!December Top 4!

All opinions are my own, not your's, so, if you disagree...oops?

 

You better check this out, bisshes
I think I'll make this whole 'lovely gif of one of my biases' a trend for these monthly rankings

 

That's right, it's that time of month again - the COSMIC CHILD Monthly Top 5! -is met with total silence-

Well, anyway, though, as always, this is later than I would have liked, but, oh well. So, without any futher ado, let's get a move on!

By the way, I can't think of a 5th song so we're skipping that. I do know more song but not well enough.


4. SHINee - 1000nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite

Well, you lot in the back there, those sweaters are...ugly

 Since the MP3 seemed reluctant to get itself onto my MP3 player, I don't know this song very well, so I'm not going to say much. At all. It's a very sweet and emotional song and if I had room, it'd be on my MP3 Player. And I'll be fixing that shortly. Unfortunately, I can't remember the tune so yeah. It's nice, though.

 

3. Berryz Koubou - WANT!

 

Keep the hair, keep the hair! - an ode to Momoko

 This single's A-Side is, pretty much, everything I wanted from Berryz Koubou, no pun intended. Honestly, even if this is just a one-off, I've wanted to see the girls tackle this style for oh-so long, now. As much as I am a huge fan of their fun and upbeat tracks, and as much as their mature stage between Heroine ni Narou ka! (which was, yes, mature but it worked so it doesn't count) and Be Genki! didn't work for me at all, I love when they go for the more adult yet still upbeat and dancy style. However, what I really wanted to see the girls attempt was this exact style of autotune-ridden dance music - yes, it is extremely autotune heavy at parts but, and, oh, do I praise the powers that be!, the autotune in this is a lot less awful than some of UFP!'s recent attempts. In fact, this and MoMusu's Wakuteka give me reason to be less nervous about the application of autotune within Hello! Project, therefore making it easier for me to see past the mess that was CAT'S EYE. Anyway, this shade of maturity is a lot cooler than certain others the group has displayed. I have no desire to see the girls dabbling in  that sultry, coy genre of maturity any longer - it just looks odd, especially with Momo just looking completely out of place and Chii looking far too happy. However, this works perfectly with the girls' images. It's a bloody catchy song, too, I'm not kidding. It's actually ridiculously catchy! And the vocals sound great, even the autotune free ones. Risako and Miyabi lead so powerfully! My sole complaint about the song is that the chorus is awfully reminscent of Pink Lady's Nagisa no Sinbad's verses in terms of melody - I wonder if anyone else picked up on this?
The B-Side, Yuuki wo Kudasai!, is less impressive. It's still a nice song, definitely, but it certaintly doesn't bring anything new to the table. It's a very typical and sweet, happy-go-lucky Berryz B-side track, so, don't go in expect anything new and amazing. Of course, should you like such songs, it's actually very good. I do like the song, I like it a lot, let me make that clear, but, in comparison to the B-Side, which is something a little outside of Berryz's safety zone, the B-Side almost seems a little safe, or a little 'been there, done that'. Regardless, it's still a very nice and upbeat song~!

 

2. NEWS - WORLD QUEST / Pokopon Pekorya

 

Shige's pose doesn't quite match up with the rest, now, does it?

I also did a review of this entire single, if you'd care to give it a gander. And, as such, what else can I say about this single than it kicked Chankapana's arse (and it was bloody good). Honestly, I am so ridiculously happy that these guys are finally back.

 

1. GACKT - WHITE LOVERS ~Shiawase no Toki~

 

His hair made me so happy. Really.

