Koda Kumi - Dejavu Live Tour 2011

The third post in a row on yet another fabulous release from a Japanese artiste - Koda Kumi! This time, we'll be looking at her Dejavu Live Tour 2011 which ran Japan-wide last year despite the unfortunate 3/11 disaster that crippled the country.

Received this DVD along with ayumi hamasaki's 13th studio album - Party Queen. The Dejavu Live Tour may be one of her smaller scale tours considering that this time round, she performed in small theater halls instead of the grand arenas - probably due to the disaster. But nevertheless, boy did she deliver a fierce show!

"Why won't you come with me to my Dejavu~"

I know that sentence (taken from the introduction to the album) will make English teachers cringe but... Let's go!

Got myself the Hong Kong press version of the DVD from YesAsia and of course, it didn't cost an arm and a leg as compared to the Japanese press of the exact same thing. The quality is exactly and same and it still looks stunning. From the looks of it, she definitely kept her theme consistent with her studio album (unboxed/reviewed here) and I ain't complaining because it looks gorgeous!

A close up on the round sticker which explains that this box comes with 2 DVDs - one featuring the actual concert and the second one featuring over 70 minutes of "making of"s as well as the special videos played during the actual concert itself. Think they included those so that you can hold your own concert as well if you project those as a backdrop on a huge screen - if you can find one. 

The first press of the tour DVD comes in a cardboard slipcase sleeve and here's a clearer view of it minus the ugly plastic wrapper jailing our Pop Diva away. Loving the whole classic Kumi-sultry look and her hair is so cool! They could have done a better job with the title though - love the embossing effect but the colors are a little questionable.

The back of the cardboard slipcase sleeve with yet another photo of Miss Photogenic. I hope she can maintain her figure even after her pregnancy so she will continue to deliver stunning photos after stunning photos. Like most of her DVDs, the track list runs on the left of the packaging neatly. Well, unlike Party Queen, yellow works well here, no?

Details on the spine. Hmmm... On solid black, the effect actually looks pretty good. Perhaps it didn't work as well on the front cover because there were too many distractions and we don't need more distracting colors to rob our attention away from Koda Kumi.

Ta da~ Instead of just simply recycling the exact photo used on the slipcase, they took another one for the DVD casing beneath the cardboard case. This time, we see more of her face and for some weird reason, she looks like a teacher in that photo. Probably because of her hair. Who would mind having a teacher as beautiful as her, yes? :P I would make her sing in class instead of teach. :P

"You don't know~ You don't know~ How beautiful you are~~~" Again, the bad color choices of the font came back to haunt us. I think they could do away with just a solid color to make the whole look more classy and sleek as opposed to using these cheap gradients.

The track list is reinforced on the insides as well for the convenience of people who watch DVDs like me - slipcase at one end of the room and the DVD case on the other. I'm not the neatest person, okay~ I think the plastic DVD case is good enough to stand alone on the shelves of any CD store even without the slipcase. But the slipcase is definitely a bonus, don't you think?

When you open up the DVD case, you are greeted with 2 DVDs (duh) and a photo booklet. The DVDs come in Gold (the concert itself) and Silver (the making of). Nothing too special about it considering that the design is simple. Actually, there are not many physical CD designs that really WOW me these days. There used to be some in the past... Maybe when I'm too free or something, I shall go review those since they are sitting on my shelf collecting dust anyway...

Hello Lion! Phantom of the Gradient strikes back again! Not that I'm against gradients but I don't think it's appropriate here, yes? Anyway, here's the photo booklet for the Dejavu concert DVD. No lyrics... I wonder why...

The track list on the first page of the booklet. Well, since they didn't put lyrics inside, I don't see why they want to repeat the obvious again in the lyric booklet. Probably just to fill up that empty space? I don't know... What do y'all think?

I must say, the costumes of this tour are all extremely gorgeous! She opened the show wearing something like a blue oversized cape looking dress with red visors, almost Gaga-inspired and suddenly, she transformed herself into this modern Mad Hatter character in this striped look. Even though the stage is small, she still managed to blow my socks off with her performance.

I think girls will kill for this dress! I think it's one of the nicest costumes in the entire show! Loving how the skirt is done~ Well, even though this time round, I would say that her concert is a little disjointed because parts do not flow as well as they should and unlike her UNIVERSE or FANTASIA concerts, this one did not really flow a storyline so it was a little confusing for me but still, her singing rocks.

