Starting today, I'll be ending the PV fights.
It's not that I don't love doing them, but...well, they take up a lot of time, and I don't tend to get a lot out of them. Yeah, sure, it means I have an excuse to watch a billion PVs and write about them, which is great, but that's also the problem. Although it may not look like it, I put a lot of work into each little one paragraph review: I watch each PV at least twice (usually more like four or five times), looking at them from every angle I can to see if there's an interesting or artistic angle. If there is I watch even more to pin down exactly what I like and then express it clearly in writing. And if there's not, well, it take a lot of brain power to wittily rip apart those cloned pieces of crap, okay? While brain power is usually not all that limited, time really is, and I just can't afford to spend over an hour on each PV that comes out: I'd be homeless and alone, huddled outside a Starbucks to leach internet and gnawing on my headphone cable for nutrition. All to give you PV reviews.
Well I'm not doing it! I like my apartment, and my husband, and my baby, and my food.
But I do still love to watch and write about PVs. I don't want to stop watching them - any of them. One half of the reason I started this blog was so that I'd have a way to force myself to listen to new releases, and the other half was to force myself to watch and review PVs. (I really wanted a Top 5 PVs of 2010 article for GK, but that's hard to do when you've seen less than 1% of what's out there.)
But how can I satisfy my simultaneous desires for PVs, reviews, home, family, and food?
Well, net-friends, I'll be watching every PV that I can get my twisted, avaricious claws on, but I'll only be reviewing those things that I feel are noteworthy. Let's face it: there are so few that have anything unique, interesting, or truly wretched. Most of them are the 98% of the bell curve: countless "watch the band play the song" PVs, countless "couple montage with happy ending" PVs, countless "everybody's partying in the club" PVs... Concepts recycled so frequently that they may as well start recycling footage. There's almost nothing that's in the extreme 1% on either side; so few PVs like "Diver" or "Ballad" or "ONE," or like "Daisuki Da Yo," for that matter. So I'll be saving my virtual breath for those. If a PV is spectacular or wretched, expect to see a review. But if it's mediocre, why waste my time?
Thanks for understanding. I really don't want to have to eat rocks off the street to give you your PV review fix. (You should seriously consider getting professional help. Abusing strangers to feed your addiction is just wrong.)
Showing posts with label thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thoughts. Show all posts
Jan 23, 2011
Jan 19, 2011
Day 11 - Arashi - TO BE FREE
*Note: I'm an idiot, and listened to Arashi twice and even 95% wrote the review before I realized that I was supposed to be reviewing karasu today. (It's really been one of those days.) Since all the work for it is pretty much done, I'm leaving Arashi in today, and will be returning tomorrow with karasu. Sorry for the mix-up!
Before I get to far into this review, I have a confession to make: I'm one of those people who doesn't want to like the things that are popular. I like to think that popular music is bad before I've listened to it, and then don't listen to it, because it's bad. Yep, you caught me. Take me to the firing squad - I'm a pretentious ass. But before you shoot me, know this: I'm also the kind of person that likes all different kinds of music, and I tend to forget that things become popular for a reason. All the marketing in the world won't make crap sell. (Case in point: the conspicuous lack of crazy Japanese inventions among actual Japanese consumers.) And although what's popular might not be my favorite genre or my favorite band or the most artistic work or the most intelligent, that doesn't make it bad.
Arashi perfectly illustrates both these points: I'd never heard anything by boy band Arashi, and I never wanted to. They and AKB48 literally held all ten of the Top 10 Oricon Singles spots for 2010, and that was enough to tell me that their music had to be terrible. But in the spirit of listening across genres (and, frankly, because Loki recommended it - he tends to like the music I do), I listened to this single. And it's good! Loki's right: it's just fun and easy to listen to. Much like AKB48, it has the "overvoice" ("WE ARE ARASHI. YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED.") which is a particular pet peeve of mine concerning modern Japanese music, but other than that, there's not a lot wrong with it. It has some rock elements, some pop elements, some synth, some real instruments, and just a good sound. There's even a xylophone, for god's sake, and a delicious lack of chimes. Even the "karaoke" track isn't that bad. It's not as good as, say, the instrumental tracks for HALCALI's "ENDLESS NIGHT" or Kuroki Meisa's "5 FIVE," but it's not something I'd skip in a playlist if it came up, or turn off at a party; it can stand on it's own two feet. My biggest problem with this single is that it didn't come with any other songs, and when you consider that the list price on this is 1100 yen (about $13.42, at the moment) that's just a rip off, I don't care how good the song is. Sadly, right now that's the only way that you're likely to get it.