 

Now, this really shouldn't be surprising, what, with my love for GACKT and all. I already did a review of this song's A-side, so there's not much to say about that, really. I mean, it was fairly in depth and there's nothing I could say here that hasn't already been said there.
The B-Side, however, was something I didn't get to talk about. ONE MORE KISS is a fast-pased and dramatic song that reminds me of Ai Senshi and (a better version of) YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz' YOU ARE THE REASON. In terms of melody, it's really quite reminiscent of older GACKT songs yet, in terms of musical arrangement, it's much closer to his newer stuff. This track really brings the new and the old together, and with fantastic results, too. It's far from being my favourite of GACKT's songs, but, with a full discography of about 200, give or take, tracks, I can't say that's really a problem. I do love this song a lot and, since I first heard it, I cannot get the bloody thing out of my head.

------

This was kind of half-arsed but I just wanted to get it up before it was too late. And I couldn't finish it. It's more of an obligation thing, ugh.



[SINGLE REVIEW] NEWS are back and they're on a quest to take over the world!

AKA: Would you like some Pekora with that good news?



All opinions are my own and I don't expect you to agree with them, necessarily. You have your opinion and I have mine, so, let's keep it at that.

 

NEWS, the quartet boyband extrordanaire in what kind of looks like pajama bottoms

 

So, WORLD QUEST/Pokopon Pekorya is NEWS’ next single after their explosive, and extremely successful, comeback (an actual comeback, too, none of this K-Pop shit where they wait a couple of months before releasing and, then, smack the phrase ‘COMEBACK’ over everything to make everything seem far more exciting than it is, ignoring fully the fact that bloody group didn’t go anywhere and took a perfectly normally waiting period before putting out anything new `(*coughbapcough*)),and first release as quartet (after the tragedy of 7^th October 2011 – yes, it was a tragedy; I very nearly cried, that makes it tragic), Chankapana, which managed to chart for a good nineteen (or so I’ve read) weeks. It was also the first single since the group’s only 2009 release, Koi no ABO, to hit the 200, 000 sales mark in its first week. Pretty good going, I’d say. And, now, NEWS have continued to impress, topping the Oricon charts with their 15^th single, WORLD QUEST/Pokopom Pekorya. Let’s take a look-see~

1. WORLD QUEST

This is the main track of the single – I don’t care that the title of the single clearly implies there’s some double A-Side business going on, the other song doesn’t even have a bloody PV, so, yeah, this one’s the main one. It will also be used as the image song for ‘TOTOYA presents FIFA World Cup Japan 2012’, much in the same way that KAT-TUN’s DIAMOND was used as the image song for ‘Dramatic Game 1844’, only, obviously, this is football and not baseball. I don’t give a flying fuck about footie but, just so you know, this World Cup is ‘a soccer tournament to determine the top club team from more than 300,000 club teams in the six continents’. On top of this, NEWS’ own Tegoshi Yuya will be working as a caster on the games, much like KAT-TUN’s Kamenashi Kazuya does with Dramatic Game. Oh, and Tegoshi will also be working as a host on a new sports show called ‘Soccer Earth’, much in the same way as, hm, KAT-TUN’s Kamenashi does with baseball for Going! – what is this, are NEWS trying to become KAT-TUN’s football-loving brother or cousin or something?

Anyway, all that aside, it’s time to focus on the song itself. This song is NEWS. Really. It just sums up everything NEWS are. Every aspect of it. Except for parts of the lyrics, seeing as their songs aren’t normally full of football references. But, seriously, I should think that anyone very familiar with NEWS would agree with me when I say that this song practically just screams NEWS at whoever gives it a listen. That isn’t to say, though, that it sounds like any other NEWS song – it’s definitely a brand-new song but it just captures that NEWS feeling so brilliantly. This song reminds me of everything that makes me love NEWS (except for Yamapi, because he is, pretty much, a reason to like the group but he’s not in the group anymore so whatever).

