 ©UP-FRONT PROMOTION Co., Ltd. Walking through the doors to the concert hall, the first thing we all saw was the various Hello! Project music videos being shown on the main screen on stage. As we all shuffled into our optimal positions the reality of the situation started to sink in: Morning Musume。'16 was in Houston! As we waited patiently for the hall to fill and for the girls to come out, people pumped up some balloons and started throwing them around the crowd. Meanwhile, some small clusters of fans rocked out to whatever song happened to be playing on the screen. The people behind the convention came up for a short message and to welcome Morning Musume。’16 with some cheers. Before long, the lights dimmed, the screen turned off, and the girls came out to thunderous cheering wearing their modified ‘One and Only’ outfits (with cute Sheriff Badges to boot). They jumped right into their brand-new all-English song 'One and Only'. The crowd went wild and most of the people around me burst into song along with the girls. It was rather touching. They then lead right into 'Oh my wish!’ kicking off the concert with an unimaginable amount of energy. Miki Nonaka was in a chair of course, due to her injury, but put forth just as much energy and excitement as the rest of the group!
The girls took a moment to introduce themselves, and they even did so in English. It was clear that they worked incredibly hard to learn the English for their introductions, and they all did a fantastic job. They then jumped into another of their brand new songs: ‘ENDLESS SKY’. After that they jumped into high-energy songs like ‘Renai Hunter’ and ‘Sukatto My Heart’. They were doing an absolutely fantastic job of mixing in both old and new songs in order to keep the crowd interested. Their formation dancing, singing skills and coordination were particularly impressive throughout the show. 'Love & Peace! HERO ga Yattekita' was performed to close out this section of the show.
Half the group went backstage to change into new outfits while the rest stayed up in order to have another MC section. Aika Mitsui, former 8th Generation Morning Musume。member, joined them as the surprise guest and interpreter for this. Aika mentioned that she had been interviewing fans before the concert and that she was going to ask the members questions that the fans had asked. Unlike their previous times in the USA, this MC section felt a lot more like the ones in Japan, which was really neat and fun. Aika even decided to teach us a Japanese phrase: 'Ganbatte ikimasshoi'. She explained that backstage, before a concert, all the girls say this to each other as they place their hands on top of each other's while gathered in a circle. She said that this was a great way to get hyped or to lift somebody's spirit. The girls on stage then demonstrated how they do it. At this time, Miki (who was still in her chair) got up excitedly to join the group and they all said 'Ganbatte ikimasshoi!' Miki later jokingly said that she probably shouldn't have gotten up but she got so excited and wanted to do it with everyone. It was extremely adorable. After this, the girls from backstage were changed and switched spots with the ones who were not. The new outfits were black with puffy skirts and some frills as well. They were pretty. Aika then continued by asking the next set of girls questions from the fans. One of the most standout questions was when she asked the girls which graduated Morning Musume。 members they looked up to. Maria Makino was first to answer, and immediately said that Sayumi Michishige (who graduated in 2014) was her favorite. Each of the other members said that Aika was their favorite, as a joke. Even Erina Ikuta said this, despite Aika pointing out that everyone knows that Risa Niigaki is her favorite (who graduated in 2013). All of the girls were asked to give Aika hugs, except Maria since she said Sayumi was her favorite. They all ran to Aika and gave her a huge hug while Maria sat down and pouted. Eventually Aika invited Maria for a hug too which she happily complied to. Aika also taught the crowd another Japanese term: 'Ichiban suki' (meaning you love something the most). After a good time, the rest of the group came out, ready to continue the performance. As Aika left, everyone cheered for her.
