Review: Dempagumi.inc – World Wide Dempa

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This is an album that I have no idea WHY I didn’t review it when it came out. Musically, Dempagumi.inc was my top group of 2013. Sure my favorite overall group is still Team Syachihoko, but in terms of releases Dempa tends to be the best mix of exciting while being consistently good out there.

So here’s there latest album, World Wide Dempa, and my thoughts on it!

1. Hajimari ~ World Wide Dempa

Intro track! I actually really like this intro track, thematically. It takes a lot of separate themes and ideas and throws them together into one track, which is kind of what W.W.D does. So not only does this opening track get fans excited about the upcoming album and serve as an introduction, but it works very well thematically. Ultimately  it’s not something I’ll listen to unless I’m listening to the whole album right away, but it serves its purpose well. 8/10

2. Demparade Japan

I like Demparade Japan. Really, I do. It has a lot of energy and did a good job of introducing the current lineup (minus Atobe Miu and now with added Moga and Pinky). It feels like a typical Demapgumi song, and is generally well-made. However, after the other single songs on this album and the stellar music that Dempagumi has been putting out on a regular basis, Demparade falls a bit flat? I mean, I like the elements of the song, especially the chiptune background. Everything about this song is nice, and I don’t dislike any of it, but it just doesn’t live up to the high standards I hold for Dempa. Unfair? Perhaps. But I imagine a lot of fans might feel the same way. 7/10

3. Future Diver

Hyadain! Nostalgia! This is the song that I first listened to from Dempagumi.inc. At the time I really liked it, bti had no idea if the group would go anywhere. Future Diver is another song that doesn’t quite live up to the rest of the Dempagumi.inc oeuvre, but still skates by a lot on personal feelings. It is a pretty standard upbeat idol song, by many measures, but has a lot of cuteness and sweetness to it, as well. I particularly like the energy and excitement during the “Dive” chants. I also like the use of chiptune in here, as well. It’s kind of a match made in heaven, given Hyadain’s video game remix roots.

As a fan, I had a bit of a hard time getting into Dempa’s vocals (here it’s mostly Nemu and Eimi that I had an issue with), and if you’re a new Demapgumi.inc fan this might be the hardest song for you to listen to (unless you’re a Beastie Boys fan listening to Sabotage for the first time). However it’s fairly easy for me to get past, and once you get past the exterior Future Diver is quite nice.

4. Vandalism

I was sure with how unhinged this song was that it was written by Hyadain, but no; it was written by Tsutaya Koichi, a producer who has worked with acts like YUKI, Ikimonogakari, among others. I don’t see any other big idol acts among his acts, so this is a fairly unprecedented grouping.

In short, I love this song. It has a lot of attitude and manages to be an interesting, unique song while feeling still very much like Dempagumi.inc.

First off, while the vocals were slightly uncomfortable within Future Diver, all the girls here sound great. Risa in particular is a shining star with her vocals in the Danse Macabre-esque section at about 1:45. Risa’s always been the vocal talent of Dempagumi.inc,  but here she sounds lovely. I also enjoy the girls at the beginning; they have a lot of attitude.

The song passes through multiple styles and segments, but manages to maintain a fairly cohesive whole. As I mentioned, that’s what I feel this album and Dempagumi.inc as a whole have been going for, so this song goes even more towards that. Vandalism is another wonderful entry into the Dempagumi.inc library, and the most played of the new songs for me. 9/10

5. Sabotage

You guys know I love this. Before I became a big Dempagumi.inc fan, this is what I ranked in my top 25 songs list of 2012. Hyadain + Beastie Boys; it’s a combination that magically, against all the odds, works incredibly well. It matches the original song with some trademark Dempa oddness, and makes a memorable cover. It does what, in my opinion, a good cover should; it still has a lot of the flavor of the original song, but Dempa made it their own. 8/10

6. W.W.D

I’ve already written about this in my top 25 songs of 2013 so I’m going to keep this brief. But essentially, this song is brilliant. First off, the lyrics are lovely and personal, about where Dempagumi.inc started out. Then the song reinforces the theme of the song, how six unique girls formed a group, by having various unique styles come together into one unified song. It’s fun, moving, energetic, and one of the best songs from 2013. 10/10.

7. Nazo Kara

This was a tie-in with JOYSOUND and a B-Side of one of the versions of W.W.D II. Honestly, this song initially baffled me with its cool, KPop esque sound. This is still Dempagumi.inc, so there’s chiptune sounds in there and the chorus is high energy JPop again, but the rest of the song is trying to be dark, cool KPop. Or Lady Gaga maybe?

This isn’t terrible, but it’s clear that this isn’t Dempa’s forte. I do like how the arrangement has bits and pieces from Dempagumi.inc proper, but the shift in tone between the chorus and the verses doesn’t quite work for me. It’s all a bit sudden. I like some of the individual pieces of the song; the melody is fine, for instance. Just as a song this just doesn’t work. 6/10

8. Itsuka Haruka Kanata

Slowing things down! This is the start of the slower/sweeter section of the album, which might not be something you think of when you think of Dempagumi.inc, but these songs prove they do it quite well.

