Top Ten Tunes of Twenty-Fifteen

Twas four nights after Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The hello project singles were stacked on the ikea furniture with care,
In hopes that a top-ten countdown post soon would be there.

The wota were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of glitter, feathers and platform boots danced in their heads.
And Riho in her tartan monstrosity, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our ears for a long winter’s nap.

Honourable Mentions

Nen ni wa Nen (Kobushi Factory)

New group Kobushi Factory's triple a-side this year was in fact very enjoyable, with this song being my favourite of the three. The vocals are really on point for a new group. However, it just got knocked out of my top ten with the release of the new Morning Musume single...

 

10. Koi Dorobou (Country Girls)

Now here is a song that really takes me back to my shoujo anime days. You could probably play this song over the ending of Tokyo Mew Mew and nobody would question it. Maybe I'm just being fazed by all the pink. Or the old-fashioned concept of a 'Love Thief'. It sounds like the kind of thing that The Ronettes might sing about. And I love that little repetitive bridge section at about 0.37. 

9. Gashinshoutan (Angerme)

Part of me wonders if I should have put this higher... It is a proper 'good-times' song with some solid work on the sax and trumpet, highlighted and forever drummed into my brain via an episode of 'Green Room'. The "gashinshoutan, gashinshoutan" backing vocals on the instrumental/dance break are also a nice touch. I love the little pastel outfits in the video and Murota Mizuki's voice is made for songs like this.  

8. Umaretate no Baby Love (Juice=Juice)

 This video is not the full song but you get the idea. I feel like both C-ute and Juice=Juice have been suffering a bit musically without Tsunku but luckily for Juice=Juice the charming vocals they deliver on tracks such as this pull them through. Going for those retro stylings again a la Koi Dorobou.

7. Tamerai Sumertime (Country Girls)

Starting to feel slightly like I am just writing a list of all the sixties-y tracks hello project put out this year. There is something slightly Beatles-y about this one. Strawberry Fields/Penny Lane kind of era. The video is adorable and I will always applaud non-boring idol mid-tempo numbers. 

6. Taiki Bansei (Angerme)

Okay, so I am sure many people are getting slightly fed up of this song but it has become somewhat of an anthem and I am sure we will be hearing it at Hello Project concerts for years to come. If I play this song around the house the family will be humming it for a good few hours. A less genius but more accessible Matenrou Show, if you will.

5. Sukatto My Heart (Morning Musume)

To be honest I'm not entirely sure why I like this song so much. Maybe after so much electronic musume (which I do love, to be clear) I was excited to hear something so 'Inspiration' style old school. Or maybe hearing non-stop Uptown Funk when I was working at some events in the summer messed with my brain. Either way I get far too into the 誰かのせいにはしたくない bit. 

4. Tsumetai Kaze to Kataomoi (Morning Musume)

This was love at first listen for me. Bit of a flashback to when I first started listening to Morning Musume is the lonely/wistful days of Nanchatte Renai.The vocals are probably some of the best I've heard from the current members. Anyone who moans about the current girls being bad singers compared past members should be pointed towards Mizuki, Riho, Masaki, Haruka and Sakura. I also feel like this is a much more traditional melody than usual from Tsunku, one that, at least should, please everyone.

3. Itooshikute Gomen ne (Country Girls)

Along with Taiki Bansei this is another song I see becoming a 'classic of 2015'. In twenty years when we are all complaining about the loss of flesh and blood idols to superidol robots we will look back on the glory days of Itooshikute Gomen ne with new perspective. For some reason this song seems to be, in my brain, the lovechild of a 1950s musical and an Onyanko Club song. Make of that what you will. My strange observations aside, this is a clever piece of songwriting and will stay stuck in your head for months. 

2. Seishun Kozou ga Naiteiru (Morning Musume)

This song is really everything I love about Tsunku's music. It packs it all in: chanting, strange pauses and rhythms, catchy chorus, odd old-fashioned lyrics etc etc. This song seemed to split opinions when it was first released but I hope more and more people have come round to its awesomeness. Also, as far as debut singles go, it's not quite 'Help Me' but it's certainly up there.

