2010: Albums

So, this is possibly the last entry when it comes to my look back to 2010.
I’ve long decided on my Top 10 Albums but to bring them in order was a hard decision. But here you go!

#10 3OH!3 – Streets of Gold

Yes, good single, good album track and now good album. After listening to three tracks on the previous album so often I couldn’t hear them anymore I was pretty excited about this album and in the end it did deliver. It’s not perfect and sadly not as kick ass as WANT but still has the nice catchy tunes that will stay in your head for a long time. And for the most part the album is just a great fun.

Best Songs: Double Vision, See You Go, House Party

 

#9 Mao Abe – POP

None of the songs on this album were good enough to be on my other lists but as a whole package you can’t really go wrong with this album. It is fun and she shows different styles even though I still wished she would have been a little bit more creative and had tried some more stuff. But that just means I can be curious about the next album.

Best Songs: I wanna see you, Mada, Tsutaetai Koto

 

#8 Berryz Koubou – 6th Otakebi Album

Berryz Koubou just had a strong year all around. We got with almost every single two songs and they never really disappointed. So it was double the fun. Also, with songs like Otakebi Boy WAO! they got back to more fun songs and even though I still can’t stand Risako’s voice I can’t help but see it as a step in the right direction that Yurina got to be the center once. Oh, and Dakisimete Dakishimete is on the album which is my favorite so yeah ❤

Best Songs: Dakishimete Dakishimete,  Otakebi Boy WAO!, Seishun Bus Guide

 

#7 UPLIFT SPICE – MEMENTO

With UPLIFT SPICE you just know what you’ll get. Great rock tracks with a unique voice and memorable melodies. And that’s really all I want from them. I have to be honest and say that I think Omega Rhythm was a bit better because I really liked to listen to it all the way through but on the other hand when it comes to MEMENTO I know what songs I prefer. Well, I’m happy as long as there’s a new album next september. I really like that pattern.

Best Songs: Queen Anne’s Revenge, Cosmology, Mönster

 

#6 Ayumi Hamasaki – Rock’n’Roll Circus

Everyone who read my review knows that I think that this album was a step in the right direction. Back. For me it felt like from somwhere between Rainbow and Memorial Addresse and while most people didn’t like it and seem to prefer Love Songs (which isn’t going to show up on this list) I think this was the better Ayu album of 2010.

Best Songs: Don’t Look Back, Microphone, Last Links, count down

 

#5 AKB48 – Kamikyoku Tachi

The problem I have with this album is that it doesn’t feel like an album. It feels like a collection of all the singles AKB released in that time. Every fucking B-Side is on there. Everyone who bought the singles must feel like a fool. Except for those who buy allt hose Singles for Handshakes and the likes. But yeah, after all those were some pretty strong singles and also the B-sides were quality stuff. Nothing to complain about really.

Best songs: RIVER, Sakura no Shiori, Tobenai Agehachou

#4 JASMINE – GOLD

Oh look, it’s a debut album! But a damn good one. If you haven’t heard about JASMINE yet, where do you live? I have to be honest and say that the singles were the best tracks and album tracks were good, but not as good. But that doesn’t make the album any worse, it just means I had too big expectations. But what do you expect after songs like THIS IS NOT A GAME and sad to say?

Best Songs: THIS IS NOT A GAME, sad to say, L.I.P.S.

 

#3 2NE1 – To Anyone

Just like last year, 2NE1 still going strong. It was a long wait for the album but I guess it was worth the wait. The dance tracks are great and I even got to like the slower songs a lot more. My sister just loves Apa (Slow). Plus the solo songs and remix and english version. I guess this album offers everything you want from a korean album. Yes, there’s a difference. I’m curious how there songs will turn out in Japanese and if they will be successful in the US. I doubt it but let’s just drink some tea and see.

