[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIjtaKwgCpE&hl=en_US&fs=1] Stop motion! Swimming trunks! Funny sunglasses! Playground equipment! All present in this quick, fun video from the dudes in andymori. It’s basically a reminder to enjoy what’s left of the summer. Oh, it’s also a personal reminder that I’ve never mentioned andymori around these parts before despite them being really good. Go listen to…
I’ve mostly moved my discussions about Korean pop to my Tumblr, but the latest article I wrote for The Atlantic touches on both K-Pop and J-Pop. I wrote mostly about Wonder Girls and Girls’ Generations’ imminent American debuts, but I also touch on the likes of Pink Lady, Hikaru Utada and Puffy AmiYumi. If you…
It’s tempting to excuse the relatively lukewarm “Mirai No Museum” because of its commercial obligations. This, maximalist-pop-trio Perfume’s newest single, serves as the theme song for the upcoming Doraemon film which seems to involve some sort of “future museum” (which is what you get when you translate the title). After a string of songs in…
Yasutaka Nakata has been super busy over the last year and a half producing music for Perfume and Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. He hasn’t had much time to devote to his project Capsule, who haven’t released any new material since 2012’s so-so Stereo Worxxx. At long last, Nakata has put together a new song for his…
This week, popular Japanese convenience store chain Family Mart rolled out a special campaign celebrating five years of Hatsune Miku. She’s a character attached to a popular line of vocaloid software (a computer program allowing people to create digital vocals) and probably better known in the Western world as the hologram pop star that pre-dated…
(First off, the “interactive” element of this video is hilarious, but also sort of genius, like Google releasing Google Glass a couple years back and now settling on some cardboard specs. Put your finger here, and you can pretend it squirts mustard! Also, a furry relationship sub-story.) Namie Amuro’s switch from Japanese to Japanese/English singing…