The cutesy-cutesy part of her concert. Lovely energy and definitely adorable look.

To end of this post, I shall take a photo of the DVD concert along with the album itself. See the ties in the theme? And notice that they used a solid silver color for the title on the album but chose to do the cheap gradient thing on the DVD jacket? They should have just stuck to the solid silver for that elegant look. Nevertheless, the album and the concert are still amazing~ Now, I just hope that she would do a JAPONESQUE tour after she's done giving birth and recovering because that album is packed with awesome songs and I can't wait to see her perform those in an arena (no small theaters please~).

And in case y'all want to know what I got for my Mini Japan toy from YesAsia, I got a bread keychain that's so soft and smells like coffee! I hung it on my shelf so I can smell it and squish it every now and then because it's so adorable! 

In case you don't know, if you buy 2 eligible Japanese CD or DVD from YesAsia, you get to pick a free Mini Japan toy. Even though they are randomly picked for you (i.e. you do not get to choose exactly what you want but you get to pick which machine your toy comes from), it's always surprising to open up your shipment to see what freebie you got. Really cool~

Well, that's the end of this entry. I hope you enjoy the photos, yes? I'm still waiting for my next shipment to arrive and it consists of 2 more DVD concerts from ayumi hamasaki and Namie Amuro. So excited! Not only do I get things to photograph and write about, I get concerts to watch. :D

Till next time y'all!!

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ayumi hamasaki - Party Queen (CD+2DVD)

"I am the Party Queen~ I am the Party Queen~"

The Queen of J-Pop strikes back with her 13th studio album on March 21, 2012 - Party Queen!! Like all her previous albums (except her really classic ones before "My Story"), her albums came in different versions. This time round, there are 5 different versions to her latest studio album! That's a lot of variations for the same thing, yes?

This time round though, I did not get the limited edition version of the album because it's seriously way too expensive. Here's how the limited edition version looks like...

ayumi hamasaki - Party Queen (Special Limited Box Set)
Source: http://avexnet.or.jp/ayu/jp/discography/index.html

Well, other than the fact that the box set costs almost S$400 (I can buy my Nintendo 3DS and several games with that kind of money!), I think that the box looks pretty funny. First of all, it features the much overused leopard prints which is conveniently recycled from the concepts of Duty and GUILTY. 

Secondly, the premium items that came with this box set are just coasters and glasses. Why would I need those? The glasses are not exactly pretty as well. Therefore, I feel that it's not justified to get the limited box set because the premiums do not really attract me. The only plus I can see is that they bundled the album with the 2 concert DVDs (which I shall go into later on) for your convenience but they are DVD Region 2 - another reason why I didn't pick the Special Limited Box Set.

You must be wondering why I'm suddenly so critical even on my favorite artiste of all times' packaging, yes? Well, it really hurts me but I have to be honest - Party Queen is by far ayu's worst looking album. No kidding. Here's the version that I've bought (the Hong Kong press one)...

Here's the first press version of the CD+2DVD version of the album. Basically, it consists of the album along with its PV DVD in the same box as well as her "ayumi hamasaki COUNTDOWN LIVE 2011-2012 A ~HOTEL Love songs~" DVD concert - all packed in this transparent plastic case. I wouldn't even call it a box because the material's so flimsy and really unattractive.

This album, probably because of its bad covers and packaging, saw itself on #2 on the Oricon chart, ayu's second album to get this rather miserable charting for her standards. And guess which was the previous album that landed on that spot? GUILTY. Why? Probably because of leopard prints...

I think a lot of people shop for music with their eyes, just like how they say "We eat with our eyes" when it comes to presentation of dishes. If the cover is unattractive, then people wouldn't want to buy it, yes? Well, at least that's for me but considering that I'm such a die hard ayu fan, I would still buy it even if her cover is just blank white. Sigh~ Avex, please sack the person who designed this cover or came up with this creative. If it's ayu, tell her to continue singing and leave the designing to someone else...

This is how it looks like from the side. The COUNTDOWN LIVE DVD box is placed right behind the album so it creates this box set with 2 different covers. I think the COUNTDOWN LIVE DVD's cover is actually quite good but unfortunately, it was blocked. I shall go into that later on...

In terms of music, I would say that Party Queen is actually not that horrendous. In fact, there are songs that I pretty much enjoy on this album after listening to it before even taking photos of it. Some of the tracks that got my attention the first time I listened to them. Note that other than "how beautiful you are", none of the tracks were previously released as a single, making this probably her first album not to feature any physical singles at all.

