Top 20 J-Pop Songs of 2013

Part of the reason for my long absence is due to the fact that J-Pop this year isn't really that eventful, especially when the biggest news you've heard all year is about ayumi hamasaki getting engaged yet again. Especially for someone who mostly follows only female soloists, the year just gets worse for all my big booty hoes.

The yearly charts are once again dominated by Akihabara Krazy Bitches 48 and the album of the year is yet another Arashi album. At least Namie's album is the highest selling solo album of the year again despite coming in at #6, and J-hoe Shiho managed to break into the Top 10, but other than that, 2013 is basically the carbon copy of 2012 in terms of rankings which is BOOORINGGGGGG

Meanwhile, here is, yet again, my completely biased list of the Top 20 J-Pop Songs of 2013 before we usher in 2014, which, mark my words, will probably end up being just like 2013, which was just like 2012. I still question the order I should've ranked the 20 songs until today, but if it's any consolation, I may or may not have been under the influence while compiling this list.

[CD Packaging] Perfume - LEVEL3 (CD+DVD)

I was hoping to actually get the version with the red jewel case but I'm just glad I didn't get the ugliest one (i.e. yellow case lol ewwewewewewe)

I quite like the way the album is packaged, with the jewel case only using clear plastic films inside without really trying too hard to be different *cough*kanyewest*cough*





The booklet itself is separate and behind the jewel case, both of which are housed in the slipcase. The jewel case is the slightly thicker kind, too.





The insert for the front cover yielded a little surprise as well! Pretty cool, but I was immediately drowning in regret as I would discover that my floor was actually a little dusty, thus leaving some particles glued onto the sheets. Oopsie.

[New Release] Perfume - LEVEL3

CD+DVD | CD Only

Y'all bitches are biased as hell. When Nocchi used to have bangs and switched to her current centre-parting style nobody gave two shits. Kashiyuka takes away her bangs and everyone goes apeshit?!?! Okay, at least Kashiyuka looks amazeballs, but Nocchi's hair during the GAME era was FLAWLESS imo. Now she just looks like an onigiri. Poor Nocchi is always pushed to the side. Look at the regular edition cover - you can't even see her! Screw artistic camera angles. She is werkin' her body like her dear life depends on it. A~chan isn't even trying. If Nocchi is reading this, just know I always got your back gurl. Oh wait, I just remembered this post is about their upcoming album. Ok.

Perfume shows they don't fuck around at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity

We all know Perfume doesn't fuck around when it comes to bringing visuals to their shows, and not even the French's faves can ever come up with something like this. They are serving some projection-shit and origami-dress REALNESS!

My only complaint is that they shouldn't have only performed the extended mix of Spending all my time. I don't think performing a 6-minute long track of you simply going "Spending all my time loving you forever" in front of an international audience who probably wouldn't know you is going to make a very big impression despite the visuals. They'll think you're spastic. If it were up to me I think they should've gone with a medley of Spending all my time / Hurly Burly / Daijobanai and, I don't know, Mirai no Shitseum (LOLJK) or something. Nonetheless, I can't say I wasn't impressed with this performance. Everything was definitely on point, and a small step out of position would've screwed things up but they didn't. Beyoncé needs to take several notes. 

[Singles Review] May Singles Highlight: Perfume, JASMINE

Magic of Love

Perfume disappointed with Mirai no Shitseum, and they disappointed HARD, which is why it's only right for them to redeem themselves with Magic of Love. Did they? Kind-of. Magic of Love didn't prove to be as amazeballs and make me play it to death; not as much as Spring Of Life and Hurly Burly, so in comparison to those that song falls flat. The only thing that made this song stand out was how Nocchi sounds weird as fuck in this song, and it's not even in a good way. Maybe she just sounds like that. Poor Nocchi. Handy Man, on the other hand, has some sort of Indian influence to it. Indian-sounding for a song called Handy Man? Unintended subliminal message or not, I love it. But it doesn't make this song sound any less like something that was almost given to KyaryPamyuPamyu by a hair. This single proved to be just average for me, and didn't seem to have the same spark as their previous singles. I'm just overall glad they didn't go downwards from Mirai no Shitseum. Now that would've been BAD.  

6/10

High Flying

Gurl, where you been for 1 year? I absolutely LOVE High Flying. Not as good as Best Partner, but a good song nonetheless. I like the subtle hints of EDM here and there, but given the current trend I certainly wouldn't mind her going all out electronic for the next album (fuck the other a-sides) because it's not like rehashing the same ol' R&B sound is going to do her any favours. Speaking of that, the b-side, BED, is a cover of DOUBLE's, which takes on a slightly jazzier, and more slower R&B feel. I love it. The arrangement is more or less similar to the original, but I found the latter's vocals to be more soothing and smooth which fits the song well. I thought JASMINE on the other hand sounded rather forced on some parts. Anyhoo, I also wonder if titling the song "High Flying" has anything to do with, you know, getting high. ;) Because if this is what she can give me while she's high, I'm not exactly impressed.

