Tracks:

1. Alive

2. Physical thing

3. Alive  (Instrumental)

4. Physical thing (Instrumental)

5. TRICK Live Version (From TRICK Tour 2009)

6. Joyful Live Version (From TRICK Tour 2009)

Alive / Physical thing is Koda Kumi’s 45th single and it was released on September 16th, 2009. This single reached #1 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and it has sold 41,713 copies. Alive was used as the theme song for the movie Kamui the Ninja.

Ballads have never been Koda Kumi’s strong suit. I mean, look at any of the ballads from TRICK and you’ll see why. She doesn’t really have the vocal chops for slower stuff. So, you can bet I was surprised when I heard Alive. Instead of your typical, run-of-the-mill piano and strings, avex decided to get an orchestra, that’s right a freaking orchestra, for Kuu’s latest winter love ballad. In all fairness, this song is pretty, and I like the route Kumi took for this song. She sings with lots of emotion and the music is good at keeping your (well, at least my) attention and I’m glad she decided to spice things up for once.

It wouldn’t be a Koda Kumi single without the impromptu sex song. Physical thing, the Japanese cover of the song, originally by British singer Nosheen, is your typical slutty Koda Kumi song, complete with blaring synth and beats. I liked the other song more, since I think this song is just the same as her other sexy songs.

I liked the bonuses on the single. We get Live Versions of TRICK and Joyful From TRICK Tour 2009. I loved the redone version of INTRODUCTION FOR TRICK, appropriately retitled TRICK, since it was an amazing song when it was just one minute long, so I’m glad it was extended. Joyful wasn’t my favourite song from TRICK, but it showed that she can sing pretty well live, and I actually prefer it over the original.

Overall Grade:

Tracks:

1. 09:00 A.M.【Intro】

2. Lick me ♥

3. ECSTASY

4. 12:35 P.M.【Interlude】

5. Hashire!

6. 04:20 P.M.【Interlude】

7. Lick me ♥ (Q;indivi-Yusuke Tanaka Remix)

8. ECSTASY (Caramel Pod E Remix)

9. Hashire! (420 Remix)

10. 12:00 A.M.【Outro】

3 SPLASH is Koda Kumi’s 44th single and it was released on July 8th, 2009. It reached #2 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and has sold 74,714 copies.

Oh lord. Our first of 4 pointless ~interludes~. 09:00 A.M.【Intro】 begins with what sounds like someone tuning a radio. A hip-hop beat and some groovy bass comes in as well and kind of drowns out the tuning sound.

Our first known track, Lick me ♥, is your typical Koda Kumi summer song. It’s all smiles in this song and Kuu shows off a great deal of happy in this song. For some reason, despite all the cheery, upbeat synths and loud clapping beat, this song annoys me. It could be that it sounds like EVERY OTHER SUMMER SONG SHE HAS DONE, or it’s just the song itself. MOVING ON~

Kuu decides to sex things up with ECSTASY. This song is also your typical Kuu-horned-up song, complete with thumping bass, aggressive guitar riffs, and some harmonization in the chorus. Out of the three songs on this single, this is probably my favourite.

12:35 P.M.【Interlude】 is another interlude with a hip-hop clapping beat and some short guitar riffs. I kind of liked this one and I thought it would’ve been a good song if it was longer.

I’m also rather annoyed with Hashire!. I just didn’t get a nice vibe from this song, and it overall just rubbed me the wrong way. This song is LOUD and is even more grating during the loud guitar riffs and Kuu kind of screaming. Sorry, NEXT.

04:20 P.M.【Interlude】 leads us into remixes of the three tracks. This one start with the sound of waves and then someone driving in a car. Amongst all that you hear what sounds like a club music. About half way through you hear beeping synth and it ends by just beeping.

Our first remix is the Q;indivi-Yusuke Tanaka Remix of Lick me ♥. Yusuke Tanaka of the electro group Q;indivi turns this upbeat summer song into an ethereal club song. Tanaka pretty much takes everything out of the song, leaving Kuu and the beat, and adds some spacey-sounding synth.

The Caramel Pod E Remix of ECSTASY is turned into a club-worthy dance song. Aggressive synth, and a heavier dance beat are added to Kuu’s vocodered voice. I thought this was a decent remix and it isn’t all that bad.