Best Songs: I Don’t Care (Reggae Mix), Can’t Nobody, Clap Your Hands

 

#2 Tokyo Jihen – SPORTS

I’m still not sure about #1 and #2 but since I’ve listened to SPORTS not as much as to the #1 this album gets the second spot. SPORTS is great. I already blogged about it because it blew me away. Listen to it. Every single song would be perfect as a single release. You won’t get bored when you listen to it the whole way through and in the end you’ll want to listen to it again. It’s great.

Best Songs: Sweet Spot, Noudouteki Sanpunkan, Kachiikusa

 

#1 BENNIE BECCA – BENNIE BECCA

It’s pop, it’s rock, it’s hip hop, it’s Japanese, it’s English, it’s the perfect mixture.  This album is just so much fun and is it really  a surprise when those great artists work together? I just wish that I wasn’t a one time only thing. I want more from them. I can’t go back to just one of them T_T

Best Songs: Ashita, Dilemmas, KAMINARI GIRL

(Personal) AKB Ranking March 2011

I had some trouble finding the AKB Ranker again but now that this problem is solved here a new ranking from me. Even though I think there won’t be too many differences since I haven’t watched much that could change my opinion of many of the girls.

#13 Kasai Tomomi (+17)

1. Sayaka Akimoto
2. Yuka Masuda
3. Yuko Oshima (+2)
4. Minami Takahashi (-1)
5. Natsuki Sato (+2)
6. Ayaka Umeda
7. Haruka Katayama (+1)
8. Minami Minegishi (-4)
9. Rino Sashihara
10. Haruna Kojima (+4)

11. Asuka Kuramochi (+10)
12. Yuki Kashiwagi
13. Tomomi Kasai (+17)
14. Atsuko Maeda (+6)
15. Tomomi Itano (+2)
16. Mayu Watanabe (-3)
17. Natsumi Matsubara (+7)
18. Moeno Nito (-7)
19. Rumi Yonezawa (-4)
20. Rie Kitahara (-1)

2010: Glee Songs

So, this is kind of off-topic but this is my blog and the songs from Glee have become a pretty big part of my listening habit so I made a special 2010 Top 10 for Glee. It’s a bitch to make all those caps when they are always moving so fast T_T

#10 Glee Cast – Toxic

This song is special alone for the sung intro which I always sing along. Having Shue sing with the kids again was also very nice. And yay, Britney and stuff.

#9 Dianna Agron – It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World

I just love all the emotion Dianna brings into this song. And it’s simply something different for her after the pop songs she sang in the show. She needs more solos. Even though the duets with the guys are nice, too.

#8 Matthew Morrison – One Less Bell To Answer / A House is Not A Home (feat. Kristin Chenoweth)

I loved Kristin’s guest appearance because I already loved it when she sang in Pushing Daisies and this is definitely my favorite song with her (except for Last Name but that was 2009). And I keep singing along even though them singing it as an overlapping duet makes it impossible to sing it right.

#7 Darren Criss – Teenage Dream

First impressions are important and it’s a very good impression when you take a Katy Perry song and make it 300% better. Who couldn’t love the Warblers after this song?

#6 Glee Cast – Like A Virgin

All those great voices, isn’t it just perfect? And it was the first time Naya Rivera’s voice really stood out to me in a good way. A really good way. Oh and yes, not just her voice is wow ❤

#5 Glee Cast – Telephone

I don’t know exactly why but something about Charice’s voice made me listen to this song over and over again. Way more than to the original. I wasn’t even interested in the Gaga song but Glee just makes (almost) everything better. And yeah, where is Sunshine?!

#4 Jayma Mays – Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me

Jayma’s voice goes places I thought only Japanese school girls could go. How can she sound so innocent and so dirty at the same time? Great song and she needs way more songs. One song per season just doesn’t cut it.

