It took BoA a few singles before she hit it big with LISTEN TO MY HEART. The title track of the album is definitely the song that catapulted her into stardom and allowed her debut album to skyrocket to the top of the charts and sell close to one million copies. There were actually four singles released prior to the album, one released the same day, and another released after.
Released: March 13, 2002
1. LISTEN TO MY HEART [MV]
2. POWER
3. Every Heart -Minna no Kimochi- (-ミンナノキモチ-) [MV]
4. don’t start now
5. Kimochi wa Tsutawaru (気持ちはつたわる; Feelings Deep Inside) [MV]
6. share your heart (with me)
7. Dreams come true
8. Amazing Kiss [MV]
9. happiness
10. ID; Peace B [MV]
11. Nobody but you
12. Nothing’s gonna change
13. LISTEN TO MY HEART (Hex Hector Main Mix: English version)
14. the meaning of peace
The title track makes an explosive start to the album. LISTEN TO MY HEART (#5 / 180,000) is definitely one of BoA’s strongest songs, if not the strongest on this album. It’s a funky dance/pop tune that pretty much encapsulates the singer’s sound and style. The whole song is so well executed and it sounds so polished. I love the attitude that the song has and BoA’s vocals are powerful enough to not get drowned by the many synths and strong beat. It’s definitely one of the songs that gets stuck in your head and it’s no surprise this song was her breakthrough hit.
POWER pretty much continues the dance/pop sound, but this one does have some interesting differences. The music isn’t as fast-paced and the beat is slowed down. Also, it has a very heavy presence of the electric guitar, which makes up the highlight of its arrangement. The song has some K-Pop influences to it, which I think largely stem from its darker sound. I like the song, but it’s definitely not the most polished one. The vocals don’t sound as clean and BoA is belting it out quite a lot during the chorus. I do find the chorus comes and goes so quickly, so it doesn’t make a very lasting impression either. It’s a decent tune, but there it’s not something I would repeat.
Fortunately, Every Heart -Minna no Kimochi- (#10 / 84,000) helps to bring a more well-executed listen. Used as an ending theme to Inuyasha, Every Heart is the first ballad on the album. It is very much pop with a few R&B elements to it. I really enjoy this song because it’s so sweet and charming. Everything is really well-done, from the musical arrangement to the vocals and the melody. I think the inclusion of strings during the chorus really help to give the song a sweeping quality to it that help to enhance the melody. It’s a solid track altogether. Surprisingly, my favourite part is right at the end where BoA does a few adlibs to end the song.
don’t start now (#17 / 21,000) was actually released as a re-cut single after the album’s release. The music is very K-Pop centric. I think it is because the music features a particularly odd synth layered on top of beats and some string-like sounds. I don’t think the song is that bad, but it’s definitely not the strongest. It always seemed like a second thought because while it has some cool parts like the chorus melody, it just never comes off as as polished as some of the other material (largely the work by the Japanese composers). It’s okay, but one of the weaker ones.
Returning to a more polished sound though is Kimochi wa Tsutawaru (#15 / 77,000). I really like this song because it has a stronger R&B influence than some of her other singles. Also, the song features some more distinct qualities to the different parts of it such as the chorus being sung in a more dragged out way compared to the verses. While I do enjoy the song a lot, I do think there are some parts that are a bit odd. I do find some of the synths to be more of a nuisance than in other songs as there are times where it sounds that just added as many as they could here.
Share your heart (with me) slows things down even more with a nice R&B/pop jam. I really enjoy this song and it’s probably one of the stronger album tracks. I think one of the things I like most about it is how BoA sounds. She has a sweeter tone and it compliments the song’s thumping beats and twinkling synths. I do find it interesting because it does seem almost like a precursor to some of BoA’s later R&B-tinged pop tracks.
I used to really love Dreams come true but I haven’t enjoyed it as much in recent years. It’s still a decent song, but it does surprise me a bit because despite being written by Japanese composers it does have some K-Pop qualities. I like the fast-paced feel of the song and it works well with the intensity of the vocal arrangement, but I do feel like there is something missing from the song. It also has a tendency to drag on a bit.
Luckily, Amazing Kiss (#23 / 59,000) is just around the corner. Probably the most cheerful and upbeat song on the album, this song is quite sweet and gives a more bubblegum type of feel. I do find the musical arrangement rather chaotic with its numerous synths and beats, but the melody is quite charming and it easily makes up for it. BoA also sounds in her element here and her voice fits the song quite well. Good song.
happiness starts out in a pretty cool way with its adlibbing before striking strongly with the chorus. I like how this one has some qualities that could be heard from her singles. The verses are especially evident of this as it has parts which sound very similar to Amazing Kiss. I wanna like the chorus a bit more, but I think the song is plagued with the same problem as Dreams come true, which is that it just goes so fast but feels like it is missing something. It’s a decent listen, but doesn’t stand out. It actually blends in to many of the other songs.
ID; Peace B (#20 / 40,000) is a funky listen for sure. Released as BoA’s debut single, it was also her debut song in Korea. I like this one quite a lot. I feel the musical arrangement is quite strong and has quite a full sound to it, which compliments the melody quite well. The melody is quite catchy and BoA really works it here. Her voice sounds stronger and while she does have a sweeter quality to her voice at times, she does sound rather mature at others. It’s something not really found in most of the other songs.
I like the funky beat and synths of Nobody but you, however, I do find this song to just fade in the background. It definitely has a similar feel to many other album tracks on here. I do find some parts quite cool though, such as the ending of the chorus. I do find the melody quite decent, but I feel like the music doesn’t live up to it. I do feel like this is one of the stronger of the album’s dance tracks, but it is just a filler.
Nothing’s gonna change is a nice addition just because we finally get out of the heavily programmed dance/pop music of the last five tracks. The slower pop tune has some R&B elements to it and sounds a bit more from her K-Pop side. It’s a bit boring, but it does have some nice things about it such as the opening chorus line. It’s a total filler, but it’s a nice change after so many dance tunes so it works nicely.
Next is LISTEN TO MY HEART (Hex Hector Main Mix: English version). I’m not a big fan of remixes and this one reinforces that. It basically changes the original into a thumping boring mess. The beat isn’t bad, but it just ends up dull.
To end the album, there is the meaning of peace (#12 / 67,000), which was originally a duet with singer Koda Kumi. I actually enjoy this song quite a lot. I do find the choruses a bit boring and I wish there was a little more excitement to them, but I think it has a nice message behind it and it comes through in the music. I did wish this was the original with Koda Kumi, since I did find that more interesting with the contrast of their vocals. It’s not bad though.
Overall: BoA’s debut Japanese album is a decent listen, but I did feel like there were very few standout album tracks. The singles are certainly the strongest parts of the album and it is quite clear when you hear how polished they seemed compared to the other songs. I did like this album more in the past, but I’ve found now that the album tracks to blend together and not in a good way. It’s a nice cohesiveness found in the album, but a lot of the album tracks sound rushed and messy at times. Fortunately, there are some strong songs such as tracks 1, 3, and 5, that help keep the album afloat.
C+
Kuuki to Hoshi 