Category Archives: Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

July 21, 2007

Semi-Live Otakon Blogging Day 0 & 1 – My Fair Lady

By omo

This is really a crashing attempt at blogging. I got 5 hours of sleep last night and my sleep time is eating away by me typing this up. Maybe sometime in the next 12 months I’ll be able to get broadband on the go via some kind of cellular-level connection or something like that.

But anyways, just want to hit some key points that isn’t covered in the usual license announcements today. Obviously, Ouran was a big one and this year had a bigger showing of Ouran cosplayers than last year.

All the Mamiko Noto questions we posed got asked, basically. I actually pitched the “what is your favorite” question and the stupid translator dude picked up on it, even when I phrased it carefully and Noto-san didn’t even dodge it!

Actually Noto-san has been very awesome–35 questions in about 60 minutes. There was this Chinese otaku girl who was a huuuuge Marimite fan who covered those questions, and some bi-lingual otaku who pitched the juicer questions and as well as the Sola question. That’s on top of the autographing session, she actually shook my hands with two hands! ZOMG. I’ll spin this out probably tomorrow or Sunday.

There’s more to otakon — this year has the shortest wait time for reg ever, as well as a very interesting selection of cosplays (1 Kamina, 1 Simon, 1 Post ep-12 Simon! Also 1 Touhou’s Sakuya?). The weather was pretty good, compared to the past otakons.

AAA can really dance and sing but I don’t think Otakon is ready for a neophyte boy band. They were a great show but there’s only so much we can take this artifical stuff; half the people at the concert were there for AMV, anyways.

Geneon After Dark: picked the brains of the usual attendees like Jerry and for the first time Kevin Chu. He loves Manabi Straight! There is hope.

10 comments | posted in Conventions and Concerts, Modern Visual Culture, Ouran High Host Club, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop

July 12, 2007

School Days -> Tsuyokiss, Singers and Singing, And Other Seasonal Checklistings

By omo

End your pilot episode with a strong kiss…

Needless to say I really dig School Days the anime so far. Also needless to say it’s way better than all of Tsuyokiss put together at episode 1. (Still want a collection of all its eyecatches…) I think I’m enjoying it even more so because I’ve already seen what the game had to offer, at least for a tiny fraction of it (namely the introduction part (where episode 1 of the anime covered) and some of the LOL endings). I have hopes for this show now, even if the delivery came off a bit like a shaggy old man who may had the charms when he was a mere … 29 years ago. That alone will probably alienate any good will for the greater anime viewing demographic in this post-Haruhi generation of TV animation. Well, that’s to keep (mostly) silent about how to adopt this tricky animated visual novel.

But while I was singing my heart out in my car to (some of) these tunes sometime this week, It only dawned on my then that Summer is con season, and con season means karaoke season. And because this year, unlike of my prior few summers, I haven’t been to a con yet. I am so ill prepared…

And that’s just one MORE party I’m late to. At least this party should be on DVD…? I so have to hit up Animelo one year. We can all scream our hearts…and lungs and intestines out in public.

Sigh. I have a lot on my plate between now and end of this month, so don’t expect a lot of entries from me. I will be at Otakon, though, and more of that nonsense will come…

As well with that music video. It’s still on the plate just…no room to do anything with it or to it.

I’ll end this strange mid-week rant with a couple questions:

1. What should I karaoke at Otakon? I really want to do SKILL at Otakon (again), but that require at least 2-3 people, but ideally 6. (Are you interested? Let me know!) On the plate are all my old songs that I’ve done at various cons before, but I want to hit up a new one. The problem here is that all the new songs I want to sing I can’t really do–I still want to do Break the Cocoon but I’m lacking an off-vocal track nor the English part of the lyrics near the end. I sort of want to do Gravitation but Angela is…not an act I should follow. I can always do God Knows again, but I rather like the Momoi’s cover more in terms of arrangement and how it has very little breaks in the middle…except that we’ll have to rip the voice out.

2. Questions for Mamiko Noto? I’ve said it before, if you want to have fun at a con panel, think up questions ahead of time. I’m probably going to ask at least one question about Touka Gettan, but that’s just the beginning. I’ll take your suggestions! Help me get my brain juices going.

6 comments | posted in Conventions and Concerts, School Days, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop, Touka Gettan, Tsuyokiss

July 6, 2007

An Entertaining Uninstall Redux

By omo

Flowers for Ishikawa

Chiaki Ishikawa at AX explains a lot about Uninstall. And how Simoun’s production was full of girls.

Yea, some guy booted the audio from her show. To save you the trouble of having people yell into your ears by listening to that hour-long thing, here are some tidbits:

1. As an anisong singer (she explained what that was) she really got into it through Kajiura’s collab in Gundam Seed. Their partnership had a deep impact on her, it seems. She has been doing solo only a year or two.

