Idol music — like most pop music — can be something that easily gets twisted too much when you think too much about it. I’m not a believer in the “just have fun!” camp of pop, which often rejects all critical thought, but I also think you can get too academic with the stuff (and, like, I’m guilty of this). Idols can be a minefield, but what happens when you just get a really shimmering dance-pop number with little baggage and just as little space for academic-paper material? Well, you get Negicco, the agriculture-supporting trio who have delivered some of the decade’s most outright catchy J-pop. It is often hit or miss for them, and “Honjitsu Ga Special” is a good example of that. It’s the b-side to a recently released single that is far more forgettable. But “Honjitsu” dives into shiny ’80s pop territory, picking up the Bananarama-baton E-girls moved away from. It’s simple, direct and full of bell chimes Listen above.