The 420 Remix of Hashire! is one stinky hot mess. Another club-like song that has FAR too much added to it. Random noises and too msny beats result in an even crappier remix of a crappy song.

12:00 A.M.【Outro】 I thought was an appropriate ending, since you hear someone getting in a car and driving off. At 20 seconds in, some of the synth loops and guitar chords from Lick me ♥. I thought it was a nice way to end us off on this pretty decent single.

Overall Grade:

Tracks:

1. It’s all Love!

2. faraway

3. Tenbin ~Tsuyogari na Watashi × Yowagari na Kimi~

4. It’s all Love! (Instrumental)

5. faraway (Instrumental)

6. Tenbin ~Tsuyogari na Watashi × Yowagari na Kimi~ (Instrumental)

Koda Kumi × misono’s It’s all Love! was released on March 31st, 2009. It’s their 1st collaborative single, and it charted at #1 on the Oricon Weekly Charts, and it has sold a total of 84,911 copies.

It is upon us! The very much desired Koda sister collaboration, It’s all Love!. Though I was excited about the collaboration, part of me was not so enthusiastic, mainly because of misono. I really don’t like her, and I question why she’s a singer whenever I hear her music… sorry for the hate, but I really just don’t like her. Anyway, the girls decided to do a hectic rock track, that’s really fast and doesn’t let up (except for the tiny ballad-like bridge) for their first ever collab., and I love every minute of it. I was surprised that I actually misono, as well. I quite enjoyed the endless amount of vigor the two sang with, seperate or as one. I thought this was a solid effort from the duo, and I think both Kumi and misono did a nice job.

The B-sides on this single are a solo track from the sisters. First is Kumi with faraway. For Kuu, this is just another generic ballad that sounds like all the others. It has the same old clapping beat, orgel sound, bells, and all that jazz. While I thought this song was pretty, it just sounds like a typical Kuu ballad and I was hoping for something more fierce, like something that sounds like it should be on TRICK for instance. ;D Overall, I thought this song was pretty useless and should be thrown in the Kuu-Ballad-Bin. It really did nothing for me.

Oh. Sweet mother of God. Please. Kill me. D: misono’s solo track Tenbin ~Tsuyogari na Watashi × Yowagari na Kimi~, is… TERRIBLE. At first it starts out… okay… (not really lol.) misono sounds really nasally and dull, and the plainacoustic guitar strums really do nothing for me. I’d much rather listen to Kumi’s solo track because misono literally SHRIEKS the lyrics in this song, and I just want to turn it OFF.

Overall Grade:

Tracks:

1. INTRODUCTION FOR TRICK

2. TABOO

3. show girl

4. Your Love

5. stay with me

6. This is not a love song

7. Driving

8. Bling Bling Bling feat. AK-69

9. That Ain’t Cool feat. Fergie

10. Hurry Up!

11. Moon Crying

12. JUST THE WAY YOU ARE

13. Joyful

14. Ai no Kotoba

15. Venus

Koda Kumi’s TRICK was released on January 28st, 2009. It’s her 7th album and it debuted at #1 on the Oricon Weekly Charts, selling a total of 309,354 copies.

The INTRODUCTION FOR TRICK opens with the sound of “ladies, ladies let’s go!” and then a crowd screaming. Which soon turns into a FIERCE opening. Heavy bass and synth accompanied by Kumi’s aggressive vocals. I would’ve loved to hear a full song of this because it’s HOT.

One of the album’s PV’s is show girl, and it truly lives up to it’s name. It’s filled with old fashioned brass (which I LOVE), but it also has that modern twist that Kuu gives it. At first, I didn’t really like the song because everything about it just sounded… off, but it’s really grown on me and as I’m listening toit again, I’ve fallen in love with it. I think this song really represents the theme of the album and what’s expected, because Kuu is really a ~show girl.~ It ends in such a perfect way, with a big frenzy of beats and brass, and Kuu ends in an even better way by saying “thank you” which I thought was really cute.