1. Party Queen
   Whacky lyrics, loads of energy, fun to sing along to
2. NaNaNa
   Even though half the time, you hear this guy singing but when she does sing, it's pretty interesting and catchy - almost like a clubbing song. Again, loads of energy which I simply adore!
3. Shake it
   Sounds a lot like "NaNaNa" and probably why it's placed right behind that track as well. Packed with energy but I don't really get what she is singing. This song made ayu almost sound like she got extremely high on something and lost her mind. Well, perhaps she did lose her mind in this album because it sounded like so...
4. taskebab
   Even though this track is an interlude, I find it really awesome. In fact, I think this is the first "task-" interlude to feature pop-rock elements
5. reminds me
   A rock ballad that simply blew my socks off
6. Return Road
   I think this is the alternate version of "Virgin Road". I love the lyrics and of course, the singing is amazing in this song. Looks like this album actually delivered in terms of music over the unfortunate disaster on the packaging. Oh did I mention that this is a rock song? I love it when ayu does rock.
7. the next LOVE
   Probably the most interesting track on the album. This track is inspired by jazz elements and ayu sang it like a songstress would in the 60s in pubs or bars in Asia. Really love the feel and the different tempos this song offered.
8. how beautiful you are
   What can I say? My favorite track of the entire album. The lyrics are splendid and the singing is fantastic. Furthermore, the PV is one of the best out of the other trashy ones in the album (less Return Road) because it shows the different versions of "Beauty". Simply put, this song is like "Born This Way" in a ballad.

Well, that kinda sums up the songs that attracted me the first time I listened to the album. That's not to say that the rest aren't as good because you know, ayu songs always grows on you the more you listen to them. These songs make the album worthy of buying even though the cover is just atrocious.

This is what I meant when I said the COUNTDOWN LIVE side of the album is blocked. The Hong Kong first press of this version came with a postcard which they inconveniently stuck over the concert DVD, kinda ruining the saving grace of the album in terms of visuals. But it's a freebie so I will take it!

Here's a close up of the postcard which can almost pass of as a poster. Really? Yellow and pink? I don't think they work together, honestly. And leopard prints? Please spare me!

The other side of the postcard - just a blank. Who would actually send such a limited edition post card out in the mail yes? If I were the postman, I would keep this postcard to myself but again, the postman probably wouldn't fancy the bad color choices and themes on the picture side, yes? Gosh~ I'm in such a bitch fit right now~

The album minus the distracting plastic packaging and all. Actually, without the plastic packaging, the album doesn't look that disastrous (but it still looks kinda...) Here, we have ayu in black lingerie in front of a mirror that's so black you don't even know what's on the other side. The mirror, in my opinion, is quite distracting and unappealing. I mean, there are so many places to take a photo of a cover art but they have to pick a mirror... Well, since we are critiquing the covers, might as well do it for the rest of the versions...

ayumi hamasaki - Party Queen (CD+DVD)
Source: http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=AVCD-38512

Here's the CD+DVD version of the album. In simpler English, this version doesn't come with the COUNTDOWN LIVE concert. I don't really like how she is hugging a shoe so close to her face, making her look a little whacky. Furthermore, the composition of this photo kinda failed because of what's behind her. I don't even know what's behind her... A little scary.

ayumi hamasaki - Party Queen (CD-only)
Source: http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=AVCD-38513

At least the CD-only version has a more interesting composition. In fact, out of the three, I think this version works the best because even though ayu does look a little crazy here, it's crazy with beauty. I don't see how putting a shoe to your forehead is being creative but at least in this one, it does show her as a Party Queen. The previous two either showed her as a person on the table or a person who loves shoes. Where's the Party Queen?

The track list on the back of the album. Why yellow?! Wouldn't it look better if the text were in white instead? Yellow and pink just doesn't go well together, you know.

Another leopard print disaster in ayu's signature A. The obi is promoting this Android/iOS app where you can download this application called "ayupan AR". I have not downloaded it yet but it's apparently some augmented reality kinda game - whatever that means. It features ayu's mascot, Ayupan, and I think you get to play games with her or something. Has anyone tried this one yet?

UPDATE:  The obi is one of the playing pieces of the "ayupan AR" application. Check out my "ayupan AR - How to Play?" entry to learn more on how you can enjoy the game!