Unfortunately, Itsuka Haruka Kanata is a solid mid-tempo song, but it’s not the most memorable. Of the three new songs, Itsuka Haruka Kanata is by far the least interesting and the one I have listened to the least.

I enjoy the opening a lot (Pinky sounding her best), and the strong production of a Dempagumi.inc song is there. Unfortunately it falls into a weird spot; it’s not as sweet and pleasant as Kira Kira Tune and Fuyu e to Hashiridasou and it’s not the high energy fun songs. The arrangement is really good and the girls are great, but this doesn’t quite do it for me as much as I wish it would. 6/10

9. Kira Kira Tune

Hey, speak of the devil! This is the single song that might seem like the odd one out for Dempagumi.inc, but in a way that makes it one of the most interesting. It’s a guitar-heavy song that’s pretty mid/fast paced, but still sounds incredibly sweet and heartwarming in a way that I can’t really describe in writing. It’s the chorus, mainly, with the extended long notes by Dempa and the swelling strings. The whole song is very well written, in this way, and sounds great.

The thing that doesn’t get quite enough credit, I think, are the strange lyrics that subvert expectations about idol lyrics; Kira Kira Tune makes you think it’s going to be “kira kira” as in shining/sparkling, but it’s actually “Killer killer.” They sing at one point what sounds like “doki doki” (heart thumping) but it’s actually “dorky dorky.” It’s pretty basic wordplay, but I’ll take what I can get.

Kira Kira Tune is well-written and subverts what I expect about Dempa. 9/10

10. Fuyu e to Hashiridasuo!

This is a song that I didn’t fully appreciate until lately. It’s off W.W.D, so when that single came out I was really focusing on how much I LOVED W.W.D without listening as much as I should to Fuyu.

Fuyu is a perfect contrast and complement to W.W.D; whereas W.W.D is brash, out there, and almost aggressively strange, Fuyu e to Hashiridasuo is much quieter, mellow, and has a heavy emphasis on acoustic guitar. It’s still well-written and interesting, but in a much different way to W.W.D. The girls sound lovely and do well in this understated song. It is lovely. 10/10

11. Nantettatte Idol  Shangri-la

This takes a turn for the strange after a couple of simpler, lovely songs. This takes some of the kind of stereotypical non-Japanese but Eastern aesthetic (think GOUNN and Naniwa no Haniwa) and gives it a Dempagumi.inc twist. And do they ever; the girls’ vocals are at their zaniest and most unhinged. They aren’t unpleasant, but just odd.

That’s an accurate description of this song, in general. It’s almost shocking after Fuyu e to Hashiridasuo. There are a lot of pleasant things in here; I quite like the harmonization that goes on, and the melody is very pleasant. And I personally enjoy my fair share of weird songs, so this hits that spot.

If you don’t like weird or strange (why are you listening to Dempagumi.inc) this may not be your cup of tea, but I personally enjoy it. 7/10

12. W.W.D II

Again, I wrote about this at my end of the year stuff, so this will be a bit shorter. W.W.D II is a well-paced epic of a song, with a lot of energy and a lot of heart. It has the emotion of some of Dempa’s best as well as the energy of their other best songs. It’s an epic of a song, and one of the finest things to come out of 2013’s idol music scene. 10/10

13. Orange Rium

Oh man, I love the opening to Orange Rium too much. The arrangement of Orange Rium is one of my favorite bits of the song; the piano sounds lovely whenever it shows up, and there’s so much excellent stuff going on. And there’s a reason this stands out; as I found out from twitter recently, the guy who arranged this also wrote a lot of my favorite idol songs including Pera Pera Perao, Gingham Check and Kiss no Sono Oto.

But this is another sweeter, softer side to Dempagumi.inc, a side that I’m growing more and more fond of. While it’s easy to be drawn in by Dempagumi.inc’s weirdness, their songs are just well-written and good, and Orange Rium is yet another one of those examples.

This is really quite pretty, and pleasant. While the melody is nice, the arrangement is where Orange Rium shines. 9/10

14. Tsuyoi Kimochi Tsuyoi Ai

Oh man, the disco influence in this. I love it. Even though the song itself isn’t as disco-y as some of the other things that have come out as of late, this is probably one of the best arrangements of a song using that kind of influence. Aaand it was done by Hyadain. Of course.

This is another song that stands out most for the arrangement; I mean, I love how broad the melody is in the chorus, but the arrangement stands out more than anything to me. I’m not familiar with the original song, but while it sets up a good base the arrangement makes it much more worthwhile.

Thiough not quite as revolutionary as Sabotage, Dempagumi.inc’s other cover is certainly good. 7/10

15. Den Den Passion

Den Den Passion not getting on my top 25 songs of the year is a pretty big regret. It’s a great song, and one I love, but it doesn’t quite have the weight of either W.W.D. Den Den Passion being sandwiched between W.W.D and W.W.D II was a bit unfortunate, because it’s just so easy to forget how nice it is. It’s high energy and very fun, but at the same time it’s fairly restrained in structure. It feels like a typical idol song, polished and given a weird coat of paint to make it fitting for Dempagumi.inc.

