Tracklist
1. Rocket Sneaker
2. One x Time
3. Sora to Kujira
4. Rocket Sneaker -Instrumental-
5. One x Time -Instrumental-

Rocket Sneaker / One x Time is Ai Otsuka’s 17th single. It was released on May 21, 2008 and peaked at #2 on the daily charts but fell to #4 for the weekly charts. So far, it has sold around 40,000 copies.

Rocket Sneaker is a nice up-tempo track. I really like the arrangement, especially with the piano as the forefront, not to mention the great piano runs everywhere. The verses are well done, the second half with the rising notes can be pretty catchy. I do like the chorus, though. It’s upbeat and energetic without having a childish feeling. Vocally, it good, but she’s done way better.

The other a-side also focuses a lot on the piano, as well as strings, in the arrangement. I enjoy One x Time’s mellow and laid back feeling, especially with the barely-there, HEART-esque vocals. The chorus is really nice and I do think it fits into the summery type of song, though not overtly. Rather, it’s more of that relaxed summer.

Sora to Kujira is a nice acoustic piece. It’s pretty different from the rest of her works, because of the consistency of the arrangement throughout the song. I really enjoyed this one, especially because of the chorus. It’s simple but very pretty, as well as the nice vocals from Ai.

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Tracklist
1. Pocket
2. Ticket
3. LIFE- LOVE CiRCLE
4. Pocket -Instrumental-
5. Ticket - Instrumental-

Pocket is Ai Otsuka’s 16th single. It was released on November 7, 2007, though she first performed it at her Love is Born 3rd Anniversary Concert. It peaked at #5 on the weekly charts and has currently sold over 47,000 copies.

I actually didn’t like Pocket very much the first time I listened to it, but as I heard a few more times, I came to really appreciate it. It starts with a soft piano melody and the vocals are very soft at first. After that, it slowly builds up and adds in more elements, becoming very full. I’m not sure if I like her vocals very much in this piece, but they are very heartfelt and emotional. It’s another quality ballad from Ai.

The intro to Ticket is just great; there are a lot elements and it all blends together really nicely. I especially like the mix of the syncopated rhythms with the strings in the arrangement. The chorus melody is especially nice; happy and upbeat, it’s rather catchy. Ticket is just a fun little song to bounce your head to.

LIFE - LOVE CiRCLE is sort of strange. I don’t particularly enjoy the melodies or even the vocals. The whole songs feel kind of silly, repetitive, and generally a bit annoying. It’s like it’s on the brink of being a crazy song, but it’s not even a good crazy song.

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Tracklist
1. Mirai Taxi
2. Yumekui
3. Mackerel’s canned food
4. PEACH
5. Kumuri Uta
6. Hoshi no Tango
7. Katori Senkou
8. Frienger
9. CHU-LIP
10. HEART
11. Renai Shashin

LOVE PiECE is Ai Otsuka’s fourth studio album. It was released September 26, 2007 and reached #1 on the weekly charts. So far it has sold almost 275,000 copies. The packaging was excellent. The first press CD-only version came with a photobook and a special colored case, picked randomly of six colors (pink, blue, green, black, yellow and purple). The first press CD+DVD version came with a special PV of a previous song U-Boat; it also came with the special colored case.

I really like the first new track, Mirai Taxi. The intro sets up the fun energetic song very well. The rhythm in the verse is pretty interesting and the chorus is fun and cute. I really like the arrangement - a lot of electronica pop tinged with rock. It’s a great way to open the album with this catchy song.

I’ve always liked Yumekui ever since I first heard it in Tokyo Friends. The arrangement is very good and Ai’s vocals are top notch. My favorite part of the song is definitely the chorus because of its catchy, optimistic tune.

The next song is also from Tokyo Friends. I was kind of confused as to why this was on the album instead of on the Tokyo Friend Music Collection, though. It’s a cute little song with a simple melody. It’s nothing too special, but it is quite charming. The chorus is especially nice, very cute and happy.

Next is PEACH, one of my favorite Ai pop songs. It showed a more mature side of Ai, being happy and upbeat, but not going over the top. Fun and happy, it exemplifies the spirit of summer.

Kumuriuta is the new ballad. It starts off with only an acoustic guitar, but later weaves in more elements including piano and flute. The verses are quite nice and Ai’s vocals are great, but the chorus is the best part. It felt more powerful and the high notes sound awesome.

