Make Believe Melodies For May 2, 2021
BABYMETAL NFT
Juice = Juice — “DOWN TOWN”
The internet’s discovery of city pop has resulted in many explorations on why bubble-era Japan has tickled the nostalgia of those outside the country, some great and others less notable. One thought hovering over all of these articles and YouTube essays is…what do people in Japan think about city pop? While there’s a resurgence in records and efforts to make “new city pop” a thing, the style isn’t actually enjoying any revival here.
That’s because city pop never left — Tatsuro Yamashita hosts an insanely popular weekly radio show, while news about Mariya Takeuchi or Yuming gets netizens hearts a fluttering (an aging population plays a big part in this too). Just importantly, younger acts were offering their own interpretations on the glitzy sounds well before anyone paid attention to algorithms, while covers of hit city pop songs have proliferated since the bubble popped. Western listeners fall for city pop because it sounds new to them — for most Japanese listeners, it’s always been in the air.
Here’s a great example. “DOWN TOWN” was an early highlight from Sugar Babe, Yamashita and Taeko Onuki’s first project, though it was a cover by EPO in 1980 that turned it into a nationwide smash. It has been covered oh so many times since — even SMAP did it on their variety show in the 2000s — and here comes idol group Juice = Juice to offer their own take on it, complete with beatboxing breakdown. I’m not sure how much online interest in city pop nudged them to cover this — the member in suspenders is going hard on the Takeuchi picture — but nothing about it beyond being “DOWN TOWN” screams “remember this?” The video looks stylish, not far off from a NiziU single art or a Shiseido ad, while the music sounds modern (made by a Swedish producer), even the boogie-funk bit late sounding like a very 21st century update on older ideas. If this is a plan to ensnare Western listeners into J-pop idols, credit to the Juice = Juice team for trying, but it really feels like a chance to play the hits for the people who already love it. Listen above.
SZWARC — “Sweet Escape”
The A-side to TAPESTOK’s latest idol-rap project offers no shortage of enriching goodness, unfolding at a fittingly gusty pace and featuring welcome head-twister lyrics like the very prominent “I’m a smoothie lover.” It’s the back number, though, that underlines everything great about this label’s wonky approach to idol pop, which usually opens up whole new sonic portals. Effects-drenched vocals slip-n-slide over a 2-step wobble, splashing down in one of the best hooks to come from TAPESTOK since early Los An Jewels. Listen above.
nate + Yamakagebeats — “poping candy”
I don’t think any artist operating in Japan’s underground fits into so many slots as nate, who can hover around the “SoundCloud rap” scene one second before drifting over to the hyperpop corners of online music the next. The entire Sweet Planet release made in collaboration with Yamakagebeats flexes this sonic versatility, but “poping candy” imagines nate as — pastel-accented pop star. Credit the constant high-fructose mutation the song itself takes, teasing dance before morphing into a more free-wheeling Kyary Pamyu Pamyu impersonation (with wonderfully disorienting instrumental passages). Listen above.
Eve — “Yoru Wa Honoka”
Oh, the double-edged slice of a popular global export! I have no doubt part of the huge draw for the current crop of post-Vocaloid artists atop J-pop is their heavy use of animated music videos and avatars…people love anime! But also…people hate anime! A common hurdle I’m finding for a lot of listeners coming to this stuff…especially Ado’s breakthrough hit, which has prompted multiple discussions on this in my life recently…is that it sounds like “anime music,” itself a Titan-sized1 sinkhole (technically, Jodeci is anime music). The spirit of that complaint, though, connects — it’s all dramatic vocals and constant rock chug!
Credit to Eve for just bringing funk right up front to latest song “Yoru Wa Honoka,” using that sturdy base to dive into their love of askew vocals and surging hooks. There’s more space for musical diversity in this current moment (Kenshi Yonezu already way out in front on that), and developments like this offer new entry points for those lacking a Crunchyroll membership. Listen above.
Oricon Trail For The Week Of April 19, 2021 To April 25, 2021
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 the 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 drip down…the Oricon Trail.
SEVENTEEN — “Hitori Jynai” (314,765 Copies Sold)
While I understand the desire to just get out of this pandemic as quickly as possible, pop playing around with COVID-19-era lingo leaves a way deeper impression on me than “apart…but together!” banality. The past year-plus has sucked, and I appreciate music facing that unease or at least having fun transforming familiar slogans into “new normal” mission statements. SEVENTEEN’s latest Japanese single does neither, rather settling for sub-John-Krasinski positivity, complete with video reminding us “hey, Zoom, that was a thing!” Doesn’t Animal Crossing have an update people can turn to instead?
