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Japanese Music (Pop, rock and all 'dat) |OT|

K

Kansoku

Member
So i listened to tricot E trough this. I like it. The song itself is alright, but it sounds like their old stuff, so I got a little more excited for their new album.
 
L

llehuty

Member
FloppyDelux said:
Set list for the blu ray:
Opening
Cling Cling
Handy Man
Clockwork
レーザービーム
いじわるなハロー
I still love U
恋は前傾姿勢
EPISODE 0
エレクトロ・ワールド
DISPLAY
SEVENTH HEAVEN
「P.T.A.」のコーナー
Party Maker
GLITTER
セラミックガール
ジェニーはご機嫌ななめ
チョコレイト・ディスコ
Hold Your Hand
[特典映像/ENCORE] リニアモーターガール

[特典映像/ENCORE] Perfume

[特典映像/ENCORE] 願い
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I understand old songs not making the cut, but no Sweet refrain is weird.

But Ceramic Girl is there. That song is so much fun.
 
M

MezzoForte

Member
Kansoku said:
So i listened to tricot E trough this. I like it. The song itself is alright, but it sounds like their old stuff, so I got a little more excited for their new album.
Click to expand...

pretty sure they did the same thing for Break. I think I'm just gonna wait lol. A video is bound to happen, anyways.
 
P

Peru

Member
AKB singles itunes downloads

20150119-akb48-itunes.png
 
L

llehuty

Member
SweetDonuts said:
Perfume's tour setlist has been out since the tour started, did you guys not watch the WOWOW broadcast or anything?.
Click to expand...

Most of the times (always?) WOWOW broadcast doesn't include the whole thing. That's the case with this Perfume tour, with 恋は前傾姿勢 and the 3 encore songs (リニアモーターガール, Perfume, 願い) being exclusive to the DVD/bluray.

Edit: And still the DVD/bluray doesn't include the whole thing since it seems they also performed Voice during that tour.
 
S

SweetDonuts

Member
llehuty said:
Most of the times (always?) WOWOW broadcast doesn't include the whole thing. That's the case with this Perfume tour, with 恋は前傾姿勢 and the 3 encore songs (リニアモーターガール, Perfume, 願い) being exclusive to the DVD/bluray.

Edit: And still the DVD/bluray doesn't include the whole thing since it seems they also performed Voice during that tour.
Click to expand...

Oh I know, I just assumed wrongly that everyone read the track-list of the tour months ago lol.

Also, some fans think that since Nakata took the time to name the interlude 'EPISODE 0' it could appear on the next album in some form (which would be kinda great).
 
L

Larsa

Member
The first studio album by Oomori Seiko and The Pink Tokarev will be released on March 4, titled トカレフ

Tracklist:

01. hayatochiri
02. ワンダフルワールドエンド
03. 少女3号
04. みかんのうた
05. ミッドナイト清純異性交遊
06. 料理長の音楽は豚肉の焼ける音だった
07. 新宿
08. Over the party
09. 苺フラッペは溶けていた
10. 最終公演
11. 歌謡曲
12. これで終わりにしたい

The Wonderful World End movie (trailer), which Seiko was in charge of the music for, will also be released on DVD the same day.

So fucking hyped for this, I was hoping that an album with The Pink Tokarev would be following Sennou. The tracklist is missing this awesome version of Senaka no Zipper though.
 
M

MezzoForte

Member
Garasu Goshi no Bousou put out a cool and rather extensive trailer/preview of their upcoming EP to be released on February 4th. Definitely like what I'm hearing, a continuation of my most beloved J-indie rock styling. Her vocals aren't as trained as Ikkyu's but every bit as raw imo. I think they could definitely benefit from more ambience in the production but for this type of music, the sound is more than good enough. Peep it. Pre-order it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRgqWyz9oCk&feature=youtu.be
 
S

stump sock

Member
broz0rs said:
I literally laughed and cringed at this collaboration, but once I started to listen to the track I had an about turn and thought it was so awesome. I found a link to a mini-documentary about their first meeting and it's really cute.

Momoiro Clover Z meets KISS
Click to expand...

Here's the full hour-long documentary with english subs.

I'll echo here what I said about the song: It's way better than expected, and the chorus and video are both awesome. The arrangement is kind of questionable and the last two minutes of the song don't really go anywhere.