When you open up the case, you see more leopard prints. I swear, the next album that I see with leopard prints, I will shoot it down immediately unless they really manage to execute it properly (just like the old times where her third album "Duty" was done properly). This CD reminds me a lot of GUILTY because GUILTY also made use of leopard prints. No originality there eh, even though the person copied from her own album.

At least the DVD's color scheme looks better.

While unboxing this album, I found this envelope looking thing inside the case. Looks almost like a ayu-mi-x cover already, no? Just took a photo of it because it looks interesting and that it deviated from the whole "I love leopard skin" theme of the album.

UPDATE: This is not an envelope nor is it some normal sheet of paper. This is actually the stage for the "ayupan AR" application which you can download from the iTunes store or from Google Play (previously known as the Android Marketplace). Check out my "ayupan AR - How to Play?" to find out more!

I was wondering if this envelope is meant for the postcard that came along with the album but the dimensions does not seem correct - the postcard cannot fit. Furthermore, who would send a postcard in an envelope anyway? Inside this envelope looking thing, there are more details on the ayupan AR thingie - all in Chinese. Took lazy to translate it because I can't read Chinese that well anyway.

I think you might be getting sick of this photo because they used it again for the lyric insert. Maybe it's their way of trying to make people like the cover. You know, the more you look at something, the more you will become indifferent about it and you will actually (to the joy of lots), stop complaining. Well, I can't stop, that's for sure so coming to Dream On (pun intended)~ :)

Perhaps avex is on low budget and that's why ayu is not only wearing so little, she is only wearing one look throughout her entire studio album. Heres' the first page of the lyric booklet featuring ayu writing numbers on the mirror. I have no clue what those numbers mean but I don't intend to find out neither. But honestly, this photo is actually quite good, no? I would prefer this as the cover as opposed to the existing ones though...

More photos of ayu that doesn't depict her as some crazy person. These shots "reminds me" (hee hee~) of her "My Story" photo shoot where she just lies down and do nothing but still look totally amazing. I realized that they used a lot of direct flash on her throughout the whole shoot, resulting in those unflattering dark shadows. I wonder why they would want to do that though...

Don't you think this photo is so much better than the cover arts'? And is that a new tattoo above her puwet? Oh well~ Luckily I'm in it for her music, not really for her appearance, even though I must say that she is still very attractive for a 33 year old woman, yes?

And for the second part of the CD+2DVD version of Party Queen - here's the cover for ayumi hamasaki COUNTDOWN LIVE 2011-2012 A ~HOTEL Love songs~. This photo is so much better than her studio album's no? And that's why I said this would be the saving grace to the album if it wasn't covered up by yet another ayu in lingerie. But again, I think some people wouldn't mind staring at her skin - dirty pervs.

The track list on the DVD case. At least they kept the standard the same for most of her DVD concerts, having her A logo smack in the center and keeping the track list neatly printed on the bottom. This DVD apparently does not include the "making of" of the concert. Poop...

When I opened the case, I was expecting to see a lyric booklet or some form of a booklet inside featuring the costumes she wore for this countdown performance but instead, I saw this miserable card with the track list printed on it. Why would I need that?! I want a photo booklet! I think this album is out to make me angry~

Close up of the track list which I could have simply referred to the back of the DVD casing for. I think Avex is really low on budget this time round with the printing of this album, considering that they cut so many corners just to get substandard things out. But again, Koda Kumi's JAPONESQUE album is kick ass in terms of packaging though so why can't they honor the Queen of J-Pop the same too?

The DVD for the concert. Nothing special but at least the design is clean and sleek and features no prints of animals or whatsoever. 

Well, that's the last photo I have for this album. Sigh~ Has our Party Queen went crazy after partying for too long or did Avex become mean and cut her costs on production? 

Verdict of this album? I think it's definitely worth the money for the Hong Kong press (I paid US$22.99 for this entire box set from YESASIA) but if you're looking at the Japan press, I think it's not so worth it considering that it's essentially the same thing and the quality is not going to differ that much. How different can a plastic case be?

I think the entire album is saved by its content - the concert DVD and the music from the studio album. The packaging definitely did it some harm because of it's confused creative directions and occasionally bad photography and concepts. 

Well, I would say that the music aren't the best in her careers but they are acceptable because they are different (we know this Queen loves to experiment, yes?) and if you love her experimentations, you would - just like I have. Furthermore, there are some classic ayus in this album in the form of "Return Road" and "how beautiful you are" so yes, it's worth it!

