30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 23

Day 23 - The past H!P member that you miss the most?

Is there any real answer other than Aibon? She was a great idol but I find her much more interesting now. She has learned a lot through her experiences. I still try and keep up with her activites and recently her version of 'Blue Moon' has managed to convice me that song isn't as annoying as I originally thought it was (even though she never seems to hit that note at the end). Unfortunatly she has made more mistakes recently such as leaving her agency. Even if their style of management wasn't entirely her cup of tea it must have been better than nothing?

On a bit of a sideline, I love this photo. It is actually taken well unlike her post H!P photobooks.

30 Day Hello! Project Challenge - Days 21 and 22

Since it seems like school is engulfing some of my free time today will be another "two day special".

Day 21 - The idol you have the most respect for or admire?

Originally I didn't particularly like Nacchi. When I first got into Morning Musume it was the early singles that I recognised her for which is understandable considering she is incredibly prominant in the first 6 singles. And within that early era her voice was, let's face it, pretty terrible. But in songs later into her Momusu career, such as 'The Peace' and 'Ai Araba It's All Right' I noticed that she had improved greatly. This is why I admire Natsumi Abe. She worked hard to improve herself and inspires me to do the same. Sure there was a few blips along the way but she has become a woman who I greatly respect and admire.

Day 22 - You're Favourite Costume?

I love these outfits. I don't think they were actually used during the 'Rival Survival' concerts but they were used for promotion (maybe). I'm not sure of this so please correct me if I'm wrong! Anyway, these outfits are simple but effective and they flatter the all of the girls (Junjun looks especially amazing). I wish they had been used for a single.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 20

Day 20 - The Most Charismatic Idol?

I am tempted to refer to a dictionary definition of the word 'charisma' like everyone else seems to be doing but I will resist and just play by instinct.
There is something about Tsuji that draws people in. Despite not really being an idol fan my younger sister seems to really like Tsuji and has described her as "awesome" in the past. Tsuji is still popular because she has charisma. She is the charismatic mum!!

A Sudden Turn of Events for S/mileage

First things first. I haven't been this shocked in a while. Ogawa Saki's unexpected departure really is the end of an era for S/mileage. The audition that seemed mad and out of the blue when they were announced makes sense now, as does the 4 girls miserable reaction to the announcement.

Saki has always been an important part of the group and I wonder how the group will sounds without her vocals. Her decision to return to a normal life is shocking but I respect her decision and wish for her happiness. I think that people often underestimate how hard being an idol is, especially for someone so young.

Despite 90% respecting her decision and accepting it for what it is my other 10% (the cynical fraction) thinks the whole ordeal is a bit suspicious. I sincerely hope that I am wrong.

Even if it was for a short time, on this occasion an egg hatched in to a real star.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 19

Day 19 - Who would you like to be for a day?

Wouldn't life just be better if you woke up this cute?
If being Sayumi means being really pretty and hanging around with lots of other really pretty people then I am all for it!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Days 17 and 18

I missed a day due to a piano lesson, manically practicing for the piano lesson I had forgotten about and subsequently forgot about everything else so this is a sort of "2 for the price of 1" kind of thing.

Day 17 -  Your first Idol?

The first idol that I was exposed to was a certain Kusumi Koharu. The story of how I discovered Koha in the first place is rather odd yet uninteresting. I wrote a version of it out recently for the 'about me' section of the blog so I shall just copy and paste from there. (Yes, I am that lazy.)

"Back in 2008 I was browsing a page of 'Japanese female singers' on Wikipedia. Naturally, I was looking at the 'K' section. I saw a name that I thought sounded quite cool and on a whim clicked on it. The name was Koharu Kusumi."

Despite, not really getting in to Koharu at first (the first idol I really loved, and still do, was Aibon) I have grown to love her. She really has her own brand of complete madness and even though her singing voice is just plain weird her dancing is good. Also, no-one can deny that she is beautiful.

Day 18 - Your favourite concert

Why is it that I love the 'pika pika' tour? Is it because '10 MY ME' was fantastic and the concert therefore has a great setlist? Is it because of the sleekness of the performance? It is both. I just love this concert a lot (although that dvd cover is terrible).

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 16

Day 16 - Your favourite S/mileage member?

After choosing Wada Ayaka as my favourite member of S/mileage I recalled my answers to the favourite Morning Musume member, the favourite C-ute member and the favourite Berryz member questions. That's right, I have now picked 4 leaders. I'm starting to wonder if I have some sort of leader complex! I certainly hope not! Anyway, I picked Dawa because despite her singing voice being kind of grating she is a great overall leader and member of the group. I like the way she handled the 'new member situation'. Despite not being overly keen on the idea at first she has seen the positive side of the decision and has now warmly welcomed the new members.

Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari - It's a Love/Hate Thing

Recently, I bought Morning Musume's album 'Rainbow 7'. One of the first I looked at when I had freed it from the envelope was the tracklisting. I went through the tracks mumbling opinions of the songs that I knew,"Epic, weird, catchy, awesome . . ." , until I came to the last track. Then what I said was, "Another Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari! This song is way past it's sell by date!" My reaction surprised even myself a little. I am a fan of the original so why would I not want more!

Why I love Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari
  
1.  I love the song. It is fun and catchy.

2.  The lyrics of the first version are great.   Entertaining and (slightly) informative

3.  The music video is fun to watch and creative (at least compared to most H!P MVs).

4.  The concept is brilliant and helped me learn how to tell who was who when I was new to the fandom.

Why I Hate Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari

1.  Versions 2 and 3 were unnesseccary. There hadn't been enough changes in lineup to make it worth doing.

2.  Some of the lyrics are tedious. Do I really need to know that Yossy can't park?

3.  The remixes are annoying. All this "Kussumi, Kussumi. Kussumi, Kussumi" rubbish drives me insane.

    So, after all this I have discovered that it is not JKM itself that I hate, just it's various reincarnations!

30 Day Hello! Project Challenge - Day 15

Day 15 - Favourite Morning Musume member?

 For anyone who has read much of my blog . . . this won't come as a surprise. At all. I like pretty much everything about Ai. Her voice, her dancing, her personality, her looks and even her ridiculous reactions. However the thing I love most about Ai is her dynamic on stage. For someone who seems kind of shy when talking she gives off an amazing air of confidence when performing!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 14

Day 14 - Favourite Buono! member?

This was another hard question. All three members of the group are brilliant, they are like some kind of super-unit! I have chosen Airi simply because I believe that she suits Buono!'s style incredibly well and her voice is pefect for the type of pop-rock that Buono! is known for.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 13

Day 13 - Favourite Berryz Koubou member?

 Today's question was something I'd never thought about much. I like everybody in Berryz too some extent. In the end I chose Captain (Maasa and Chinami were a close second though). I like the love she seems to have of what she does and she always manages to stand out (despite being tiny).

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 12

Day 12 - Favourite C-ute member

I don't really know what it is about Maimi that makes me like her. She has a certain "flair" and maturity about her so maybe it's that. Anyway she is my favourite member of C-ute, with Nakajima Saki not far behind.

30 Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 11

Day 11 - Your favourite soloist?

Nacchi is a great soloist. I own 'Hitoribocci' and 'Vingt-cinq' and I love the more mature style that they have (especially the latter).  Another thing I love about Nacchi's solo career is that she performs more often than not with a brilliant live band, something I wish more H!P girls got to do more often.

S/mileage have a herd of new members

So, It seems S/mileage have a grand total of 5 new members. Oh. Wait. It seems S/mileage have a grand total of 5 new sub-members. I thought that this audition coudn't get much more mind baffling! Apparantly the girls won't be real members until they are "deemed worthy". So, no pressure then. 

It is obvious that I am clueless and confused so I will just do a brief overlook on the new (sub)members.

In no particular order!

Kosuga Fuyuka - This girl can't sing very well and her voice reminds me of something that is quite possibly an Aardman character. However she is, in a way, endearing and I think she will find a place within the group.

Nakanishi Kana - I like the enthusiasm that Kana has and I know that she will grow a lot as a member. She doesn't stand out to much in terms of singing and dancing yet, but I hope that will change.

Tamura Meimi - Everyone has been talking about how cute this girl is and I agree with them. Meimi's voice is a bit too chipmunky at the moment (even for s/mileage) but with more control over her voice that should change.

Katsuta Rina - Her singing and dancing is all ready very good and she seems like a nice girl. On the road to becoming a great all round idol.

Takeuchi Akari - If I remember rightly Akari was pretty good in Shin Minimoni and it is great seeing her placed in a proper group. It's onwards and upwards from here on!

I am looking forward to see these five girls grow as part of S/mileage and I hope that this sub-member system will turn out well in the end.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 10

Day 10 - You're favourite egg?

For starters, I don't really follow any of the eggs very much. However Jang Dayeon caught my eye in the recent S/mileage auditions. She is not the best singer yet (much better than she was when she actually won the Korea audition though!) but she has a lot of potential. There was somthing about this girl that stood out to me and I hope she gets to do something in the near future. (I want her in Morning Musume. Don't tell anyone though.)

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 9

Day 9 - The voice you dislike?

Now, Mai is usually in tune when she sings and that aspect of her voice is all well and good. However, I dislike the tone of her voice. When I first heard Mai sing I thought her slightly childish tone would be something that she would grow out of but it seems that hasn't happened yet. Hopefully there is still time, fingers crossed! If she can sort that little fault out she will be really quite good.

A Big Thank You to International Wota

I got an incredibly nice surprise today when I went to 'International Wota' today to find out if anything interesting had happened in the idol world only to see 'THE Blogpower!!' on the homepage. I am incredibly grateful that my blog has been introduced on the site. Infact I am so pleased I managed to see the funny side of the Takitty remarks.
Anyhoo, hopefully it is onward and upwards from here on!

