I was not sure what to expect when I heard about the album release. I really liked the past 2 albums and the mini-album "FIVE", and this one is no exception. I was expecting it to be a dance album, and the first few tracks are definitley channeling a dark dance-pop sound. However, the rest of the album is very diverse, ranging from her typical ballad songs to some weird circus/jazz music. I'm not very keen on the music videos for this album, but maybe that's just because they remind me of mainstream western pop videos. My favourite track (and video) from the album is "Return Road".
I like the fact that "Party Queen" is presented like a story and I think it's a good album, but certainly not my favourite from Hamasaki.
It was interesting to see the opera-singer man from "Brillante" and the Power of Music tour appear in this album and in videos. Please check out hildred's review of the album and also a bit more explanation about the influence of Timothy Wellard in Hamasaki's new album : http://hildred.hubpages.com/hub/Ayumi-Hamasaki-Album-Review-Party-Queen .
Overall score: 5/10 Redeeming Factor: "Return Road".
I like the fact that "Party Queen" is presented like a story and I think it's a good album, but certainly not my favourite from Hamasaki.
It was interesting to see the opera-singer man from "Brillante" and the Power of Music tour appear in this album and in videos. Please check out hildred's review of the album and also a bit more explanation about the influence of Timothy Wellard in Hamasaki's new album : http://hildred.hubpages.com/hub/Ayumi-Hamasaki-Album-Review-Party-Queen .
Overall score: 5/10 Redeeming Factor: "Return Road".