Morning Musume BVS V2 ,E3 + Bonus

The fresh faced idols that are creating an image to be admired by future idols are back on nakaimasahiro no black variety with a wonderful visit.



20120729 morning_musume,momoko_tsugunaga by gavere1



Ep 1 subbed

Pizza♥Yah! (ピッツァ♥屋) : Kansai Home Delivery Idols

5 Osaka entertainment production companies; Up-Front Kansai; ClearFirst; Stage & Arts Brains Company(SAB Company); Horipro Osaka Business Office; and Maimu Pro; created a new organization called the "Kansai Idol Community" to add on to the Kansai idol scene. As the first activity, a new idol unit was formed and revealed to the public on July 24: Pizza♥Yah!

Pizza♥Yah! has 5 members, each from the Kansai region and one from each of the 5 companies that make up the "KIC". Their catchphrase is "Home delivery idol" and their concept is "Like home delivery pizza, we'll lightheartedly take your order and 'deliver to your home' smiles and energy!". As also being part of the group's concept, the 5 "sisters" are all Kanban Musume, or pretty girls who are used to attract customers, for the popular pizzeria "Pizza♥Yah!". The name in kana (ピッツァ♥屋) translates to "pizzeria", and "Ya!/Yah!" can also come from Osaka-ben's "version" of "da" to make the name mean "It's Pizza!". Through the name, they'd like to convey that "like pizza, there are various kinds to enjoy, and we want to be idols who are loved from everybody around the world!". In other words, everyone has to like at least one type of pizza since there's so many kinds to enjoy, so they want to receive that same world-wide love!

The members, in order of the picture from right to left and with their company and "sister title" on the right of their names, are:

YUKA - SAB Company, Eldest sister
Birthday: February 14, 1989 (23 years old)
Birthplace: Hiroshima
Blood Type: AB
- Member of OSAKA Show GANGS (She'll continue her activities with them)
- One part of the Manzai duo "Tsunderella" (Tsundere and Cinderella together. And Tsundere is basically used to describe a person who is sharp on the outside but loving on the inside)

Miyazaki Rio (宮崎梨緒) - Up-Front Kansai, Third daughter
Birthday: August 26, 1994 (17 years old)
Birthplace: Osaka
Blood Type: A
- Hello Wota idol that (obviously :P) loves H!P
- Has a UStream program "Miyazaki Rio's Yuusutoriitan" (Mix of Ustream and Riitan, her nickname) and won "The First Kansai USTREAM Grand Prize Yasunori Tamaki Prize" for it.

Ogino Kana (おぎのかな) - HoriPro Osaka, Fifth daughter
Birthday: April 1, 1996 (16 years old)
Birthplace: Osaka
Blood Type: O
- Mainly active in stage plays.

Itou Ayami (伊藤綾美) - ClearFirst, Second daughter
Birthday: November 30, 1991 (20 years old)
Birthplace: Hyogo
Blood Type: O
- Single for all 20 years of her life (^.^)b
- Apart of (Or was apart of?) Petit★Veil
- Active in TV and CM

Nishinaga Kyouko (西永京子) - Maimu Pro, Fourth daughter
Birthday: December 6, 1994 (17 years old)
- Active in TV and stills

Links
Kansai Idol Community Official Site
Kansai Idol Community Official Facebook
Kansai Idol Community Official Tumblr
Itou Ayami Official Ameba Blog
Miyazaki Rio Official Ameba Blog
Nishinaga Kyouko Official Blog
Ogino Kana Official Blog

---

I remember YUKA from OSAKA Show Gangs when reviewing one of their PV's, and know she has talent. But I haven't seen anything yet from the other 4. So I'm excited to see what they can bring to the table! (...Pun not intended) And the pizza concept, to me, sounds really cute! Even their outfits are Italian-coloured! I can't wait until their debut single is announced, already! Since there's no videos of them, yet, I'll just end the post with this really cute picture of the four younger sisters seeming to get scolded by eldest sister YUKA. XD

PASSPO☆: Rock at the Shrine in "Natsuzora HANABI"

PASSPO's 5th major single, Natsuzora HANABI, is to release on August 15, and recently, the
full PV to the A-side was released!

