December already? Well, let’s make the remaining bits of 2011 count by…listening to J-Pop together. KAT-TUN “BIRTH” [youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlYS7Vve26M”] KAT-TUN seemed quiet for a while, yeah? Well, here they are again with something called “BIRTH” which an astute person would assume signals a change in style, a fresh start, an escape from the womb-like chambers of…
Oh man, a jumbo-sized Music Station this week. Featuring all the heavy hitters. Buckle in folks. AKB48 “Flying Get” WATCH HERE See the logo at the top of this page? That’s the new design/slogan for the “Cool Japan” campaign, the Japanese government’s attempt to spread soft power via culture. Basically, they want Japanese media, like…
A calm image before we embark on the terror below. Kanjani8 “ツブサニコイ” [youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ltV–Mkzr0″] Earlier this week, the founder of Johnny’s Johnny Kitagawa was attacked at his home, where he barricaded himself from his assailant until help could arrive. Now, we don’t condone violence around here even against people responsible for some of the worst music…
Before we dive into this week’s crop of pop, give this Los Angeles Times article about Japanese enka star Jero a read. The actual style of music he sings isn’t particularly up my alley – it’s an acquired taste that probably gets better when you actually know the lyrics, which are the main attraction –…
Let’s dive right in as I have a very busy day ahead of me. KAT-TUN “ULTIMATE WHEELS” [youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2_x8_kdaXE”] Talked about…and heaped praise on!…this one last week. Song remains the same, a surprisingly out-of-the-box Johnny’s single incorporating Russian-evoking strings to make one of the more interesting Johnny’s releases as of late. The track comes bundled with…