The vocals in this song are absolutely gorgeous, too. This is possibly the best I’ve ever heard from Shige – note that I’m not saying Shige’s bad in anyway at all, he just sounds really nice in this. And, of course, Tego’s bridge line is to die for. It’s absolutely stunning, he sounds so amazing. I do honestly believe that Tego is JE’s very best vocalist; his voice is so clear and powerful. I don’t think I’ve ever actually heard a botch note or anything like that from Tego, even live, in his entire NEWS career, which has, I must point out, lasted since he was 15 or so (so, basically, 9 years this September). His vocals never fail to impress, I swear. Also, the falsetto parts in the chorus are brilliant, too.

I really love the arrangement of this song, too. The piano is a really beautiful touch and I do love the clap-like beat in the build-up to the first chorus. The echo/overlaps in the chorus add a really nice touch to it.

The mood of the song is absolutely fantastic, too. The song manages to be extremely upbeat whilst remaining really quite calm. I can’t actually tell if this song is perfect for Summer or Winter (as I tend to associate certain songs with these seasons) because it seems to be a perfect blend of the two. It’s truly a song perfect for the entire year! Also, for a football song, it’s bloody good, seeing as most football-themed tracks seem to feel the need to incorporate crowd-chanting. That doesn’t work for me that well, that’s all.

2. Pokopon Pekorya

This is the second A-Side of this single, the PV-less one. This song is actually pretty adorable in its own way and sounds an awful lot like something you’d hear from some kind of teen girl idol group. However, NEWS have managed to be a boyband who can do cute songs without pissing me off somehow, but that’s probably to do with the fact that all those 12-year-olds currently taking over Johnny’s Jr don’t actually interest me at all, and the fact that, however open I am to listen to young girls sing, I don’t really see myself buying into the whole squealing over underage boys thing. But that’s just me. God, I barely pay boys under the age of 20 much attention (the youngest that I’ll take interest in is 17, and that’s probably just an excuse to claim that a younger Kame is pretty). Let’s just ignore that I do think that Tego was entirely adorable straight from his debut and I actually liked him. I do make exceptions, but I can’t help that most of the young boys in Johnny’s are a little sickly to me. Besides, they spend their whole time trying to be both sexy and cute at once and it really isn’t working for me, However, NEWS are all in their mid to late 20s and aren’t going overboard with the cutesy thing. It’s just a cute song, that’s all. A properly cute song.

The song starts off with this little tune that doesn’t actually crop up anywhere else in the song and it’s a nice touch. And, then, it breaks off into bagpipes! I love when they’re used in J-Pop cause they do actually sound so nice in certain songs (MilkyWay’s Anataboshi’s another example of a song like this. The melody of all the instrumental parts is just so catchy and upbeat, it really wins you over, even though the big one in the middle does suddenly have a bunch of dog noises for some strange reason.

The chorus is also extremely catching and easy to remember. The lyrics are simple and fun and the entire song seems to be about food. Songs about food are always fun~! The chorus does actually have a fantastic melody, though, in terms of catchiness. The song may not be your thing, necessarily, but you’d still have to admit that at the very least. The bridge, a big Massu solo, is also pretty nice. The way it breaks into gibberish at the end is cute, too. I could honestly see some girlgroup singing this yet NEWS do it so perfectly as well that I don’t even care.

It’s actually a dead shame this song doesn’t have a PV, because I’d love to see it, granted that they shoved Tego in pink tartan somehow (same goes for the other three, but in their respective member colours – platinum blonde and pink just seems like a nice combo). Though, I don’t actually know what kind of bagpipes they are. Coloured tartan’s just cute.

3. Hello

This is the first of the single’s three B-Sides and it’s a calm, almost ballad-like song. This song is also very typically NEWS (though, I can’t say that it would impossible to see KAT-TUN singing something like this, or even Arashi). It’s a very peaceful and emotional track. I have to say, I’m a sucker for songs like these. They make me want to cry, just a little, and I don’t know why. I mean they’d be nice tears but still. It’s just such a pretty song. Honestly, this song, to me, is flawless. The vocals are absolutely fantastic in this song and feature the members at their peak of vocal prowess, especially at the bridge. Every single member just smashes their solo lines there and it sounds really, really nice.

