倖田來未 – Kingdom
Released: 30 Januart 2008
Buy the album at cdjapan
1. Introduction For Kingdom
2. LAST ANGEL feat.東方神起
3. 甘い罠
4. 秘密
5. 愛のうた
6. anytime
7. Under
8. BUT
9. 恋の魔法
10. 愛証
11. あなたがしてくれたこと
12. Wonderland
13. FREAKY
14. MORE
15. Black Cherry
Koda Kumi, an artiste under Avex (yes, the same label as Hamasaki Ayumi), has been touted as the Jpop princess. Honestly, I didn’t really listen to her songs or tried them but I gotta blame my Tohoshinki fandom for listening to her songs.
Track 2, the collaboration with Tohoshinki. Compare it with the Tohoshinki only track from my previous post and feel the difference. ^_^
Track 3, amai wana, has a somewhat Middle Eastern feel to it. Sorta reminds you of that hypnotizing snake charmer song. Result? sexy. What else do you expect from a title that translates to ’sweet trap’? AHA! Fall into the trap just like a charmed snake. XD
Track 4, himitsu, has a very sweet melody. What comes to mind oddly for me is her in bed, frolicking around and singing like an embarrassed woman. Have I been too influenced by Western music videos? I don’t know but there’s definitely some innocence in it. It’s a ’secret’, that’s what the title means. OH! It actually also reminds me a little of a Mariah Carey vibe; back to the Butterfly era when Mariah’s frolicking in bed is considered innocent. >.> MmMmmm.. could be a bad comparison.. maa~
Track 5, ai no uta, is a ballad. This song really shows off her low raspy-ish vocals. It may sound as if she has something stuck in her throat, or like she has a sore throat and forced to sing but to me, I kinda like it because if also gives me that kinda helplessness feeling that helps convey the meaning of the song. In some instances, she does remind me of Hamasaki Ayumi. I’m a sucker for ballads so yeah.. XD
Track 7, Under, is a very erm.. techno-ish song for me. The intro of the song reminds you of machinery and then in prances Kumi, singing, seducing you, tempting you. Weird eh? Moreover, her vocals, the way she sings and the title of the song really DOESN’T help the slutty temptress imagination. I like it because of that. It may not require much vocal ability but there are times when you just need a sexy dirty song and well, this is it. >.>
Track 13, FREAKY, sounds like a good club song. The distortion in her vocals make for the kind of songs that would incorporate some pretty cool dance moves. She asking you to “get FREAKY” sounds so “yo yo wassup~” hip-hop that it’s amusing to some extent.
15 songs in an album. That’s pretty hard to find these days. I would say overall, a pretty good album. Balanced with sexy songs, dance-y club songs and then ballads which oddly reminds you a lil of Mariah Carey vibe 10 years ago? ^_^
