Top 5 Original Japanese K-Pop Songs

This ranking is based purely on my own opinion, so, please respect that

 

This is my current K-Pop love of the moment (Rainbow's JaeKyung).
But, I couldn't find a gif of her derping. Her hair tho

 

And, here it is, another ranking! Don't worry, I've started writing a rant, too. And I plan to start reviewing dramas eventually, too.

That title on its own probably doesn't make sense so I'll elaborate. Of course, many Korean artists debut in Japan with Japanese language remakes of pre-existing songs. However, there comes a point where the artist has to release a brand-new, all-original track for the Japanese audiences. I'll be counting down my personal favourites. Oh, and you should probably consider this as a kind of Part Two of this.

5. Rainbow - Gonna Gonna GO! / Shoujo Jidai - MR. TAXI

 

Yes, that's right, it's a draw! My rankings so far make it look like SNSD are one of my favourite K-Pop groups but they aren't. Don't get me wrong, I like them, and they're miles better than, say, T-ara or something. Thing is, some SNSD songs tick all my little personal boxes while others...well, they don't hit a single chord with me. And that's just how it is. However, MR. TAXI is one song that I loved from the moment I heard it. It sounded really cool and the Japanese was a ridiculous improvement on whatever it was that was supposed to be happening in their previous Japanese release, Gee. It was a pleasant surprise. I never go in expecting to be wowed by this lot, so, when they do come out with a song I love, I end up more impressed that I probably would have been otherwise. Half of SNSD's songs bore me, while the other half excite me...well, not quite but when I like them, I really do like them. 
Rainbow, however, are my favourite K-Pop girlgroup. Gonna Gonna GO! is extremely K-Poppy in terms of style but it's really catchy, too. Also, these girls have had excellent Japanese since their Japanese debut, which is more than I can say for some Korean groups who try their luck overseas. Their Japanese language skills do not disappoint in this track, either. The production of this song is extremely slick and, though it may not be Rainbow's best song nor the most original thing ever, there's some definite appeal in this song. Though, technically, it borders on the generic, this song has a certain charm to it which definitely draws the listener in. Also, this song has a cool rap thrown in there, as always, which just adds to it.

 

4. ROMEO (Park Jung Min) - Give Me Your Heart

 

This song didn't chart particularly well, only reaching the #26 spot in the chart and that was probably due to an immense lack of promotion on this single's part. I actually adore this single and that's why it made it onto this list. I think, had it been given the promotion it deserved, this single would have done a lot better. In terms of style, this song is very is very similar to Jung Min's first proper solo release, independent from SS501, 'Not Alone'. I absolutely adore the style in that song, so, when I heard this track, I was ecstatic. Give Me Your Heart is a very cool and dramatic song, with a really catchy melody. I love the violins in the backtrack, too. As a Japanese release, this is also a really strong track. Jung Min's Japanese sounds seamless and natural, his accent and pronunciation are really good. Obviously, he still sounds Korean, but less obviously than quite a lot of other Korean artists singing in Japanese. Jung Min always did have the best Japanese in SS501, proved not only by his singing but also his success in the language games of their Japan-based TV show, and his Japanese has only improved since the last time he released anything in Japan. I really do think he needs more promotion, he's a really good singer, his Japanese is great, I feel his musical style would appeal to a Japanese audience (somehow) and, really, look at him, he's a human bishi! He's a Horse Prince, but, still, Horse Princes can be bloody pretty, apparently. I know looks don't count for all, but, when promoting him to another market than his home market, looks always help.

 

3. 2NE1 - SCREAM

 

This single only hit #7 on the Oricon charts so, in terms of doing well in Japan, it's not the best but it's still good. However, this is one of my very favourite 2NE1 songs so on the list it goes! Dara's Japanese isn't the strongest which lets the track down just a little but it doesn't have any real bearing on the quality of the rest of the song. This song is really cool and powerful, with impressive vocals. Cool is the only word to describe this song, really. CL and Minzy are particularly mind-blowing, actually, in both their rap and vocal parts. But, honestly, CL has so much style and power that it's unbelievable. As painfully naff and cheesy as it may sound, she's not known as 'The Baddest Female' for nothing, of that I have no doubts.

