tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20420598148691134922024-03-04T23:26:27.703-07:00AMIYUMIDAS - PUFFY AMIYUMIWhat is amiyumidas? A fan blog dedicated (mostly) to the j-pop/rock duo Puffy with news, reviews, commentary and other things Puffy that pique the contributors' interest.
As you browse the site, feel free to leave comments, in either English or Japanese. よろしくお願いします!Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.comBlogger449125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-35711261428881536532023-12-24T23:12:00.002-07:002023-12-24T23:12:16.291-07:00Zard Album Review: Mō Sagasanai<div data-reddit-rtjson="{"entityMap":{"0":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetsur%C5%8D_Oda"}},"1":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai"}},"2":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai"}},"3":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai"}},"4":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seiichiro_Kuribayashi"}},"5":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai"}},"6":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daria_Kawashima"}},"7":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai"}},"8":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai"}}},"blocks":[{"key":"dhsgg","text":"“Mō Sagasanai” (もう探さない, I Won't Search Anymore) is Zard’s sophomore album and unlike “Good-bye My Loneliness” is helmed by a singular producer. Many people involved with the album's production, specifically Oda for music and Akashi for production, will become very influential in Zard’s music later, but for her second album these efforts yield mixed results.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"cg5oi","text":"A singular producer should generate a consistent album, this can be a good thing but for “Mō Sagasanai” it feels like Izumi Sakai is fighting Akashi’s production. Where it doesn’t work I put on him, Sakai is always going to sing like herself which is part of what makes her timeless.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"9ukm9","text":"“Mō Sagasanai” has some good tracks, so it is not a failure by any means.. \"Sunao ni Ienakute\" is the best track on the album, which is also one of two tracks that Sakai was most involved with as she penned the lyrics and music. “Forever” and “Lonely Soldier Boy” are also solid entries.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"8vn35","text":"The cover of the album is stylistically very cool and very contrasting to Zard’s other albums with how Sakai is portrayed. We’re going to see a lot of this over Sakai’s career. She can pull off a lot of styles, looks and emotions. Here with a thousand yard stare, she looks young and fierce and I very much like that.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"5999m","text":"Here is the breakdown by track:","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"1rsdg","text":"\"Fushigi ne...\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"cpsd7","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"7og8f","text":"Vocals: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"88h3h","text":"(不思議ね…)","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"c2nlc","text":"Music: Tetsurou Oda","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":7,"length":12,"key":0}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"1cvi4","text":"Music: 3.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"dilf0","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"73r31","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"95kog","text":"Production: 3.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"6g4v9","text":"“Fugishi ne…” starts out feeling a little dated with the synth, but about 30 seconds in it takes a little turn and feels like a Zard song. There is some interesting and busy guitar work here that contrasts well with this mid-tempo song. The song is very Sakai, barring the heavy synth at times you could drop this anywhere in her prodigious catalog and it would not be out of place. Also I do not think this is a distinctive song for that reason either, but that kind of Zard is a couple albums down the road.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"c7kj","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"9vger","text":"\"Mō Sagasanai\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"f2eoa","text":"Vocals: 3.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"97a03","text":"Music: 3","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"7go82","text":"Production: 3","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"7npoc","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"b1kpr","text":"(もう探さない)","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"6uk4f","text":"Music: Tetsurou Oda","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"5sj97","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"fenq1","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"681ip","text":"Sakai’s vocal delivery is really interesting, she comes off as a little lower and husky in parts and then clearer higher vocals in the chorus. It is an interesting contrast. The sax lead in is nice and through out the song gives some jazz elements. The synth work is a little heavy and busy, which makes the song feel a little mechanical, sometimes contrasting elements work but in the case here I think the synth and jazz elements are not complimentary. Oda will deliver better songs down the road for Sakai!","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"c8hf8","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"71c27","text":"\"Sunao ni Ienakute\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"9uqdo","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":8,"length":11,"key":1}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"13rcr","text":"Vocals: 4.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"9mdri","text":"(素直に言えなくて)","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"fevh0","text":"Music: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":7,"length":11,"key":2}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"7vlg8","text":"Music: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"f6k78","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"fklno","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"3p9lo","text":"Production: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"c9b9q","text":"I feel set up, the first two tracks were very mid-tempo and here \"Sunao ni Ienakute\" is a rock song. Notable that Sakai handled both lyrics and music, which even today is not common (esp for a singer now two albums in) but then much more unheard of for female performers. The synth work here is good and the guitars are great. Sakai’s delivery is clean with a little huskiness at parts. Her ability to go high/low within a syllable was always her signature sound and we get that a lot here. This is a really good song","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"8pg5q","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"218sg","text":"\"Hitori ga Suki\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"dvgdu","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":8,"length":11,"key":3}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"atu3s","text":"Vocals: 3","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"5scl6","text":"(ひとりが好き)","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"f4fb4","text":"Music: Seiichiro Kuribayashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":7,"length":21,"key":4}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"dg7lq","text":"Music: 2","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"2a0g6","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"24bht","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"1g262","text":"Production: .5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"1ur8q","text":"A very noisy intro to the song, which feels like a dated mess, which is \"Hitori ga Suki\" in a nutshell. This is entirely on Akashi. Sakai’s vocals are fine and on point. Drums are a little more assertive, which was missing to some degree in prior tracks. Guitar work is alright, though the bass is toned down. Like prior tracks the synth work is where \"Hitori ga Suki\" does not work, adding to that there is weird and pointless noise added just before the 4 minute mark.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"13d6a","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"48tt4","text":"\"Forever\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"nhc0","text":"Vocals: 4.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"5sjbo","text":"Music: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"e46kh","text":"Production: 3.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"8pc2a","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":8,"length":11,"key":5}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"eoti5","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"34rc","text":"Music: Daria Kawashima","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":7,"length":15,"key":6}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"43ng5","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"8n79b","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"2pq35","text":"Sakai’s vocal delivery for ‘Forever” is really good. Backing vocals leading into the chorus are a little out of place (and sound like Kawashima). Guitars are very assertive. Drums can be felt. The synth work is better or at least pushed way back. “Forever” overall is a timeless Zard song and if you found it on a later album it would not be out of place.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"7mub7","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"b8mlp","text":"\"Lonely Soldier Boy\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"c3btk","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":8,"length":11,"key":7}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"6t5so","text":"Vocals: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"tau1","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"2mkeu","text":"Music: Kuribayashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"91ffj","text":"Music: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"8i6ac","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"ct1j7","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"dlfp1","text":"Production: 4","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"3er1q","text":"The prior track “Forever” sets up “Lonely Soldier Boy” very well. This is a hard rock song and while cemented in an early 90’s sound, it doesn’t feel stale. Sakai’s vocals here are really good and really show how she started singing higher better after her debut album. Guitar work is very good. Drum and bass are felt. The synth parts are pretty minimal, which is to the benefit of this track.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"6v8sj","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"jv3g","text":"\"Itsuka wa...\"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"cnq7n","text":"Lyrics: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"c2gcq","text":"Vocals: 3","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":0}},{"key":"1jo4e","text":"(いつかは…)","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"b4nve","text":"Music: Izumi Sakai","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[{"offset":7,"length":11,"key":8}],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"99uvo","text":"Music: 3","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":1}},{"key":"2h28m","text":"","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":0,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"9u9co","text":"Production: Masao Akashi","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":1,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"6e7vn","text":"Production: 1.5","type":"table-cell","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{"alignment":"L","colCount":3,"colIndex":2,"rowIndex":2}},{"key":"1rtqv","text":"…and “Iysuka wa…” ends “Mō Sagasanai” on a slower note mid-tempo rock note. It is an interesting song and structurally very different than \"Sunao ni Ienakute.\" I feel Sakai struggles a little in her high notes and sometimes is a little muddy, which her high/low vocal delivery is muted. I wish she would have sung more like herself. The production on \"Itsuka wa…” is where the problems are, yet Masao Akashi is going to deliver some really exceptional songs for Zard down the road","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"254km","text":"","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"d007r","text":"Over all score: 3.48 / 5","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":15,"style":"BOLD"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"7m0t1","text":"Vocals: 4.3","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":6,"style":"BOLD"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"4lm4l","text":"Music: 3.35","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":5,"style":"BOLD"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"72f6b","text":"Production: 2.8","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":10,"style":"BOLD"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"67i4g","text":"Overall, I do not love “Mō Sagasanai” as an album. Not do I hate it. Nor would I seek it out as an album to listen to in whole. I am not sure how it will stack up against all of Zard’s other albums to come in this review series but it is a step back from “Good-bye My Loneliness” which in American parlance would be a sophomore slump.","type":"unstyled","inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}}]}"><div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="8fdb9e" data-offset-key="6bo2h-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="6bo2h-0-0"><span id="docs-internal-guid-c650cfae-7fff-6f67-130e-b3450f515464"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“Mō Sagasanai” (もう探さない, I Won't Search Anymore) is Zard’s sophomore album and unlike “Good-bye My Loneliness” is helmed by a singular producer. Many people involved with its production, specifically Oda for music and Akashi for production, will become very influential in Zard’s music later. However here it is a very mixed effort and represents growing pains for Zard. