Author: JPope

The return of Kago Ai to H!P

Fucking FINALLY! Kago will take part in the Hello! Project 2018 SUMMER ~ALL FOR ONE~/~ONE FOR ALL~ concert tour, specifically, the Nakano shows on August 25 and 26th. On the 25th, she’ll appear with Airi Suzuki in the early show, and with Kanon Fukuda in the late show. On the 26th Kago will appear with Kei Yasuda and Hitomi Yoshizawa...

“Ai no Tane (20th Anniversary Ver)”

The Hello! Project dropped it’s 20th Anniversary bomb today; a (slight) reworking of Morning Musume’s first recording, “Ai no Tane”, originally released on this day in 1997. The group, dubbed Morning Musume 20th, consists of the current MM’17 lineup and the full original 1st Generation.  It’s a digital-only release, which is understandable, as the target audience is minuscule: long-time, hard-core...

Oh HELL Yes!

If this is the only thing to come of the Morning Musume 20th anniversary, well, I’ll still be disappointed, but this is a surprise. Just watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThUHrBnBBnQ This makes me happier than this guy right here: I can’t put into words how happy I am that Asuka was able to put aside her differences with H!P (and the other four...

Kobushi Factory

Rena Ogawa Leaves Kobushi Factory and Hello! Project

And another on bites the dust. Kobushi Factory’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Year continues apace with the announcement of the retirement of Rena Ogawa today (Japanese). She had been diagnosed with anxiety disorder back in July, around the same time it was discovered she had been dating a boy (OMFG, a 17 year-old girl dating! How will we...

Morning Musume ’17 “Wakaindashi” – First Impressions

The first song of Morning Musume ’17’s new single has been radio-ripped to Youtube. If you haven’t heard it yet, here’s your big opportunity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Px4rBfIGIeA I know this is only half the song, but I really hate this. It’s musical pabulum. The arrangement feels mailed-in and directionless, which is odd for a Tsunku production. It sounds like they were going...

Postmodern Jukebox Takes on BABYMETAL

Is there any more irrefutable confirmation of having made it in today’s music world than having Postmodern Jukebox cover your music? They are the modern-day “Weird Al” Yankovic in that respect, so it’s cool to see them take on BABYMETAL’s “Gimme Chocolate” and confirm BM’s place in the not-Japan music scene. Going with 20s-era jazz was a savvy decision, as...

Speaking of Mash-ups…

Henkka’s Tsubaki/Wonder mash-up reminded me the one I did about three years ago, that is possibly the most ridiculous mashup ever: AKB48’s “Beginner” and 80s one-hit-wonder Kingdom Come’s “Get It On”. Don’t ask how this popped into my head — genius can not be explained, but merely accepted. Set aside such uncomfortable questions and just enjoy the show.

“Shuukatsu Sensation” / “I Wish” Mash-up

No, not that “I Wish”. Henkka over at Wota In Translation did this quick-and-dirty mashup of Tsubaki Factory’s “Shuukatsu Sensation” and Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish”. He had to lower Stevie’s voice substantially to match the key, but this is pretty clever. You nasty boy. I love that people are re-mixing and mashing-up H!P songs again.

Danbara Ruru’s Got Her Mojo Workin’

The latest episode of Hello! Station is out, and it includes footage of Juice=Juice n00bs Danbara Ruru and Yanagawa Nanami recording their lines for “fiesta! fiesta!” Yanagawa is first, and she’s as solid as we were told she was. Nothing special, but above average for an idol. Ruru, however, appears to be even better than advertised, and her hype was...

The Problem With LoVendoЯ

So the cover art for LoVendoЯ’s come-back mini-album Яe:Start has been released, and the girls look just like… an idol group. Here, bask in the plenary pinkness of Reina’s rock band: The only things missing from this cover are Sayu and Koha, and it encapsulates the problem I’ve had with LoVendoЯ from the start: this group has no focus. Note...