That’s not to say it’s bad; it’s great. It’s wonderful.  It’s just not quite as unique as the others, which I think adds to the tendency to forget about it. But Den Den Passion is great, and feels like a fitting cap to this album. 9/10

OVERALL: This is a really great album. I love how the songs flow together; there’s a sense that there was actual thought and care that went into putting the songs together, which I always appreciate. I liked every song at least a little, and I straight up love most songs. This album really proves that Dempagumi.inc has some of the best music in the idol business, perhaps just THE best.

The biggest disappointment to me is just how few new songs that Dempagumi.inc had on this album. I understand that they wanted to get everything on there, and I appreciate that they didn’t make the album bloated and unlistenable. However, three new songs (and an intro) for an album of this length is frustrating.

Despite the frustration at the lack of new material, this is a very strong album and one that I highly recommend.

Idol Thoughts: Fan Behavior

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Sorry for the late post, but I got this idea and couldn’t stop it.

Last night I went and saw Arctic Monkeys perform at a local venue. It was a really fantastic concert; Arctic Monkeys have become a pretty big deal, but they keep coming to a pretty small venue that holds 1500 total (to be fair, this is a pretty well-regarded venue for rock acts). But one thing I’ve noticed whenever I go to concerts for rock acts is that there’s generally not a lot of specific fan behavior; people cheer and clap, to be sure (I may have yelled REALLY loudly when they started playing my favorite song by them, ‘Flourescent Adolescent’), but it’s a really big contrast to go to a rock concert in the US (by a British artist, but still) and then watching idol acts.

It’s just interesting, how the atmosphere of concerts changes. I’ve gone to one idol live (an international one, as well, since I’ve never been to Japan), but I’ve been to really small club venues and I’ve also seen concerts at huge arenas. All of these have their own merits and demerits; seeing Freelance Whales at 7th Street Entry was really fun and intimate, but seeing Katy Perry at a huge arena was a major spectacle. However, the one thing I’ve always noticed from idol lives that I’ve never quite gotten is that sense of crowd unity that only comes with things like fan chants and glowsticks.

I’ve seen people criticize idol fan crowds because of this type of conformity of sorts; that you can’t be an individual with that. This might be true, in a way. Personally, I think the worst thing (and in a way the best thing) about fan chants is how they treat the other; unless you know what to shout when, you’re going to feel like an outsider at an idol concert. If you don’t know the mix to shout during the overture, you might have a worse experience. The reason I say this might be one of the best things is just because (I imagine) it would make you feel like part of a community.

The reason I think I’d prefer going to an idol concert is that sense of community. Going to see Arctic Monkeys last night was really fun, and I enjoyed myself a lot, but I didn’t feel that connection to the rest of the crowd. I was happy to be at a place where others liked the same music I liked, and it was fun to get pumped up when they started with “Do I Wanna Know?” from their latest album.

However, it’s easy to get drowned out when shouting at a concert like this, and I know that personally I look forward to going to more idol concerts and shouting along, as conformist as it may be.

Review Monday: 1 Oku 3 Zen Man Sou Diet Oukoku

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I’m not Berryz Koubou’s biggest fan. Sure, I got into them as my first ever idol group, and I was (and still am, to an extent) a pretty big Tokunaga Chinami fan, but they just haven’t impressed me as of late. I rank them generally as my least favorite Hello!Project group, and I don’t pay much attention. I was not planning on reviewing this single at all. However, it completely surprised me, so I thought that I had to review Berryz’s Diet Song.

Song: As a song, I do like this. I feel like Berryz is finally starting to figure out their style lately, which is good. IMO Berryz’s biggest downfall was their Inazuma Eleven years. Not that what they did there was bad; some of my favorite Berryz songs on their own come from that era (I particularly like Otakebi Boy! Wao! and Ryuusei Boy), but they really lost group identity then. Berryz is a weird group. None of the members particularly fit together, they’re all shapes and sizes, and they’ve done really odd things in the past (Dschinghis Khan and Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance?).

This song doesn’t quite bring back the Berryz I became a fan of, but I mention this because I like the weirdness. I like the repetition of phrases and how robotic it sounds. This is still more in their recent Asian Celebration phase than their Monkey Dance phase, but I like how it sounds. I don’t know if I’d consider this a good song as a whole; Some of the phrases go on too long, and it’s a bit sad when repeated phrases hold my attention more than anything else. However, this is a better song than Berryz have been given lately, which is a good thing.

Lyrics: Normally I don’t pay the lyrics much attention, aside from the really obvious things. Lyrics can matter, but most idol lyrics aren’t the best and are pretty irrelevant to how I feel about the song. However, this song is all lyrics, in terms of my interest in reviewing it. By the way, I’m referring to the official video translation. I know these aren’t perfect, and I’m supplementing this with my own Japanese knowledge, but they’re what’s being promoted to the US.

So. These lyrics. The way I see it, the intent of these lyrics are unclear, and there are two main options for how they could be taken; it could be either, or, or a little of both (which is what I think it is, mind):

1. Tsunku is mean, and fatshaming is in. Since he’s said that Berryz has heavy members, this is a dig at them. This is promoting a nation of dieting.

2. This is a critique of fatshaming and the concept of a nation of dieting, saying that other things are more important.

Here are my thoughts on each of those ideas.