2. BIGBANG - Gara Gara GO!

 

The kings of K-Pop, BIGBANG, moved onto original tracks as early as their second single, chancing it against Tegomass (and, clearly, not succeeding...I don't even know what they got). This is one of my favourite BIGBANG tracks and my second favourite of their Japanese A-Sides (can't argue with BEAUTIFUL HANGOVER, really, that shit's far too good). I know there's a Korean version of this song, too, but I'm pretty bloody sure it came after and, as such, is a remake of the Japanese song and not the other way around. This is a really catchy, fast-paced song - it's fun and, somehow, it's really quite Summery. I feel that this song was also one of the first in a K-Pop trend that spread like wildfire, in terms of song style and even music video visuals. With plenty of English chants and even some more simple Japanese, this song's easy to sing along to, granted you miss out the fast parts. Unless you do those know those bits, obviously (I do, I have to say). It's just...yeah, fun.

It's very upbeat yet cool at the same time. Like, really cool. Especially those rap parts. And the 'T.O.P' part. That can't be argued with. That shit is too good. So, yeah, there seem to be no specific reasons...I just love this song.

 

1. Kim Hyun Joong - HEAT

I already did a review of this song as part of this review but that was referring more to what I liked about the song than why I thought it was a good choice for the first non-remake song HyunJoong released in Japan. Proof that it deserves the #1 spot lies solely in the fact that this single sold well enough to stick Yamashita Tomohisa, one of Japan's ultimate pop aces since he was around sixteen years old, with the first (and only) Oricon #2 in his recording career, which started when he was about nineteen. He's twenty-eight this April. You also have to keep in mind that it's an extremely rare feat for a K-Pop artist to top the charts with their second Japanese release. So, there, we have the proof, but, what contributed to this? There are various factors that may have led to this success. First-off, HyunJoong is a huge star all over Asia, so, it would only make sense for him to hit Japan hard. He had already gained fans in Japan through his time as a member of SS501, a group who made their Japanese debut ahead of the current Halyuu boom in the Japanese music scene, and his roles in the dramas, Boys Over Flowers and Playful Kiss. Japan experienced a K-Drama boom a before K-Pop really hit it big there, and, furthermore, both of these dramas are remakes of popular manga, the first having had a hugely successful Japanese drama adaption and the second being somewhat of a classic. Both of these manga also have anime and T-Drama adaptions, too. And, really, Boys Over Flowers and Hana Yori Dango are among the most successful dramas ever in their respective countries of origing, so, it's not surprising that HyunJoong's role as the lovable Aspie, JiHoo (formerly known as Rui) drew him in some fans. Furthermore, the song was created by Japanese music legends, B'z. They're a truly powerful duo in the Japanese music scene so, really, having a song created by that pair puts HyunJoong at quite an advantage. I mean, aside from being HUGE in themselves, one half of B'z is responsible for the composition for the best selling debut single in Oricon chart history, the long-awaited first single of KAT-TUN, selling over 750 thousand copies in its first week. Actually, this song is more Japanese-sounding than it is Korean, and considerably so, too. This probably helped it sell so well. As much attention as certain Korean artists are getting in Japan right now, Japanese-style songs will always have more appeal, seeing as Japanese-style music been gradually tailored to...well, appeal to the Japanese public. Besides, with some groups coming out with the same generic style of song all the time, maybe this is a nice change, I don't know. I'm not Japanese, I'm just speculating.

 

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So, yeah, there you have it, my personal ranking of K-Pop artists first original Japanese tracks. Though, technically, some of these may not be the best or the most interesting or even the most successful (though, #1 is certainly one of the more successful ones), but, y'know what, I really like them and think they deserve their spots.



!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.

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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.



[ALBUM REVIEW] A K-Pop Superstar's Japanese Debut Album Shows Unlimited Potential

All opinions are my own and I have a right to them. Please try to respect that and I'll be glad to do the same for you~!

 

 

My favourite of all this album's covers - it's bloody gorgeous!

