Make Believe Melodies For May 23, 2022
Stupid Sexy Zone!
punipunidenki — Frequency In Blue
No instrument available to punipunidenki can match the impact of their voice. They’ve stood out thanks to how versatile their sonic palette can be — a fact soon to be underlined when they release their first full-length in June, which collects previously released songs — but that they can blend into whatever sounds surround them is even more vital to their art. Whether adopting a husky voice to underline the ennui of their jazz-funk numbers or going higher pitched over zippier electronic soundscapes, punipunidenki’s chameleonic delivery makes their creations work.
Frequency In Blue, an EP originally releasing in April but now available digitally, highlights this well. While longing — both for real possibilities and things impossible, along with multiple references to “utopia” which, uhhhhh choose which one you think that falls under — powers all of the songs, they approach it in wildly different ways. The two instances of bossa nova bookending Frequency find them delivering lines in a higher register, matching the easy-breezy atmosphere. That flips totally on the sax-assisted lonely stroll of “Sunshine Bay,” and becomes more quivery as the heart races on “Haru.” As impressive as the varied music can be, punipunidenki’s humanity coming through is what makes it stick. Get it here, or listen above.
Ayaka Wada — “sachi”
Ayaka Wada, Tomggg and Valknee — J-pop madlibs for sure, but one where every participant clicks together right. The latest single from the Hello! Project stalwart happens over a spacious beat courtesy of Tomggg, who keep touches of his playroom pop tendencies while not letting the song get too sugary, letting it propel when necessary but keeping it tied to reality too (those bird chirps, offering some grounding). It also sounds very Valknee, especially in Wada’s vocal delivery, which she pulls off wonderfully and which shines amongst the nooks and crannies of the production. Listen above.
Pictured Resort — “Oceanizing”
Kansai indie-pop practitioner Pictured Resort returns with a lively number dappled in synths right as the weather turns warm. Last year’s Hurry Nothing allowed itself to get a little too chill, with the songs melting into vibes under high temperatures. “Oceanizing,” along with “Vibe Your Room” from earlier this room, adds a bit more urgency to the forecast, and that wrings tension out of the groove. Listen above.
maco marets and Sakura Fujiwara — “Moondancer”
A hop-skip duet for warm afternoons. Rapper maco marets offers up the details on the verses, while Sakura Fujiwara adds sweetness come the chorus. Listen above.
808gxng — “FOX gxp”
One of the reasons so much “hyperpop” hits with me personally is because of how a lot of it brings to mind the freewheeling energy of netlabels. “FOX gxp” — and its just-released sequel — nails the internet-damaged mash-up sound floating around online music communities in the late Aughts / early ‘10s, while also teetering a bit into the over-media-saturated maximalism of Wasabi Tapes. A great bit of music to turn your mind to goop, which also nods to some earlier trailblazers. Listen above.
Boys Age — “The 9th Melody”
While never in a rush, the songs Boys Age has been making for nearly a decade now aren’t quite relaxed. They craft bedroom pop for shut-ins watching the walls melt, a touch of psychedelia around the edges of their rock. “The 9th Melody” offers another variation on the sound they’ve been exploring, the feeling of staying in place made unnerving by the melancholy seeping out. Get it here, or listen above.
Up Up Girls (2) — “Starry Wink”
Simple but effective dance-pop with a touch of melancholy. Also…guitar solos, finding space in idol music.
Sexy Zone — “THE FINEST”
Oh man, is Sexy Zone about to release a city-pop-inspired (music, visual or otherwise album? And is that album going to good?
The past five-plus years1 have been filled with ho-hum efforts at replicating Bubble sounds, both from Japanese acts that were really channeling acid jazz to foreign artists basing it all off “Plastic Love.” “The Finest” exists in the rare category of contemporary stabs at the style to do it really well. Musically, that’s almost entirely thanks to primary songwriter and producer Jeremy Quartus, the vocalist and leader of the band Nulbarich. That outfit has done well in mirroring ‘80s sonics and mood in their own music, and here they bring the same sparkle to Sexy Zone, knowing when to let the excess hit and when to let the jazzier melodies take the lead. Coupled with a great anime video, it’s a really well done production.
