Beyond the Sea ~ The Style. Edition

The cover of the CD+DVD edition

READY TO GO! is melody.’s 3rd album and it was released on July 4, 2007. The album reached #6 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and sold 45,185 copies.

♦ ♦ ♦

Finding My Road is a very appropriate opening track because it showcases the electronic dance style of this album. It’s quite an exciting song as well.

with you is a little slower paced but still upbeat. The song has a nice mix of synth and club beats while still maintaining a ‘pop’ sound. This is a good example of what most of the album’s tracks sound like.

The album slows down briefly for the gorgeous ballad Love Story. This is such a pretty song and it has quickly become one of my favorites. I really do think that melody. delievers one of her strongest vocal performances in this song, especially during the chorus and the bridge.

I loved the opening lyrics of the next track, All For Love (So like the four seasons show, you’ll see in the end, it’s all for love). The song quickly picks up in speed and adds some quick strings with fast paced vocals. This song is actually my favorite of the album’s new tracks.

I thought HOPE was interesting because of its use of various electronic sounds and melody.’s flowing vocals. Even though the song is a little bit slower, it still has that dance pop sound to it.

The next track is an awesome cover of Peter Cetera’s 1986 hit Glory of Love. The original was a classic 80s pop/rock ballad and melody. completely changes the music to match the album’s atmosphere. The lyrics are sung at a faster pace while accompanied with dance beats and strings. Even though this cover isn’t faithful to the original in terms of sound, it was still done very well.

READY TO GO!, the song that this album is named after, is in English. The lyrics do have a nice message about free will and satisfaction and once again, the music displays a strong dance sound.

ONE DAY is also in English and it really reminded me of the music from her 1st and 2nd albums because it definitely has more of an R&B feel to it. The clapping beat is very nice and I thought these lyrics were better than the previous track’s.

Lovin’ U continues this trend since it was the first single that melody. released for this album. The music leans more towards light hearted R&B and this song is actually my favorite off the album. The English lyrics of the chorus are so sweet and sincere that it quickly grew on me after multiple listens.

Track 10 opens with some funky strings and then those familar dance beats appears. REAL ME felt kind of average to me, but melody.’s vocals are stronger in this song. The bridge is pretty strange too.

The opening piano chords of ALL I DO are wonderful and I absolutely loved the laid back and gentle atmosphere of this song. Similar to Love Story, it uses mininal instruments and melody.’s vocals are fuller and more emotional. She once again delivers another excellent ballad.

Shine is an extremely upbeat song that features thumping beats and synth here and there. It’s a very cheerful and carefree track with a catchy chorus to top it all off.

The final track, Dangerous, attempts to close the album with a bang. This song is in English but I wasn’t too fond of the lyrics. However, the music is definitely better with its relentless beats and electric synth. Despite the sort of cheesy lyrics, the song ends the album rather well.

READY TO GO! is an incredibly solid album and one of melody.’s better efforts put out. The music of this album is quite different from her previous works because it follows more of a dance club and electronic sound. Her first two albums, Sincerely and Be as one, were pretty much R&B at its poppiest. I now think that READY TO GO! is her best album and an improvement over Be as one (which was overall a good album) and leagues better than Sincerely (which was AWFUL except for maybe two songs). I do recommend this album because it shows melody.’s new sound, but also gives a taste of the music she has done in the past in songs like ONE DAY and Lovin’ U. If you’re looking for enjoyable dance tracks, melody. is the girl for you.

Overall Rating

4 stars

Tracklisting

1. Finding My Road
2. with you
3. Love Story
4. All For Love
5. HOPE
6. Glory of Love
7. READY TO GO!
8. ONE DAY
9. Lovin’ U
10. REAL ME
11. ALL I DO
12. Shine
13. Dangerous

Note: My favorite tracks are highlighted in blue!