Still, not bad.

B74j63eCcAAgKD4.jpg
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3 of my favorite ladies in one place
 
Aizo

Aizo

Banned
I don't know how to copy youtube links on mobile from the app, so here's a new Handsome Kenya MV from the site I write for.
here
 
K

Kurita

Member
So...
KANA-BOON's TIME
JTEV1MI.jpg
Click to expand...

1. タイムアウト
Great opener, not their most original song but you know, an alright KANA-BOON song is still fantastic.

2. LOL
I wouldn't be surprised if this became one of their new killer tunes during festivals and live shows. Super dynamic, a verse where Maguro is almost doing hip-hop... One of the best songs of the album by far.

3. ターミナル
This could've been Naruto's opening instead of シルエット, both songs have a similar feel to them. Really digging the chorus.

4. 結晶星
The first "slow" songs of the album. A song from their indie days, it was then re-recorded and became their second major single. Still a great and emotional song that they wrote back when they didn't know how famous they'd become.

5. クラクション
Starts with a claxon noise like the title says. I love the way the guitar sounds before the verses, almost sounds like a bass (made me think of Miyavi who often uses that effect).
Vocals remind of their song バカ, that amazing b-side from their latest single so that's a good thing.

6. フルドライブ
Welp, after the claxon, here comes the car with Full Drive. I think it's my favorite KANA-BOON song. I listened to it all day when the single came out last year. So much energy, Maguro sures knows how to sound like machine gun.

7. 生きてゆく
I wasn't the biggest fan of this song when it came out, I thought the b-sides were better but know I love it. In the context of the album it works really well.

8. スコールスコール
One of the best new songs along with LOL. Love the somewhat sad intro leading to an highly energetic refrain.

9. 愛にまみれて
A pretty emotional song. Still has the KANA-BOON characteristics I love but it feels somewhat personal? Maguro says it's an important song for him and I believe him.

10. シルエット
The song they've always dreamed of doing, used as Naruto's opening. One of their best songs

11. スノーグローブ
Winter isn't over yet and this song definitely has a Winter-ish feel to it. Good balance between dynamisn and romantic vibes.

12. パレード
Perfect way to end the album. A song they wrote with their upcoming Budokan and Osaka Hall's shows in mind. Facing towards the future, wondering where they'll go next. Love it.

So is it a better album than DOPPEL? I need to give it a few more spins but yeah, I think they raised the bar once again.
Best band in the world! (that hyperbole)
 
R

Rooster12

Member
AlabastreAizo said:
I'm looking forward to that.
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Best J-Rap albums of 2014

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780.jpg
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Campanella-Vivid
JJJ- Yacht Club
R-指定 - Second Opinion
KOHH - Monochrome
Hatanai Atsushi - SOSAI
Skillkills - Illgenic
Norikiyo - Kumo to Doro to Te
CUBEc.u.g.p - Yellow Funknation
Libro - Completed Tuning
Kojoe x Olive Oil - Black Note
Raq - The Bible
Aru-2 x Kid Fresino - Backward Decisions for Kid Fresino
Simi Lab- Page 2: Mind Over Matter
Super Sonics - Scratch Your World
Hidenka x Fumitake - Muddy Water
 
Aizo

Aizo

Banned
Rooster12 said:
Best J-Rap albums of 2014



Campanella-Vivid
JJJ- Yacht Club
R-指定 - Second Opinion
KOHH - Monochrome
Hatanai Atsushi - SOSAI
Skillkills - Illgenic
Norikiyo - Kumo to Doro to Te
CUBEc.u.g.p - Yellow Funknation
Libro - Completed Tuning
Kojoe x Olive Oil - Black Note
Raq - The Bible
Aru-2 x Kid Fresino - Backward Decisions for Kid Fresino
Simi Lab- Page 2: Mind Over Matter
Super Sonics - Scratch Your World
Hidenka x Fumitake - Muddy Water
Click to expand...
Bless you.
 
broz0rs

broz0rs

Member
I'm subscribed to the AKB48 YouTube channel and I noticed that they are counting down something in the hundreds per video (900-800, 500-400). I finally clicked on one today and realized that each of those numbers are fucking songs. My God.. so basically, the AKB groups have produced over a thousand songs over a ten year period?
 