1: Both Japan and the US have a complicated relationship with weight. A lot of people do, really. It’s difficult, really. Healthy eating and exercise habits are important, and something to promote. On the other hand, shaming overweight people doesn’t work and makes people gain weight. A healthy diet is a good thing, but promoting unhealthy diets is a bad thing.

When the lyrics mention that Japan is a nation of dieting, while that might be synechdoche, it’s not inaccurate. Japan has a law on the books that fines people with a large waistline after the age of 40. Japan is the least obese industrialized nation, and “To the contrary, there is a problem of leanness in young females.” (Source) Health is admirable, but this isn’t necessarily the cause.

It’s easy to see this song as promoting that type of behavior. The song focuses on “every single person likes beautiful girls,” which could infer that by beautiful they mean slender. All these lyrics about dieting are surrounded by “I want to love” and lyrics about aiming for one’s dreams. If this is saying that this is achievable by dieting, then this is a terrible message. Being healthy is a good thing, but unhealthy dieting and getting too underweight is a bad thing as well.

2: However, the more I’ve thought about these lyrics, the more interesting I find them. Take the “all year around” and “every single person” lines that are repeated; by using repetition, the part that’s repeated is how this affects every single person and that this is a constant thing. This isn’t necessarily promoting diets, but saying that this is a long standing thing that’s firmly embedded. The girls almost sound robotic, as well, which reinforces that this isn’t an individual choice but something that was put in them.

There are a lot of interesting things about the lyrics as well. There are two lines in particular that stand out; the first is the one that ‘even slender girls diet.’ This is true in life as well as in song; haven’t all of us seen an idol blog and been shocked when an already slender idol is talking about dieting? But this means that slender girls are still caught up in this cycle, that even when you get to a healthy (or beyond) weight that it’s not enough to make them happy. The other line that makes me pause is the line about waking up drenched in sweat; the only thing that the subject of the song can think of is all the weight she’s burned, never mind things like being late and grades. This shows the skewed morality and skewed priority system.

Still, even things like the “koi shitai” and lines about the girls wants can be interpreted differently. All those things are expressed as desires, things they want to do. The dieting is all present or at best not far into the future (today I will start my diet). While it could be that these things are seen as achievable post-diet, it could also be that they want to break this cycle of dieting and actually focus on these other things instead.

Honestly, the more I think about it, the more this is a judgment call. I personally think it’s more of the second category than the first, but that this could and probably does promote unhealthy dieting. However, things are ambiguous for you to decide what the song ultimately means.

PV: After the lyrics, what can I even say about this? This is fine. The production values have gone up, but that’s not by much; there’s still issues with lighting, especially in closeups (a girl with hair and features like Risako is not treated kindly with this type of lighting). The set doesn’t look terrible (much better than some of the other Berryz sets), but it’s not particularly great. I was going to do a whole review, but the PV is wholely unremarkable in most ways. It’s serviceable, and not awful, but certainly not good.

Verdict: Berryz Koubou’s latest isn’t very interesting musically or visually, but the lyrics are interesting; depending on your opinion you may hate or love them.

List Saturday: Top Idol Acts I Want to Follow More

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Happy List Saturday! For the month of February, I have plans nearly every Friday, so I’m putting out this list on Saturdays instead!

I follow a lot of idol acts. Part of that is because I want to be up with all the major idol acts for this blog and Idolminded (as well as the indie acts for Pure Idol Heart) but part of it is that I’m genuinely a fan of idols as a whole, and I want to like more groups than I can really reasonably follow. So here is my list of groups that I wish I could follow more or for whatever reason I like, but I just haven’t been hooked yet.

LinQ

http://youtu.be/yfh74nsPloc

It’s honestly kind of inexcusable how I don’t follow LinQ. I really like a lot of their music (Sakura Kajitsu, Calorie Nante and HANABI are particular favorites), I have a favorite member (their leader, Amano Natsu) and I’ve liked just about everything I’ve seen from them. Their album that I reviewed for Happy Disco was REALLY good. I really enjoy their live performances as well. I just haven’t really given them the time that they deserve.

But seriously LinQ is great.

Idoling!!!

http://youtu.be/oL7xnvO_G28

I reviewed Idoling!!!’s latest album, Gold Experience, recently and I really enjoyed it. Idoling!!! Is a very professional group with a lot of good music, good members, and a good variety program. I honestly don’t know why Idoling!!! Hasn’t captured my attention more; they’re a very good group. Just for whatever reason I can’t seem to follow them.

Babyraids

I really like Babyraids’ debut self-titled single. I think all the girls have a lot of energy, personality, and I like the sound of the group. Unfortunately, I haven’t been that enthralled with the rest of their music. If everything they did was on the level of Babyraids, I would probably be a much bigger fan.

Bump.y

I like Bump.y a lot. Like. The only song I absolutely love listening to is Gotta Getcha, which is already a cover. The rest of their music just doesn’t do it for me, unfortunately. Which is a shame, because the members seem great, and I do like that their goal seems to be more acting and less full-time singer. However, music does matter, and I can’t seem to keep following Bump.y.