After the explosion of show girl, Your Love kinda ruins the mood. It’s a ballad, and with Kuu she either gets really good ones or quite boring ones, this one is not QUITE boring but it seems more like filler. The poppy arrangement seems too out of place and I think it could’ve been left off the album all together.

Out with the boring, in with the FIERCE. This is not a love song truly lives up to its name I think the placement of the last song and this song is kinda lulzy. xD I think it’s kind of a combination of show girl and the INTRODUCTION FOR TRICK, but without the brass and a little less aggressive.. Kuu really ups the sex appeal in this song, because she sounds hot hot hot, since her sounds PERFECT with the heavy beats and the urban style. I think the bridge was the icing on the cake, as it’s slows down and goes into a piano line with Kuu saying “this is not a love sooooong.”

Another dance-heavy song is Driving, one of my favourites off the album. I really like the aggressiveness, yet upbeatness that the song has and Kuu sounds amazing with vocoder (but that’s mainly in the chorus). It also has one of the best build ups to a chorus on the album too, because it starts out kinda slow and as it goes on it gets more intense and EXPLODES into the chorus.

I had a feeling Bling Bling Bling was going to be full of teh lulz. Despite it’s lulzy nature, the verses are pretty catchy… as well as the chorus because Kuu gets this cutesy voice and it’s Engrish galore. As for AK-69, for the most part he’s just in the part shouting random words, but he gets his own rapping section, (btw BRING BRING BRING.) Anyways, this song is just silly, but it’s pretty good if you’re not too annoyed, because this song requires a lot of patience.

Hurry Up! is pretty much self-explanatory. It’s really fast and in your face. The arrangement doesn’t let up and has a constant aggressiveness to it, thanks to the electric guitar riffs. But overall, I didn’t like this song as much, compared to the previous ones. It’s still a nice addition to the album though.

The other PV track, and one of my personal faves is JUST THE WAY YOU ARE. There’s really only one word to describe it: cute. The upbeat, yet low strings were AMAZING with the heavy clapping beats. Kuu performs exceptionally well, sounding cute throughout the entire song. The chorus is what really takes the cake, though. Everything comes together and background strings are added, as well as some backup to Kuu’s voice. Definately my favourite off the album.

Things get even happier! Joyful, joyful la la la la la~ Anyways, this song is even more upbeat than the previous track and yet it has electric guitar during the chorus. But there’s also some acoustic guitar too. ;D This song is kinda loud at some parts because of the way the arrangement is set up but overall it’s a nice track.

We have one final ballad, which is Ai no Kotoba. This song is a lot like Moon Crying, but a lot better in terms of how everything is executed. First of all, Kumi’s vocals sound a LOT better, and the arrangement is a lot more alive. Overall Kuu just sounds more radiant, than dead like in her first ballad of the era.

Annnd… for those of you who got the CD+DVD version of TRICK, you get the cover of Venus, originally by The Shocking Blue. I think this song could’ve been a lot better if it wasn’t so Engrishy. I’m glad Kuu is trying more English, but she needs some work. The instrumental is pretty catchy and new wave. I thought this was an interesting end to the album, but maybe not the best, in my opinion.

I was expecting TRICK to be kind of bad (sorry for you bigger fans), but I was completely surprised. Each song was aggressive in it’s own way and each song had it’s own unique hook. Even though, I didn’t like maybe 2 or 3 songs, each of them were really good. Since there’s a salted release for a duet with her leetle seester, I’m hoping it’s hot hot hot, and I’m hoping misono doesn’t bug me (because I don’t really like her. x: ) Anyways, I definately recommend this album.

Overall Grade:

Tracks:

1. stay with me

2. Winter Bell

3. stay with me (Orgel Version)

4. stay with me Instrumental

5. Winter Bell Instrumental

Koda Kumi’s stay with me was released on December 24th, 2008. It’s her 42nd single and it debuted at #1 on the Oricon Weekly Charts, selling a total of 58,108 copies.

What is it with Koda Kumi and ballads, anyway? Oh well, it doesn’t really matter, since they’re usually good. stay with me is your typical winter love song, complete with flowing strings, random chimes, and lots of piano. This time she incorporates an R&B beat to keep things interesting. Without it, this song would probably be pretty boring. I’ve read a lot of criticizm about this song, the most common being her voice is better suited for “sexy” songs. I disagree, because Koda Kumi has a really nice voice for ballads. Even though I’m not in love with this song, I will say that it’s better than Moon Crying.