I still love you ayu! 

But I would really wish to see something more inspiring 

than leopard prints in your next release! 

No matter what, I will still buy your music! :) 

- your loyal fan~

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Katy Perry - Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection

Looks like Miss Katy Perry is still dreaming her Teenage Dream in her latest release - Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection. Seriously~ When is she going to release any new material that's not related to candy canes and cotton candies? I really want to see her break free from her Teenage Dream era and move on to something else.

In case y'all don't know, The Complete Confection is a re-release of Katy Perry's 2010 album. This time round, it features some new songs, such as "Part of Me" - the reason I bought this album. Other than that, remixes and different versions of her previous singles are also featured in this album, for instance, "E.T."

Now... Photos anyone? :)

Here's my copy of her original Teenage Dream album (reviewed on my tumblr blog) with the re-release version of the exact same album. Well, almost the same... Just had to take this photo to show off what a supporter I am~ :D You can visit the tumblr blog to see the different between this album and the previous version. Honestly, the difference aren't that significant visually but oh well~

Here's the close up of the sticker explaining what's new in this two year old album. The re-release version of this album comes with all the songs from the album plus 3 brand new tracks as well as some remixes or different versions of her previous hit singles. Furthermore, the special edition of this album comes with a limited edition lenticular (I didn't know such a word existed~) cover insert. So in simple English, it comes with 2 covers that changes, depending on how you view the album.

Viewed from the left, the album shows the classic Teenage Dream cover without the title - just Katy lying in clouds made of cotton candy. I wonder if her blood sugar sky-rocketed at the time when she was doing this shoot. Or are those clouds fake? Who knows...

And from the right, you see the Confection version of the cover which I simply adore~ In fact, I think this looks better than the original cover. Initially, when I read about the release of this album, I thought it would come in a box set form of packaging because the word "Complete" make it sound so grand. Was slightly disappointed that they chose to release this album in a regular CD case but I think the lenticular cover kinda made up for it. By the way, this is my first album with a lenticular cover~~

To attract people who actually bought the previous album, they threw in new tracks to bait us in and I had obviously fell for it willingly. Here's the updated track list - they added 7 new tracks into this album for the same price as the older version so I think it's justified. In fact, I got mine at a 20% discount at CD-Rama. That means I paid less for more! By the way, acoustic versions of songs always appeal to me. :)

This is what you see when you open the album. Instead of the red, swirly CD this time round, we get a blue one. (Visit my tumblr blog ~link above~ for the unbox/review of the previous version). Katy also look slightly different as compared to the previous version but I ain't complaining.

Swirly swirly candy. Thank goodness I can't see my laptop read the disc because this patterned design is sure to make me sea sick.

The lyric insert is found behind the lenticular cover and it looks just like the regular version's - minus the name of the album.

If there's anything similar between the lyric insert of this version and the previous one, it's this photo found in the middle of the booklet. Exact same photo. Well, I supposed they recycled a lot of materials for packaging of the new version, no? I would actually love to see her do something different - there are so many things she can do to celebrate this "new" album, yes?

Well at least they included the lyrics of the new songs into this booklet. I still find the candy cane border very cheesy though... That reminds me~ Remember Madonna's "Hard Candy" album (which I don't have), they gave candies along with the album, yes? Perhaps Katy should release a version with candies since the whole album revolves around that creative anyway.

This time round, I got a poster with the purchase of this album from CD-Rama. It's been a long long time since I've got a poster from any albums at all (Are posters phasing out? I hope not!) and I was elated to get this poster even though I have no place to display in on my wall anyway. Who doesn't love freebies, yes? :)


So... You want to know my verdict for this album? I think it's definitely worth getting this copy even if you had the previous album because there are new songs included in this one. If you are after Miss Perry's full discography, then this is something that you cannot miss. The new songs are pretty good as well - like "Part of Me". Furthermore, "The One That Got Away" is done acoustically and it sounds great as well!

If you have not gotten your hands on her previous version, then stop dawdling and get this one because it's so justified! If you live in Singapore, be sure to drop by CD-Rama to get it at a 20% discount (at least the Jurong Point outlet is on 20% discount) and you also stand to get the free poster! Yessi yessi~

Well that's all the fan boy has for tonight. I hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I had enjoyed shooting them and listening to the new songs (bitch please~). Stay tuned for my upcoming posts of some Japanese music, yes? :)

Koda Kumi and ayu, anyone? :D

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