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">A singular producer should generate a consistent album, this can be a good thing but for “Mō Sagasanai” it feels like Izumi Sakai is fighting Akashi’s production. Where it doesn’t work I put on him, Sakai is always going to sing like herself which is part of what makes her timeless. My feeling here is Akashi’s production was aimed at an older audience. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINBpL219CmME5m5n6kA86YubI4gzmuyuDS1CqxwxAy47a0dTLeEmhseUx7gCL4DuUi73HRfG5yJIB1QGRa1c6iofc2ePV9XJcyqKxjx1u4xgy-mA8v3BdswoPoiWF8ck1TFJf7j-DpCLcao_fKsLpRRLQh00FMBtn3mDtq3M45iNwQ7SzdABKa3hfWVfQ/s1000/81wJp5R5aWL._UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="877" data-original-width="1000" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINBpL219CmME5m5n6kA86YubI4gzmuyuDS1CqxwxAy47a0dTLeEmhseUx7gCL4DuUi73HRfG5yJIB1QGRa1c6iofc2ePV9XJcyqKxjx1u4xgy-mA8v3BdswoPoiWF8ck1TFJf7j-DpCLcao_fKsLpRRLQh00FMBtn3mDtq3M45iNwQ7SzdABKa3hfWVfQ/w307-h270/81wJp5R5aWL._UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg" width="307" /></a></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“Mō Sagasanai” has some good tracks, so it is not a failure by any means.. "Sunao ni Ienakute" is the best track on the album, which is also one of two tracks that Sakai was most involved with as she penned the lyrics and music. “Forever” and “Lonely Soldier Boy” are also solid entries. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The cover of the album is stylistically very cool and very contrasting to Zard’s other albums with how Sakai is portrayed. We’re going to see a lot of this over Sakai’s career. She can pull off a lot of styles, looks and emotions. Here with a thousand yard stare, she looks young and fierce and I very much like that. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Here is the breakdown by track:</span></p><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 28.75pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Fushigi ne..." (不思議ね…)</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: Izumi Sakai</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetsur%C5%8D_Oda" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Tetsurou Oda</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 4</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 3.5</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: 3.5</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“Fugishi ne…” starts out feeling a little dated with the synth, but about 30 seconds in it takes a little turn and feels like a Zard song. There is some interesting and busy guitar work here that contrasts well with the mid-tempo song. The song is very Sakai, barring the heavy synth at times you could drop this anywhere in her prodigious catalog and it would not be out of place. Also I do not think this is a distinctive song for that reason either, but that kind of Zard is a couple albums down the road. </span></p><br /><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 28.75pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Mō Sagasanai" (もう探さない)</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: Izumi Sakai</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: Tetsurou Oda</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 3.5</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 3</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: 3</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Sakai’s vocal delivery is really interesting, she comes off as a little lower and husky in parts and then clearer higher vocals in the chorus. It is an interesting contrast. The sax lead in is nice and through out the song gives some jazz elements. The synth work is a little heavy and busy, which makes the song feel a little mechanical, sometimes contrasting elements work but in the case here I think the synth and jazz elements are not complimentary. Oda will deliver better songs down the road for Sakai! </span></p><br /><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 28.75pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Sunao ni Ienakute" (素直に言えなくて)</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Izumi Sakai</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Izumi Sakai</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /><br /></span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 4.5</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 4</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: 4</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I feel set up, the first two tracks were very mid-tempo and here "Sunao ni Ienakute" is a rock song. Notable that Sakai handled both lyrics and music, which even today is not common (esp for a singer now two albums in) but then much more unheard of for female performers. The synth work here is good and the guitars are great. Sakai’s delivery is clean with a little huskiness at parts. Her ability to go high/low within a syllable was always her signature sound and we get that a lot here. This is a really good song </span></p><br /><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 28.75pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Hitori ga Suki" (ひとりが好き)</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Izumi Sakai</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seiichiro_Kuribayashi" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Seiichiro Kuribayashi</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 3</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 2</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: .5</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">A very noisy intro to the song, which feels like a dated mess, which is "Hitori ga Suki" in a nutshell. This is entirely on Akashi. Sakai’s vocals are fine and on point. Drums are a little more assertive, which was missing to some degree in prior tracks. Guitar work is alright, though the bass is toned down. Like prior tracks the synth work is where "Hitori ga Suki" does not work, adding to that there is weird and pointless noise added just before the 4 minute mark. </span></p><br /><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 23.5pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Forever"</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Izumi Sakai</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daria_Kawashima" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Daria Kawashima</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 4.5</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 4</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: 3.5</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Sakai’s vocal delivery for ‘Forever” is really good. Backing vocals leading into the chorus are a little out of place (and sound like Kawashima). Guitars are very assertive. Drums can be felt. The synth work is better or at least pushed way back. “Forever” overall is a timeless Zard song and if you found it on a later album it would not be out of place. </span></p><br /><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 23.5pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Lonely Soldier Boy"</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Izumi Sakai</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: Kuribayashi</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 4</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 4</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production:4</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The prior track “Forever” sets up “Lonely Soldier Boy” very well. This is a hard rock song and while cemented in an early 90’s sound, it doesn’t feel stale. Sakai’s vocals here are really good and really show how she started singing higher better after her debut album. Guitar work is very good. Drum and bass are felt. The synth parts are pretty minimal, which is to the benefit of this track.</span></p><br /><br /><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="263"></col><col width="205"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 28.75pt;"><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">"Itsuka wa..." (いつかは…)</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lyrics: Izumi Sakai</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumi_Sakai" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Izumi Sakai</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: Masao Akashi</span></p></td><td style="background-color: white; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt 8pt 5pt 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Vocals: 3</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music: 3</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production: 1.5</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">…and “Iysuka wa…” ends “Mō Sagasanai” on a slower note mid-tempo rock note. It is an interesting song and structurally very different than "Sunao ni Ienakute." I feel Sakai struggles a little in her high notes and sometimes is a little muddy, which her high/low vocal delivery is muted. I wish she would have sung more like herself. The production on "Itsuka wa…” is where the problems are, yet Masao Akashi is going to deliver some really exceptional songs for Zard down the road</span></p><br /><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Over all score: 3.48 / 5
Vocals: 4.3
Music: 3.35
Production: 2.8</span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Overall, I do not love “Mō Sagasanai” as an album. Not do I hate it. Nor would I seek it out as an album to listen to in whole. I am not sure how it will stack up against all of Zard’s other albums to come but it is a step back from “Good-bye My Loneliness” which in American parlance would be a sophomore slump. </span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div></span></div></div></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-2660826276392950512023-12-02T16:15:00.008-07:002023-12-03T00:45:57.564-07:00Zard Album Review "Good-bye My Loneliness"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinMIhxFtAO2GW2zgvhTS5xC11875NENVAatJg4AspIINA8yyqwX4o-4IHBJPX8wsukHxfPaBAd2GiMYSHm7V-cAi6XkBaCO_nKiZhpyGwh3s1QYKRU7slXFJO2dR9loySkejy4CXY_uR-jNddxgVd-PC_1QzGn4QBRwxXSKuFonHRtP15QJYBJQdTZaeyf/s1000/81v7BjrreZL._UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="889" data-original-width="1000" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinMIhxFtAO2GW2zgvhTS5xC11875NENVAatJg4AspIINA8yyqwX4o-4IHBJPX8wsukHxfPaBAd2GiMYSHm7V-cAi6XkBaCO_nKiZhpyGwh3s1QYKRU7slXFJO2dR9loySkejy4CXY_uR-jNddxgVd-PC_1QzGn4QBRwxXSKuFonHRtP15QJYBJQdTZaeyf/w353-h314/81v7BjrreZL._UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg" width="353" /></a></div>The year in 1991 and "Good-bye My Loneliness" straddles a fine line of the music Zard was to shape in the decade ahead and the decade that preceded this, her debut album. It is a game changer, though at six tracks it maybe tilts a little more towards EP than LP, but I consider it to be a full album.<div><br /><div data-reddit-rtjson="{"entityMap":{"0":{"type":"USER_LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"/user/Fancy-Holiday5519"}},"1":{"type":"LINK","mutability":"MUTABLE","data":{"url":"https://Amiyumidas.blogspot.com"}}},"blocks":[{"key":"7j5k","text":"The year in 1991 and \"Good-bye My Loneliness\" straddles a fine line of the music Zard was to shape in the decade ahead and the decade that preceded this, her debut album. It is a game changer, though at six tracks it maybe tilts a little more towards EP than LP, but I consider it to be a full album. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"fbrkr","text":"I am deliberately reviewing Zard's album in chronological order as I want toe xplore how her music changed over the arc of her prodigious career. I will give a retrospective of Zard's albums compared to each other much later (when...really depends on how much I write and how often). But stand alone, \"Good-bye My Loneliness\" is a very good album and it could have been a great album but I think \"Oh! Sugar Baby\" and \"It's a Boy\" both hold it back from that. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":226,"length":57,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"4v7o1","text":"Sakai wrote all the lyrics save for tow which were penned by Daria Kawashima. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"b5bb8","text":"\"Good-bye My Loneliness\"\t\nMusic/Arranger: Tetsurō Oda / Masao Akashi\nVocals: 5, Music 4.5 Production: 4.5\nA mid tempo track with a vibe that thanks to its drum and synth parts takes me a little further back to Brit New Wave for me. Without a doubt this is one of Sakai's best delivered songs which is funny because the words are Daria Kawashima's. This makes it interesting because the vocals delivered very differently than the mountain of songs that were to come later. Also notable is I think the backup vocals are a dialed back to maximize Sakai's vocals. Anyways this is the song that started Zard and its really good, but the next track steals the show. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":26,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":26,"length":43,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"18vvl","text":"\"Ai wa Kurayami no Naka de\" \nMusic/Arranger: Seiichirou Kuribayashi / Hiroshi Terao\nVocals: 5, Music: 5 Production: 5\nWhere the opening track was mid tempo, \"Ai wa Kurayami no Naka de\" is gas poured on a fire. Backup vocals are very assertive and I can absolutely hear Maki Ohguro, who is very deft in this role. This is my favorite song on the album. It is a perfectly balanced song and much credit goes to Hiroshi Terao (who these days is kind fo the face of Zard via YouTube). ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":29,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":29,"length":55,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"d388m","text":"\"Koi Onna no Yūutsu\" (恋女の憂鬱)\t\nMusic/Arranger: Kawashima / Akashi\nVocals: 4, Music: 3 Production: 4.5\nThis song sounds like a bit of an 80's throwback and something you'd find in the closing credits credits. These are not bad things and as an album \"Good-bye My Loneliness does straddle a line between the 80's and what Zard was instrumental in setting up for modern Japanese Pop/Rock. It is a fairly short song, was just starting to get into it and done. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":30,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":30,"length":35,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"akjob","text":"\"Oh! Sugar Baby\"\t\nMusic/Arranger: Kuribayashi / Takeshi Hayama\nVocals: 3 , Music: 3 Production: 2.5\nOof... those are some heavy synth hits, probably at the time this was not a bad song but it encapsulates a sound of the early 90's that decades of time cannot shake off. At about the 1:50 mark it takes a weird turn. The guitar work on \"Oh! Sugar Baby\" is pretty good, drums feel muddy. Its just kind of a mess so far as production goes. All of this said, the song finishes better than it starts, with the exception of the weierd heavy breathing with about a minute to go. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":18,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":18,"length":45,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"87hbj","text":"\"Onna de Itai\" (女でいたい)\nMusic/Arranger: Kawashima / Hayama\nVocals: 4.5 , Music: 4 Production: 4\nAnother song that feels like it was from the 80s, but the good part of the 80's. Sakai's vocals are very emphasized and bring a lot of energy with Kawashima's lyrics behind them. That said everything is well balanced, it is definitely a rock song and a slightly more laid back than \"Ai wa Kurayami no Naka de.\" ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":23,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":23,"length":35,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"2rnaa","text":"\"It's a Boy\"\t\nMusic/Arranger: Kuribayashi / Akashi\nVocals: 3.5 Music: 2.5 Production: 1.5 \nBeing artists have a lot of engineering in their songs, for the most part it worked well for Zard... but not here. It is overwrought. Sakai's lyrics are actually really good, but get washed with everything else going on in the song. It is a feel good song though, but I guess there is a reason it is at the end of \"Good-bye My Loneliness. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":14,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":14,"length":37,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"kl7r","text":"Overall grade: 4.0\nVocals: 4.25\nMusic: 3.75\nProduction: 3.75","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":19,"style":"BOLD"},{"offset":0,"length":19,"style":"UNDERLINE"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"a16tf","text":"\"Good-bye My Loneliness\" is a good album and while a couple of tracks I feel hold it back from being a great album it does a lot of table setting for jpop going forward from 1991, which Zard was a trailblazer. It might not be as great of a start as Puffy has with their self titled debut, but it certainly had more influence. Groups like Puffy almost certainly could exist because of Zard. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"a7s9e","text":"Were \"Good-bye My Loneliness\" the only thing Zard ever did, I think it would be an album people remember and wonder why we never more. Not the case, much more was to come!","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"dfbl7","text":"","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"fur47","text":"Boring reviewer notes: ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":24,"style":"BOLD"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"c6eof","text":"Hat tip to u/Fancy-Holiday5519 for their reviews which inspired me to follow suit.","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":11,"style":"ITALIC"},{"offset":30,"length":52,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[{"offset":11,"length":19,"key":0}],"data":{}},{"key":"3tq6e","text":"My reviewing style is something I have used for years. For example, my notes in for each song are my thoughts as they are hearing it so it is deliberately displayed as my flow of consciousness through the song. Sometimes I add some researched notes to give some context. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":274,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"esh08","text":"My Japanese is not sufficient to judge the lyrics much, I am going purely on how good the vocals sound. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":105,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"63vij","text":"When averaging scores, I round off to the nearest quarter percent (thus 3.66 becomes 3.75). ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":93,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"fjvvs","text":"I will refer to all songs in Romaji because I feel that makes the writing approachable to more folks and recommend it for anyone writing about Japanese music for an audience outside of Japan.","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":191,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[],"data":{}},{"key":"3ketd","text":"This is cross-posted to my music blog Amiyumidas where you can explore what I have mostly written about Puffy for a decade and what Jeff did for a decade prior to that. ","type":"unstyled","depth":0,"inlineStyleRanges":[{"offset":0,"length":169,"style":"ITALIC"}],"entityRanges":[{"offset":38,"length":10,"key":1}],"data":{}}]}"><span data-editor="2d9bd0"></span><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-0"><span data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-0">I am deliberately reviewing Zard's album in chronological order as I want toe xplore how her music changed over the arc of her prodigious career. I will give a retrospective of Zard's albums compared to each other much later </span><span data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">(when...really depends on how much I write and how often)</span><span data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-2">. But stand alone, </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-0"><span data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-2"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-0"><span data-offset-key="9e6c0-0-2">"Good-bye My Loneliness" is a very good album and it could have been a great album but I think "Oh! Sugar Baby" and "It's a Boy" both hold it back from that. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="bpace-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bpace-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bpace-0-0"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bpace-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bpace-0-0">Sakai wrote all the lyrics save for two which were penned by Daria Kawashima. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0"><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0"><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">"Good-bye My Loneliness" </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0"><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">Music/Arranger: Tetsurō Oda / Masao Akashi
<br /></span><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-2">Vocals: 5, Music 4.5 Production: 4.5 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0"><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-2">A mid tempo track with a vibe that thanks to its drum and synth parts takes me a little further back to Brit New Wave for me. Without a doubt this is one of Sakai's best delivered songs, which is notable as she was still finding her own sound and vocal range. This makes it interesting because the vocals delivered very differently than the mountain of songs that were to come later. Also notable is I think the backup vocals are a dialed back to maximize Sakai's vocals. Anyways this is the song that started Zard and its really good, but the next track steals the show. </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-0"><span data-offset-key="3cbhe-0-2"><br /></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-0"><span data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">"Ai wa Kurayami no Naka de" </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-0"><span data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">Music/Arranger: Seiichirou Kuribayashi / Hiroshi Terao
<br /></span><span data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-2">Vocals: 5, Music: 5 Production: 5 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-0"><span data-offset-key="dm6ns-0-2">Where the opening track was mid tempo, "Ai wa Kurayami no Naka de" is gas poured on a fire. Backup vocals are very assertive and I can absolutely hear Maki Ohguro, who is very deft in this role. This is my favorite song on the album. It is a perfectly balanced song and much credit goes to Hiroshi Terao (who these days is kind fo the face of Zard via YouTube). </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="95su9-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="95su9-0-0"><span data-offset-key="95su9-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="95su9-0-0"><span data-offset-key="95su9-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">"Koi Onna no Yūutsu" (恋女の憂鬱) </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="95su9-0-0"><span data-offset-key="95su9-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span data-offset-key="95su9-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">Music/Arranger: Kawashima / Akashi
<br /></span><span data-offset-key="95su9-0-2">Vocals: 4, Music: 3 Production: 4.5 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="95su9-0-0"><span data-offset-key="95su9-0-2">This song sounds like a bit of an 80's throwback and something you'd find in the closing credits credits. These are not bad things and as an album "Good-bye My Loneliness does straddle a line between the 80's and what Zard was instrumental in setting up for modern Japanese Pop/Rock. It is a fairly short song, was just starting to get into it and done. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="as68s-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="as68s-0-0"><span data-offset-key="as68s-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="as68s-0-0"><span data-offset-key="as68s-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">"Oh! Sugar Baby" </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="as68s-0-0"><span data-offset-key="as68s-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span data-offset-key="as68s-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">Music/Arranger: Kuribayashi / Takeshi Hayama
<br /></span><span data-offset-key="as68s-0-2">Vocals: 3 , Music: 3 Production: 2.5 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="as68s-0-0"><span data-offset-key="as68s-0-2">Oof... those are some heavy synth hits, probably at the time this was not a bad song but it encapsulates a sound of the early 90's that decades of time cannot shake off. At about the 1:50 mark it takes a weird turn. The guitar work on "Oh! Sugar Baby" is pretty good, drums feel muddy. Its just kind of a mess so far as production goes. All of this said, the song finishes better than it starts, with the exception of the weierd heavy breathing with about a minute to go. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">"Onna de Itai" (女でいたい) </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">Music/Arranger: Kawashima / Hayama
<br /></span><span data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-2">Vocals: 4.5 , Music: 4 Production: 4 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="e9tv1-0-2">Another song that feels like it was from the 80s, but the good part of the 80's. Sakai's vocals are very emphasized and bring a lot of energy with Kawashima's lyrics behind them. That said everything is well balanced, it is definitely a rock song and a slightly more laid back than "Ai wa Kurayami no Naka de." </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="crio1-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="crio1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="crio1-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="crio1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="crio1-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">"It's a Boy" </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="crio1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="crio1-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span data-offset-key="crio1-0-1" style="font-style: italic;">Music/Arranger: Kuribayashi / Akashi
<br /></span><span data-offset-key="crio1-0-2">Vocals: 3.5 Music: 2.5 Production: 1.5 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="crio1-0-0"><span data-offset-key="crio1-0-2">Being artists have a lot of engineering in their songs, for the most part it worked well for Zard... but not here. It is overwrought. Sakai's lyrics are actually really good, but get washed with everything else going on in the song. It is a feel good song though, but I guess there is a reason it is at the end of "Good-bye My Loneliness. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">Overall grade: 4.0 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-1">Vocals: 4.25 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-1">Music: 3.75 </span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="bj4sl-0-1">Production: 3.75</span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="1kprl-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="1kprl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="1kprl-0-0"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="1kprl-0-0"><span data-offset-key="1kprl-0-0">"Good-bye My Loneliness" is a good album and while a couple of tracks I feel hold it back from being a great album it does a lot of table setting for jpop going forward from 1991, which Zard was a trailblazer. It might not be as great of a start as Puffy has with their self titled debut, but it certainly had more influence. Groups like Puffy almost certainly could exist because of Zard. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="4vb3q-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="4vb3q-0-0"><span data-offset-key="4vb3q-0-0">Were "Good-bye My Loneliness" the only thing Zard ever did, I think it would be an album people remember and wonder why we never more. Not the case, much more was to come!</span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="25t79-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="25t79-0-0"><span data-offset-key="25t79-0-0"><br data-text="true" /></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="a5272-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="a5272-0-0"><span data-offset-key="a5272-0-0" style="font-weight: bold;">Boring reviewer notes: </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="7fa6v-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="7fa6v-0-0"><span data-offset-key="7fa6v-0-0" style="font-style: italic;">Hat tip to </span><a class="_1FRfMxEAy__7c8vezYv9qP" href="/user/Fancy-Holiday5519"><span data-offset-key="7fa6v-1-0">u/Fancy-Holiday5519</span></a><span data-offset-key="7fa6v-2-0" style="font-style: italic;"> on reddit for their reviews which inspired me to follow suit.</span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="e9ru4-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="e9ru4-0-0"><span data-offset-key="e9ru4-0-0" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="e9ru4-0-0"><span data-offset-key="e9ru4-0-0" style="font-style: italic;">My reviewing style is something I have used for years. For example, my notes in for each song are my thoughts as they are hearing it so it is deliberately displayed as my flow of consciousness through the song. Sometimes I add some researched notes to give some context. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="9pu9t-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="9pu9t-0-0"><span data-offset-key="9pu9t-0-0" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="9pu9t-0-0"><span data-offset-key="9pu9t-0-0" style="font-style: italic;">My Japanese is not sufficient to judge the lyrics much, I am going purely on how good the vocals sound. </span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0"><span data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0"><span data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0" style="font-style: italic;">When averaging scores, I round to the nearest quarter percent that I think is warranted, so putting my thumb slightly on the scale....</span></div><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0"><span data-offset-key="37ubi-0-0" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="2d9bd0" data-offset-key="hg8-0-0"><div class="public-DraftStyleDefault-block public-DraftStyleDefault-ltr" data-offset-key="hg8-0-0"><span data-offset-key="hg8-0-0" style="font-style: italic;">I will refer to all songs in Romaji because I feel that makes the writing approachable to more folks and recommend it for anyone writing about Japanese music for an audience outside of Japan.</span></div></div></div></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-53929694657676094392023-02-18T21:16:00.011-07:002023-12-02T16:46:17.756-07:00Asian no Juicy<div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi4gcypCiCp3KzEeN-zxLG41Mtut-29pfuLtWD9xFh1DSs8euJ3cERB_qe06kw5lhABsz1lgfU5_AZ5IVtDIqmbUTIanEIg2DpXvLFlnpMi6FJyeBNDcU2aklh2A3Z1e1tD74u--SRABtCxkP70aHmOHIhbOaLY5qZraWJWhPsWlXV6AMxzWEmNujGtSA" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="959" data-original-width="560" height="491" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi4gcypCiCp3KzEeN-zxLG41Mtut-29pfuLtWD9xFh1DSs8euJ3cERB_qe06kw5lhABsz1lgfU5_AZ5IVtDIqmbUTIanEIg2DpXvLFlnpMi6FJyeBNDcU2aklh2A3Z1e1tD74u--SRABtCxkP70aHmOHIhbOaLY5qZraWJWhPsWlXV6AMxzWEmNujGtSA=w292-h491" width="292" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy <br />of McDonalds Japan</td></tr></tbody></table>Maybe it is the way of any long standing group or musician that their music is going to be repurposed for an advertisement... so "Asia no Junshin" is now "Asia no Juicy" to be the pitch song for McDonald's new sandwiches.* </div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>Is it silly? Yes...</div><div><br /></div><div>Does it make me a little sad? Not much.</div><div><br /></div><div>Is the song actually pretty faithful to the original? Surprisingly... yes.</div><div><br /></div><div>Replacing Ami and Yumi are Nanase Nishino and Marie Iitoyo. Nanase is a model, actress, TV personality and former member of Nogizaka46. Marie is an actress and model. No idea is the are actually singing, but the vocal delivery sounds very Puffy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Truth is anything Puffy can do to stay in Japanese pop culture is a good thing as they are kinda in maintenance mode at this point.** If it is hucking McDonalds sandwiches, that's fine.</div><div><br /></div><div>Honestly I think it is much more common in Japan to see musicians and artists pitching brands with their songs. If you YouTube Zard's ads, you are going to be watching for a solid half hour of commercials. Likewise Puffy is no stranger to this from Toyota to Pizza Hut.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here is the long version:</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hl-ocz9sKc4" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Here is the short version:</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/i4cFkycg4oI" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><div><br /></div><div>No idea if anyone actually reads this blog any more. But if folks are still around, comment. I do want to hear from you.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>* Truth be told the sandwiches are all probably delicious. Japanese McDonalds is really good. </i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>** One below average album in a decade...</i></div></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-41259286963891599732022-11-05T10:25:00.005-06:002022-11-05T10:25:51.398-06:00Puffy Launches Tiktok ChannelShows in the Twitter feed widget... Puffy has launched their <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@puffyamiyumi_official" target="_blank">Tiktok channel</a>. The first thing they have done is a "Sign of Love" aka "Ai no Shirushi" dance challenge. I thought it would be a little cringe, but its actually fun and a crazy array of people doing it. Quite a few are younger Japanese female acts, which is a nice nod to the now matriarchs of jpop.<div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiMhvNrLjqMdldrvEjMOM_A2QIvOv87SkhitAyxknASOluq0osnGvGobUOoAot3Y9-Gg4UTe58a1rpc8uXFP8HNGTn5wqAAuePg4LniNbOhCcspq4osxC8OVITxENgmPGZ3QSkBBLMxZVkv0n_X1lOxJPJ_1he20MjpnwUrAKhSUqGMj6lVeJuBWkmirg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="955" data-original-width="1071" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiMhvNrLjqMdldrvEjMOM_A2QIvOv87SkhitAyxknASOluq0osnGvGobUOoAot3Y9-Gg4UTe58a1rpc8uXFP8HNGTn5wqAAuePg4LniNbOhCcspq4osxC8OVITxENgmPGZ3QSkBBLMxZVkv0n_X1lOxJPJ_1he20MjpnwUrAKhSUqGMj6lVeJuBWkmirg=w428-h332" width="428" /></a></div></div><div>I thought "Sign of Love" was a weird choice, its not the first Puffy song that leaps to mind but it is one with a MV that has a pretty coherent set of dance moves. It is also dancing that is approachable as neither Ami or Yumi are dancers, so their routines as they have put it are choreographed for someone who might be drunk. </div><div><br /></div><div>Really enjoying that they are branching out and trying new things.</div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-49233344071652050792022-11-04T21:54:00.003-06:002022-11-04T21:54:52.028-06:00Nana Mori Covers "Ai no Shirushi"<div>What I like about Nana Mori's cover of "Ai no Shirushi" is that she keeps it sorta like Puffy's original. The video is a fun take that is a bit silly and not at all serious, which is in tune with the Puffy original which had a slew of babies for some reason (cupid?)</div><div><br /></div><div> </div>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PfuLf01hDV8" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><div><br /></div><div>Worth a listen, it is good stuff. </div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-11702538306199836032022-09-06T22:18:00.017-06:002023-02-20T08:39:54.738-07:00"The Puffy" Album Review<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjVLuoNkgx-U4uxOUU4ENALo6c5ACLHtZshBOAu7KhKZTQNelihL_zlpliIxjXCvHqqP9P1jNpKlsIq2Imo-LGdRmupL4Ynz7zCqcJIOd9msgcP1aCjxcTw0KQ6fHJSB7F_ytnZ9IDOlHyTpgxA-OaH8u3VtZ0jkK8TA-UDgaAHUjxBLSQDFB5Dd45xvQ" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="592" data-original-width="600" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjVLuoNkgx-U4uxOUU4ENALo6c5ACLHtZshBOAu7KhKZTQNelihL_zlpliIxjXCvHqqP9P1jNpKlsIq2Imo-LGdRmupL4Ynz7zCqcJIOd9msgcP1aCjxcTw0KQ6fHJSB7F_ytnZ9IDOlHyTpgxA-OaH8u3VtZ0jkK8TA-UDgaAHUjxBLSQDFB5Dd45xvQ=w311-h308" width="311" /></a></div>A review that has been a long time coming for an album that has really been a long time coming. "The Puffy" by Puffy comes not so hot on the heels of their last album "Thank You" which was released in 2011. A lot has happened over the decade plus between albums. Starting with two two greatest hits albums; "15" and "20th Anniversary Best Album which I have one and kinda felt a bit squeezed by the other. 10 singles. Yumi had a kid. Various tours, festivals and so on. </div><div><br /></div><div>Of the 10 tracks, we see quite a few of the singles make their way onto "The Puffy" so some of the songs like "Paffipipoyama" stretch back five years. I think it would have been nice to throw in "Datsu Dystopia" and "Sweet Drops" onto the album as bonus tracks. I mean why stop at five year old songs? </div><div><br /></div><div>As a bonus is a DVD with their 25th Anniversary Concert at Line Cube Shibuya. I have not watched that one yet, but I will get around to it... which I think I totally lied about when I did the the review of "Bring it on!" Okay I have two things to go watch. </div><div><br /></div><div>Some of the good news here is Puffy wrote the lyrics for five tracks. Of note, "The Puffy" was in the making for years and different producers handled each track. The production is not wildly inconsistent across tracks produced over an extended period, which was a surprise. Puffy has done albums that way before to good effect. The issue is with many of the songs, more on that later,</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhF59zDnbG8fapGusQOHtzm2XBYoW-5GAbRZI2_1Kg9g1JTmj2Pl57BSuRG4RiTrFqZlriL7rgpQP9C6C_rtWoSg9sBQDx3oBT5vAWNy9Xrepix4_5-rX5PZZ47nQCx4__6qI9gB7FlJNTx9QEOX0BqqFL0W57fD8vRQs6qgZm1SbXGYejr-KBnnw6w9Q" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1166" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhF59zDnbG8fapGusQOHtzm2XBYoW-5GAbRZI2_1Kg9g1JTmj2Pl57BSuRG4RiTrFqZlriL7rgpQP9C6C_rtWoSg9sBQDx3oBT5vAWNy9Xrepix4_5-rX5PZZ47nQCx4__6qI9gB7FlJNTx9QEOX0BqqFL0W57fD8vRQs6qgZm1SbXGYejr-KBnnw6w9Q=w373-h319" width="373" /></a></div>Here is the track list for "The Puffy"<br /></div><div>1. Essafossa</div><div>2. Pathfinder-</div><div>3. Choegoist-</div><div>4. Paffipipoyama* </div><div>5. Susume Nonsense*</div><div>6. May Be Sinful-</div><div>7. Coco Hawaii*</div><div>8. Bouken no Dadada-</div><div>9. Sunlit Hill</div><div>10. Always-</div><div><span> </span>* Previously released as/on a single</div><div><span> </span>- Lyrics by Puffy</div><div><br /></div><div>I'll get into more over all feelings after final grades. Here are my thoughts about the songs after a re-listen of "The Puffy." I go this route because I think it gives a more honest review of what I hear at the time. I only did a second pass to clean up my writing. Here is a track by track breakdown:</div><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">The lead in track "Essafossa" is a standard kind of Puffy song these days that could be written in their sleep. Not a bad thing, but also a sign of things to come. Its funky, not too up or too down. I think it was probably the better choice than "Pathfinder" for the first track. I also do not think it is the better song between the two. This is the start of many conflicting feelings about "The Puffy." </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">"Pathfinder" is a little more upbeat than "Essafossa" and feels like a track that should have been on "Bring It!" Also the song is in English and I would have to guess Ami had more of a hand here given she speaks English. The song itself has nice pacing and jumps from some fast bits to slow to mid to fast in a rock wrapper. Its my favorite song from the album and a good choice as the single.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">"Choegoist" is a song that feels like a big girl group jpop song with tinges of Perfume. There are also rap elements, to which I wish they would avoid that, it does not resonate. Overall this is a nice song to listen to, but it also feels a little out of place if you look at their career arc. Anytime Puffy tries to flex this way it doesn't work, they can be themselves... they owe nobody an apology for their uniqueness!</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">I was going to try and give "Paffipipoyama" another chance a half decade would blunt my complete distaste for this song. Nope. Its just a random mix of song styles and sounds with a frenetic weird Japan sound. Nothing about the song works. Again this got onto the album and slightly older and better songs were left in the dust? In the strata of bad Puffy songs it sits above "Wake Up, Make Up" and "Himitsuno Gimmy Cat Ufufu Hontouyo" but that is a low bar.