 

Kim Hyun Joong means serious business, he's made that clear already. Prior to his solo Japanese debut, he was only, what, one the biggest stars in the whole of East Asia? Honestly, this man is adored in many a country and, as such, it came as no surprise that his first Japanese single was met with great success, shooting straight to #2 on the Oricon Weekly chart, a feat rarely achieved by a freshly debuted K-Pop artist in Japan. Admittedly, he had already appeared on the Oricon Top 5 during his time as leader of the now comatose, for want of a better phrase, quintet, SS501. However, the last single they ever released in Japan was released in the Summer of 2008 which was a good while before the Halyuu Wave had its big boom, anyway, meaning that K-Pop groups were possibly more of a novelty anyway. His second single, however, had no trouble topping the Oricon Weekly chart, even with Johnny's Entertainment's [adult] ace, Yamashita Tomohisa. This was the first time in Yamapi's entire career as a recording artist (which started in 2005) that he failed to top the Oricon Weekly (though he did make it to #2). Now, really, for a K-Pop artist, that really is something, considering Yamapi's popularity. However, my mum did suggest, jokingly of course, that people just got the two of them muddled up, seeing as she's still learning to tell the two apart - You can't blame her too much, can you? Seeing as she's not that familiar with the two of them yet. Though, that being said, she's learned to identify Yamapi as the one who 'looks like he has a bad smell under his nose'.



HyunJoong (left) and Yamapi (right) - just for comparison's sake

Anyway, that aside, Hyun Joong eventually released his first Japanese album, which was also his first full-length album as a solo artist. The album went straight to #1 on the Oricon Daily and #3 on the Oricon Weekly, which, granted, is still impressive. Tohoshinki (or TVXQ, but we're talking about Oricon here), the king of Hanryuu Star Wave groups, only managed to get #4 for their debut album (though, that was back in 2006 which was a fair bit before the recent boom). So, really, it can't be denied that there's a lot to expect from HyunJoong in the future.

As such, I'll be reviewing the afore-mentioned album, titled 'UNLIMITED'. The album mainly features previously-released Japanese remakes of tracks from his two Korean mini-albums and one remade single track, but it also has the two tracks from his second single as well as a few original tracks made specifically for the album. So, without further ado, let's have a listen~

1. Save Today

This song is one of the two tracks chosen to promote the album and, as such, was given a video, which I didn't know when I first heard the album. At that point, I only knew that Your Story had a video, yet I did have a feeling that, if  any other song were to have a video, for whatever reason, it would surely be this one. The video, to be perfectly honest, confuses me, so, seeing as this is an album review and not a video review anyway, I'll set that train of thought aside for now and focus on the song isntead.

Anyway, aside from HEAT (which quickly became my favourite of all HyunJoong's songs), this is my favourite track of the album. The song has a sort of soft-rock feel with a bit of a pop essence, reaching closer to HyunJoong's musical roots, seeing as he started out with a school rock band (that went pretty much nowhere but that's beyond the point), as he seems to be doing a little more with his Japanese releases as opposed to his Korean ones. Fortunately, I do love it when my favourite artists go for this kind of style. Actually, this might sound odd, but I think this particular sound is very Japanese in its own way. It's quite similar, in a sense, to the style of some J-Rock bands (not the Visual Kei variety, the other end of the J-Rock spectrum), only, possibly, softer.

The song is pretty catchy and quite easy to get lost in, I find. It's a very good song for looking at the scenery zoom past when you're on a drive, actually. That may sound stupid but I can assure you that it's true. When I went down to London last month, this song got a lot of listens and it always had the best effect on me in such situations, particularly when I was on the Tube and it was travelling along the Overground parts. That image has been pretty much welded into my mind and it kind of lingers whenever I listen to this song, with the brown flats, green plants and silver pillars of metal kind of fading in and out of my mind's eye. I know that sounds really, really cheesy but it's true. And it's a nice image. Though, that has squat to do with the song itself.

It's a gorgeous song, though, and it seriously compliments Hyun Joong's voice. He suits this kind of song, really.

2. Let's Party

This track is the B-Side to HyunJoong's second Japanese single, HEAT and, to tell the truth, I'm not huge on it. It's listenable and, as such, I will listen to it but it's not a favourite song of mine. It's my least favourite track on the album. I don't mind the chorus at all, even if it is properly cheesy-sounding, but the verses aren't as much to my tastes somehow. I think it's the autotune that's at fault here - I'm not too fond on this kind of autotune, though, I can tolerate it quite easy. It's a catchy song, that I won't deny it. It's just an explosion of cheese - dancy cheese. It's very...well, to me, it seems awfully 90's-esque, as in 90's Brit-pop, in parts, and, well, 90's Britpop is extremely cheesy, almost to a fault. Though, that being said, it may just be me, considering I can still enjoy the song. It's a nice enough song, don't get me wrong, I don't dislike it, but, it's not necessarily my thing. I think it's probably an okay song but it doesn't match up with my personal tastes, if you know what I mean? However, the chants in the build-up to the choruses definitely have my approval.