#3 Lea Michele – Total Eclipse of the Heart

Oh, Top 3! I really don’t know why I love this song so much but Lea just puts sooo much emotion into it. I don’t know. And the scene itself is just beautiful and sad and… ❤

#2 Naya Rivera – Valerie

Oh, Naya! Her voice just got so much better and this song is perfect for her! And even though it’s about the songs let’s not forget the epic dancing of Heather Morris and Harry Shum Jr. But yeah, Naya is enough reason for this song to be my Top 2!

#1 Glee Cast – Damn It, Janet

Let’s be honest. The song itself is full of win but what those two did with it was also great. Especially Lea. How can someone sing just so surprised sounding? And I have to admit, I couldn’t once skip this track when it came on. Not once. [Yay, Rocky Horror Glee Show twice!]

So, that was the little side trip with glee. Next are my favorite albums.
Everythings ready, I just have to write it down.

2010: Album Tracks

Here are my favorite album tracks of 2010. Because sometimes the single just isn’t the best. But still, you will find artists here that appear often in my lists…

#10 Christophe Maé – Je me lâche

I listened to this album because I really liked the single Dingue, Dingue, Dingue and somehow my sister listened to Je me lâche and made me play it over and over again. And it is a really good song. She’s been right to make me listen to it so many times.

#9 3OH!3 – House Party

It was a close run between See You Go and House Party but I thought that See You Go would be too similar to Double Vision which already charted here and so I let you all know that I not only like the poppy songs from 3OH!3. House Party is awesome.

#8 MiChi – Jump On It

Since LOVE is. is treated like an e.p. Jump On It gets #8 because it is awesome but not as awesome as other songs. The repetitivness brings it down a little but hey, it still charted ❤

#7 Katy Perry – Peacock

I listened to this album and BAM! I put Peacock on repeat instantly. It is so much fun and you can always wonder if the song is really that obvious or if there is some deeper meaning behind it. Oh, and Katy’s voice is bearable.

#6 JASMINE – L.I.P.S.

After listening to it when it appeared as a b-side I didn’t really give it another listen but after liking THIS IS NOT A GAME so much and listening to everything from her again I got hooked on L.I.P.S. even though the lyrics (I understand) seem to be a bit… well “Should I shake my hips?”.

#5 Achtung – Take Me Higher

I guess no one of you has ever heard of these guys but they are a really good korean band and they make I would say really good acoustic rock or something. I listened to them because I found it funny that they use the German word for “attention” as band name. And yeah, Take Me Higher is pretty good. Check them out.

#4 2NE1 – Can’t Nobody

Man, I so couldn’t decide which song to pick. This album has some really good songs on it and they all have something to offer. But in the end I went with the one with the highest play count and that was Can’t Nobody. But all the songs would’ve deserved it.

#3 ONE OK ROCK – Wherever you are

I didn’t think of this song for a long time but some days ago I listened to it again and it is just too good, too powerful and too emotional to not be on my list of great album tracks. I get goose bumps everytime. And we just have to overhear all those “whelever” and “plomise”. I’m sorry.

#2 Tokyo Jihen – Sweet Spot

What can I say? Pure Shiina Ringo awesomeness, but Tokyo Jihen. This song is so beautiful and so erotic and yeah, I pity my sister because she can’t stand Shiina Ringo’s voice so she’ll never know how great this song is.

#1 BENNIE BECCA – Ashita (with Blaise Plant (Monkey Majik))

It was really hard deciding which song was better but I love this combination of English and Japanese and Becca’s Japanese is so cute and all their voices just work so well together. And I was able to understand almost the whole chorus by myself. Yes, before they sang it in English later. Need more BENNIE BECCA!

Those are my top album tracks of 2010. Next my favorite Glee songs of 2010 and then finally: Albums!

2010: Singles (A-Sides)

So, I pushed my review of the music from last year a bit back because I’m not really finished listening to everything. But now it’s february and I think it’s time. If I listen to something special from 2010 that wasn’t included here but should have been I will just blog about it the normal way.

