JMusicGuide

The queen of J-pop kicks off 2002 with a new full-length album. Of course, if you haven't been living in isolation (or have simply been living in Japan) you've probably heard several of the tracks before thanks to singles that are released months in advance of the LP (evolution, Dearest, M), and are already certified hits.

No real artistic breakthroughs here, just more of what everyone's come to expect from Ayu-- dance/techno influenced J-pop hits. One song that does stand out though is track 9, Daybreak. Also of interest is A Song is born, a track done by the formerly hottest producer in Japan, Mr. Komuro Tetsuya. Not a particularly strong melody, but interesting to see that he's still working with the big names.
The cd contains 15 tracks, which should be enough to satisfy most Ayu fans. If not, you needn't worry, because the inevitable Eurobeat (or Ayu-ro beat if you want to be witty) remix album or albums can't be that far off.

Now this is one of the more interesting and possibly commercially-viable solo projects that's come out in a while. Brilliant Green vocalist/cuty Kawase Tomoko produces her own tracks and they come out to lovely poppy perfection.

This 4-song maxi single came out four months after first February Tommy 6 release (Everyday at the Bus Stop), which was a much slower affair. The more upbeat tempo here seems to make for better music, althought the American-cheerleaders-as-backup-dancers video for Bustop made it fun to watch. The Kiss One More Time video does play out like a photo shoot for Kawase though, which is something I'm not going to complain about one bit.