Make Believe Melodies For June 2, 2025
Which J-pop Star Do YOU Think Had Elon Musk's Baby????
KOM_I And Foodman — FANI MANI
The last EP founding Suiyoubi No Campanella singer KOM_I fronted marked a major departure for the group and her. Yakushima Treasure shook up the very structure of the project — main producer Kenmochi Hidefumi stepped back while long-running Kansai experimentalist Oorutaichi helped craft the sounds — and sent KOM_I herself to far flung corners both sonically and geographically. Drawing from time in the Okinawan island of the same name, she and Oorutaichi created an experimental album sampling nature and local culture1, sometimes close to skittering off and others approaching ambient mist.
Yakushima Treasure marked, unknown in the moment, the moment where KOM_I would move on from the unit, leaving the reigns to the Gen Z face helping them thrive in the 2020s. She, meanwhile, lived a life worthy of a deeper dive — traveling around the world, popping up in art projects, starting a podcast, giving birth in the middle of the Amazon. It’s that path that helped to shape her return to music, the FANI MANI EP, which finds her linking with Japanese electronic force Foodman for a set of songs inspired by time spent in India2, both meditative and euphoric.
I will not pretend to know nearly enough about North Indian classical music outside of a few familiar sounds and instruments poking out of the bramble that is FANI MANI. Yet what I can gather is that KOM_I and Foodman use this along with a hearty dose of Japanese influences and the Nagoya-based tinkerer’s own One-Cup-Sake-fuelled-Matsuri beat construction to create a head-spinning set.
The way KOM_I sings has always been more important than what she’s singing about. With Hidefumi, she turned Japanese folklore into mini operas thanks to her vocal aerobics, and made what was ostensibly a song about public baths an emotional tour. Whatever metaphor she played with, she animated it owing to how she said words and the energy she brought to them. On FANI MANI she’s mostly warping her voice to turn repeated phrases into something delirious, save for the fever-dream incantations of “Kono Machi Ni Oideyo,” calling on listeners to escape the regular in favor of a no-rule village. Even as she creates mantras, KOM_I’s characteristic voice peculiarities come through, but rejiggered by Foodman to become sonic building bricks.
FANI MANI’s resulting songs capture a sonic distillation of the KOM_I’s spirit, using her voice as a foundation. “Age ~ ru” slices up her mumbles and whispers to create an otherworldly festival dance ceremony, while “Iyarashi ~ mono” goes even further in bending her syllables alongside a steady skitter to generate an experimental rush. Modern club touches keep all of it in motion, with a slow-burner like “Okashina Okane” turning into floor euphoria thanks to Foodman’s electronic details crashing into KOM_I’s trance-deep singing. It’s a wonderful reminder of what makes his music among the best of the 21st century, and a triumph return for her, both capturing everything that made her special while showing she has so much more to share. Get it here, or listen above.
DE DE MOUSE And Pa’s Lam System — “Carry on”
Let’s just keep riding the wave of collaborations that both 2016 Patrick and 2025 Patrick loves.
It’s wonderful when the specific elements of a joint number can clearly lay out who is contributing what but everything clicks together to create something jubilant. The ‘80s synth-pop sheen and keyboard glistens come directly from De De Mouse, while the percussive build up and plunge into wordless release is all Pa’s Lam System. Despite never hearing Pa’s dabble in nostalgia-tinged electro, “Carry on” works wonderfully, largely because the one unifying element between the two is an awareness of keeping the energy up at all times. Listen above, or get it here.
yuugen And e5 — “HYPERGRIND OVERDRIVE”
Almost best seen as a vocal obstacle course for e5 to run through, producer yuugen’s “HYPERGRIND OVERDRIVE” hop-scotches through passages both swift and more relaxed (complete with pivot into Madvillain sample…I’m just guessing from yuugen’s age they aren’t drawing from the source material, apologies if I’m wrong). The music itself is three beats stitched together, but it’s e5 who makes them function as one piece. Listen above.
SAGOSAID — itsumademo shinu noha kowai?
Feedback-coated rock via Second Royal Records that rises above a lot of the other shoegaze crowd thanks to a combination of gnarlier riffs and more snarling singing. SAGOSAID at times comes closer to Dinosaur Jr. territory here, and it’s that extra directness that makes it one of the better rock releases from this corner so far this year. Listen above.
Calum X, SteffenYoshiki, Bulma And Mai Melody — “State of Mind”
An assortment of creators who helped shape trends in the Tokyo club scene and played a pivotal role in laying down the groundwork for the internet-damaged sound of STARKIDS and other outfits get together to try to balance nihilism and hope. “State of Mind” is often claustrophobic and in its final stretch downright suffocating in how it pounds ahead, yet the angelic hook at its core offers a little bit of light peaking through the concrete force of the beats. Listen above.
perfect young lady — “Theme Of PERFECT”
Yeah, basically exactly what I would imagine perfect young lady’s theme to be. Listen above.
Jet Kenzoki Kikaku — “MIDI Shogun”
A dreamy ode to the power of MIDI. Jet Kenzoki Kikaku has some sort of connection to electronic project pomodorosa, and I’m guessing the more foregrounded presence of vocals separates it from the other side. The other songs from this project are good, but they don’t approach the fantasy float of “MIDI Shogun,” featuring harp notes helping to elevate near whispered vocals that turn more otherworldly as the song drifts on. It’s all a bit ridiculous — it’s about MIDI, and the sampled voice midway through starts talking about the internet, offering a bit of a counter to the heavenly vibe before it — but the beauty comes through. Listen above.
