Regular
Limited
1) HELLO
2) Puzzle
3) Boku ni Wa
4) I'm Here
5) Phantom
6) Mendokusai
7) CEO
8) Shinjite
9) Delusion
10) LIFE IS A DRIVE
11) Ibara no Umi
12) Special Day
13) Ai no Shizuku
No prior released singles are included in I , which Mika wrote & composed the entire release by herself .
Prior to the release of I , Mika has never composed before so she started doing so by buying a computer . She was assisted by COLDFEET & other musicians she personally admires which led to the creation of I which she said it's her favourite release to date .
Before the physical release of I dropped , 4 songs from the release were 1st released digitally .
The release's opening no. HELLO was 1st released digitally last month on 6th April . A video was made for this energetic number with positive lyrics but it was not included in the physical release of I .
HELLO promoted the morning show Sukkiri!! last month .
Track 3 Boku ni Wa was released digitally on 13th April . Same with HELLO , a video was also made for the song but not included in the physical release of I .
The video made for Boku ni Wa has a documentary touch that's linked to the song's lyrics that portray Mika's feelings toward the band members who have supported her over the years .
Track 6 Mendokusai was released digitally on 20th April & this song has Ska influences .
Track 9 Delusion was released digitally on 27th April . Same with HELLO & Boku ni Wa , a video was also made for the song but it's also not included in the physical release of I .
After being in the business for more than 2 decades , I by far is most definitely Mika Nakashima's 1 of her most intruging yet unique releases to date .
Before releasing I , some of Mika's past releases she put out were interesting but others were a bit reductant & not worth considering .
Luckily I didn't had any of that type of feeling towards I & for Mika to write + composed the entire release by herself , it's commendable especially since this's something she has never done before until now .
I on whole is quite heavily Rock driven which's evident in HELLO , I'm Here (the only song Mika sung entirely in English) & Ibara no Umi .
This to me not surprising as ever since she released GLAMOROUS SKY back in 2005 , Rock is something that I feel suits Mika's vocals well & quite a lot of it can be felt in I .
Surprisingly for me , I like the ballads in I the most ie. like Boku ni Wa & Ai no Shizuku , not that the non ballads are not good . I also like LIFE IS A DRIVE even though I thought it felt a bit unfinished & Special Day is also a standout no. too .
That said , not all songs in I are memorable but this can be excused considering this's Mika's 1st attempt to write & compose everything .
I really hope this will not be the 1st & last time Mika do something like this and who knows maybe after this , her future releases will feature more creative input from her ? If so , that's something I will not mind .
CD
1) Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
2) STING
3) Honey on me
4) Prisoner
5) Love Supply
6) Roar
7) Born Free
8) EUPHORIA
9) We Just Go Hard Feat AK-69
10) CRYSTAL MOMENT
11) Womaniser
Only in this version
11) Yoru wa Aiteru (Kamenashi Kazuya)
12) Cantabile (Ueda Tatsuya) ; Ueda wrote the lyrics
13) Moon Shot (Nakamaru Yuichi) ; Nakamaru co-wrote
14) UPDATE
CD + DVD / Blu-ray A
1) Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
2) Honey on me
3) Prisoner
4) Love Supply
5) Roar
6) Born Free
7) EUPHORIA
8) We Just Go Hard Feat AK-69
9) CRYSTAL MOMENT
10) Womaniser
CD + DVD / Blu-ray B
1) STING
2) Honey on me
3) Prisoner
4) Love Supply
5) Roar
6) Born Free
7) EUPHORIA
8) We Just Go Hard Feat AK-69
9) CRYSTAL MOMENT
10) Womaniser
KAT-TUN's last studio album release was 2019's IGNITE . 2 physical singles Roar & We Just Go Hard Feat AK-69 / EUPHORIA + the digital prior released CRYSTAL MOMENT are included in the new album .
In addition , Honey is also KAT-TUN's 1st studio album to get a Blu-ray verison(s) alongside with DVD(s) . 4 songs (3 solo songs & 1 group track) are only available in the CD only version of Honey .