2. Speaking of anisong singing, she wrote Uninstall in a way that people (in Japan) will recognize that it is an anisong. So, naturally, Ishikawa sang “a ni song, a ni song.” HAHAHAHA. You go girl. Only a song’s writer can mock the song’s fan the best? Oh, oops, I’m suppose to keep this secret! (Isn’t this on the internet already? But I bet not a recording of her singing just that…)

3. Which songs? Annaniisshodattanoni, Kimigaitamonogatari, Yasashiiyoake (she soloed), Uninstall, Utsukushiikerebasoredeii, Kimiwabokuniniteiru, and Obsession. Ugh @ Obsession. I hate this song. Well, I think she sang it better here than on the CD at the least…

4. She doesn’t do many lives at all. (Ugh)

5. I can use a picture of her costume? LOL.

Speaking of Uninstall, though, there’s also Ishikawa’s blog and it talks about that a bit (under 7/3). Among other things. For someone who saw the first Gundam series when she was little (I guess this is heading 6?), she’s a champ for toughing it out on this AX trip…and wow, that’d also make her someone who was inspired (well, maybe subconsciously) by it and ended up working on the franchise, even if probably unintentionally. It’s all up there.

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

July 2, 2007

AX2007: Manhandled?

By omo

Well, pissed off con goers are dime a dozen, at least that’s how I feel as a long-time con goer. This year’s AX, however, is a different story. I’ve not been, so I can’t say on my own, but I have all the hearsay in the world to back this up.

For one, Halko Momoi herself openly dissed AX. Com’on, guys, Momoi might be a little less diplomatic and forgiving than the typical Japanese guest, but she really loves her fans and whatever that pushed her this far can’t be just some trite little thing. ANN reported a bit on it, but you can get a bigger picture of what went on in the comments and especially as detailed here, by someone who was at the Momoi events.

Of course, the extra-hours wait in itself is not too, too unexpected; the multitude of concerts AX has this year invariably will mean one or more mismanagement and legions of pissed fans. The delayed concerts and the subsequent chain effect? One pissy performer can cause all these subsequent ills that would affect just the fans attending those shows (a large amount to say the least). But, well, AX forum itself is full of horrid stories: like 50 autographs for the SOS-dan girls? That bit of news made even 2ch.

I’ve seen my share of inept con managements. But I think what is unfathomable is pissing off fan favorites. People like the SOS-dan trio and Halko Momoi are really big (or will be) in the scene, and that kind of ill-will goes far to discredit not just AX’s management, but western fandom in general. Even if this was a once-in-a-lifetime screw-up.

To that end, it’s not so much a matter of “AX’s fault” or any kind of silly blame-game, but it screws with the prospect of other cons scoring these guests as visitors in the future. It creates the sort of damage that (perhaps) not even time and money can undo. Perhaps, as of this writing, it is already by-gone and water under the bridge. I suppose I can only plead humbly to the other con organizers to treat their shows not just “yet another con” but that for the special guests themselves, this is their livelihood; and the collective sacrifice of your typical major-con goers has to be respected. It’s ugly when the middleman screws it up, you know? Con managements do not have thankful jobs and they really get to deal with a lot of crap with very little glory. I’m sure there is more to the hearsay floating around out there that make all of the trash talk fit reasonably. But please, do something! D:

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

June 24, 2007

Eminent Apathy All Around

By omo

This CD kicks so much ass!

Otakon announces AAA – a teen pop/r&b group that actually kicks a lot of ass for the type of pop entertainment. They’re the headliner musical guest for the con this year.

Too bad nobody cares about them except a tiny group of neophyte weeaboo chasers and the teenage nation of Japan. Hopefully we get a lot of the former and latter (esp. girls) to … make up the people who will be at Otakon and don’t really give up their attention and time to attend their show. This group can dance, and they should put on a good show…

Well. that’s the pan part of the rant. But as much as I’m overwhelmed by apathy I want to just point out a few things. First of all, they’re still a pretty cool group. Even if the group is more marketing than substance, we’re in for a nice show if there’s enough of us who show up! I plan to go see them. Second, we should be nice to our guests. I know con time is somewhat precious, but hopefully we can get some quality entertainment without all the fanfare and long lines (lol I’m jinxing myself).

Then there is Eminence. I guess Otakon took a tip from last year’s coinciding gamer concert? Nonetheless I’m a little more than interested about them. Granted I never really caught on the orchestra-making-the-geek-buck wave of stuff the past few years, but hey, I played FF7 and a handful of fan games that other people like music from….. Well, definitely worth seeing if just for Free Bird.

And while I like his works, I’m not fan enough to own any of Hiroshi Sakimoto‘s CDs. Shame on me. But that’s one less line to worry about. He’ll be performing with Eminence, though, and that should rock the house in its own way.

(Heh, yea, it doesn’t hold a candle to AX’s guest list this year, but oh well.)

2 comments | posted in Conventions and Concerts, Seiyuu, Idol, Pop