BAD Mode (BADモード) - Hikaru Utada
pop/ R&B/ house • 2022
9.6
Hikaru Utada and i have a long history. since listening to “Simple and Clean” on my Gameboy Advance’s mono-speaker, i have always found their music, emotion and style captivating. each album they release have their own distinct era and feel. in their own certain way, each album is a favorite of mine. Utada’s music has followed me through adolescence, through the painful advent of adulthood, through my worst and through my best. with that said, i am inclined to remark, that “Bad Mode” is perhaps Utada’s best album to date.
with production help of some notable names like Nariaki Obukuro and A.G. Cook, i find the inclusion of Floating Points particularly impactful to the feel of the album. while most of Utada’s work up till now has been more full on j-pop, their sound has matured over the years. Floating Points’ production gives the album the right amount of precision and finely-tuned decisive power that complements Utada’s more complex and opaque feelings. feelings they sometimes arent quite sure of the meaning, and feelings that are sometimes incredibly profound. there is a push and and pull, an ebb and flow to Utada’s discoveries as a person. Utada’s last album “Hatsukoi” was a distinct step into full fledged adulthood, true adulthood, adulthood found only through typical and extreme strife in the 30s and 40s. Utada covers complex topics like becoming a mother and losing a mother, and what it means to come into yourself at that point in life. an adult growing pain. the kind you are never too old to experience, and a kind that will happen again and again. “Bad Mode” feels like the result of coming out the other side of this growing pain. it harbors a more mature, deeply connected, powerful and introspective sound. Utada finds meaning in the subtle shades of their life and their relationships. where in “Hatsukoi” they found struggle and discomfort in coming to age, here Utada sprints with it. while the subject matter is more nebulous (but discerning), the production is pinpoint accurate. a duality that encompass the album in its entirety.
being a human being is no more or less complex the older we grow. as our understanding and grasp of the world around us solidifies and deepens, so do our problems. the more capable we become, the more capable we are of handling our more complex issues. at my age in the late twenties and early thirties do i really begin to understand this album’s thesis. Utada’s journey in life delivers an impressive array of self-awareness and prescience through this album. honesty about who we are, honesty about what we require from others, a constant push to better ones mental and physical health, finding love in simultaneously limited and free expressions, losing someone close to death, how raising a child is an ever-present juggling act with personal growth, and ongoing etc. Utada pushes the envelope in discussing what we expect from ourselves, how we deal with these things.
my favorite example lies in the first track “Bad Mode.” a song that tackles how we cannot always be at our best, that we, as people, feel all sorts of burnout, loneliness, emotional numbness and lack of direction in life, despite our personal connections. that it is valid feel this way. a truer form of love comes from those who choose to love us in even our most challenged states. in our “bad mode.” that we choose to love ourselves even when in our very own “bad mode”. this feels like a truly matured and powerful take to finding love in ourself, when giving love to others or when receiving it from others. meanwhile, “Somewhere Near Marseilles” slips into a sexually free and emotionally closed retreat between two people. just because we cant fully open ourselves up, doesnt mean we dont crave the touch and attention of another person. the act is perfectly acceptable in our pursuit to understand who we are. the song says, maybe, for now, its easier like this. “Bad Mode” (the album) jumps into the murky deep end of adulthood and its emotions, and it seems to thrive there.
the production is some of the most interesting and pleasing ive heard from any album ever. Floating Points has a history of tightly wound, entrancing house music. just check out his most recent album “Cascade” which is a powerful example of meaningful sound construction. Floating Points weaves precisely executed collections of noise and beat into something emotionally strong and engaging. “Somewhere Near Marseilles” alone has got to be one of the most rich, deep, and profound songs i have listened to in years. even when reviewing this album four full years after its release, i consistently come back to this track. a deep bass beats powerfully beneath Utada singing “lets go fast, lets go slow,” “not too far, not too close” in vulnerable lofty repetition. a song that clocks in at an astounding 11 minutes and 54 seconds, feels more concise and brief than some of the most laboring 4 minute tracks i know. the song is both sparse, repeating in a short handful of lyrics, and fully realized in its identity. like the album in totality, its tracks pair tender emotion with surefire sound. an absolute, and killer, display of both the artist’s maturity and the producer’s abilities in the medium.