News And Views
It’s Golden Week here in Japan, which means summer festival season has kicked off…really! Japan Jam in Chiba Prefecture (currently not under a State Of Emergency, unlike neighboring Tokyo) happened over the last two days, albeit with a capacity restriction of 5000 punters a day and a plethora of un-festive rules highlighted by “no cheering.” Still, people who went seemed to enjoy it, at least based off a quick Twitter check. Locals and netizens who didn’t go, though, are far less upbeat about it, worried about the site of thousands of people congregating at a relatively small station. This is a preview of the tension — between eager music fans and nearby residents / heavy online users — that’s bound to be present as the even bigger gatherings go down.
Kikuchi Shunsuke, who composed many popular theme songs, died.
This entire story is kind of bizarre, right? I assume Shunichi Tokura’s dig here is aimed at idols — AKB48 would be the obvious answer if you are critiquing “substance,” though the computer line muddles all that up — but what he’s implying should be at the forefront of Japanese music…already is at the forefront? Unless he’s really targeting Johnny’s acts (bold!), idol music is pretty far from the center right now, so it’s a weird diss. Since he didn’t elaborate, I largely just have to agree with the netizens responding to him.
Though maybe the bigger takeaway from this bit of government-funded intrigue is putting a 72-year-old man in charge of Cultural Affairs — who appears to not have a great grasp on the current state of culture in the country — might not be a great move.Sony Music MADE BANK last year, largely from streaming. That includes Japanese music operations.
Avex, a company very much not making bank, is…expanding to the United States??? Based on the linked article, this expansion appears to be them putting more of a focus on finding young talent — including someone named DIRTYXAN who has a video featuring an anime picture — and also really zeroing in on publishing (which looks like they are doing well in based on this article). It’s the third pillar of this effort, though, that’s most intriguing / mortifying.
I wanted to go deeper into Spirit Bomb, but the website gave me a headache even before I got to the George Orwell quote midway through the homepage. This news was actually out there a month ago, as was the existence of AVEX USA…maybe a fourth pillar focused on better PR?
Let’s stick with the dystopia theme and get to the story that almost had me running back to the Twitter log-in screen…BABYMETAL are in on NFTs.
I want to say they are the first J-pop group to get in on this (correct me if I’m wrong!), but hardly the first pop act in Asia, as K-pop group A.C.E. also embraced the blockchain. And just like A.C.E., BABYMETAL fans appear pissed! The most immediate kickback comes from an environmental perspective, though that (correctly!) righteous front also conceals people who wish they could get actual trading cards themed off the duo.
Before I saw this news, I’d been thinking if Japan’s general slowness to embrace new digital trends would help the entertainment industry dodge NFTs entirely (or, best case scenario, maybe just birth an NFT-themed idol outfit a la cryptocurrency. Non FUNGirlable Tokens?). Leave it to a group actually good at going international to fall into this pitfall. Curious if this inspires other companies to jump in, or if they are an outlier.James Hadfield talked to Flying Lotus about his work for Netflix’s Yasuke.
Hannah at Arama has a nice roundhouse aimed at a certain strain of writing centered on J-pop vs K-pop.
Leave it to talent competition scholar Allen to nicely sum up the whole Lelush viral story, which went bananas on The Japan Times “trending” list, if you are curious about the ranking excitement of a newspaper.
A.G. Cook wrote a fantastic tribute to the late SOPHIE, all of which is worth your time. I will highlight this one passage, though, which is particularly cool for the interests of this email newsletter.
My latest installment for Newspicks’ “Japan Rising” series (in Japanese only, English to come!) is on the rise of YouTube playlists going heavy on mood and Japanese music. Where Japanese labels and companies often falter, fans pick up the slack.
My lives, past and present, colliding — JO1 did some eikaiwa crossover with language school ECC, below. Are YOU one of the teachers who taught them English? Please contact me, I need more stories, I’ve only heard Koda Kumi gossip from the world of English teachers before.
Written by Patrick St. Michel (patrickstmichel@gmail.com)
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[I have never seen Attack On Titan, but those are the big guys right?]