Category Archives: Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

December 26, 2012

Year in Review 2012: Music

By omo

I haven’t written much about music in 2012 compared to years past, for whatever the reason. It’s kind of something in and out of my consciousness. I still listen to a fair share of it. Finally equipped with a multi-disc, mp3-capable CD player in the car, I have this rotation of music that seems to never end. It feels inadequate only if I count things by the album. Of course, I also don’t drive very much.

The truth is I’ve hit a snag in the workflow between the music and my ears. I do most of my exploratory listening either on youtube or on my phone while I’m out of the house. Youtube is pretty straightfoward and direct. Music on the phone is a trickier matter. Thing is, it’s too much of a pain in the butt to download music/rip the music, unpack it, check if it’s tagged right, tag it, rename the stuff, delete the added files I don’t want to put on my phone (like scans), and then copy it to my phone. Maybe I’m just lazy. I wonder how many albums/singles I can do in an hour.

Merry Christmas!

For sake of simplicity I’ll just list a bunch of items, in bold:

By and far away Chihayafuru was my favorite soundtrack of the year. I asked Morio about it at an AX panel and he said he wanted something that’s modern and appeal to young people. I’m not sure if this was it but sure appealed to me!

I didn’t like the first CD, but the second soundtrack released for Last Exile: Fam hit the sweet spot. They were packaged just like the original Last Exile. I probably should finish watching this show huh…

Beyond “Her name is Koko, she is loco” I think Taku Iwasaki’s more world-music-influenced style simply fits the sort of story that is Jormungand. I guess I am also partial to his stuff, it’s just a lot of fun to listen to. It’s not as whacked as Ben-Tou, but it doesn’t have to be.

Tsuritama – Kuricorder Quartet does not disappoint. And what’s up, Sayonara Ponytails! I think them butchering a great song is rather appropriate and I think it’s a good thing for these post-modern weird bands to try such things. At any rate I appreciate Spitz double-teaming with Yuki (in Moyashimon S2 OP) for noitaminA nostalgia power hour.

Tari Tari Music Album – Yeah, I like it for the glee club crap, but otherwise it is thematically impressive, almost like Yoko Kanno’s Macross albums, minus the thick, moody feels. It’s just a seaside adolescence story here.

Aquarion EVOL doesn’t disappoint; it’s just as fun as the original Aquarion but with more refinements. It’s not all Yoko Kanno, but overall it works just the same.

Sakamichi no Apollon is not really worth mentioning for the name brand, but rather for the musicianship. I think I should at least give prop to a track labeled as “My Favorite Things~Someday My Prince Will Come~Moanin'” especially when it’s the emotional climax of the series, because, LOL. JOSEI ALRIGHTY. The OP and ED are p. nice.

How can we skip a Otani Kou soundtrack about a post-apocalyptic world? The last time he did something like Humanity Has Declined turned out to be one of anime’s best. Granted, this is as different as it gets. Ave Maria anyone?

The Sphere anime has another nijine piece, and you might know how I feel about his stuff. It makes Natsuiro Kiseki a lot of fun.

Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere – I skimmed through season 1’s offering, but somehow I’m liking season 2’s music a lot more. It’s just as “touhou”-y as I would expect, minus the mysterious “eastern” feels. Instead it’s more like… I don’t know, I like the mix of electronic-y style in there.

There’s something in ClariS’s Birthday album. I suspect it’s MDMA for your ears. Also, my face when I heard this while combing Natsuko Aso’s discography.

She’s right–there’s just a lot more misses in Kajiura’s work lately.

The sound to Eureka 7 Ao is pretty okay, typical of what you’d expect. But I prefer Zetsuen no Tempest a bit more, and I guess that reflects on who writes it. Not sure if it’s a meaningful comparison LOL.

Having Ano Natsu de Matteru around goes to show that them I’ve Sounds guys still have the same sound, if they wanted it. Sign and Vidro Muryo are both pretty good.

Rinne no Lagrange – Marble is delightful.

I like Sword Art Online OP1, but it’s more because of LiSA than the power pop arrangement. I think LiSA really did well this year as far as winning wota hearts and wallets are concerned. Her AFA show was super good, and this is from someone watching it via Niconama.

Aya Hirano’s new album has that Pizza song on it, and I love that song. I don’t know.