Before I get to far into this review, I have a confession to make: I'm one of those people who doesn't want to like the things that are popular. I like to think that popular music is bad before I've listened to it, and then don't listen to it, because it's bad. Yep, you caught me. Take me to the firing squad - I'm a pretentious ass. But before you shoot me, know this: I'm also the kind of person that likes all different kinds of music, and I tend to forget that things become popular for a reason. All the marketing in the world won't make crap sell. (Case in point: the conspicuous lack of crazy Japanese inventions among actual Japanese consumers.) And although what's popular might not be my favorite genre or my favorite band or the most artistic work or the most intelligent, that doesn't make it bad.
Arashi perfectly illustrates both these points: I'd never heard anything by boy band Arashi, and I never wanted to. They and AKB48 literally held all ten of the Top 10 Oricon Singles spots for 2010, and that was enough to tell me that their music had to be terrible. But in the spirit of listening across genres (and, frankly, because Loki recommended it - he tends to like the music I do), I listened to this single. And it's good! Loki's right: it's just fun and easy to listen to. Much like AKB48, it has the "overvoice" ("WE ARE ARASHI. YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED.") which is a particular pet peeve of mine concerning modern Japanese music, but other than that, there's not a lot wrong with it. It has some rock elements, some pop elements, some synth, some real instruments, and just a good sound. There's even a xylophone, for god's sake, and a delicious lack of chimes. Even the "karaoke" track isn't that bad. It's not as good as, say, the instrumental tracks for HALCALI's "ENDLESS NIGHT" or Kuroki Meisa's "5 FIVE," but it's not something I'd skip in a playlist if it came up, or turn off at a party; it can stand on it's own two feet. My biggest problem with this single is that it didn't come with any other songs, and when you consider that the list price on this is 1100 yen (about $13.42, at the moment) that's just a rip off, I don't care how good the song is. Sadly, right now that's the only way that you're likely to get it.
Jan 16, 2011
Day 9 - Nishino Kana - If
The only Nishino Kana I've ever heard until now was her "Kimitte" PV, and although she's not someone that I'd pick out to buy, her music is pretty good sythny pop. "If" is a pretty typical offering, as far as I can tell, progressing from the pop ballad "If" to the energetic "Beautiful."
"If" is a pop ballad with a decent sound - there's an interesting variety of instruments, including some that aren't very common: in addition to the usual drum machines, synthesizers, and chimes, there are also hand bells and a choir! If you listen carefully to your music at all, "If" makes for an interesting listen. But not necessary a good one: among the synth are gross synth strings. (As a violin player, I can smell those fake strings from all the way across the Pacific, and if GLAY can't get away with it, neither can Kana.) Other than that, though, the song is pleasant enough. A pretty good A-side, but not a standout song.
"I'll be there" is a basic R&B-pop fusion, and my least favorite. Even more gratuitous synth strings! Pardon my third-grade French, but barf! There are also come cutely hilarious parts, like her backup lyrics of "Freva! Freva!" for "Forever! Forever!"*
"Beautiful" is easily the best song on the single, and in my opinion sounds more like an A-side than the A-side! It's fun, bassy, and has a good dance vibe. Also, good pronunciation on this one! (Weird but welcome.) It's a song good enough that I'd be happy to add to a playlist. (Watch the PV!)
*I'm not above making fun of performers' pronunciation.** There's no excuse for blatantly bad pronunciation. There are enough foreigners in Japan and they're rich enough that they can either get language coaching or fluent backup singers. Besides which, even if they don't have a good grasp on how big their Western fanbase is, I'm pretty sure that they know it exists and should be trying to add to that fanbase. Good pronunciation is a good foundation on which to expand into the West.
**I'm hard on them because I love them. It's called "tough love," people!
"If" is a pop ballad with a decent sound - there's an interesting variety of instruments, including some that aren't very common: in addition to the usual drum machines, synthesizers, and chimes, there are also hand bells and a choir! If you listen carefully to your music at all, "If" makes for an interesting listen. But not necessary a good one: among the synth are gross synth strings. (As a violin player, I can smell those fake strings from all the way across the Pacific, and if GLAY can't get away with it, neither can Kana.) Other than that, though, the song is pleasant enough. A pretty good A-side, but not a standout song.