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">"Susume Nonsense" has a throw back feel to earlier jpop songs. Not a bad thing. Vocal delivery is a little less intense than the instruments. Probably by design, but Ami and Yumi feel a little in the back seat on this one. There is a lot going on in the underlying mic of this song, so it is interesting and engaging. </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">Slowing down the album is "May Be Sinful" which maybe would have been well placed in their earlier albums, it isn't a sound that I think holds up. Its not a bad song, not one I would seek out either. </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">Written for a travel TV show, "COCO HAWAII" is a fun non-sequitur of a song. Back part of the song is in English, which kind of like "Good Buddy" is an interesting twist. "COCO HAWAII" is kind of all of the place but in a quirky way that works. Ami and Yumi and very much in command on this one and I like their assertive delivery.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">Leaning on a lot of horns and a 70's sound, "Bouken no Dadada" didn't work for me. I'd say it is a notch above easy listening and that is not music I liked at the time, much less now. It is not badly sung, it doesn't land a sonic punch.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">"Sunlit Hill" steps up the pace and kinda feels like Puffy doing a song that is more contemporary in the jpop scene. Puffy has a bit of an edge on this one, I could see a band like Nemophila doing it with a ton more energy. Overall this is a good song but if you threw "Sunlit Hill" at me blind I would not recognize it as a Puffy song either.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">Wrapping up "The Puffy" is "Always" which vibes a jazz / ska song. Puffy has used this sound to good effect over the years and it is alright, it isn't quite dialed in and ends the album on a slight "meh" note. </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><div>"The Puffy" is an album fans of Puffy have been waiting a decade for and as great as "Thank You" was, this album is a let down. Just not worth the wait and a bit heavy of an admixture of songs that we've heard years ago which is to say songs like "Paffipipoyama" got no better with age. I'd say if there were other albums in the decade since "Thank You" I'd probably feel less disappointed. Every group has ups and downs so waiting a decade for this is a tangible disappointment for me. </div><div><br /></div><div>This is is an album of halves. Half the songs are okay to pretty good and the other half not. The front half of the album is better than the back half. Half the album sounds somewhat contemporary the other half more throwback. Half the intensity as other albums. All of this leaves me confused where Puffy wants to go or what the heck the have been doing for a decade now.</div><div><br /></div><div>Maybe the most noticeable thing in "The Puffy" is like their live performances in recent years. There is a less energy and fun. Puffy's show-womanship is something I always liked about them. Ami and Yumi are now well into their 40s and maybe high energy power pop is best left to younger acts. I'm still happy they remain a duo and are doing things. There was a heavy dose sentimentality as I chugged through "The Puffy" for this review. The feeling of wanting more of what they were and wanting something different nagged me through out this process. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div>There are no Puffy albums I hate, but "The Puffy" to me this is Ami and Yumi's weakest effort in a remarkably long jpop career. This might explain why it took me a year to write this review. These couple of passes are the the only time I have come back to the album and honestly other than "Pathfinder" and "Essafossa" which are on my jpop playlist I'm probably not returning to "The Puffy" any time soon. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Final Grades </div><div>-------------------------</div><div>Music: C-</div><div>Production: C</div><div>Performance: B-</div><div><br /></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-90691587190380434912022-09-05T22:37:00.004-06:002022-09-24T14:07:01.409-06:00Puffy on Hey! Hey! Hey! Jurassic Park Episode<div>Anyways I had only ever seen the first 10 or so minutes of this episode of Hey! Hey! Hey! which takes place in Universal Studios Japan (Osaka). So kind of a VERY large panel show with Puffy, Downtown, Amuro Namie and all of Morning Musume. Anyways the folks at Gaki Archives posted this up and it is worth a watch as it is interesting and also way more zany than the panel shows I see these days. </div><div><br /></div><div>Watch it here: <a href="https://gakiarchives.com/video/676" target="_blank">HEY! HEY! HEY! IN USJ (WITH AMURO NAMIE, PUFFY AND MORNING MUSUME) (ORIGINAL BROADCAST DATE: 22ND FEBRUARY 2002)</a></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj20sb43KQDmliZdeu3Tksmt2N_s1tYkx56mGBGPZRtp1GwJVRv1DjtiL8vmtEnaPEigYnVjAIntr2UJ9fIWQVhzRj4DhfMdHnygLGy7aafsVlCEn2kallzkRYkkNo80ApuP5xMk2ZHmefVSpTGG2Uk-FAyoia1ec2kzI0aEwrLErC115kjfiJ5YYfdPQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1382" data-original-width="2558" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj20sb43KQDmliZdeu3Tksmt2N_s1tYkx56mGBGPZRtp1GwJVRv1DjtiL8vmtEnaPEigYnVjAIntr2UJ9fIWQVhzRj4DhfMdHnygLGy7aafsVlCEn2kallzkRYkkNo80ApuP5xMk2ZHmefVSpTGG2Uk-FAyoia1ec2kzI0aEwrLErC115kjfiJ5YYfdPQ=w497-h269" width="497" /></a></div><br />Some general observations:</div><div><br /></div><div>Matsumoto and to a lesser degree Hamada sorta chew scenery to the point of stomping on every guest... it is their show but Amuro Namie and Puffy are certainly no slouches but way more low key. It is Downtown's show and they are at the height of their legendary careers (they remain super busy these days FWIW).</div><div><br /></div><div>Ami sorta turns it on in the movie guessing contest. Not much out of Yumi. Ami keeps her head mostly buried in the Jurassic Park ride and Yumi has all the reaction shots.</div><div><br /></div><div>All involved seemed ot think it was scary, The funnier ranges of emotions from delight to fear were from Morning Musume. </div><div><br /></div><div>Amuro Namie is super chill, would probably be the most fun to hang out with. </div><div><br /></div><div>Morning Musume is comedic over reactions, cuteness and space filler for the episode as there is a musical segment with them. They did fine though and were split into three teams, one of which was pushing to win the movie contest in the back 2/3rd of the episode. </div><div><br /></div><div>As a note, they pull shenanigans with the last question, 100 points to whoever gets it which cemented Puffy (after AMi's heavy lifting) into second. Downtown got a slamdunk to win out (Seriously movie that was old when Downtown was young). </div><div><br /></div><div>Anyways this episode is a lot of fun.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>P.S. I have been more than a little lax about posting Puffy stuff. I should as summer is their most active time anymore with festivals and tours... but work and family has kinda taken a front seat. I'll try to post up more, even if it is more generic or for other groups... but Puffy is who really go me into jpop/jrock/jpunk so they'll always be firs tin my mind! :) </i></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-64269451840856428452021-09-18T09:22:00.005-06:002021-09-18T09:22:41.188-06:00Three Album Curses, Repackaging and Compilations<div>I am not sure what got things going, but Zard / Izumi Sakai has exploded into streaming... she was arguably the female jpop singer of the 90s and transformed the genre. If you wonder why I love jpop so much, check this out; https://open.spotify.com/artist/2NKadilSWCwuqGp5QoDeUS</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAquTQggxnytAE4Vq8VVVEeUjJuchyCO8wgfpxhJOPHMFtiJGBsySVbY6LtWUWXPr7BREU-srAaD0DsIUXCkx85byFYfI33iCzU4_7on73TwniAeQFOZymhO4DTSD8MV1tYvBOq9ep7sC/s1384/155281677_110671957720270_8887147784933136040_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1384" data-original-width="988" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAquTQggxnytAE4Vq8VVVEeUjJuchyCO8wgfpxhJOPHMFtiJGBsySVbY6LtWUWXPr7BREU-srAaD0DsIUXCkx85byFYfI33iCzU4_7on73TwniAeQFOZymhO4DTSD8MV1tYvBOq9ep7sC/s320/155281677_110671957720270_8887147784933136040_o.jpg" width="228" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /></div><br /></div>As a note this should have happened years ago, but Japan's music industry is sometimes a decade <br /><br /> behind the US and generally very insular. They think the music appeals to Japan, but I can assure them jpop/jrock is loved in many places. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Maybe the offshoot of this is that Zard's albums were remastered again* and her 9th album re-arranged. This could maybe finally bump Zard past Yumi Matsutoya to #2 female soloist in Japan. No small feat and #1 is 30m more. We'll see but even #3 is an accomplishment. </div><div><br /></div><div>So getting to the tetchy subject in jpop of greatest hits, remasters, etc (some of this was taken from </div><div>Marty Friedman, so cred to him). It is a product and labels will constantly shift talent or interest, so if any artist/group hits 3 albums... that is something.</div><div><br /></div><div>What you see in jpop is a constant stream of compilation albums for artists. </div><div>Zard has had a slew of them, about every 5 years. Puffy(whom I adore and are my #1) has done the same thing. The different between these releases? Minimal. Do I buy them? Yes...</div><div> </div><div>The fact of the matter in the in jpop scene breaking up groups into other profitable ventures is normal (Judy And Mary). In some cases breakups & reformations are another marketing angle (re Luna Sea). Like lovely packaged Japanese snacks, music is the same.</div><div> </div><div>One of the funny things about my jpop/jrock journey is the number of bands that I love and discovered working my way through the genres that came and gone before I found them. Sometimes I find one at the "right time." Girlfriendis one of those and after 3 albums: done.</div><div> </div><div>Whatever happened with Girlfriend we'll probably never know. The repackaging for what is next with Mina, Sakika, Mirei and Nagisa I do hope themselves more success. They have tremendous chops as musicians. I also half expect a greatest hits album...</div><div> </div><div>Another jpop band with an odd trajectory is Sard Underground, originating as a Zard tribute band... they have grown into their own and out of the long shadow of Izumi Sakai with an original 3rd album and I hope there is not that 3rd album curse.</div><div> </div><div>That's a journey through jpop. Japanese music is amazing and guys like Marty Friedman touch upon an idea. </div><div><br /></div><div>Whatever you like, there is an analog in Japan and it is going to sound amazing. Japan doesn't realize you'll like it. You'll have to work to find it and you'll love it!</div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-49031846029967109022021-02-26T14:30:00.000-07:002021-02-26T14:30:09.464-07:00Puffy really could cover "Yureru Omoi" by Zard<div>Yo Yoshida and Rio Suzuki have been doing Pokari Sweat adverts in Japan for a while and honestly they have so much synergy between with each other that I hope they do commercials with each other forever. They are silly ads and simple. Then something happened and they started doing the songs for the ads. Then the songs themselves had a full length MV. Most are fun and for actors singing come off very well. <br /><br />However a couple years ago they covered "Yureru Omoi" by the 90's legend Zard aka Izumi Sakai (who I have covered in a previous blog). It works amazingly well and Yo Yoshida is of an age that Zard would have hit critical mass when she was younger. Her excitement singing and going into the chorus is really heartwarming. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RkSFJlKK-j8" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">My oldest and I were watching this and her comment was that Puffy would cover this song even better. She was right, "Yureru Omoi" would be an incredible cover by them. Especially with Puffy's more lean band line up so vocals would sound something like this but instruments something more like Zard. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">If you have not checked out Zard... well Izumi Sakai was a special vocalist so please do so. Her positivity and powerful singing were something that resonated in Japan. My kid upon one listening started checking her out because her voice was second to none.<br /><br />Despite her tragic death in 2007, she remains relevant today. Concerts with her recorded vocals and live musicians still happen. A cover band of young women, Sard Underground, carry the musical torch and they bring new life to Izumi Sakai's music. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Izumi's death still gets me and makes me sad... yet happy because her music was special. There was so much more she had to give to Japanese music. While she is now long gone, the world is better for her being in it, even if that time was short.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Here is one of the memorial concerts.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lfqvtuZ-stw" width="560"></iframe></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-37460719928395153892021-01-15T13:32:00.007-07:002021-01-15T13:35:34.341-07:00Hoyareho LullabyHey Puffy fans... this new song, "Hoyareho", escaped me, which is a littl
eembarrassing as I (like almost everyone) is stuck at home... listening to a lot
of music. Anyways, Natalie Mu has a write up
<a href="https://natalie.mu/music/news/389375" target="_blank">here</a>... The
song was composed by an AI, then Ami did thee lyrics and Shunsuke Watanabe did
the arrangement.<div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CZvpPuIkDXU" width="560"></iframe> </div><div><br /></div><div> I would not call this an official release as it is not on the Puffy site as a