1. Ima Sugu Tobikomu Yuuki (Morning Musume)

Aaaannnndd, surprise! A non-Tsunku song for number one of 2015! This song has seriously made me consider starting up a #givetaiseimorework campaign. If the guy can write this and Sayonara Tomodachi ni wa Naritakunai no he must have a few more great songs in him. Anyway, I really love this melody and again, seeing on Green Room the effort that goes into recording the vocals (accents and rhythm mostly) made me appreciate it all the more. The Hello Project ballad we've been waiting for. Ima Koko kara can go suck....

Sayonara Sweet Sayumi

There is no denying it. Sayumi's graduation marks the end of an era. This girl has been in two-thirds of all the Morning Musume singles and 8 out of 14 studio albums. She is the last members to have been in the group with members from the first generation and the final survivor of the so-called platinum era. She has gone from the girl who everyone loves to hate to the girl everyone loves. Full stop. Which for a girl with no particular talent as a performer, someone who at school was friends with insects and came into the group as a narcissistic, self-proclaimed Tetris queen is no mean feat.

In 2002, at the ripe old age of 13, vocal prodigy Sayumi Michishige enters Morning Musume

This arguably rather awkward girl went on to become one of the best and most unique idols Hello!Project has ever seen. She is also undeniably rather beautiful; inside and out. As much of a cliche as that is. So what better way to look at her career than through photographs.

Adorable from the first なのに、どこ行ったんだよ！(And who can forget her flinging her mic across the floor in an early performance. Perfect)

First photobook a year after debut. This girl is going places.

Sayu learns from the best: Collaborative photobook with Ishikawa Rika 'Angels' released in 2005

Ecomoni: Raising environmental awareness and making ears bleed since 2004~

Somewhere along the way Sayu developed a trademark pose. Everyone loved it. Well...Ai doesn't look so sure

Talking of Takahashi, I believe that Sayumi only really went to the audition for an opportunity to proposition the girl on a regular basis. Not that Ai seems to mind...

Luckily Sayumi is fickle and had no problem finding some fresh meat

Despite Sayumi's fawning over the current front girl, she is a great leader of a great group

She has been known to do whatever it takes to bring attention to the group. Even if it involved portraying herself as a bit of a *name that isn't used in high society...outside of a kennel*

And how could one picspam Queen Sayumi without mentioning how simply stunning she is.

And how..well..you know... inappropriate I know

She is, despite the shortcomings mention earlier, close to perfection.

So,

Sayonara '14

Sayonara Sayumi.           (Don't stay away too long, okay?)

Aidoru vs. Audrey

One thing I am a tiny bit obsessed with, as should be obvious, is idols. Another thing that takes up more of my time than it should is watching old films. In my shallow mind pretty much any film made before 1970 gets bonus points and makes its way onto my “to-watch” list. And because I am a cliche teenage girl and the emotional equivalent of a fairy cake, I have seen an almost unholy number of Audrey Hepburn movies.

Whether she is Princess discovering the “real world”,

  a schoolteacher faced with lesbian rumours

 or making out with Peter O’Toole in a cupboard whilst attempting a heist,

 I am fascinated.

Where am I going with this?

Well I have figured out that the reason I love Audrey and the reason I love idols is actually almost the same. Audrey played all these different roles while still being Audrey Hepburn. She kept up an impeccable image and always acted with grace. While we never knew her personally we felt that we knew that she was kind and well, just lovely. She was an “almost girl next door” in that she was good natured and natural but a magnetism, talent and beauty that, I don’t know about you, I have never found next door. 

These qualities are exactly the same ones I recognise is my favourite idols. I guess there must be a reason why, even today, Japan is particularly Audrey crazy. 

I can’t remember who said it but I am sure someone once said “If you want the girl next door, go next door”. The best idols, in my opinion, are slightly untouchable. This is getting more and more rare these days with the use of handshake events to shift copies of singles but that’s a whole other discussion.

There's something about Nacchi's contained energy that's rather Audrey-esque

In one of my favourite pictures of Ai she is wearing the classic black polo-neck

Also, something that is significant in Japan, even in the idol world, is the idea of duty. We want our idols to be committed to their career and to their fans which is probably why people kick up such a storm at any “scandal”. And you know Princess Ann says in “Roman Holiday”…

 Were I not completely aware of my duty to my family and to my country, I would not have come back tonight... or indeed ever again!

