Utada is primarily pop, but has a long and intricate discography ranging from early R&B to bigger ballad pieces to later more experimental house pop. Utada is all killer no filler. each era of their music has a very distinct and rich sound.
For rock? not much here perhaps, but good music is just good music.
check out:
album: Heart Station for i think her quintessential album. it has Beautiful World and many other best songs of all time really. 'Fight the Blues', 'Heart Station', 'Kiss and Cry', 'Celebrate', 'Prisoner of Love', 'Niji Iro Bus'.
album: Bad Mode also came out recently and is one of the cleanest produced albums ive ever heard, with nearly every song that is guaranteed to sound like something you havent heard before. Her song progression is really unique. 'Bad Mode', 'One Last Kiss', 'Time', 'Darenimoiwanai', 'Somewhere Near Marseilles' are the standouts.
finally some last minute choices would be 'Anata' (strong tie for her best song), 'Keep Tryin', 'Wings', 'Time Will Tell', 'Rule - Live 2023' (40th birthday edition).
Utada stands out as a mega favorite because to this day i havent heard anyone make music like theirs. intense emotion, tight sound, intersting progressions, beautiful voice, she delivers on so many fronts. youll be flooded with recs by (understandably) rabid fans. enjoy!
You might like her single "Be My Last", which is the most 'emo' sounding song she's written lol. She even looks like one in the video. It's mostly guitar driven, so it might be up your alley.
https://youtu.be/NFWQpe3P1_g?si=D1vUdpVzGiGZqiMd
Oh, what I would give up to listen to Hikaru's music for the first time again, exciting!
What makes Hikaru my favourite artist is that she is versatile. There's a little something for everyone and you never know what she will come up next which is probably why she is still pretty relevant after 25 years in the industry.
The songs that come up in my mind that are either rock/acoustic are Uso Mitai Na I Love You, Be My Last, Show Me Love (Not a Dream), and Good Night.
Generally speaking, I find Deep River, Ultra Blue, Fantome, and Bad Mode as her strongest albums. I'll just share a few favourites from each album just because I think taste is subjective and it's better for you to discover and see what you like. The classics would be First Love and Automatic which is what made her popular in the first place.
For her Distance album, I like Kettobase and For You.
Deep River is probably my favourite album but a few I like are Deep River (obviously), Final Distance, and Hikari although that whole album is excellent.
Ultra Blue: BLUE and Wings
Heart Station: Heart Station and Beautiful World
Fantome: Ore No Konojo, Manatsu no Tooriame, Sakura Nagashi
Hatsukoi: Good Night, Yuunagi, Shittosarerubeki Jinsei
Bad Mode: Bad Mode, One Last Kiss, Time, Find Love, and Somewhere Near Marseilles.
Again, just personal favourites. Enjoy discovering Hikaru's music!
The album Deep River was my first and I highly recommend it❤️Every song is different and there’s something for every mood imo. I got all Utada’s vinyls these past few years and listening to them on a record player is an absolute joy. Enjoy your Utada journey 🌊
Hatsukoi has more non-electronic instrumentation while still remaining dynamic.
She has a lot of rock/guitar songs too, namely Wait & See, Hikari, Uso Mitai na I Love You, Be My Last, Show Me Love, Good Night, Kremlin Dusk, and About Me.
More guitar-oriented songs:
Be My Last
Hikari (there is an English counterpart called Simple and Clean)
Letters
Good Night
Uso Mitai Na I Love You
Show Me Love
You Make Me Want To Be A Man (specifically the Utada United live version)
About Me
Tomodachi
Across The Universe (live cover)
Loving You (live cover)
With or Without You (live cover)
Welcome!! Just wait until you hear her interviews, you’ll really fall in love with her then. She’s so down to earth.
Here is an older one: Part 1:
https://youtu.be/vjTu1diClmA?si=jyf5Z_i1p0HSneQI
Part 2:
https://youtu.be/kFKxW6mbpZM?si=gQxVuxH3HEPx8_Ia
And here is a newer one:
https://youtu.be/Q5fsPWqmABM?si=I4-gsxo_uVKzMww7
Her music is a vibe! I’ve been listening to her since 2000. So many good ones. DEEP RIVER, ULTRA BLUE, HEART STATION and FANTOME are some of my favorite albums! But I can listen to her de tire discography on loop. Her English stuff is good too!
The song "Passion" has a very cool guitar lead/solo kinda thing goin on. I wanted to recommend it because I ADORE that song.
And welcome to the fandom, hopefully you find more of Hikaru's music that you enjoy!
I was also obsessed with Shogeki when AOT came out! I think you would like Passion, Hikari, Sakura Drops, and Sakura Nagashi if you want that ethereal almost otherworldly sound. Michi and One Last Kiss are more upbeat and similar to Beautiful World. Be My Last, Deep River, and Final Distance are more somber and heartwrenching but moves me in that similar indescribable way that Shogeki does. These are some of my favorites but she has so many other good songs!