Hoshi no Tango is pretty interesting. While I wouldn’t call it a tango exactly, the song does have a Latin dance vibe to it. It makes for an interesting arrangement at least. I really like the chorus, especially because of the rhythm.

Every Ai Otsuka album has an over-the-top song and this album’s is Katori Senko. It’s super fast and Ai’s vocals are a bit distorted. It’s full of energy and so fun to listen to and sing along. If you’ve never liked her crazy songs, you probably won’t like this one-but it’s a good one.

Frienger is so old, but not bad. It’s very fun and so cute. I don’t find it very special and it doesn’t jump out to me very much. I do like the repetition in it, though, and it is really really cute.

CHU-LIP is another upbeat song. The brass is nice, but besides that it just another upbeat pop song.

HEART has become one of my favorite songs from Ai. The rhythm is great and I love the light and dreamy feeling it gives off.

The album ends with Renai Shashin, a gorgeous ballad. I love this one especially because of its bittersweet melody.

I was a little disappointed at the lack of new songs. Only five? With one of them already previewed in a movie over a year ago? But even so, this album was excellent and the actual packaging was amazing.

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Tracklist
1. PEACH
2. HEART
3. Renai Shashin -Haru-
4. PEACH -Instrumental-
5. HEART -Instrumental-

PEACH / HEART is Ai’s 15th single and her second double A-side single. The first A-side, PEACH, was the ending theme song to the Japanese dorama adaptation of the popular manga, Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (or just HanaKimi). It peaked at #1 on the daily and weekly charts and has currently sold about 70,000 copies.

PEACH is a fun summer-themed song. I liked this much more than her previous upbeat single, CHU-LIP. Both the verse and chorus melody is fun and fairly catchy. The chorus is much more catchy, though, especially with “Peach!” and the clapping. I don’t really like the bridge; it doesn’t fit with the rest of the song. It’s a hyper pop song that doesn’t go overboard, and it actually works.

HEART is the more laid back A-side that uses a few mellowed out rock elements and some strings. It has a bit of a dreamy feeling. I rather like the chorus; even though it is more laid back than PEACH, it still has a relatively quick tempo.

Renai Shashin -Haru- is a rearrangement of her 13th single. It focuses more on piano and strings. The bridge is replaced with a new version, better than the last. Although I like this new version, I still prefer the original mix because of the fuller arrangement.

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CHU-LIP
Tracklist
1. CHU-LIP
2. Kimi ni Kaeru.
3. CHU-LIP -Instrumental-
4. Kimi ni Kaeru. -Instrumental-

CHU-LIP is Ai’s 14th single. It was released on February 21, 2007 and peaked at #2 on the Oricon daily charts, but fell to #3 for the weekly rankings. It has currently sold over 120,000 copies.

CHU-LIP is another one of Ai’s hyper pop songs. Unlike her previous releases, it doesn’t go overboard. I like the mix of brass and electric guitar in the arrangement. The chorus is pretty fun, but I can usually only remember the CHU-LIP line and nothing else from it. I find the last repeated stanza kind of annoying, too.

Kimi ni Kaeru. is the slow, mellow piece contrasting CHU-LIP. It’s nothing spectacular, but I like it more than CHU-LIP. The arrangement is rather pretty and the sound effect of snapping is a nice addition. I like the chorus the most, because the tempo picks up a bit and the melody is more memorable.

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Tracklist
1. Renai Shashin
2. Hanikami Jane
3. Hane Ari Tamago (Live version)
4. Renai Shashin (Instrumental)
5. Hanikami Jane (Instrumental)

I’ve read a lot of things about this single. It’s great, it’s awesome, better than Planetarium, my new Ai favorite! I’ve also a lot of it’s boring as hell, plain, the B-side is a lot better, unmemorable, didn’t like it, too repetitive.

Yes, Renai Shashin is boring compared to Kingyo Hanabi and Planetarium. But the verse melody is bittersweet and very lovely to listen to. Ai’s vocal are really soft and ethereal at the very beginning, which makes it feel also magical. However, the chorus doesn’t match up to the verse. The chorus can get repetitive, but you can really feel her feeling. I absolutely love the arrangement, especially the use of strings. I don’t think it measures up to some of her older ballads, but it does stand its own ground.

The B-side Hanikami Jane is a fun, upbeat song. The arrangement is interesting, especially with the snare drum. She plays around with vocals with some kind of whisper-singing. It’s cute song.

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