The next section was kicked off with a medley consisting of the classics 'Souda! WE'RE ALIVE', 'LOVE Machine' and 'Renai Revolution 21'. These are some very beloved songs, especially for overseas fans, so the amount of energy and love that the crowd threw at Morning Musume。'16 was to be expected. There was a very clever outfit change in the middle of ‘Renai Revolution 21’. They folded a layer of their outfit over the black to create a new white outfit. This one had the American flag on the skirt and an outline of a rocket on the upper portion (referring to the NASA center in Houston), with variations for each member. It was an extremely cute and clever way to express a theme that screams Houston and America. Once the superb medley was over, the group took a picture with the whole crowd, which we were told would appear on the official site.  ©UP-FRONT PROMOTION Co., Ltd. From there, they jumped right back into the performance with ‘Tsumetai Kaze-to Kataomoi’, a personal favorite of mine. This song originally had Riho Sayashi (who graduated on the last day of 2015) doing some graceful solo dances during the song. With her not in the group anymore, Ayumi Ishida took over the spot with extreme finesse and amazing control. It made for a very touching performance that I’m sure would have made Riho proud. They then continued with some more favorites. The two that stood out to me the most were ‘Wagamama Kinomama Aino Joke’ and ‘What is LOVE?’ These songs got an extremely powerful crowd response and I felt like they did some of their best dancing during these songs.  ©UP-FRONT PROMOTION Co., Ltd. They left after that, and shortly after the crowd exploded into a chant to bring the girls out again for a song or two more. Eventually most of the crowd who had glow sticks that could change color changed to green, which is the color for Kanon Suzuki. Kanon will be graduating from the group at the end of their spring tour, so this was her last performance overseas within the group. The fans had all agreed beforehand to do this in her honor and everyone broke into a call for her using her nickname ‘Zukki’. It was quite touching to see, and we could all see that Kanon felt the same way when they all came out for the encore. They jumped into ‘HOW DO YOU LIKE JAPAN? ~Nihon wa Dona Kanji Dekka?~’ which was also a crowd pleaser. They were wearing their outfits from their previous tour (Gradation) which displayed each of their member colors prominently. With the concert clearly reaching a close, Mizuki read a letter to the crowd. During this time, the crowd gave Kanon a ‘Zukki’ call again, which brought her to tears on stage. With that, she caught her breath, and told the whole crowd “Thank you, I LOVE YOU!” with that huge contagious smile that nobody could hate. Following that, they jumped into the final song: ‘One Two Three’. They put their all into this final song, as did the audience. Before we knew it, it was over. The members all thanked the crowd and went off-stage. We were promised a set list of upbeat and fun songs, and they delivered in full force.  ©A-To-J Connections (PC: Manuel Figueroa) Slowly, we all shuffled out of the concert hall. Without a doubt, we knew that this had been the best performance we’ve seen out of Morning Musume。’16 in America so far. Concerts like this not only bring Morning Musume。’16 to new places, but they bring fans from all walks of life together via a special unbreakable bond. We can only hope that the girls will have the opportunity to come back to the USA again in the near future. GANBATTE IKIMASSHOI! - Teepu (Official UP-FRONT pictures used with permission. All other copyright A-To-J Connections) CONCERT SETLIST 1. One and Only 2. Oh my wish! -MC- 3. ENDLESS SKY 4. Renai Hunter 5. Sukatto My Heart 6. Love & Peace! HERO ga Yattekita -MC- (Aika Mitsui as Surprise Guest) 7. -MEDLEY- Souda! WE’RE ALIVE LOVE Machine Renai Revolution 21 -MC- (Photo Session) 8. Tsumetai Kaze-to Kataomoi 9. The Matenrou Show 10. Aino Gundan 11. Wagamama Ki-nomama Ai-no Joke 12. What is LOVE? -ENCORE- (Zukki Call) 13. HOW DO YOU LIKE JAPAN? ~Nihon wa Donna Kanji Dekka?~ -MC- 14. One Two Three Morning Musume。’16 Is: - Fukumura Mizuki (譜久村聖; 9th Generation) Leader - Ikuta Erina (生田衣梨奈; 9th Generation) Sub-Leader - Suzuki Kanon (鈴木香音; 9th Generation) - Iikubo Haruna (飯窪春奈; 10th Generation) Sub-Leader - Ishida Ayumi (石田亜佑美; 10th Generation) - Sato Masaki (佐藤優樹; 10th Generation) - Kudo Haruka (工藤遥; 10th Generation) - Oda Sakura (小田さくら; 11th Generation) - Ogata Haruna (尾形春水; 12th Generation) - Nonaka Miki (野中美希; 12th Generation) - Makino Maria (牧野真莉愛; 12th Generation) - Haga Akane (羽賀朱音; 12th Generation) A-To-J Event Report: http://a-to-jconnections.com/idols/morning-musume-16s-landing-in-houston A-To-J Interview: Official Morning Musume。 ’16 Links Website: http://www.helloproject.com/morningmusume/ Google+: https://plus.google.com/+morningmusume/posts Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Morningmusume.Official/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/MorningMusumeMg YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/morningmusumechannel UP-FRONT LINK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/upfrontlink/ UP-FRONT LINK Twitter: https://twitter.com/UpFrontLink  A-To-J Connections covers a lot of idols. We also cover a lot of Visual Kei bands. I never thought for a second that we might stumble across a group who fits into both categories. Lyric Holic is that group. Forming sometime around 2014, Lyric Holic has only released a small handful of singles and music videos. Their most recent is "Alice", and it's awesome. Listening to "Alice", I would have never believed this was an idol group. The intro SCREAMS Versailles, with a dash of Malice Mizer for