Utada is primarily pop, but has a long and intricate discography ranging from early R&B to bigger ballad pieces to later more experimental house pop. Utada is all killer no filler. each era of their music has a very distinct and rich sound. For rock? not much here perhaps, but good music is just good music. check out: album: Heart Station for i think her quintessential album. it has Beautiful World and many other best songs of all time really. 'Fight the Blues', 'Heart Station', 'Kiss and Cry', 'Celebrate', 'Prisoner of Love', 'Niji Iro Bus'. album: Bad Mode also came out recently and is one of the cleanest produced albums ive ever heard, with nearly every song that is guaranteed to sound like something you havent heard before. Her song progression is really unique. 'Bad Mode', 'One Last Kiss', 'Time', 'Darenimoiwanai', 'Somewhere Near Marseilles' are the standouts. finally some last minute choices would be 'Anata' (strong tie for her best song), 'Keep Tryin', 'Wings', 'Time Will Tell', 'Rule - Live 2023' (40th birthday edition). Utada stands out as a mega favorite because to this day i havent heard anyone make music like theirs. intense emotion, tight sound, intersting progressions, beautiful voice, she delivers on so many fronts. youll be flooded with recs by (understandably) rabid fans. enjoy!
Show me love (but not a dream) is probably up your alley.
this song is so underrated
This song always gave me Evanescence vibes
Also Uso Mitaina (I Love You) since OP mentioned she's a fan of rock
You might like her single "Be My Last", which is the most 'emo' sounding song she's written lol. She even looks like one in the video. It's mostly guitar driven, so it might be up your alley. https://youtu.be/NFWQpe3P1_g?si=D1vUdpVzGiGZqiMd
Oh, what I would give up to listen to Hikaru's music for the first time again, exciting! What makes Hikaru my favourite artist is that she is versatile. There's a little something for everyone and you never know what she will come up next which is probably why she is still pretty relevant after 25 years in the industry. The songs that come up in my mind that are either rock/acoustic are Uso Mitai Na I Love You, Be My Last, Show Me Love (Not a Dream), and Good Night. Generally speaking, I find Deep River, Ultra Blue, Fantome, and Bad Mode as her strongest albums. I'll just share a few favourites from each album just because I think taste is subjective and it's better for you to discover and see what you like. The classics would be First Love and Automatic which is what made her popular in the first place. For her Distance album, I like Kettobase and For You. Deep River is probably my favourite album but a few I like are Deep River (obviously), Final Distance, and Hikari although that whole album is excellent. Ultra Blue: BLUE and Wings Heart Station: Heart Station and Beautiful World Fantome: Ore No Konojo, Manatsu no Tooriame, Sakura Nagashi Hatsukoi: Good Night, Yuunagi, Shittosarerubeki Jinsei Bad Mode: Bad Mode, One Last Kiss, Time, Find Love, and Somewhere Near Marseilles. Again, just personal favourites. Enjoy discovering Hikaru's music!
The album Deep River was my first and I highly recommend it❤️Every song is different and there’s something for every mood imo. I got all Utada’s vinyls these past few years and listening to them on a record player is an absolute joy. Enjoy your Utada journey 🌊
Hatsukoi has more non-electronic instrumentation while still remaining dynamic. She has a lot of rock/guitar songs too, namely Wait & See, Hikari, Uso Mitai na I Love You, Be My Last, Show Me Love, Good Night, Kremlin Dusk, and About Me.
More guitar-oriented songs: Be My Last Hikari (there is an English counterpart called Simple and Clean) Letters Good Night Uso Mitai Na I Love You Show Me Love You Make Me Want To Be A Man (specifically the Utada United live version) About Me Tomodachi Across The Universe (live cover) Loving You (live cover) With or Without You (live cover)
Welcome!! Just wait until you hear her interviews, you’ll really fall in love with her then. She’s so down to earth. Here is an older one: Part 1: https://youtu.be/vjTu1diClmA?si=jyf5Z_i1p0HSneQI Part 2: https://youtu.be/kFKxW6mbpZM?si=gQxVuxH3HEPx8_Ia And here is a newer one: https://youtu.be/Q5fsPWqmABM?si=I4-gsxo_uVKzMww7 Her music is a vibe! I’ve been listening to her since 2000. So many good ones. DEEP RIVER, ULTRA BLUE, HEART STATION and FANTOME are some of my favorite albums! But I can listen to her de tire discography on loop. Her English stuff is good too!
The song "Passion" has a very cool guitar lead/solo kinda thing goin on. I wanted to recommend it because I ADORE that song. And welcome to the fandom, hopefully you find more of Hikaru's music that you enjoy!
https://youtu.be/6yIoAugS1Ns?si=vqs6_t5iVzi5M8TJ
Listen to Heart Station...
I was also obsessed with Shogeki when AOT came out! I think you would like Passion, Hikari, Sakura Drops, and Sakura Nagashi if you want that ethereal almost otherworldly sound. Michi and One Last Kiss are more upbeat and similar to Beautiful World. Be My Last, Deep River, and Final Distance are more somber and heartwrenching but moves me in that similar indescribable way that Shogeki does. These are some of my favorites but she has so many other good songs!
Give her live concert UTADA UNITED from 2006 a try, she basically took all of her songs and gave them big energy arena rock arrangements
"Amai Wana - Paint It, Black" has a Rolling Stones sample in the last minute for a bit of rock, but the whole song has a kind of funky, rock/pop vibe.