Kikkawa You

http://youtu.be/UocVqFx5ZIM

I once said on twitter, and I stand by this, that if all Kikka songs were like Konna Watashi de Yokattara, I would be a much bigger Kikkawa You fan. Which is true. I want more idol soloists to be successful, and I think that Kikka really benefited from her years in training before débuting. Say what you will about Morning Musume’s 8th gen auditions, but Kikka is much better now. However, I really only like Kikkake wa You and, especially, Konna Wabasha de Yokattara. Which is kind of a shame, because she’s a talented girl who deserves good material.

Up Up Girls (Kakko Kari)

For years I was a fan of Sekine Azusa. She was my favorite Egg and I rejoiced whenever she had even something small to do like being a back dancer for Mano Erina. Now she’s doing an actual group and I can’t really follow them. I’m not sure why I haven’t followed them, but I wish I did because I still think Sekkii is fantastic, and I’m happy for her.

Idol Thoughts: Indie vs Major?

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I’ve been trying to do some more writing for Pure Idol Heart as of late. It was one of my favorite idol sites before I joined as a writer, and I really admire what it does to try and get people interested in indie idols. There’s a great world out there beyond the main groups of idols, and I want more people to learn about these groups.

The thing that I’ve been thinking about, though, is the increasing blurred lines between indie and major. The basic concept is easy; indie are all groups on an independent label and major is on a major label (like King Records, Sony, Avex, etc.). However, what really are the main advantages of a major debut? It’s what a lot of idol groups aim for; the biggest indie idol contest, the UMU award, takes local idols and makes the big prize a major debut. This could be a huge thing for a lot of groups. However, what about indie idol groups that are already fairly successful?

Lately I and some others have taken interest in the Fukuoka based HR. This is a group I’ve had my eye on for a while (mostly because Fukuoka has had a really good track record lately for idol groups). However, recently they hit #6 on the Oricon weekly chart. With an indies single, Evolution da. I know that Oricon chart rankings don’t mean everything, but that’s definitely higher than even some major debut idols.

This isn’t a fluke or one group; WHY@DOLL recently hit #10 on the Oricon weekly chart, as well.

One answer I thought of was major distribution; it is difficult for some idol groups to distribute their stuff. I know there are a few idol groups out there that I’d love to buy their singles, but they just don’t sell them at major retailers. Which is the case for a lot of the smaller indie groups. However, again look to HR. I recently purchased a copy of Evolution Da because I like it so much, and they’re selling it through CDJapan (and I assume most retailers in Japan). It’s still possible to get Rhymeberry’s indie single “Hey! Brother” through these types of retailers, as well. It’s no longer necessary to have a major retailer to be on the national scene.

I’m not trying to say that getting on a major debut isn’t a big goal; it really is, especially for idols that perform at the tiniest venues or at street lives. However, there is an increasing class of idol group that I’d call ‘high-profile indie,’ and it makes some of those benefits fade a little.

Your Thoughts: Team 8 and Professional Endorsements

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This week’s Your Thoughts post comes from Steve, who notably writes at Selective Hearing!

I guess I’m generally really skeptical of any kind of major endorsement by these huge corporations like this or the recent MM thing. Not because I necessarily think it’ll change what they’re doing or bring down the “artistic integrity” so to speak, but I just feel it’s somewhat exploitative of these companies and almost kind of…shallow to approach these groups to try to capture some kind of new audience for their products, and there’s something especially weird when it comes to things like mobile phone service or cars, and I can’t quite put my finger on why.

I feel like maybe since phone carriers are technically a service and not an actual product you can see/touch/feel/taste (so marketing for these products just feels like nothing but “trust us, we’re great!” with no real backup or direct contact with potential customers) and for cars…they’re just kind of a luxury item for most people in Japan, which feels like…why would teenage idols help in you selling luxury items, especially when most wota are the poorest people out there after spending their money on all the idol goods?

I guess a general sense of “image” comes into play with these things, the idols’ history/notoriety notwithstanding, but the whole thing just feels weird. Random marketing stints for TV shows, new electronics, food items/restaurants, etc. doesn’t seem nearly as…misleading(?) as cars or non-tangible services. It’s hard to put together a lot of thoughts about this without actually discussing it with someone else, but I guess that’s what these posts are for. I’m interested to hear what you think about that.

I’m inclined to agree that it is a shady practice, but isn’t this the case with all celebrity endorsements, idol or no? I mean, this is a very common practice within advertising, idols or no. I mean, look at some of the high profile commercials. Do you think that Stephen Colbert really really loves pistachios and therefore went to them to make their commercial? Of course not, that would be silly. The people who market products look for something to increase their brand, and celebrity endorsements are one way to do that. I’m sure you understand this, but I just don’t see why idols endorsing something are much different.

As for cars… I mean, yes they are a luxury item. However, I heard something interesting recently. I was listening to a podcast (the OverthinkingIt Podcast) talking about Superbowl ads. They brought up the idea that car companies aren’t necessarily looking for you to buy a car of theirs NOW, but in the future; that these ads (especially the nebulous ones that aren’t really for a specific car) are trying to bring up brand awareness and getting you to associate this brand with a specific feeling/emotion. Since Toyota isn’t specifically selling a car with this deal, I”m thinking this is what they’re going for. They want AKB fans to associate the feelings of being an AKB fan with Toyota, so that when they’re ready to buy a car they have positive feelings about Toyota already in their head. It’s still a bit weird, but not as weird as “You like AKB? Then buy this car!”

