1 year ago to the day this blog was conceived, the idea came about while at work, I wanted to express my ideas and thoughts without just typing them on various forums, I thought the best way to get peoples attention would be to start a blog and fill it with pretty pictures. I'm amazed that I posted more than 5 times but I guess I have a lot to talk about. I'm very thankful to all of you that left comments and opinions, without that encouragement this blog would of probably died a slow death. Also I'd like to thank International Wota who give me frequent write ups, a best new blog award and tend to give me more credit then I deserve. Right now I would love nothing more than to get some beers and delicious cake but I have a ton of work to contend with and I'm also in the process of moving house so everything is upside down and in boxes, there's also gonna be a short period of time when I'll be offline, hopefully not too long because I need my idol fix, it's like crack.
Again a big thanks to all of you that come read my babble and thoughts, if you've never posted before there's never been a better time to start :D I'll shut up now and let Risako and Miyabi take over ... Mmmm relevant.
Believe it or not but this blog isn't just about Hello! project, so from time to time I like to post Japanese related articles that amuse me no end. This was liberated from Itai news and translated by Sankaku Complex
Below is a recent list of 16 male traits that Japanese females find loathsome and 'unmanly'
1. He has no opinion, is just carried along by others. 2. He always has someone to blame. 3. He can never be decisive at the moment of truth. 4. He’s always giving up (never puts in the work). 5. He’s always relying on his parents somehow. 6. He keeps quiet on the train even when he’s bunched up against some weirdo. 7. Though he’s timid around other people, he only acts firm in front of me. 8. He flip-flops around with what foods he likes and dislikes. 9. He splits the cost of meals (with me) exactly, even in increments of ¥10. 10. He asks to be treated. 11. He always whines about his work. 12. His mails are too long. 13. He does nothing but complain. 14. He checks his appearance in front of the mirror too much. 15. He uses hygiene products too much. 16. His body is frail and weak.
I think I'm guilty to some of these actions, but I'm totally justified in complaining about my work. I'm tempted to create a list of female traits that I find very 'unfeminine' but I don't wanna sound like a sexist bigot and I don't wanna face the wrath of any female readers that are easily offended ... maybe I should get drunk and do it? Also the above photo is from 2chan ... I have no idea what is going on but it seems to be some group bonding session involving Miyabi ... I guess we should be thankful they are still wearing pants ...
Like most people I heard this single last week from a concert audio rip, I could instantly tell it was gonna be epic ... but the question was is how epic. Well after watching the PV countless times I can safely say that it's pretty goddamn delicious. A number of people are saying that this single totally annihilates Morning Musume's latest effort (Naichau Kamo) which is a fairly ambiguous comment considering both singles contrast a fair bit, but I can see the reasoning behind it. Considering I gave a relatively negative review about Morning Musume's latest single I am quite happy to be writing something positive for once
pic spam roll ...
The set really doesn't deviate much from 'Naichau Kamo' set, the umbrellas are replaced by large speakers, the glittery tassel crap has been multiplied by ten and there's a dj box thrown in for good measure.
As the video starts we get a lot of quick edits that merely tease you for the coming win, this cap of Miyabi's neck lasted almost one tenth of a second ... such a damn tease.
The video continues to tease before the rhythm fully breaks in, the camera never focuses on a girls face, the darkness and fast edits serve to build the anticipation.
The set quickly cuts to a spinning disco ball which then ...
explodes and treats us with shards of delicious Berryz.
There's little point of me talking about the actual music track itself because you can all listen to it and make your own minds up, there's no way on Earth I could dislike this track considering it has fast euro/techno beats and disco flavor, the music and video match quite well indeed.
The camera pans and introduces each girl, the most striking features of Miyabi is her new short hair and the loosely strapped dog collar (so sexy)
Although Chinami is my favorite Berry I think that she is looking the most ravishing out of all the girls, her hair tied up with a red flowered hair pin looks beautiful and her complexion is looking extremely white, obviously this is due to make up and lighting but where is my little tanned Chi chan? I can recall an interview with her from last year when she was asked if she could change anything about herself, her response was 'I wish my skin wasn't so dark'. This comment actually saddens me slightly because it shows that she possibly has an inferiority complex based upon the shade of her skin, to put this into context, Koreans who live in Japan are treated as third rate citizens, this idea is based upon when Japan used Koreans during World war 2 to further their war effort and expansion across Asia, Koreans were treated no better than American/European P.O.W.'s (which was dire to say the least). A Korean person who naturally has a darker shade of skin was considered inferior to the Japanese who by comparison have a lighter shade of skin (mostly). The idea of racial superiority isn't limited to Japan of course but it is a constant issue within Japanese society, I'm not saying that Chinami is of Korean descent (it doesn't matter) but I'm curious if Chinami views herself in such a negative way. Errr anyway ... on with the video
Maasa is looking doe eyed and beautiful, her curled hair is looking stunning and a welcome break from her standard style
It's quite hard to understand Saki's hair because her hat is covering most of the style, is it lop sided? is the short side combed to the side? Her hat is quite terrible, but it can be excused because even the leopard of the jungle looks remarkably unfashionable and flamboyant now days
Risako is the absolute queen of looking innocent and pure, her pout is quite powerful and well trained.
The opening shots of the girls seem to follow a pattern of them all looking slightly serious and alluring, Momoko on the other hand tries to follow but fails when she lets out a little playful grin
Yurina has never looked so good, the leather dog collar is an added bonus also.