3. U (Japanese version)

This track was originally a track on the Lucky min-album, and this version was a B-Side on he Kiss Kiss (Japanese version) single. The werid thing about this song is that the Korean version never caught my attention and I was never in the mood to listen to it, it just didn't work for me, yet, somehow, I really like the Japanese version. That being said, I did give the Korean version and other listen, and it is definitely a nice song regardless of the language. But, somehow, the Korean version never hit me in the right way, while the Japanese version did. I do like the sound of the Korean language but I feel that, maybe, the Japanese language lends itself more to this song.

It's a very pretty little song and it's very calming. The reverb in this track is quite heavy, adding a kind of almost angelic feel to the song, if you get what I mean. This song just glows in a strange way; it's quite fantastical in its own perculiar manner. It's the sort of song that drags you in to its own little world. I also like that it's such a soft and peaceful song but, even so, something about the chorus is powerful. On top of that, in terms of emotion, this is one of Hyun Joong's best songs. I actually think the emotion in the Japanese version is stronger than the original but, also, the Japanese is quite simple so I can understand a lot of it...and that always helps.

I do have a habit, though, of hearing the very start of the song and suddenly deciding it's actually SS501's Everything. Oops. Well, at least they're connected - it could be worse.

4. Kiss Kiss (Japanese version)

Originally one of the promo tracks of Hyun Joong's first solo mini-album, Break Down, this version was used as his first Japanese single. First off, before I get on to the song itself, I must say that I by far prefer the Japanese PV to the Korean MV. I'm sure if I were one of the fans who got to meet him (though, I don't live in anything like the right country for that), my stance on the matter might be different. However, I'm not, so I have little emotional attatchment to the MV - the PV's just a better and more interesting video.

This was always my least favourite track on Break Down, but that was a mini-album I absolutley adored in every aspect. As such, I've always, from the moment I heard it, loved this song. Honestly, I hoped that he would have debuted in Japan with Please but, seeing as it already had a proper MV and was the first song to be promoted, using Kiss Kiss made more sense than using it - same with Break Down. Kiss Kiss made sense. On on top of that, a lot of male K-Pop artists have debuted in Japan with tracks all of a similar genre (not all, obviously, I know that), so, I guess that using this song, which is slightly less typically K-Pop, allowed Hyun Joong to stand out a little.

The song itself has a really sweet sound and it's very upbeat. It's a song that works well with Hyun Joong's voice and I mean really well. The Japanese lyrics also sound really good and flow really well with the song. In fact, when choosing the tracks for this review on Korean-to-Japanese tracks, this track was very nearly 5th place. It just missed out and only made it to 6th place. They don't sound stilted at all and, in some parts, they have a similar sound to them to the original lyrics. The lyrics also match the beat in a certain way that makes them really catchy and memorable. And, of course, the song itself is really catchy - even when I listened to this whole album at once, the song that stuck in my head for the rest of the next was this!

5. I'm Yours

Putting aside the grammatical error in the title, this is a nice song. It's nice to hear Hyun Joong singing in a lower pitch, as a lot of his songs are higher. This song actually reminds me another one, in terms of style, but I can't remember for the life of me what it is. Or KAT-TUN, if it the backtrack were a little lower. It's not a Hyun Joong song, though. Something tells me the song is somehow related to KAT-TUN NEWS but I haven't got a clue. Though, that being said, I could imagine Yamapi singing it, almost. It's a song with a somewhat fast tempo despite its tone; it's not exactly an upbeat song. It's a dark song, figuratively speaking. If there was a PV, I'd expect it to have a darker colour scheme. In fact, it does seem like a song that could do with a PV, granted said PV had plenty of drama scenes and emotional stuff. That would be perfect for this song.

The melody is nice, though, the verses aren't the most memorable. It doesn't matter all that much, though, as they're still really nice to listen to. The chorus is a lot memorable, though, and has a nice, emotional feel to it. I'm not kidding, I really love the chorus, particularly the 'ano hi no you ni' line - the melody and the way his voice sounds at those parts is really nice. The bridge is also great. Probably just cause I love that kind of 'tune changes for a bit, everything stops, line that increases in emotion, pause for effect, everything starts again' thing - maybe because they show up in a lot of KAT-TUN tracks...