From the name, I was expecting a song that sounded more like generic idol pop. Probably because when I first listened to PASSPO's indies, I thought the same thing and just assumed the trend would continue. (Why I don't follow PASSPO) But to my delightful surprise, it's an uptempo rock song with some parts that mimick traditional Japanese music. I probably said this before, but I'm not much into solely rock music since it can get boring to listen to the same instruments being played over and over, especially when listening to a rock album. Here, they mix in the traditional instruments very well with the instrumental (Even if only for a short time) and they don't sound out of place at all. I even find some of the composition mimicking traditional music, like in the chorus' first lines. I find it quite refreshing and clever when old music is reinvented for new generations, and in this case, it was used in an amazing way! 95%, if not more, is still rock music, but there's something about the tempo, composition and, of course, their voices that make this more suited for an idol group than a rock group, in my opinion. Plus, it gets me, if not anyone else, bobbing my head along to the beat and wanting to play air instruments when no one's watching. Like I said before, the composition mimicks traditional music in the chorus, which I like a lot, but besides those parts, I find the rest of it really awesome. Seriously, there's nothing else I can say about it because it's just that fantastic! I wouldn't want
it changed in any other way; I find it quite perfect.

The song on its own is powerful and rocking; it's powerfully rocking! However, with the traditional reinventions, I personally find that there's a fragility to the song that fits with the whole puzzle. I don't have any PASSPO songs on my iPod, but I definitely wouldn't mind putting this on there!

The PV consists of four main shots: dance shot, close ups, "rock" shots (That is, shots in very rockin' outifts! :D), and the "throwing suitcases" shots. First off, the close ups, dance shot and the suitcase shots are filmed in front of a shrine with a band playing in the back. The close ups show them singing into the mic while they sing their hearts out. They all put a lot of attitude and movement into each word they sing, bringing out their inner rock stars. In a lot of the shots, it almost looks like their begging and crying out when you look in their eyes. It's quite heart-piercing to watch! XD

In the dance shot, they incorporate fans in the dance, further utilising traditional aspects into the product. If I didn't know any better about idols, I'd think it was a bit out of place with the music, but somehow, it works
in a really weird and unusual way. I think the fans flow the most in the chorus, but the choreography when they're jumping on one foot, waving their fans around in the instrumental breaks with serious faces... Yeah, I have to admit that looked pretty strange. ^.^; At first, I thought the dance had a lot of movement in it, but forgetting about the camera movements (Which also looked awesome in here), it actually is quite tame than what I would've liked, especially keeping the tempo in mind. But, like I already said, the camera movements made them look quite cool!

Suddenly, in the middle of the song, there's a black and white shot of the girls standing in a neat arrangement. Then a few seconds later, they throw their suitcases out and up towards the direction of the camera... My first thought is "WHAT ARE THEY DOING!?!". But then, after thinking for a bit, maybe this is just a symbollic scene. Perhaps what it meant was that they're throwing out their image of exclusively being an airplane-themed group and branching out to try out new things. After all, after these scenes is when the rock shots start to appear. If that's the case, then even though it was a little weird, it still looked cool... Then again, maybe they just wanted the girls to look rebellious and awesome. If so, then it was a little weird but still cool, once again. :P

The rock shots appear to be filmed inside of the shrine, instead, or a whole different area altogether. Darkness envelopes them with just a sole yellow spotlight on the girls to light the room for them. These shots really are rockin' with the setting, the outfits, the makeup, the expressions on their faces, their dancing, and the camera movements once more. Besides some shots where the camera placement and movement is awful, these shots look amazing and match the song really well. After, in the same outfits, they stand in front of a pool and fall into it. What can be more rockstar than that? Seriously though, I'm cringing at the camera placement... UH... BUT, forgetting about that and the randomness of this whole scene, the way the girls are trying their best to be like rockstars is laughable since they still seem so idol-ly cute to me. All in good fun, though!

The PV looked a little cheap, but I think it was executed well enough from what they had, and the inner rock attitude of the girls really made it enjoyable!

Overall, I give it a 8.2/10; the song was REALLY amazing and although the PV didn't perfectly match the vision in my head, it still looked quite great, especially from all those camera movements... And that is the last time I am saying that phrase for this review. :D

Watching this PV, I really want PASSPO to do well for this single. At the very least, better than their previous single. But, referring back to Candy's post about their decline (Brilliant, by the way), that goal might not be possible. I wouldn't necessarily call myself a passenger at all, and I'm sorry for the upcoming cheesiness, but I hope that PASSPO are able to pull through to make their dreams possible because they're really worth it!

Himekyun Fruit Can Movie + nanoCUNE(ナノキュン)

PIH Fresh faces Himekyun Fruit Can recently filmed a soon to be released movie .

