12. Stock (1988.03.03)

01. FAREWELL

It doesn't take you long to realize you're in for a great ride.

Since the last three albums had their own themes (multiple themes in some cases), this one kinda simplifies it all. Rock. That's it.

FAREWELL is an excellent choice to open the whole thing. This song...and really the album that follows is Nakamori at her absolute best. Spoilers, right? Just the sheer strength of her vocals are intense and is backed by music that is equally as intense.

02. Yume no fuchi

After three albums of Nakamori playing up a gimmick of some kind, it's nice to hear her true vocals once again. Not only that, there has been some growth. Yume no fuchi is a continuation of FAREWELL, even if it's smidge softer. It kind of reminds me of some of EUROX's songs from MEGATREND that didn't have anything to do with Fushigi. It even had a big-time lyricist... Ryo Asuka, who is better known as ASKA of CHAGE and ASKA. You've probably at least heard of him...but maybe not for the best reasons these days.

03. CRYSTAL HEAVEN

Awesome song. Fantastic use of backing vocals on this song in particular. While this isn't the catchiest of the songs on the album, this one is an absolute belter as well.

04. Mada juubun janai

A bit slower, but still undoubtedly a rock song. So far, not a weak song to be heard on this album!

05. FIRE STARTER

Why in the world was this song not a single? I mean it. Maybe it's a little too extreme, but considering this album only peaked at number two, this song absolutely could have sold the extra albums to bump it to the top spot.

FIRE STARTER is easily the biggest earworm from this album. It's probably the heaviest of the songs as well. Not so much with the music, but Nakamori just sells the hell out of it. On top of all of that, her English is perfect during the few random English lines. Awesome, awesome song. Satisfaction Guaranteed!

06. NIGHTMARE

Some of music from this song sound kinda familiar...

This song also rules. Like many of the other songs, it's a wonder why this wasn't sold as a single. It's catchy as all hell and just incredibly well made.

07. I WANNA CHANCE

I rank this among my top tracks on the album. If you listen to it, you might wonder why at first. It's one of the "softer" songs on the album, but it absolutely stands out for one thing and one thing only...

I WANNA CHANCE!

There is absolutely nothing catchier than those lyrics and the music behind it when they're sung.

08. POISON LIPS

Great song, but I think this might be my least favorite on the album. It's just a little too predictable.

09. Shojo Densetsu

The intro of this song sounds suspiciously similar to the song of a cartoon plumber when he reaches for the stars...if you catch my drift.

This is one of the slower songs on the album, but it's so well made. You really have to dig in and listen to the details on repeat listens.

10. FOGGY RELATION

I've talked in the past about how Nakamori has a penchant for ending albums strong. This just might be my favorite finale of them all. The song is on the sweeter side, but has an insanely killer hook to it. It's...really the perfect ending to a perfect album.

OVERALL: As it turns out, I am writing this review on the 30th anniversary of this album's release! Yeah, it's the third of March, 2018. Sheer coincidence!

I know I intended to finish this series of posts off with a Top Seven List of my favorite albums, but I'm not going to make you wait. This is my favorite. Start to finish, Nakamori absolutely KILLS it. The last time we really got a normal album from her was D404ME from 1985. This album is her grand return to normalcy and really a showcase of personal growth. Those years of unusual albums masked some of her growing talent. This album was like the grand reveal of an incredibly rare flower blooming.

Some of that credit can certainly go to Kenji Kitajima of FENCE OF DEFENSE who worked on the arrangement for much of this album. While the staff list is quite varied, his influence is absolutely heard the most throughout.

This album is highly HIGHLY recommended. Just keep this in mind... In 1988, Akina Nakamori was rocking harder than Seikima-II.

PREVIOUS: Cross My Palm
NEXT: Femme Fatale

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11. Cross My Palm (1987.08.25)

01. CROSS MY PALM

Right off the bat, you might be thinking "oh dear...what is this lone synthesizer beat doing?". You know what, though? This song kinda unwinds into something incredibly memorable. I love it. It's beat is kinda dreamy and Nakamori is as clear as a bell and singing pretty strong.