Although these types of shot might be easy to create they really fit in with the rhythm and speed of the song
Maasa's clothing might not be the most stylish but I think the hat suits her quite well
I've been watching a a lot of live performances of Perfume recently so I can understand how awesome lasers can be, I cant even recall if any previous H!P PV's have contained lasers ... can you? Also can you see the DJ in the background? this is probably the best shot I can get of her/him.
Risako isn't fat ...
she's just the victim of binary fission
This shot really captures the style of the girls, its quite refreshing to see a more serious approach from the berryz considering the last 3 singles have been 'fun happy cute' style, I would consider this the first sexy approach that the Berryz have done, I think its about time also
for most of the video the girls retain a slightly serious/alluring facial expression, yet when the girls each take it in turn being the DJ they have a little fun
I shall be definitely purchasing this single, if there was an actual Vinyl I think it would be highly collectible indeed
Clearly the camera is focused on one thing, I wonder if future Berryz PV's will keep the continuity? I certainly hope so ...
Momoko's pinky makes a predictable yet welcome appearance
The dance move perform here seems to involve holding your arm up and punching the air beneath it, its rather funky and violent
I haven't read any translations for the lyrics yet but this cap is very much open to our own perverse interpretations
OBJECTION!
I'm not really sure if Momoko's little leather jacket and dog collar suits her style, she looks badass regardless
7 lots of Miyabi thighs in one shot is an instant heart attack
The edits for this video are done very fast so I decided to do a little math...
The video is 3 minutes and 56 seconds long
The average scene time is 1 second
so this video contains around 256 individual edits, which is fairly hardcore
Even though Momoko is delightfully cute she can at times look quite sinister
this is probably the first time I've ever said the word 'erotic' in the same breath of talking about the Berryz, this scene is totally a surprise and exclusive only to Yurina
her nimble fingers slowly run down her neck and along her throat ... erotic and highly relevant, I wonder if the dance version will have all girls doing the same? can you imagine that? I don't think my heart could take it
I think Risako is the best at making faces
I really cant remember any previous Berryz PV's that contained such gratuitous butt shots
I really like this shot (apart from the obvious reasons) the camera slowly pans downwards
and captures a funky little jumping move
Captain is a sexy little ghetto thug <3
as the video ends we are given a simple formation pose and a fade to black ... much like the ending to Naichau Kamo. As you are already well aware I'm a huge fan of this, I think its got the potential to be a staple song at concerts much like Special generation and Munasawagi Scarlet, its fast, funky, sexy and hopefully sets the standard for Berryz Kobo from now on. Now the big question is now will C-ute also step their game up?
When I first found out about this news it was like a swift kick in the nuts, I've been at work for the past 8 hours so I've had plenty of time to formulate and compose my opinions and questions as follows ...
• is this the beginning of UP-FRONT INTERNATIONAL fully opening up to the western market and actually becoming fully international and not restricting themselves to the Asian markets? it would seem unfair if the UFI didn't give us European wotas a slice of H!P pie also.
• Will this event propel Morning Musume into the western mainstream, I'm curious if its possible new fans could look past the language barrier and the idol concept, there is potentially a massive market for Japanese pop groups considering Japanophilia seems wide spread amongst teenagers, its just a question of how they are marketed ... can you really see H!P photo books sitting in your local bookstore?
• is this all just an experiment the UFI are doing to get a feeling of how well Morning Musume (and idol groups) are received? I'm sure the turn out at the Anime expo will be a key factor in any possible future performances.
• Will Morning Musume's setlist consist of newer material? I personally think that it will contain mostly stuff released in the past year ... I'm not sure why I think this ...I just do.
• Will Morning Musume's flight into America be greeted with a crazy ass fan fest like when Berryz kobo touched down in south Korea?
My overall thoughts on this news are mostly positive ones, although my fandom for Morning Musume has slipped lately due to lackluster singles, I still remain a big fan so the thoughts of Morning Musume expanding and becoming more popular are very much welcome. Although ... part of me wants them to remain exclusive to Asia, I don't think I would like it if they became too mainstream in the west because I enjoy the fact that a majority of people I know have zero idea what an idol group is. My Lolli secretary checked out the flights from the UK to LA and it would be costing me around £525 for a return flight ... I'm quite tempted to pop over for a few days and show my support, anyone in LA wanna put me up for a few nights? Ideally I would rather see the girls in Japan and bust out the glowsticks in true wota style. If any of you do attend to the Anime expo ... learn the wota chants, coordinate your glowsticks ... and if possible bring large inflatable Bananas for Jun Jun. I'm gonna end this now with one of the first (and favorite) Morning Musume videos I saw way back in 2004 Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari!
Buono's upcoming concert bizzarrely titled 'Hybrid punch' looks like its gonna be quite awesome, 4 days of fun it would seem. The tracklist seems to consist of nearly all of Buono's 2 albums (not to be mistaken with the currently named album) so how could this concert get any better?
Buono! are just getting bigger and better, since the latest album 'Buono! 2' is an absolutely amazing piece of work which YesAsia.com has described them quite favorably:
Buono! were no strangers to the Oricon charts last year. They pleased their fans with no less than four top ten Oricon entries, some of which can be found on their second album. Buono! 2 features twelve tracks including the hits Lotta love Lotta love, Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!, and their most recent Oricon #4 hit Co No Mi Chi.
Not only do Buono! pack amazing songs (I NEED YOU, Goal) they also score quite highly on the style factor ... I don't think I've seen such beauty and adorability, the stylists needs a huge round of applause:
The Buono! merchandise is also quite awesome... Buono cutlery anyone!?