If this year is the year of idol pop groups invading my anime, then StylipS is doing it right. I think none of their songs may chart on my personal list but Saki Achiga-hen OP Miracle Rush is pretty damn close.

I can count the number of Chihara Minori songs I like on one hand, but she’s got one this year in Oniai OP, Self Producer. The iM@S tie-in from the anime helps, probably.

Speaking of doing it right, Momoiro Clover Z is probably doing the most-right-eous out of them all. Besides Mouretsu Pirates (which has a pretty old school soundtrack too, including that Black Holy track–it’s even titled old school no less), Joshiraku’s tie-in with Yoshida Bros is a lot of fun.

The other ham-fisted drivel adaptation involving online gaming–err I mean Accel World to be specific–has a Sat x KOTOKO product, and I really like it. It probably helps to see it live hurhurhur. Speaking of Sat, that Decade track is pretty okay, as uh, hammy as it is.

Platinum Disco (Nisemonogatari) is no Renai Circulation. Sweets Parade (Inu x Boku SS) is no Renai Circulation, but it’s bull’s eye for Kana Hanazawa. She even goes peropero in it… Happy Ending (Zetsuen no Tempest) is no Renai Circulation either, although that one feels a little closer than the others.

Generic-template Kurinoko songs are okay in my book, but sign was a sign for her untapped potential at doing this pop stuff. She ought to do more…different. Certainly soothes the ear better than Koda Kumi’s OP in Muv-luv Alternative: Total Eclipse.

And, of course, there was iM@S.

Bonus: Do we count Guilty Crown original soundtrack as 2012? How about Penguindrum’s ARB cover album?

Next up: Loving live for you!

PS. No sharks in this post, sorry.

PPS. Last year I did a “select” playlist for 2011’s remarkable themes. I guess I wanted to do the same for 2012, so I did. Note that there’s no copy of the full thing on Youtube for some songs, so if you wanted you’ll have to assemble the whole thing on your own. The track listing (and where to find it) are:

  1. Kokoro no Senritsu (#6 ED version) – Tari Tari (Music Album)
  2. INSIDE IDENTITY – Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai (ED single…or the OP single has a rroooocckkking cover that is 100% times better)
  3. Mōretsu Uchuu Koukyoukyoku – Dai-Shichi Gakushou ‘Mugen no Ai’ – Mouretsu Pirates (OP single)
  4. Vidro Moyou – Ano Natsu de Matteru (ED single)
  5. Kaoru & Sentaro Duo in BUNKASAI (Medley “My Faorite Things~Someday My Prince will Come~Moanin'”) – Sakamichi no Apollon (OST)
  6. Wareta Ringo – Shinsekai Yori (ED single comes out 1/26 I think, so this is just the TV cut from the OST)
  7. Requiem – Tasogare Otome x Amnesia (It came with a DVD/BD I think, there’s a single that has it but probably not sold separately)
  8. Enter Enter MISSION – Girls und Panzer (ED single)
  9. →unfinished→ – Accel World (ED1 single)
  10. SELF PRODUCER – Oniai (ED single)
  11. signs ~Sakutsuki Ichiya~ – Muv-luv Alternative: Total Eclipse (ED1 single)
  12. Above your hand – Sankarea (ED single)

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4 comments | posted in Modern Visual Culture, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

November 6, 2012

Otakon Music Fest 2012

By omo

So, Otakon and Lantis had a baby and after 3 months of anticipation, we were there to celebrate its birth.

JAM Project, the globe-trotting anime song promoters and epic arena rockers, headlined what seemed to be an usual Saturday night at the Ram’s Head Live, a fairly well-known concert venue in the Baltimore inner-harbor area. At least, to some locals who’ve been to the venue for various other acts, including some Otakon events in years past, Ram’s Head is located in an area of town that feels a little familiar. I get the feeling that wasn’t the cast for most at this concert.

Along with JAM Project, Lantis brought over Faylan and Aso Natsuko. That really fanned the flames for me. Why? Because they are while relatively novice anison acts, they are genuine solo anison artists with multiple solo albums. It’s easy to imagine “hey it would be pretty darn awesome to have Anisama ~Baltiport~” or some such nonsense. I get the feeling that was also what the various event organizers had in mind.