Personally the idol ad that made me feel the weirdest was seeing that Morning Musume were featured on a recruitment poster for Japan’s Self-Defense Force (the closest thing Japan has to an army now post WWII). “In 2003, a Self-Defense Forces poster featured the all-women pop group Morning Musume in an effort to target high school students. The members of the group appear in their pop costumes and are crying out “Doing One’s Best Feels Good – Go! Go! Peace!” ” (Source)

Review Monday: Morning Musume – Egao no Kimi wa Taiyou sa, Kimi no Kawari wa Iya Shinai, What is Love?

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That’s right, I’m reviewing Morning Musume’s latest. I’m sure you guys don’t need much more introduction!

Egao no Kimi wa Taiyou sa

Song: When I first listened to Egao no Kimi wa Taiyou sa, I hated it. Not just dislike, I thought it was just terrible. However, something amazing happened. I kept watching the PV (partly out of my interest in the group and partly because of the PV), and the song suddenly grew on me, where I began to like it where I had hated it.

This isn’t to say the song is perfect. By all means, there are still the flaws it had before. The most noticeable flaw is the weird phrasing of lyrics in the song, where words get bunched together and the girls have to very quickly sing lyrics in small places. It’s hard to imagine this particular melody without the weird phrasing, but it does sound unprofessional and a bit odd.

I think the thing that I appreciate most about Egao no Kimi wa Taiyou sa is more of what it represents for Morning Musume than anything else. While I’ve really enjoyed Morning Musume’s latest output, I have wondered, like many others, if the group would get stuck in the EDM genre and eventually play out the genre until people were sick of it. Hello!Project has a terrible habit of adopting a “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it” mentality, and since Morning Musume has been suddenly selling better than the group has sold in years and years, I was worried the group would get stuck in a rut. Egao no Kimi wa Taiyou sa still fits the mold in that it does use EDM. However, this song experiments with using the group’s signature sound and making a lighter, happier song. In a way, they’ve proven that they can take the group’s signature sound, and still have very varied songs.

This song, while initially something I really hated, has grown to become a song I love, and one that I think represents good things happening for Morning Musume. 8/10

PV I think green screen has been getting a bad rap lately. It’s a tool, and like any tool it can be used well and used poorly. I understand why Morning Musume fans have lately held it in contempt, for sure; Up-Front tends to use it pretty poorly, like in the case of the Help Me PV where it was a poor substitute for actually being outside. However, with an interesting aesthetic style, a green screen can be a great asset. Morning Musume has somehow managed to use this well.

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By only using the green screen sparingly, as patterns that move with the girls to the song and to the dance, the PV looks a lot more interesting than in something like a Help Me situation. This elevates the standard H!P studio PV from being basic to being something visually interesting and appealing. I honestly can’t remember the last time I watched a H!P PV because I found it to be an interesting PV.

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The PV is actually shot well, too. I really enjoy the opening shot that starts up overhead and tracks down to in front of the girls. Since Morning Musume is still (rightfully so) getting known for its formation dance, I’m glad that they capitalized on this with some good bird’s eye shots.

The lighting is also good, especially by Hello!Project standards. While I would change it a few places, this is miles above the awful flat lighting they were trying to use for a while.

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By far my biggest complaint is the blurry, bloom effect that they used on the close-ups. I don’t object to the idea of it, but I do object that it gets used as much as it does. This isn’t as bad as some other effects (see: One Two Three), but it does detract.

This is a solid PV that is a step up from other recent H!P efforts to show off Morning Musume’s strengths while having a unique visual style. 8/10.

Kimi no Kawari wa Iya Shinai

Song: This is the least interesting song on this single. Not to say this is bad; I actually quite like it. But for being a fairly experimental and interesting single, Kimi no Kawari wa Iya Shinai is fairly standard. Which makes sense; this is being used as the cheer song for the Japanese team at the Olympics this year, so they would want something that was energetic, exciting and all that (I do particularly like the “Nippon” chants; they sounded nice here).

This doesn’t sound particularly like Brainstorming or Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke (It might be a bit closer to Ai no Gundan) but it’s in the same mold of cool song. I don’t think it’s quite as good as Brainstorming or Wagamama, but that’s in part because of how great I thought those two songs were when I first heard them and now some of the novelty has worn off.

Really, I don’t have much more to say about this song than that. I know I like it, but as a song it’s the least interesting and least remarkable one of the lot. 7/10.

PV: As a PV, this is a lot less interesting than Egao no Kimi.

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Production values are still good here; I like the camera angles and the lighting. I feel like H!P hired a new team or got their PV people in gear, which makes me VERY happy. This PV is shot much better than a lot of H!P’s older stuff.

Like everyone else ever, I’m not sure how I feel about these outfits on this background. They kind of clash, but at the same time look fine. H!P’s always had iffy costumes at times, and this is hardly the worst of the lot, but it does stand out.

