Koi no Tsubomi

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: May 24, 2006
Label: EMI Music Japan
Personal Rating: 4/5

1. Koi no Tsubomi
2. Koi no Tsubomi (A Cup Of Milk Tea Bossa Nova Version)
3. Koi no Tsubomi (Instrumental)
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Koi no Tsubomi sounded like the kind of bubblegum pop that actually fits the style of singer. Just like most Kumi Koda songs, the chorus never fails to be the best part of the song since it’s memorable and leaves this rhtymic feeling on the listener.

Anyways, Koi no Tsubomi (A Cup Of Milk Tea Bossa Nova Version) didn’t leave off the same feeling that the original version did but at least it’s the kind of remix that doesn’t leave a bad after taste. (It’s not just the same song with beats.)

Personal Rating: 4/5

Best ~Second Session~

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: March 8, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 4.5/5

1. Introduction to the second session
2. D.D.D featuring SOULHEAD
3. You
4. Candy featuring Mr. Blistah
5. Shake It Up
6. Feel
7. WIND
8. Love goes like…
9. No Regret
10. Birthday Eve
11. Lies
12. Ima sugu hoshii
13. KAMEN
14. Someday
15. A Whole New World (Koda Kumi & Peabo Bryson)
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Now that I have just finished Kumi’s large 12 singles project, I think that it’s about time to recap all of the single reviews with this compilation album!

Although Kumi Koda sings English during the Introduction to the second session, it’s pretty hard to understand but at least it contains a few good factors for the background music.

Runner up is D.D.D with R&B elements and a feature of “Soulhead.” (Which from what I heard, was a rap duo.) Anyways, the very captivating mood and tone of the song totally prevents listeners from skipping this track. Not to mention that Kumi’s English is actually very good. The whole song is mostly sung like a duet but during the bridge, there’s a “rap” part when one of the Soulhead girls sing. It’s a pretty darn cool song so you might want to give this a listen.

You turns out to be one of the most spectacular ballads of all times! With a great combination of strings, Kumi shows off her new improved vocals with this addicting ballad!

Kumi Koda is once again back to her R&B genre for this project. Candy featuring Mr. Blistah is right off the bat, an R&B track but it is much better than “Lies.” Although it kind of repeats the chorus over and over throughout the whole song, I thought that the rapping was the most annoying.

Another great song during this twelve week project is Shake It Up which gives me many ways to describe this amazing song. First of all, the single cover is focused on Brazilian clothing so it’s pretty reasonable why there’s this nice breeze of festival sound effects throughout the whole song. Another factor that keeps me addicted to this song is that very catchy chorus. The chorus itself is the one reason why I countlessly repeat this song over and over again! If anyone is not a fan of Kumi Koda yet, this is definitely the right single to start with!

Feel is more of a laid back pop song although some people would actually define it as a mid tempo ballad. Either way, it’s not so energetic. The lyrics of the song is a love story about how her relationship with her boyfriend isn’t really that stable and how she wants him to “feel her heart” just so that they could see each other in the same perspective. (The only reason why I was able to understand the song, is because there are times when she sings in English and some times when she sings in Japanese. Anyways, I thought that it was a decent song even though it wasn’t her best.

WIND is probably one of the strongest singles in this collection since the first release, “You.” The track starts with some pretty nice elements; a strong chorus with beats. Not only that, the whole song is pretty upbeat and keeps up that happy mood throughout the whole song.

Love Goes Like… was the only track in this compilation album that hasn’t been released on a single. Anyways, I thought that this song sounded pretty decent since it’s like a laid back pop song with lots and lots of synchs. A great addition to this amazing album!

No Regret uses a genre that Kumi hasn’t done in a while and it totally suits her style! (But then there’s also pop and ballads.) This very energetic dance track is pretty old fashion but the feel of the song makes is sound as if you’re in a clubhouse or something. Great listen! But its just like listening to Ayu’s “Non-stop Mega Mix III;” listen to the songs too much and it would probably hurt your ears…or something like that. “No Regret” is probably one of the best songs in the collection.