good measure. Even watching the video, I would have sworn that they were an all-girl Visual Kei band. The only thing setting them apart from the rest of VK is that they aren't playing their instruments. Everything from the style of the video to the group's outfits is pure Visual Kei. The music is gothic heavy metal (why wouldn't it be?) and it works perfectly. The girls' voices are incredible, and the pre-chorus screams are to die for. It certainly SOUNDS like somebody's gonna die. There's not a lot of information readily available on this group, especially to English speakers, so I'm wondering what their story is. I'd love to know if there was an actual Visual Kei band behind the production of this music. I don't know anything about Lyric Holic apart from the songs I've found on YouTube. I can't find any sites apart from their official site, which is fairly devoid of information. It looks like they play live pretty often, but they still only have three singles out. In fact, "Alice" hasn't even officially been released as a single yet. "Alice" leaves me wishing that there was an album to back it up, and I can only hope that one might be on the way in the future. Lyric Holic - Alice MV Interview with KOTO: First Overseas Live at Taiwan's 3D LIVE REVOLUTION×LIVE PLUS (Part 1)3/13/2016  KOTO with A-To-J Tranlator/Correspondent, Darice Chang We were recently lucky enough to catch up to KOTO again during her first ever overseas live which took place in Taiwan! KOTO took the stage at the 2-day event "3D LIVE REVOLUTION X LIVE PLUS" at Taiwan's Pipe Live Music and shared the stage with several idols from both Taiwan and Japan! The crowd was hyped and energetic and she won over many Taiwanese idol fans and we hope that she will eventually win over the hearts of many more fans worldwide! KOTO is a solo recording artist with a unique style and sound that has made her a front runner in the indie idol scene. She recently released her first album "Platonic Planet" and has been very active recording and performing in Japan. You can follow her on social media for more information (links at the bottom of the article) and look forward to more news on her in the future from A-To-J Connections! You can find an earlier interview we conducted with KOTO here. You can also find a live report from an earlier show we covered in Japan here. A-To-J: Please introduce yourself. A-To-J: 自己紹介をお願いします。 KOTO: I’m KOTO. Right now I do solo work in Japan and I’m 17. Nice to meet you! KOTO: 今日本でソロ活動をしている、17歳のKOTOです、よろしくお願いします。 A-To-J: This is your first overseas live. Please tell us how you feel being able to perform overseas. A-To-J: 初めての海外ライブですが、活動の初の海外ライブを達成した心境を教えてください。 KOTO: I was very nervous because I am overseas but at the live there were many people from Japan as well cheering me on and I felt relieved! Also, the people in Taiwan were very heartwarming and I’m glad I got to enjoy the live with everyone! KOTO: まず、海外も初めてだったので緊張していたんですけど、ライブではすごい日本から応援にきてくれたファンの方もたくさんいて、すごい安心したし、そして台湾の方もあったかくってみんなでライブを楽しめて、よかったです。 A-To-J: Did you become a fan of Taiwan? A-To-J: 台湾のファンになりましたか？ KOTO: Yes, but I can’t speak much Taiwanese so when I speak a little, it’s a bit embarrassing. KOTO: はい、でもあんまり台湾語喋れないので、喋るときに恥ずかしいです。 A-To-J: How do you feel about your first overseas live being in Taiwan? A-To-J: 初の海外ライブが台湾ですが、それについてどう思いますか？ KOTO: I’ve always wanted to come to Taiwan so I’m happy to be here! Also it was close from Japan so I felt very relieved. KOTO: 台湾には来て見たかったので、嬉しいし、日本から近いところだったので、ちょっと安心しました。 A-To-J: Is it your first time going overseas (in general)? A-To-J: 海外来るのは初めてですか？ KOTO: Yes! KOTO: そうです！ A-To-J: How was the plane ride? A-To-J: 飛行機はどうでした？ KOTO: I’ve gone on a plane before but since this was a longer ride I fell asleep! (Laughs) KOTO: 飛行機は一回乗ったことあったんですけど、長時間だったので、寝ちゃいました（笑） A-To-J: Are you having fun here in Taiwan? A-To-J: 台湾は楽しんでいますか？ KOTO: Yes, I’m having fun! The first night I went to a night market and ate at the food stands. KOTO: はい！楽しんでます。初日に夜市にも行って、屋台で食べたりもしたので、楽しんでます。 A-To-J: When did you arrive here? A-To-J: いつ来たんですか？ KOTO: I came a day before the live so I came yesterday, which was the 22nd (of January) KOTO: ライブの前日、22日に来ました。 A-To-J: When will you be leaving? A-To-J: いつ帰る予定ですか？ KOTO: I’m going home on Monday. (January 25th) KOTO: 月曜日に帰ります。(1月25日) A-To-J: Have you done anything fun here? A-To-J: 楽しいことはしましたか？ KOTO: There are a couple of Taiwanese idols here that can speak Japanese so I had a fun time talking to them! KOTO: 台湾のアイドルさんが日本語喋れる方が多くって、おしゃべりができて楽しかったです。