"I'll be there" is a basic R&B-pop fusion, and my least favorite. Even more gratuitous synth strings! Pardon my third-grade French, but barf! There are also come cutely hilarious parts, like her backup lyrics of "Freva! Freva!" for "Forever! Forever!"*
"Beautiful" is easily the best song on the single, and in my opinion sounds more like an A-side than the A-side! It's fun, bassy, and has a good dance vibe. Also, good pronunciation on this one! (Weird but welcome.) It's a song good enough that I'd be happy to add to a playlist. (Watch the PV!)
*I'm not above making fun of performers' pronunciation.** There's no excuse for blatantly bad pronunciation. There are enough foreigners in Japan and they're rich enough that they can either get language coaching or fluent backup singers. Besides which, even if they don't have a good grasp on how big their Western fanbase is, I'm pretty sure that they know it exists and should be trying to add to that fanbase. Good pronunciation is a good foundation on which to expand into the West.
**I'm hard on them because I love them. It's called "tough love," people!
Jan 14, 2011
Day 5 - Day of Fail
So, yesterday I was supposed to listen to something by JYJ, but wouldn't you know it, since there wasn't any specific single listed, I didn't actually listen to them at all. Awesome. Day 5 - my lucky day! - is a day of fail. I'm still going to be listening to Jaylee's JYJ single pick just as soon as I know what it is. And by "just as soon as," I mean as soon as I find out what it is, I'll tack it to the end of the list.
There is one really great thing that's coming out of all this, though: I'm listening to a lot more Japanese music, just like I wanted. You might have noticed the huge stack of PVs I put up in addition to all the music I'm scheduled to listen to. It's because now that I have something to motivate me, I've re-found my love for Japanese music! Woohoo!
I hasn't realized it when I first started this blog, but there are a lot of things that I want to do with Japanese music: I want to see all the PVs that I can, I want to listen to all the music that I can, I want to write reviews, I want to translate interviews... Everything that I'm doing at Gaijin Kanpai (they have a new episode up, btw - "BatFish" - you should check it out!), but on a much wider, grander scale. The only thing keeping me from just doing it for GK is that they need consistent content; that is, it needs to be of consistent quality and maintain a consistent level. I mean, I could produce three articles in a week, but then the next week I can barely eke out one. I have a job. I have a baby. I have a husband. I have a mother that just got out of the hospital and needs help at home. Life gets in the way sometimes, and I don't want GK to suffer.
But you guys? Feh. You guys can suffer my bad writing and my inconsistent level of content. Right?
Guys?
There is one really great thing that's coming out of all this, though: I'm listening to a lot more Japanese music, just like I wanted. You might have noticed the huge stack of PVs I put up in addition to all the music I'm scheduled to listen to. It's because now that I have something to motivate me, I've re-found my love for Japanese music! Woohoo!
I hasn't realized it when I first started this blog, but there are a lot of things that I want to do with Japanese music: I want to see all the PVs that I can, I want to listen to all the music that I can, I want to write reviews, I want to translate interviews... Everything that I'm doing at Gaijin Kanpai (they have a new episode up, btw - "BatFish" - you should check it out!), but on a much wider, grander scale. The only thing keeping me from just doing it for GK is that they need consistent content; that is, it needs to be of consistent quality and maintain a consistent level. I mean, I could produce three articles in a week, but then the next week I can barely eke out one. I have a job. I have a baby. I have a husband. I have a mother that just got out of the hospital and needs help at home. Life gets in the way sometimes, and I don't want GK to suffer.
But you guys? Feh. You guys can suffer my bad writing and my inconsistent level of content. Right?
Guys?
Jan 8, 2011
Sore ha Nihon
Just took a look at the Oricon daily singles chart, and guess what's beating out three different AKB48 singles to take #1? A CD called "Toire no Kami-sama." Translation: "God of the Toilet."
It's by a woman name Uemura Kana, and it looks like she only just debuted this year. Beating out AKB48 is no small feat, but I can see why it happened. The Japanese are suckers for anything toilet-related, and anything nostalgic. Mix the two, and you apparently have musical gold.
It's by a woman name Uemura Kana, and it looks like she only just debuted this year. Beating out AKB48 is no small feat, but I can see why it happened. The Japanese are suckers for anything toilet-related, and anything nostalgic. Mix the two, and you apparently have musical gold.
Assignments!
So now that I've got the blog set up, I think I'm going to have to actually give myself assignments. I mean, that's what I set out to do, right?
Fun!
Scary!
So I'll give myself something easy to start out with, since I don't really know where else to start: listen to all Top 5 singles and albums for 2010 listed on the the most recent episode of GK.