Weirdly enough — and the me of 10 years ago is screaming into the future, horrified at what I’m about to write — I think Sexy Zone currently offers the strongest argument for why Johnny & Associates really should just upload everything they can to YouTube. The days of disastrous pop tributes to Dubai2 are well behind them now…Sexy Zone have been good, with their last album featuring writing credits from tofubeats, chelmico and a bunch of other names we love around these parts, to “RIGHT NEXT TO YOU.” Now they seem to have a full-length at least riffing on en vogue city pop touchstones, which could actually connect with a lot of foreign listeners. You can even find people in the comments to “THE FINEST” wondering the same thing!
Oricon Trail For The Week Of May 09, 2022 To May 15, 2022
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.
Angerme — “Ai ・Masyou / Hade Ni Yaacyai Na! / Aisubekibeki Human Life” (56,511 Copies Sold)
The beauty of idol music is thematic and sonic freedom — dabble in whatever you want, go off in whatever lyrical direction catches your attention, it’s all good! Here’s a three-song release capturing the dynamic in all its glory. You get a high-energy, EDM-tinged cut, a pretty slick dance-pop number dipping its toe into funk, and best of all for Angerme…early afternoon ska-pop, below. Masters of none, but each one offers some catchy escapism for three-minute bursts, and isn’t that what J-pop idoldom is all about?
News And Views
Harry’s House update…Harry Styles out here saying “Haruomi Hosono” on the Today show, to the biggest “oh ok, wow” from whoever the host is. Depending on how far the rabbit hole you want to go, there’s speculation that Styles learned about Hosono from rumored romantic partner Kiko Mizuhara, who like hangs out with Hosono. Nothing too that, but once you see some Twitter comments, hey might as well share.
Views…everyone talking about Hosono House, but this Styles’ album sounds more like, uhhhhh, Vaundy Villa.
High school student stalked and chased 7 MEN Samurai member Taiko Sasaki with a knife?!?!?
It’s official…all four of the big summer festivals are back for 2022, after Rising Sun Rock Festival up in Hokkaido announces plans for this August.
Peter aka @zippu21 shared a collage of Pitchfork scores for various Japanese releases, and added more further down in the thread. Memories galore! Though he did miss my Namie Amuro review from back in the day…
The “hime cut,” originating from Japan, is super popular on Instagram and TikTok. You might be wondering why this is here, but it’s mostly because Haim features as a prominent example.
Sony Music Japan debuting Virtual YouTubers. Let the age of major-label VTubers commence.
Interviewed Vicke Blanka for The Japan Times. One of the most surprising and overall great chats I’ve had with an artist…he was so open about his recent struggles, especially following the death of his mother. A really great chat, from a very interesting creator.
I also profiled 180g, a French label helping shine a light on older Japanese music, for Bandcamp Daily. That included talking with the Japanese DJs, artists and curators working with them.
Avex is putting out a compilation called FM STATION 8090, a set capitalizing on the popularity of city pop, and curated by Bubble-era fixture Kamasami Kong. That wouldn’t be all that exciting on its own…until you get to the tracklist. Very clever move by them to sneak in stuff like Monkey Magic, m-flo, Charanporantan (who like, play Klezmer music) and more, using “city pop” as a way to smuggle new sounds to listeners. More companies should be doing this!
Written by Patrick St. Michel (patrickstmichel@gmail.com)
Twitter — @mbmelodies
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The irony being that, from like 2008 to 2014, a lot of Japanese artists nailed the city pop sound and vibe…pause for Gusto…they just did so before it became a greater trend.
Though funny enough…also very city pop, at least in concept.