A-To-J: Do you have any interesting things that have happened here in Taiwan? A-To-J: 台湾で起こった面白いことはありますか？ KOTO: At the convenience store, I bought one thing and they gave me another for free. That doesn’t happen much in Japan so I was surprised! KOTO: コンビニで一個買ったらもう一個くれるとか（笑）日本ではないのでびっくりしました！ A-To-J: What did you buy there? A-To-J: 何を買いましたか？ KOTO: I bought souvenirs to bring back to Japan. I also bought cough drops for myself. KOTO: お土産とかも買ったんですけど、自分用にのど飴とか買いました。 A-To-J: What kind of things did you buy as souvenirs? A-To-J: 何のお土産を買いましたか？ KOTO: I bought things I can give out as goodies for people that come to my live in Japan. KOTO: 日本に帰ったときのライブの特典にするやつとか。 A-To-J: Oh! That’s very interesting! A-To-J: えっ！面白い！ A-To-J: Did you encounter any obstacles here in Taiwan? A-To-J: 台湾に来て困難だったことはありますか？ KOTO: I’m not very good at kanji (Chinese characters)… but kanji is everywhere here. I’m not good at writing and reading so it was really hard for me! KOTO: 漢字がすごい苦手なので、漢字がいっぱいで…読めないのと、書けないのとで、めっちゃ大変でした！ A-To-J: But at least you can use English! A-To-J: でも英語は喋れますよね？ KOTO: I’m not very good at that either!! (Laughs) KOTO: 英語も下手っぴなんです！！（笑） A-To-J: What are some of the differences you’ve noticed between Taiwan and Japan? A-To-J: 台湾と日本の大きな違いは？ KOTO: It seems very similar but it isn’t… The smells? The food and flavors are different and are spiced differently. KOTO: なんか似てるようで…匂い？ご飯の味付けが「スパイス」な感じがします。
A-To-J: Have you had Taiwanese food before? Such as “xiao long bao” (soup dumplings) A-To-J: 台湾の食べ物は食べたことありますか？たとえば小籠包とか… KOTO: Oh yes, I’ve had xiao long bao before!! KOTO: あ、小籠包食べたことあります！ A-To-J: What about stinky tofu? A-To-J: 臭豆腐とか… KOTO: No I haven’t!! KOTO: 臭豆腐食べてないです！！ A-To-J: Are you planning to try some? A-To-J: 食べたいですか？ KOTO: No!! (Laughs) KOTO: ううん！（笑） A-To-J: Have you had any tapioca milk tea? A-To-J: タピオカミルクティーは飲みました？ KOTO: Yes, it was very good! Oh! Now I know what the big difference between Taiwan and Japan is. Taiwan is very lively at night or at least that’s what I saw at the night markets and I was very surprised. KOTO: タピオカミルクティーはおいしかったです。あ、そうだ、違いありますね。夜に人が活発なところ、夜市もそうだし、びっくりしました。 A-To-J: Please tell us what you think about the food here. A-To-J: 食べ物の感想を教えてください。 KOTO: The soy sauce type flavoring is different from Japan, it was a bit sweeter than what I’m used to. KOTO: しょうゆが日本と味が違って、ちょっと甘くって… A-To-J: Probably because Chinese and Japanese soy sauce is different. A-To-J: たぶん中国と日本の醤油はちょっと違うからですね。 KOTO: Oh, I see. I thought it was going to be salty and it was sweet so I was like “Oh!” but it was very delicious. KOTO: 違うんだ…しょっぱいのかなと思って食べて甘かったりとか、「おう！」ってなったけど、おいしかったです。 A-To-J: How did you decide on your set list for the Taiwan live? A-To-J: このライブのためにセットリストはどうやって決めましたか？ KOTO: I didn’t choose in Japan and I chose the set list once I got to Taiwan. The first day I had 15 minutes so I performed songs nonstop, back to back. I chose “Pastel Passport” to be one of the first songs since it’s a journey-themed song. KOTO: 日本では決めないでおいて、こっちに来てから決めたんですけど、初日は15分間の持ち時間だったりしたので、ノンストップでライブやったりとか。最初は「パステルパスポート」という旅っぽい曲にしたりとか。 A-To-J: What did you do to prepare for this live? A-To-J: ライブのために準備したことはなんですか？ KOTO: For this Taiwan live, I bought a new costume and I’m wearing it right now. It’s a China dress! KOTO: 台湾ライブのために新しい衣装を買って今着てるんですけど、チャイナ服です。 A-To-J: Don’t you have a lot of China dresses? A-To-J: よく出しますね、チャイナドレス。 KOTO: Yes, this is my 4th or 5th one. KOTO: これでもう4着目か5着目ぐらいです。 A-To-J: Why do you have so many? A-To-J: どうしてチャイナドレスいっぱい着てるの？ KOTO: They’re all cute and there are different shapes and sizes. I wanted all different kinds so now I have many. KOTO: かわいくって形がいろんな形があるので、色もそうだし、色々とほしくなっちゃっていっぱい持ってます。 A-To-J: Even in your previous YouTube video you wore a China dress! (Seen Below) A-To-J: 前のYouTubeでの動画でもチャイナドレス着てましたよね。 KOTO: I wanted to buy one here in Taiwan but I haven’t been able to go shopping for one… KOTO: こっちでも本場のやつを買っていきたかったんですけど、お店に辿りつけてなくって… KOTO - Platonic Planet MV  KOTO backstage @ Taiwan's Pipe (PC: Darice Chang) A-To-J: Do you listen to any Taiwanese songs? A-To-J: 台湾の曲は聴いたりしますか？ KOTO: I don’t really know of any… KOTO: あんまりわかんないです… A-To-J: What do you usually listen to? A-To-J: 普通にどんな音楽聴いてますか？ KOTO: There’s a Japanese artist named “Shiina Pikarin” and I listen to her songs a lot. KOTO: 日本の「椎名ぴかりん」さんというアーティストがいるんですけど、その人の曲はよく聴いてます。 A-To-J: Do you plan to do any sightseeing or souvenir shopping after your lives? A-To-J: ライブ後の観光やお土産を買いに行く予定は？ KOTO: Today I’ve been buying souvenirs when I have the time but I don’t have enough I want to go buy some more. I also haven’t had much time to eat Taiwanese food so I want to eat things such as xiao long bao and pepper buns (Hujiao bing). I also want to eat shaved ice, the very fluffy kind and also tapioca! KOTO: 時間があったときにお土産とか買うようにしてて、まだ足りてないのでどっか会に行きたいのと、後、あんまりまだ台湾のご飯食べれてないので小籠包とか胡椒餅たべたいなーって思います。カキ氷も食べたくって、ふわふわのカキ氷とかタピオカとかもっと食べたいです！ A-To-J: And you already went to a night market right? A-To-J: 夜市はもう行かれたんですよね？ KOTO: I did! But I only got to go to one… so I want to go to more! KOTO: 行きました！でも一軒しか行ってない…ので、もっと行きたい！ A-To-J: After you finish this live in Taiwan, where would you like to perform overseas next? A-To-J: このライブを終えた後、次はどこで海外ライブしたいですか？ KOTO: I would like to go to America next! I want to go to Russia as well because I heard there is “kawaii” culture there. KOTO: 次行くとしたら…アメリカとか行ってみたいです。後ロシアも「カワイイ文化」があると思うので行ってみたいです。 