2 album tracks Ain't Seen Nothing Yet & STING have videos made . Prior to the physical release of Honey , Ain't Seen Nothing Yet was released digitally on 22nd March ie. KAT-TUN's debut anniversary date .
KAT-TUN released their 1st album in almost 3 years ! As the title Honey suggests , KAT-TUN's 10th album is full of sweet & lustrous songs with a sting . This theme is represented in the lead tracks Ain't Seen Nothing Yet and STING .
Celebrating their 16th debut anniversary this year , what better way for KAT-TUN to do so by also reaching a landmark milestone with their 10th album , Honey .
To say that the overall music direction KAT-TUN undertook in their latest new album is drastically if not completely different from what they used to do , it's an understatement .
Even before KAT-TUN released Honey , I think the change in their music direction/style was already felt when they released Roar as at that time when they released it , it sounded nothing like what they used to do & the same thing goes for Honey as well .
For the new album songs in Honey , I definitely think Ain't Seen Nothing Yet deserves to have a video made . Not only it's a really good opening album no. , it's such a smooth mid tempo song & oddly the more I listen to it , the more catchy & sexier sounding it's which's in line with the album's theme .
Whereas for the other album track STING , I don't think it should have a video made & even the accompanied video for the song is a bit odd . Given a choice I rather have Born Free be the song that had a video made , not STING .
Lyrically the new material in Honey is very adult rated driven so in a way it was nice for the 3 solo songs to counteract things & finally for once after a very long time , I like Ueda's latest solo offering . While it's not a full out ballad , at least Cantabile is something I don't mind to listen to it on a regular basis & also Ueda has personal input in the song ie. he wrote the lyrics .
Kamenashi's solos all the while is either hit or miss . This time round unlike Roar's Pure Ice , his latest solo no. Yoru wa Aiteru is a ballad which was written & composed by Chara . I think the song's really sweet & it's defintiely 1 of the better solo ballads he has put out over the years .
On the other hand , Nakamaru's latest solo offering Moon Shot is the most upbeat solo as compared to Kamenashi's & Ueda's . With lyrics that Nakamaru co-wrote himself , it's another solid solo no. from him and to me Nakamaru's solos all the while been consistently good although to some he played things safe but regardless , it works .
I've been a KAT-TUN for a long time & it's so surreal for them to officially now have 10 studio albums in their name especially with what they've gone through over the years .
As to whether Honey is a good or bad album , it's frankly up for debate but if this release can gain them new fans in return , then why not ?
Personally I support KAT-TUN taking a music risk with Honey even though this might not sit well with some of their longtime fans but if their latest album were to sound like a carbon copy of they used to do , I would be a lot more disappointed .
Music tastes & preferences are always evolving and what I might like , others might not & vice versa and there's no right or wrong answer for this .
KAT-TUN had a great overwhelmingly positive year in celebrating their 15th anniversary last year & I see Honey as an extension of the celebration . No matter who you're , having 10 albums to your name is a landmark milestone & despite what they've went through , I'm really glad KAT-TUN stuck it out as longtime fans like myself are still here for them & I look forward to see what else they have in store next .
ayumi's 1st new song release of the year , Nonfiction was to commemorate her 24th debut anniversary in the business .
Nonfiction was 1st performed during the encore segment at last month's ayumi hamasaki ASIA TOUR ~24th Anniversary special @ PIA ARENA MM~ that was held 2 days before ayumi's debut date ie. 8th April .
It has been such a long time since I was so into an ayumi song & the moment I 1st heard Nonfiction , I really like it immediately .
In recent years if not prior , ayumi has been known more for Rock driven songs . For once Nonfiction is not another Rock no. , it's a refreshing change . Instead it's a full on fun upbeat R&B no. and the melody's very catchy & my favourite part of the song is the 2nd 1/2 of the no. .
Last month's ayumi hamasaki ASIA TOUR ~24th Anniversary special @ PIA ARENA MM~ will be released in DVD & Blu-ray on 1st July which's an important date significance to ayumi & in addition her 18th studio album is scheduled to be released in Autumn .