Deep Dive: Ayumi Hamasaki Part Twenty-Seven (TROUBLE)

        Hamasaki Ayumi celebrated her 20th anniversary with the release of this mini-album, TROUBLE, back in 2018. She also embarked on an epic tour around this time as Hamasaki tours a lot. A very very very a lot, you guys. She gets done with one and does another. Seriously. She never stops. Let's just go ahead and dive on in. 

    Our opening track is the epic, "We are the QUEENS." All caps. It's a fantasy thumper which probably sounds amazing live and is made for the stage. This one got released as a digital single a good ways before the EP dropped, but it's good so we won't complain. I believe it was the theme song for an app game. And it's very fitting for that with all of its thrill.

    Then we have "aeternal" (I can't find how to make the a and e stick together... I'm not sure how to explain how this one is stylized. Shed some light on me, please.) Anyways, it's a fine song. Produced well. Composed well. Hits well. Hamasaki's vocals are a bit too overdramatic. Her delivery screams melodrama here, and I think it keeps the track from reaching its full potential. It's classic Hamasaki in sound and lyrics though. 2001 Ayu would have ate this up and killed it.

    "WORDS" is in the same vein as the previous track. A mid-tempo ballad. Fans liked the preview for this one around the time promotions for the EP were gearing up. Hamasaki sounds better on this one. She's reeled in the drama for better results. Though the composition isn't as compelling on this one as "aeternal."

    Then we get "W" which takes us back to the epicness of "We Are the QUEENS." But with more rock and more in your face. Hamasaki excels at this. She always brings her best when a single-letter title is involved. Has anyone else noticed this? "M," "H," and "L." All legendary in some shape or form. The hard-hitting rock here makes the song shine. 

    The final song is another ballad, "The way I am." Standard Hamasaki fare for a standard Hamasaki album. The lyrics are nice and very on-brand for Hamasaki. Not sure about the vocals though. I feel mixed about them.

    Overall, I think the conciseness of TROUBLE is its greatest strength. It's not bloated. It gets right the point. It leaves you with an overall impression, and then it dips out without overstaying its welcome. Which is really what Hamasaki needed at this point in time. Though we're not offered a lot of newness or freshness outside of "We Are the QUEENS" and to a lesser extent, "W."

    We're almost to the end of our Hamasaki Ayumi Deep Dive we started 5 months ago. We've only got one album left! I'm glad we will be ending on a full-length album too. Until next time!

Rank: C Rank.

Recommendation: When you need to listen to an album, but don't have 60 minutes to commit to a full-length release.

Standouts:

    We Are The QUEENS

    W