6. Your Story

This song is the other promo track for this album in that it got a PV and was used in the adverts for the album. The PV is really nice and...-cough- Hyun Joong looks fantastic.

That aside, I really like this song and it's one of my favourites on the album. I absolutely love how Hyun Joong's voice sounds - he really suits this genre, that kind of soft-rock with a poppy touch. Sometimes, I feel like his voice doesn't actually blend perfectly with the music, but that's probably just cause his voice is a little on the husky side, or, well, it's slightly raspy in a way. Sort of. But, it doesn't make a difference, really, and it's only like that in the verses. His voice fits perfectly with everything in the chorus! Honestly, I do think that Hyun Joong needs to keep doing more songs like this. The chorus is also really memorable  and a little infectious. The arrangement and melody are both absolutely brilliant, too.

My favourite part of this song, as much as I love every last part of it, is the final 'hanasanai yo' line - the way he holds that last note is absolutely gorgeous!

7. Boku wa Kimi no Mono (Japanese Version)

This song was originally a track on the Lucky mini-album and...to be honest, I forgot that until now. I have heard it before and I do actually have it on my MP3 Player (though, it's name is in Korean), I'm just an idiot. I haven't heard the Korean version enough to make an educated comparison, though. However, the names of the two tracks are actually different; the Korean version is called Naneun ne Namja ya (trans; I'm Your Man, which is what most people know it as, for some reason, K-Pop songs get referred to by their translation) while the Japanese version's title translates as 'I'm Your's' - okay, it's really not that different but still. Though, it does mean that there are basically two tracks on this album with the same name.

Anyway, this track is a ballad, as most albums seem to have (at least, in Japan?). Well, anyway, I think a good ballad is always compulsory in an album. This isn't one of the most memorable ballads I've ever heard but it is still a very pretty track and HyunJoong sounds really great. This is also the only track on the album, aside from HEAT, not to have Steven Lee working on it, so, in a way, it's got a change in feel to it. What I also like is that this song is the halfway point of the album - it's like a peaceful little rest in the middle of the CD. It's a nice effect.

8. Marry Me (Japanese Version)

This song was originally part of a single which had two tracks; 'Marry Me' and 'Marry You'. There was some kind of special concept, like one was the man's song and one was the woman's, or something like that but I can't fully remember what it was.

I'll say it straight out - this is my second least favourite track on the album. Don't get me wrong, I love the song, I really do. I just don't like the double voice effect in the chorus, which is a shame because I love the melody in those parts, as well as the falsetto notes. With what little Japanese knowledge I possess, I can tell that the lyrics to this song are quite sweet, though, maybe a little cheesy. By my standards. I'm not big on all that stuff, generally. No dislike, mind you.

This song isn't necessarily the most memorable out there, though, proved by the fact that I forgot what the original sounded like until I heard this version. If you're more into this style of song than I am, though, it's actually really good and I would recommend it seconds. It's a good song!

9. Lucky Guy (Japanese Version)

This was originally the main track for the mini-album, Lucky, and was my favourite of Hyun Joong's songs until HEAT came along. This version was the other promo track of the Japanese debut single, KISS KISS. However, the Japanese version, though I do like it and it is one of my favourite tracks on the album, does not do the original justice. Where the Japanese version does win, though, is the PV, though, that's mainly because it doesn't have that random god awful scene with the woman fixing a car in a bikini. Ugh.

The added sound effects of this version don't really help the song in anyway whatsoever and, seeing as I'm so used to the original, just sound stuck on. I actually did a review of the original song back in 2011, but since I sound like an idiot there, I'll just some up how I feel about the song in general. Obviously, I love the rest of the song - the melody, the tone, the arrangement, it's all perfect. It's a really fun song and I was totally drawn in by that. Also, it's ridiculously infectious and super memorable.

10. Break Down (ft. Double K) (Japanese Version)

This was originally one of the promo tracks (and the titular track) for HyunJoong's first mini-album, with this version first appearing on the KISS KISS single. Personally, I don't like this version as much as the original, purely because I don't think the lyrics work as well, and a lot of it's to do with the fact that I don't think the Japanese language lends itself as well to this song. Well, actually, it seems like it might do if you were a native Japanese speaker since a lot of it's to do with the fact that lyrics of the original are quite clipped-sounding (I don't mean edited, though). Due to HyunJoong's strong accent, that kind of sharpness doesn't work as well with Japanese. It probably wouldn't work as well if a nativer speaker sung this song but it might have worked better, if you know what I mean. That being said, I don't think it's bad. No way. It's still good and HyunJoong has really good pronunciation, but, I think the song just sounds better in Korean. It sounds cooler like that.