The melody of the entire song is really sweet and pretty and, while not necessarily being the most memorable or catchy, it all definitely has an impact. The chorus is simply gorgeous, too. It all has such a dramatic calmness to it that I can’t help but feel completely drawn in by it all. This is a song I’d love to fall asleep to, it’s that calming. But, it’s important to remember that, as calm as it is, this song is also pretty powerful. It’s a really sweet little song and it’s in a style that NEWS are always brilliant at. They do have a bunch of songs in this same kind of style, after all, and they’re all wonderful as well.

4. 36°C

The single’s next B-Side is another peaceful, ballad track, which opens with a really nice solo from Massu. He suits this kind of song very well. In fact, this song is very similar in style to Hello, only this songs a lot more NEWS-ish, to the extent that it’s harder for me to see KAT-TUN or anyone else singing this one. In fact, while Hello was a perfect example of an amazing album track (even though that’s not what it was), this is the kind of song that would do really well as an A-Side ballad. This song is a lot catchier than Hello and would do really well just as a single, I feel. It also sounds like it deserves a PV, in my opinion.

The melody and arrangement of this song are beautiful, I do have to say. It’s all very sweet and relaxing but it’s still rather upbeat, though not in the same way as WORLD QUEST. 

Speaking of PVs, the kind of PV I would see this song having (and, yes, that counts as an expression of how I feel about the song, shut up) is one that either features a lot of warm-toned flashback kind of scenes of nice romantic things with close-ups by windows or doorways or parks or something, or one with not very much plots but lots of close-ups and group lip parts against starlit backdrops with other shots involving the members being all friendly and being excited about falling stars or something. I don’t know, regardless of the lyrics, that’s the image with which this song provides me and it’s a total endearing set of images in mind head, so, no complaints there. Basically, it’s a gorgeous little song that doesn’t more than the life of a B-Side (even though I’m a person who actually thinks B-Sides and albums tracks are just as important as any other song).

5. Quntastic

This song is completely different in style to the other two B-Sides but is still very NEWS-esque. It’s a much dancier song, akin to the likes of tracks like FREEDOM and Dancin’ in the secret, at least in the verses. The whole song is actually really catchy and I do mean it this time. Actually, when I first heard this song, it was stuck in my head for a while and I kept getting the urge to just listen to it (along with the single’s A-Sides). Tego’s first solo is brilliant too; I just thought I’d point that one out, even if his pronunciation of ‘MY WORLD’ is a little off. This song is very upbeat but much less calm than the other tracks on this single. Actually, it’s probably my 2^nd favourite song on the single (with WORLD QUEST being 1^st), regardless of how beautiful I may find the two ballads and how cute I think the other A-side is. This song really won me over from the very moment I heard it. Besides, it’s got a good name – it’s a play on words of some description! Kyun (meaning boom, in some cases, but is also a shortening of the phrase ‘kyunto’, which is something along the lines of the pure feeling of falling in love and is often associated with a very cute and sweet romance - it’s that instant feeling of attraction a young girl (typically) feels when they see someone they like) is changed to Qun, and obviously, whatever is being referred to is tastical in its kyunfulness and is, therefore, Quntastic. Ta-dah! The ‘boom’ aspect might be backed-up, though, in the line ‘blowing blowing blowing blowing up’. The vocals in this song are very good but they’re less crisp than in some of the other tracks – quite simply, this is not a song that could ever act as a vocal showcase for the members. However, the blending is fantastic and the emotion and energy in the members’ voices works extremely well with the backing, so, there’s really no issue with that. This is fun and catchy song and I seriously love it.
 