Fact is, the idea of the Otakon Music Fest started years ago; at least that’s when I first have heard of it. I didn’t know how long ago when the idea first found momentum nor did I know the amount of hard work, luck, pluck, chemical X, or whatever that was necessary to bring it about. Like lucky fans that were at the venue, we waited after we heard about it, for three months, paid some amount of monies, and enjoyed ourselves. Maybe it will grow into that epic all-star music festival some of us had in mind in the future.

The truth is, though, every journey still begins with just one step at a time, so the metaphorical baby has to have, I hope, its humble beginning. Or in business-speak, the experiment has to be a success and the show has to make money. While we were promised just a concert with the three acts, we were also promised (and sold) a VIP add-on of roughly $60, in order to make possible to get an autograph and some mingle time after the show. Did you know the show started about on time? This is on Japanese-time, this show.

Oh, before I forget, set list. I don’t know if I will walk it through blow-by-blow, but I’ll highlight the interesting parts. Note that there are most likely some inaccuracies.

Faylan batted first (this was subject to confusion throughout the afternoon: who went first?)

1. WHITE Justice
2. Realization
3. Dead End
4. Errand
5. Mind as Judgment

Then it was the totally-adorbs Natsuko Aso (henceforth Natchan…or Natcha~an or whatever)

1. More-more LOVERS!!
2. Everyday Sunshine Line
3. Eureka Baby 
4. Diamond Star
5. Perfect-area complete

Then it was Big Brothers and Sister JAM Project (after a 10-minute, Pocky-moderated break):

1. Crest of “Z’s”
2. Vanguard
3. Break Out
4. Hagane No Resistance
5. Garo ~SAVIOR IN THE DARK~
6. Rinbu Revolution (Masami Okui)
7. We Are! (Hiroshi Kitadani)
8. Yuusha-ou Tanjou! (Masaaki Endoh)
9. Cha-La Head-Cha-La (Hironobu Kageyama)
10. King Gainer Over / Dynamite Explosion (Yoshiki Fukuyama)
11. Transformers EVO.
12. VICTORY
13. GONG
14. ROCKS
15. Rescue Fire
16: EC-1: KI-ZU-NA
17. EC-2: SKILL

Yeah, only five each? That is shorter than JAM Project’s thing by almost 50% if not more, once you count the encore and the … long SKILL. I wasn’t too disappointed to be honest, partly because I was saving energy for JAM’s inevitably epic aerobic exercise, and they played most of my favorites. Not having Dark Side of the Light was kind of rough but man. I wish each of them would go another 2 more songs. Then again, I’m the kind of person who would go to a full show from either of them!

The crowd was not huge but they were energetic. And in some sense JAM Project’s East Coast fans might actually rival their South American fans in terms of loudness and intensity. For anison fans overseas, that is quite the exception. I arrived at around 3:30 and it was rowdy. JAM Project was doing their rehearsal at the time and the line busted out in songs, almost too loudly since we lined up in this narrow corridor. It’s safe to say Hurricane Sandy weeded out some of the lukewarm or simply non-committed types, but it’s hard to say many, if at any, of the people at this show were lukewarm or non-committed.

I have to kind of whine though (if I can’t whine on my blog where can I…oh wait)–lining up before the show is what they do in Japan, because you get to buy merch before it sells out. Lining up to go to the show in America is only something you do for huge acts in large arenas where it matters where you may end up sitting. A venue like Ram’s Head Live is at most 7-800 (maybe 1000?) and even at the back of the floor you can get a pretty intimate show. So it’s kind of annoying that I ended up going early and line up. On the flip side that gave me a good spot on the floor and I worked my way up to the 2nd row after Faylan’s set. So maybe I shouldn’t whine after all. Well, I probably would’ve been fine if I was relegated to jumping in the back. It just wouldn’t give me the nice photo ops that now I can share (at the end) nor the up-close view of Natchan’s high socks. Why do I like those? Sick otaku. Speaking of Natchan’s apparel, that hat, man. Nice. (Go to the end notes for some deets!)

Faylan dressed mostly casual and it only made her fiery self stand out just a little more. I’m kind of glad that her presentation is as plain as she appears to be, rather than the very…uh, extreme look she has in her promo material. She did pull a LiSA at some point on stage, and that got the crowd going. And by what I mean “pulled a Lisa,” well, hopefully you can get some photos from LiSA’s AX 2012 red carpet for what I mean.