(Bit Late I Know) Looking Back on 2013

Overall, I would say that in the mad world of Hello!Project 2013 pretty much took over where 2012 left off. The prominence of electronic music continued to rise, the groups became, if anything, even more dance focused and we saw more one-off units courtesy of Satoyama/Satoumi.

I doubt anyone remembers but this time last year I had a list of 'Hopes for 2013'. And now is the perfect time to see whether any of my dreams were realised.


Hopes for 2013

• Morning Musume. C-ute and S-mileage continue in their current style - This definitely happened.
• Berryz finally find a niche . . . please? - This never really happened...
• Better quality album tracks for all - S/mileage had a great album this year but other studio albums have been naff.
• Some more serious Buono! No more of the fluffy 'sherbet' nonsense. - Buono seems to have died a bit of a death.
• Less cheap looking concert costumes. - There were some nice ones in the summer concert I suppose.
• A successful acting career for Mano - In the unpromising world of ex-idols I'd say she's doing alright.
• More MVs shot outside? - Once again, thanks Satoyama.
• New photobooks for Risako and Miyabi - Miyabi-yes!, Risako-this year maybe?

 Best Single

 This double A-side single was the perfect representation of this era of Morning Musume and put their previous effort (Brainstorming/Kimi Sae Ireba Nani Mo Iranai) to shame.

Best Album

S/mileage's second studio album was, in my opinion, one of the best Hello!Project albums in recent year. Full of great singles such as 'Suki yo Junjou Hankouki' and 'Samui ne' and quality album tracks such as 'Shin Nippon no Susume' and 'Otona no Tochuu' this album is far and away the best one H!P has offered this year.

Best Outfits

Back to 'Ai no Gundan'. These outfit were just brilliant. This isn't the best picture but I love the fact that they are uniform but still have variety, match the theme of the song and looked great in the dance.

 

I also have a bit of a soft spot for these retro ensembles from Juice=Juice. I love the more casual vibe this new group have been given in terms of outfits and these are just adorable. And they look even better in the dance shot of the music video for 'Hajimete no Keiken Chuu'.

Best Music Video

I don't think there's been any particular stand outs this year but I do rather like the stylish feel to this one.


Members that have stood out well in  2013!

•  Fukumura Mizuki - Her performance level is so much higher than it was a year ago and since Reina's graduation she has moved into the forefront. 
• Ishida Ayumi - Ayumi is now much more than Riho's sidekick and has a powerful presence that I can't really describe
• Shimizu Saki - Saki can really work both the camera and the audience now and if she was a more consistent vocalist I am sure would be at the front with Miya and Risako
• Nakanishi Kana - With the whole 'Yataruchan' campaign Kana has really come into her own and found her niche within the group. Her singing and dancing have also improved considerably and I think we could be seeing a lot more of her.
• Kanazawa Tomoko - I don't think many people new much about Tomoko before she was placed in Juice=Juice but I immediately found myself wondering how she wasn't an idol already. One to watch, definitely.

 

Moving Into a New Era

With Morning Musume awash with new members and finding new popularity, the Hello!Project "Kids" having past the ten year mark, the revamped S/mileage really finding their feet and new group Juice=Juice entering on to the scene, I would say that it is appropriate to consider this as a new era for Hello!Project.

Starting with the addition of the 9th generation, or arguably the graduation of Eri, Junjun and Linlin, Morning Musume has overgone a huge member overhaul. Add to this a new music style, a focus on dance and an advertising campaign which focuses on 'The Current Morning Musume' and you have, pretty much, a reborn group. The only member who was part of the 'Platinum Era' is Michishige Sayumi, an idol so versatile and charming that she fits just as well into the current line-up as she did into that of the Platinum Era and indeed the 'Whatever came before the Platinum Era' Era. Since the graduation of Tanaka Reina, the group has shifted away from the usual two leads to having several members (namely, Sayumi herself, Fukumura Mizuki, Sayashi Riho, Ishida Ayumi, Sato Masaki and Oda Sakura) forming a sort of 'front row'. This formula worked brilliantly for their latest single 'Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke / Ai no Gundan' and is something I hope will be kept up. One thing that seems to being pushed as a talking point at the moment is Morning Musume's 'formation dance'. The choreography for recent singles is most definitely hitting the mark and is fascinating to watch. To accompany this fresh dance style is more electronic sounding music. I have always had a bit of a soft spot for this type of sound as so was thrilled when the group took on this style. Also, when the group are trying to re-introduce themselves to the current market, some sort of musical consistency isn't a bad thing to have.