I hope to have a post up tomorrow about S/mileage's new onslaught of newbies and (maybe) C-ute's new MV.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 8

Day 8 - You're favourite voice?

I love the voice of Takahashi Ai. It is very pleasant on the ears. One of the best things about Ai's voice is that it is versatile so she can sing pretty much anything well. A personal favourite is this performance of Koi ING.

Desert Island Hello! Project

Just yesterday me and my dad were discussing what 3 albums we would take to a desert island. I think in the end we both decided to take The Beatles' Abbey Road before realising that we were putting ourselves through unnecessary pain. We then changed the subject.

However, today I will list the three Hello! Project albums that would be my 3 Desert Island H!P discs!

First up is Morning Musume's 10 MY ME.

This is the first Hello! Project album that I bought (albeit from itunes) and really listened to. The album is almost perfect, the only track that isn't terribly good is the 8th generation's song Osaka Umainen. The 8th gen girls really are hard done by aren't they? On the more positive side the album contains 4 great singles and many brilliant album tracks such as the weirdly wonderful 'Moonlight Night (Tsukiyo no ban da yo)' and the now concert staple 'Namidacchi'. The greatness is topped of with a lovely chinese version of 'Ame no Furanai Hoshi de was Aisenai Darou' lead by Junjun and Linlin.

The cd can be bought here: 

10 MY ME [Regular Edition] / Morning Musume

Next up is Maki Goto's final album with Hello! Project 'How to Use Sexy'

I have never been a big Maki fan. To me it seems that she never found her niche as an idol and only found it with this album, by which time she was more of an artist. Anyway, lets not dwell. This album is flawless, there is honestly not a bad song on it at all. 'How to use Sexy' is rather R&B orientated and ranges from up-tempo numbers such as 'Glass no Pumps' and 'Give me Love' to ballads such as 'Life' and the slightly jazzy sounding 'Daybreak'. R&B has never really been my style but this album is great, a real must have. The music video for 'Some Boys! Touch' still makes me cringe though. That is so not how you use sexy!

Maki's wonderful 4th album can be purchased here: 

How to use Sexy [Regular Edition] / Maki Goto

Last but not least is Tanpopo's first album 'Tanpopo 1' (how original).

This is one of the few Hello! Project albums that has really great instrumentation. From the drum solo is Aya's solo 'Wakatte Nai Janai' to the soprano sax on 'One Step' to the beautiful strings on the album version of Last Kiss. This is a brilliant mature sounding album for Morning Musume's first sub group. Infact this first album is so good that it took me a while to come around to the 2nd generation of the group. That didn't last long though. No-one can resist those beatlesque rhythms of 2nd gen Tanpopo. My (second hand) copy of All of Tanpopo is in the post!

 If you've made it this far, thanks for reading!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 7

Day 7 - Favourite couple/duo

Takagaki: Two beautiful girls, amazing performers and great friends. What more could you want! If you can find it check out their duet song from the Cover You album. Machi no Tomori, I think it's called.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 6

Day 6 - Favourite Unit

I am not sure what the actual definition of the word 'unit' is but I hope that High-King counts. The groups polished performances are always a highlight of H!P shows and the group meshes very well. It was only a few days ago that I realised that these performances won't really happen anymore once Ai-chan graduates. I wish that the unit could have been a group with regular singles but since their original purpose was to promote a musical that never really happened.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 5

Day 5 - Favourite Group!

Morning Musume is the first H!P group that I came to know (although 'W' is a extremely close second) and the above lineup is the first line-up that I fell in love with. Why do I love Momusu so much? Well, for a start all the girls that have been in the group have been great performers in their own right. Also, almost all of the music that the group gets is great (cheers Tsunku).

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 4

Day 4 - If the idol was a boy, who would be your boyfriend?

The obvious answer for this question would have been a certain Yoshizawa Hitomi. However a certain (G)ai-chan has been catching my attention recently!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 3

Day 3 - If you were a boy, who would be your girlfriend?

Sayumi is adorable. I doubt anyone can deny that, even her fiercest of haters! Despite her on-screen personality (which I find hilarious) Sayu seems like a really nice person and would make an ideal girlfriend.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 2

First of all, I hope it is okay not to do this every single day. I am not always near the computer! Anyhoo, moving on.

Day 2 - An Idol you Dislike

First off I would like to say that there aren't really any idols that I hate or strongly dislike and so I was pushed to choose here. There are many things I like about Reina but I chose her because I find her constant winking incredibly irritating and it seems to me that on stage she lacks a certain "oomph".

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge

   It seems as though these 30 day challenge things are pretty big at the moment. The challenge looks like fun so I have decided to take the plunge!

Day 1 - Your Favoutite Idol

My favourite idol is Takahashi Ai. She has a beautiful voice, is an amazing dancer, is absolutely stunning and seems very sweet. But Aichan has something else, something I can't quite put my finger on. Whatever it is it gives her unbelievable stage presence.