That should keep me busy. Expect some words on Miura Daichi's "The Answer" tomorrow!
(Listening schedule!)
Fun!
Scary!
So I'll give myself something easy to start out with, since I don't really know where else to start: listen to all Top 5 singles and albums for 2010 listed on the the most recent episode of GK.
That should keep me busy. Expect some words on Miura Daichi's "The Answer" tomorrow!
(Listening schedule!)
My Blogging Intent
I'm such a sucker for blogging.
I love to write, and I love to read, and I love crazy ideas. Blogging takes care of all three. When you add into the mix that people have gotten RICH! and FAMOUS! doing it, OMFGROFLCOPTER I'm so on board. I just have some problems with commitment.
I should let you know that I technically have several blogs, and that none of them are updated often. There's Erin Buying American, Daily Best Thing Ever, and my LiveJournal, Picking Up the Pieces, none of which have been updated in the past three months, and some of which haven't been updated in years. So the same may happen to this one. I tend to be long on crazy ideas and short on the ability to see them through. This is mostly because I always expect that the world is just dying to know what I have to say, and when it turns out that's not actually the case, I get disappointed and quickly stop writing. (That'll show them!)
But!
I'm hoping that I can make this blog work, if for only the fact that I'm writing it totally for myself.
I've been into Japanese music since I was in high school, when I fell madly in love with the band GLAY. Now (one institute of mandatory education, one institute of higher education, two trips to Japan, two career changes, a husband, a baby, and ten years later) I'm not as in love with GLAY but still a huge fan of Japanese music. Unfortunately, all the things that have happened in the past ten years have moved me slowly away from it so that I don't know as much as I once did. To help remedy this, I began translating for the (seminal, ultimate, world-shaking, name-taking, ass-kicking) J-music podcast Gaijin Kanpai, but I still don't know as much as I'd like.
That's where this blog comes in. I'm going to give myself a new Japanese music assignment each day, listen to it, then blog about it. Depending on how much time I have, that might be a single song, a single, or an album... Or maybe it'll be a DVD of a live. The music might be new or old, since there are a lot of classics I've missed. The point is just to get me listening. Maybe now and then I'll include a translation of a interview or a bit of news that I'm working on separate from GK. I might not get RICH! or FAMOUS!, but with any luck I'll be able to keep up on Japanese music, learn about some bands that I didn't know exist, re-discover acts that I already knew, and get some writing in to boot. Everybody wins. And by everybody, I mean me.
So come along, if you wish! Let's see what's out there.
I love to write, and I love to read, and I love crazy ideas. Blogging takes care of all three. When you add into the mix that people have gotten RICH! and FAMOUS! doing it, OMFGROFLCOPTER I'm so on board. I just have some problems with commitment.
I should let you know that I technically have several blogs, and that none of them are updated often. There's Erin Buying American, Daily Best Thing Ever, and my LiveJournal, Picking Up the Pieces, none of which have been updated in the past three months, and some of which haven't been updated in years. So the same may happen to this one. I tend to be long on crazy ideas and short on the ability to see them through. This is mostly because I always expect that the world is just dying to know what I have to say, and when it turns out that's not actually the case, I get disappointed and quickly stop writing. (That'll show them!)
But!
I'm hoping that I can make this blog work, if for only the fact that I'm writing it totally for myself.
I've been into Japanese music since I was in high school, when I fell madly in love with the band GLAY. Now (one institute of mandatory education, one institute of higher education, two trips to Japan, two career changes, a husband, a baby, and ten years later) I'm not as in love with GLAY but still a huge fan of Japanese music. Unfortunately, all the things that have happened in the past ten years have moved me slowly away from it so that I don't know as much as I once did. To help remedy this, I began translating for the (seminal, ultimate, world-shaking, name-taking, ass-kicking) J-music podcast Gaijin Kanpai, but I still don't know as much as I'd like.
That's where this blog comes in. I'm going to give myself a new Japanese music assignment each day, listen to it, then blog about it. Depending on how much time I have, that might be a single song, a single, or an album... Or maybe it'll be a DVD of a live. The music might be new or old, since there are a lot of classics I've missed. The point is just to get me listening. Maybe now and then I'll include a translation of a interview or a bit of news that I'm working on separate from GK. I might not get RICH! or FAMOUS!, but with any luck I'll be able to keep up on Japanese music, learn about some bands that I didn't know exist, re-discover acts that I already knew, and get some writing in to boot. Everybody wins. And by everybody, I mean me.
So come along, if you wish! Let's see what's out there.
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