Now as far as Berryz Koubou and C-ute are concerned. . . .
If I am completely honest, I don't see them lasting longer than a couple of years tops. There disbanding would however be a huge loss, so maybe I am wrong. Both groups sales have been rising as of late; C-ute's significantly, Berryz' less so. Both groups have become polished units and are a real asset to Hello!Project. Where their journey goes from here? It's difficult to tell.

When it comes to S/mileage I often feel I am one of few who are more interested by the current six member line up than the original four. The current six members are, I would say, a very diverse group of idols and this is probably one of the reasons why I am really enjoying their live performances at the moment. I honestly believe that on stage is where their strength lies, which is a bit odd considering they are not exactly stellar singers of dancers. Their sheer energy, however, is enough to completely hold my attention. Couple this with their latest album being one of the best Hello!Project albums of recent years, and it can be said that musically, they are succeeding. However, the group have been rather stagnant on the commercial side of things. Now, I am not a PR man. I don't know how to fix this. But what I do know is that S/mileage is a group with huge potential that people outside of the fanbase are not seeing.

Lastly we have the newest addition to the machine that is Hello!Project: Juice=Juice
Looking at their indie singles and their major label debut 'Romance no Tochuu' it appears that the sound Juice=Juice are going for is more of a funky, brassy, retro sound than that of their fellow H!P groups. When I first heard 'Romance no Tochuu' I thought of it as a more Tsunku version of Tokyo Girls' Style's brilliant track 'Unmei'. At the moment, I am really pleased with the direction of Juice=Juice and if it continues this same way I will be more than pleased.

Overall, I would say that it is clear that a change is going on at Hello!Project. 'Generation' is a word widely used in the idol business to refer to new members. Whether we agree with it or not, we are moving into a new generation of Hello!Project and in this context the word 'generation' refers to more than just new members. It is undeniably an exciting time to be Hello!Project fan.

After the disappointing 'Satoumi' single new Satoyama unit 'Jurin' save the day . . .

I never actually posted anything on the triple A-side Satoumi single but I think that the title of this post conveys my opinion fairly clearly. I honestly really wanted it to work. The combination of Airi and Risako sounded great but unfortunately the song they were given, while not being bad, never really seemed to go anywhere. The melody of HI-FIN's song was great and the music video was also pretty nice but the lyrics were cringe worthy even by Hello!Project standards. The other group (Mellow Quad?) left little impression on me.

Anyway. On to the proper subject of the post. When the unit 'Jurin' was first announced I thought to myself, "Don't we already have peaberry for this?". And, to be perfectly honest, that thought still crosses my mind occasionally. However, hearing the song, 'Hotaru Matsuri no Hi', I can't imagine it being sung by anyone other than Masaki and Karin.

The song in question definitely has similarities to Peaberry's 'Cabbage Hakusho'. In that they are both ballad-y, heartfelt and bear a certain sense of naivety. The mainly acoustic instrumentation works well and the girls' voices blend very well together. The lyrics are fairly non-ridiculous and the music video, while no 'Cabbage Hakusho ~Haru Hen~' is pretty nice.

All in all, I would say that 'Hotaru Matsuri no Hi' is one of my favourite songs to come from the Satoyama movement so far, along with 'Cabbage Hakusho' and to an extent 'Forest for Rest ~Fore Fore~'. I can't quite realise why it is only being released on a dvd single and will admit that it would make my day if a Satoyama compilation album was churned out some way down the line.

BREAKING NEWS! Blogger, Kath, finally gives in to her better senses and creates a Tumblr blog . . . .

. . . . . And it's called 'Mini Blogberry Pie'!

There have been several occasions recently when I have had an idea that while being decent, wasn't really expansive enough to justify an entire blog post. I thought this would just be one of these problems that I would just put up with and move on with my life.