The Four Kings of Pout - excluding Kame and Pi, of course, but that's hardly a fair competition

This entire single is nothing short of a glorious, glorious success on NEWS (and the writers)’ part. I’d take this single over Chankapana any day, though, this is possibly less comeback-worthy. This whole single is, though, in my opinion, much better and I love every single track. Honestly, they’re all flawless. This is probably, to me, the best combination of tracks in a NEWS single in a long time. Actually, this is probably one of my favourite combination of tracks in one single ever. I can’t tell you how ecstatic I am that this group is back – really, they’re back and they’re still going seriously strong. Even if people immediately assumed otherwise upon Pi and Ryo’s departures, I knew that losing members wouldn’t hold NEWS back (it’s not like it’s a first for them, even if this time round it was the two most popular ones). They’re, quite simply, unstoppable.

 

 

TOP 5 JAPANESE CHRISTMAS SONGS

All opinions are my own, and that should really go without saying. Please respect that.

Christmassy GACKT is always good, I find.

So, that time of year has come yet again. Actually, Christmas is my favourite time of year, for many reasons. Winter, I've finally realised, is my favourite of the four seasons. I love this time of year, and all that is just enhanced by all the special songs you only listen to at that same time of year (I refuse to listen to them outside of December, in all honesty).
Now, Japan has released a good bunch of Christmas songs, despite being a non-Catholic country - in fact, South Korea have barely any Christmas songs despite the fact that, though being a generally non-Catholic country, many K-Pop stars are openly Catholic. I suppose Japan must make a bigger deal of it all and, of course, J-Idol Pop in particular is a genre somewhat built on gimmicks, right?
As an avid fan of Christmas and Japanese music, I'd like to take this opportuniy to give my personal Top 5 Ranking of Japanese Christmas Songs!

5. Arashi - Dear Snow

Jun, that garish jacket does not fit in. Way to ruin the colour scheme, pshhh.

This ranking is kind of Johnny's dominated (an accident, I promise), and, as such, it kicks off with none other than JE's popular export, Arashi(though, that being said, SMAP actual have a better sales ranking to their name, as do Kinki Kids, so, their success is only about 3rd in the rankings - bare in mind that these statistics may be outdated)~!
To me, this sounds really Christmassy - it has the right balance of warm and cold to it. Also, the instruments and such, the arrangement and that, is very clever in getting that Christmassy feel across. It's very typically Arashi, but it has somewhat of an old English Christmas feel to it that I can't quite place. It's a really gorgeous song and it's nothing but Christmassy, though, without being all in-your-face cheesy. It works really, really well.
The lyrics aren't the cheeriest (as you scroll down, you'll realise that there is actually one song that isn't just sad in this ranking), but they're sweet. Yeah, they're definitely nice lyrics. In the song, the narrator is in love yet they can't follow through with this love, they can't convey their feelings. They know the love is unrequited and, rather than being a total arse and dwelling on the fact their love isn't paying attention to their lovely feelings of lovely love, the narrator's accepting that it simply cannot be with them. They do state what they'd do if only the two could be together but the song ends on a far less hopeful note, with a line that basically means 'It will never happen but I'll still love you' - it's sweet but harsh, definitely. I believe this works well with the idea I presented earlier regarding the blend of warm and cold tones. It's a lovely song, really.

4. °C-ute - Aitai Lonely Christmas

That fade effect isn't very good, though, is it? No wonder Nakky looks so pissed and Maimai looks so judgemental.