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One of the biggest strengths of these PVS (not just Kimi no Kawari but all three) is just how strong these girls have gotten. Gone are the awkward days of early PVs, Morning Musume is now full of pros. While I think that a stagnant lineup is a mistake and that they really ought to be working on that 12th gen, I can see why H!P would be hesitant; all the girls in MM are solid, and work well together. Riho and Ayumi do a great job of starting things off here, and Kudou Haruka stands out.

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The green screen used in the closeups is the weakest part, but it’s mostly harmless and unobtrusive.

Despite weird costume choices, H!P puts out a solid effort with this PV, even despite being unremarkable. 7/10

What is Love?

Song: What is love? How I feel about this song.

What is Love brings back Morning Musume to what made me fall in love with the group in the first place; playing with genres within the contexts of pop music. The first Morning Musume song I heard and loved was the good old Mr. Moonlight Ai no Big Band (also probably why my first favorite was Yossy), and I still love how it brings back an older genre of music into pop music. What is Love does what Mr. Moonlight did to big band, only with swing, and adds on some additional interest with combining it with the EDM/dubstep inspired sound of Morning Musume’s current era.

What is Love is catchy, exciting, and I just love the swing music sound that they throw in there. This is one of Morning Musume’s best songs in years, and I don’t say that lightly. Morning Musume has improved a lot in the past year, year and a half, and What is Love is, to me, the culmination of that. 9/10.

PV While I’m not opposed to the idea of a live PV (especially on a single where there’s two other PVs going on). However, live PVs can be done well and they can be done as, well, an easy PV.

Team Syachihoko’s Soko Soko Premium is a good example of a live PV; it takes multiple live performances, and edits things together so that the PV conveys some of the energy of the group’s live performances. What is Love often falls a bit flat at this.

What is Love isn’t bad, per say, it just feels like a bit of a cop out. I like Morning Musume live, and I don’t see much wrong with the PV, but it could be a lot better. 6/10

Overall, I’m impressed by this single, in addition to being impressed by Morning Musume as a whole in the past years. While the first two songs took a while to grow on me, once they did I really enjoyed this single and I’m happy it’s been so successful.

List Friday: Top 5 Strange Additions to Idol Groups

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In the course of idol history, lots of odd choices have been made. It’s easy to point at a choice that puzzles you and makes you question things. However, rarely do those choices affect group lineups. This is a list of the top five strange additions to idol groups, making an unusual group.

5. Team Syachichoco

That’s right, this is very recent! Sakamoto Haruna, the youngest member of Syachi, is taking a small break to study for her high school entrance exams. While she’s away… they decide to replace Haru with a chocolate statue?

Now, I am a fan of Haruna’s, and I want her to come back soon. However, I’m so interested to see how this is going to work. Is this going to just be done in a few videos to promote Syachi and Lotte (the chocolate company)? Or will they do multiple events featuring Sakachoco Haruna? Honestly, given Team Syachihoko’s track record, I wouldn’t be surprised if they play this up for a while.

4. Morning Musume + Takagi Boo

Morning Musume doing Hawaiian music isn’t that unusual. I mean, Coconuts Musume is a thing. They go to Hawaii on FC tours. However, not just doing a song, but doing an entire album with Hawaiian music performer Takagi Boo is taking this a bit over the top. Watching this video is also a bit bizarre, as Takagi Boo waves to the camera and Morning Musume (plus assorted extra H!P) essentially flirt with him. The arrangements aren’t terrible, but it still feels like an odd move for the group, especially considering that this is when Morning Musume was at their prime.

3. Mini Moni with Bakatonosama

Probably the worst music video ever. This is the title of the Aiin Dance no Uta PV on Youtube, one of Mini Moni’s two collaboration songs. This is so high energy and ridiculousness, that I had trouble wrapping my head around it the first time I saw it. Bakatonosama is a comedy character from a TV show, and Mini Moni certainly had its foray into weirdness before this, but the fact that they thought that putting these two together was a smart decision is what makes my head spin a bit.

2. Hinoi Team with Koriki Choshu

Remember Hinoi Team? The Eurobeat Para Para group? No? Well probably the biggest thing they did was a cover of the song Night of Fire. This is the song that comedy wrestler Koriki Choshu danced to as a comedian, so lo and behold they make a cover of Night of Fire featuring Koriki. I’m just amazed that these girls can do this with a relatively straight face.

1. OKL48

Another comedy act, this time the song is actually put on a main AKB48 single, which gives it an edge to get #1. Again, it’s a comedy character, but seeing AKB48 dressed as lemons is strange. Though it’s oddly comforting to know that Ichikawa Miori did get to dress up as a lemon.

The conclusion I get from this is that the weirdest ones are all comedy related. Which is understandable; this is supposed to be funny. However, I’m glad that comedy has supported some of the oddest things to come out of idol music and videos.

Idol Thoughts: Team 8 and Professional Endorsements

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Since my last Idol Thoughts post, AKS announced that AKB would be getting a Team 8. This announcement has (understandably) gotten a lot of interest and buzz, because a lot of what Team 8 is going to be is very unprecedented. 47 Girls in an audition, one from each prefecture? This is going to be an odd generation. “Idols who come to meet you?” It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out (I doubt one of them will fly to Minnesota to meet me, though). So understandably, these are the things people are talking about. However, the one thing that I think is very interesting and perhaps hasn’t been talked about enough is that Team 8 is officially sponsored by Toyota.

