I was kind of racking my brain for what I could review for this week’s Review Monday post. The problem is, not much has come out recently that I really need to say something about. I considered Juice=Juice’s new PV, but I have nothing much to say other than “I kind of like this.” AKB48’s latest came out recently, but even that’s a bit of a letdown after the fantastic Koisuru Fortune Cookie. Then my friend Dani suggested I take a look at Morning Musume’s newest song “What is Love?” It hasn’t been released yet, and there’s not even a plan for its release yet, but I thought this was an excellent idea.

Oh wait, no, wrong clip (sorry, I know this joke is so old by now).

Song: I’ve been really into this song since the first short preview popped up online, and if this gets put on a single it will potentially be my favorite Morning Musume song of the year. That’s how much I like this.

One of the things common to a lot of my favorite songs is that they bend genres. I’m a fan of groups like Babymetal and Rhymeberry because they aren’t afraid to do something unusual with their music, and to mesh an unusual genre with idol music. Morning Musume does this almost perfectly with “What is Love.” They take the current electronic/dubstep-lite sound that Morning Musume has been doing for their last few singles and mixed it with, of all things, 1920s era swing/jazz. This is the type of thing that doesn’t get mixed with current music a lot. If modern music decides to look back, they usually stick to the 50s onward. But here, Morning Musume is taking on a genre and era of music, mixing it with some very modern sounds, and doing something very unique.

There is a bit of risk to doing this song; if this was done poorly, it would have been just awful. That’s generally why Hello!Project acts tend to keep it safe, musically. However, Morning Musume does this unusual mix very well here. The swing music mixes remarkably well with the electronic music and, apart from the initial shock of hearing two separate genres combined, doesn’t sound forced or like a bad combination. The song itself is very catchy and the arrangement fits well. I normally prefer real instruments, but the type of song fits this type of arrangment.

Basically, I love this song on multiple levels. It’s very listenable and catchy, but I also love what it represents, bending genres. Morning Musume has been on a roll with solid releases lately (even though I didn’t enjoy their remix album), and I’m very impressed by what they’ve done with What is Love. 9/10

Dance: Since there’s no PV, I’ll just give a few quick words about the dance. Dance is probably the area I know least about with idols. However, Morning Musume’s dances have stood out a lot lately, and this is no exception. I know to some the dance formations are getting a bit old, but that’s one of the aspects I love about current Morning Musume. The dances all look a thousand times cooler and more interesting when all the members are moving together in a formation.

Some people think this dance is too weird. It is a bit odd, at times, but ultimately it fits really well with both the style of music they’re doing as well as the current style Morning Musume has right now. I especially like the part during the chorus where the girls swing their leg in front and in back of them. Ultimately, as a complete non-expert on dance, I really like this. It’s unusual, but I like unusual.

Verdict: This song and dance are great. While I’ve had my misgivings with MM releases in the past, Morning Musume does an excellent job with What is Love. 9/10