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After a while, updating this blog became a job. Why? Not because I didn't like it, but because I had writers block. I had the perfect subject to write about, but getting it out became impossible. The blog lost all of it's wit, or anything it had before. The blog was theoretically sucked dry, and maybe so was I...of inspiration.
This thing is my baby, I love it, I really truely do. But, certain things have to be done. I doubt anyone reads here, and for those who enjoyed it, I thank you so much. And to those who commented, I thank you even more, for the blog wouldn't have made it's way past a month without those random bursts of encouragement. Thanks to everyone.
If anyone is wondering wether or not I've quit blogging...I dunno. I love to write, but I guess I'll just have to see if lightning strikes twice. If you want, PM me your email address and I'll try to contact you if anything starts up (I know, that seems conceited to think people would even care, but I figure, give it a try, right?)
I will miss getting your comments, debating, and overall, seeing what people think. I tried so hard to keep this thing going, but it seems that the cherry bowl emptied, or, the cherry blossom tree ran out of blossoms and petals...you know, something deep like that.
I'm sentimental, so for old times sake, lets show some lyrics from the blogs name sake, shall we?
I hope to write for you all again some time!
It's been almost year, if not a year now, since Kago was put on hiatus.
Now, I know EVERYONE is writing on this, everyone. But, I don't think H!P is going overboard. NO, I don't mean that the sentence isn't to long, I mean I don't think they're doing it on purpose.
Look, H!P has a long history of laziness. T&C Bomber anyone? Good girls, good talent, good singers, good songs....bad premotion resulting in bad sales resulting in H!P not even wanting to try anymore and therefore giving up on the group and letting them go.
Coconuts Musume = Bad concept (Japan is a pretty nationalistic country. They're more patriotic than the US, they just don't get as much crap for it. Thus, they aren't going to accept some below average, if not OKAY looking AKA not that pretty "gaijins" singing in broken Japanese (though, admittedly, not ALL of them spoke it badly. Some could speak it, and Danielle did pretty damn good.) and H!P just clears them out and does nothing, instead letting Ayaka rot in that basement in H!P HQ where Yuko, Kei, Kaori, and several other H!P "members" live.
They don't know how to bring back Ai. While plaguerism is a bigger crime and certainly WORSE ONE than smoking underage, it doesn't soil the squeaky clean image. Wota's don't care as long as their short little 19 year olds can still act and sound like 9 year olds. And most 9 year olds...DON'T smoke. If Ai DOES come back, she will bring back a bad reputation for H!P and soiled image for herself. If she doesn't come back she remains a problem on the back burner for several years. If they graduate her from H!P, they graduate one of their most important pieces of H!P history. They go with back burner. Can you blame them? There are no reprocutions from putting her on the back burner, the fans get tired, more pissed with time, but can't really start to truely complain until she's gone for about a year and a half.
I, personally, don't know what they should do either. W's sales were on decline after Miss Love Tantei anyway, and they'd only be worse.
Here's to Tsunku getting old and tired! -glass clink-
Idols lack honesty. GOD knows what most of our idols do that they are scrambling to cover up like, oh. my. god. Having....sex when they're, like 22? OMG HOW TABOO. REALLY.
But then, there is a glimmer of hope in this sad, sad world, full of the empty, souless capsules that are idols...
A small, shimmering light that gives us faith in humanity.
That there folks....is our Jesus. Oh, yes, I just assigned Mikitty place as Jesus in jpopland.
She adjusts herself, curses, squeals, screams, yankees without doing it insanely obviously on purpose, smokes, drinks, gropes, GOD knows what else....
And DAMN what I'd do to get at a piece o' THAT!
But, regardless, while I am sure Miki has her fair share of glistening idol polish coating her....she's not so obvious about it. She doesn't wink at the camera every 5 seconds as if her eye were bleeding, nothing like that...She's an honest bitch. And that's why I love her.
Ignore this dazed but truthful entry....I slept late today -just woke up-.
Okay, maybe not first...I hate to admit it, but my first H!P purchase was a photobook. Yes, a photobook.
Uh, but, moving on.
So, I bought something you probably won't expect, but it was actually T&C Bomber's debut album. Yes, T&C Bomber AKA Taiyo & Ciscomoon or some such crap.
Listening to this, I find just what I'm looking for. Smooth, clear, mature voices, singing clear, cool, and collected RnB.
I don't even LIKE RnB, much less J-pop wanna be RnB, but damn if this wasn't a smart purchase.
If we had voices like this in MM, maybe I wouldn't be so harsh on their singing.
So, putting Endless Love on C-ute's debut album was obviously a good idea. It got me interested ina group that a lot of people don't even know about, much less have heard.
I like both versions of Endless Love equally, though I think the older voices suit it far more. It's less of dance track/90's SPEED wanna be crap, and more of a smooth RnB hit. Of course, obviously, it wasn't a hit, considering how short lived T&C was.
