It has been leaked as expected by like, everyone. So me being impatient (I just can't wait one more week for my copy to arrive before listening to it), I've downloaded it and listened to all of it.

I'm not going to review the songs released before (as usual) and I'm not going to talk about the introduction. I'll wait till that introduction becomes a FULL song (as they always do) in the next album before I'll review it. There isn't much to talk about in that song anyways.

This leaves me with slightly less songs than I'd expected (only 8). Amai Wana, Himitsu, Under, Koi no Mahou, Anata ga Shite Kureta Koto, Wonderland, MORE and Black Cherry.

Now before you tell me how wrong I am, and that the better songs are X-SONG, Y-SONG and Z-SONG (hahaha, Ze song!), do note I am speaking from a J-POP fan. POP POP POP, not rock, not rock pop or whatever it is, but POP. So brace yourself.

[The good]

The best new track on the album for me would definitely be Wonderland. Light skippy music coupled with catchy vocals makes this song fun and none too serious a listen. Koda Kumi sounds at ease in this track, which definitely adds to the overall fluffy mood of the song. With some heavier-mood instruments such as piano and strings, the song is made much less grand by means of electric cutesy-sounding notes here and there. What you get is a playful-sounding track that will brighten up your day, for those few minutes at least. This song is not too suitable for constant listening though, as I can see how this could easily get tired.

Koi no Mahou sounds like it came from the exact songwriter/producer as Wonderland. The music is the exact same style as Wonderland (down to the instruments and cutesy sounds), with a slightly different feel and tune. A slightly slower rhythm this time around, it comes off as being less childish and sparkly like Wonderland, but still retains much playfulness in itself to be happy-sounding. This is definitely a longer-lasting listen as compared to Wonderland.

[The soso]

Amai wana meddles with some sort of Arabian feel which EVERYONE seems to be doing nowadays (AAA's MIRAGE & NEWS's Taiyou no Namida). At least she does it well and accomplishes a track that can be translated into a sexy dance very easily. She shows off her vocals at the bridge, which was a nice contrast to the whole gaspy thing she has going on for the whole song. The Arabian influences fade slightly at the middle, only to pick up again near the end of the song, so it didn't completely fade into the background. That's already way better than some of the Arabian songs recently (AAAHEM).

MORE is more (pathetic pun not intended) of a lounge/jazz song, which is a much-needed break from all the thumping music this album seems to be delivering. The harmonies are good and Kuu's vocals are impressive. The song however, is slightly on the boring side. The melody is draggy and sleep-inducing, which means it would be a good song for sleeping or relaxing right? Wrong. The backup-vocals/chorus pompously sing their lines (of "More.. more... more.... Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooh"), which would shock you awake. An interesting listen, but not necessarily a good one.

Anata ge Shite Kureta Koto is trying to be some sort of Latin-influenced song I'm quite sure (guitars sound like it at least), but loses its magic under massive layers of thumpy music and electronic noises. It definitely could have been a much better song, but unfortunately lost its direction way too early in the song to make much impact. A waste too, considering Kuu's vocals and the guitar were decent in this one.

Himitsu sounds like a James Blunt song for a full 8 seconds! And then the thumping comes in AGAIN. It has rather catchy tune which is just laid-back enough, but the thumping spoils it all. I can't get past the thumping to hear anything else, so that's really all I have to say for this song. Sad.

[The BAD]

Under. That one with the horrific PV. It starts off with siren/DJ-ish noises which adamantly sticks throughout the whole song. Her singing is whispery and trying-to-be-sexy-ish, which is just really old for me. The song is flat and slightly too slow for dancing too, so I really don't know what she's going to do with this song in the future. Perhaps writhe around hornily on stage? The lyrics seem to repeat on a hypnotic level, which I'm just sure is Avex's way of trying to get us to fall blindly in love with Kuu. Not working.

When I first heard Black Cherry, my thoughts were along the lines of "URGH" or "ho-hum". But after to listening to the whole album as a whole, this turned out to be not TOO bad. It has a mixture of various genres which she covered in this album, but is otherwise a rather meaningless song. The ending was kind of weird too ("I want something something you want *moans*") with the beat suddenly picking up as if she was entering a new song. The vocals were lazy and uninspiring too. You might like it if you're into the whole sexy-humping thing at clubs, but otherwise, I'd say you would want to pass this up.

Overall, the tracks by itself are rather mediocre, but as a whole it's a rather strong combination. With sure-winner tracks like Ai no Uta and BUT as well on the album, this album is worth getting. If you hate thumpy music, this album isn't for you. Then again, if you hate thumpy music, you wouldn't be much of a Kuu fan. Unless you're phenomenally confused, just like me, in which case I can only say good luck.