Make Believe Melodies For September 19, 2023

Pivoting to cooking videos

Oyubi — ^fuun^ EP

The beauty of a meme is that anyone can take an idea — say, Patrick Star chained in the middle of a stadium — and warp it to fit whatever interest they want. Sure, that can all turn lazy really quickly, but the central idea of a shared online language anyone can play around with remains powerful in Soyjack age. Tokyo footwork producer Oyubi’s latest EP takes inspiration from memes, though I’ll happily show my age and admit to not knowing which ones specifically. That’s not important — what’s much more interesting about ^fuun^ is how the same guiding principle of, say, Dat Boi applies to dance music. Oyubi embraces a wide range of global dance styles across these six songs — dipping into African-born sounds, UK garage, Jersey Club and more — while still finding a personal touch for each. While dancefloor-driving tempos dominate, the biggest standout comes from opener “fulmoonside,” a more spacious electronic experiment playing around with warped notes and metallic percussion. It’s the sort of track I wouldn’t expect from Oyubi regularly — but when given the chance to play around, he comes through with one for the essentials playlist. Get it here, or listen above.

Ako — “trank”

A moodier and more menacing take on dominant J-pop sounds. While Ako strips her songs down to the most part to an unnerving stroll, I hear in “trank” something not far removed from the 21st century aggression of a King Gnu (the guitar interludes and rap swagger of the verses feeling almost like clues), while lyrical concerns about seeking to end the boredom of everyday via love seems apt, even if Japan has moved out of the glummer pop days. Ako lets her voice and perspective through, but it’s a reminder that just becuase something is a layer down from the top doesn’t mean it’s that far off. Listen above.

Mom — “Kaiten Suru Innocence”

Mom was made for these times. The oddball online creator saw the direction everything was going, and knew…just do whatever you want, because that’s the vibe ahead. Few still do it as well as the Saitama-born creator, with their latest single teasing gently dance-hops offset by Kanye-like mutant choirs and Smash Bros. sound effects. What does this lithe track morph into? Well, a big all-together-now rocker, of course. Listen above.

xiangyu — “Niche Na Odo”

Delirious goofballery from xiangyu, singing about abandoned gloves in the street like she’s in a trance. The emphatic energy gets a huge assist from music courtesy of Gimgigam, who creates a woozy backdrop for xianguyu using strings and samples of nature plus voices to tilt reality towards the absurd. Listen above.

iyan D1KE — Internet students

I assumed iyan D1KE, one of the many names that popped up during the halcyon days of “hyperpop” in Japan, was a relatively minor name. Completely wrong!

D1KE worked on a song with 429 that has over four million views on YouTube from earlier this year…really good! D1KE plays live shows with pretty passionate audiences, too! Hey, gotta get out of my bubble, huh? Recent EP offering Internet students offers a good overview of D1KE’s strengths, with their softer and inviting delivery melding with the soda-fizzy production as they rap about anime, school memories and confusing teenage emotions. Click the link above to hear.

DURDN — “Regrets”

A music companies job is to sell product and develop artists who can eventually sell product. I am not stupid enough to ever forget this and you’ll never find me babbling about “industry plants.” However…a label can absolutely cram a new artist down your throat a little too quickly, and make the whole rise-to-stardom path ring a little hollow.

Trio DURDN have been one of 2023’s “next big bands” in Japan, getting huge pushes from the likes of Spotify Japan, assorted media and summer music festivals…all with a clear nudge from home Sony Music Japan. The trio have a great story — they are basically a crackerjack squad of industry vets, with one member having written songs for IZ*ONE and Nogizaka46, others serving as a topliner and another “having roots in South Korea” (OK, that’s pretty vague). Their name is terrible — it is, indeed, in reference to Tyler Durden — but their music is more…meh? Individual songs released this year have had great moments — the opening sashay of “My Plan,” the clink-clanking percussion of “Drink!” —  but overall they’ve felt more like adept cosplayers doing city pop and SIRUP among other styles¹. The accompanying media push, while totally normal and expected, doesn’t help change that personal perception.

Know what does work? Good music, and DURDN deliver their first Make Believe Melodies-approved² number with “Regrets.” The high-stepping beat remains, but now the melancholy comes across much more clearly, with the trio leaving more space for the vocal to tell their story of past mistakes (like Ako…an emphasis on someone feeling “bored,” one of the 21st century’s biggest ailments). It’s the first time the singing has really worked well carrying the emotional heft of the song especially when he picks up the pace near the end, and even better are the guitar solos, adding weight without detracting from the central emotion. Here’s how to earn the hype. Listen above.

Oricon Trail For The Week Of September 4, 2023 To September 10, 2023

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.

Snow Man — “Dangerholic” (869,205 Copies Sold)

Dear god…in a more boring year for J-pop where media wasn’t focused on the fallout from a decades-long scandal, this past week would go down as one of the most fascinating in recent memories, and could easily be the catalyst for thinkpieces about physical media in the country.

So many huge releases moving hundreds of thousands of units. The centerpiece is Johnny’s outfit Snow Man delivering one of the year’s best sellers (and offering further evidence of how, despite everything happening around their agency in 2023, the acts associated with this company are still on top), but the other releases on the podium this week are also impressive. K-pop group ENHYPHEN push over 370,000 with their latest which is good for second, while female idol outfit ≠ME hit triple digits for the bronze. A lot of other times, each of these acts could have loomed alone over the Oricon singles chart, but for some reason, everyone has to get music out in the first full week of September.

