Heart Station is the seventh studio and fifth Japanese-language album by Japanese–American recording artist Hikaru Utada.
Many of them commended the production and song writing, alongside Utada's musical direction and vocal performance.
[3] By mid-January 2008, the final songs from Heart Station were mixed at Bunkamura Studios by Goetz B, and were mastered between February 1–6, 2008, by music engineer Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound Studios, New York City; this was Utada's ninth consecutive album to be mastered by Jensen.
"[9] "Heart Station", one of the album's singles, is a "soft" pop song that lyrically discusses about love and communication between lovers.
[10] "Beautiful World" is another love song, but is inspired by mid-tempo house and dance music, as noted by Amazon staff members.
According to staff members at CD Journal, it is an adult contemporary pop song that showcases "slow" string arrangements.
The reviewer analyzed the song's music structure, and said that the "sample at the beginning sounds like it might be from a Godzilla movie."
They later progressed by saying, "'Kiss & Cry' has a very strong percussion section led by the booming kick drum & high pitched cymbals.
[8] "Boku wa Kuma" is the 11th track, and was described negatively by Daniel Robson, writing for The Japan Times, as "a sweet throwaway children's song that kills the album’s melancholy vibe stone dead.
[13][14] It was then released in South Korea by EMI Music and Eastworld, but included an extra Korean-language lyrical booklet.
[15] Not long after its release in Asian territories, EMI Music reserved rights to distribute the album in Canada and the United States on April 8, 2008.
[16] Heart Station later became Utada's second studio album to be released in several global territories, including Germany, Australia, New Zealand, France, and Spain, amongst others.
[A] The images on Heart Station were photographed by Mitsuo, and features a close-up of Utada in a white polo shirt for the front cover.
[19] The album tracks: "Beautiful World", "Fight the Blues", "Flavor of Life", the title track, "Kiss & Cry", "Prisoner of Love", "Stay Gold", and "Boku wa Kuma" were all used as theme songs through several commercials in Japan, including Music.jp and Fuji TV television series.
[23][24] The single was a huge success in Japan, peaking at number one on the Oricon Singles Chart, and sold 650,510 units; it was certified platinum for physical shipments of 250,000 units,[25] and both individual songs were certified in several categories by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ).
Due to the song's success in Japan, it sold over eight million units altogether and is one of the best selling singles of all time.
[32] "Fight the Blues" was the album's only digital single; it was scheduled to be released on March 26, 2008, but was pushed back to April 8.
[6] In another positive review, a member at Amazon highlighted the singles as the album's better cuts, but recommended "Boku wa Kuma" as the top track.
[39] Similarly, a staff member at CD Journal selected the singles as the best songs on the album, labelling the quality as "lavish".
He further explained, "But really, when you unwrap your ¥3,059 copy of Heart Station and realize that seven of the 13 tracks have been released as singles or B-sides, stretching back 16 months, you may feel a little short-changed."
Through he identified this as a "common practice" in Japan, he complimented her vocals and highlighted "Fight the Blues" as the album's best track.
Though he praised Utada's production on most tracks, he criticized her "merely exaggerated" song writing and vocal abilities, and called most of the music "tiring".