You can see the trailer here


New to the Himekyun family of groups is



nanoCUNE(ナノキュン)

http://nanocune.jp/index.html

Video Previews

It`s that time again as groups release more single PVs and for this post we have a number of tastes ,including a replacement for anyone suffering SDN48 withdraws [G☆Girls ]

First up is a group from our Fresh30 segments

RaiseChouChou

I absolutely smile non-stop when seeing this PV. It`s a great song and the PV looks as good as any big name unit.



http://raisechouchou.com/index2.php

G☆Girls

Here comes your replacement for SDN48
http://miss-flash.jp/g-girls/



Mary Angel

http://maryangel.net/

A double dose of idol goodness

Morning Musume BVS 2

The machine that is new Morning Musume continues to march forward. See the young ones knock down all that gets in their way .Sayu faces glory as she takes one for the team and falls in the line of duty.


20120722 morning_musume,momoko_tsugunaga by gavere1

Alice No.10 [Alice Juban]

1 HR TV special with Alice No.10 [Alice Juban] and their fans
Just a note the first 16 minutes is with their fans ,so if you want to move forward to when they walk in the show.

Himekyun Fruit Can & LinQ Updates

Himekyun Fruit Can

For anyone wanting to know if this group had a new PV to go with their new single Tatoeba no Monster (c/w "TURN OF THE WORLD").The recent PV by this group is below


TV Special



LinQ

Just how Indie are Indie Idols ,here is an inside look at LinQ and life as an Indie Idol group from being their own staff to building their own destiny one coin at a time .

Apple Tale

This is a very cute and talented Indie that I’ve wanted to show on PIH for some time , however  footage is very limited for this group. PS the glasses are a gimmick

Here is a short look at their new and 5th single By Chance Wonderful



HP
http://apple-tale.jp/top.html

Weekly Poll #7

It's a day late, but here's the results of the weekly post #7.

The Question was: What do you do the most to support your group(s) or oshimen?

Buy singles/albums came is first place with17 votes (51%)
Read their blog everyday came in second place with6 votes (18%)
Buy goods, read their blog, and post in forums all came in third with 3 votes (9%)
Attend events and concerts came in last with 1 votes (3%)


For the most part, I agree that buying singles and albums is the best way to support your favorite group(s), soloist, or oshi, especially if you live in another country. After buying singles, I post in forums the most. It's fun to discuss outfits, the PV, and other things with other people. I rarely buy goods (unless their posters or calenders or something), and I actually rarely read member blogs! Going to concerts or events is impossible, seeing as how I live thousands of miles away! But If they come to my country, I'd definitely find some way to attend the event.


In total, 33 people voted.

Sorry, there won't be a weekly poll this week, because I'm going on vacation! I will be back Wednesday July 25.

Idoling!!! Ichigo Gyuunyuu

The other a-side, Ichigo Gyuunyuu (strawberry milk) of Idoling!!!'s 18th single is out.

The PV surprised me, because instead of it being a studio PV, it's actually an outdoor PV with a storyline (sort of). I've never seen Idoling!!! do a PV like this, so cheers to them for doing something different; Plus, the girls look great. However, I still don't like the song that much. 




And, here's a bonus, this is a preview of the b-side, Megami no Pulse.

Koisuru Candy Kiss

Candy Kiss is a 6-member dance and vocal unit. All members were born in Tokyo and attended the dance school "CLOVER" and are in middle school. Their first single, "Koisuru Candy Kiss", will come out on August 15.

In an EXILE-type of style, there are 2 vocalists and 4 dancers, though they all still dance. The members, in order of the picture, are:

Oguchi Ryouka (小口涼花) - Dance
Birthday - February 21, 1998
Hobbies - Music appreciation, basketball
Special Skill - Long-distance race
Favourite Book - Koizora
Favourite Movie - Titanic
Favourite Food - Pancakes
- 3 years of dance experience

Shimoda Kaede (霜田楓) - Dance
Birthday - November 20, 1997
Hobbies - Shopping
Special Skill - Massage
Favourite Book - Ranzuki
Favourite Movie - Disney movies
Favourite Food - Fruits
- 4 years of dance experience

Yoshizawa Ruri (吉澤瑠璃) - Vocal, Dance
Birthday - August 28, 1999
Hobbies - Reading
Special Skill - Knitting
Favourite Book - Eien no Natsuyasumi
Favourite Movie - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Favourite Food - American cherries
- 2 years of dance experience

Yamashita Honoka (山下睦夏) - Vocal, Dance
Birthday - June 20, 1998
Hobbies - Karaoke
Special Skill - My body is soft (Uuuh...what?)
Favourite Book - Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo
Favourite Movie - Usagi Drop
Favourite Food - Ume
- 9 years of dance experience

