side single starts off with the a-side Kakera. This song is pretty baseless. The arrangement is simple and Ai gives an OK though really weak vocal performance. I don’t know this song isn’t all that bad, but its really just dull in my opinion and its pretty forgettable.

The next track on the single is its second a-side Flag. This song isn’t bad, but it plays like a more livelier version of the a-side. I mean the arrangement is just as simple, just not as slow-paced and the same can be said for Ai’s vocals, which are still pretty weak. Its not bad, but there’s just nothing about this song that stands out, it seems so recycled.

The next track on the album is the b-side Taiyou Densha. I’m honestly wishing they would have left this album off on ‘flag’ because I didn’t think it could get any more duller than the first a-side or as forgettable as the second a-side. The arrangement sounds like the two a-side arrangements combined, I just ignored it completely. Ai’s weak vocals become glaring towards the end when she starts ‘la,la,la’ing’ with some random guy and then it just got annoying. It also doesn’t help that this song is absurdly long, so it was almost like slowly being driven insane. This track could have been so much better than this, but its just such a tedious listen.

-GRADE: D
Rating: * star

Ai Kawashima’s 16th single Kakera/Flag is as disappointing as a single can get, seriously. If you had to listen to this awful single on repeat it would probably drive you to suicide, its just that bad. I mean even the redeeming qualities such as the simple arrangements aren’t all that redeemable, because you’re too busy trying to ignore the song that is playing. I admire my self-control, because I wanted to –more times than one– press the stop button. Door Crawl wasn’t all that good, but it wasn’t bad either. This? I don’t know what this is, but it fails disastrously.

*This is an old review, this is the first of a slew of reviews I did before I decided to go on my hiatus. [April 17th, 2009]

Ai Kawashima [12 Ko no Message] (First Album)

eighteen’s days
Zetsubou to Kibou
Mermaid (Album Version)
Yume de Aetara
525 Page
Bokutachi wa
Fukuoka ~The Rock’n Roll~
Sayonara Arigatou ~Tatta Hitotsu no Basho~
Doukyuusei
Yuki ni Saku Hana
Kono Michi Furafura
12 Ko no Kisetsu ~4 Do Me no Haru~

The album starts off with the light eighteen’s days. This song still took me by surprise even though in a way I kind of expected it to got this way. The arrangement consists of the drums which bangs out a constant rhythm that gives the song a very party-like air. Kawashima’s vocals were devoid of that weird tone she had in Door Crawl and was high and very seiyuu like. I found that I liked it even if it seemed like she was losing her voice on certain parts of the chorus. This song is very fun, but it carries a serious undercurrent to it.

The next track on the album is the underwhelming Zetsubou to Kibou. This song did a complete 180. I mean the previous track was pretty good, this one was not. The arrangement is nice, in a lightly recycled pop melody way. I mean its like I’ve heard it a thousand times before. Kawashima’s vocals were awful, its almost like she was tone deaf or something and was just belting out a whole bunch of nonsense. After a while I just turned my ears off.

The next track on the album is the down-tempo Mermaid (Album Version). This is nice little song, though it does nothing really to stand out. The arrangement seems fitting enough, light with a twinkle and sparkle like quality to it. Kawashima’s voice has that weird tone to it which is most evident during the chorus when she goes for those somewhat higher notes, its tolerable though.

The next track keeps the down-tempo’s coming with Yume de Aetara. This is a pretty smooth song with a nice pace. The arrangement is that of a piano, its nice a bit moody and stayed relatively in the background. Kawashimi’s vocals were fine in this, rather pretty and emotional. It was during the climax that it got a bit weird, but she pulled it off. This was a nice listen.

The next track on the album is the nice 525 Page. When this song first started I remember thinking: ‘deja vu’ because it sounded exactly like the previous song, thankfully it becomes its own seconds later. Its a pretty soothing track. The arrangement is very smooth and played like air, in fact I hardly even noticed it. Kawashima’s vocals still held that highness, but I thought her vocal performance in this song was pretty good.

The next track on the album is the half and half Bokutachi wa. Though I’m on the fence with the song, I believe I like it more than I dislike it. The best thing about this song is the arrangement, its a simple guitar piece, but it plays wonderfully and gives off such a feeling of nostalgia. Kawashima’s vocals were fine, when she was singing in a low tone, but when her voice rises a bit during the chorus it becomes almost unbearable. Still, this is a nice listen and I’ll give it points for being long, but not feeling long at all.

The next track ups the pace with Fukuoka ~The Rock’n Roll~. The last upbeat track I remember hearing is eighteen’s days and I have to admit her more up in the tempo songs seem a bit more satisfying since it rounds out her rather strange vocals. The arrangement has a light rock thing going for it, what with the drums, but its very fitting. Kawashima’s vocals were pretty good in this song, though she sounded so much like another singer whose name I can’t put a finger on. This was a fun song and actually stands out a bit.

The next track on the album is the down-tempo Sayonara Arigatou ~Tatta Hitotsu no Basho~. Kawashima has some good ballads and down-tempo’s–I’ll give her that, its just that  she needs to control her vocals a bit more because the hi-pitch of her voice becomes a lot more glaring during the slow songs. The arrangement is nice, its a quiet guitar piece and honestly if it wasn’t for the arrangement compensating for her voice, I don’t think I would have liked this song much.

The next track on the album is the light Doukyuusei. Wow, I really like this song. It’s not down-tempo, but a bit in between that and mid-tempo. The arrangement is light pop, easy on the ears and keeps a nice and consistent pace throughout. Kawashina’s vocals were really good in this you can say they were cute, but they were serious and controlled in a sense. I really like the chorus. I also like how the song had a bit of variety, kept it interesting.

The next track on the album is the down-tempo Yuki ni Saku Hana. I wanted to like this song because its not bad, but after awhile it just becomes so long-winded and dull. The arrangement is minimal, a piano piece I believe, but its hardly noticeable and makes the song seem acoustic. Kawashima’s vocals weren’t bad, that strange tone to her voice actually went well with this, but like I said after awhile I just couldn’t be bothered. The song isn’t really all that long, but it just feels long and that just drags the song down.

The second to last track on the album is the inspirational-sounding Kono Michi Furafura. This song sounds very inspiring to me and I think that’s mostly because of the arrangement. It has a light airy-ness to it that fills you with a feeling of hope. Kawashima’s vocals were actually quite good in this, high and cutes-y, but it went so well with the whole flow of the song. Also, what’s an inspirational song without a choir? I always love when artists add a choir to their songs it fleshes it out more and makes said song more emotionally felt. I just thought of someone smiling with their eyes closed, sad and happy at the same time.

The last track on the album is the down-tempo 12 Ko no Kisetsu ~4 Do Me no Haru~. There’s not a lot that goes on in this song, its pretty simple. I like that. The arrangement is a simple piano piece that fits in perfectly with Kawashima’s rather self-assured vocal performance. It reminds me of those, ‘can’t take that away from me’ songs. It just came across as so very self-inspiring to me. Its a nice ending to the album.

-GRADE: A-
Rating: **1/2 stars

Ai Kawashima’s first album 12 Ko no Message was… a really good album. I mean its nothing that is going to go down in history as one of the greatest albums ever, but I mean its going to go somewhere. I was really worried about her for a second, I thought: ‘i’m not going to be able to do her’ because it seemed like she was a bit out of my league. The music she makes happens to be one of my favorite types of music to listen to, but it all ends up sounding the same and reviewing is hard enough already the last thing you want to do is continuously have to repeat yourself which is why I won’t do YUI. Kawashima had more down-tempo songs on here than anything, I love ballads so that didn’t bother me because despite the weird tone of her vocals they were really good ballads. However, her more upbeat songs like eighteen’s days and Fukuoka ~The Rock’n Roll~ completely out-shined them and I found that refreshing. I actually wish she would have included more up-tempo tracks. 12 Ko no Message I found one enjoyable listen and I can’t wait to review her next album Ashiato.

Ai Kawashima [Door Crawl] (15th Single)

Door Crawl
Iro no Nai Mono
Hi

Ai Kawashima’s 15th single starts off with the a-side Door Crawl. To be the a-side to one of the best pieces of cover art I have ever seen this is certainly a weak track. However, I find that I like it, not a lot but a little. The arrangement is nice and sets such a mood. Its pretty slow in the beginning and picks up as we get into the song. Kawashima’s vocals are very weird and really kind a ruin this song for me, she just doesn’t sound right to me. It was like listening to someone sing whose voice is shot, but wants to give it a try anyway. Her vocals made what could have been a pretty powerful song come across as very limp. The song sets a nice atmosphere and the effort she put into this track was certainly obvious so I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt, because its not a bad song, but her vocal performance could have been a lot stronger than it was.

The next track on the single is its first b-side Iro no Nai Mono. I’d have to admit I like this song a bit more than the a-side. The piano arrangement was gorgeous and I really wish she would have included the instrumental. Kawashima’s vocals were rather nice during the chorus, but though mild that whole ’shot voice but i’m going to sing anyways’ came out a little. I found this a nice listen though with a vocal performance that was a lot more bearable than the a-side’s.

The last track on the single is its second b-side Hi. I keep thinking of the actual word ‘hi’. This was a pretty OK song. I didn’t like the arrangement too much, I mean it wasn’t bad, but it seemed to just play so stagnantly only there to give the song something to stand on. Kawashima’s vocals were weird again, well her voice was fine during the verses controlled and nice even. The chorus was a bit fine as well, just mildly high in the pitch; it was when she went for those ‘a-a-ah’ notes that her vocals went downhill, it just sounded so strange.  This is the weakest of the three songs, but its a decent listen.

-GRADE: B
Rating: ** stars

Ai Kawashima’s 15th single Door Crawl was all right, but overall a pretty weak offering. Door Crawl was a-side material, but I really wish that Kawashima would have brought it harder it just didn’t do much of anything for me. Iro no Nai Mono was the best of the three tracks, but its obvious b-side material and hardly memorable. Hi was like I said, the weakest and played like filler. This single isn’t as bad I make it out to be, its definitely worth a listen.