Make Believe Melodies For March 10, 2025
The Familiar With A Twist
Various Artists — i.e
The current era of underground creators in Japan aren’t reacting against J-pop — rather, they’re making a version of the country’s mainstream sound suited to but still nodding to what’s above. Since the sonic idea of “hyperpop” bubbled up on this side of the Pacific, creators have been merging these Internet-damaged sounds with Heisei-defining ideas. I personally go back to 4s4ki’s euphoric melancholy of “NEXUS,” sporting a video biting 100 gecs but sounding (and featuring phrases) a lot closer to Ayumi Hamasaki. I think it’s true of most artists in this space, whether shaped by the electro-pop of Yasutaka Nakata or the nights-on-fire of Eurobeat past.
The first offering from leading underground music publication AVYSS — now introducing a label element — celebrates this history by gathering the subculture stars of today to celebrate the titans of the period they grew up in. On i.e, artists from a sampler box of sounds link up to cover songs from the Heisei era, with the whole spectrum of styles represented. These are often radical re-imaginings though, delivered not as subversive but rather as updated for the social-network age, but with the emotions still intact.
To some degree, i.e proves essential as a catalog of influences. Of course pop-punk like Ellegarden appears here thanks to a warped interpretation via aryy and Amane Uyama, because the Warped-Tour-ready sounds they and others dabbled in clearly has bled over to this generation’s output. A generation of sentimental types most certainly felt emotional listening to Quruli, so it makes sense for heart-racing electronic act Telematic Visions and vaporous rapper safmusic to tackle it.
Simple appreciation for the past, though, would be limiting for a nearly hour-long compilation. Thankfully, the artists on i.e revel at the chance to change what could be assumed to be personal favorites into something apt for the current era. Sasuke Haraguchi and e5 form a Make Believe Melodies dream team in order to turn Soutaiseiriron’s “Jigoku Sensei” into a fever vision, with the edges mutating and a song already feeling dreamy turned even more sensationalist. Math-rock outfit tricot’s “potage” gets flipped into a minimalist reflection thanks to Cwondo and Kaede Hirata, while editor-in-chief CVN and iVy offer a bleary-eyed reading on SUPERCAR’s “Strobolights.” These covers become downright mesmerizing — the folks assembled to cover Chara’s “Yasashii Kimochi” transform it into a merry-go-round pop ride into a seven-minute-plus prayer featuring baby coos and disjointed outro.
Together it makes for a great nod to the past and guideline to the sounds shaping today…but above all else, i.e zooms in on just how thrilling the folks now facing the world are. Listen above.
Bunn Noguchi — Fujiko
Bunn Noguchi’s second album benefits from feeling like a noir film ripped into pieces. The artist’s first album has its moments, but ultimately couched its experimental urges in WONK-y funk-pop that diluted its edge. Not so on Fujiko, made up jazz dispatches and fragmented numbers guided by speak-sing vocals. There’s a mysterious air to a lot of this — “Hall” really does sound like it’s coming from some otherworldly passageway, with voices drifting over looping melodies and scattered sounds — though plenty of straightforward beauty too (“Plateau” being, at its heart, a simple piano number exuding warmth). What makes this a 2025 highlight so far is the title track, finding Noguchi in media res (“I thought this was an instrumental”) as he chases down his abstract thoughts, touching on the surreal and the familiar (lust, self doubt). Listen above.
Ohzora Kimishima — Oto No Suru Heya
Ohzora Kimishima has always been fascinated by seeing how familiar sounds can be transformed into something new — but they go full Hakushi Hasegawa at times on their latest EP. It’s an absolute thrill though, whether pitch-shifting rock theatrics on the opening track or introducing tempo-breaking elements into the RPG-fight-ready dash of “Death Metal Cheese Cake.” There’s glances of the pop side of Kimishima’s sound coming through, but even closer “Lover” finds them nearly vocally breaking down as the song chugs along, transforming a romantic number into an urgent work. Listen above.
Miii — sentimental(s) #3
The final release from Mizuki Wada under the artist name Miii collects tracks made between 2020 and 2023, offering a fitting finale for the project. These are contemplative EDM numbers, the familiar rattling of bass turned into a detail of a greater emotional meditation. The best of Miii was always focused on turning the raucous into something more inward looking — without totally losing the Ultra vibe — and this set gives one more celebration of that effort. Get it here.
f5ve — “Magic Clock”
Honestly, I was getting pretty worried about f5ve there for a second. After the triumph of “Underground,” they presented a let down with the follow up and leaned into a very — apologies, old-man perspective coming through — grating meme-centric marketing voice online that to me represents the worst of the modern pop industry. Indulge in your post-modern Zoomer goofs all you want…just make sure the music is good.
Thank goodness “Magic Clock” comes through clutch. It’s silly in all the right ways without ever feeling like a sonic raspberry — it takes guts to center your hook on the word “cuckoo,” but not only do f5ve give it a whirl they really make the syllables within jump out — which includes the sound itself, very A.G. Cook (who co-produces alongside BloodPop) in its synth whirs but never going to far into his subversive-subversive? side. Thanks to that, it’s just solid, heart-racing dance-pop about wanting to make a moment last. Listen above.