Regrettably, this is only song in this ranking by a female artist. However, there are plenty more in my Top 10 and Top 20 lists, but, I'm not going to post anything so pointlessly long if I don't have to. So, yeah, kudos to °C-ute! I honestly think that °C-ute are the H!P group with the best talent and sound the best live out of all the groups. Anyhoots, onto the song, right?
This song seems to be about a girl who wants to spend Christmas with her love, so, nothing really very special or original here, though, there appears to be a catch. They lyrics don't explain anything and the PV is pretty much plotless, so, what the catch is, I'm really not sure. My assumption is that she can't see her love for whatever reason, though I'm pretty sure they haven't broken up. Yet. It seems like they're on the verge of breaking up though they haven't even reached Christmas - this makes the girl sad because she really just wanted to spend Christmas wih her love. She's never felt this kind of love before and she really just wants to cherish Christmas with him. She tries her best to hide her pain but it's not so easy, so, this song is her feelings conveyed through the voices of °C-ute - metaphorically, of course, seeing as the lyrics weren't written by any young girl afraid of an impending break-up and were, instead, written by Tsunku♂, a 44-year-old man with a wife and kids. It's quite a bittersweet song and I like that about it.
Though, my brain, upon having just read the translation, has drawn an automatic connection between the lyrics and the drama, Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. Obviously, it doesn't all match-up, but some parts do. It's of note that this drama is my 2nd favourite drama of all time and my favourite anything of the romance genre. I'm picky when it comes to romances, but this one hits all the right keys.
The melody of the song is really catchy and the arrangement is fantastic. This is one of my all-time favourite °C-ute songs, to be honest, which is sad since I'll only let myself listen to it in December. The tone of this song gives it an almost cool feel, as well as a sad and sentimental touch. And, on top of that, Airi and Chisato sound bloody amazing (don't they always, though?).

3. NEWS - SNOW EXPRESS

Since this is an album track and I couldn't find any decent screenshots, here's a wallpaper graphic made using screenshots of their performance of this song from the DIAMOND Concert DVD. Credits go to rabbid-mongoose @ devART.

 In my head, this song isn't strictly a Christmas song but, all things considered, it does qualify, so, in the list it goes! Besides, there's no denying that its a really Wintery song, and that's not just because of the title. Honestly, you just have to listen to it to realise that it practically just screams Winter at you. Also, at the start and end, there are little sound effects like wind. I think this adds a really nice a really feel to the song and seriously emphasises the Wintery effect. Listening to this song around Christmas time really allows you to get lost in that snowy feeling.
The melody of the song is also really catchy and the song is nice and upbeat. That's another thing I like about the song - it makes you think of snow and cold stuff without being a sadder song.  The line distribution is practically perfect, too, ignoring that Yamapi technically gets the most lines (hey, no complaints, I love me some Pi). Of course, I don't mind when line distribution isn't great or, even, when it's terrible, it doesn't bother me, but it's still nice when the line distribution is properly good. Well, to be fair, in terms of singing lines, it is just perfect, but Yamapi actually has an extra rapping part and, oh, god, his rapping. Sure, he's not the best rapper ever, but his rap in this song is really good. It sounds really cool and fits in the song extremely well. And, oh, by the way, I mean seriously cool.
I can't actually find any translations of the song that aren't blocked by the school's censorship filter, so, I can't analyse the lyrics. However, I will say that I find the idea of a 'SNOW EXPRESS' really endearing. In my head, I automatically think of a train and, to be fair, I blame the film, Polar Express, for that one, but I really like that inage in my head. It's really cute. (It's unrelated but I plan to do a drawing based on this image within the week - I want to do a Christmas drawing~!) Though, to be fair, the song starts off with a line about being on a bus, so, really, that image is purely in my head.


2. KAT-TUN - White X'mas

Koki - 'Draw me like one of your French girls'
And, Junno, at least try to look like you're a part of the picture!