And this gets me thinking: Why do Japanese singers prefer someone squeaky, high pitched, and tone deaf, over someone who is GASP lowly voiced? Even Japanese male singers, like, say, Gackt. Gackt has a very high voice for a man, and though he can sing very low, he also has more high range than you usually see on a guy. But, it runs far more rampant with girls.
Which ALSO led me to thinking, why did this group have no success? It can't only be the voices, I seriously doubt that.
Weird.
As many of you may know, Yossie's brother was hit by a car recently. I really can't speak about this matter, I've been avoiding it. I knwo nothing about her brother at all, and maybe he was even a prick, like I said, I don't know. But for me, it's depressing when anyone dies, anyone at all. My best wishes are with Yossie and her family.
Because Yossie deserves it. You know, I really like the costumes in this, and they're gorgoeus, buuut...they still look like any halloween costume you could buy at walmart, though with maybe SLIGHTLY more expensive fabric.
So, it's could thing I don't care about cost, becaus ethey ALL look gorgeous.
Well, except Nacchi...Nacchi should neverm ever have to pull her hair back. Her face is too round for it, it doesn't have ANY angles, it looks like she has a bowling ball for a head. : |
NOW, ONWARD TOWARDS THE YOSSIE FANGIRLING!
I think Yossie just may be the only H!P girl that looks good with her hair pulled from her face. Even tightly. I remember that phase she went through where she always pulled her bangs upward into a sort of...pointy thing? It actually looked fit for a three year old, not a good style, but it didn't make Yossie look bad. The only others I can think of that look good/okay like that is Kaori and Ai Takahashi.
I have nothing against Ai, at ALL. but she looked WAAAAAAAAAAAY cuter at hat age. No, seriously, what happened? Has she had work done or something? I'm not a member of the "Ai had EYE surgery" cult, but ALL of her features look different. She even looked a lot different just once she hit 13, when she started wearing her hair in those GAWDAWFUL buns to match Tsuji. Tsuji looked okay in them. Ai didn;t.
Am I insane or did Yuuko look like Daniele in this video? The one from Coconuts? I only realized just, say, a few months ago that that was Yuuko. Weird...
I like these costumes more, oddly enough. They're really...weird, in a way, but the bright colors and such suit the girls, and the video better...well, the other costumes suit the SONG more, of course, what with the Indian theme and such.
I suppose there truely is not denying it, despite how...odd, Rika looks like that, looking at the rest of the PV, she's quite obviously probably one of the most, if not the most, attractive of 4th gen.
I still don't like her much, though. :P I like her MORE without blonde hair, though. I think we ALL do. It's a shame the photo's for Elders Club were taken a little before she dyed it back.
Anyone else find it disturbing that Yossie has three front teeth instead of two? No, seriously, if you can get a good picture, you'll see, one of her teeth is squished right next to the other two, and the same length. I think I'd prefer my teeth look like Tsuji's than that, though I obviously <3 Yossie far more. Hell, I rather have any teeth than my own. Ever heard of a...gap? Ew.
Anyone know how tall Yossie was back then? She's a head or three taller than Ai now. Isn't she like 5'4? She dwarfs all the others, except Sayu and Koharu. Which is funny, because here, she'd be considered short.
She had rather sizeable GIRLS when she auditioned, but around the time of 4th gen she lost them, then when she graduated they were back, and then around...21? Around the time women have their last "growth spurt", hers go BOOM. I'm not going to accuse her of having work done, though, because she was already pretty busty.
I'm starting to realize I am somewhat of a rarity here. I do NOT, under any circumstances, think bikini photobooks for anyone under atleast 15 is right. I can actually look at a western or just European girl in general and find her attractive.
I can admit that even the Hilary Duffs and Lindsay Lohans we have here probably have more range than Ai Takahashi.
Oh, yes, I said it. The girl is NOT an especially good singer. Momusu? Sure. But I seriously doubt anyone would be able to make it by with that voice in America. Not that I'm tooting America's horn, I hate it here, at the moment. But, as we don't generally have "idols", our music buisness still has some kind of standard, and I don't think a single person in H!P could reach it except maybe Nacchi or Mikitty. And if Yossie got some real vocal training, her too.
I am not looking at the j-pop world from star-spangled American glasses, I'm just admitting to it's apparent downfalls. Or, downfalls from my point of view.
Idols are fanservice.
Their entire existance is to be a product, and while the Britney Spears's and such of yester-year (oh, like SHE still has a career anymore, right? She's a thing of the past.) are as well, I can't stand them, either.
I think Koharu MIGHT be able to make it here (thi sis all hypothetical. it'll never happen, but say she was American and not Japanese.) on her cuteness and youth alone. When at her age, they'll let you get away with being tone deaf.