single, I'd call it a musical experiment or project. I'll be honest it really is
not my cup of tea, but I can see why it is a lullaby. I am glad to see Puffy doing some work.</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyways, I hope 2021
provides something interesting to write about and that where ever you are that
you are safe and healthy.
</div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-39248116659628830732020-07-20T13:09:00.000-06:002020-07-21T10:15:40.242-06:00Puffy's Song on the Gaki no Tsukai Annual Batsu "Don't Laugh" ExtravaganzaThe annual Gaki no Tsukai ended January first and for us who don't really speak Japanese the translation by <a href="https://www.teamgaki.com/" target="_blank">Team Gaki</a> was completed this past week. <br />
<br />
For those that do not knwo what I am talking about the annual batsu game, Don't Laugh puts the cast of Gaki no Tsukai into a job/theme for a day. They must not laugh for the day, if they do then they will be punished. The producers do an amazing job setting up gags and skits to make them laugh. In all of this is a slew of Japanese actors, comics, musicians and celebrities making appearances in those skits.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjASMaXsb_XU93MlruC4lurZdmxgkgQ11sPtj-Sb3ez5RORz6QhSJKxzpH4-hk46fqO_OGC9GWyoqXoyJ1ofW3EcAlUrzoVPfrwWUZ6S9XPeMjTyhyphenhyphenHyW2hyphenhyphenhlDlHn90j6tgKU24pnG_TAM/s1600/Annotation+2020-07-20+124827.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjASMaXsb_XU93MlruC4lurZdmxgkgQ11sPtj-Sb3ez5RORz6QhSJKxzpH4-hk46fqO_OGC9GWyoqXoyJ1ofW3EcAlUrzoVPfrwWUZ6S9XPeMjTyhyphenhyphenHyW2hyphenhyphenhlDlHn90j6tgKU24pnG_TAM/s640/Annotation+2020-07-20+124827.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy of NHK / Gaki no Tsukai</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Gaki no Tsukai is an amazing show on a weekly basis, but they pull out all the stops for the annual special This year was really good with the Youth High School batsu. It was a good combination of running gags and some new ones. The theme we saw early in the 2000s, which is arguably their one of their best NYE specials. Anyways this year's special was remarkable and rumored to be the last, so it was neat seeing Puffy do the end song, which may be the biggest act to do it.<br />
<br />
I was hoping for an original song recapping the batsu game, which I recall being pretty standard. But nope it was "Kore ga Watashi no Ikiru Michi" with new lyrics recapping the special. It is neat to see Puffy on a bigger stage than they usually get these days (<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/GakiNoTsukai/comments/a7xo4h/what_is_gaki_current_tv_ratings/" target="_blank">probably 10-20% of Japan was watching*</a>). <br />
<br />
But... and this is probably not a popular take... it was not great. I think some of the issue may have been translation which didn't feel as tight as the rest of the show. Maybe this is because translating lyrics is different. Also the vocal delivery was not super energetic, which I could apply to a lot of what Puffy has done in recent years. They just don't blow the doors off. <br />
<br />
Long story short, it was fun enough and I am glad Ami and Yumi get some serious TV time.<br />
<div id="gtx-trans" style="left: 412px; position: absolute; top: 739px;"><div class="gtx-trans-icon"></div></div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-13092062257150058022020-03-03T09:00:00.004-07:002020-03-03T09:09:40.767-07:00Loading Up For 2020 with a Asahi Clear Advert It is good to see that Puffy looks to have an active year ahead of them. Various festivals and other performances. No sign of anything resembling a new album, which is frustrating as their last album was the fantastic "Thank You."<br />
<br />
Anyways they have a new song for Asahi Clear.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Zc5BurOv-wU" width="560"></iframe><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Nothing earth shattering here, it sounds like a Puffy song made for a commercial. Of course we are not hearing the whole song, but it is on brand so to speak. There are two adverts in this campaign, this one I liked better than the other. You can see more about the Asahi Clear ad campaign <a href="https://www.asahibeer.co.jp/clear/" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
<br />
Said this before and I'll say it again. the frustration here is if you add up all the side work and one off singles Ami and Yumi have done since "Thank You," they could handily spin up an album. Some of this may be entirely out of their control, depends on who owns all the music as they shifted labels (they do remain represented by SMA which can be confusing) and commercials might introduce other complexities.<br />
<br />
While it looks like 2020 has a lot on the calendar for Puffy, they have talked about ending their run this year so it will be curious to see if they hold to that or that was idle speculation their part. My take is it seems like they do just enough to keep going.<br />
<br />
Also a side note, I think they are a dark horse for the 2020 Tokyo Opening Ceremonies given they are one of a handful of Japanese acts to have a significant international following.<br />
<br />Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-39945954766567707412020-01-15T09:28:00.000-07:002020-01-15T09:28:07.207-07:00The Long Delayed... Part 3 Mike Toole's Write Up of Puffy's Boston show.Some side conversations about Puffy's Anime Boston Appearance with Mike Toole.<br />
<br />
<b>Concerning how Puffy set up thir Not Lazy Tour.</b><br />
I think it's fair for you to complain that their Not Lazy tour was... well, a bit lazy. After all, it has indeed been ten years! But the Shonen Knife thing... that's a pretty weird comparison, I think. Shonen Knife are essentially a sole proprietorship-- Naoko does all of the heavy lifting in that band, because punk rock keeps her young!! But Puffy still require a lot of support to travel and tour. They're small-time now, but still part of Warner Bros, so they have label people to deal with. As a unit, they're used to having stuff set up for the girls, separate accomodations for the band, plus travel/accomodation for management/merch sales. That's a lot of people and gear to move around. An act like Shonen Knife are going to be used to traveling a lot leaner, which lends a certain agiity.<br />
<br />
<b>The Future of Puffy's US Touring</b><br />
That said, I do think that Puffy are overdue for a larger tour, and that it oughta be pretty easy for them to do a 12-20 city tour in North America at midsized clubs (400-1000 people) and do very well for themselves, especially if they offer VIP meets at some of the bigger shows. As Chanel discovered, there's a pretty decent number of people who are willing to drop an extra bill to meet Puffy and hang out with other nerds. With the band basically a nostalgia act in Japan, I honestly think it's a good time for them to hit the road for a world tour and make some money. Like I said, I just have this feeling I'll see them again in a year or two. I think they're gonna come back. I hope it happens!<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>P.S. Mike Toole did a great write up and I kind forgot I had a third post. Sorry Mike, you are a great writer and deserved better out of me!</i>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-45563963225497648172020-01-13T09:21:00.000-07:002020-01-13T09:21:07.793-07:00Puffy Precious Live In KumamotoI have watched Puffy Live in Kumamoto a couple of times. I'm going to do a rewatch and wrangle my thoughts about the concert. I think there are a lot of good things that I saw.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4zcaPPDSi10WVbEGUUwc6wUxEKHHn1VZioSnB71bjkOFb5O_vyioNTh5CndCjFInBagiZaSbneADNIoitaIGkMIih5Bh9HRy0Ae1IbvCnoqyM7A7AQiZYbzXW-y3uM_MmvnPqQvaWJqYy/s1600/12ca2ae8c496de19a1cbbb29c9027dd7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4zcaPPDSi10WVbEGUUwc6wUxEKHHn1VZioSnB71bjkOFb5O_vyioNTh5CndCjFInBagiZaSbneADNIoitaIGkMIih5Bh9HRy0Ae1IbvCnoqyM7A7AQiZYbzXW-y3uM_MmvnPqQvaWJqYy/s640/12ca2ae8c496de19a1cbbb29c9027dd7.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image via Space Shower TV</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />I should just do a YouTube video, but I am a writer at heart and don't care if I make tens of cents off of that. :/</div>
Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-6102383768140250852020-01-11T09:16:00.001-07:002020-01-11T09:31:29.970-07:00Puffy Song In The Annual Gaki no Tsukai Don't Laugh: Youth High SchoolHey all. This blog is not dead, just not a ton of exciting Puffy news... until now. By now I mean a couple weeks ago.<br />
<br />
Puffy will be doing the end song for the annual "Gaki no Tsukai Don't Laugh" episodes. From what I can read this will be the song in the final episode where the song covers the events of the 10 episodes. I am not sure how the episodes are released in Japan, but it should be now or fairly soon we should be seeing this pop up in the usual places.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXz8mafpbynBR1kCE7BBew2pJPqMPtip2yerZ1XeNxCWX4YAetPeVAuKqpsjn1b7LJPp5lL2XisBrBnTU2oDDxLIemcMISn8VB3U6NhRUCSPPrX3sxC6j4i5q9wGPcH40emOCpiV4LJ2cM/s1600/EJ42Eu6U4AAB90-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXz8mafpbynBR1kCE7BBew2pJPqMPtip2yerZ1XeNxCWX4YAetPeVAuKqpsjn1b7LJPp5lL2XisBrBnTU2oDDxLIemcMISn8VB3U6NhRUCSPPrX3sxC6j4i5q9wGPcH40emOCpiV4LJ2cM/s400/EJ42Eu6U4AAB90-.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image via NTV.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
What are the "Don't Laugh" episodes of "Gaki no Tsukai?" This is one of the marquee TV events in Japan where Downtown (arguably the biggest and most well know comedy duo), Cocorino (right up there thanks to being on this show for many years) and Hōsei Tsukitei (comedian/story teller) have to endure a day of pranks (and each other) without laughing. Laughing will suffer a serious slap to the ass with a rubberized bat.<br />
<br />
The theme this year is: youth high school. Definitely going back to the well from arguably their best "Don't Laugh" series from 2005. Unfortunately the past few years the series has been very predictable, while funny it is jokes that by and large don't vary much from year to year. Hoping this year is better.<br />
<br />
It would be cool if Puffy were more involved as the "Don't Laugh" shows are a way less popular / fading artists get some exposure, but regardless this is a really nice thing to see.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>P.S. Hope the new year is good for you all. I have been dealing with a lot of stuff over the past year. I lost my dad to a long term illness, career commitments and kids. Writing about Puffy sort of fell to the bottom of my list for the last year. </i>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-13134084623821909172018-12-12T13:02:00.001-07:002018-12-12T13:02:09.405-07:00New Single: Susume NonsenseThis kinda crept up on me, but Puffy has a new single: Susume Nonsense. <br />
<br />
The good, Warner Music seems to be somewhat better than Sony/SMA for streaming music as the chunked it out onto Puffy's YouTube chennel:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vNtAAnlIgBs" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
I am excited to see something (well anything) out of Puffy that is new. I am discouraged that all we are seeing out of Puffy musically is one off projects. There has been enough of these to probably make an album, which would not be the best version of Puffy but it would be something.<br />
<br />
They do have a concert planned in February, which could be cool. I'll get into that later in the week (which has been awful).<br />
<br />Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-45333856377581259182018-10-30T22:30:00.002-06:002018-10-30T22:30:39.096-06:00Been a whileI'm still around. <br />
<br />
Doing fine.<br />
<br />
Looks like Puffy is doing a special concert playing the Jet album in its entirety. Looking for more details.Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-6125330342633702902017-08-30T07:00:00.000-06:002017-08-30T07:00:08.212-06:00Mike Toole's Anime Boston Puffy Concert Write Up (Part 2)Here is the second part of Mike Toole's concert write up for Puffy at Anime Boston. Again thanks to Mike for doing this. Totally above and beyond.<br />
<br />
------------------------------------------------------<br />
<br />
The girls took several breaks to talk to the crowd. Some of it was rehearsed with notes, but there was some ad-libbing going on too. I think Yumi's English has gotten a lot better. My favorite bit was when they started asking the audience for beer/bar suggestions.<br />
<br />
Audience: "POUR HOUSE!" (a pretty good bar right across the street from the con)<br />
Yumi: "w-whore house...?!"<br />
Audience: "NO, POUR HOUSE!!"<br />
Ami: "Your house?"<br />
Audience: "POUR HOUSE!"<br />
Ami: "...your mom's house?"<br />
<br />
I wasn't expecting to hear a classic 'your mom' joke from Ami Onuki, but hey, it happened. Anyway, on to Saturday.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3tQJU4JLX2FV2la2ooe1BBxyKaZ2hlU4XM_k81mDuyeWgc5N882syUuGsv0Ox7PFOpmCCetNGAN7cN25OyWPcCq-cAmF-niVbaue5JyVmIhFZyBuHwybgzrV5x5-ZSQl5LklX46M9hMSA/s1600/japan+times+p9-kelts-culturesmash-a-20170424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3tQJU4JLX2FV2la2ooe1BBxyKaZ2hlU4XM_k81mDuyeWgc5N882syUuGsv0Ox7PFOpmCCetNGAN7cN25OyWPcCq-cAmF-niVbaue5JyVmIhFZyBuHwybgzrV5x5-ZSQl5LklX46M9hMSA/s400/japan+times+p9-kelts-culturesmash-a-20170424.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Japan Times</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span id="fullpost">I made it in time for autographs this time! Each session lasted 90 minutes, and they capped the line at about 100 attendees both times, and you better believe both of those lines were FULL. So each of us were allowed to have one item signed, no photos and no special requests please! As I got settled into line and looked at my 3DS (gotta get my streetpasses! Events like nerd conventions are great for streetpasses.), a lady in front of me turned to me. "Hey, want to buy a t-shirt?" she quipped. I declined. "I got CDs!" she said, and then I realized that this was the official merch seller!<br />
