In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I'm planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in what's new in J-pop.
With that in mind, here's where you come in: I'm one person with one set of musical preferences, so please embed any other new J-pop tracks you've enjoyed in the comments so we can get a fuller spectrum each week.
*And just like I do with my reviews, I'll wait until full versions of songs are available before posting them in this round-up. This will mostly apply to Johnny's groups, who still limit the majority of their YouTube uploads to shorter, edited versions.
THIS WEEK: June 23 - June 29
AKB48 - Koi Tsunjatta (song of the week!)
Parts of this song remind me of an older J-pop hit. I can't quite put my finger on what it is. Regardless, I love the rocking energy and the lower register of the performance is very pleasant.
Ayumi Hamasaki – Aurora
There's a grandness to this that's very satisfying. I wish the verses matched the power of the chorus, but otherwise this is a thumbs up.
Charisma.com – Mental Warp
Not a huge fan of the heavily warped vocal, but I love the instrumental.
Crazyboy – Cheddar
I hope more hip-hop plays with electro beats like this because it's really addicting. Not feeling the chorus on this, though.
Doberman Infinity - 1st Song
A very old-school hip-hop track.
Fantastics – Break Line (song of the week!)
I didn't really care for this when the audio was first released but the music video has improved my opinion and the song finally clicked. It's got a great chorus.
Key – Tongue Tied
I'm bound to enjoy anything Key records, and this is good. However, it's definitely not one of my favorite tracks from him. I'll have more to say in a full review when the music video is released.
Maison B – Rock Right Now
Meh. Heard it all before.
Mashiho – Just The 2 Of Us
This is the same Mashiho that used to be part of Treasure, in case you didn't know. I love his vocals and the upbeat nature of this track fits him well. It's a nice summer bop.
My First Story x HYDE – Mugen
I featured this track in an earlier post, but now it has a music video. It's still solid, but could be better given the talent involved.
NCT Wish – Songbird (song of the week!)
I wrote about this here. I loved it!
Octpath – Fun (song of the week!)
I was sold the moment that big, stupid guitar riff opens the track. I'm not sure if the rest of the song lives up to the bombast of the production, but this is still very much my thing.
The Rampage – 24karats Gold Genesis
Still not one of my favorite Rampage song, but the music video's suitably bombastic. I'll always appreciate that about LDH groups.
Ryuji Imaichi – Red
This is a bit different for him. It's kind of weird to hear him deliver such a hard-hitting rap. The song's just okay, unfortunately. The drop ruins it.
Sakurazaka46 – Hikikomorujikanhanai
Though none of the songs from Sakurazaka46's new single feel like career best material, they've all been strong. This is no different.
SawanoHiroyuki[nZk]:mizuki – A/Z
I love Hiroyuki Sawano's production even if this doesn't feel like one of his stronger works.
Snow Man - Kimi wa Bokuno mono (song of the week!)
It's no Orange Kiss or Hello Hello, but this continues Snow Man's run of strong summer singles. It's my favorite song from them in awhile and has a great brisk energy.
Southern All Stars – Koi no Boogie-Woogie Night
It's veeery retro, but there's plenty to enjoy here.
Toya Takase – Shitsu Koi (ft. Matsuri)
Pretty dull.
Watwing – Yo My Sunshine
The song is 100% better when the squeaky instrumental loop has exited the production.
This week's old favorite:
BAAD - Kimi ga Suki da to Sakebitai (1993)
How about a 90's J-pop/anime classic this week? As the OST to Slam Dunk, this song has gone down as a legend. It's still satisfying today.
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