But it seems in idol land, they'll let you get away with being tone deaf even if you're 20 (just....not being 20. Because anything over 15 is old.)
My point is: I was raised a certain way. While I do not agree with my mother on most things, there are still many of her lessons I have kept with me, because I have always agreed with them. I grew up around only musicians. Both sides of my family, just about everyone has mastered, ro near mastered, and instrument of some kind. Because of this, I have very high standards as far as music goes, and I know a less than stellar singer when I hear one, and I'm certainly not going to be afraid to mention it. So, along with being pessimistic and nti-picky about music, I'm also, apparently, old fashioned in thinking that photobooks are there only for one reason, and that reason is not one any child should be associated with.
End story.
I sort of feel like the blacksheep of j-pop blogging, these days....
Okay, so '06 was the year I REALLY got into j-music. There's no point in lying about that- I'm a newb.
But, for a year that should've been relatively big, I am looking over it and realizing really nothing happened in the world of j-music for me.
American music either, actually. My Chemical Romance and Taking Back Sunday put out new albums, and that's it, on the western front for me. 2007 doesn't seem to have much in stock, either. Oh, yeah, we have GAM's new single to look forward to, solidifying that they are now an official group (not that all that promotion was pointing to anything else, anyway.) But we aren't going to ge tmuch more in this PV than the other one, unless they release a 69 ver. with added, useless sex noises like in Melodies. Though, maybe this time they won't cut right before the lips meet....you never know. GAM actually took it a step farther than Viyuuden ever did. Viyuuden merely touched each other; as if touching someone's leg or crawling over them can be DIRECTLY sexually connected. Or, atleast, in MY life, it isn't....don't know about you. But anyway, my odd interests and activities aside (or does j-pop count in that category?), a kiss CAN be connected to one of two things. An extremely intimate show of affection (something I refuse to associate sex with...) or sex. Either one is very, very yuri. And ecchi, in a way, if you're conservative. And -awesome.-
And we have the reunion single, but that is not looking especially hot to me right now. The only stand out-ish things are: OMFG YAY KAORI IS GROWING HE RHAIR OUT AGAIN. YAY. SHROT HAIR WAS SUCH A BAD DECISION. SEVEN YEARS GROWING IT AND SHE -CUT IT-. >_> Look, Kaori, if I have to regret it, you do too.
Besides that, you have Koharu (a given. Though, I would've TEN TIMES preferred Yuuko.) Nacchi, and Maki. All of them are fairly active, excluding Nacchi, some what, because her sales have been pretty disappointing, resulting in slightly rare-r releases. Koharu, however, is two singles in and already releasing an album, completely hidden under the disguise of a stupid anime show that I can't stand, knowing I'll have to hear that whiney, high pitched, over-acting hyper voice of Koharu's for atleast half an hour. And then Maki, who is THE Miracle Girl, no matter what Koharu may think of her self. I don't know about Koharu, but surely Tsunku knows that if Maki's sales were to go down, and, you know, go down to like, Nacchi level, H!P would be near death.
After that...what is there to look forward to? Not much. Yet, anyway. So H!P this year looks pretty bad, and'06 was fairly un-eventful besides some of the odd choices Tsunku made (but them being and odd and from Tsunku makes them -normal.-)
So, in OTHER things I can tolerate/listen to, uh, Dir en grey, yes, them!
Agitated Screams of Maggots is...horrible, song wise. YES, I SAID IT. I could some what tolerate Clever Sleazoid, and i actually like recent stuff, but I. Don't. Like. Metal. I don't dislike it, especially, well, okay, this kind of metal/hard core/screamo muttm yes, I do. But I dislike how Diru does it, slightly less than normal. So, all as fine and good with Clever Sleazoid, though I was both highly amused and slightly disturbed to know said video is getting played here.
That's just...creepy. Or, was. But now they're touring here, so I'm not really bothered by it.
But, back to music. Clever Sleazoid - okay, somewhat listenable on a rare basis. It's just...too agressive. And...not really pleasant. I've always liked that Diru can manage to be both, but apparently not anymore... Ryoujoku no Ame = Good. It doesn't especially...stand out. Well, okay, it DEFINATLEY stands out among the other two, but in general, no. I liked it, not much more to say. Agitated Meows of Kittens- uh, I mean...never mind - No. NONONONO. DO NOT WANT. FAIL. FAIL HARD. BAD/ I can't even listen to it and enjoy it. You know what, be right back, I'm going to give it another try...
No, it still sucks. I just...know they can do better. So much better. So, why aren't they? I read this interview, too, and they're basically trying to seperate themselves from the VK thing because OMG PPL RNT TAKIN US SRSLY!