<br />
Yep, they had a sales team going up and down the line, selling the merch offerings: tote bags, t-shirts, and CDs. I'd brought my old copy of AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY to sign, but I happily paid the $30 for a copy of the 20th anniversary compilation. It was fun to talk to other fans while we waited - some folks were oldsters like me, others were kids when the Cartoon Network stuff happened and were waiting to meet their childhood heroes. Just outside of the autograph suite (we were filed in a very orderly fashion through two lineup rooms to get there), I bumped into another old pal, who was helping with interpreting. They pointed out something that wasn't obvious - Ami's daughter was with her! I guess she'd be about 14 now? Anyway, she was off in the back of the room. Cute kid, seemed pretty chilled out.</span><span id="fullpost"><br />
So then I got to meet Puffy, and it was everything I hoped it would be. Just said a quick hello, and that I'd been at the 2002 show in Boston and had waited patiently for them to return since 2005. They warmly thanked me, I got my signature... what can I say, my hopes are pretty modest!<br />
<br />
Then it was time for the panel. It started a little late, and opened with a promo video, including all of the "Puffypipoyama" music video. I've been to a lot of these with Japanese anime creators, and they're a really mixed bag. Sometimes the A/V is screwy, sometimes the guests are tired or confused since public appearances at Japanese events aren't this interactive, and sometimes the people asking questions are real goofballs. The girls took the stage with an interpreter/moderator, who asked them some general, pleasant questions about their career (at one point, Ami said "there are some of you in here who saw us way back in 2002!" while looking right at me. neato!), what they've been doing lately, and the Cartoon Network show.</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBPpNYvtkbB0cTicNJ5-P1pMyNL4v1I349MYUnUrYFOyqIihTXTwnb_jiAOvPN9HOSl1zVwdKWAiVsxi8zvWOc2UEqIReV1eKFvyXO9GNL1bYQjqPZdY8JbOyucoxUQhHlWclw2bhQOZX3/s1600/PF_BOSTON_AMI-683x1024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="683" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBPpNYvtkbB0cTicNJ5-P1pMyNL4v1I349MYUnUrYFOyqIihTXTwnb_jiAOvPN9HOSl1zVwdKWAiVsxi8zvWOc2UEqIReV1eKFvyXO9GNL1bYQjqPZdY8JbOyucoxUQhHlWclw2bhQOZX3/s400/PF_BOSTON_AMI-683x1024.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><br /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Photo Credit Moshimoshi-nippon.jp<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Then it was time for audience Q&A! And this got off to a pretty hilarious start, as a dude in cosplay (didn't recognize the outfit, but he had some kind of big sword prop... maybe a Final Fantasy character?) got up first, and asked, in cute, stilted Japanese: "Do you have a boyfriend?"<br />
<br />
Ami: Dude. We both have kids.<br />
<br />
Yumi: Yeah, that's actually a really surprising question! Do you guys not get Japanese celeb news here?<br />
<br />
At this point, the crowd has a giggle, and the clearly flustered cosplay dude quietly returns to his seat... where he gets his big prop, and BOLTS for the exit. I guess he was really embarrassed!!<br />
<br />
Yumi: Hey, wait! Wait a minute! My answer is 'no!' Where you going, dude?!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7Pj7jr5xJl_dMZKIdkSS3IjKzOtEkK3nk-0G0pN52QYwEFvH4mQU5Lv7ArM_8miTe2DYQsNrksktXgLTcJacO5-WgBWeIBYBQbZc2-ypnQwlG1Vk4dfLHjfUbmdGbN7VTE1rBDDs319r/s1600/PF_BOSTON_YUMI-683x1024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="683" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7Pj7jr5xJl_dMZKIdkSS3IjKzOtEkK3nk-0G0pN52QYwEFvH4mQU5Lv7ArM_8miTe2DYQsNrksktXgLTcJacO5-WgBWeIBYBQbZc2-ypnQwlG1Vk4dfLHjfUbmdGbN7VTE1rBDDs319r/s400/PF_BOSTON_YUMI-683x1024.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Photo Credit Moshimoshi-nippon.jp<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Pretty funny stuff. They talked about how the cartoon deal happened (Sam Register heard them on the radio and called Sony to get them for the Teen Titans song - it all snowballed from there), about how they're still goofy-ass best friends (sample remark: Yumi goes into Ami's hotel room to get her phone cable, and the dozing Ami, in between sleep murmurs, says, perfectly clearly, eyes still closed, "it's gonna rain all day today, so don't wear your uggs"), and I got to ask them what music they'd been listening to. Ami said she was into a lot of k-pop, and Yumi said she was listening to one particular song by the band Dresscodes. In fact, she had it on repeat all morning, and it was really getting on Ami's nerves...!<br />
<br />
Anyway, soon it was over. The focus panel started late and ended a little early, but that was my only complaint. One odd wrinkle is that, while anime con attendees will roll DEEP for concerts and autographs, they're way less likely to attend the focus panels. There were only about 150 of us there! I was right in the front row!! It was cool to be up front, but I kinda wish more people stopped by...<br />
<br />
A couple of final thoughts. First of all, I was really happy that Puffy came to my hometown con, and double-happy that I got to see them at every event (I'm usually super-busy at these things and have to miss stuff). I listened to "Spike" and "Illustrated History" constantly back in 2001-2002, a happy and interesting time in my life. I associate Puffy with that feeling of contentment. They were fun to see live in 2002. I took a miss on them in 2005, figuring that the audience would be packed with kids and this show was for them. I was actually at New York Comicon in 2010! But I was on the speaking program and didn't make it over to Irving Plaza in time to see Puffy. At this point, eight years after seeing them live, I glumly accepted that I'd never get to see them again. So this concert was a real gift. I'd like to see Puffy again, and at this point, I think it'll happen.Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-39955130182270848522017-08-24T07:00:00.000-06:002017-08-24T07:00:09.496-06:00Mike Toole's Anime Boston Puffy Concert Write Up (Part 1)Here is the long promised show report for Puffy's Anime Boston appearance. What I can say is this may be the biggest concert Puffy has done in the states and from Mike's (and other's reports) it was a fantastic show. Mike Toole is the Editor-at-Large for Anime News Network and has a column and is the point man for music on that site. The site seems to be under maintenance, so I cannto provide links. I am deeply honored he took the time to do the write up and is willing to share that with us Puffy fans.<br />
<br />
So without further delay, here is the first part of Mike's Anime Boston write up. All words beyond this point are his!<br />
<br />
-----------------------------------------------------------<br />
<br />
Since there was a lot of "What's an anime convention like? Are the tickets included?" chat when Puffy's Anime Boston appearance was first announced on Amiyumidas, I'll explain a bit. Sometimes concert tickets cost extra at conventions (Anime Expo and Otakon, the two biggest anime cons in North America, have big-deal concerts with 2-4 idol singers and nationally-known bands, so they now charge some extra money for tickets), but usually the ticket is included with membership. This is both a good value for the attendee, and an attractive proposition to the band in many cases - they still get an appearance fee, and usually draw at least 500-1000 fans to see what they're all about.<br />
<br />
For Anime Boston, Puffy had four events scheduled - two free autograph sessions (also a nice value, as celebrity guests often host paid autograph sessions), the concert, and a rare focus panel, where fans could assemble in the audience of one of the convention ballrooms and chat with Ami and Yumi.<br />
<br />
The Puffy stuff was all on Friday and Saturday, because they were leaving for LA and their mini-tour on Sunday morning. I ran to queue up for autographs on Friday, but the line had been capped. I _did_ get to see and compliment these girls, and their photo-perfect cartoon version Ami and Yumi costumes. I had no idea at the time that they'd made it to Ami's instagram!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE5QdcyvRcJ3CSOG6bjQu75GGw0TA9coxVVNnfYP9gIbprVzhvsd22TgKtn-RhLaMb7lD-DvrThPoY4-0YOFtO1dRi8pKSwPg346z6GkNoP-6joyGRauUxpL77P4fu5nmTLAbOVzBkvdmf/s1600/17661916_1932315323653359_2926993480347549696_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="809" data-original-width="1080" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE5QdcyvRcJ3CSOG6bjQu75GGw0TA9coxVVNnfYP9gIbprVzhvsd22TgKtn-RhLaMb7lD-DvrThPoY4-0YOFtO1dRi8pKSwPg346z6GkNoP-6joyGRauUxpL77P4fu5nmTLAbOVzBkvdmf/s400/17661916_1932315323653359_2926993480347549696_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Ami Onuki</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span id="fullpost"> <br />
Now, I know most of the senior staff at Anime Boston - to me, they're old friends. I also do a lot of programming stuff - I run several popular panels, and this year, I acted as moderator for a panel featuring the Japanese-American culture journalist Roland Kelts and ex-Studio Ghibli production runner/storyteller Mr Hirokatsu Kihara. As a return favor for moderating, the staff let me crash the VIP section of the Puffy concert.<br />
<br />
I made a note to arrive early for Saturday's autograph session and headed off to enjoy the con until the evening concert.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrJ6Xm-fULY3WAuMqfjRn9uSyAq7-Frs2MZkbbxzwJpjAmC1wu6EItTzP0At4iOUTOjLnXIutzbJ-RYqtrUXq3uyU_WQpptQQbLPdDX-pSJrIoTWCZwD8GpDm4bMW4uWdSmL0NRBdcQ_f/s1600/mike+toole+C8SS0h1XUAAEvOf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="920" data-original-width="1200" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrJ6Xm-fULY3WAuMqfjRn9uSyAq7-Frs2MZkbbxzwJpjAmC1wu6EItTzP0At4iOUTOjLnXIutzbJ-RYqtrUXq3uyU_WQpptQQbLPdDX-pSJrIoTWCZwD8GpDm4bMW4uWdSmL0NRBdcQ_f/s400/mike+toole+C8SS0h1XUAAEvOf.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mike's view of the show. Photo Credit: Mike Toole</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The seats weren't perfect - just near the sound board, halfway back in the GIANT auditorium. But I was very happy to get seated there, because the Hynes Convention Center auditorium, in this configuration, seats 3,000 - and it was nearly full when I arrived, so I would've been stuck in the back if I didn't have the VIP access! I've seen several acts at Anime Boston - the Pillows, JAM Project, and Halko Momoi to name a few - and the Puffy concert was by far the fullest I'd ever seen it. The crowd estimate was around 2,500.<br />
<br />
Anyway, I took my seat... and then was asked to scoot over by a pal who was helping with guest relations. So I sat about 10 feet directly behind the sound board, next to this one guy who kept getting up and making comments to the audio team. He was an older Japanese man, scruffy, ponytail, glasses...<br />
<br />
Yep, it was Kaz. He was working, so I didn't bother the man. But hey, that was neat!<br />
<br />
I'll also point out that, while the Puffy ticket was included with the con membership, it wasn't just a situation where you could flash your attendee badge and wander into the concert hall - fans had to seek out and get tickets in advance (one per person) for the purposes of headcount, and plan to attend in advance. So this was a crowd that was very interested in seeing Puffy.<br />
<br />
As reported by your pal Chanel, this time Puffy also played with a 3-piece band. I thought this was a gutsy choice, but they sounded GREAT - better than when I saw them at the Paradise in 2002, I think! One interesting note - the guitarist was Koki Okamoto of the band OKAMOTO'S, who've lately done some collaboration with Puffy. They were also on the bill at Anime Boston, so this made sense.<br />
<br />
As for the set list, I didn't take detailed notes. Like their other stops, they opened with "Puffypipoyama" and "Call Me What You Like." Later, the crowd went nuts to their renditions of "Teen Titans Go" and their own cartoon show theme - lot of cartoon nerds at Anime Boston, naturally. ;) They ended with "Electric Beach Fever" and "That's the Way it Is." If I had a complaint about their set, it's that it was too short. They only did 45 minutes! This is actually pretty common for bands at these conventions, but I was hoping they'd play a bit longer.<br />
<div><br />
</div></span><br />
Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-29912607653670261722017-08-21T07:00:00.000-06:002017-08-21T07:00:12.266-06:00The Night Begins To Shine ReviewIt has been a while since Puffy released a new song though in this case "The Night Begins To Shine" appears on the "The Teen Titans Go Songs From The Night Begins To Shine Special" which is both long, unwieldy and goofy for a soundtrack album. I will not use it again as there is no need. I only purchased Puffy's track as the other tracks were not of interest.<br />
<br />
Vocally Ami and Yumi are in fine form, though I suspect there is a little processing. Not a good or bad thing. The delivery is evocative of 70's disco, which is well within their wheelhouse. They show a little more dynamic singing which is good.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3kJ8vU-Fb9M" width="560"></iframe><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
The music for "The Night Begins To Shine" is basically driven by synthesizers and drum machines and would not be out of place on a Perfume album. The flip side is with the vocal processing the music and vocals are tied together well. I honestly was not missing anything resembling a guitar on the track. That feels weird to admit, but I have been listening to Perfume a fair bit as of late.<br />