K

Kurita

Member
Earth Sick said:
AKB would know something about shitty songs/shitty bands.

I'm sorry

I thought the song was pretty adorable. It was a decent mix of popular western music and SnO's own style. Not just a blatant carbon copy.
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Yeah they're great!
Their latest album is pretty nice, my only complaint would be that the majority of the album is singles/b-sides, there's like 3 new songs. But hey, RPG, Death Disco, ピエロ, Dragon Night... are so fucking good, I don't mind that much.
Perfume, SEKAI NO OWARI, Kanjani8 and Arashi are basically the only J-pop acts I can listen to.
 
E

Earth Sick

Banned
Kurita said:
Yeah they're great!
Their latest album is pretty nice, my only complaint would be that the majority of the album is singles/b-sides, there's like 3 new songs. But hey, RPG, Death Disco, ピエロ, Dragon Night... are so fucking good, I don't mind that much.
Perfume, SEKAI NO OWARI, Kanjani8 and Arashi are basically the only J-pop acts I can listen to.
Click to expand...

You really have to dig extremely deep to find good J-pop acts. Most of them don't appear in the '' Oricon Top 30 '' list to begin with. Though Arashi? I'm going to disagree with you on that one, but it's a matter of taste, I get it i get it.

I think Namie Amuro is the only artist I could really invest time on.
 
P

Peru

Member
You don't, really. 2014 was an absolutely excellent year for j-pop. Amazing variation in sound and approach, more experimentation from both girl groups and solo artists - songwriters thrilled with the potential of exploring all the fun potential in their scene. Even old stalwarts like H!P groups and Tsunku were on an absolute roll delivering their best material.

That's actually an underreported positive side effect of the Japanese idol-y fan culture with loyal fan bases, though it's mostly sprung to life in the past few years: An acceptance of wild, new, original musical ideas and sounds. Some of it takes form as gimmicks, but some artists simply earn a reputation for exploration and creativity.

I mean you have the traditional idol group Team Syachihoko delivering six minute challenging epics, you have indie-oriented idols like Especia taking a trendy sound and making it their own, TGS working with Maltine Records, but then you also have outlier pop groups like BiS splitting and forming several interesting entities, like Tentenko turning vaporwave singer songwriter.

Not to mention one of the biggest 'a star is born' moments in Seiko Omori's rise to major label debut while still challenging everything being a pop star is about. Or the many up and coming electro starlets like Curumi Chronicle

Listening to sedate trash like Sekai when you have all of this is just wrong..
 
E

Earth Sick

Banned
Well I wouldn't call it sedate trash... I just feel that whenever I hear one of their songs, it's fresh, unique and interesting. And I like the vocalist, and that's saying something because I don't generally like male vocalists.

None of the artists/groups you listed sparked much interest in me. Curumi Chronicle seemed fun though.

But I'm happy that the jpop scene delivered goodies to you in 2014.

My favourite release from 2014 would be this. I treasure this album.
 
E

Earth Sick

Banned
And I like japanese music. But I feel like you have to get through a lot of crap before you can find something that you can really enjoy. I appreciate things like vocal talents and good beats, but those things are hard to find in japanese (popular) music. Much easier to find such things in the western (popular) music scene. Just my view on things, and I'm glad you, for example, have it easier.

I guess I'm picky.
 
K

Kurita

Member
I'm glad there's diversity, I'm not denying it. But the majority of female vocalists just don't appeal to me so even if the music itself is decent I just can't get into it.
My loss I guess.
 
E

Earth Sick

Banned
Kurita said:
I'm glad there's diversity, I'm not denying it. But the majority of female vocalists just don't appeal to me so even if the music itself is decent I just can't get into it.
My loss I guess.
Click to expand...

Oh totally. But in general, japanese music scene is less about talent and creating art, but more about presentation and making people happy with ones music. At least, that's what I think, might be wrong though.

So it really doesn't matter if one's voice isn't trained or that they sound extremely '' generic '' because the most important thing is to be presentable, be a role model and as said, entertain. Less about the music, more about the people, I think.

There are certain types of voices that I keep hearing in both japanese female AND male vocalists, and it's hard to one someone with an unique, somehow polished voice.
 
