Exodus (Hikaru Utada album)

Last updated

In terms of surprises, there's an interesting girl, Utada, who's a pop star in Japan and who released an album late last year called Exodus [Island]. It's really interesting dance and pop music. She could be the first Japanese recording artist to really make it in the West. [20]

Critical reception

Exodus
Utadaexodus.png
Studio album by
Utada
ReleasedSeptember 8, 2004
Genre
Length54:15
Label
Producer
Utada chronology
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1
(2004)		Exodus
(2004)		 Ultra Blue
(2006)
Alternative cover
Utada main.gif
UK album cover
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [21]
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [10]
AnimeFringeStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [22]
MSN Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [23]
Stylus Magazine B [24]
USA Today Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [25]

Exodus received generally favorable reviews from most music critics. AllMusic gave three out of five stars, highlighting the two first tracks from the album and "Exodus 04", stating that Exodus "Delivers a diverse collection of urbane, modern, and, at times, almost avant-garde electronica and dance music", and concluding with "Exodus heralds the American arrival of an unusual and challenging artist." Rob Carolan from Stylus Magazine gave it a positive review, stating "So there you have it. It's not a pop masterpiece but it's a decidedly good record. Few J-Pop artists ever attempt to make such a bold and risky record, but with Exodus, Utada has established herself as an individual who can proudly stand aside from the rest of the identikit J-Pop idols. Hopefully she'll keep on getting better, but even if she falls into the machine, she will always have Exodus, and that's enough." [26] Isaac McCalla from Dancemusic on About.com gave it a positive review, complimenting the album's process, calling some songs "radio-friendly" and then the rest more "chilled-out". He later concluded saying "[...] Utada is definitely an up and comer; she's beautiful, writes good songs with intelligent lyrics, and has a keen electronic sensibility." [27]

Elysa Gardner from USA Today gave it three stars out of four. She said "Utada Hikaru crafts slick, electronically fueled tracks that could, on their surface, pass as background music for nightclubs and loft parties. Luckily, this young singer/songwriter is more than a ghost in her own machine." She compared Utada to an early stage of Madonna saying she is "girlish yearning that transcends her vocal limitations and melts the cool sheen of her arrangements." JPop-Go gave the album a positive review saying "This is Utada's 'Exodus' from overly-polished, commercial pop; her two fingers up at the music industry. Existing fans with more eclectic tastes will be pleasantly surprised, while hardcore J-pop junkies might be disappointed at the changes." [28]

Commercial performance

Exodus is the largest debut selling foreign language album in Japanese history (debut with 523,761 units). It is the 247th best selling album of all time in Japan. [29] On September 8, 2004, Universal Music Japan shipped 1 million copies of the album, breaking a record that was previously held by Mariah Carey (she had sold 500,000). [30] However, the album did not achieve a lot of success in the US, reaching number 160 on the US Billboard 200 chart, and has sold in excess of 55,000 units in the territory according to Nielsen SoundScan. [31] The album did however have success on the US Top Heatseekers albums chart, peaking at number five, making Utada's first album to debut on both charts. [32]

Singles

"Easy Breezy" was released as the first single of the album. This is the first single to debut her name "Utada" which she uses for her English releases. The song received generally positive reviews from music critics,[ citation needed ] however the song did not chart on any singles chart. The song however sold more than 2000 copies in Japan. The second single of the album, "Devil Inside", was released on September 14, 2004, and received generally mixed reviews from music critics. The song was released physically in the United States. No music video was produced. The song remained Utada's biggest hit in the United States, as it peaked at number one on the Hot Dance Club Play chart.

The third single "Exodus '04" received generally positive reviews from music critics,[ citation needed ] and was released in 2005, a late release on the album. No music video was produced for the single. The song received little attention yet again, but did peak at number twenty-four on the Hot Dance Club Play. The fourth and last single, "You Make Me Want to Be a Man", was released as the only UK single. The song received little success as well, but peaked at number 227 on the UK Singles Chart.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Utada, except where noted

Exodus– US and international edition
No.TitleLength
1."Opening"1:50
2."Devil Inside"3:58
3."Exodus '04" (Utada, Timbaland)4:32
4."The Workout"4:01
5."Easy Breezy"4:03
6."Tippy Toe"4:15
7."Hotel Lobby"4:30
8."Animato"4:31
9."Crossover Interlude"1:18
10."Kremlin Dusk"5:14
11."You Make Me Want to Be a Man"4:37
12."Wonder 'Bout"3:48
13."Let Me Give You My Love" (Utada, Timbaland)3:38
14."About Me"4:00
Exodus – UK edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
15."You Make Me Want to Be a Man" (Bloodshy & Avant Mix)4:03
16."You Make Me Want to Be a Man" (Junior Jack Mix)6:44

Personnel

Charts and sales

Release history

CountryDateDistributing label
JapanSeptember 8, 2004 Universal Music Japan
United StatesOctober 5, 2004 Island
Luxembourg October 5, 2004 Universal Music
GermanyOctober 5, 2004
New ZealandOctober 14, 2004
BrazilNovember 17, 2004
United KingdomSeptember 26, 2005 Mercury
WorldwideOctober 5, 2004Universal Music

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References

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