Idols aren’t strangers to commercial endorsements. Last week I wrote about how Morning Musume getting a major CM deal with au was a major sign that things were going well for MM. And I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing to do commercial endorsements. They get public awareness up for your idol/group and get some new funding. Corporate sponsorship CAN do some good things. I’ve been watching the show Chuck lately, which was in danger of cancellation for quite a bit of its run. However, fans reached out to one of the show’s major sponsors, Subway, and made a concerted effort to show that they were spending money at Subway. Some of the endorsements were slightly obvious, but it allowed the show to be on the air for longer than it would have been.

However, I have some reservations for the Team 8 announcement. This is the first time a company has sponsored an audition for AKB (or really for any idol group that I can think of). I don’t imagine that AKB is strapped for cash; they have a lot of members, but idols don’t get paid THAT well, at least as well as Western celebrities do. But this level of corporate endorsement has me a bit nervous. Toyota is from Aichi prefecture; does this mean that Aichi is the prefecture that will produce the next AKB frontgirl? Even if Toyota doesn’t say “the girl from Aichi should be the center,” I’d imagine there’s some level of pressure to have her be up front.

At the most innocuous this will be just something they say during press releases and put on the website, that this is being sponsored by Toyota. However, I just wonder if this is going to affect either the members that are chosen or how those members act. Idols aren’t some bastion of artistic integrity; I know that idol groups are formed by companies. However, will this affect the creative choices that do get made. I’m not saying it will, but I am saying that I am a bit hesitant on this.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments and I’ll post that as a part of my “Your Thoughts” post next week!”

Review Monday: Takoyaki Rainbow – Naniwa no Haniwa

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Happy Monday everyone! I was going to review Morning Musume’s triple A-Side that’s coming out this week, but then suddenly a new PV came out that I had to review. The Morning Musume review might be coming in a future week, though.

Takoyaki Rainbow is the next in the line of Stardust Promotions groups, after Momoiro Clover Z, Shiritsu Ebisu Chuugaku. and (my favorite) Team Syachihoko. When this group was first announced I really wanted to love it; takoyaki is actually one of my favorite foods ever, so I thought this was a cute name! However, I wasn’t super fond of their first single ‘ Over the Takoyaki Rainbow.’ When I heard that my favorite idol composer, Maeyamada Kenichi, was going to be writing their second single, I knew that I had to give this group another shot.

Song: If weird Hyadain or Stardust idols aren’t normally your thing, I really doubt this will be your thing. Personally, I love it; it feels like a very Hyadain song but also feels somehow unique to Takoyaki Rainbow. However, I do think this is the type of song that benefits from multiple listens. The first time I listened to it I was not sure what to think, and unsure if I liked it. This song has a lot of different styles and sections thrown into one song (as Hyadain likes to do). However, after a couple of listens in, you start to get a better sense for the structure of the song and it starts to make more sense. Still, the first listen was an interesting experience of “What is even going on even?”

The closest song I can compare it to is GOUNN, and even that’s a bit of a stretch (it’s mostly based off the arrangement). It’s more like if Hyadain wrote GOUNN for 2010 era MomoClo. This isn’t a bad thing, but it’s just the closest thing I can think of, comparison wise. This song has a lot going on, though, and it does sound kind of busy. The song takes a bit too long to get to the first chorus, for example, and really lingers on the shouted “N A N I W A” sections. After it catches in your brain it doesn’t really sound like it’s dragging, but the first few listens it felt like it was.

By far the weakest part of the single are the vocals; if you’re looking for strong vocalists, you aren’t going to look towards Takoyaki Rainbow (or any Stardust group, really). However, the vocals do work for this type of song. The girls deliver on energy and charisma, and that’s what this song needs more than anything.

This song is fun, well-written, and right up my alley as a big Hyadain fan. It is getting me more and more interested in Takoyaki Rainbow. 9/10

PV: I think I mentioned this in my top 15 PV list, but I’ll reiterate: green screen isn’t bad. Visual effects can add a lot to a PV. What is bad is lazy visual effects, or using it to cut corners. If you have a unique and interesting visual style, like in Naniwa no Haniwa, having a fully green screen PV isn’t a bad thing.

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As you can see above, the PV has a really strange style; it’s kind of surreal at times (and very surreal at others) and odd all the time. The thing I find most interesting is that the color palette tends to be slightly muted; this isn’t the bright colors of Ai no Chikyuusai. Yet this muted color scheme works well and seems oddly bright when put together. I can’t really put my finger on it.

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The PV’s biggest asset are the girls involved; all of them have really stepped up their game and have a lot of talent appearing cute and personable in front of the camera. They’re all very cute and veyr fun to watch. This PV did a fantastic job of showing off the girls.

The editing is very well done; it’s generally done rapidly (especially when they’re spelling out “H A N I W A”, cutting on every letter), but it never feels rushed or out of place.

Ultimately, this PV is another example in how good greenscreen PVs CAN look, and is also an example of showing off your idols effectively. 9/10

I really enjoyed this PV, and it’s caused me to want to keep an eye on this group in the future!