It's been nearly a year-and-a-half since the newly-styled Namie Amuro's released an album (2003's STYLE, an admirable album in its own right), so fans were eagerly awaiting new material from everyone's favorite Okinawan. This album, aptly titled Queen of Hip-Pop, shows Amuro in a new light - a mature woman who's not afraid to take on any sort of style and work it until she's satisfied with how it sounds. Granted, the major caveat with this album is that the style of the songs makes them seem to blend together and be a bit "same-y", but that doesn't detract so much as to make this a bad album. Comparing this album to her previous, while the former may be same-y and non-derivitative from song-to-song, the latter had a meshing of styles that seemed to create an album with no direction, not to mention that album had some songs that just stuck out as bad. There's no such track on this effort.
I Love You is one of those songs that's good, but could be great by removing one element - in this case, the man in the background who constantly counts backwards from three. Yes, Mister Mystery Background Man, you can count. That's good. Now go away and quit ruining this song. It's a light, upbeat track somewhat reminiscient of a tropical-sounding song; it's also the most deviant from the album's "hip-pop" sound, which isn't a bad thing - it provides a welcome relief after hearing eight songs that sound quite similar. Granted, like many of the songs on the album, it can become a bit repetitive lyrically, but in this case, that's not a bad thing, since this is one of the best tracks on the album. Namie's vocal performance is laid-back and bouncy, just like the song.
Shakers signal the entrance of ALARM, one of the album's singles. Like most of Namie's albums, when the single tracks are included they're tweaked a bit as far as arrangement and vocals go - I can't tell on the others, but on this one, that difference is there. It's subtle, and not even noticeable if you're not paying attention, but it's there. A pulsating beat and a captivating performance from Namie give leeway for the nonsensical English lyrics and extremely repetitive nature of the song; while not exactly a groundbreaking track as far as Namie's recent material goes, this was one of her better singles, even if it is a bit strange. Although, hearing Namie ask someone to "kick me harder, kick my booty" just makes me smile. It's a fun song.
The most relaxed of the album's tracks can be found in ALL FOR YOU, a calm-and-slow R&B ballad, which is a welcome pace both in the album (slowing things down after several dance-y and fun songs) and as a single (released after the previously-mentioned ALARM, the single provided a welcome change-of-pace from Amuro). While sounding eerily like many of Namie's other ballads, there's something about this one that makes it good - I'm thinking it's her vocal performance, as it's stronger than in previous ballads (Wishing On The Same Star comes to mind, as well as I will - both of which were good songs, but lacked as far as a strong and tolerable performance were concerned) and fits well with the sound of the song. I'm not a big ballad fan (especially when Namie does them), but this one's a winner.
Free is one of the album's tracks that just seems to be "there" - it's good, but it's nothing special when compared to other songs on the album. Namie's performance is spot-on, the music's tolerable-but-not-great, and the lyrics and instrumentation run the borderline between repetitive and annoying, like a majority of the album. It's one of those "this is the style I've chosen so I'm going to beat it into your head until you're sick of it" songs - worthy of a couple listens, but wears thin quickly.
I Wanna Show You My Love is fun. A clap-track and bouncy beats back Namie as she chant-sings her way through an upbeat "thank you" to her fans; this is one of those tracks whose repetition doesn't really become a factor against the song, in fact, it makes it all the better, because Namie's performance in this one is great. She's a wonderful vocalist who knows just how to use her voice to make the most of a song, and that definetly shows in this one.
Ups & Downs is another ballad-like track, in which Namie duets with a singer/rapper named Nao'ymt (who?) - unfortunately, this is one of the album's weaker tracks; Namie and Nao's voices blend well, and the instrumentation is pretty, but there's just something that's missing from this that would make it a smashing track. Nao'ymt has a wonderful voice that fits this song well; it'd be nice to see him featured again, because he and Namie have great chemistry. It's a shame this song isn't better than it is, because it's not bad, just not great.
No is another clap-track dance-song with repetitive lyrics, but it's fun, bouncy, and addictive; Namie's performance is, again, captivating, and the song's repetitive nature will get the lyrics stuck in your head, and you'll be saying "No" too. This one also features Namie's signature name-dropping, as she tells everyone to "say N-A-M-I-E" (Namie's Style popping into anyone's head with that?) in addition to asking someone if they want some "sweet peach" (or maybe it's something else, I can't really tell - but it's good) - Namie's use of English may not always make the most sense, but it provides some good lyrics for her fun songs.
And we come to one of, if not the, weakest tracks on the album - the last single released before the album, Namie's homage to repetitive-one-instrument songs everywhere: WANT ME, WANT ME. Some sort of Indian sitar/stringed something-or-other gets plucked throughout the entire song, and the lyrics to the chorus get repeated about ten billion times (not really, but it feels like it given the song's annoyance factor) in the short duration of the song; that being said, it's still a good song, as Namie gives a noteworthy performance (most of which is more rap-singing than plain singing) and the lyrics are probably Namie's most sexual in nature, showing that she's not afraid to tackle any subject. If only this song weren't so annoying, maybe I'd like it more.
Overall, I'd have to say that Namie's newest album provides an enjoyable, if repetitive listen. It's a welcome addition to any collection, and the whole "Pink Panther" theme is just cute.
Also on this album: Queen of Hip-Pop, WoWa, GIRL TALK, My Darling
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