Kasahara Mahochi (笠原真歩地) - Dance Birthday - August 12, 1997
Hobbies - Golf, shopping
Special Skill - English
Favourite Book - Ryuusei no Kizuna, ONE PIECE
Favourite Movie - New Years Eve
Favourite Food - Korean Nori
- 10 years of dance experience

Sakurai Mayu (桜井まや) - Dance, Leader
Birthday - November 14, 1997
Hobbies - Reading
Special Skill - Dance
Favourite Book - Cellphone novels
Favourite Movie - Bokura ga Ita
Favourite Food - Yakisoba
- 8 years of dance experience


I was quite taken with the beginning of the song. It sounds like some alien copy from the beginning of a rock song that I can't quite put my finger on, but it's so weird that it's good! After that starts the main instrumental, which is happy yet isn't as upbeat as I'd like it to be. The main melody of the instrumental is led by trumpets, I think, and it just makes me feel uplifted and refreshed! The dying frog croak in the background is kind of disturbing, but it does make the intstrumental feel less empty than it'd probably be without it. After a while, the alien communications come back to unite with the instrumental between vocals, but like I said, it's weird in a good way. The whole instrumental pretty much stays consistent and non-changing without any climax. Good or bad, you can choose. But for me, it can get a little boring.

Speaking of which, the vocals - Oh, autotune, what could we do without you? I mean, they fit with the alien sounds and they sound good enough with the backing music, but it'd be better if we could hear what the girls actually sound like without effects since it IS their debut single. Otherwise, the girls' voices are SUPER cute without having to sing high. They sound more like children's voices than preteens/teens, but that's alright. I think they could work on putting feeling into their voices, though, since they sound empty, but they'll get better at that with experience.

The composition is quite amateurish and childish, but maybe that's because they're still a new group. Also, some of the lines sound cliche and/or stolen from other idol songs. The best part about it is the part before the last chorus. I have to admit, the CHUU's are adorable and the last part of it flows better than the rest of the song.

With the whole song, I guess it's cute enough to fit the idol genre, but not something I'd listen to a lot.

Besides the still images, the PV starts off with close-up shots of each member giving a kiss to the camera. AAAAAH, they were all so cute! And usually I don't think that, especially with new groups. All of their close-ups are so pure and innocent! It's like they were made to be idols! >w< They still could improve with their expressions, but man, they're already naturally cute! I found the number of sets in which they did the close-ups (There was a brick wall, a barn-like door and a white backdrop) a little distracting and unnecessary, but the girls themselves made up for it. :P

When it goes to the bed shots, they are not really well executed. The camera angles and awkward pauses make me cringe! XD But it's not the girls' faults. In fact, they did a good job in those scenes. They seemed to act real and like themselves, which is something I appreciate a lot!

The girls sit on the bed in their pyjamas and seem to have come up with a plan. Well, that plan looks like dressing up in pastel maid costumes and skipping to the camera! ^.^b Nah, it looks like the real plan was to make cute desserts in their costumes while showing off their idol appeal! And it works like a charm! It looks like they're having good and simple fun putting icing on the pastries and it makes me smile! And who doesn't love sweets, anyways? You're bound to get a cavity if you delve into these idols!

The dance shots are set in a white room with a checkered floor and mirrored walls, wearing the outfits that appear on their site and on the cover, and also in a simple white dance studio. Since they all attended a dance school, it's no wonder that they nail the dancing, for the most part! They have a lot of unity, attitude, and emotion in their faces! It was really enjoying to watch when they put so much into performing!

The whole PV is just a little more than standard compared to a regular Indie PV due to the addition of a storyline, but I think what made me really like it a lot was the amount of charisma these girls already have for being fresh faces!

Overall, I give the song and PV a 6.5/10. The song is mostly just really childish, and I'd give it a quite low score for that. But because the girls really owned it in the PV in personality and dancing, that made the score better. (It's still quite low, so you can imagine how low I'd score the song. ^.^;)

They're still an Indies group, and a new one at that, but I really think they have idol potential, as they're already so skilled in a lot of factors. I only wish that they'll be given material that will complement their talents more than Koisuru Candy Kiss. I mean, there have been new Indies group with better material to work with than this, so I believe that their true talents can really go all-out!

Official Site
Official Youtube
Official Facebook

Morning Musume on BVS

I have to say that 9th and 10th generation have renewed my enjoyment of Morning Musume ,they have brought freshness to the group.
Here is their full 20 minute appearance on BVS.

Note the first 8 minutes of the show is a video recap ,however they are going to be on the show for 4 episodes.