This might look biased - my 2 favourite artists topping the list.
Well, y'know what, maybe it is but like hell do I care! Of course I'd be biased towards a Christmas song by my favourite group - it hardly takes a genius to work that one out. Ahem.
White X'mas is a track that can be described only as a heartfelt ballad with the narrator looking back on memories of Christmasses passed by, supposedly spurred on by some kind of winter scenery. I wouldn't say it's a terribly depressing song, but, at the same time, I would not say that it is a cheery song by any stretch of the imagination. Though the title is something often associated with idyllic and sweet Christmas scenes (all blame goes, no doubt, to Bing Crosby's famous single), this song doesn't really reflect that at all. Actually, rather than the snow resembling anything sweet and heartwarming, it's kind of shown for what it really is - cold and piercing. It's possible that, for the narrator, this sort of weather was once something warm and comforting, but something, presumably a break-up, has lead them to associate it all with something less pleasant as they're reminded of better times. It's sort of bitter-sweet in that respect. Sure, Christmas is a time of joy and love and all that, but, I'm really drawn to the mood of this song. I do have a bit of a thing for sad or tragic Christmas songs; they're always a nice break from the painfully cheesy stuff. Oh, and that god-awful Mariah Carey song. I hate that bloody song, with a burning passion.
This song is a ballad, which I suppose many people wouldn't really want to listen to in the build-up to Christmas - ballads don't really get you riled up that often. However, since I've made a point of only listening to this song in December, if I can help it, my brain's made the natural connection between this track and Christmas, so, in a way, it still gets me excited. It's not the most obviously Christmassy song ever, but it's extremely Wintery. Christmas and Winter practically come hand in hand, so it all works. Anyway, it's a really beautiful ballad, to be fair. It's got a gorgeous melody and it's been arranged in such away that it's all kind of...resonant, if that makes sense. Possibly not, but, if you know the song, you might get what I mean. It's sort of mystical in that sense, I feel, and the effect also adds to the tone of the song greatly.

1. GACKT - 12 Gatsu no Love Song

Lots of people kissing and absolutely no GACKT - that's a dead disappointment

This will always be my favourite of all Christmas songs in the history of Christmas songs. It's a really fantastic song - I mean, it was a enough that GACKT actually had a Christmas song at all. To be honest, there are actually four main versions of this song with about eight updated versions. The four main versions were released as separate singles within the years of 2001 and 2004 and each song was performed in the four different languages in which GACKT is fluent - Japanese, English, Mandarin Chinese and Korean, respectively. I'm not as familiar with the Chinese version - this is something I plan on recitfying this year, mind - but the Japanese, English and Korean versions are all absolutely brilliant. What I love about the different versions is that it means you can just listening to the song three times in the row without getting too sick of the song - aside from the obvious linguistic differences in the songs, there are always other things that set them all apart from each other, be it arrangement, bridge melody, adlibs, whatever. Each version of this song is a unique version and it really adds to the listening experience.
As to what version would be my favourite, I think I'd have to say the original, Japanese-language version. Probably because it's the one I heard first and, though I do love the adlibs in the others, I like how the melody stays consistent and pure in this. I feel that, somehow, a Christmas song is best with a simplistic melody.
 The message conveyed by this song is really nice. Lyrically, the song initially seems to be your bog-standard romantic ballad, but, as is always the case with GACKT, there's always something deeper hidden between the lines. In this particular case, it's a plea for world peace. But, that's not all - it's also a celebration of the love in the world. This highlighting of the bonds people can form with each other acts makes a strong point regarding the situation of 3rd world countries, trying to tell us that our love should be given unto such people. This song was also written as a result of his trip to Madagascar where he had seen many children, though living in poverty, still smiling, being truly happy over the smallest things; something that seems to have been especially touching at the time, which wasn't too long after the 9/11 attacks. This situation, apparently, also brought light to huge gap between the rich and the poor. So, overall, I think this song has a pretty good message. And, to be fair, I'm cool with Christmas songs being politically motivated.
Though, it must be noticed that, on the surface, this is basically a song about love lost and the resulting loneliness. Maybe that's just a typical GACKT ballad, but it could also be a metaphor by the corruptions of society causing us to mindlessly hate the people we should love. Who knows?

------

So, there we have it, my personal Top 5 Christmas songs from Japan. 

Thanks for reading and have an absolutely brilliant Christmas~! Merry Christmas to you all!

A new chapter begins in the Never Ending Wonderful Story...