JAM Project are in good form as before. I was close enough to see En-chan’s face getting more wrinkled, which was about as wrinkled as it was last time they were in town? Kageyama looked almost younger, man. I can’t really discern any difference between Dani now and 5 years ago. Makkun, well, according to at least one person, has put on weight. I guess that might be the case? It would explain why she was wearing a crab bib during SKILL’s epic chorus.

I guess, yes, the epic chorus. It was really the key piece missing from the 2008 concert. We did SKILL for maybe an extra 5-7 minutes, which included Dani pulling out a couple Crabby-chan plushies and throwing them around, play acting as if it was alive. Makkun put on a bib. And then Kageyama pulled out Faylan and Natchan for the final I CAN FLY part. It was a good time. It was…well, mini Anisama, circa. 2009. Only if Makkun and Faylan did Soul Refrain duet right then!

After SKILL we all dispersed, except then Jim spoke over the MC to have us line up and get our VIP badges. Which just means you get to line up to get your badge, and then line up again to get in an autograph line. It turns out the VIP thing is reduced to just getting an autograph, have a quick chat with the guests (people who went later had more talk time, I think), while my group and I hung around the bar and socialized. It was also interesting to see all the Lantis people doing whatever they were doing. After the autograph session the guests took a few Q&As, and president of Lantis gave a toast, and then it was the photo session.

Fukuyama was not present–he will be missed, but only a little, because they ended up Skyping him into his solo segment. There were some technical problems with it but it turned out hilariously entertaining anyway. Yeah, it was that kind of a crowd, for that kind of a dude.

All in all, the show itself is good. The only real downer is the very slow merch line. It is a problem two ways–first you kind of need the towel and that was the only way to get theirs unless you brought one (and someone I know did…). The second problem was that typically you can buy merch after the show. Except for most folks, it’s VIP time after the show and the merch was closed by the time autographing was done. That kind of sucked.

The merch booth had a lot of stuff for sale–both of the two albums from Faylan and Natchan were on sale, as with 4 JAM Project CDs, at about $40 a pop. Each artist brought a towel; Faylan had a t-shirt and a wrist band, and Natchan sold an orange hopi (only $35!) and something I forget. JAM Project brought a ton of stuff–chopstick, keychain/light combo pack, scrunchies, a “cutie kit”, playing cards, a couple t-shirts, and some other stuff I probably forgot. On the side, Otakon was selling a festival shirt where the proceeds go to charity.

That’s not the only places I spent money…well, we all had some drinks. Some of us had more than others, but $3 rum & coke? Woo.

My Natchan stock has gone up a lot. I saw some videos of her over the years (years, wow) and while she never struck me as a looker, there’s this natural cuteness she was able to extrude that you can better appreciate in real life. She’s a bit of an actress (well, she technically is I guess) and has more otaku cred than your average anison singer. Faylan, well, shoots straight and when she stumbled with English during her last MC, it was as moe as it gets.

Revisiting Jam Project (and seeing Makkun being semi-grumpy) always makes my day. Only if this could happen every year. Well, hopefully this is going to be the case–both Lantis President and Kageyama said something to that extent! Maybe we’ll celebrate year #2 next year!

PS. Photos. Shoddy but it’s all I can do. All you can do. Kagayake TRANSFO–oh.

PPS. I probably know a whole lot of you at the show, and I probably didn’t see all of you that I know. Well, I’m sure I’ll see you all soon.

PPPS. Natsuko Aso? Did you see her? Did you like her? Are you one of those people going to Japan end of this year? You can see Natchan at her Tokyo live at Shibuya O-East on December 27! Details all right here.

6 comments | posted in Conventions and Concerts, Modern Visual Culture, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

November 2, 2012

JAM Project Wants You!

By omo

To go to their show in Baltimore tomorrow!

Sounded from the forums that the Otakon Music Fest is still on. The venue has power and didn’t get wet, so it is a go as long as the flights don’t cancel (I’m guessing they aren’t). The last I heard was that this isn’t going to be some huge sell-out crowd. The venue is not small, but obviously it’s a challenge to see how many real anison troopers would show up for a thing like this. The guest list, if you haven’t heard, includes also Aso Natsuko and Faylan, both I believe are performing in the US for the first time (if not North America in general). JAM Project has been around the globe a couple times so it’s good to see them in the USA again after their Latin America tour.