20120715 morning_musume &momoko_tsugunaga by gavere1

OZ And Alice No.10

OZ And Alice No.10

A special video look at the Idol groups OZ and Alice No.10 [Alice Juban]

OZ

Alice No.10 [Alice Juban]

New Logo

[We will stage dive even in a mall and get in our boat and love our tiny wota]

Idoling!!! One Up!!!

Here is the full PV for Idoling!!!'s 18th single! The fire is a really nice touch to the PV, the girls look amazing!

When I saw the covers, I thought they would be wearing bikini's, and I'm glad their not.
But maybe the other a side (Ichigo Gyunyu) will have bikini's.

Himekyun Fruit Can Special

Himekyun Returns to PIH with some video features .If you have not seen their PVs on PIH in the past, check out their YouTube page listed below as this is a really up and coming group.





Clip of their concert ,really cool intro





YouTube Page , HP
http://www.youtube.com/user/himekyunfruitcan/videos
http://himekyun.jp/pc/

MYM Melody

MYM Melody a three shot of Idol Cuteness ,Misa,Yuuka,and Miona make their PIH Debut

http://ameblo.jp/mymmelody/









USTREAM
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/21027570

Around The Indies :Cover Girls

Cover Girls is a wonderful 13 member group .The general idea of this unit is to be a fan friendly idols that you can meet anywhere at any time. In 2010 1,300 idol hopefuls started off on a dream ,the end results are below.

PV


90 minute Special .Something that you should take the time to watch .Features member self filming backstage , off time footage ,pre-show injury and concert footage [ 40 mins in] .



Note CGirls first debut on PIH was in this feature
http://pureidolheart.blogspot.com/2012/03/fresh-30-vol-5.html

HP
http://cgirls.jp/index.html
YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/CoverGirlsOfficial
USTREAM
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/covergirls
Blogs
http://ameblo.jp/covergirls-op/
Twitter
https://twitter.com/CoverGirlsStaff

When an Idol Group Throws a Party For Fans

This is a little video story of what happens when an Independent idol group throws a party for their fans.

The agency responsible for this party is Alice Project, the producers of Alice No. 10[Alice Juban], OZ, Prism and five other groups and one late night the groups threw a party for their fans.

The following is just a preview of what took place.
Note this took place a few months ago




Then the big party starts

Weekly Poll #6

The Question was: Which future release are you looking forward to the most?

CHA CHA Sing by Berryz Koubou is the winner of the poll. It got 45% (19 votes). Out of all of these choices, Berryz new single is a single that I'm really looking forward too. Lately, while Morning Musume and C-ute have been doing great, Berryz seems like their in a slump. Aa yo ga akeru and Be Genki were great, but they weren't the best from berryz for me. However, their cover of P'Bird's popular song ounds fun and energetic. The PV is a standard H!P studio PV, but it actually looks really nice for once.

Tweet Dream/Sparkle by Fairies received second place with 35% (15 votes). I definitely think some of Fairies past works are better than their new single. For me, this is one of their weakest. However, I give props to the girls for trying out a new style, instead of sticking with the same sound and playing it safe. Unlike another group I follow... The songs aren't all bad. Tweet dream is growing one me, and Sparkle isn't half bad either. It may be their lowest selling single, but Fairies have grown a strong fanbase, in Japan, and also oversees.

Song For Smiling by Sakura Gakuin received third place with 19% (8 votes). I was surprised. Sakura Gakuin usually scores very low on polls. They are so under appreciated by everyone, it's sad. But I think their popularity went up a little, and I'm glad they snagged third place. Song for Smiling is definitely the typical upbeat, and happy Sakura Gakuin song. It's probably my least liked song from them, but the English is refreshing, and the painting outfits are cute; a nice break from their School Uniforms.I'm not sure if it's an official single yet though...but hopefully, it's included on a CD.

Go! Go! Here we go! by Ebichu took fourth place with 16% (7 votes). I adored Ebichu's debut, Karikeiyaku no Cinderella. It almost reached 30k, which is really amazing! I heard the preview, and I'm loving it so far. I just really love STARDUST in general. They really know how to produce good talents.

Headbanger by BABYMETAL took fifth with 14% (6 votes). Technically, they shouldn't be on the list because this single was released before I put the poll up, but I made a mistake. Anyway,  this is another awesome single, with an awesome b side from the group! I love the PV.