Boo, fucking, hoo. Vk was a big, big thing at the time. It helped get them far. Do I expect them to continue it? Honestly, I don't care, either way. I don't care how they look (okay, so, Kaoru looking like a fucking hobo SOMETIMES bothers me...) as long as I can still listen to the music and enjoy it. Just don't try and hide your roots. It's stupid, and it makes you look like a pompous asshole. STOP. NOW. (It's 7 AM and I haven't been asleep...excuse the loose cussing. I'm half asleep.) And besides, how is a bunch of metal heads that will abandon you as soon as you even consider doing anything similar to the old days, or, if you took up VK, any better than fans that would leave you for metal, and for dropping VK?
My point is made. And I know I'm not the only one looking at it this way
S
Otome Pasta Kandou - Hachi/Angela (Kaori, Ai) (23rd Dec)
Kowarenai Ai Ga Hoshii No - Angela/Yasu/Chococat (Ai, Masae) (23rd)
Merry Pink Christmas - Yapinku and Anpinku (Shigepinku) (Tuesday or Monday)
Shabondama - Angela + a ton of people (Makoto, Abe, Sayumi, Eri)
Shabondama - Angela as Rose with Naoko as Sumire
Remind - Angela/Reina ect (Yusuke) *DUE SOMETIME IN FEBRUARY I DON'T REMEMBER*
Ice Cream to My Pudding (HAAHHAAHHAHA.) E-chan/Angela (Erika/Yui)
Hitorijime - Angela + 17 other people (Erika) ALREADY IN.
Sakura Mankai - Angela + 17 other people (Primarily Yossie) (Next week)
Raison
D'etre - Angela and Suu as AIZO (there's...only one person. Kyo. : |)
DUE WHENEVER THE HELL I WANT IT, I'M THE LEADER. >:D
Chibikko Folk - Angela TONIGHT!
Sakura Sake - Angela (Matsuu Jun AHAHAHA I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO SPELL HIS NAME.) (24th)
Daidanen - Angela + a TON of people (Tsuji Nozomi) (22nd)
Change Your Life - Angela + people as Owari Monogatari (don't know)
Jun Lover - Angela (Rika/Ai) (22nd)
Kanfuu Fighting - Angela (Shibutani Subaru) (I....don't...know.)
AND MORE! : DDDDDDD
AND WHAT I HAVE TO PRODUCE AND MIX OH THIS IS FUN! THIS IS WHERE YOU -REALLY- PITY ME!
It's Chou Very Bad
Yatto Aeta ne
Mori de Tanoshiku
Over the Moon
Chikyuu'iro wa Salad Time
Innocent Demand
Tabidachi
Black Moon Signal
Light ni Adventure
Mori de Tanoshiku
Tsuki'iro no Syndicate
Oitsumerarete
Pinky Typhoon
Torawae no Arutouka
La Moon
Chasin' After You c/w Unubore Shoujo ga Yatte Kita
Raison D'etre
Fukai Mori
This is Unmei
Secret Base
Happy Days
Hold Heart
Yume Kara Samete (x2)
Sotto Kuchizukete Dakishimete
100kai no Kiss
Kawaii Kare
Merry Pink Christmas
Change Your Life (?)
Ice Cream to My Pudding
Kowarenai Ai Ga Hoshii No
Otome Pasta Kandou
And more!
So, it is now, I tell you, I SURE AS HELL SUCCEDDED AT BUSYING MYSELF THIS WINTER! I told myself, "You're not going to go day to day with just schoolwork. You're going to DO something." and so I am. Luckily, I'm not actually boggeed down. I could finish ALL of these in one day, so tch. But the actual interacting and planning for it is what takes the time.
And, your reward (or punishment, depending) for sitting through this? Michiyuki English ver. by me. Enjoy it. Love it. Praise it. NOW. I PROMISE real blogging later this week
I, like Unchained, now have a blog extention. This one will always be updated...but I want you all to please read Momoaji! Momoaji (named to keep with the theme of fruits) will have translations of interviews with some of, I'ms ure, your favorite artists, like Maki Goto, Morning Musume, ect. But not just H!P, it'll be basically anyone I ever emntion in this blog.
A funny note is, I'm still in the process of learning Japanese. I'm not fluent, I can hold a rather crappy conversation, but that's it. The good thing is, I know some great translators, both programs and people, who I use for help. I recently finished a Maki interview this way, and had it reviewed by someone fluent, and I only made about three mistakes in the whole thing. So, I ask you to please read and comment on it: Translations are a lot of work if your fluent or not, and I'm not going to continue them if I think they're useless. The first project is up already, it is an indepth (or, somewhat so) interview with Maki about her new tour. Please rea dand comment on it, and I'll less than three you forever.
Okay, so photoshop is just TOO fun sometimes. Someone was doing this on JPM, and, well, I wanted to try my own combinations.
Please reply with which daughter/son/shim you prefer. =)
First up... Kaori/Eri
Ayaya/Yossie
Mari/Ai
Shinya/Sayumi (I don't even know...)