By the way... Like the two albums before it, this album has a trick to it. Maybe I'll get to that in a little bit.

02. POLITICAL MOVES

Slick as hell. Since we're finally moving into the late 80s, this type of sophisti-pop has taken over as the fashion. This one fits in very well. It's jazzy. It isn't loud at all. It's just a jam.

03. SLAVE FOR LOVE

This song is trippy...and almost sinister sounding. It has this unrelenting bass line to it as well as a beat that is more on two-and-four. I like songs like this that going against expectations. As a result, this song is one of the highlights of the album to me.

04. EASY RIDER

As I mentioned in my previous review, this album was recorded in New York City and is full of local artists and producers. This is really the first song that has that true New York sound. Sure, she recorded in America plenty of times prior to this...but this is her first time recording in my neck of the woods.

The song itself is intensely catchy. It's kind of weird that it never was released as a single...but this was the era of Nakamori albums that didn't need singles to promote albums. It was going to hit #1 no matter what.

05. MODERN WOMAN (FEMME D'AUJOURD HUI)

A slower song that has a killer of a catchy melody. It just kinda sails along through the air.

06. THE LOOK THAT KILLS

Interestingly enough this song kinda got re-purposed later on to become the single BLONDE. Both versions are awesome songs, but BLONDE is definitely the single for a reason. For one, it has new lyrics that are in Japanese. Oh yeah, did I mention that this album is entirely in English? Yep! It sure is.

This song was kind of a stand out track because it was created by Biddu-Winston Sela. You might not know the name, but you've definitely heard his work in the past. He's the producer behind Carl Douglas' Kung Fu Fighting. Yeah, THAT song. This isn't even the first time that he's worked with Nakamori. In 1985 he brought her a failed German song that...well, that's a story for another day I suppose.

07. SOFT TOUCH

Another slick song. If there is one thing this album has no shortage of, it's just infinitely catchy songs to groove to. Soooft Tooouch. This song doesn't have a whole lot of ingredients, but what it does with them is just so perfect.

08. MY POSITION

This one is another favorite of mine from the album. It's likely more memorably known for it's somewhat better live performance from her 1991 tour, but the original is also quite good. Nakamori is probably at her strongest during this song. I'll reserve my thoughts on the whole English aspect of this album for the end, but there are some noticeable in some songs. This song isn't prefect, but there is some strength in the vocals.

Not to mention, this one is super-catchy.

09. THE TOUCH OF A HEARTACHE

Back to the Sophisti-pop well. Another great song.

10. HOUSE OF LOVE

This song isn't slow, but it's definitely one on the deeper side. I'm not sure why, but I dig this one a lot. It really isn't one to stand out very much, but it's still one I think about a lot.

11. NO MORE

Heh. This one is a little different and has some decent speed to it. Nakamori goes a little higher on this one and even does a little...rapping??? Sorta, kinda. It's a fun song for just the absurdity of it all.

12. HE'S JUST IN LOVE WITH THE BEAT

This one...I've heard that there are people who dig it, but I think it's just a little tacky. It's definitely the type of song that was popular at the time, though. Nakamori's singing is kinda funny on this one. It's super-bubbly and actually...done fairly well. This song gets the job done, it's just not my type of thing.

OVERALL: Wow. So here's the deal. I may not have written a whole lot about each song, but I friggin' love this album. I've written in the past that I am lyric-challenged when it comes to songs, so it doesn't bother me that Nakamori's English is largely indecipherable. Readers of this site tell me that mine is also extremely ungood. Don't let that scare you away from this album! Nakamori may not have great English, but it didn't stop her from singing the hell out of this album. Not to mention, it served as her English schooling. Sure, she had sung in English in the past (the first song entirely in English was that failed German cover that Biddu brought her for 1985 Mini Album My Best Thanks...I'll get to that someday.) but this kinda readied her for better quality English going forward.

When you line up Fushigi-CRIMSON-Cross My Palm, it's like talking about three different singers entirely. Whether or not Nakamori...or Warner...or both had a goal of breaking out into the American market remains to be seen. I don't think this was ever intended for popularity outside of Japan. That didn't stop it from getting a release in America (my copy of the CD is an unsold US release). Seiko Matsuda's English was better PLUS she had one of New Kid's On The Block (Donny Wahlberg, for the record. I wonder how Marky Mark resisted the urge to punch her for being Asian...yeah, Mark Wahlberg is a supreme scumbag) and her release didn't do well either. Japan never really tried to push their pop stars too much on the US after that. Tetsuya Komuro could have cleaned up as a producer in the 90s if he were given the chance (the closest he got was the theme from Speed 2 and a Backstreet Boys song that I don't even think was released Stateside).

Give this one a try. If you get hung up on things like lyrics, you might not like it all that much. It's a fun listen, though.

PREVIOUS: CRIMSON
NEXT: Stock

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10. CRIMSON (1986.12.24)

01. MIND GAME

An awesome kick-off to what would be a grand return to normalcy. But was it really?

MIND GAME in particular relies on some of the tricks slashed through Fushigi. Nakamori is a little soft on the notes while the background singers do a lot of the heavy lifting. The song itself is an excellent groove and really deserving of the top spot on the track list.

02. Eki

The first of five songs on this album written and composed by Mariya Takeuchi. That name is like a dog whistle to Vaporwave dummies fans. She is the wife of also-legend Tatsuro Yamashita. The thing I've noticed between Takeuchi and Yamashita is that they're virtually interchangeable. They kinda sound alike and for quite some time were putting out very similar music. I'm a fan of both! Yamashita's The Theme From Big Wave is one of my favorite songs ever...as is Takeuchi's September and Sweetest Music. It's nice to see a familiar face on board.

Having this knowledge and listening to this song... I find the whole thing a little odd. It was clearly written just for Nakamori as it sounds like a number of her earlier slow songs. That isn't to say that it isn't good, though. It just caught me off-guard. The singing is still just a little bit on the soft side.

03. Yakusoku

Another Takeuchi song. THIS one sounds like a Mariya Takeuchi song. As soon as the guitars kick in, oh yeah...definitely. The still-soft singing fits in perfectly. At this point it becomes pretty clear that this album is going to be mellow. There are some exceptions ahead, but Nakamori is definitely making a conscious effort to sing in something that is barely above a whisper.

04. Pink Champagne

An excellent jazz track. There are some licks of synth tossed in to make things interesting. While this song might not sound like much on the surface, it's one of my favorites from the album.

05. OH NO, OH YES!

While never becoming a single (in fact, none of the songs on this album became a single), this is largely considered the stand-out song from the album. Despite the somewhat doofy title, the way the title is sung is infinitely catchy. Definitely a good one, and obviously another Takeuchi jam. It's a bit on the slower side, but has a pulse to it.

06. Exotica

Another slow song. It has a catchiness to it that makes me wonder if this was ever destined to be a single. The moments that this song does pick up, it's pretty good. I like it overall. It's kinda retro in a way.

07. Mosaic no shiro

This one is my favorite on the album. It's just so weird. The horns, for starters, are awesome. When this song was played live the horns were replaced by guitars. I'm can't decide which I like better.

Regardless, this song has some much needed life to it even if Nakamori's vocals hardly break a whisper as it did in the previous songs. The beat is really strong. While I can't say this album gets an insane amount of play, I do go out of my way to listen to this song regularly.

08. JEALOUS CANDLE

Time to bring things back down again. Of the slow songs on this album, I think this may be the slowest...or at least the most basic. I like this one, though, it's more R&B but missing a lot of the big instruments. The build-up moments definitely make it memorable.

09. Aka no enamel

The fourth of the five Takeuchi songs. I like it quite a bit, but I always confuse with the single SOLITUDE. They sound quite a lot alike. Kinda errie...though SOLITUDE has this song beat chronologically, so I suppose it's kind of a self-ripoff.

10. Mick Jagger ni hohoemi o

This one is kind of irritating. What would have been a pretty fun party jam is kinda messed up with intermittent sounds of Nakamori typing, drinking, smoking a cigarette, and singing along to a cassette of the song playing. It's weirdly meta...but I just want to listen to the song plain.

The funny thing is, this song is Nakamori breaking out of the shell that she's been in this entire album. I thiiiiink that's what the outside noise is kinda getting at. This is the lone track on the album that she is just belting it. It's out-of-place, but makes total sense with it being at the very end.

It also kinda alludes to the next album, Cross My Palm. The song ends with what is unmistakably the sounds of New York City traffic... Interesting...

Still, I kinda want to hear this song played straight.

OVERALL: In my previous review I took a look at what is an indirect sequel to the Fushigi album. This time I'm looking at the direct follow-up. Honestly, it kinda works well as a follow-up to Fushigi. There is the solid theme of the somewhat obscured vocals as well as having a somewhat consistent staff. I talked about Mariya Takeuchi helming half of the production, but the other half was Akiko Kobayashi. Now, I can't say I'm entirely familiar with her work, but I actually prefer her tracks on this album. Heh.

I also find it just a little bit strange that this album either intentionally or unintentionally set up the next album. Next time...we're going to America! ...(again)...

PREVIOUS: Fushigi (Part 2)
NEXT: Cross My Palm

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09b. Fushigi Part 2 - Wonder (1988.06.01) & MEGATREND (1987.03.25)

Akina Nakamori
Wonder (E.P.)
1988.06.01

Nearly two years after Fushigi was released, Nakamori released her fifth and final Mini Album of her tenure at Warner/Pioneer. Wonder is a six track post script to Fushigi featuring clear vocals over re-recorded music. Kind of a self-cover album I suppose. The only real bummer is that by this time EUROX has basically disbanded by the end of 1987, so their participation is minimal.

01. Labyrinth

Immediately you'll notice that the music seems to be much more polished. Once the vocals kick in, the whole ordeal is squeaky clean. It almost defeats the point...I mean...the background singers are in the background. What kind of world is this?

Labyrinth sounds just as groovy played straight.

02. Okibi

Of all of the songs on this album, I think that this is the one I actually prefer over the Fushigi album version. It sounds just a smidge faster and plays just a smidge better with the clear lyrics.

03. Fushigi

Now this one is actually really interesting. It's a completely new song. This song was actually used to promote this mini album in television appearances and was part of her 1988 tour's set list.

That said, it almost seems completely out of place amidst the futuristic sounds of EUROX. Where we were getting electric violins in the album Fushigi, the song Fushigi features...bird song. It's a slow song, but it's actually a damn fine one. I love the reverse dynamic here.

04. Glass no kokoro

Like Okibi, this one plays a little bit better with clear lyrics. The thing that kinda holds it back is the music itself. It kinda sounds weak compared to the Fushigi version. I don't know, the guitars just don't have that same dreaminess to them.

05. Marionette

I prefer the Fushigi version......WAY more than this. That isn't to say that this is bad, but the beat just isn't as forceful...and the singing really benefited from the almost industrial nature of the version on Fushigi.

That said, this is totally listenable and is more at home with the version that Nakamori kept in her set list well into the 2000s.

06. Teen-age blue

Of all of the covers on this mini album, the music is actually closest to the original on this track. The clear singing is actually pretty beneficial on this one as well...except maybe when she says "Teen-age blue". It sounds kinda rushed and doesn't flow as well as it does with the distortion.

OVERALL: Highly...HIGHLY recommended if you're a fan of Fushigi. While I may bemoan the lack of Mushroom Dance and Wait For Me, this does address some of minor issues with the album versions of songs like Okibi and Glass no Kokoro.

Seriously, the closest we ever got to a clean version of Mushroom Dance was from the video release of her 1987 tour. I would kill to have a clean studio version. Hell, why not a clean version of the whole album??

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EUROX
MEGATREND
1987.03.25

As I mentioned previously, EUROX is the sound behind the Fushigi album. As you might imagine, providing the music for an established singer kinda leaves a band's existing singer out in the cold. As far as I can work out, however, EUROX didn't really have a set singer. Prior to their work on Fushigi, the band released two singles in 1984 with Hiroshi Nemoto on vocals.