One up!!!/Ichigo Gyuunyuu by Idoling!!! took last place with 9% (4 votes). This result does not surprise me. While Idoling!!! has really great success in Japan, selling 50-60k with every single, they are really  unpopular with the western fanbase. I guess it's because at a glance, these girls are normal idols that don't really stand out. But actually, when you get to know the group, you'll find that Idoling!!! is really fun.
I like to watch their shows. Also, they have a good range of music.

In total, 42 people voted.

Weekly poll #7 is now up.

Don't forget, you can send in your weekly poll. I'm running out of questions! To find out how, click the weekly polls tab at the top of the page

WHY@DOLL:Fight

WHY@DOLL Make their debut to PIH with their debut single fight.
Fight is your traditional idol single, filled with close-ups and  dance shots as the girls put down their instruments [something they do often]; in a happy idol-pop PV.





http://www.cradle-records.com/whydollindex.html

ALLOVER PT 2

Not long ago I told you about the Indie Idol super group ALLOVER and their debut single.
Now outside of the debut live footage that I showed you before, we now have their debut PV.

You can read the profile post here
http://pureidolheart.blogspot.com/2012/05/indie-idol-super-group.html



For member and group related news and links to the Indie Idol groups the members come from
http://www.allover.jp/

PIH Live House: Afilia Saga East

Like the bad wota that I can be at times , I have neglected Afilia Saga East ,well it`s time to fix that as they are the next group to be featured in our PIH Live House.

Weekly Poll #5

Sorry, I've been busy, and I have skipped the weekly poll for several several weeks. But now, I'm starting over, even though it's not Monday yet.

The Question was: What is your favorite 48 summer release?

 Manatsu no Sounds Good came in first place with 19 votes (52%). It's kind of expected that they'd get first place because, since their the most popular out of the 48 family. I liked this summer single from them. The song wasn't the best, but the chorus was catchy, and they made the PV more than just their usual summer bikini PV by all of the violence.

Nagiichi came in second place with 7 votes (19%). I was surprised. SKE48 is more popular, so I thought their summer PV would be in second place. I didn't really look too much at NMB's sumemr single. I mean, for their first summer PV, It was good, but it seems like a copy of AKB's summer stuff. Bikinis, cuteness, but nothing outstanding.

Aishiteraburu! came in third place with 6 votes (16%). Only one vote behind NMB. Anyway, I liked SKE's single the best out of the 48 family. (SKE bias...) because the song was really cute, and the PV was refreshing because it was located over water. Much better than Parero wa Emerald.

Oide Shampoo came in last place with 4 votes (11%). Nogizaka is still a new group, so it's expected that their PV would get the lowest. To be honest, I haven't looked at anything that AKB's rival group sister group has released.

In total, 36 people voted.

Weekly poll #6 is now up. I tried to have some diversity in the groups this time.

Don't forget, you can send in your weekly poll. I'm running out of questions! To find put how, click the weekly polls tab at the top of the page

PASSPO☆???

After releasing several indie songs, PASSPO☆ debuted with Shojo Hikou on May 4th of last year. It debuted at #1, setting a record. It was an amazing debut for an idol group. Not long after, PASSPO☆ had their second single, Vivi Natsu, which sold around the same as Shojo Hikou did. (40-50k)

After Vivi Natsu, the girls released their second album, CHECK-IN. It didn't do too well. But I wasn't worried since albums usually sell badly anyway. After CHECK-IN, PASSPO☆ released their third single this year in March, Kimi wa Boku wo Suki ni Naru. It sold in the 12k range.



I was not surprised at the sales because the It was a very idol cliche-ish, and kind of bland song. Even though the single was kind of bad, I didn't expect the number to be so low. Usually when a group releases a "bad" song, sales are lower, however, in PASSPO☆'s case, I think for a bad song, sales were too low. Kimi wa Boku wo Suki ni Naru should have at least gotten to 20k, in my opinion. The song is growing on me, and it's not so bad after all!

Then most recently, when PASSPO☆ released their fourth single, NEXT FLIGHT, I was shocked. NEXT FLIGHT was an outstanding single. The song and PV were amazing. Even the b-sides were really good. But it only reached 8k, even worse than Kimi wa Boku wo Suki ni Naru. I tried to think of everything that they could have done wrong. But I soon realized that this problem was more than a case of bad promotion.

Here are some posts from the PASSPO☆ forum  These quotes are from what  アドレナリン said.  (I'm sorry, I took out and added some things to make it shorter)


"As you know Kaho left Passpo at the end of last year. But did you know that the staff has been changed too? Erina-chan (manager I think) has left and another important man has left too (now he's managing another band)

First, after Kaho's graduation, it has been decided that Passpo wont be doing much events next year. They did too many events, that's why in the future the number of events will decrease. Passpo trained too much, and it begins to be hard for them to continue to repeat and dance that much. I thought that Kaho's injury may have appeared because they repeat a lot and push their body beyond its capabilities.