I didn’t really like the B-side, Winter Bell. I don’t know what it is about it, I mean it’s a nice song, but I just wasn’t really into it. It might be that her voice sounds really weird when she tries to act “cute,” I’d much rather her voice be deeper because… well it just sounds better, in my opinion. This is your typical upbeat winter song with a heavy R&B beat. Nothing against Kuu, I just wasn’t really digging the song.

Overall Grade:

Tracks:

1. TABOO

2. Always

3. TABOO [HOUSE NATION Sunset In Ibiza Remix]

4. TABOO Instrumental

5. Always Instrumental

Koda Kumi’s TABOO was released on October 8th, 2008. It’s her 41st single and debuted at #1 on the Oricon Weekly Charts, selling 66,569 copies in its first week. The title track was a tie-in for the Nintendo DS game Saihai no Yukue.

It was weird listening to Moon Crying and then TABOO because these songs are two COMPLETELY different genres. I’m glad Kuu went back to her sexy side because she really pulls it off and flaunts it really well. TABOO is a full-blown electronica song with synth beats, which was a huge surprise. Kuu sings at a lower register, and she sounds sexy in the process. And at some points she’s put under a vocoder to add effect to the song. All in all, she definately pulled off this genre, and I can’t wait for her next single.

Always is a R&B song with a huge pop twist. I liked this song as well because the instrumental was well executed. There’s the typical R&B beat, some acoustic guitar (which was my favourite part) and some twinkles here and there, usually leading into the chorus. Kuu sings in a somewhat cutesy voice to compliment the song. I thought it was the perfect contrast to the A-side.

I thought the HOUSE NATION Sunset In Ibiza Remix of TABOO was really weird, because it turns the already dance-y electronica song into a full blown techno song. It adds a lot of synth and techno elements to the song, which is definately a big change. I thought it was okay but not the greatest remix ever.

Overall Grade:

Tracks:

1. Moon Crying

2. That Ain’t Cool feat. Fergie

3. Once Again

4. Lady Go!

5. Moon Crying (Piano Version)

6. Moon Crying (Instrumental)

7. That Ain’t Cool (Instrumental) feat. Fergie

8. Once Again (Instrumental)

9. Lady Go! (Instrumental)

Koda Kumi’s MOON was released on June 11th, 2008. It’s her 40th single and charted at #2, selling 88,309 copies in its first week. Moon Crying was used as the theme song for the dorama Puzzle.

After a long hiatus from the Kingdom era, Koda Kumi returns with the beautiful Moon Crying. Most of Koda’s previous ballads have been lacklustre and/or not good at all, but this one is quite possibly her best. At some points, it sounds like her voice kinda gives out but it’s not that bad. After about two minutes into the song there is a short beat but that quickly turns back into what it was before. BUT WAIT. It’s back again! Half way through the song it explodes, with the beat and strings. I’m very impressed with her return and can’t wait for even better releases.

One of the weirdest collaborations I have ever seen is That Ain’t Cool feat Fergie. I didn’t even know these two knew each other! This song is completely sexy and quite possibly a guilty pleasure. The first verse is Fergie and she pretty much talks the lyrics. The song itself has a hip-hop/R&B. The song would be ten times better if Koda wasn’t so ENGRISHY. Dear lord this woman needs lessons. Some of her verse features a little Japanese but the song itself is almost in all English.

Once Again is such a let down. I really do not like reggae, AT ALL. This song would be a lot better if it WASN’T REGGAE. Koda’s parts are really nice but her background vocals are BLEH. Totally a turn off Koda, I’m sorry.

Lady Go! is probably my favourite song on the single. The whole song is synthy and Koda’s voice is kinda computerized but it sounds really good. I like that this single has a little something for everyone, so it fits everyone’s style of music.

The piano version of Moon Crying is wonderful. It’s nice just to hear something simple every now and then. I like the way the piano sounds in this song then in the original. Koda’s vocals sound a lot better too.

Overall Grade: