Jpop Album Review- Yui- I Loved Yesterday

Here I am, reviewing one of Yui's albums again.

Laugh Away- Yui begins things on a cheerful note with the summery laugh away. Laugh away is the best album track Yui has produced in quite a while and the best on the album. The fast paced chorus and acoustic feel make this song unique along with Yui's vocals.
4.5/5

My Generation- My generation has a rebellious, teenage feel. Electic guitars and drums join in the pre chorus, giving this song a rock feel. Yui's vocals are strong here and the fast pre-chorus works well.
4.5/5

Find me- Find me is a complete filler track. It has the normal acoustic chorus and verse. Nothing that we've not heard from Yui.
2/5

No way- More intresting than Find me. It has a rock instrumental led by electric guitars. A nice bridge to namidairo.
3.5/5

Namidairo- One of the rare ballads on this album. It shines well. There is a feeling of sadness presented in the song by Yui's soft and airy vocals. The arrangement is plain acoustic guitar and some drums join in during the chorus. A very good track that shines among the other similar sounding tracks.
4.5/5

Daydreamer- There's nothing special about this track except the 'daydreamer' Yui sings at the end of the chorus. That's enough to make it catchy though. Again, a rockish guitar led track that begins with heavy jamming and moves into a high chorus.
3.8/5

Love is all- An interesting instrumental intro. This is one of the better album tracks especially because of the arrangement. The chorus stands out. Acoustic guitars are joined by electric ones in the chorus. Love is all has a better tone and vibe to it that is somewhat nostalgic.
4.1/5

I will love you- Not a great album track that presents something special. 'I will love you' at the end of the chorus is the high point. But that is not as catchy as daydreamer. Quite a normal acoustic track.
3.4/5

We will go- A rock track. Starts off quite well but doesn't shine very much. Sounds like every other track on Can't buy my love and on I loved yesterday.
3/5

Oh yeah- Pretty much like the previous one but more cheerful. Again, a disappointment.
2.5/5

My friend- I haven't listened to this much so no rating. But it is quite cheerful and interesting though not very different from the previous tracks. The piano in the beginning provides some relief from the monotony.

Love and truth- Another saver track in this album. Love and truth has an orchestral arrangement that is something new for Yui. Her vocals stand out in the track, giving it a nice atmosphere. One of the good tracks on this album.
4.5/5

Am I wrong? Things go back to acoustic town with this track. A light track that closes off the album well. Yui's vocals are relaxed and take the foreground in Am I wrong?
4/5

Overall, though I hate to say it, I found it better than Can't buy my love. The album tracks can be quite boring and monotonous but the album had more variety than Can't buy my love and better single tracks. Laugh away was a good song from her and Yui has experimented some unique things in this album like Love and truth. Yui has a very unique voice that I found shines better in her mellower songs like Tomorrow's way, love and truth and goodbye days.

Overall rating- 4/5

Pros

Some unique tracks and experimentation from Yui
Solid single tracks
Variety

Cons

Monotonous and similar sounding album tracks (except laugh away)
Boring arrangements in album tracks

Jpop Album Review- Yui- Can't Buy My Love

I have been listening to a lot of Yui songs and albums these days and will review them in due course. I'll begin with her best selling one- Can't buy my Love.

How Crazy- Yui begins the album with the breezy and rocking 'How Crazy' which features a lot of back vocals in the chorus. That's something unique for Yui. The chorus is probably the catchiest part of the song which makes a nice intro to the album.
4.2/5

Rolling Star- Rolling Star keeps the rock spirit of the album with jamming electric guitars and a fast paced chorus. It was used in the anime Bleach which features a lot of rock songs. Yui sings this one well considering its pace. A good follow up to How Crazy.
4/5

It's all right- This again follows the slower verse and rock influenced chorus formula that seems to be the key in this album. However, I must say all the tracks in the album have a similar tone which can get repititive after a while. It's all right shines in the chorus.
3.8/5

I remember you- Another chorus centric song. I remember you is an acoustic pop track that comes from one of Yui's singles. The chorus again shines here and has a more nostalgic tone than some other tracks.
4/5

RUIDO- This one is a really short track and doesn't shine much.
3/5

CHERRY- This remains one of Yui's popular songs that was once voted as the best Valentine's day song in Japan. Lyrically, it speaks of firstlove and crushes. Yui tries a little 'kawaii-ness' here. I didn't like this track much in the beginning and it took quite a while to grow on me. The lyrics are very refreshing and the best point of this song.
4.1/5

Thank you my teens- The tour for this album was named after this song so, I was eager to listen to it. It follows the same formula as the rest of the album but the chorus doesn't shine much. It has a mysterious old rock feel to the instrumental. 'Sank you my teens' in the chorus end was the saving grace of this song.
3.5/5

Umbrella- It has a mysterious, acoustic tone compared to other tracks. The chorus is again, the weakness of this track. The chorus is weak and the song comes off as yet another acoustic track in the album. It follows well after Thank you my teens with a mysterious, acoustic verse.
3.8/5

Highway Chance- This one is more interesting than some of its preceeding tracks. It has a rock arrangement with some mysterious instruments in the background. The arrangement works better than the chorus.
4/5

Happy birthday to you you- Another rock track with a strange arrangement. Not one of my favourites because it sounds similar to other tracks.
3.5/5

Winding Road- After the rocking Happy birthday to you and highway chance, Winding road takes things slower. It stands out quite a bit after the previous tracks. It has the sound of the opening of an old mystery drama. The verse and bridge are more interesting than the chorus. The instrumental into and outro create a nice mood.
4/5

Goodbye days- Clearly the best track on this album and the reason this album sold so much. Goodbye days is an acostic ballad- something which this album seems to lack. It has a nice vibe and was used in the Taiyou no Uta movie in which Yui starred as the main character.
4.5/5

Why- Yui decided to save the best for last. Another slow track which is very relaxing. Why shines in the album because of its uniqueness. A nice way to end the album. It sounds somewhat like a folk track you expect from Chitose Hajime, not Yui. The chorus is unspectacular but the verse stands out.
4.2/5

Overall, Can't Buy my love is not a great album though it is better than rest of her albums (And I can say that now that I've listened to the rest of her albums). The main reason for this is the better quality of album tracks. Can't buy my love has fewer filler album tracks than other Yui albums. Yui's singing is angelic but the album is dominated by rock tracks which drown her vocals sometimes. Like all Yui albums, this requires a few listens to get used to.

Overall- 4/5

Pros

Single tracks
Consistency
Better album tracks than other albums

Cons

All the songs are just too similar sounding
Lack of unique/ experimental songs