But there was a very simple solution. And this is it: Mini Blogberry Pie

Tanaka Reina Graduates From Morning Musume

So, after the Higher maths exam from hell, I have finally sat down to write this post. And to be honest I don't really know where to start. The relationship between myself and 'Reina the Idol' has never been simple. When I became a fan of Morning Musume back in 2009, the platinum girls were still in full swing and the AiReina duo were at the forefront the whole time. These days, the 'platinum era' line-up are remembered for their performance skills and don't seem to get half as much stick as they did at the time. However, I'll admit that, I have never really got 'Reina the Performer'. Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate 'Reina the Singer'; no-one can deny that throughout her time in the group she has given some incredible vocal performances. Even 'Reina the Dancer' is alright really. Yet, I always felt that the passion I am sure she has never really translated to me as a fan.

A duo not to be messed with!

Reina's solo on last year's '13 Colorful Character' was another vocal highlight.

Now, an area where my views are completely different is where 'Reina the Personality' is concerned. While I never really hit it off with on-stage Reina, I think off-stage Reina is brilliant. She is one of the members who can be talking to a camera backstage and yet you really feel as if she is talking to you. I also enjoy reading her blog because she is one of the girls who writes in exactly the same way as she speaks. Reina, to me, despite her (former?) lone wolf attitude, comes across as charming and funny.

Whether you like it or not, Tanaka Reina has been a huge part of Morning Musume history and leaves a large gap to be filled by the younger members (who I'm sure will step up to the challenge).

Reina's graduation was held at Nippon Budokan and the venue looked incredible, filled with light blue penlights. Personally, I feel that Reina's graduation concert was a very positive event. One which was celebrating her time in the group and looking towards the future of both Morning Musume and Tanaka Reina. I've got to admit that Reina has really outdone her self by graduating in an outfit which is basically just a huge bow. I now really look forward to graduation outfits as I feel that since Ai's t-shirt and jeans combo, they have felt more personal and not like the graduating girl has been shoved into some massive glittery dress just because "that's the way it should be". Reina's outfit was loud, bright and overall very Reina and it is a pleasure to see her standing out and shining brightly while performing the final song, Shabondama.

田中れいなさん、お卒業おめでとう！

Brainstorming and Kimi Sae Ireba Nani mo Iranai

On Wednesday this week Morning Musume released their third double A-side single 'Brainstorming/Kimi Sae Ireba Nani mo Iranai'. Continuing the electronic style of the groups recent releases and bidding farewell to veteran member Tanaka Reina, I had high hopes for this single from the start. And I was right to have those hopes because aside from a few things here and there this has been a very solid release.

The leading song, 'Brainstorming', pretty much follows the formula of recent songs in terms of style and line distribution but does it brilliantly. In general, the song goes at quite a pace. However, this relentlessness is broken up by the lines sang by Oda which, similarly to her lines in 'Help Me!', are very contrasting to the rest of the song. In my opinion this is a great thing and I love the variety of voices we have in the group at the moment. I think it will be interesting to see what happens with Oda from here on out. Her voice is the exact opposite of Riho's and I feel that they would make a great leading team for that reason. Staying on the topic of line distribution, it's nice to see Fuku-chan becoming more and more prominent as time goes on. As for the video, I am fairly content. The lighting is nice and the costumes work in the setting. One thing I do wish is that they had employed somebody to polish that shiny floor as in the opening shot it looks mega-scratched.

Onto A-side number two! 'Kimi Sae Ireba Nani mo Iranai' is a little bit odd as far as songs go but I loved it from day one. Unfortunately not everyone felt the same way and a bit of a debate kicked of. So, here we go. . .
Reasons to love 'Kimi Sae Ireba Nani mo Iranai'
1. "2000 PEOPLE ON THE DANCE FLOOR"
2. The super robotic verses make real sense when you read the lyrics at the same time.
3. The chorus melody is great.
4. Haruna's cute little hat.

Reasons not to love 'Kimi Sae Ireba Nani mo Iranai'
1. Awkward dance moves.
2. Overuse of the salute. "You've gotta fight, fight, fight, fight, fight for your . . . .
3. . . . Yellow Pepper Keibu costumes!"

So, in conclusion, I would say that the pros outweigh the cons.

And for a very brief reference to the countless b-sides . . . .
'ABCD E-cha E-cha Shitai' and 'Tokimeku Tokimeke' are great, 'Itsumo Onaji Seifuku de' is nice if you like that kind of thing and 'Rock no Teigi' is a bit disappointing really.