Second, Passpo used to be an idol group who's really really near of passengers (PASSPO☆ fans). During events, everyone can speak, take pictures with members and talk a lot with them. But the Passpo direcetor is a cold man, and isn't really appreciate of the passengers. He has changed his mind and it seems this proximity has been lost. (during handshake session staff are really strict with passengers) 

Passengers can't see Passpo as often as they want and as they used to. For instance during the Golden Week no event was held. Passengers feel really bad, even Passpo members begins to complain (on Yukimi's blog we can read that she really want to meet Passengers and make flight)"

So as you can see, the decrease in sales is probably because there has been a negative change in the way management deals with PASSPO☆. Groups like AKB48 and Arashi, of course, must restrict contact between fans and the members because of their popularity. But smaller groups like PASSPO☆ and indie groups' are really fun, because theres usually no strict rules, and fans are free to interact with members without it being too strict.


It's not so much the sales that I'm worried about, because I'll still be a Passenger no matter what PASSPO☆ sells. I'm just worried that interest will decline so much, that PASSPO☆ will have to disband or something. They're one of my favorite groups, and I'd be crushed if they stopped performing. Hopefully, some things change with management, so PASSPO☆ and Passengers won't be upset anymore.

NMB48: Cat Transformations in "Mousou Girlfriend"

Yesterday, the Osaka AKB48 sister group released the PV to one B-side of their 5th single, Mousou Girlfriend, on their official Youtube channel!

First off, the song! I like how soft-sounding and casual the opening sounds! If I didn't know, any better, I'd think I was listening to one of Acchan's songs off her solo singles. But then, before I can even think, it was just to lead into the real instrumental of upbeat "du-du-duru, du-du-duruduruduru..."'s and clapping, along with some bells, maybe? These make the instrumental breaks sound quite cutesy, in a good way. But when it gets to the chorus, it gets pretty standard. Meaning: It doesn't really stand out in any way. The only part that does stand out is when they sing the first two lines of the chorus and they shout out "GIRLFRIEND!" or "BOYFRIEND!". It continues in that meh-kinda style for the verses and the bridges. For the most part, but I also do like how the percussion builds up in the bridge, and how they say "PLEASE!" in the part before the last chorus. It somehow builds up my happiness, in turn. Aaaaand that's pretty much all I find great out of this song. I mean, it is cute and catchy, but really, really, REALLY generic pop. Thank goodness, it's just a B-side, though, and not the A-side. (Really don't want a repeat of Oh My God; part of the reason why I don't keep up with NMB releases)

Looking at the thumbnail, (which looked... Interesting, if I do say so myself) I knew I was in for a crazy ride. But looking at the beginning, I was squinting a little. "Ah", I thought, "they're just trying to surprise us!", so I continued to watch. When watching Milky talking to the cat and touching it, I found it fairly normal. Who doesn't talk to cats from time to time? But when the cat bit her finger and I saw sparkles coming out, I knew that was when the fun started. From there, Milky finds herself on the ground, her pinky turning pink, growing a tail and ears (With an awesome bow!) and suddenly, standing up, dressed in a crop top, frilly skirt, furry wristlets and a garter, totally pulling off cute and sexy simultaneously.

Surprised by this, she runs off to... Somewhere. I don't know where, but she looks ridiculous when contrasted with the calm, normal scenery! I was really giggling a lot! Through town, on the railroad, in the forest and she finally makes it to the other NMB members, who look at her like, "Who the hell is she?!". But all Milky wanted to do was spread the cat disease by biting her fellow workmate. And so the cycle goes on with biting and transforming into a cat!

Once all the members have successfully turned into cats, they all dance to the music and sing along, as any cat idol would. The choreography, just like the outfits, is cute and sexy with every move that they do. The part where they're in a line, swaying their heads from side to side in unison especially looks so cute and carefree. I also found the part where they do a round-off of poses very giggle-worthy. What surprised me most, though, was that it appears they've woken up from a dream at the end while the camera pans out at their stunned faces.

The storyline was quite fun to watch! Really random and crazy, but fun! The transforming parts were well executed and magical, so they were some of the best parts of the PV for me! I thought that at the end, the cat would be there when the camera panned out fully or something else like that would happen. But with the PV ending like it did, it kind of made me feel empty, like all the whimsicalness of the whole PV was just fake. A bit depressing, I know, but still, I'll just remember the story from before the ending. :P Also, though the outfits were a little distracting at first due to their lengths and furriness, they fit the girls and the dance well. I'd say the PV almost makes up for the song!

