Especia

Especia’s a group I’ve heard of only by name, but I never knew anything about them. They come from Osaka and were formed June 2012, and have six members. Since the name means ‘spice’ in Spanish, their goal is variety in fashion and in members. While I don’t immediately see it (the group itself seems pretty fashionable in a similar way), it’s a nice idea.

What interests me is that their aim is to have 80s/disco themed songs/music. I’ve enjoyed this idol/disco fusion whenever I’ve heard it before (this blog isn’t called Happy Disco for nothing!), so when I saw this I was intrigued.

Right when I started to listen to the title track off their latest EP, Amarga (they have two EPs so far, the second one considerably longer), I immediately heard the 80s influence; synth and saxophone. They immediately go for that 80s feel which is pretty interesting; while that’s not necessarily the part of disco-influenced music I enjoy (this feels a lot more 80s than 70s, that’s for sure), Especia’s music is unique. I can’t think of an idol group that’s ever sounded like them, even when thinking back to older idol artists.

So while I’m not quite sure how I like Especia’s music (it’s not doing all that much for me, I’m afraid), I really admire that this group is so unique among all the other idol groups at TIF. In fact, if I was going to TIF I would probably go see Especia at some point, because I bet it would be a refreshing experience. The members also seem pretty talented, which is good because the music is so different that it would be a bit strange to hear lesser vocalists do it.

So I definitely recommend you check out Especia; I can’t guarantee you’ll like the music, but this group is really different in a great way.

Electric Ribbon

Electric Ribbon’s a pretty unique group as well! There are three members but only two are up front performing; the other member, asCa, is the leader and is in charge of the music/producing. So, from what I can tell, they’re mostly self-run (or run by asCa) which is a pretty interesting and fairly rare group set up. Usually idols tend to be very corporate and run by big companies, but at TIF there are a few groups that are run differently, and that’s always refreshing. The girls also seem older than your average idol, so that’s another way they stand out from the crowd.

They have a very electronic/techno sound, presumably based on asCa’s interests/abilities. So far there are two singles out; Docchi mo Docchi and Repurikapuriko, and both have been performed as early as 2011, so they have a bit of experience but not a lot of new singles. I definitely prefer Repurikapuriko, but so far I’m not quite into the music. One of the most interesting things is that on the second single fans are encouraged to send in remixes; in fact, there are separate tracks of each instrument in Repurikapuriko so fans can remix their stuff. So if you’re into electronic music and make remixes you should definitely check this out.

I can’t say I’m going to follow them too much; it doesn’t feel like they’re a very active group, and so far the music isn’t really grabbing me. I find myself less interested in the idols up front, and with the woman in the back doing the music. So even though I might not become a huge Electric Ribbon fan, like with Especia I can definitely appreciate what they’re bringing to the table.

ALLOVER

ALLOVER is a bit intimidating to me. I’ve heard of them before, and I know of them, but I’ve never bothered to take much of a look.

The reason I’m slightly intimidated is that they’re a super group of indie idols dedicated to spreading Akihabara culture. Members from indie idol groups including asfi, Doki Doki Dream Campus, Nato*Kan, Candy Go Go, Smile*Pocket, Anna*S, and Cover’s Doll have come together to create one giant idol group ALLOVER (Alice Project has also participated in the past, along with a few other groups). It’s really smart, in a way; I had only heard of a couple of these groups before learning about ALLOVER, so it promotes multiple indie idols. Further, ALLOVER is becoming more and more known, from what I’m aware, so it brings up every group.

Currently there are 18 full members on three teams with 3 “support members.” The group formed last year, 2012, and have so far released 3 singles. The other great thing about having all these members from different places is, I imagine, it allows for a lot better production values than if these groups were doing something alone. I was immediately impressed when I saw their latest PV. It’s simple, but it’s definitely good looking. I am also impressed by their voices; usually the (unfortunate) bias I have is that an indie idol group isn’t going to have vocal training, but ALLOVER is very listenable.

Ultimately, while I was intimidated at first, I’m really glad I found ALLOVER because now I know that they’re actually a pretty group, and one I’m going to keep my eye on for the future!

Ogawa Mana

OK, mini history lesson. Back in the day, Hello!Project was pretty much dominating the idol scene (other idols existed, but H!P was definitely pretty big). So, back in 2007, Tsunku created a rival project called Nice Girl Project, primarily by his own label TNX, as a rival to Hello!Project. So he took some Eggs and made The Possible (a group we’ll get to later), and Canary Club became one of the groups. Ogawa Mana was pretty much the star of Canary Club and of Nice Girl Project. Unfortunately, NGP has never really taken off, and eventually Canary Club stopped doing much and fell into obscurity. Their last single was in 2010, Ogawa Mana’s last solo release was in 2010 (a joint single with Berryz Koubou’s Sugaya Risako for the anime Gokujou! Mecha Mote Iinchou!).

So it’s really interesting to me that Ogamana is suddenly doing TIF. She hasn’t really released anything lately, as far as I know she’s not doing much of anything. But really, Nice Girl Project, in my opinion, mostly came around at a rough time. 2007-2009 wasn’t exactly the best time for idol acts, before the current idol boom. Ogamana has some good charisma and is a good star; she only came around at the wrong time.

So it seems that she has a new Youtube channel (Ogachannelofficial) with some new uploads and new songs. So it seems like she and The Possible are really trying to revive their careers. Which is definitely good for her; she’s cute, has that charisma, and is a really good singer, so I could see her having a good career resurgence with a little promotion and some good songs. I haven’t followed her that closely in the past (though I have a strange fascination with Nice Girl Project, so I check in on them now and again), but I’m really interested to see where she goes now, and I hope that this doesn’t fizzle out like last time.

Okite Porsche

Okite Porsche is from the new wave band Roman Porsche. But beyond that he’s worked with Vanilla Beans, and DJs. Last year DJed at the Idol Club Night, the show for the sexier, adult idol groups. I would honestly be surprised if he did something different this year.