It doesn’t stop there, though, and becomes downright dizzying when you switch over to the album charts though starting with…something that is clearly not an album.

The collaboration between K-pop group Stray Kids and J-pop star LiSA “Social Path” — itself a great example of how these two industries can work well together — comes bundled with two Japanese versions of existing Stray Kids’ songs. That’s a total of three tracks…the same as the ENHYPHEN release presented as a “single,” but here constituting an album. Get your meditations about “what is an album in the 2020s anyway????” out of here, K-pop already has “mini-albums” and this ain’t that. Whatever it is, it sold 506,212 copies, good for first place. Second was no slouch either, with V of BTS Layover — an actual album — putting up over 200,000³. Is that all aided by multiple copies of the same thing available in different editions (you can get a “zine” in one of the “Social Path” offerings)? Of course, but that’s 2020 pop perfectly encapsulated, and this week of Oricon overflows with examples of how the market works nowadays.

News And Views

• OK, time for Johnny & Associates’ fallout corner for this week…the big development on this front is watching how advertisers have reacted to the company’s talent and their utilization of them after the press conference where Johnny’s acknowledged their founder’s sexual assault history. The gist of it — lots of companies will not be using Johnny’s talent in the foreseeable future, with some halting current campaigns as a result. This has lead to weird moments where stickers were placed over the faces of talent used to promote some extremely gross-looking item at MOS Burger leading to anger from fans, which the fast-food company apologized for due to confusion (still stopped working with them though). The key takeaway though is…lots of companies have stopped working with Johnny’s talent…for the time being.
  
  That’s pretty obviously the correct move when it comes to optics, but it does get a bit more complicated when you take a step back. Johnny’s Sexual Assault Victims Association, consisting of victims of Kitagawa, disagreed with these suspension of contracts, saying it could lead to further bad behavior. It also hits at the tension few in mainstream media want to wrestle with which is…should the talent be punished for Johnny Kitagawa? Because these tie-ups and sponsorships are a huge source of income for them, and taking those away probably does more harm to them than Johnny’s. But…maybe that’s necessary! There’s no easy answer here, which is what makes all of this kind of messy right now.
  
  On top of all of this, Johnny’s released further info about their plans to compensate victims of Kitagawa, which also mentions that for the next year all money made via commercial tie-up will go to the talent themselves…the agency itself not collecting anything.
  
  If that’s not enough Johnny’s for you, The Japan Times’ Deep Dive podcast went…deep…on the topic, and I pop up for one segment talking about the fallout for the entertainment industry.
  

• One thing I touch on in that pod…there’s the chance all of this leads to a more fragmented and diverse field of talent agencies in the country. TOBE, founded by former Johnny’s member Hideaki Takizawa, stands to potentially benefit from that, especially based on early buzz and success of the group IMP. This past weekend, they announced that former Kis-My-Ft2 member Hiromitsu Kitayama was the latest talent to join up.
  

• THE FIRST TAKE leaning big on K-pop this week, first featuring (G)-IDLE and then breaking out a biggie with V of BTS.
  

• Ado will become the first solo female artist to have a show at the National Stadium in Tokyo (I went there! Below) next Spring. She also has a new covers album coming out later this year (full disclosure: I’ve written her English-language bio in the past).
  

  Make Believe Mailer 86: "Matsuken Samba"

• Avex signs YouTube management agreement with American startup Orfium.
  

• Yoshiki became the first Japanese artist since the ‘70s to get his hands set in cement outside of the TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles.
  

• Great review of a reissued Les Rallizes Dénudés album from Shy Thompson at Pitchfork.
  

• America’s Got Talent remains a big platform for Japanese music to get attention (at least from my Dad).
  

• Perfume will contribute a song to the new Sumikko Gurashi movie out this November. It’s called “Sumikko Disco” and you better believe I’m excited. Listen to a snippet in the trailer below.
  

• BABYMETAL back on the cover of Metal Hammer.
  

• Akiko Yano becomes a pig puppet for the upcoming season of NHK’s Nehorin Pahorin.
  

• New e5 incoming.
  

• Fascinating deep dive into the world of “Maidcore,” a predominantly Russian phenomenon showcasing “cool, Japan!” theory at its strongest.
  

• This Bandwagon interview with LDH project BALLISTIK BOYZ includes the fascinating tidbit that they’ve lived in Thailand for over six months in an effort to reach the greater Asian market???? Smart!
  

• B’z staff injured while taking down stage in Fukuoka.
  

• In what is both the most wholesome content of the week AND one of the best interviews I’ve ever encountered with them…Utada Hikaru joined Japanese actress Anne Watanabe to cook gyoza on the latter’s YouTube channel. It’s charming as heck, and the food looks great too! Watch the whole thing.
  

  Written by Patrick St. Michel (patrickstmichel@gmail.com)
  Twitter — @mbmelodies

  Follow the Best of 2023 Spotify Playlist Here!

  
  

1. I especially think they are trying to fill the Suchmos-sized gap in the market.

2. The seal of approval we all want.

3. Conspiracy corner: I think Stray Kids realized they couldn’t beat Snow Man in a singles match, so found a way to classify this as an album…and now they can flex that they beat out (a solo member of the currently on-hiatus) BTS for number one.