I Loved Yesterday (ALBUM+DVD)(Special Edition)(Hong Kong Version) DVD Region 3

With all the tracks written by YUI herself, I Loved Yesterday is a guitar-driven album that falls in between two styles - rock ballads and light rock-pop. The rock-pop genre gets a nice start with the bright Laugh Away (Track 1). Featuring a memorable hook in the chorus that tells its listener to always laugh (hence Laugh Away), the inspired lyrics and the energetic composition makes this a prime candidate for a popular summer pop hit. In fact, the album then segues into last year's summer pop hit, the engaging rock song My Generation (Track 2). With its youth-oriented lyrics and a brisk electronic guitar arrangement, the song surprisingly works best with a young voice such as YUI's, even though her vocal is clearly not powerful enough to match the chorus. Meanwhile, tracks such as Daydreamer (Track 6), We Will Go (Track 9), and OH YEAH (Track 10) are American-style pop-rock tracks that fill in nicely as side tracks.

The rock ballads, while not a large part of the album, end up being the more memorable tracks of the album. The melancholic Namidairo (Track 5) has a composition and arrangement that are typical of a YUI ballad (the 2006 hit Good-bye Days being one of them), but her vocal here clearly matches this genre better than the other tracks on the album, making it a winner. A little closer to power ballad, but equally effective is Love and Truth (Track 12), the theme song for the romance film Closed Note. While the song itself doesn't match the tone of the film, the track sports a memorable melody, allowing YUI's vocal to stretch effectively. However, the arrangement is sometimes too melodramatic for its own good, with a distracting presence of electronic guitar throughout.

Several tracks in I Loved Yesterday also fall in between rock ballad and rock-pop. The best among them is Love is All (Track 7), which features a spirited vocal performance by YUI and a bittersweet composition to make a touching track that never loses its energy. Other rock-pop-ballads don't fare as well - I will love you (track 8) is a sweet rock ballad with a light tempo and fitting vocal, but is ultimately too light to stand out. My Friend (Track 11), the only song on the album to feature the piano, echoes Love Psychedelico a bit too much to stand out as more than a side track.

I Loved Yesterday's biggest mistake may be its release date. Early spring is a prime season for the Japanese music market, but the tone of the album is a perfect fit for the summer. With dynamic energy and vibrant vocals, I Loved Yesterday will surely be a popular album through the summer. While YUI's music style of choice may not be the best fit for her young voice, she serves as an effective bridging gap between commercial youth-oriented pop and loud power rock. Even though her voice is closer to Ai Otsuka than Shiina Ringo, YUI has worked out surprisingly well as a rock artist. After all, "girls who rock" is a popular trend in Japanese music in recent years, and this girl definitely rocks.

Recommended Tracks: Laugh Away (Track 1), My Generation (Track 2), Namidairo (Track 5), Love is All (Track 7), Love & Truth (Track 12)

by Kevin Ma