S

stump sock

Member
I'm with Peru, 2014 was a great year for j-pop. Oomori Seiko and Goto Mariko both put out some incredible off-beat pop music. Alternative idol groups (or rather, their managers and producers, I guess) have not only managed to prove that idol groups aren't artistically bankrupt by definition, but also made some of the most interesting and progressive music in the scene.

you have You'll Melt More! putting out 10-minute krautrock tributes, shoegaze songs, and collaborations with noise groups. Bellring Shoujo Heart made one of the trippiest albums of any genre. BiS being BiS. Team Syachihoko, Ebichu, and Dempagumi bringing the wackiness.

there's just a whole segment of the pop world that's decided to just throw everything at the wall to see what sticks and it's a wild and rewarding ride to follow.
 
K

Kurita

Member
Earth Sick said:
Oh totally. But in general, japanese music scene is less about talent and creating art, but more about presentation and making people happy with ones music. At least, that's what I think, might be wrong though.

So it really doesn't matter if one's voice isn't trained or that they sound extremely '' generic '' because the most important thing is to be presentable, be a role model and as said, entertain. Less about the music, more about the people, I think.

There are certain types of voices that I keep hearing in both japanese female AND male vocalists, and it's hard to one someone with an unique, somehow polished voice.
Click to expand...

I think that comment applies to every country's "mainstream" (I don't use that word in a derogatory manner though) artists, not just Japan.

One thing to add though, which is kinda related to your "Making people happy" remark : I love Japanese rock to death because overall it just seems more fun than Western rock. Western artists seem too serious and kinda boring. When I click on links in the Rock thread I feel like I'm going to fall asleep, while Japan has キュウソネコカミ, KANA-BOON, KEYTALK, the telephones, The Mirraz... doing stuff that seems unimaginable in the UK/US.
 
E

Earth Sick

Banned
Kurita said:
I think that comment applies to every country's "mainstream" (I don't use that word in a derogatory manner though) artists, not just Japan. Japan's music has its own codes and whatnot but in no way talent and "art" are not considered as centerpieces.
I guess it's subjective though.
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Well the monstorous force that is idol groups has proven me that talent isn't necessary needed. I'm familiar with my home country's, USA's and Japan's '' mainstream '' music, and Japan is, I feel, the one with the least amount of presentation of talented artists. I'm left underwhelmed most of the time.

Though what is talent is subjective. Everything is. Just my thoughts on the matter.

But I'm going to change the subject. I was OBSESSED with this song when I was much younger. I found it by searching Guilty Gear combo videos because I was fanatic about the series. And thus GG combo videos became my main source for Japanese music..

Kurita said:
One thing to add though, which is kinda related to your "Making people happy" remark : I love Japanese rock to death because overall it just seems more fun than Western rock. Western artists seem too serious and kinda boring. When I click on links in the Rock thread I feel like I'm going to fall asleep, while Japan has キュウソネコカミ, KANA-BOON, KEYTALK, the telephones, The Mirraz... doing stuff that seems unimaginable in the UK/US.
Click to expand...

Yeah, definitely. I think that's what Japan really has over western world's music scene.
 
P

Peru

Member
stump sock said:
I'm with Peru, 2014 was a great year for j-pop. Oomori Seiko and Goto Mariko both put out some incredible off-beat pop music. Alternative idol groups (or rather, their managers and producers, I guess) have not only managed to prove that idol groups aren't artistically bankrupt by definition, but also made some of the most interesting and progressive music in the scene.

you have You'll Melt More! putting out 10-minute krautrock tributes, shoegaze songs, and collaborations with noise groups. Bellring Shoujo Heart made one of the trippiest albums of any genre. BiS being BiS. Team Syachihoko, Ebichu, and Dempagumi bringing the wackiness.

there's just a whole segment of the pop world that's decided to just throw everything at the wall to see what sticks and it's a wild and rewarding ride to follow.
Click to expand...

Pretty much. There are several groups doing Japanese rock I love, but if anything's wildly creative and unique about Japanese music of 2014-15 it's to be found in their pop scene.
 
S

stump sock

Member
my teens were spent living and breathing 80's hardcore and 90's death/black metal. shitty vocals married to interesting music is mother's milk.
 
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