Koda Kumi - JAPONESQUE (CD+2DVD)

Last week was a week of mails. When I came back home on Friday, I have stacks of parcels and a couple of letters on my table. Amongst the pile is this A4 box which surprised me. I know that I ordered a Koda Kumi 10th Anniversary FANTASIA in TOYKO DOME and her latest album but I have no clue why the box was so big because it was only 2 small items.

Sure enough. When I opened the box, I was greeted with the FANTASIA DVD but there was something else inside and it wasn't scary - thank goodness. Here's what I saw...

TA DA! I know that I've ordered Koda Kumi's latest studio album - JAPONESQUE but I did not know that it was to be packaged like this. The first press of the Hong Kong version which I got came with an A4 plastic file! Weeee~~ Surprise surprise! Other than the A4 file, the album is packaged in a really cool digipak. This has to be one of the best packagings in my collection so far.

My second avex file after ayumi hamasaki's FIVE, also the Hong Kong press bought from YesAsia! Just have to show it off~ In case y'all didn't know, Koda Kumi is pregnant and I think she did this creative for her album to show of her slim body before she gets out of shape with a baby in her tummy. Hopefully she doesn't stay out of shape for too long because that would ruin her signature, no?

The back of the plastic file with the title of the album. I think JAPONESQUE is pronounced like "Japanese", yes? The logo representing the album is also interesting - looks like some emblem that came out from Power Rangers or something. But again, Power Rangers originated from Japan so I guess that's fair...

To save my wallet, I got the Hong Kong version of the album from YesAsia. JAPONESQUE is Koda Kumi's 10th studio album and was released in January 25, 2012 in Japan. The version you see here is the CD+2DVD but there are also other versions like the limited edition one (which you can click here to see - presented to you by Meatpao, one of the bloggers I read) and the CD-only version as well as the CD+DVD version.

Here's a close up of Koda Kumi's thigh the sticker on the album. Basically, it introduces the album and describes the content roughly. The CD+2DVD version contains the album's CD as well as 2 DVDs - one containing 17 music videos of the tracks in this album (just like what they did for KINGDOM) and the other DVD featuring some of her live performances as well as the CMs of her previous studio albums. Interesting stuff.

The back of the digipak with the obi on. The Hong Kong press' obi isn't that visually appealing with all the Chinese words on it but it does a pretty good job in terms of informing the buyer of what's inside the box. Here, you get to see the screen grabs of the music videos as well as more information that's left out from the tiny sticker you see at the front.

I love the creative of this album - the use of really "Japanese" props and costume with a modern Koda Kumi interpretation. It's like high fashion meets music! Had to take a photo of the album without the obi and the sticker because it looks so much better.

Here's the back of the digipak with her in another pose. This album is filled with tonnes of really good photos - thanks to the wonderful creative and photographer, and I think it's really a masterpiece. With the obi removed, the back reveals the track list neatly printed on the side. Clean and clear.

Just to give you an idea of how thick the digipak is - it's slightly thinner than a VCR tape. The quality of the digipak is good - made of hard cardboard, it's pretty sturdy and good to hold.

The first thing you see when you open the lid is a close up of Kumi in a beauty shot on the right and the lyric booket on the left, slotted away at the back of the cover.

Behind the beauty shot is where the discs are stored. Unlike the recent digipaks which can't be bothered whether the discs are kept properly or not, this packaging makes sure that your discs are kept properly and scratch free in these jewel casings inside the digipak. This is how digipaks should be like! Not those slot-your-disc-into-a-pocket thing~

The design on the disc is pretty elaborate as they made use of motifs ranging from Japanese styled objects and patterns to a poker card Queen? Look closely in the photo - above Koda Kumi's name. I swear that's the Queen from the poker cards, no? A little out of place if you look closely but other than that, the CD looks good.

Now, let's turn our attention to the lyric booklet that looks equally amazing even though Kumi is not on it.

As you might have guessed, the lyric booklet is packed with lots of stunning pictures as well. The first one that you see here is also cover-quality. In fact, all the photos are cover-quality throughout the entire production. I hope ayumi releases something like this soon though - her latest album's cover "Party queen" doesn't look promising to me.

Another gorgeous photo! I'm not even going to go into how the lyrics are well laid out because the photos just snatch all your attention away.

I WANT THOSE PANTS! But I think I'm too short to wear those. But again, I don't think she's very tall either considering that she's Asian like me. :P Kumi is so versatile, no? She can do sexy and masculine and fierce and everything~

This shall be the last photo of this entry even though there are so many more photos that I would love to share with y'all but I would rather you go buy the album to experience the beautiful packaging for yourself. This album is definitely one of the best packaged one so far because it ticks everything that I'm looking for - creative and unique packaging, stunning photos, a place to store your CDs without scratching them and of course, free gifts!


Okay. That's all I have for you after typing on this entry and doing all sorts of random stuff for over 2 hours. The next few weeks will be busy for me (in fact, it's been pretty packed these weeks) so I guess I will have to go on hiatus again from blogging but rest assured I will continue come April because at that point, I will be pretty free~

Can't wait for June 6~ Freedom is awaiting...