Next up of this very fast era is Birthday Eve which I’m going to assume that it’s another fun release since the cover pretty much suits the mood of “joy.” Anyways, “Birthday Eve” turns out to be a really uplifting and very energetic pop song. Despite the very catchy chorus, I thought that Kumi did a really good job with this single…but I know that she could to better.

Lies turns out to be a R&B track with some of the same elements that “D.D.D.” had. (Except that “Lies” has more of that R&B feel.) Anyways, the song itself isn’t really all that impressive. Despite the fact that Kumi Koda doesn’t really sing well in English, the beats and the rhythm in the background wasn’t even that original. The chorus is probably the only thing that I liked about this song. So far, this is my least favorite but I can’t really say that it’s the worst of all of the 12 singles…yet.

I thought that the cover for the ninth addition to the collection was pretty cute….but not the song! Ima sugu hoshii is probably one of the most mature song ever created in J-pop history! (Okay, I’m probably over exaggerating a little bit.) I don’t know what those producers were thinking but I’m pretty sure that Kumi didn’t write those lyrics! Lyrics aside, I thought that the rest of the song was a bit plain but her voice was pretty nice but it’s so hard to get through the whole song with those lyrics…my goodness.

Looks like Single #10 makes its appearance as another collaboration single! After the HUGE disappointment with the last release “Ima Sugu Hoshii,” Kumi Koda brings back her normal self with KAMEN! Although Kumi’s vocals don’t sound really strong with this track, there’s also the fact that Ishii Tatsuya’s vocals doesn’t really support her’s either. I thought it was pretty standard and didn’t really exceed my expectations as a fan…but it makes me happy to see that Kumi went back to her old laid-back style.

So Someday starts this finale with a pretty groovy-like feel along with some strings playing in the background. (An odd combination of background music but whatever, I thought that the opening of the song was pretty strong, too.) But as for the rest of the song, I thought that it was pretty average….not really something to be crazy about. (But I just can’t shrug off the feeling that it sounds a little bit like an Ayumi Hamasaki song…Maybe that’s just me.)

A Whole New World (Koda Kumi & Peabo Bryson) is the cover song of the “Whole new World” which was featured in the Disney Classic, Aladdin. I thought that Kumi’s English vocals weren’t really impressive during this song so I guess I wouldn’t call this the best cover song….

Personal Rating: 4.5/5

Someday/Boys ♥ Girls

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: February 22, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 4/5

1. Someday
2. Boys ♥ Girls
3. Someday (Instrumental)
4. Boys ♥ Girls (Instrumental)
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At the beginning of this 12 singles collection project, “You” actually had two A-sides. Now that the project is coming to an end, it’s pretty reasonable to have the 12th single have two A-sides as well.

So Someday starts this finale with a pretty groovy-like feel along with some strings playing in the background. (An odd combination of background music but whatever, I thought that the opening of the song was pretty strong, too.) But as for the rest of the song, I thought that it was pretty average….not really something to be crazy about. (But I just can’t shrug off the feeling that it sounds a little bit like an Ayumi Hamasaki song…Maybe that’s just me.)

Now for the final song for this whole 12 week project, Boys ♥ Girls makes its entrance with the chorus. (Kind of like “WIND.”) It’s pretty energetic and appealing to listen to since the whole song itself sounded pretty strong. A great song but if you listen to it too much, you’ll probably get annoyed.

Personal Rating: 4/5

Wind

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: February 15, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 4.5/5

1. WIND
2. WIND (Instrumental)
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Unlike the past cover art, Kumi dresses like a “man” in this one. But seriously, with all of that make up, Kumi still looks like a girl! (I mean, look at the nails!)

WIND is probably one of the strongest singles in this collection since the first release, “You.” The track starts with some pretty nice elements; a strong chorus with beats. Not only that, the whole song is pretty upbeat and keeps up that happy mood throughout the whole song.

Personal Rating: 4.5/5

KAMEN

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: February 8, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 3.5/5

1. KAMEN feat. Ishii Tatsuya
2. KAMEN (with your darling version)
3. KAMEN (with your honey version)
4. KAMEN feat. Ishii Tatsuya (Instrumental)
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Looks like Single #10 makes its appearance as another collaboration single! After the HUGE disappointment with the last release “Ima Sugu Hoshii,” Kumi Koda brings back her normal self with KAMEN! Although Kumi’s vocals don’t sound really strong with this track, there’s also the fact that Ishii Tatsuya’s vocals doesn’t really support her’s either. I thought it was pretty standard and didn’t really exceed my expectations as a fan…but it makes me happy to see that Kumi went back to her old laid-back style.

KAMEN (with your darling version) was all Ishii Tatsuya’s version while the KAMEN (with your honey version) was Kumi’s. Honestly, Kumi’s version sounded so much better compared to Tatsuya’s.

Personal Rating: 3.5/5

Ima Sugu Hoshii

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date:
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 3/5

1. Ima Sugu Hoshii
2. Ima Sugu Hoshii (Instrumental)
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I thought that the cover for the ninth addition to the collection was pretty cute….but not the song! Ima Sugu Hoshii is probably one of the most mature song ever created in J-pop history! (Okay, I’m probably over exaggerating a little bit.) I don’t know what those producers were thinking but I’m pretty sure that Kumi didn’t write those lyrics! Lyrics aside, I thought that the rest of the song was a bit plain but her voice was pretty nice but it’s so hard to get through the whole song with those lyrics…my goodness.

Personal Rating: 3/5

No Regret

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: January 25, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 5/5

1. No Regret
2. Rain (Unplugged Version)
3. No Regret (Instrumental)
4. Rain (Album Version Instrumental)
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Much much better! No Regret uses a genre that Kumi hasn’t done in a while and it totally suits her style! (But then there’s also pop and ballads.) This very energetic dance track is pretty old fashion but the feel of the song makes is sound as if you’re in a clubhouse or something. Great listen! But its just like listening to Ayu’s “Non-stop Mega Mix III;” listen to the songs too much and it would probably hurt your ears…or something like that. “No Regret” is probably one of the best songs in the collection.

“Rain” is an original song that was played in Kumi’s “Feel my Mind” era. Rain (Unplugged Version) has more of that acoustic vibe to it although I wouldn’t really call it “unplugged.” It’s a pretty good mix but not good enough to blow me away. (I thought it got boring after a few listens.)

Personal Rating: 5/5

Candy

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: January 18, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 4/5

1. Candy feat. Mr. Blistah
2. Candy feat. Mr. Blistah (Instrumental)
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Kumi Koda is once again back to her R&B genre for this project. Candy feat. Mr. Blistah is right off the bat, an R&B track but it is much better than “Lies.” Although it kind of repeats the chorus over and over throughout the whole song, I thought that the rapping was the most annoying. But it still meets my expectations; it’s a pretty good singles after all.

For some reason, some of Kumi Koda’s cover works look a little funny. (Well…only for this 12 single collection. It’s cool that she’s wearing a different clothing for every release but sometimes they look funny on her.)

Personal Rating: 4/5

Feel

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: January 11, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 4/5

1. Feel
2. Feel (Instrumental)
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Unlike the past single, Feel is more of a laid back pop song although some people would actually define it as a mid tempo ballad. Either way, it’s not so energetic. The lyrics of the song is a love story about how her relationship with her boyfriend isn’t really that stable and how she wants him to “feel her heart” just so that they could see each other in the same perspective. (The only reason why I was able to understand the song, is because there are times when she sings in English and some times when she sings in Japanese. Anyways, I thought that it was a decent song even though it wasn’t her best.

Personal Rating: 4/5

Lies

Artist: Kumi Koda
Release Date: January 4, 2006
Label: Rhythm Zone
Personal Rating: 3.5/5

1. Lies
2. Lies (instrumental)
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Lies turns out to be a R&B track with some of the same elements that “D.D.D.” had. (Except that “Lies” has more of that R&B feel.) Anyways, the song itself isn’t really all that impressive. Despite the fact that Kumi Koda doesn’t really sing well in English, the beats and the rhythm in the background wasn’t even that original. The chorus is probably the only thing that I liked about this song. So far, this is my least favorite but I can’t really say that it’s the worst of all of the 12 singles…yet.

Personal Rating: 3.5/5