Jasmine – Complexxx (a J!-ENT World Groove Album Review)

1. High Flying
2. Best Partner
3. Addicition
4. Touch me on the Beach
5. B*TCH*S
6. I Hate You
7. Weekend High
8. ONLY YOU
9. Realize
10. ONE
11. HERO
12. I’ll be there

Back in 2009, R&B artist JASMINE was once called “the next Hikaru Utada”.

Having had success with her debut single “Sad to Say” (which was certified platinum for “full-length cellphone downloads” and repeated similar success with her second single “No More”.

In August 2013, JASMINE released her second full-length album “Complexxx” featuring her sixth through ninth singles which include “One”, “Only You”, “Best Partner”, “High Flying” and “Hero”.

There were two versions of “Complexxx” available. One with a DVD featuring the music videos for her five singles and the other version which is a normal version without a DVD.

The version I will be reviewing is the normal version of “Complexxx”.

The CD-insert is a seven-fold with photos of JASMINE on one side and production credits inside.  Included is a lyrics booklet and a promotional for JASMINE Monthly Live at Shibuya Womb and fan club news.

The single kicks off with her ninth single titled “High Flying” which she wrote and also composed the music (with KO-KI) and features a collaboration with UTA of TinyVoice Production.  An upbeat, catchy, addictive tracks with the slamming percussion and synth beats. Featuring solid vocals and arrangement, a solid single!

The second track on the album is her eighth single “Best Partner” which features lyrics written by JASMINE.   An upbeat pop track with catchy percussion, synth strings and a track that showcased JASMINE’s vocals with a more accessible pop style and definitely one of my favorite singles from her.

The third track on the album is “Addiction” featuring lyrics and music by JASMINE and Jeff Miyahara.  A quick upbeat pop track with punchy percussion and cool arrangement and had a touch of synth that is reminiscent of Amuro Namie’s “Hide & Seek”.

The fourth track is “Touch me on the Beach” written by JASMINE and is an upbeat summer track with cool dance beats.

The fifth track is titled “B*TCH*S” and features lyrics written by JASMINE and music written by JASMINE, Jeff Miyahara, Harambasic, Jenssen, Svendsen, Wik.  A track with a more experimental style with the synth and beats and comes off as a western style that sounds more Katy Perry-like, but it works on the album.

The sixth track is titled “I Hate You” and is a song written by Jasmine and features an experimental sound created by JASMINE and UTA.  A mid-tempo smooth song with quick upbeat transitions.

The seventh track is titled “Weekend High” written by JASMINE and features music by Jasmine and Tomokazu Matsuzawa and is a Friday night party song.  And it’s a song that also has a Katy Perry-vibe but it’s a fun upbeat track.

The eighth track on the album is JASMINE’s seventh single “Only You” and is written by Jasmine and features music by JASMINE and T.SK.  A smooth, upbeat ballad.

The ninth track on the album is “Realize” and is written by JASMINE and Miss art and is vocally sung well, but felt the arrangement was OK.  It just didn’t catch my attention all that much.

The tenth track on the album is “One”, JASMINE’s sixth single produced by Norwegian record producing and songwriting team Stargate (best known for producing and co-writing Ne-Yo’s “So Sick” and Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable”).  A pretty catch track and wished more tracks on the album were produced by Stargate.  It’s a pretty cool track overall!

The eleventh track “HERO” features a collaboration with Taku Takahashi of m-flo, who produced the single and features music by Taku and Minami of CREAM.  The inspirational track is about looking at one as a hero, believing in them and not losing hope in them.  The single is well-performed, upbeat and musically well-arranged.

The final twelfth track on the album is “I’ll be there” featuring lyrics by JASMINE and H.U.B. and is produced by Bachlogic.  It’s a mid-tempo ballad that features Jasmine’s awesome vocals and a pretty solid track overall.
Overall, JASMINE’s “Complexxx” is a cool sophomore album with a good mix of R&B and pop tracks.   Her single tracks are awesome and you have good upbeat tracks such as “Addiction” and then you have tracks that sound very Katy Perry-ish.  And while diverse musically, I feel that with as much talent that she has, there should be a good push for more collaborations.  This album was good for having JASMINE with Taku and Stargate but would love to see her teamed up with DJ’s, hip hop artists and even incorporating some Shibuya-kei ala Readymade and Cornelius or even bringing some experimentation that balances and compliments her vocals, not take away from it.

“Complexxx” is a good album from JASMINE, though a little bit inconsistent.  There is no need to take JASMINE to a Kana Nishino, Katy Perry or even Amuro-ish type of style.  JASMINE is an artist full of talent that could scope out her own style without needing to sound like anyone else.  But listening to this album, I felt there were too many hands stirring the pot of where to take her music and what direction.   It’s not bad to have a bit of musical diversity but if you’re going to do it, do it right.  It feels there was consistency with her singles but then with her non-single tracks, it was a bit more experimental to see Jasmine try out various styles.

And last, I don’t like to see the promotional effort of JASMINE slow down like it has.   She has way too much talent and potential and really needs a push by the label.  I would like to see more drama or even anime theme song collaborations in order to help get her name and music out there and her label has been very good at establishing that for many of their artists and bands.

Overall, “Complexxx” is a good second album for JASMINE, but I feel that it could be even better.

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