Starshine’s Setlist: Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru – Juice=Juice

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May 212013
 

Every so often, a new group makes its way into the world and tries to sell single. Or, well, at least in Japan they do. New to the stage is Hello!Project’s new egg group Juice=Juice (pronounced Juice Juice. Why that equal sign in there I will never understand.) and they are still in the indie singles phase. For those of you not in the know, some companies in Japan will have new groups release “indie” singles to test the market and see how they’ll do before making their official debut. So as their second venture out into the musical arena, how do they fair?

Let’s take a look at their new indie single, Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru.

samidare single cover juice juice

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Starshine’s Setlist: Brainstorming/Kimi Sae Ireba Nani Mo Iranai – Morning Musume

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Apr 092013
 

If you guys are wondering if I am going to cover every single Morning Musume song that comes out, the answer is yes, because all critics have their favorites and this one’s mine. In the wake of Tanaka Reina’s graduation (one of the oldest members currently in the line up), Hello!Project has begun another round of auditions, so this might be the last single before a whole new wave of faces come in who I don’t recognize. That being said because it is the graduation of one of the most popular members, we get to have double A-side, meaning I get to review two music videos at once! Yay…?

Anyways, let’s not hold off any longer, let’s take a look at Brainstorming and Kimi Sae Ireba Nani Mo Iranai.

Brainstorming-Kimi-Sae-Ireba-Nani-mo-Iranai-Regular cover

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Starshine’s Setlist: Help Me!! – Morning Musume

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Feb 122013
 

More and more J-Pop is absorbing and re-appropriating the trends of K-Pop, because it is simply the strategy that works. Well, with the exception of AKB48 that is. Still, it’s brave to go off in such a direction when some of the fans are rebelling against this new trend. The ways of the cutesy, over the top pinkness that was once J-Pop may be dying, but something else is taking root. Some bold. Something fresh. Something techno!

…nah, who am I kidding, this is just a phase. I’ll believe in real change in the J-Pop industry when toes become sentient.

Let’s take a look at another trend-rider, and debut for member Oda Sakura, Morning Musume’s 52nd single, Help Me!!

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Starshine’s Setlist: WANT! – Berryz Koubou

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Jan 082013
 

Don’t give me that look, reader. I know it’s another Hello!Project release. But what did you want me to do? It’s not my fault they release their singles on a better schedule than the other companies. Yes, it’s that time of year children where I run through as many of the new singles they release for the holidays as I can while they are still somewhat fresh.

Let’s not put on any frills here, and dive right into Berry Koubou’s 30th single – WANT!

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Review: Samui Ne – S/Mileage

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Nov 252012
 

Ah, Christmas time. Yes, once November 1st rolls in, Christmas preparations begin. But while we go out, shop for presents, and stress about non-denominational wrapping paper, the pop world puts out lots of Christmas/Winter Wonderland themed songs. And the Japanese pop industry is no exception. So when I saw that one of the only singles that have recently come out with full music videos was all Christmas and snow themed, you can bet I jumped on it to start off the holiday season.

So, hey, let it snow, and have yourself a merry little end-of-November, and let’s take a listen to Samui Ne, (It’s Cold, isn’t it?) by S/Mileage.

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Review: Wakuteka Take A Chance – Morning Musume

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Nov 052012
 

Ah, Morning Musume. You try and you try to make popular songs. Hell, you were even pretty close to a super-hit with One Two Three. While the group has always maintained a semblance of some popularity in Japan, it’s easy to see how slowly the unit has been slipping from the popular consciousness. But with another line up change on the way, “momusu” has yet another chance to try and gain some fans. Will this single prove their worth or be just another addition to the linage of forgotten singles?

Let’s take a look at their 51st single, Wakuteka Take a Chance.

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Oda Sakura joins Morning Musume as the Only 11th Generation Member!

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Sep 172012
 

Yes, the 11th generation auditions are over, and on Friday, Oda Sakura, a year 13 year old Kanagawa native, was chosen as the only contestant to join the group on it’s 15 year anniversary. She had attempted to join another Hello!Project group, S/Mileage, but didn’t join. However, she become a part Hello! Pro Kenshuusei, a unit where promising talents are being given free dancing and singing lesson in the hopes they can one day join a group. She will be the third person in the group to be one-member generation, following 7th generation memeber Koharu Kusumi, and 8th generation Mitsui Aika.

Having looked at some footage of her training during the auditions and she is pretty great. There are even some murmurs on the Internet that she could be the ace of the group (i.e. the singing, dancing beast of awesome that everyone falls in love with) but for now, we’ll have see since she won’t be on the upcoming single. Either way, it’s good to see that Morning Musume is going strong and adding lots of new talent to the mix.

Review: Cat’s Eye – Cat’s Eye (BerriKyuu)

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Aug 312012
 

It might surprise no one that just like in America, sometimes songs and groups in Japan are made for the sole purpose of advertising a new movie or show. But what might be a bit of a shocker is that in Japan, they also do it for stage-plays. Yup, they did one for their version of the Rogers and Hammerstein Cinderella and now they are doing it for Cat’s Eye, a play based on the manga of the same name, about a master thief. The cast will several members from both Berryz Koubou and C-ute, a combo referred to as BerriKyuu. And since most plays rarely last 3 weeks in Japan (unlike the US or the UK where the typical stage play runs for months), the main roles will be swapped between the seven of them.

But does the song really need to exist? There was no big release for “Stacys” (a very well done play about rabid teenage girl zombies) but we’re going to give this the go ahead because…it’s based off of a manga? I don’t know, but let’s take a look!

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Review: One • Two • Three – Morning Musume

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Jun 222012
 

In the world of J-Pop, trends are difficult to predict and even harder to emulate. Sometime you’re in, sometimes you’re out. A good song doesn’t mean you’ll be at the top of the Oricon charts at the end of the day, if only because audiences are picky with a very wide variety to choose from. So, when there’s a trend, you ride that wave until it hits it’s end. The trend now? K-Pop.

K-Pop stars have been releasing songs and albums in Japanese for the last couple of years, and now that Girls’ Generation have hit super stardom, everyone wants to hit the trend – auto-tuned, metallics, dub step dance moves, and catchy party beats. And that’s exactly what we get in Morning Musume’s 50th single One • Two • Three.

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