 

6/10

[CD Packaging] Perfume - Magic of Love (CD+DVD)

I've overthought once again. When I first saw the covers I thought they'd be coming in a fancy transparent plastic slipcase with the grey bits printed on it but noOOOooOOOooo just your usual affair, just like Perfume's music.

[New Release] Perfume - Magic of Love

CD+DVD | CD Only

Perfume has a bit of redeeming to do after the shittastic release that was Mirai no Shitseum, but Nocchi's hairstyle already isn't doing that any favours at all. You're sporting that hairdo 10 years too early, gurl. I have to say I did hear the radio rip and I think it's rather promising. It's like Mirai no Shitseum never existed. I'm also interested to see how the packaging of the limited edition will turn out given its rather... perculiar cover.

I'm ready for the girls to serve me some pussy popping realness, though I'm getting tired of this whole "I'm-a-robot-puppet-whatever-lol-hey" shizznit that they've been exhibiting since Spring of Life. We get it, you want the D. We get it. And we all know what the b-side "Handy Man" means. ;)

Magic of Love will be released on 22 May 2013.

CD Tracklist

1. Magic of Love
2. Handy Man
3. Magic of Love -Original Instrumental-
4. Handy Man -Original Instrumental-

DVD Tracklist

1. Magic of Love -Video Clip-

[Singles Review] February Singles Highlight: ayaka, Perfume, Crystal Kay

beautiful / Chiisana no Ashiato

There aren't really many surprises when it comes to ayaka. Even based on the single's cover art alone you can pretty much tell that this shit is gonna be good, and damn right it is. beautiful is more or less the usual ballad affair from ayaka with gospel elements added in as well. This is when the unavoidable pun comes in - it's beautiful! There is a consistent build-up throughout the song and the instrumental bridge is what makes this song especially amazing imo. Chiisana no Ashiato brings about something different for ayaka to try out. It's an uplifting song with a rather playful arrangement combining military drums, the flute, violins that work really well for her, so this is something unexpected coming from ayaka. Hajimari no Toki English ver. is a nice addition to the single, but nothing really impressive. It uses a piano instrumental instead of the original which I don't really like but I guess I appreciate her effort in trying out Engrish lol

7/10

Mirai no Museum

I'm not gonna lie - I'm not here for Mirai no Shitseum. I understand that it's a tie-in for a Doraemon movie, but they should've just released this as a digital single or something. This literally gave me goosebumps and it's not because it's good. It's terrible. I hope the producers of Doraemon delete Perfume's numbers and never contact them again. Daijo Banai saves the single, but barely. It's a watered down version of Nee without any climax whatsoever. I do like it, but given its repetitiveness, like Communication, I will probably tire of it in 3 hours. The area in which I give fucks about this release is so empty, I didn't even realise the single was already released!

4/10

My Heart Beat

Trust Crystal that sneaky bitch to release a digital single without any announcements or information or whatsoever (either that or I'm just blind) except for one puny CM which even I didn't watch. Universal ran out of budget for Crystal Kay so they couldn't afford to manufacture physical editions, do promo, or even hire anybody to do the single's cover art. The cover doesn't even have the single title on it. Nonetheless, My Heart Beat is still amazing - although I'm almost positive it's a leftover from VIVID, I'm glad this has a chance to see the light of day - it's a really funky, electronic, light number with some really orgasmic bass guitar noodling. Kaze no Kanata, on the other hand, is an R&B ballad with a really moving feel somewhere along the lines of Come Back To Me / Rising Sun from VIVID. Somehow I get a really Utada Hikaru feel off the melody and I love it. How more Japanese bought Perfume's latest single than this, I have no idea.

8/10

Thoughts on NHK's 63rd Kouhaku Utagassen

I apologise for this late post, but I didn't watch the whole of Kouhaku by the way so I'm only talking about the performers I care about. Then again you should know how biased this blog already is by now so here we go!

I was kinda hoping that the Red team would win for the second year in a row because Taylor Swift has an album called Red and that shit sold like an AKB48 release. But alas, the White team won, so that's probably because Taylor Swift's Red is overrated as hell.

Top 20 J-Pop Songs of 2012

By now you should know that I listen to a lot of artists. Lmao who am I trying to kid? But as far as I know, even though the Oricon Top 10 singles this year hit an all-time pathetic, it was still a pretty eventful year, and the songs released in 2012 were pretty good.

So here's my Top 20 J-Pop Songs of 2012 before we welcome 2013, another year of AKB48 ridiculousness and ayumi hamasaki's further efforts to revive her career.