As for the song itself, the original is probably my third favourite HyunJoong song. I really do love this song, I just think it sounds really cool. And, even in Korean, the lyrics are memorable and catchy, especially combined with the infectious melody of the chorus. It's quite a down-key song, but it's still up-tempo and it's a really nice combo. The arrangement of the song works really well, too, and I seriously love all the different layers of vocals, with all the adlibs in the background. And Double K's rap sounds really good. I don't actually know he is aside from this song, but his rap compliments the song boody well.

11. HEAT

Originally the A-side of HyunJoong's second Japanese single, the one that kicked Yamapi's poor little butt, this is my favourite of all HyunJoong's songs, hands-down. This song was created by B'z, with one member doing music and the other doing lyrics - actually, it was Tak who did the music. I only know one other song with music by Tak, seeing as I don't listen to B'z, and it was KAT-TUN's debut single Real Face, which is one of my all-time favourite songs. I feel like giving B'z a listen would make sense now...

But, yeah, I suppose, based on the rest of the review, that it's no secret that I'm a fool for rocky songs with a poppy feel to them and that's exactly what this song is. The tune is really infectious, it gets stuck in your head really quickly. Well, not quite, but it is an easy tune to learn after a few listens. The lyrics are pretty easy to remember, too. I seem to remember more of the words than I thought I did!

But, really, it is my favourite HyunJoong song by a flying long-shot, though, it seems that I can't fully explain why. It's just...so...I was so drawn in by it from the moment I heard it! It's catchy, memorable and really cool. For me, it ticks a load of boxes! And, on top of that, it seems to be a perfect song for HyunJoong's voice and singing style. I really want to see him tackle more songs like this.

It might seem like an odd song, though, because it is not a typical K-Pop song. It's actually very Japanese-sounding, if that makes sense. But that can probably be attributed to the fact that it was produced by one of the most legendary bands in Japan. But, really, even if you don't like K-Pop, if you're a J-Music fan, this song could appeal to you. I don't know if it sat well with all the K-Pop fans out there, though, but I don't assume it did too much of the opposite. So, yeah, it's a song with a lot of appeal, I'd say.

 

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All in all, I think it's pretty clear that I adore this album. Really, a lot of this review seemed to be a rant about how good the song was. But, really, I did expect this album to be good. I can't tell if it surpassed my expectations or not, though. I do love the album and I think it's really good but the fact that there was only a few new songs kind of let it down a little. Rather than including B-Sides in the album, it would have been nice to see some fresh stuff, but, this still sounds brilliant just like this!

Makeover!

As the title suggests, the blog got a bit of a make-over~  (￣∇￣)ﾉｷﾗ☆;:*:;☆;:*:;☆

The banner's awful right now but it's the best I could make in less than 50 minutes on a shitty laptop on GIMP (I made the banner instead of doing real work during my Photography class).
I've used the same layout for about half a year now (probably longer), so I wanted to go for a change of style (changing colours doesn't count as a layout change, after all~). So, here it is, the new and really not improved to be honest, blog!
I'll try to up the activity here from now! ↑↑

And, to finish - d'aw, he's lovely

[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?

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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!

November Top 5

All opinions are mine and, surprisingly, not your's! Gahsp! Who'd have thought?

 

Here, have some adorable derp Kame. I don't care if he has nothing to do with this Ranking.

So, the time has come for the second installment of my Monthly Top 5 singles overview. Again, this ranking will be focussing soley on singles released in Japan, purely because I can't think of any other Novemember releases I actually cared about.
And, yeah, last time I said something about GACKT showing up this time but, as it turns out, Winter Lovers isn't out until December. I swear that wasn't the case before, but whatever.
Anyway, let's get on with the ranking!

5. S/mileage - Samui ne

I like this cover best, it's cute and Christmassy. But the editing isn't too impressive.