Following the release of Fushigi, a debut album was in the works. This time around, the band enlisted the vocals of Isamu Hasegawa to bring their album's vocals to life. You may be thinking...why do they even need vocals? Fushigi was an experiment in vocals being used as an instrument after all. Well, this album seemed to be the first attempt to bring some of Fushigi's songs some clarity. That's right...before Wonder came along, three songs from Fushigi ended up getting self-covers on EUROX's own album. On top of that, we got seven additional songs of the same flavor. Let's check it out...

01. MEGATREND

If you coming to this album directly from Fushigi, you would almost expect to hear Nakamori's distorted vocals right off the bat. The titular track from this album is a nice reassurance that EUROX hasn't changed one bit in the time since their work on Fushigi. MEGATREND in particular is an awesome song.

02. CHEERIO

This one might have been a little out of place had it been part of Fushigi as it's played pretty straight-forward. This song is just a little more mainstream and slick versus the album industrial sound from Fushigi. That said, it's definitely a EUROX song.

03. LONGING FOR TRAVEL

A slower song. One that kinda ditches the electronics in favorite of just making a chill song. The funny thing is, it's kinda sung in the style of Fushigi. Lots of random vocalizations ("Ah-Ah") and vocals that aren't 100% clear. Sure, they can all be understood, but there is a light masking to the whole thing.

04. WHERE ARE YOU

This is more in line with the random loudness you would expect if you picked up this album. I know I really shouldn't be making constant comparisons to Fushigi, but that really isn't a knock against this album. Fushigi was EUROX's album just as much as it was Nakamori's. This track is probably the closest to sounding like a lost song from Fushigi. Behind MEGATREND, this is probably my favorite song from the album that isn't a cover of a song from Fushigi. More on that in a bit...

05. WHAT IS YOUR WISH?

I like this one too, but it comes awful close to just being silly. Lots of little details in the production that you only really catch upon multiple listens. That can be said for a lot of EUROX songs though...

06. DREAM OF

Well now...this sounds awful familiar.

The music here is a 1:1 recreation of Back Door Night from Fushigi. Naturally the only difference between the two songs is Isamu Hasegawa's clearish vocals instead of the heavy distortion used throughout Fushigi. The only weird thing is hearing it midway through an album instead of it kicking the whole thing off.

07. SHINING TIME

This is the only song I don't really dig all that much. After a minute-long intro of really just nothing in particular, the song kinda picks up and doesn't do a whole lot...until it does... Two thirds of the way through it suddenly becomes a different song and just sounds...messy. This song is weird in a less desirable way.

08. ATTITUDE

A slow song done right. I enjoy this one, especially the piano work splashed in at some points.

09. PLEASE WAIT FOR ME!

This is probably the number one reason to buy this album. I really consider this the finished version of  Wait For Me from Fushigi. Going back and listening to the Nakamori version, the whole thing sounds kinda half-baked. The Fushigi version relies more on the bass, this is just a complete song. I love it. It kinda makes me wish they did something a little bit different with DREAM OF and the following song as well...

10. ADULATION

This is a 1:1 cover of New Generation from Fushigi. The only real difference outside of the singers is the intro is a little drawn out. Honestly, it still sounds great here.

11. COLD LINE [BONUS TRACK]

This and the following track were never part of MEGATREND, but were from one of the only singles that EUROX released while they were signed at Warner/Pioneer. So while MEGATREND was released in 1987, the single for COLD LINE and OUT OF CONTROL were released as bonus tracks. Thanks, Warner... That was cool of them. As a result of this being older, it features original EUROX singer Hiroshi Nemoto.

Ehhh, this song is OK. The only thing that really holds it back in my opinion is the Faux-Simon Le Bon from Duran Duran singing. EUROX was always a great band, but the lack of a consistent singer early on seemed to bring them weird places. One of those was Nakamori, so I can't complain.

I want to like this one, but the singing is just weak.

