New & Noteworthy J-pop of the Week (July 14, 2024)

By Nick on July 14, 2024

New and Noteworthy J-pop 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.

2023 Index

2024 Index: Dec 24 - Jan 6 // Jan 7 - Jan 13 // Jan 14 - Jan 20 // Jan 21 - Jan 27 // Jan 28 - Feb 3 // Feb 4 - Feb 10 // Feb 11 - Feb 17 // Feb 18 - Feb 24 // Feb 25 - Mar 2 // Mar 3 - Mar 9 // Mar 10 - Mar 16 // Mar 17 - Mar 23 // Mar 24 - Mar 30 // Mar 31 - Apr 6 // Apr 7 - Apr 13 // Apr 14 - Apr 20 // Apr 21 - Apr 27 // Apr 28 - May 4 // May 5 - May 11 // May 12 - May 18 // May 19 - May 25 // May 26 - Jun 1 // Jun 2 - Jun 8 // Jun 9 - Jun 15 // Jun 16 - Jun 22 // Jun 23 - Jun 29 // Jun 30 - Jul 6

THIS WEEK: July 6 - July 13

Cyberjapan Dancers – Bounce

Okay, the t&a is reductive, but the song itself is actually decent.

Da-iCE – Story

I need Da-iCE to make fun, funky tracks again. This just sounds like a basic rock band.

f5ve – Underground

This is fun and quirky. A bit gimmicky for me, though.

Giga & TeddyLoid – Ultra C

I'm always interested in TeddyLoid's production. The instrumental slays. The vocals are much more polarizing.

Kana Nishino – Eyes On You

A very timeless J-pop sound.

Lienel – Curry On Love

Who made them record this? I'm embarrassed.

Morning Musume '24 – Sai Kiyou

I like the mix of new jack swing and modern production. The song's a bit unfocused, though.

NiziU – Rise Up

I wrote about this here. I liked it.

ONE OK ROCK – Delusion:All

Sounds like mid-2000's rock. The chorus is pretty good but the song's a bit gloomy for me.

Penguin Research – Fire And Fear

I love their singer's powerful voice. The song doesn't match their best, though.

Psychic Fever vs. Wolf Howl Harmony – Yin Yang (song of the week!)

LDH's latest Battle Of Tokyo series kicks off with this collaboration. In the best way, it's not at all what I expected. Great melodies, sleek production and a dynamic arrangement. I'm impressed!

RED-i – Red Impact

For those who like their girl groups with a rock edge.

RIIZE – Same Key

This is both RIIZE's first OST and first original Japanese release. It's fine and functional for what it is. It's nice to hear their voices.

Sandaime J Soul Brothers – Blaze

This song now has a music video. I'm still not feeling it, unfortunately.

Twice – Dive

I wrote about this here. I thought it was dull.

This week's old favorite:

DASEIN - Sakura Fubuki (2001)

DASEIN were a little-known electronic rock duo in the theatrical mold of acts like T.M.Revolution. They're quite fun, with some very campy music videos. This is one of my favorites. That outfit!