One thing I don't like about S/mileage is their song style. The cutesy act doesn't always work for me. I do love cute stuff, but S/mileage often end up being too much. Besides, I'm really not a big fan of Dawa's voice and her singing squeakier and more cutesy than normal isn't something I find particularly pleasant. I'm sure Dawa's lovely but I'm just not huge on her voice. However, this song is a more mellow and mature song. However, that cutesy feel is still retained. Also, it's a winter song. I'm a sucker for winter songs, really. This I will admit without even an ounce of shame. Basically, I would honestly like to see more of this from S/mileage. Maybe then, I'd like them better - I love the girls, particularly 2nd Gen. In my opinion, S/mileage are getting a tad generic for my tastes, but, with this single, I think there's some improvements.

4. Shoujo Jidai - FLOWER POWER

I find it odd that, despite being officially known as 'Shoujo Jidai', their Japanese single covers don't actually seem to provide any evidence of this. Also, it may just be me, but I find those outfits quite unflattering.

I'm not a huge SNSD fan - I like them enough but I'm not mad about them. I'm a casual fan. A really casual fan. I don't know if I'm even really a fan. But I do like them and there are a couple of songs of their's that I honestly adore. This isn't one of them, but I do really like it. Now, being a 'really casual fan', I haven't actually given any of this single, past the A-Side, a listen and, since I want to get this up at a decent time, unlike my last Monthly Top 5, I'm going to be lazy and not bother with them. But, that being said, it does mean that this is a good enough A-Side for me to consider among the month's Top 5 without any support from extra songs. This song is a very typical SNSD song which does do the track many favours for me. There are certain SNSD songs I'm less drawn to, but this particular kind of song is normally a hit for me. It's a very catchy song and it's got a really good beat. It's everything good about SNSD, I suppose.

3. DIY♡ / GREEN FIELDS - Forefore ~Forest For Rest~ / Boys be ambitious

The cover sucks because Miya's hair is much nicer in the PV. Okay, it doesn't actually suck. It's better than a lot of H!P Single covers. Shut up.

This single is only in these charts because of DIY♡. I couldn't actually care less about GREEN FIELDS and their generic little track. Sure, I feel like an arse for being so harsh right off the bat with this part of the ranking but it has to be said. In order to get it out of the way quickly, I'll explain exactly how I feel about Boys be ambitious! - it's not a bad song, perse, but in comparison to its coupling track, it really doesn't stand out to me at all. It is, as I said, generic. That doesn't make it an inherently awful song and I do need to stress that I don't think of it as such. It just didn't have enough going for it to get itself anywhere near this ranking alone. I kept this single on the ranking purely because I realised that, even if this single had contained DIY♡'s track and nothing else, it would still have done well on the ranking. Boys be ambitious is simply not my kind of song and the line-up, though I do like the girls, save for Yuka, purely because I don't even really know who she is, does nothing for me. Forefore ~Forest For Rest~, on the other hand, is an absolutely fantastic track and I would easily say that is one of the best songs to come out of H!P in quite some time. This, Wakuteka Take a chance and WANT! are all renewing my faith in H!P - not that I had ever lost faith, as such, but, I was certainly wavering. Please keep in mind that, faith or no faith, my support for H!P never once weakened. DIY♡'s track is ridculously catchy and it really gets stuck in my head for ages after I listen to it - it's a bloody earwig, I'll tell you! The melody is seriously good and the arrangement is among the best in recent H!P releases. I really love the melody of the instrumental break - things like that always get me. I also think it's brilliant how this a dancey song without masses of autotune (I'll admit, I basically repeat this observation later on, only applying it to a different song all together) - this is especially unusual in current H!P, so it's really nice to see. Harunan is still not too a strong a singer but this song truly compliments her voice, so that's always great - personally, though I am fully aware that she is somewhat vocally weak, I will not deny that her voice has this certain charm to it and, as such, I'm drawn to her voice. Also, lastly, in the PV, Miya's hair is great, it suits her so well. Keep this hair, Miya! Drop the extentions!
 

2. Kis-My-Ft2 - Ai no Beat

So, is Tama-chan just going to adopt the trademark Yamapi glare? I mean, they're both beauts, so I can work with that.