12. OUT OF CONTROL [BONUS TRACK]

This song is just...all over the place. Yeah, I don't like it. It just sounds like a lot of early 80s nerd rock that I hate so much.

OVERALL: I highly recommend checking this out if you're a big fan of Fushigi. I honestly recommend this over the Wonder mini album. While both MEGATREND and Wonder kinda unmask all the makes Fushigi special, MEGATREND acts as the better supplement.

As a standalone album, MEGATREND is a great listen. In a world where Fushigi exists, I don't understand how this didn't become a bigger thing. In a world where Fushigi never happened, I can kinda understand how this wouldn't become popular. I never would have heard it, that's for sure. It has a curse of being far too technical while not really pop enough like, I don't know, Kome Kome Club.

I'm on a never-ending quest to discover all of the good music I can. The EUROX sound is up there with TM Network in their richness of sound, but they never really had a hit. It doesn't help that neither MEGATREND nor Fushigi had a single.

From here the EUROX story kinda fizzles. They broke up after MEGATREND's release, but continued to work with Nakamori through 1988 on awesome singles such as TATTOO and the highly underrated I MISSED "THE SHOCK". They did get back together for a little while in 2009 to release some new music, but I'm going to be perfectly honest and say that I haven't checked it out.

PREVIOUS: Fushigi (Part 1)
NEXT: CRIMSON

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09a. Fushigi (1986.08.11)

01. Back door night

Your first thoughts might be... What the...?

OK, so putting this album's little party trick aside, there is one big BIG difference right off the bat. The incredible richness of the music. You're immediately hit with just a gigantic wave of sound...deep, deep, heavily produced sound.

Then, the vocals kick in and they're almost indecipherable.

Once you get over that, you'll notice that...you're really digging this.

02. New Generation

From here, the album doesn't let up one bit. The same muddled lyrics, and the same rich sounding band. I should probably talk about the band. While the album is the debut of Akina Nakamori as a producer, the band that is spear-heading the majority of the tracks is EUROX. I have quite a bit to say about EUROX, but I think I'll save that for my dissection of this fine album in my next post.

As for New Generation, it's not a favorite from the album, but it's a great song.

03. Labyrinth

Great track. Labyrinth has this incredible, and yet subtle, guitar work sprinkled in. The vocals are a bit more distorted in this track...and the background singers aren't distorted at all. What a weird concept...

04. Marionette

This is easily my favorite track here. The beat is just so damn heavy, and the lyrics are a smidge clearer. This song, while never becoming a single in it's own right, seemed to be the one chosen to promote the album in TV appearances. Of all of the songs from this album, this is the one that seems to have survived the test of time.

Just when you think this song can't get any cooler...BAM electric violin. Not once, but twice to close the whole thing out.

05. Genwaku sa sete

While it's kinda off to a slow start, I dig the slickness of it all. This is kinda this album's idea of a slow song. Heh. Extra-heavy on the vocal distortion.

06. Glass no kokoro

While EUROX didn't compose this or the next two songs, they're clearly playing on them. The vocals on this album are meant less as a means to deliver the lyrics as they are to complement the music. This song really is the only time on this album when it would probably make a little more sense if it were sung normally. That's a story for next time...

07. Teen-age blue

Everything is back on form with this one. Nakamori's vocals are kinda clear this time around, but there are a few moments when she is hidden behind some of the band.

08. Okibi

This is an incredibly slick track. Once again, you can kinda make out the lyrics.

09. Wait for me

EUROX is back in charge. The big tell is that the bass is heavier. While this one is infinitely catchy, the bass juts out just a little bit too much over everything else. If you were in the room while this song was being performed, it's as is you were standing in from of the bassist's amp.

Love this one, but there is more to the story next time...

10. Mushroom Dance

I'm going to be brave and say that this is my second favorite song on the album. It's weird...and hidden at the end, but I still love it.

This song really amps up the energy for the big finale. The synths are especially on point. Not only that, but the vocals oscillate from incredibly distorted to almost clear. This is kinda the whole album in a nutshell. Combine that with some faux-Flock-Of-Seagulls-I-Ran guitar licks, and this song is the perfect way to go out. Underrated!

