Shuffle And Repeat

BoA is BoA’s debut US album. It was released on March 17,2009 in the USA, and March 18, 2009 in Japan through BEST&USA, a package with this album, and her best-of compilation. This album reached #127 on the Billboard 200 charts, but was on the top position for the Pacific Top Heatseekers category. It also reached #1 in Kora, having sold a total of 8,786 copies.

Album Review
BoA – BoA

tracklist:
1. I did it for Love feat. Sean Garrett
2. Energetic
3. Did Ya
4. Look Who’s Talking
5. Eat You Up
6. Obsessed
7. Touched
8. Scream
9. Girls On Top
10. Dress Off
11. Hypnotic Dancefloor

Opening the album is the planned 2nd single of the album, which is I Did It for Love, a song featuring Sean Garrett. When I first heard this song when it leaked, I immediately fell in love at it. I mean, the beat, the synth.. EVERYTHING! BoA’s vocals were like heaven to my ears, and the blending between her and Sean Garrett’s voice was perfection. Their chemistry worked a lot for this collabo because it was pretty convincing that the both of them sorta had this “past”. Anyway, It’s a great song, and it’s definitely fit as a great opener for the album.

The 2nd track, Energetic, another Sean Garrett produced track, features a more aggressive synth arrangement, which I think, what made this song a lot lot better than the previous one. It’s packed with energy and furiousness, which is great because it really reflects to the title. I’d have to say, I’m very impressed with this song. I mean, it’s kind of repetitive with the “Put me on..” & “Report to the dancefloor..” lines but, it’s really really catchy. The sort of filter in BoA’s voice in the “meet me in the club..” lines to make it sound more techno-y was my favorite part because it sounded soo much cool. Much like the previous track, It’s an AMAZING song.

The third track actually is my most favorite out of all the songs in this album. After Energetic, Did Ya comes in to continue the energy in the album. Even though it continues the energy, it changes the flow of the album from a bit because it abandons the strong-rnb style from the previous 2. It includes  less-strong instruments such ass the super strong beats, and gives way to the guitars and claps. I think it’s really unique to have guitars in this song because well, it gave the song a new look. The claps and the some sort of old-china?brass were very very cool too because it blended well with the other instruments. Unlike the previous songs, Did Ya is A DAMN PERFECT SONG!

Look Who’s Talking comes next, after that AMAZING SONG. It starts with some breaking synth, followed by the beats, and the verses. Out of all the 11 songs here, this song has to be the most “full of attitude” one because of the strong arrangement. Like most of the other tracks, this song is really really catchy. The chorus has that bratty, catchy feel to it that amuses the listener once they listen to it.

The lead-single of the album is Eat You Up, which happens to be a very R&B-influenced song. Placing it after Look Who’s Talking was a brilliant idea because both share the same genre, and both almost have the same characteristic to it – both are aggressive songs. I was a bit skeptical in listening to it at first because I thought that it might have “too much taste of America”. But then, I just listened to it. The moment I heard it, I was like, “Wait, is this BoA? The one who sang VALENTI BoA?”. I don’t know why because I got so shocked with all this power that I didn’t see in BoA before. She was this sort-of Pop-star in Japan and now, she’s like a gangster in America, which isn’t that much of a bad thing. It’s quite good to see her grow up, making cool tracks like this. In all, a good choice for a USA debut, and a great song, all in all.

Selly @ VD’s favorite track is Obsessed, and I’m not surprised by it, actually (yeah selly. you like techno, right?). I knew that this would hit him fast because of the vocoder, which actually hit me too at the same time. It has this dark atmosphere to it that sounds really great with the stalker-based lyrics. BoA sounds great in the song because her voice seems to fit the vocoder well, especially in the parts where she says the “It’s a crime, It’s a shame, holding your love from me” lines because it just sounds so cool. In all, Obsessed is a very very cool song, and it definitely is one of the outstanding tracks of the album.

The next two songs are complete opposites.
The first one, opening with a wierd, broken trinket-sound, is Touched, which I don’t really get since BoA says in the song that she “wants to be TOUCHED”. But then, It adds to the “one of a kind” factor of the song. I mean, it’s wierd in a way but, it sounds great, too.

The next one, which is another dark-type of song is Scream, which is a very catchy song. There’s something about it that just sounds so cool, and just blows my mind off. Especially with the strong beat and synth it has. But, it’s definitely better than Scream, to be honest. Actually, it’s one of the best tracks that BoA’s presented in this era.

The re-recorded version of Girls On Top was HELLA BRILLIANT! I actually found it to be waay better than the original, Koean version. I don’t know why, but maybe it’s because I could understand what she’s saying. The R&B atmosphere it has is really really fitting since it’s a great “dance showdown” song. It has that “the hell you care” attitude to it that just makes me feel so impressed. Anyway, it’s another great song from the album, and it’s one of the best, for me.

My least favorite track from this album is Dress Off. I mean, it’s not bad, It’s just okay. It has that techno sound that’s alright for me but, the first verse doesn’t sound much like BoA, which made me hate the song a bit. Another factor that just lowers the song is the fact that BoA’s singing “RIP MY DRESS OFF”. I’m not just used to BoA saying RIP MY DRESS OFF! a lot. Oh, and man, I did not mention how irritating BoA’s voice sounds when it shakes a lot. Seriously BoA, cut the shaky part.