[CD Packaging] Perfume - Perfume Global Compilation "LOVE THE WORLD" (CD+DVD)

I received my copy of Perfume's latest compilation album in the mail while I was in China but now I'm back!

I actually just realised that this compilation album is being released under their previous label, Tokuma Japan, so in other words this release is pretty much their last opportunity to milk what used to be one of their top selling acts. Awwwww so sad

Packaging is pretty typical and somewhat pathetic, but it's not like anyone's expecting much with covers looking like that.

I quite enjoy the remixed MY COLOR and Chocolate Disco though, especially MY COLOR's.

Perfume will also be performing right here in Singapore on 24th November and the tickets go on sale this weekend!!! I'm not sure if I'm going to get the VIP Tickets or just general admission ones because I'm broke, but I'm definitely going to see them anyway!

What the fuck is wrong with Nocchi

From my amateur Japanese skills, apparently Shiho was asked about must-have items and I think she answered an exercise pole (as pictured in the corner) so Nocchi was probably like BITCH IMMA STEAL THAT SO I CAN POLE DANCE TO NAKATA-SAN ALL DAY

Damn, Shiho-san better be sleeping with one eye open.

[CD Packaging] Perfume - Spending all my time (CD+DVD)

Here are packaging pictures for the CD+DVD edition of Perfume's latest single, Spending all my time!

I would also like to add that the paper quality used for the slipcase, inserts and everything feels pretty shit.

This marks the first Perfume release to be released under their own sub-label, Perfume Records.

And of course, the single has certainly proven that Yasukata Nakata has what it takes to become the best songwriter in the world!

Lol


Anyway, CDJapan also gave out posters as an external bonus and tada:

The posters are matte and the paper is REALLY thick. As you can see even CDs cannot hold it down completely.

And that's it! Hali bali pali, juicy juicy sweetie

[New Release] Perfume - Perfume Global Compilation "LOVE THE WORLD"

CD+DVD | CD

What... a load of crap. Sorry but I'm not sorry, but those covers are a MESS with a capital M E S S. Not only that, but it's also rather disturbing. Who's gonna pick that shit up on the shelves? Oh well.

You wanna know what else is a mess? The tracklist. Once again, sorry but I'm not sorry, but I don't know who picks the songs themselves because they are soooo missing out on all the other good songs. I feel like Nee is one of their best songs of all time (putting aside its cringe-worthy lyrics), and I think Kasuka na Kaori deserves a spot too. Having only 3 JPN songs does not make it fair! *slams table*

At least on the bright side, I like 80% of the tracklist. That doesn't mean I'm still gonna buy it though (Or am I? Eheheheh). You must be thinking, "But Travis! There's a PV for FAKE IT!" Sorry to burst your bubbles guys, but the FAKE IT PV is just going to be the live performance at the Yokohama Blitz.

It'll be interesting to see how well this sells because other than the fact that it's Perfume, 2 songs are getting new mixes and maybe, erm, Polyrhythm, there's hardly any selling factor in this at all. Oh well, we'll see.

Perfume Global Compilation "LOVE THE WORLD" will be released on 12 September 2012.

CD Tracklist

1. Polyrhythm (ポリリズム)
2. edge (⊿-mix)
3. love the world
4. Electro World (エレクトロ・ワールド)
5. Chocolate Disco (2012-Mix) (チョコレイト・ディスコ)
6. SEVENTH HEAVEN
7. GAME
8. Secret Secret (シークレットシークレット)
9. NIGHT FLIGHT
10. Baby cruising Love
11. Butterfly
12. FAKE IT
13. Laser Beam (レーザービーム)
14. GLITTER
15. MY COLOR (LTW-Mix)
16. Dream Fighter

DVD Tracklist

1. FAKE IT -Video Clip-
2. FAKE IT -Video Clip Making-
3. Polyrhythm -Historical Live Act Version- (ポリリズム)

[New Release] Perfume - Spending all my time

CD+DVD | CD

Perfume is busy spending all their time waiting for Nakata Yasutaka to give them some new songs, and they be hot as hell. I think the covers are pretty hilarious, but I don't know what the girls are up to because ever since they had their label switch I finally see greater hope in their music because Spring of Life was the shit.

I'm glad they're finally going back to having an edgier sound that was frowned upon by Tokuma (fuck you) so that label switch must have been a slap in the face for them. I'm personally excited to hear Hurly Burly because I heard its instrumental and it is SICK.



Spending all my time will be released on 15 August 2012.
First press copies come with a B2-sized poster, but by the time you read this it's probably sold out everywhere already. 

CD Tracklist

1. Spending all my time
2. Point (ポイント)
3. Hurly Burly
4. Spending all my time -Original Instrumental-
5. Point -Original Instrumental- 
6. Hurly Burly -Original Instrumental-

DVD Tracklist

1. Spending all my time -Video Clip-