OVERALL: This album is kinda legendary in the JPOP world. It made Number #1 for a few weeks, but not before confusing the hell out of people who bought it. Honestly, the tale has been told many times and I would be doing a great disservice if I didn't link to this article from AV Music. It sums up the whole affair nicely.

My personal thoughts on the album? It lives up to the hype. I'm not going to say whether or not it's my favorite album from Nakamori or any other artist for that matter, but it's definitely an album that not only requires multiple evaluations, but more research into the life these songs lived after this album baffled a nation.

I do just that in Part 2...

PREVIOUS: D404ME
NEXT: Fushigi (Part 2)

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08. D404ME (1985.08.10)

01. ENDLESS

Excellent. This is the type of jazzy track that worked so well on BITTER & SWEET...and it works great here as well...so far. The only noticeable difference here is that Nakamori seems to be going a little deeper with her voice. Some of the mannerisms she continues to use such as bending the end of words seem to originate here. It's pretty noticeable right off the bat...

02. Nocturn

The name says it all, this is something of a dark song. It's definitely a little more on the serious side, but is excellent all the same. It does have a slight flavor of some of her older work at the same time. Heh... Older work. Hard to believe her eighth album is only three years into her career.

03. Allegro Vivace

Another darker track. This one is a little more basic sounding, but is still pretty damn catchy. Maybe not catchy enough to be a single or anything, but this one pops in my head with some regularity. The sweeping breeze sound coupled with the droning guitars make for a surprisingly good combination.

04. Kanashii Romance

After a brief and somewhat disjointed start, this song takes off and serves very well as a mid-range song. It isn't my favorite song on the album...but it has that really catchy chorus and is packed with some great bass and horns.

05. Peace

I can kind leave this song. It's alright, but it's a little bit of a snorer. The melody is very pretty, at least.

06. BLUE OCEAN

This is where the album takes a really weird and sudden left turn with the next few songs...

I honestly don't know how I can accurately sum this song up. Well, it's certainly from 1985 for one. It's a little busy at times, and a little bit slow at others. That said, I like it alright. Maybe not as much as...

07. Magnetic Love

Truly weird. This song is this album's Babylon. Heh. It's even structured kinda similarly. That said...this isn't as good as...

08. STAR PILOT

Yesssss. This song is so awesome. It sounds like the theme song to an anime that was never made. I mean, even the name is there. Can we retroactively make an anime series for this song?

Upbeat and excellent. As much as Nakamori has accomplished, she really should have taken a page out of TM Network's book and delivered a beloved and unforgettable theme song at some point in the 80s.

09. Mona Lisa

As this is technically the last track of the album, this song bookends ENDLESS perfectly. Upbeat, but kinda dark. The weird thing is, I think her next album may have kinda copied this song just a little bit...

10. (Including Special Version) Meu amor é... 

This is something of a bonus track. ENDLESS and Mona Lisa start and end with the sounds of a thunderstorm respectively. This song kinda exists outside of the D404ME storm.

What exactly can I say? It's an extended version of the super-smash single Meu amor é... The extending is all done at the beginning, however. It sounds more like a street performance that slowly fades into a slightly tweaked version of the song we all know and love. Excellent way to end the album. I'm not going to say that this is the definitive version of Meu amor é..., but it's definitely worthy of existing at all.

OVERALL: It may not be a better album than BITTER & SWEET, it is the perfect follow-up. It's full of great songs, and still manages to display progress. The R&B aspect was completely dropped and replaced with some skittish weirdness. Plus... STAR PILOT.

Maybe this isn't the best place to dive into, but it's smack in the middle of just a solid sting of fantastic albums from Nakamori.

PREVIOUS: BITTER AND SWEET
NEXT: Fushigi (Part 1)

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07. BITTER AND SWEET (1985.04.03)

01. Kazari janai no yo namida ha [New Remix Version]

From Akina Nakamori Singles 1982-1991: "Continuing her streak of just amazing singles, Kazari janai no yo namida wa is the final single of 1984. It's hard to describe this one. The single version here is like a dance/jazz hybrid, but the tweaked version from the album BITTER & SWEET sounds like late disco. The key ingredient of this song (and most of Nakamori's songs) is bass. Bass and some increasingly speedy lyrics."