This is no news (pardon the pun) to any Johnny's fan now, but I felt like posting my views on the matter.
I mean, that's what blogs are for, right?

First off, basic summing-up of the dealio with this

Mr Pi decided his best of course of action was to focus on his up-and-coming solo career, and y'know what? I don't really blame him - NEWS have been pretty damn inactive for some time, and he's been doing way more solo work than group work. Might as well go with the one that's most likely to go anywhere, right? Ryo's reason for reason, however, or so I like to believe, seems to boil down to pure Osaka Love. Or maybe it was the same reason I've given Yamapi? He left because being in two groups was getting a bit too much for the poor chap, so he decided he had to drop one. Of course, he went with the one which lacked in sheer Kansai awesome, or rather, the one that was inactive. This year's been pretty active for the Kanjanies, whereas, for NEWS, it's been a rather...dead year (unless you're Tegomass). So, I believe they both had good reason to leave. Not saying I wanted them to, but I'll go into the more personal emotion-based side of stuff later.

Here, I've decided to take a look at the dramatic line-up change since 2003, and each ex-member's reason for leaving, if you can read it. Kusano's is still probably one of the best reasons ever - caught drinking 'something' out of a can. Bless, being an idol can be harsh? I don't blame the guy for buggering straight off to another company when that's your treatment. Ah, well, at least the old Johnny's kind to some of them -coughJinandRyocough-

It may take some getting used to...4-member NEWS. Even when Jin left KAT-TUN, as upset as I was by the whole affair (mainly due to my huge-ass Jin-bias), I adapted quick enough. At least to the image of the group. I was already familiar with 5-member KAT-TUN thanks to Bokura no Machi de and Cartoon KAT-TUN II : YOU - admittedly, it took me longer to accept that Jin was gone forever, but whatever-, but I've never seen this lineup together for NEWS. I imagine it may be hard for me to adjust. I will still support the group - they're my 2nd favourite group, and they're going to stay as such, no matter who leaves. Unless, Jin & Pi miraculously form some kind of wonderful duo group. Though, fortunately for NEWS, the chances of that are pretty damned slim ;D

Now, how I feel about this...
Well, I didn't want it to happen. At. All.
I mean, I'm sure everyone feels that way. Well, except my friend, who is apparently glad that Pi's gone. I wanna hit her round the face for that.
Cause, yeah, Yamapi is my favourite member. By a looooooong shot. He's my 4th favourite singer. Full stop. Though, I absolutely adore him as a soloist, so that's some consellation, at least. Ryo is my 3rd favourite in the group, losing to Tego. I really love Ryo and his voice, but I don't listen to Kanjani8 as much. I mean, I like them, I do. Trust me. It's just...I haven't heard any of their new songs since...TWL...I don't even know their names. Except that one had something to do with...homes? I don't know. Ah well...That's my own fault, I guess.

All in all, I'm totally gutted about the whole situation. I read the title of the article over on tokyohive and sincerely hoped it was some kind of April Fool's joke. Then, I remembered it was October...And, tears actually welled up in my eyes. xD No joke.
I mean, I knew everyone kinda saw the Pi thing coming eventually, but most of us didn't want to accept the rumours. But, it wasn't just that. The double-departure bit got me especially. I mean, 2 out of the 3 Johnnies in my Top 10 Johnnies Ranking had left my 2nd favourite group at once! It was a shock, really.
And to add to the suckiness, this signified the second departure of my favourite from a Johnny's group...And it also happened exactly a week after Ai Takahshi's graduation from Morning Musume, Ai being my favourite. Also, the month just before, Heechul, my favourite SuJu boy, had just left for his 2-year army training.
How fun xD

Well, I plan on supporting all members in all their fields, even the older ones. Not that I know how to support Kusano. I still support Uchi.
But, I don't support Taka. But he's not really anyone but 'That Guy-wait, who?' to me. :/ So, yeah...

RELEASE SOMETHING SOON, PI!