Juice=Juice : Hello!Project's Fresh New Group

When I first heard that Hello!Project would be debuting a new group filled with eggs (yes, I still call them eggs) and Miyazaki Yuka (who had previously came to my attention in Satoyama unit 'Green Fields') I thought it would be a bit like that 'Kanojo ni Naritai' song that was released a while back. In other words, a bit like a poor man's S/mileage. Thankfully, I was wrong. What we have got is a saxtastic song, 6 exciting newish girls, some cute casual-style costumes and a cheap music video that reuses the set for Manoeri's 'Onegai Dakara'! . . . Okay so that last one is less enthralling but overall things are going pretty well.

With a group name that is simple but stupid, Juice=Juice's indie single's name is more long but alright. "Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakeshimenakya ne". Seriously, I don't think the Tsunkster really thinks of the 16 year old Scottish girls who's Japanese is limited to things like "田中さんのお母さんの車は赤です。" when he comes up with these titles.

Anyway, the group consists of six members; Miyazaki Yuka, Miyamoto Karin, Takagi Sayuki, Uemura Akari, Otsuka Aina and Kanazawa Tomoko. I used to find that even number groups are a bit awkward in terms of formations and such but since I fell in love with 6 member S/mileage I'm more up for it. I think Tomoko is the only one I know absolutely nothing about but she looked great in this video so I look forward to getting to know her more.

Overall, I like the song. I mean, it's not going to go on any favourites lists but it does its job well and the sax hook is pretty neat. The dance is bold and full of energy, making a nice contrast to the girls' pouty faces in the close-ups. In general, while this release is nothing ground breaking, I find that it gives a good impression of the girls and I am looking forward to seeing the direction they take on the route to a major label debut.

Mano Erina: A True Idol

 From my point of view Mano Erina is a brilliant idol, if a 'safe' one. She managed to merge retro and modern, cuteness and beauty, charm and mystery.

Mano's debut as a soloist perhaps surprised people at the time, but she went on to achieve many things: 3 indie label singles, 13 major label singles, 3 studio albums, 1 compilation album, several acting roles, 5 solo photobooks . . .
All these things she achieved with a welcoming, girl next door aura that made her as an idol.

Manoeri's music releases have been varied, ranging from the piano balladry of 'Manopiano' and 'Otome no Inori', to the super cute 'Sekai wa Summer Party', to the electro-pop 'Onegai Dakara'. However, all of it comes together because of the way Mano chooses to perform it.

Today, Mano Erina graduated from Hello! Project. She hopes to become an actress and I am sure she will be able to fulfil that dream. Good luck Mano-chan and thank you for everything up until now, and of course everything still to come!

 Mano Erina in the short film 'Miyuki's Wind Bell'

Looking back on the year that was 2012

Personally I would say that Hello! Project has had another great year. One that included (right, here goes)

• 20 singles (not including egg/kenshuusei releases)
• 4 studio albums and 1 mini-album
• 2 compilation albums
• 1 new member
• 2 graduations
• 10,000,000 mad hairstyles courtesy of Sugaya Risako
• 2 handle-bar moustache style pigtails (Yurushite-nyan!)
• Tonnes of yellow material wasted on chicken outfits

Now, onto the real business!

Best Single

C-ute's classic ballad 'Kimi wa Jitensha Watashi wa Densha de Kitaku' takes this one purely by ticking all the boxes: great song, good vocals, pretty outfits, nice choreo, good music video(s) . . .

Best Album

This year hasn't really been anything special in terms of albums but I will give this one to the Berryz in all their potato sack clad glory. All the singles from this cut were quality tracks and album songs such as 'Shy Boy' and 'Rennai Moyou' are well worth a listen.



Best Outfits

 

I actually think all the outfits for the 'Satoyama' units have been great. A bit less showy and a bit more just, nice.

 And another mention to C-ute! These outfits are just fantastic.

Best Music Video

Mano Erina's 'Song for the Date' wins this by a country mile. Remind me; why aren't all H!P music videos of this standard?

Members that have stood out well in 2012!

