''I'm Not'' is the thirteenth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by Japanese singer

Shizuka Kudo , known by her maiden name , is a Japanese singer, actress and former idol, born in Hamura, Tokyo, Japan. She was a member of Onyanko Club between May 1986 and September 1987 and went on to have a successful solo career with 11 number-one hit ...

. It was released on April 29, 1998, through

Pony Canyon , also known by the shorthand form , is a Japanese company, established on October 1, 1966, which distributes music, films, home video, and video games. It is affiliated with the Japanese media group Fujisankei Communications Group. Pony Canyo ...

. The album was entirely produced and composed by

Sharam Q was a Japanese rock band composed of lead singer , on guitar, on drums and on keyboards. Biography They debuted with in 1992. They were not an instant hit initially, but their fourth single broke the top 50 of the Oricon charts. Eventu ...

guitarist, Hatake, while Kudo wrote the lyrics for all ten songs, under the pseudonym Aeri. The album features prominent rock musicians such as Hideki Samejima of Hound Dog on

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

Munetaka Higuchi (December 24, 1958 – November 30, 2008) was a Japanese musician and record producer. He is best known as the original drummer of the Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Loudness (band), Loudness, but first rose to prominence as a member of La ...

Loudness In acoustics, loudness is the subjectivity, subjective perception of sound pressure. More formally, it is defined as the "attribute of auditory sensation in terms of which sounds can be ordered on a scale extending from quiet to loud". The relat ...

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

s, and Vow Wow's Rei Atsumi on the

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Mus ...

Critical reception

Kudo and Hatake were praised for crafting a "provocative" and "mature"

pop-rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

sound. Kudo was positively noted for bringing a "cool color" to the songs, well-matched to Hatake's strong signature sound. She received acclaim for her robust vocal performance throughout the record.

Commercial performance

''I'm Not'' debuted at number 19 on the

Oricon Albums Chart The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon A ...

, with 17,000 units sold in its first week. It charted in the top 100 for three weeks and sold a reported total of 29,000 copies during its chart run.

Track listing

All lyrics written by Aeri; all tracks composed and arranged by Hatake, except "Doggie" by Hatake and Nobuyuki Mori.

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1998 albums Shizuka Kudo albums Pony Canyon albums