Look forward to the second half of this interview, and more information on KOTO coming very soon from A-To-J Connections! For More Information Please Follow KOTO On Social Media! Twitter: twitter.com/koccyan925 Instagram: instagram.com/koccyan925 Blog: ameblo.jp/hidecyobin Website: /kotora.tokyo YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIRroOmDntRlYly3BCj69AA The above interview was conducted by Darice Chang with post translation by Tiffany Fujii. KOTO - Omatsuri GALAXY Live MV In January of this year, BiSH released their second album "FAKE METAL JACKET". I wasn't a part of A-To-J at the time, but I reviewed it on my own personal blog. Since A-To-J never released an official review of it, I decided to go back and do an updated review; kinda like a second opinion, where both opinions are my own. This is definitely fair. "FAKE METAL JACKET" starts off the same way BiSH's debut album did; with "Spark", "BiSH - Hoshi ga Matataku Yoru ni", and "MONSTERS". The 2016 versions of these three songs include the group's new members, and sound pretty much the same with some minor differences (which are barely noticeable to the casual listener). The first new song we get is "Primitive", an emotional rock ballad which has a vibe similar to the BiS classic "primal". One of my favorite songs is next; "beautiful sa" is so incredible, it's just unforgettable in my opinion. It's not that BiSH is doing anything particularly new here, it's just some really high-level songwriting.  There's a re-recording of the 2015 single "OTNK", which sounds great, then we get "Migatte I need you". This is a little bit heavier than the preceding songs, and has an amazing chorus. I love hearing the way BiSH's voices compliment one another, it's just beautiful. "Departures" is next, an even harder rocking song. By this point, even a new listener should know that every singer in BiSH is impossibly talented. I can't believe there are so many perfect voices harmonizing together on this album, and this song is just more proof of that. "Want" is another pretty heavy one, though it's dialed back just a bit. The downstroked guitars sound pretty awesome, it's a great song. The last re-recorded song we get is "Saraba Kana" off the first album. In proper re-recorded BiSH song fashion, it sounds fine. It's the same song. The next song, though... I think I may have actually died. That's the only possible explanation for "All You Need Is Love", which is one of the most beautiful and powerful songs of all time. I love this song. I can't put into words how much I love this song. Just listen to it, if it's the last song you ever hear. It's a really pretty and downtempo love song, nice and calming, for the first half. After the halfway mark, right when you think the song is over, BiSH kicks into overdrive and just pummels through a powerful fucking masterpiece. Listen to "All You Need Is Love" before you even finish reading the review. The reason I say that is because the last two songs are great, but they shouldn't be following THAT. "DEAR..." is SUPER heavy with some awesome chanting, one of the most energetic songs on the whole album. "BUDOKAN ga Moshiku ha TAMANEGI" is the closer, and it's a nice ballad. It's pretty, emotional, and a nice ending to an amazing album.  If "Brand-new idol SHiT" was a great album, "FAKE METAL JACKET" is an AMAZING album. I do disagree with the choice to include so many old songs on here, but I don't dislike it. From what I've heard so far, I think this may just end up being my number one album of 2016. I'm glad I did this second review, because the first time around I didn't think it was as good as BiSH's debut. I'm really in love with "FAKE METAL JACKET", though. Favorites: beautiful sa, Migatte I need you, Departures, All You Need Is Love, DEAR... -Justin FAKE METAL JACKET Tracklist: 1) Spark'16 2) BiSH-Hoshi ga Mataku Yoru ni-'16 3) MONSTERS'16 4) Primitive 5) beautiful sa 6) OTNK'16 7) Migatte I need you 8) Departures 9) Want 10) Saraba Kana'16 11) ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE 12) DEAR… 13) BUDOKAN ga Moshiku ha TAMANEGI BiSH Is: Cent Chihiro Chitti (Captain) Aina the End Hug Me Momoko Gumi Company Lingling Hashiyasume Atsuko For More Information: Website: http://www.bish.tokyo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/BiSHidol BiSH - MONSTERS MV BiSH - ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE MV  NOT IDOL, NOT KAWAII. BILLIE IDLE® is an anti-idol group half made up of ex-BiS members First Summer Uika and Hirano Nozomi (plus Momose Momo, who was never in BiS but was ALMOST in BiS). Contrary to other anti-idol groups, they're actually a much more upbeat and cheery kind of group. They refuse to call themselves idols though, and take heavy influence from punk rock music and culture. The group was formed immediately after BiS disbanded, by former BiS manager (and current BiSH manager) Junnosuke Watanabe. Teriyaki Boyz member/fashion designer NIGO is also involved in their management and public appearance. BILLIE IDLE® debuted in 2015 with the A M A Z I N G single "anarchy in the music scene". This is one of my favorite idol (or not idol?) songs of all time, hands-down. Shortly after they released their debut album "IDLE GOSSIP". "IDLE GOSSIP" featured not