This single is pretty interesting - it's got a pretty substantially-lengthed tracklist with 4 tracks; 2 A-Sides and 2 B-Sides, but that's not the best part (cause that's not actually very interesting at all, is it?). The great thing about this single is that it features two different versions of the A-Side - the Dance version and the Rock version, both of which sound really good and equally, quintesentially Kis-My-Ft2. Both versions have a different feel to them and they have such different approaches taken toward them, regarding arrangement and so on, but they both work so well. It's really impressive - well done to the people who wrote this one.  On top of that, the lyric s are fast, at parts, yet easy to sing along to (granted you know the lyrics or have them on you, of course), which is always great~ Stuff like that makes for memorable lyrics!
As brilliant as the Dance version is (even with its intro sounding exactly like part of a JLS song), my favourite of the pair would have to be the Rock version. Though, that makes sense, seeing as my favourite artists are GACKT and KAT-TUN. Actually, as much as this song could only be a Kis-My-Ft2 song (this is something I love about KisuMai), there are elements to the rock version that remind me somewhat of KAT-TUN's pre-debut songs, namely 'SHE SAID...'. Honestly, I just the fast-pace of the rock version; the drums are bloody effective. It just sounds so cool, really. Though, it's probably worth noting that's not really that rocky at all. There are clkear rock elements, but it's still pretty poppy, if you ask me.
The B-Sides are both really nice, too. First off, there's Winter Lovers which is a nice, relaxing song. The first time I heard it, I was trying to sleep on a bus, so, yeah. It's a pretty little song and it's really perfect for the winter season. It sounds like it would be perfect to listen to on a snowy morning, with a clear sky. But, that kind of clear where the sky is that really weird shade of pale blue. I hope Scotland gets that at some point - we do like our horrendous grey skies, it seems.
Lastly, we have Never End LOVE. Personally, I think this sounds really nice. The verses, at least, remind me kind of Yamapi's Ao and some NEWS songs. In fact, this whole song sounds like it should be an older NEWS song back from when they still had eight members. In some ways, it's like a less cheesey version of Private Hearts, except..not, obviously. If you get what I mean. But, it's so typically JE without being one of those cheesey messes chock-full of prepubescent 12-year-olds.


1. The MONSTERS - MONSTERS

This is one of my favourite single covers of the year, by the way. It's so cool.

So, this month's winner is this little jem of a subgroup. This group was formed to perform the theme song to drama, MONSTERS - oh, and it's worth mentioning that the members actually play the main characters of the drama. Funnily enough, the last time JE formed a duo with two members of a drama cast and got them to sing the theme song, Yamapi was involved, as he is this time. However, MONSTERS doesn't have much on Shuji & Akira's Seishun Amigo, I find - some may call it Kame-bias, but I just call it fact. Okay, no, really, I just think that Seishun Amigo's a better song.

Of course, that being said, I still think that this is a really good single. The A-Side is quite dancey without being an autotune fest, which is always interesting. I mean, I'm not adverse to autotune but sometimes it's used purely to make a song seem dancey which is a bit of a cop-out. I mean, if it sounds great, that's fine, but, y'know. There are a lot of vocal effects in this song, though, I won't deny it, and there's probably some autotune in there, too. This song is bloody catchy and I find it totally engaging. It's quite nice hearing Shingo tackling this genre, because I swear you don't hear all that much of this from SMAP (I mean, you do occasionally - take Just Go! for example). My favourite part is the whole bit at the end with Shingo singing all low, with Yamapi doing adlibs in the back. It sounds seriously cool.

The B-Side, Monster or Monsutaa, is a cover of a classic Pink Lady song and it's absolutely fantastic. In fact, I actually prefer it to the A-Side. I haven't had much experience with Pink Lady aside from UFO and the songs covered by various Hello! Project artists, but, even so, this song is so obviously a Pink Lady song, it's odd. But, I do like Pink Lady's songs, as far as melody and beat go. I love when a favourite artist of mine covers one of their songs. Funnily enough, though, this rendition of the song reminds me of H!P at times, probably because of the obvious influences Tsunku has taken from the classic duo. It's amazing, though, how well this pair work this song. In fact, I'm all for Yamapi singing more songs in this genre because his voice sounds so lovely here. I really love the electronic twist on the song that kicks in from the second chorus onwards, it sound so cool. And the shouting lines are brilliant, too. This whole song is a fabulous, fabulous success for me and, on top of that, it's wonderfully catchy. This is one of my favourite tracks of the year, quite honestly. I am so glad this happened.

 

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So~ That's all for November~

Check back next month to see whether or not GACKT will lose to a certain Johnny's quartet on their world quest? Or, could it be that Berryz Koubou could get that spot? - they do want it so bad~

(major awful pun alert)