.｡*ﾟ+.*.Curren｡+..｡*ﾟ+ — Cutest in Ur ♡
Uma Musume: Pretty Derby remains a series I try to avoid getting too deep into largely because I know if I did I’d be hooked. It’s less to do with the anime girls who are also horses, and more a deep burning love of gambling down at the tracks. Every time I’ve been to Fuchu to take in some events, I’ve gotten way into the betting part, and could easily see myself wiping out my savings. So sorry lady horses, I’ll stick with the remix albums vaguely themed off the franchise.
Which…is a surprisingly healthy scene! Not quite approaching the sample-delica of HyperFlip, releases like Cutest in Ur ♡ lean closer to classic mash-up offerings in the style of the sub account, with J-pop colliding with strains of Western club and rap music. Huge bonus points for opening with a Perfume rework, but the whole collection is an out-the-gate blast of dance. Get it here, or listen above.
Consider Going Premium!
For those wanting to support Make Believe Melodies financially, I write one extra post a week as a thank-you gift to those throwing some money our way. Everything else remains free — but if interested, take the plunge below!
Oricon Trail For The Week Of May 19, 2025 To May 25, 2025
Back in the day, the Oricon Music Charts were the go-to path to music stardom in Japan. Acts of all sorts traversed these lands, trying to sell as many CDs as possible in order to land a good ranking on a chart choosing to only count physical sales, even as the Internet came to be and the number of versions offered for sale got ridiculous. Today, with the country finally in on digital, these roads are more barren and only looked at by the most fanatic of supporters needing something to celebrate. Yet every week, a new song sells enough plastic to take the top spot. So let’s take a trip down…the Oricon Trail.
Hinatazaka46 — “Love yourself!” (412, 990 Copies Sold)
So many of these Oricon number ones have offered a jumping off point to babble about the state of idol that it’s nice to encounter something so boilerplate. Hinatazaka46 give Japan an upbeat gallop of a pop song whose title lays out the lyrical mission perfectly. It’s completely OK , and that’s fine. Listen above.
News And Views
Billboard Japan announced Monday plans to shake up the way it ranks singles and albums in the streaming age starting from this week. It’s basically an effort to curb the impact songs thriving for long stretches of time on subscription streaming, with songs that have been on the charts for 52 weeks and more losing a percentage of streaming points, while albums present for 26 weeks or more also get hit. Call it the “Mrs. GREEN APPLE rule” if you’d like, as “Lilac” just passed its 59th week and sits in the top five.
Given the greater attention paid to Billboard Japan’s charts in recent times — such as them being used to help select winners at Music Awards Japan — it’s probably not a bad idea to freshen it up so a greater variety of songs get in. Besides, the U.S. Billboard is constantly tinkering with its chart…to the point that I think trying to make sense out of it can seem foolish. Really though, it’s a good reminder to never put too much stock in these things, because they are systems that are constantly shifting and full of weird quirks (did you see the Billboard Hot 100 last week???).I had completely missed that Halcali’s “Otsukare Summer” had become a TikTok trend in tandem with various animations on the short-form site. I don’t have it, I just peek in for work! This probably explains why the duo’s music videos suddenly appeared online over the last three weeks.
I’m scared I’m too late to this one and can’t do my part to turn it into 2025’s “where is smiley,” but let’s work together to make it a Halcali Summer, it’s what the world needs.Number_i to release a documentary on Amazon Prime. STARTO got Netflix, gotta go somewhere else!
Over the past weekend, I’ve had five people contact me asking “so which J-pop star do you think used Elon Musk’s sperm to make a baby?” This rumor comes courtesy of right-wing ding-dong Ashley St. Claire, Musk’s ex and mother to one of his kids, who says Musk told her that the request came to him in 2023. It results in wacky sights like this in the media:
Now, I’m kind of skeptical of all this, at least the “star” part of this. I don’t really trust Elon Musk or Ashley St. Clair to have an accurate view of what constitutes top level talent in Japan, so my gut feeling is it’s just some rich Japanese person who maybe dabbled in entertainment3. I’m getting big “Kanye booked Tokyo Dome but had to cancel it, really!!!!” vibes from this…in the sense I kind of can’t believe it but this is one of the only people in the world where I’d be tempted to believe anything you told me about them.
The other lesson buried in here all entertainers should keep note of is…never do anything with Elon Musk. The Daily Beast’s story on this includes a paragraph about how Ado collaborated with SpaceX to send her music to the moon (what does that even mean??????), which to me is the publication kind of implying Ado might be the woman in question (it’s also The Daily Beast…), which definitely not the case. Still, the only reason that comes up at all is because Ado’s team thought this would be a cool idea…but now you’re stuck being connected to this mess.I went to the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, which had plenty of musical crossover, for The Japan Times.
BABYMETAL became the first Japanese group to play LA’s Intuit Dome…home of the Clippers, baby.
There’s a lot to unpack with this one, but Kasane Teto appeared alongside Hatsune Miku at an official concert for the first time ever, to perform “Mesmerizer.” If you aren’t familiar, it’s important to understand that Teto was created as an April Fool’s joke…but has become a beloved character in her own right, enough to grace the stage with the digi-singer she was riffing on.
Several legendary AKB48 members returning to the fold for a special anniversary single out soon.
Three members of Nogizaka46 threw out first pitches at a recent Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters game. They did it synchronized! The wind-up, great! The pitches…hmmm well just watch.
Written by Patrick St. Michel (patrickstmichel@gmail.com)
Twitter — @mbmelodies
Check out the Best Of 2025 Spotify Playlist here!
Would highly recommend this album with Ichiko Aoba’s Luminescent Creatures, a pair of albums about prolific creators giving themselves to the slower pace of Okinawan island life and coming up with fascinating works.
The popular theory on Japanese social media, meanwhile, is a YouTuber who became a single mother around the same time this would have happened. Farfetched, but who even knows anymore!