only "anarchy", but some other incredible songs like "be my boy", "moments", and "po pe pa". Their sound falls somewhere between cute idol pop and Polysics-flavored electro-dance punk. Their live shows are full of energy and even stage diving, which is normally banned by idol group management. First Summer Uika in particular was known for stage diving during her time in BiS. BILLIE IDLE® - anarchy in the music scene MV  Later in 2015 BILLIE IDLE® released their SECOND album, "ROCK"N"ROLL IDLE". Just as good as the first, this album brought us "Darling ni wa Naranai", "Kanata ni...", and "be-bop tu-tu". With BILLIE IDLE® now solidified as one of the best working groups in J-pop, it's only a matter of time before they take over the entire world. The group's image is highly centered on fashion, including some awesome outfits you can only buy in NIGO's "STORE BY NIGO" in Harajuku. They don't actually play live that often, it seems, so each show really is a big event. They once played in a wrestling ring, which was just as amazing as it sounds. BILLIE IDLE® is set to release "4-in-1: The Official Bootleg" in April; it's an EP where each of the 4 songs will be written and sung by one member of the group. After that, who knows? Another album would be welcome about now, if you ask me. Something about this group just makes them impossible to ignore. Their musical styles are as varied and unique as their personalities, and the songwriting and performance of those songs is just incredible. These really are four of the most talented singers in J-pop today, as far as I'm concerned. BILLIE IDLE® - be-bop tu-tu MV Between 2015 and 2016, BILLIE IDLE® headlined an ex-BiS tour; the "BRAND-NEW IDLE SOCIETY: IDLE IS DEAD" tour would featured BILLIE IDLE® themselves, former BiS leader Pour Lui's new band LUI FRONTiC AKABANE JAPAN, Saki Kamiya's group POP (Period of Plastic 2 Mercy, formerly Pla2me), and Maison book girl (featuring Megumi Koshouji from BiS). Ex-BiS-member-turned-DJ Tentenko also appeared at the finale of the tour. This was one of the best tour lineups of all time, and don't let anybody tell you otherwise. I only wish I could have seen them. I hope BILLIE IDLE® continues to put together amazing events like that, and an international tour would not be unwelcomed. If you're a new listener to BILLIE IDLE®, I highly recommend you start with "anarchy in the music scene". After that, all of "IDLE GOSSIP". It has all those great songs I listed above, plus "Konin Todoke wa Tomaranai", plus "idle fellas" (also the name of their official fan club). You can't go wrong with any of the songs on that album, it's perfect front-to-back. After that, listen to "ROCK"N"ROLL IDLE". And after that, well, cry because there's nothing else to hear. Yet. But just wait until April. I'm gonna write about that EP so hard. It's not even an album, but it's gonna be one of my favorite albums of the year. Guaranteed. -Justin BILLIE IDLE® IS: First Summer Uika Hirano Nozomi Momose Momo Yasui Yuuhi For More Information: Website: http://www.billieidle.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/b_idle_official YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG1VeRu87NHxaNuEt_a3jzw  BILLIE IDLE® - be my boy MV  I've always been a fan of my idol music coming with a side of screaming. PassCode is an idol group who meets all the requirements for a perfect, uh, meal? They have the screams, the heavy techno-meets-metal backing music, and a pretty cool cyberpunk-lite aesthetic. This latest MV, "AXIS", serves as a nice appetizer for their upcoming album in May, and also the last time I describe music as if it is food.  Backed by some Babymetal-inspired digital hardcore, "AXIS" is a nice and heavy song. "Digital" is also a good word to use here, since there's a lot of vocoder/autotune vocals going on here. It's pretty fitting for a group who calls their fans "hackers". I hate to compare them to Babymetal (that's such a common comparison for any idol group who uses metal elements) but there are a lot of musical similarities. PassCode breaks free from their contemporaries with a few unique elements, though. The song has a fairly dark tone, something hiding deep in the melody that even cute idol vocals can't quite break free from. It's like all the sweetness is being fought back by the digital madness going on in the production. We also get an element I absolutely can't live without, in the form of Imada Yuna's black metal screams. This group can dance and smile all they want, but there's no escaping the pure darkness of this video. Speaking of the video, it's probably good to touch on that quickly. The group members dress is all black and white hoodies, with standard idol uniforms nowhere in sight. It's a minimalist video for sure, mostly featuring the group and their backing back playing in front of greyish backgrounds. There's some cool visual glitches and minor color effects enhancing the cyberpunk atmosphere, but it's mostly just a clean and minimal video. It fits the song pretty well! "AXIS" is