Overall, I'd give this 6.7/10; Like I said before, a generic pop song, but the PV bumped up some of the points for me.

Party Rockets Are Here

I wasn`t sure what type of attitude this unit was going to bring ,if it was going to be something that I`d like for the long run or be like some other units ,heavy on cuteness , but quickly to tire of.

Well Party Rockets have landed on the scene and I can`t speak for you the readers, but for myself I could listen to this all day.

This is my type of idol and idol group ,one with some bite and an edge to them.

This maybe the first partner unit that overcomes their more popular sisters. Dorothy Little Happy will now have to step it up to another level to hold off these little rockets.

Alice No.10 Special Report

Life on the road is difficult for Indie Idols, eating in the finest establishments, flying first class around the nation and more importantly staying in the most luxurious hotels.

Come now with Alice No.10 [formerly Alice Juban] as they expose the secret life of Indie idols, in the lifestyles of the not so rich and not so famous Indie Idols.

Dream5 and Kid Power!

Technically, this adorable 5-member group isn't labeled in the idol genre, but, like I said before, they're adorable; who doesn't associate adorable with the word idol? :P

In 2009, a popular NHK program, "Tensai Terebi-kun MAX", held nation-wide auditions, looking for kids in the fourth grade to 1st year in middle school who specialized in dancing and singing. Out of 1,500 applications, 5 people were chosen. The name that appealed to the public was "Dream5 (Or Dori5), and so Dream5 they were named.
Due to overwhelming public reaction, they debuted with their CD titled, "I don't obey ~Bokura no Pride~", in the same year as their formation. Along with their activities as artists, they've branched out to participating in things such as drama and variety. Their fanbase consists mostly of children and parents, but this dance and vocal unit is popular among elementary and middle school students, too!

The members are, in order of the picture from left to right:
Takano Akira (高野洸) - Dancer
Nickname: Akira, Takanocchi
Birthday: July 22, 1997
Blood Type: B

Oohara Yuuno (大原優乃) - Dancer
Nickname: Yuuno
Birthday: October 8, 1999
Blood Type: A

Shigemoto Kotori (重本ことり) - Leader, Vocalist
Nickname: Kotori, COTORI
Birthday: October 5, 1996
Blood Type: O

Tamakawa Momona (玉川桃奈) - Dancer
Nickname: Momo, Momonga
Birthday: March 24, 1997
Blood Type: O

Hibi Mikoto (日比美思) - Vocalist
Nickname: Mikoto, Mikochi, Mikocchan, Mikochin, Mikochan
Birthday: September 20, 1998
Blood Type: B

Honestly speaking as a fan of this unit, I wouldn't say that they're successful in sales. (I've never seen any of their single or album releases go past 10k) But that's definitely not why or how I got into them in the first place. I remember looking up new groups to listen to and came across them, but never really got motivated to look into them more. Then after seeing them in a picture with TOKYO GIRLS' STYLE, I decided to give them another chance. MAN, I'm so glad I did!

If you knew me, you'd know that dancing for me is one of my top factors when looking for new musical acts to listen to, and this group was no exception! I was so surprised with how precise, energetic and fast-paced their dancing was. Not even some people older than them could handle the choreography that they'd been given! Of course, that means they weren't trained in the skill or dancing's simply not their strength, but even so!

The 3 members officially labeled as dancers, Momona; Akira; and Yuuno, definitely know what they're doing, as to be expected! And, in my eyes, each one stands out in one way or another; Momona's the best at hitting the choreography with each move; Akira's like a little B-Boy when performing his tricks; and with Yuuno's facial expressions, she adds a lot of personality into her dance.

As for the two members officially labeled as vocalists, Kotori and Mikoto, they both have their own flavour then they sing. Kotori's the deeper, funky and adult-like voice, while Mikoto is like the opposite; higher, girly, and child-like. Their voices don't exclusively sound like that at all the time, but they do for the majority of the time. It's quite easy to distinguish the two when sing alternately, but it's weird how well they blend whenever they sing duet lines.

Usually, I wouldn't be into a group that's made up of "kids" and is targetted at "kids" and has an image that's "kiddish". But with talent from each and every one of the members, it's easy to just focus on their performance and personality that they give with each single, album, PV, live and event that they do.



EZ DO DANCE


Dandan GROW UP!

Bokura no Natsu!! Furitsuke Video (The video that led me to them~!)