a few other important mentions i think better illustrate the album is not just impressive but truly unique in design. “Time” blends R&B and electronica, then suddenly drops out midway into a mind-blowing hip-hop switch up. frankly, i think its an iconic act. “Bad Mode” (the song) is a modern contemporary track that utilizes such a beautiful array of instruments that each listen yields more and more to discover. “One Last Kiss” is played through a wide range of electronic sounds that echo off slowly. the song speeds up and drops off intermittently, all while feeling a bit frantic. by the end, with a rainbow of sound, the song finally drifts off, leaving a feeling of finality and uncertainty. “Darenimo Iwanai” succinctly illustrates why this album’s exotic sound is so singular. i don’t think ive ever heard such a wonderful use of saxophone, especially in companion to the ambient soundspace, rainsticks, and some bizarre theremin-like sound. songs like these properly identify just why Hikaru Utada’s sound is so unique to themself. if there is anyone out there making music like Utada today, i have yet to find them. it truly is gorgeous work.
i dont find every song listed to reach such great heights as the rest. in fact, i find there is such a difference in quality that the worse songs stand out all the more poorly in comparison. “Face My Fears” was fascinatingly made in help with Skrillex. yet i think it comes off as the Kingdom Hearts song that had no fitting home so had to be put somewhere. a strong and daring song, relegated to be an afterthought in a much stronger and more daring album. “PINK BLOOD” is a good song, but fails to offer as much its neighboring tracks. the production quality is on par, yet the idea seems to fall through. lastly, ill say “Kimi ni Muchuu” is a particularly beautiful song, however i recommend her 40th birthday re-recording “Rule” released in 2023 in replacement. the song is elevated by more natural instrumentation leading to a more jazz adjacent sound. in that version, the song shines as strong as all the others here.
“Bad Mode” (the album) is one of the most unique and refreshing sounds ive heard. a powerful current of emotional realizations in tandem with pristine sound production have set the album far above many others for me. its with the addition of how seeing how far this particular artist has come in their life that adds something truly special to the overall product. i dont beleive there is any other japanese/ american raised artist like Utada, who is so greatly steeped in two different worlds. their sound is grown from a diverse background, leading to choices like using both japanese and american producers for their work. a decision that speaks very particularly to my own music taste.
this is a favorite album of all time for me. this is an album that guides us to be more introspective, emotionally intelligent, intelligently diverse and to live our lives more meaningfully. i believe, this an album that is unique in its creation, intention, design and its message.
“Bad Mode,” the song, ends with a revelation, and with a euphoria of trumpets, “you know I'm bad at explaining but lately I've done some maturing. won't you lean on me, when you need something to lean on.” a feeling like something important has finally cracked through the hard surface, ready for more room to grow. it takes a profound trust in yourself to know that these problems have happened before, they will happen again, and when they do, you will keep getting back up.
“Bad Mode,” the album, comes along once in a decade, and will be listened to for a lifetime.
written by Marcus Landeros
- highlights -
Bad Mode (BADモード)
One Last Kiss
Time
Darenimo Iwanai (誰にも言わない)
Somewhere Near Marseilles -マルセイユ辺り-
track list:
BAD Mode (BADモード)
Kimi ni Muchuu (君に夢中)
One Last Kiss
PINK BLOOD
Time
Not In The Mood (気分じゃないの)
Somewhere Near Marseilles - Marseilles - (Somewhere Near Marseilles －マルセイユ辺り－)
Find Love
Face My Fears (Japanese Version)
Hotel Lobby
Kirei na Hito (キレイな人)
Beautiful World (Da Capo Version)
Face My Fears (English Version)
Somewhere Near Marseilles (Sci-Fi Edit)
BAD Mode (English Version)