You can find all concert details here.

I assume people know who JAM Project is and I won’t go on about them, although this time Fukuyama isn’t coming because he isn’t cleared to fly due to his recent medical condition. I guess the timing just isn’t right, besides the hurricane.

This is kind of the one song I want to hear from Natsuko:

And maybe this:

Faylan is a little trickier. Clearly, it includes:

Here’s a clip from Connichi in DE this year. I guess this is what we can expect, although there will be a live band.

This song is pretty much at the top of my Faylan list:

Both Faylan and Natsuko have 2 solo albums if I recall correctly. Somehow Faylan just gets more tie-ins…

PS. Despite having power now, I’m still lacking in XCOM time. Maybe next week, when hopefully things will return to normal! This no internet thing is, as you would expect, a major bummer.

PPS. Calls? Did anyone said calls? I hope Paranda knows them because a lot of Natsuko’s stuff is written with that in mind, should be a good time.

Leave a comment | posted in Conventions and Concerts, English Language Modern Visual Fandom, Modern Visual Culture, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

September 17, 2012

Totally Random Seiyuu Agency Half-Questions

By omo

I have questions, do you have answers?

Question 1: Yuruyuri season 2 came to an end today. That marks also the end of the latest show where both Saki Fujita and Aki Toyosaki play in the same show. You don’t have to look far to see the last time these two were in the same production: Jewelpet. It’s the one long-running mainstream kids show featuring Aki as the lead, and definitely her biggest show yet. Fujita manages to make it in the show just this latest season. But where else has the two of them worked in the same production? Is Manabi Straight it?

Question 2: Despite the plethora of Sengoku-era anime adaptations, there is no end in sight to this trend. We have two shows this current season featuring exactly that. What’s notable is how some of these are flat-out genderbending variety, not so much Sengoku Basara, but Sengoku Collection. Here’s who: Mamiko Noto. I think she might be the one seiyuu who has been in more of these shows than any other, and I’m counting even dreck like Sengoku Otome. If we stick to the tight limits of 1) a late-night anime with 2) a Japanese woman doing the acting, would it be true or false? And if we don’t stick to either of these limits, who would have the most Warring States role?

2 comments | posted in Modern Visual Culture, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

August 6, 2012

Takagaki Ayahi Laughs and Cries

By omo

One of the intangible factor that floats seiyuu-idol pop group Sphere is its classically-trained vocalist Takagaki Ayahi. Ayahi (or Ayahime) is gifted with a decent singing voice and majority of Sphere fans probably concur that hers is the best, even if hers may not be their favorite. Indeed there are probably the fewest Ayahi fans out of the whole group, especially given her relatively few otaku roles on her relatively short CV. She gets outshined by her groupmates, who are popular on their own in a lot of ways.

There is this enjoyable irony, thus.

I think Ayahime works great in these PA Works T_T anime projects, Tari Tari being the latest. It’s a bit like her gig in Fate/Zero–the earnest girl that laughed and cried within the same episode. It’s what she did in Tari Tari 6. It isn’t that her acting is actually that great, but in a way Ayahi’s voice is something you just don’t hear very much of, partly because she’s just not in so many shows and her voice has enough of a uniqueness to it to take note. Enough for a lead character, enough for a cappella 5-piece, enough to stand out between a Noto-and-Hayami manzai gag (how many times has that happened anyway?), and enough to delight Noe supporters throughout the ages.

Which in retrospect plays to all of her strengths, and it’s a pretty tall list to stand up against. Then again my favorite Ayahi performance is still the brat from Mitsudomoe, so what do I know?

I certainly don’t follow her solo vocalist career, or what little bits of it. Thing is, even when you up the ante and play with operatic stuff, Ayahime comes across as, at best, a delightful, if pedestrian, passer-by who is best known for her seiyuu idol status, and not because she lights up the ball. Yes, we know she can sing, but is she any good? More importantly, does she have what it takes? She may be able to wrestle a standing fan (something most opera singers have not done, I imagine), but how about a whole bunch of them? I think the jury is still out on this, even after the third Sphere album. At least, I don’t really know.

5 comments | posted in Modern Visual Culture, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop, Tari Tari