an exceptional entry into the "idol-meets-digital-hardcore-meets-metal" formula; I firmly believe that PassCode is one of the best groups in the genre. I'm looking forward to "VIRTUAL", the full-length album dropping on May 25th. Until then, I do really hope they drop another single soon. If their last album is anything to go by, "VIRTUAL" might just blow us all away in a glitchy mess of hardcore EDM metal. -Justin PassCode Is: Takashima Kaede (高嶋楓) Imada Yuna (今田夢菜) Minami Nao (南菜生) Ogami Hinako (大上陽奈子) For More Information: Website: http://passcode-official.com/ Blog: http://ameblo.jp/passcode-official/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi0W2TYXQYftZFHoNcL1JIw Twitter: https://twitter.com/passcodeO Vine: https://vine.co/u/1091681703380062208 PassCode - AXIS MV  Seiko Oomori is one of the most interesting pop singers around right now. Not quite an idol, but not quite your basic J-pop singer either, she's about the closest thing you can get to anti-idol without being an actual idol to begin with. I recently wrote about her awesome single "Aishiteru.com", and now we have "TOKYO BLACK HOLE" which is also the title of her full-length album which comes out later this month.  "TOKYO BLACK HOLE" is a nice and soothing song. Seiko Oomori has what is in my opinion one of the most outstanding singing voices in the current music scene. She's always doing something different in every song, and can pull off just about any style you can think up. In terms of melody, this isn't my FAVORITE thing she's done, but it's nowhere near bad either. The whisper-thin vocals on the verse pair nicely with the gentle background of acoustic guitar. It's a little bit long and somewhat of a ballad really. I can see this being a great closing song for the album (though it's actually the opening song, which works just as well). This is a super pretty song, blissful even. On the album it's gonna be followed up by the PERFECT song "Magic Mirror", but we'll get to that when the album comes out. For now, "TOKYO BLACK HOLE" is just what I've been wanting; a little bit more Seiko Oomori to keep me hyped for the album. Seiko Oomori's new album "TOKYO BLACK HOLE" will be out on March 23rd, 2016. -Justin Seiko Oomori - TOKYO BLACK HOLE MV  North American based group 4TE (pronounced ‘for-tay’) recently released their second single ‘Leave a Message’. To begin with, the music video is a very mesmerizing piece that focuses on a flashy, eye-catching club-like atmosphere. There is a fairly heavy focus on geometry and filtered colors that exude a sense of surreal reality. To round out the well-done package, the ladies perform a wonderfully choreographed dance that really accentuates the feature of each individual member. I especially liked that the dance follows a steady tempo to keep with the beat, which is something that seems to be lacking in modern music a bit more than I’d like. The video, helps to tell the story of the song, with scenes that flash to their bedrooms mixed between the dancing and close-ups at the club setting. With good choreography, fun outfits and a very mesmerizing theme, the video is outstanding.  Ultimately, the video wouldn’t work without an awesome song. ‘Leave a Message’ is most definitely an awesome song. It opens up with some ringing and an answering machine to set the mood. It then has a steady flow into a poppin’ electronic beat. There’s just enough of a mix of synth and natural talent in the singing to help propel the electronic tone of the song while still showing off the 4TE’s singing abilities. To help break up the flow and keep things exciting, there are a couple of really cool and cute rap sections too. I’d have to say that my favorite thing about this song isn’t how catchy it is, or how balanced it is or even how much fun it is. My favorite thing is how smooth the song flows. That is the thread that holds everything together and makes this song something more than just another generic and catchy electronic tune. If 4TE is able to keep up this kind of amazing quality, they’ll soar above and beyond the North American scene. With a fantastic video and an outstanding song, ‘Leave a Message’ is a must buy for those of you who like Jpop inspired music. Links for where you can purchase the song and more information are provided below.  4TE is a unique group that is conducted and created almost solely through the internet. It’s a compelling blend of cooperation that is accomplished through an immense amount of work that most groups would have trouble with. They’re definitely worth keeping an eye on.  - Teepu 4TE is: - Chii - Mei - Jenny - Micchi Official Music Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omByNlt_lJo Purchase on Bandcamp: https://4teofficial.bandcamp.com/ Purchase on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/artist/4te/id970221540 4TE Site: http://4teofficial.com/ 4TE YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/4teofficial 4TE Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/4TEofficial 4TE - Leave A Message MV  Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da is a yami-kawaii idol unit, the sister-group of equally yami-kawaii Yukueshirezutsurezure. They caught my attention when they were featured as guests on that very same sister-group's debut single last year, but now they've arrived with their debut full-length album, "Yamikawa IMRAD". It's actually a huge departure from what I was expecting. but it's not a bad album at all. In fact I'm pretty comfortable saying that I love this album. "Yamikawa IMRAD" starts off with the IMPOSSIBLY catchy "Neo Jealous Mero Chaos". It's a hyperactively jumpy song and so, so, so catchy. The album shoots off from there bringing song after song of sickly-sweet pop. Where their sister group takes the sickly-cute level to horror-like standards, Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da is firmly on the side of yami-kawaii where they plan to give you cavities if you listen for too long.  One of my favorite songs is the fourth track, "The Battle of Identerror". It has some hard guitar riffs underneath the sweetness, owing a huge debt to the sounds of early BiS. Something about the hard-hitting rock and the adorably sugary vocals mixes so well. It's a sound I'm hugely into, but Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da has really perfected the formula. This song just blows me away every time I hear it. The other notable high point on this album is the closing song, "ShitEnd Placebo". The lead single from this album "ShitEnd Placebo" is much more of what prospective fans were probably hoping for pre-release. It's darker, it's thicker, it's actually really different in tone to the rest of the album. It has most of the same elements found on the album, but just turned up to 11. The screams near the end of the song really sum up what I want out of this recent yami-kawaii hype. It's a perfect end to the album.  "Yamikawa IMRAD" is one album I can recommend without hesitation, to any type of idol fan there is. Whether you want the hyper-cute and bouncy pop or the dark and sinister side of idols, this album has a strong mix of both. Even if the darker side is hidden pretty deeply here, it's noticeable. I have a strong feeling this might end up being one of my favorite albums of 2016. Favorites: Neo Jealous Mero Chaos, 哀whynot, The Battle of Identerror, ShitEnd Placebo -Justin Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da Is: -Mogeki Aza -Kisaragi Megumi -Narumi Gomochi -Mashiro -Hitomi Yotsu For More Information: Website: http://kiminosei.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/zenbukiminosei Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zenbukiminoseida Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da - Neo Jealous Mero Chaos MV Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da - ShitEnd Placebo MV  The ridiculously-named idol group Yukueshirezutsurezure is a brand-new (I mean REALLY brand-new) unit who is set to blow the world away whenever they get around to releasing their first album. Before that can happen, though, everybody should really check out their debut single (and to date the only song they have released*) "Kyousoukaichinari". (*they actually "released" another song last month, but immediately took it down before any of us could listen to it) The PV for "Kyousoukaichinari" was released in December of 2015, and it's really something. Yukuetsurezure (the shortened name most fans use because, like, honestly????) are going for a "Yami-Kawaii" (sickly-cute) style, and they're really pulling it off. The PV is super overblown in white, and feels like something out of a horror movie. The girls hang out in a forest (also maybe a hospital?) and it all just looks really creepy even if nothing much is happening. The video isn't what's important here though, it's the song. And what a song it is.  "Kyousoukaichinari" features Yukuetsurezure's "sister group", Zenbu Kimi no Seida, as guest vocalists. Zenbu Kimi no Sei Da is another great group to check out (which I will, soon!) but Yukuetsurezure is the real focal point here. This song is WILD. Anybody familiar with Maison book girl (a fantastic group featuring ex-BiS member Megumi Koushoji) will recognize the cute, slightly-nostalgic and gentle pop music this song pretends to be, at first. Without warning it explodes into the most hardcore thrash I've ever heard from an idol group. The song bounces back and forth between these two styles, and I LOVE it. It's dark, it's heavy, and yet it's also just so cute, somehow. The gentle "la la la la" blends perfectly with the girls screaming their hearts out. This is the perfect rebel idol anthem. Yukuetsurezure has an EP coming out in May, so watch out for that, because it's sure to be something amazing. As for "Kyousoukaichinari", it's the only work we have available from this group. Listen to it, again and again. Forever. Because it's amazing. Yukuetsurezure is amazing. -Justin Yukueshirezutsurezure - Kyousoukaichinari MV |
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