So to confirm...yes, the version on the album is different from the single version. I have this thing where I can't leave things alone...so I did end up chopping together a hybrid version based on the single and album version. Basically if you bookend the single version with the intro/outro of the album version, you're left with a nice extended mix.

02. Romantic yoruda wa

A slick electro-jazz hybrid track. Kazari janai no yo namida ha kinda abruptly feeds into this song for some odd reason. Regardless, it certainly keeps the momentum going from the upbeat introductory track.

03. Yokan

A slow jam, and a reaaaallly good one. It's actually pretty fair to assume that Nakamori is a fan of this song as well since it not only appears on a later mini album, but was one of the few non-single tracks to get a self-cover on a later covers album that I will be covering.

04. Tsukiyo no Ve~nus

Again, a very good song. Oddly enough, the singing is the most out-of-place thing here...and yet it all just kinda works. The music is incredibly on point, though. It's actually a really good test song if you're trying to set balance on your stereo. If you listen to this with cheap headphones it sounds really, really weird. I really like this one.

05. BABYLON

Babylon... I kiiiinda talked about this one already. A "Remix" version of this song appeared on the single for Akai tori nigeta. The album version is much less weird, but I love the hell out of it. It's a disjointed epic of utter madness, and one of Nakamori's first prominent uses of English. 1985 later saw her first full English song Don't Tell Me This Is Love from the MY BEST THANKS mini album, but this is really the genesis of what would become a regular splashing of English...and she's great at it!

If I were a betting man, I would say that the "Remix" version from the single was the demo and deemed a bit too weird...

06. UNSTEADY LOVE

So good. An upbeat rock song. Maybe a tad on the generic side in context of the album. If this song were on a lesser album it'd probably be the best song on it. The name is a taddd misleading, it's a pretty fun listen with plenty of that frantic bass.

07. DREAMING

Bringing things down just a little bit for this one. A great little jazz piece with a really nice floatiness to it. It kinda reminds me of some songs from other artists, but it has plenty going for it to make it unique in it's own right. The little samba breakdown, for example bridges the song perfectly.

08. Koibito no iro jikan

Another great upbeat track. I would actually liken it the most to Tsukiyo no Ve~nus from this album in that it's a fantastic song with singing that is almost out-of-place. The song is fast, but the lyrics are delivered at a more leisurely pace. It works though!

09. SO LONG

A slow jam that really just knocks it out of the park. This reminds me of some really great R&B... Completely out of place in 1985, but it's also very modern at the same time. The lyrics are just perfectly sung as well. Really, if you're one of those weirdos like me who enjoys the deep cuts like Lady In My Life from Michael Jackson's Thriller, you'd like this one.

Was there really such a thing as a deep cut on the best selling album of all time...?

10. APRIL STARS

The final track...and it's a slower one. Something of an odd choice considering we're coming off of a slightly faster song. Regardless, this is another R&B inspired piece of excellence.

Babylon would have been the best track to close this album out. Hahaha. How weird would that have been?

OVERALL: This really is the first perfect album that Akina Nakamori put out. Literally...not a bad song on it. There isn't a single note out of place, there isn't a single thing I wish was even 5% better. This album is Akina Nakamori and her team firing on all cylinders for the very first time. It's also really the first time she displayed some of her weirdness with Babylon. Yeah, up to this point she was kind of a girl who sang love songs and that's it.

This is pretty much the point where her career split into two--albums and singles. While POSSIBILITY was a bit different, it wasn't as much of a stand out as this album. Even the title BITTER & SWEET  kinda implies that, well, we're now dealing with two versions of Nakamori from now on.

I've noticed that a lot of people have called this their favorite album of hers. It's up there for me, but no...the best is yet to come. I highly recommend this one if you're starting out.

PREVIOUS: POSSIBILITY
NEXT: D404ME

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