<br />
<br />
Engineering for "The Night Begins To Shine" is good, but there are parts where the synthesizers sound a bit muddled and there are a couple bits where I thought I hear a little fuzzy sounds. There are some neat underlying bits that bounce between the left and right channels. On headphones the track does not fade out as you would think, it actually goes on quietly for a few seconds fading into a synth classical music sound.<br />
<br />
Quick Scores:<br />
Vocals: A-<br />
Music: B+<br />
Engineering: B-Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-43353551841749119602017-08-18T15:30:00.000-06:002017-08-18T20:54:31.848-06:00The Night Begins to Shine, New Layout & SundryThis one snuck up on me, a new song: The Night Begins to Shine.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3kJ8vU-Fb9M" width="560"></iframe><br /></div>
<br />
You can buy The Night Begins to Shine on <a href="https://play.google.com/store/music/album/Various_Artists_Teen_Titans_Go_Songs_From_The_Nigh?id=Bkd64qlksrysonvkyhabgowkpti" target="_blank">Google Play</a> or <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Titans-Songs-Night-Begins-Special/dp/B0749H19C2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503093370&sr=8-1&keywords=teen+titans+soundtrack" target="_blank">Amazon</a>.<br />
<br />
Things have been kind of crazy the past couple of months and writing about anything has been not on my radar. Changed jobs, kids' school, etc. Nothing bad, just time and energy consuming. <br />
<br />
Things are starting to settle down. I have a really great Boston show write up in the pipe that a reader (also a fantastic writer) sent me. I will be slicing that into 2-3 parts and posting up the first part within the week.<br />
<br />
Apologies for not chunking out content.<br />
<br />
Finally broke down and updated the look of the site. Hats off to Jeff for the old layout, it was great but I have been eager to re-tool for a while. I may elect to do ads at some point... I could stand to make tens of cents but maybe it would help put a dent in my expenses. Code for buying albums.Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-47865420318132300202017-06-01T17:18:00.002-06:002017-06-01T17:18:44.080-06:00Puffy no Gaki no Tsukai ya Arahende!! Just a quick update. I have a write up in hand for the Boston show that Puffy did in conjunction with the Anime Boston convention. I have to do break it up into a couple parts, but everyone should enjoy it. Frankly it is by a much better writer than myself.<br />
<br />
In the mean time here is some Puffy of a sort. Tanaka and Matsumoto of Gaki no Tsukai lip syncing to Asia no Junshin, Tanaka and Matsumoto are my favorites so I was very happy to see them imitate Puffy.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="//www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/x5kf7mn" width="480"></iframe><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5kf7mn_itao-s-lip-sync-challenge-part-3_fun" target="_blank">Itao's lip sync challenge part 3</a> <i>by <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/tofupandafansubs2" target="_blank">tofupandafansubs2</a></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Also some funny bits with the other guys from the show, but you may have to be a Gaki aficionado and old school J-Music.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-37637445930981538742017-04-30T09:55:00.000-06:002017-05-01T11:13:12.968-06:00Puffy Not Lazy 2017 Belasco Show ReportReader Chanel No. 2 and I were talking about the April 4th 2017 Belasco Theater stop for Puffy’s Not Lazy US Tour. They were gracious enough to let me share this conversation with the fans at Amiyumidas. I broke our conversation into more of a Q&A to help convey Chanel No.2’s great experience as a super fan.<br>
<br>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZEg8eXuCzIxJ8i7sS_E_xjgTHqBlAHGGCOnk3FyMtgRoZhkrKJUnDWL9ZFhtzRG1hPRLE0xttzL06LJKuzvJTCLFqcNpry3SAx6ixvArIL-6hQg1ohn9G8fR4B29JvnLJUArVvyGuvCky/s1600/C8o2mn_W0AMYKeT_edited_crop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZEg8eXuCzIxJ8i7sS_E_xjgTHqBlAHGGCOnk3FyMtgRoZhkrKJUnDWL9ZFhtzRG1hPRLE0xttzL06LJKuzvJTCLFqcNpry3SAx6ixvArIL-6hQg1ohn9G8fR4B29JvnLJUArVvyGuvCky/s400/C8o2mn_W0AMYKeT_edited_crop.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image Via @Puffy</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br>
<b>Wes: </b> Tell me about Ami, Yumi and the support band<br>
<br>
<b>Chanel No. 2:</b> I think PUFFY was wearing one-piece outfits with Converse shoes.<br>
<br>
The band lineup was one guitarist, one bassist, one drummer and the behind-the-scenes DJ that set up the playback. A different approach to their music. The band played with all their might so the music was shooting out into the room. Ami and Yumi were master sof ceremonies to interact with everyone in the audience. I was impressed by their English. They definitely studied for the tour but they used notes.<br>
<br>
I'm a drummer so I was able to analyze Cindy's (the audience chose her American name) drum kit. Snare, rack tom, floor tom, kick drum, hi-hats, crash cymbal, most likely a ride cymbal, and a cowbell. A different approach to their music. I was expecting 2 crash cymbals and a keyboardist.<br>
<br>
I think the volume was louder than the '07 concerts. The drums seemed louder too. When they performed, it was hard to hear myself singing.<br>
<br>
Wes: You did the meet and greet, that sounds amazing!<br>
<br>
<b>Chanel No. 2:</b> I can't believe I actually met PUFFY! My heart was definitely pounding! I went with the flow. I didn't know what to expect. I was shocked by the number of people that came. I'll need to remember that (next time).<br>
<br>
I approached Ami and Yumi. I think I said hi and my name. I remember Ami saying hi to me. She said my name. :-D <br>
<br>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNifinMGCB-LUzDv1UjkL7e6A8YJH1hxXFYPthUsDpVZuV0tM20H38nmaWbp7ANffrXVUggt4T-dhk_a0yV6-Le0PgOw0URv_yP7he3T4lD8ZB2EUutxeGYju7RUorwoZGN-JIx92RyKo/s1600/IMG_4603.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNifinMGCB-LUzDv1UjkL7e6A8YJH1hxXFYPthUsDpVZuV0tM20H38nmaWbp7ANffrXVUggt4T-dhk_a0yV6-Le0PgOw0URv_yP7he3T4lD8ZB2EUutxeGYju7RUorwoZGN-JIx92RyKo/s400/IMG_4603.JPG" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image via Chanel No. 2</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br>
Yumi saw my top and basically thought it looked familiar so I said 'Bring it!' I think they remembered the top so, in perfect English, Ami asked where I got it. I basically said I bought it from Japan and had it shipped to me. Pretty sure it was only sold in 14 Japanese stores. Had I known, I woulda bought a lot. It's quite a bit of cash but...<div><br></div><div> I had staff take a pic of Ami, Yumi, and I w/ my phone. I told them I was gonna do a heart. I think Ami said 'A heart'. Ami and Yumi made heart shapes w/ me. :-)<br>
<br>
After I got my pic, I said 'Thank you so much' then went to the stage. I miss them already!!!<br>
<br><b>
Wes:</b> Can you share the set list?<br>
<br>
Chanel No. 2: The set-list was very random. I dunno how they came up with it!<br>
<br>
1. Puffypipoyama<br>
2. Call Me What You Like (if you like rock-n-roll)<br>
3. LOVE SO PURE<br>
MC<br>
4. TEEN TITANS THEME<br>
5. JOINING A FAN CLUB<br>
6.UREI<br>
7. TRUE ASIA<br>
MC<br>
8. Your love is a drug<br>
9. SIGN OF LOVE<br>
10. All Because Of You<br>
MC<br>
11. INTO THE BEACH<br>
12. JET POLICE<br>
13. DOKI DOKI<br>
MC<br>
14. Hi Hi<br>
15. RED SWING<br>
16. Darekaga<br>
17. ELECTRIC BEACH FEVER<br>
MC<br>
18. Radio Tokyo<br>
Encore<br>
19. THAT’S THE WAY IT IS<br>
<br><b>
Wes: </b> That is an interesting play list, some I might have predicted but Urei surprised me! What were some of your thoughts about the set?<br>
<br><b>
Chanel No. 2:</b> (<i>Puffypipoyama</i>) I wasn't very familiar w/ the song but I'm not surprised it was the 1st song cos it's recent. They did the dance. I'd leave the song name as is. Pipo seems to mean 'people'? Yama can have multiple meanings. Mountain, peak, hill, climax, etc.<br>
<br>
(<i>Call me What You Like</i>) That blew my mind. I don't even know if I heard right. 1 of my favorite songs. I didn't think I'd hear it live. I thought they were gonna sing 'Shall We Dance?' but I guess it's not a big shock. It wouldn't be new. I'm very glad they sang the song.<br>
<br>
(<i>All Because of You</i>) My favorite PUFFY song. I'm very glad they performed the whole song. It's the version w/ the extended opening.<br>
<br>
(<i>Electric Beach Fever</i>) The opening was extended w/ handclaps<br>
<br><b>
Wes:</b> Ami and Yumi have always had a knack for entertaining the crowd with banter as MC’s, can you tell me about that?<br>
<br><b>
Chanel No. 2:</b> I can't remember all the MC details but they asked if anyone from the crowd went to their '07 L.A. show. I said I attended. Ami was asked what music is her favorite these days. She said K-pop. I was shocked!<br>
<br><b>
Wes: </b>Was it fun for you, did Puffy enjoy the performance?<br>
<br><b>
Chanel No. 2.: </b> Such a fun experience. A+! I think I was the most devoted fanatic there.<br>
<br>
I'm glad PUFFY had fun. Hopefully they'll come back. I wasn't sure if they were gonna return but I guess they still have a sufficient fan-base<br>
<br><b>
Wes:</b> Thank you so much for talking about Puffy’s show at the Belasco and thank you for helping me out with a tour shirt. I’ll post that up separately as I am the master of padding.<br>
<br>
If anyone went to the Boston, San Francisco or Dallas shows please ping me. Same for more LA show reports!<br>
<!--3--><br>
<div>
<br></div>
</div>Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-70184903696169222742017-03-19T10:45:00.001-06:002017-03-19T10:52:04.376-06:00There is Not Lazy and Not Lazy<br />
I like the fact that Puffy is playing in the US after a fairly long hiatus and this post is probably going to upset some fans. I get that. Frankly, I thought they had all but abandoned fans across the Pacific. So the Not Lazy Tour does represent something of a surprise, I do take issue with calling it a tour much less dubbing it not lazy. This had been bothering me for a while and I could not put my finger on why exactly, until I saw Shonen Knife announce their US tour and I have some tough love to dole out which pleases me not at all to do so.<br />
<br />
Shonen Knife's touring is the precise definition of Not Lazy. They do double digit cities on a nearly annual touring basis. They are a band that has never had the same success as Puffy in their native Japan. They have never had the same media exposure in the US like Puffy. They have not had a vastly power label like Sony supporting them. Yet Shonen Knife has far greater tours in the US. <br />
<br />
The question I as myself now is why is that so? <br />
<br />
This is less of a shot at Puffy than it is acknowledging that Shonen Knife (Naoko Yamano) is personally invested in touring the US. Not only does she seek labels to distribute her band's music, but she has laid the ground work for decades by touring the US. People obviously show up as it is not a charity. Ami and Yumi seem less personally invested and it would be my best guess that tours and many other things are handled by their people. Which may be a byproduct of their overwhelming success compared to Shonen Knife in Japan. It may also be that Shonen Knife has always been Noako's creation whereas Puffy is a group that was forged by Sony. <br />
<br />
Perhaps it is an issue of personal investment and here is a rub as a fan of Puffy (more so than Shonen Knife, whom I like but not nearly as much). What Shonen Knife has done for decades cannot and probably will not be something Ami and Yumi can replicate. First the ground work is a decade behind Shonen Knife, but also it simply seems like it is not of serious interest to Puffy to do so. <br />
<br />
The lines of thinking between Shonen Knife and Puffy seems to boil down to this. Shonen Knife approaches a US tour like lets see where we can play and put together a tour. Puffy approaches it by who wants us to play. I think it speaks to Shonen Knife having some personal investment in touring the US whereas Puffy takes a more passive approach facilitated by their people. <br />
<br />
I do not doubt for one second that Puffy could have a twenty date US tour and do well. Puffy is arguably the best known band from Japan in the US, this might change over time as a band like Perfume makes headway... but for now a far lesser band, namely Shonen Knife is really Not Lazy and that is because Naoko Yamano has invested her energies into the US fans.<br />
<br />
The smartest thing Puffy could do if they have any desire to invest in US tours is have Naoko Yamano manage their US tour dates and have Shonen Knife open for them. It would be a win-win for both bands.<br />
<br />
All this said, I am sure Ami and Yumi will work hard to put on the great shows they have committed to. They are not just engaging, but also professionals. Perhaps if these dates are successful a door will be opened and there will be a new vector for them to apply their energies outside of Japan.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>P.S. I like Puffy far more than Shonen Knife and it genuinely pained me to write all of this. I continue to listen to Puffy still far more than any other Japanese band and they hold the largest share of my Japanese music heart. Puffy has vastly more range and talent than most Japanese groups, but I acknowledge that there is little substitution for determination of which Naoko Yamano has in spades when it comes to the subject of US touring. </i><br />
<br />
<br />Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2042059814869113492.post-34920664038784088892017-03-16T21:42:00.000-06:002017-03-16T21:42:09.204-06:00Anyone Going To Puffy's Concerts & Want To Do Me A Solid?Anyone going to the concerts and want to do me a solid?<br />
<br />
Swag... I need swag.<br />
<br />
I'll pay you back.<br />
<br />Weshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02394347494360697764noreply@blogger.com0