XAMIYA — “MONSTER”
I do not know what forces brought Kamiya (a rapper / singer who I would argue is best known for being the spotlight artist in the GALFY song) and Xansei (a rapper / producer who like, hangs out with SANTAWORLDVIEW) together, though part of me feels there’s a bigger force at play in the creation of XAMIYA. The duo are performing at a government-supported showcase at SXSW, and in general they seem to have gotten the kind of push a new project rarely gets here. So…maybe a Don Quijote YOASOBI?
That’s less a knock and more of an attempt to capture their vibe, though if they keep making pop as fragile as “MONSTER” the origin story won’t be that important. Kamiya’s voice is submerged in electronics while the music around her aims for a daydream, with ample space to show off the sweet melody at its core. I think the most interesting element is how it leans towards English lyrics — but still offers a fair amount of Japanese as sonic texture, avoiding the need to choose a side in favor of seeing ways the two languages can intersect with one another. Listen above.
Hiiragi Magnetite Featuring Akita Neru — “Zako”
The “Zako” kerfluffle of a month ago reminded of the artistic limitations of Vocaloid as the characters associated with the singing-synthesizer technology often supersede the art…and in this case sparked a controversy that could have been easily avoided. Producer Hiiragi Magnetite’s promised re-recorded version shows how Vocaloid’s character-centric ethos can add a layer of fun to the music.
Magnetite handed vocal duties off to Akita Neru, whose voice bank — isn’t tied to a human, and is rather a mutation built around multiple other characters, including Hatsune Miku. Immediately a smart move, seeing as the whole reason “Zako” got in trouble in the first place was the use of vocals recorded by a nine-year-old girl for a number that’s slightly suggestive. What better way to avoid it with a pair of pipes that technically doesn’t exist in the physical world? Making it more entertaining is the why of Neru — she’s basically an early Vocaloid community meme, which could be read as an extra layer to all of this.
Really though, I’m just happy “Zako” now exists in an official capacity again, because I think musically it’s one of the best J-pop songs of the young year so far, whoever is singing it. Magnetite’s teasing number flaunts Jersey Club squeaks but avoids cliche in favor of something fizzier, making the most of minimalism in the verses and going maximalist for the length of the hook. It’s a kind of inverse “Mesmerizer”1 — whereas that one is all out attack, “Zako” explored tension in all its nooks and crannies. Listen above.
Oricon Trail For The Week Of February 24, 2025 To March 2, 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.
Naniwa Danshi — “Doki it” (324,660 Copies Sold)
I rag on Mrs. GREEN APPLE a lot around these parts, largely because of how youth-pastor the trio’s optimistic outlook comes across when coupled with saccharine pop touches. Yet that group is still tied to J-pop’s attitude in the 2020s. All those chin-up and everything-will-be-ok! platitudes come from the same sense of drudgery and general doom central to the country’s music so far this decade, just opting for positivity over glumness. A song like “Bitter Vacances” turns way too chirpy as it goes on, but it’s rooted in “boy working sure sucks” which at least nods to the realities of the nation.
If you want to hear absolutely hollow pep, check out Naniwa Danshi’s latest single. “Doki it” celebrates the life unexamined, one where there’s no right or wrong answers…just fun! Pop doesn’t have to boast any deep meanings, but man when all you can offer up is the sonic equivalent of “smile more” backed by the shittiest attempt at “rock and or roll” imaginable that nonstop positivity turns toxic. Annoying and aggravating on every level. Can’t fans of this group buy photos of the members if they must see them grinning so much, why do you need them to be involved with music?
Most horrible of all? “Doki it” truly made me think I’ve been too harsh to Mrs. GREEN APPLE lately. Worst song of 2025 to date.
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News And Views
Kamimura Kenshin of Stardust pop outfit ONE N’ ONLY got the boot out of the group last week following news that the 25-year-old performer assaulted a female interpreter while in Hong Kong recently, being arrested as a result. The rest of the project will carry on with an ongoing world tour (with domestic dates starting in April), now as a five-piece unit.
Singapore music-focused investment group Blackx has partnered with Asobisystem (Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Atarashii Gakko!, FRUITS ZIPPER, many more) to help “develop intellectual property, create new revenue streams for artists, and enhance international fan engagement” for their artists, according to Music Business Worldwide. As the linked article stresses, this further underlines the continued growth of J-pop in the global space, though I’m just as interested in how Asobisystem — who have really been on the cutting edge of this, as Kyary was kind of ahead of the curve of all this — use this, as I find that agency is sometimes all over the place internationally — see again Kyary, kind of squandering a lot of foreign opportunities abroad early on.
Music Ally also has a bit more on other efforts from a business perspective to build up J-pop. What a time to be alive.
Continuing that…Forbes has a review of JO1 in New York, building further on the J-pop moment in the spotlight.
Happy belated Miku Day to all, here she is shaking French fries around.
This Side Of Japan has a great look at the acts from Japan…and the rest of Asia…playing SXSW this year.
I interviewed Ichiko Aoba for The Japan Times. Luminescent Creatures is one of the year’s best so far, go buy that.
Written by Patrick St. Michel (patrickstmichel@gmail.com)
Twitter — @mbmelodies
Check out the Best Of 2025 Spotify Playlist here!
Not to bog this down in “lore” but the decision to switch to Neru and also include cameos from the Vocaloid avatars that starred in that song ties them together in a way they were never supposed to…but which I don’t think is that farfetched.