But what were my Top10 a-sides of 2010 (as far as I know). I won’t break it down into language/country/genre etc. because I didn’t manage to listen to as much as I wanted. So I’m just gonna start:

#10 Selena Gomez & the Scene – Naturally

I didn’t really want to like this song but whenever I accidentally heard it while it was playing on TV it just got so stuck in my head that I had to give in and just ❤ it. I listened to the rest of the album and it’s quite good but nothing compares to Naturally.

#9 °C-ute – Dance de Bakoon!

I wasn’t sure which one to pick. Dance de Bakoon! or Otakebi Boy WAO! from Berryz Koubou. But because of Risako’s voice that I just cannot stand and the fact that Maasa once again has been screwed when you look at the amount of solo lines she gets I went with Dance de Bakoon! because it is a freaky, cool song and just as fun but with more bearable voices.

#8 Ayaka Hirahara – Keropak

Man, what a surprising song from Ayaka Hirahara, didn’t you think so?! And this is one of the songs that I put on my “makes me happy – instantly” list. It can be cold outside and I know I have to work with shitty weather for another 3 hours but then I listen to Keropak and I start smiling and almost dancing. It’s more of a skipping to the beat. But yeah, she should definitely do songs like this more often.

#7 3OH!3 – Double Vision

When I first listened to the album it was a rather mediocre listen and the only song that stuck with me was I’m Not The One because it was slow and something different. But over time I started really liking the whole album and it was a close run between Double Vision, See You Go and House Party but yeah, Double Vision takes the cake.

#6 ORESKABAND – Jitensha

2009 I started being interested in ska as it was something I never really heard of. And then I started liking it and so was 2010 the year when I tried listening to more ska. And you know, ORESKABAND already have the ska in their band name, who else should I have listened to? And Jitensha might just be the song with one of the most simple choruses but that’s what makes it just so much fun!

#5 AKB48 – Beginner

Japan’s #1 is my #5 but that doesn’t mean I don’t love it. I really do but I guess there are parts of me that do so because of the banned original PV and some do because there were actually some lines (more than one!) in the song that I could translate without any help. But still, this song rocks and it’s exactly what AKB48 should keep releasing. Except for when’s graduation season. I know you need your Sakura Song.

#4 Wonder Girls – 2 Different Tears

I never really undestood the whole craze about Nobody and this single too, I listened some weeks or even months after the release but it just hit me out of nowhere. It’s such and earworm and the english lyrics just add to that. I loved it. I had it on repeat for a whole night and never got tired of it.

#3 Patrick Stump – Spotlight (New Regrets)

If you have read this blog for a while (which I doubt) you might have read somewhere that I’m a Fall Out Boy fan. Well, Patrick’s going solo so of course I follow him. His voice is probably the main thing I love in Fall Out Boy but he doesn’t need his voice to convince me that he can make it on his own. This song is proof enough. If the whole album is going to be like this I am more than pleased. But, oh mother of god, that voice ❤

#2 Miss A – Breathe

I heard that on their first single there’s a song that’s even better. But I haven’t listened to it yet. I’m really interested but Breathe is enough for me at the moment. Not just is the MV one of my favorites from last year but also the dance and everything. Damn, this thing is cute. Whenever I didn’t know what to listen to I listned to Breathe. Because I knew I would listen to it for a while. One listen is just not enough when the song is only a little over 3 minutes long. Damn you KPop hooks!

#1 JASMINE – THIS IS NOT A GAME

All caps for my #1! This is a song that made me listen to the whole discography of an artist immediately. Again. I already followed her since her first single but THIS IS NOT A GAME made me realize that I probably didn’t give her a fair chance and after that every single just got better. Well, not better than this lovely song but definitely almost on the same level. And I guess you will find ONE on this list when I do it next year. Keep rocking JASMINE! Finally some kind of R’n’B that I can listen to without getting bored.

Well, here you have it. My Top10 for 2010 when it comes to a-sides. Next is album tracks and after that Glee. Because, I love Glee, you know. And then top albums. Oh, and no b-sides because I haven’t heard anything good really.