• Michishige Sayumi - In her first year as the leader of Morning Musume Sayumi has certainly shown why she's the perfect person for the job
• Sayashi Riho - Becoming an ever dominating lead, little Riho has stepped up to any challenge admirably.
• Iikubo Haruna - The originally awkward 10th generation member has found her niche as a spokesperson for the group.
• Tsugunaga Momoko - Another great year for Momochi as she continues her hard work and succeeds in becoming one of the best annoying people out there!
• Tokunaga Chinami - Okay, this one's a bit more shallow on my part . . . but isn't she just stunning! (and hilarious)
• Wada Ayaka - It seems this year that Dawa has finally become a great great leader!

Hopes for 2013

• Morning Musume. C-ute and S-mileage continue in their current style
• Berryz finally find a niche . . . please?
• Better quality album tracks for all
• Some more serious Buono! No more of the fluffy 'sherbet' nonsense.
• Less cheap looking concert costumes.
• A successful acting career for Mano
• More MVs shot outside?
• New photobooks for Risako and Miyabi 

 

S/mileage's great winter single 'Samui ne'

I have never really been too much of a S/mileage fan. I liked plenty of their songs, and the girls were all good fun but as a group I always regarded them as a little too balanced if that makes any sense. All 4 original members were on a fairly level playing ground in terms of talent and personality and the even number of members meant a set formation was difficult to have.

 After the dramatic line-up changes last year I was slightly worried about the group and if it would work but with the fantastic singles 'Suki yo Junjou Hankouki' and now 'Samui ne' I wonder why I ever doubted the new S/mileage at all. These songs are among the group's best in my opinion and although the S/mileage girls aren't the best performers in H!P they are now one of the most diverse groups and I hope that they can regain that possible success that we saw with the earlier line up.

 

Anyway, back to the single.

The song itself a great, fairly mellow, slightly 'turn of the century' styled affair that utilises synths and piano to create a intriguing sound. 

The video is also fairly pleasing with surprisingly decent use of lighting that manages to integrate the typically S/mileage outfits into the more mature song. Comparisons with C-ute's 'Aitai Lonely Christmas' are easily made but that video was also rather good so I won't be complaining!

In Conclusion, this is a very good release and has become the first S/mileage release I have bought the physical copy of. If that's not a good sign, I don't know what is!

The Winning Utahime Oda Sakura

I can't tell you how pleased I am!
The 11th generation audition has officially delivered what it promised to deliver! Sakura is a very talented young girl who i can tell will become an incredible force in the future. While she seems, at the moment, shy when she isn't performing I am not really worried about that as girls like Riho, Fukuchan, Eripon and Masaki have all managed to come out of their shell and develop a character. But hey, since people are already declaring her as a new (but much less fidgety and nervous looking) Aichan maybe that her shy nature is something that will be moulded but not removed. I try not to jump to conclusions but she will make a great front-runner alongside Riho once Reina says tatty bye. All the best lead duos have had a strong contrast. I predict Sakura will be the Nacchi to Riho's Goto, or the Ai to Riho's Reina.

 

Here, get to know the new recruit! 

The Unremarkable '13 Colourful Character'

So, Morning Musume have just released their new album '13 Colourful Character' and after last years very enjoyable, if oddly titled, '12 Smart' I was hoping for something of the same standard. And while this new album is by no means bad, it does not excite me like the last did. At the moment it sits around the middle of my album ranking along with the likes of 'Rainbow 7' and 'First time'. If anyone is curious I would classify albums 2,4,9,10 and 12 as favourites, 1,7,8 and 11 as good but rather "meh" in the grand scale of things and the remainder (3,5 and 6) as albums that have good tracks on them but don't work as a single entity.

The regular edition cover is one i reckon looks better in the flesh (well, plastic) . . .

The limited edition cover meanwhile, is actually one of my favourite Momusu album covers ever.