The album closes with Hypnotic Dancefloor,  another EFFING BRILLIANT SONG! I really like the vocoder in BoA’s voice especially in the parts where she says “Burnin’ up on this Hypnotic Dancefloor“. It sounds so cool, and the repetitiveness doesn’t bug me at all. The song has a touch of techno and R&B, which is good since BoA seems to have her experimental shoes on. Anyway, It’s another cooooool song from BoA, and it’s definitely an EXCELLENT one too.

OH MY GOD! What an AMAZING ALBUM. The songs were bonded together, and the album really presented a great techno/rnb album that just blew my head off. All I have to say is that, I AM GOING TO BUY THIS ALBUM, NO MATTER WHAT.

Favorite Tracks:
Did Ya, Energetic, Look Who’s Talking, Eat You Up, Girls On Top, Hypnotic Dancefloor, I did it for Love, Scream, and Obsessed

Shuffle rating!
A+

Single Review
BoA – Eien/UNIVERSE/Believe in LOVE (Acoustic Version)

Eien/UNIVERSE/Believe in LOVE (Acoustic Version) is BoA’s 27th Japanese single. It was released on February 18, 2009, and reached #8 on the oricon weekly charts. It sold a total of 21,789 copies, and charted for 4 weeks.

tracklist:
01. Eien
02. UNIVERSE feat. Crystal Kay and Verbal (m-flo)
03. Believe in LOVE (Acoustic Version) ft. BoA / ravex
04. BEST HIT MEGA BLEND
05. Eien (Instrumental)
06. UNIVERSE (Instrumental)

After being disappointed with how generic VIVID was, It’s good to see BoA back in her old, catchy self with Eien, an incredibly catchy song with a great, up-beat feeling. There’s not much to say about Eien except for the fact that it is ONE AMAZING SONG. The catchy “why did you say bye bye?” lines that just hits you out of nowhere, will get stuck in your head for days. I AM FREAKIN’ SERIOUS. When I first heard it, I got soo addicted to it, and before I knew it, It reached 141 full plays on my iTunes. But, to tell you guys honestly, I wasn’t happy with it’s chart performance. It debuted at #5, and now, it fell at #11. Based on what I see now, I think it won’t outsell the ever generic VIVID. Still, Charts are just Charts. For me, Eien is one AMAZING SONG, and nothing will ever change my opinion about it! definitely a recommended song for everyone!

UNIVERSE isn’t on the same level as Eien but, it’s getting close. First of all, please allow me to explode. OH MGOD!!! KURI, BOA, VERBAL!!! HOW COOLER COULD THIS SONG EVER GET!!! HAAAAH!! Okay. As much as I know, the last BoA&Verbal collabo was in 2004 with The Love Bug, while Kuri&Verbal’s was in 2007? With Love Don’t Cry. But OH DEAR GOD!! It’s the first time Kuri has ever worked with BoA!! And Let me describe UNIVERSE with one single word. It is HOT! The beats were strong, the arrangement was AGGRESSIVE, and Kuri’s, Boa’s, and Verbal’s performance was full of ATTITUDE! It was a great collabo! I loved it, and I’m so much hoping for them to work together again!

The acoustic version of Believe in LOVE, her recent collaboration with ravex, was quite a nice addition to the single. It’s counting was rather irregular, but cool, while the change from dance to acoustic was not  a great idea. It sounds okay but, why did they still have to rearrange the original, hot track? Well, I guess it’s okay. BoA’s voice sounds great, and it blends nicely with the guitars. It’s not much of a stand-out track, but it’s worth a listen.

The next track, the BEST HIT MEGA BLEND, was a megamix of BoA’s hit songs, including: Sweet Impact, Dakishimeru, Winter Love, Eien, LOVE LETTER, Nanairo no Ashita ~brand new beat~, and her highest selling single, DO THE MOTION.
Starting off with Sweet Impact, The megamix opens with some kind of trance feeling, which suits the tune of Sweet Impact nicely. It is then followed by Dakishimeru, which has been added with a jazzy arrangement which gives the song a great sound. A weird beat follows, then it quickly leads us to Winter Love. I wasn’t a big fan of the original version of the song but, I am a big fan of the mixed version in this track. The “oh yeah-s” of Eien enters and it transits to the remixed version. It was nice to add this song in this megamix because it blends nicely with the new beats. The next mixed song is LOVE LETTER, which didn’t really wow me with it’s new mix. I mean, it’s not bad, I just like the original version more. Coming next is Nanairo no Ashita ~brand new beat~, a perfect combination of pop and groovy-ness, followed by the catchy, DO THE MOTION. The pianos added in this mix were awesome since it kind of gives the song a sort-of latin sound. In all, the transitions in every part was perfect, and everything went well together. It’s quite a nice mix if you ask me!

Favorite Tracks:
Eien, and UNIVERSE

Shuffle rating!
A-