The album opens with the recent single 'One.Two.Three' which makes sense, given the song's success. It then moves on the the brilliant 'What's Up! Ai wa Dou na no yo' which is an infectious blend of all the things I love about the group recently before arriving at 'Be Alive' which I guess you could regard as this album's 'Loving You Forever' or 'Seishun Collection'. The melody is uplifting and in a way nostalgic but i feel something more could've been done with the arrangement. We then get to hear Sayu's solo song 'Lalala no Bibibi' which is cute and generally ear-pleasing if a bit of a rehash of last year's 'Suki da na Kimi ga'. This is followed by 'Dokkan Capriccio' which is frantic, full of 'crowd noises', and very similar in style to the 2011 album track 'Ok Yeah'. I won't dwell on 'The Mantenrou Show' as it feels we can't get away from it lately . . . So, moving on. While it's nice to hear the non RR member's voices a bit more 'Zero Kara Hajimeru Seishun' is a wee bit of a snooze fest. 'Renai Hunter' is still great and 'Chikyuu ga Naiteru' is not quite what I expected from the title but is passable and some of the vocal melodies in the verses are good fun. I do however feel that we could've done with something slightly less hyper from this particular track. Reina's solo 'Namida Itteki' is in fact very interesting. Despite the r&b styled beats the melody is very 'Japanese' in style and feels like it could've been written decades ago. The 9th and 10th gen song 'Waratte You' is perfectly pleasant but not particularly remarkable and well, 'Pyoko Pyoko Ultra'  . . . is best forgotten.

In conclusion, 'What's Up! Ai wa dou na no yo', 'Lalala no Bibibi' and 'Namida Itteki' are where it's at in terms of new tracks and they are the ones you should be skipping off to itunes to purchase!

New S/mileage, Morning Musume and Buono!

The past week or so has been fairly exciting, with new music from three of the Hello! Project groups. (Well, there has also been a radio preview of C-ute's new single but it was too short to tell anything from really.)

First up is S/mileage's 'Suki yo, Junjou Hankouki'.

I have too admit, I loved this song as soon as I heard the concert rip. The 'Suki yo, suki yo, suki yo' part of the chorus is just too infectious! The costumes, that we saw way back, are somewhat unrelated to the song but, hey, they are a cute pointer towards the current Olympics. The choreography is actually pretty decent but I think S/mileage have always been fairly fortunate as far as routines go. Also, the main set seems, to me, what High King's 'Cinderella/Complex' should have been. The set is similar in terms of lighting and colour palette to that of 'C/C' but is much larger than that of the former, allowing the dance routine to flow and not seem overcrowded. The lighting of some of the close-ups is, in my opinion, a bit too wishy-washy but all in all I would say that this was a successful music video for a great little song. This also is the first single where I feel the 2nd generation members are placed on the same 'tier' so to speak, as Dawa and Kanyon. I also really appreciate this amount of spotlight on Rina. She is a lovely girl with a sweet voice and it's about time she got to rock some more solos!

Next is two new songs from the upcoming Morning Musume album '13 Colourful Character' that are also being used as audition songs.

First off, Reina's trousers are mightily distracting! Also, I noticed that Sayumi actually dances very well these days.   
The song, titled 'WHAT'S UP? Ai wa douna no yo~ is interesting and experimental. Just in this short clip we already have great synths, rap and speech like lines. It really is something. Opening song?
Part of me wants to know who that is on the chorus now that Ai 'chorus voice' Takahashi is no longer in the group. Whoever it is has done a fine job.
The dance has a sort of 'The Peace'-like move at the beginning and other parts remind me of a much more technically demanding 'Kiiroi Osora de BOOM BOOM BOOM'. I am really looking forward to seeing this one live.

The other song is 'Be Alive', a warming ballad. It is a very nice, while not being terribly innovative, song that really sings out 'Morning Musume'. The vocals actually sound fairly pleasant, especially considering that this is now a rather inexperienced group. Overall, I think this creates a rather good impression of the new Momusu.

Last but in no way least is Buono! with 'Never gonna stop!' from their upcoming mini-album 'Sherbet'.

I always like Buono songs but at times I thought some of them were just a bit too musically similar for my tastes, probably due to them being pigeonholed into the sort of pop/rock sound. Of course songs like 'Partenza let's go' were amazing breaths of fresh air and I think that while not going such an extreme again Buono has retained a certain variety this year with 'Hatsukoi Cider', 'DEEP MIND' and now 'Never gonna stop!' all being very differently styled and I really appreciate that.
This time they have gone with a very optimistic and bright style however the vocals and parts of the instrumental have a much heavier edge making this song very fun to listen to.
The music video is very sweet and I love how they included footage from the concert in France as it just shows how far Buono have come as a group and just how they are 'Never gonna stop!'.