Yuna Ito - DREAM Album Details

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :



Tracklist :

1) love you
2) Ima Demo Aitai yo ... (I Still Miss You ...) Feat Spontania
3) Brand New World
4) Koi wa (Love Is) groovy ×2
5) trust you
6) BAILA BAILA
7) BREEEEEZIN !!!
8) miss you
9) LOVE MACHINE GUN
10) No one else
11) Body
12) groovy x2 (Hidden Track)



DREAM is Yuna Ito's brand new 3rd album . Scheduled for release next month on 27th , this comes a year & 3 months since the release of her last album WISH .

3 singles & 2 B-sides made the cut in DREAM & compared with her 1st 2 albums , Dream has the least amount of new tracks & there will be a hidden track in Dream which's the english version of Koi wa (Love Is) groovy ×2 which's titled groovy x2 that Yuna sang under a different stage name Christine Ito .

I count 5 new album tracks instead of 6 in the mix since I already have heard Ima Demo Aitai yo ... (I Still Miss You ...) feat Spontania already & the most prominent issue about DREAM's tracklist is that there's an absence of GATE which I can't help but feel disappointed in it but at least LOVE MACHINE GUN's left intact .

The oddly titled BAILA BAILA which means Dance Dance in Spanish probably will sound like a dance no. in this case . I could be wrong about it though & I can't help but notice an unofficial trilogy of sorts going on in the form of love you -> trust you -> miss you .

Regardless of which , be sure to get a copy of DREAM in due time when it's out for sale on 27th May .

GIRL NEXT DOOR - Infinity

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :





Infinity is GIRL NEXT DOOR's 5th single . Scheduled to be released in 10th June , this comes after 2 months+ release of their previous single , Seeds of dream .

The trio's new tune will be used as the theme song for Horikita Maki's dorama Atashinchi no Danshi .

After the somewhat initial disappointment I had with Seeds of dream , I really glad to see GND back in full force with this brand new offering of theirs .

Compared to Seeds of dream , Infinity's a much stronger track on 1st listen & also the part where frontwoman Chisa go 'wow wow wow' in the background just makes things even easier for me to remember this really catchy & memorable pop/rock meets synth tune .

Plus , I like the fact that the synth factor going on in here is much more prominent & distinct which's great .

If , Jounetsu no Daishou (Diamond Mirror SCP version) & Seeds of dream (ice cream mix) will serve as B-sides in the Infinity single & notice that the B-side starts with the same alphabet with the A-side , ie. I .

GReeeeN - Haruka (Far)

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :





Haruka (Far) is GReeeeN's 11th single . Scheduled to be released next month on the 27th , this comes 2 months+ since the release of their previous single Setsuna .

The band's brand new song will be used as the theme song for the movie Rookies . Their 7th single Kiseki was used for the drama so I guess it's kinda more fitting for the guys to 'return' to provide the theme song for the movie adaption of Rookies this time round .

Well all I can say in previous posts of GReeeeN's that it's classic stuff that they have brought to the table . They're frankly 1 artiste that haven't disappoint me with their brand of pop meets rock/folk music when comes to their material .

I hope even more great things will shower upon this quartet in due time & that when Haruka's released , it hopefully can do even more wonders for them considering that Kiseki was the song that shot their popularity up even higher than ever prior to the release of their 3rd single Ai Uta which was credited as their breakthrough hit .

Koe (Voice) & Haruka Kanata (Very Far Away) ~Piano Version~ will serve as B-sides in the single .

CD Review :: KAT-TUN - Break the Records -by you & for you-

CD Only Regular Edition :



CD Only Limited Edition :



Tracklist :

1) DON'T U EVER STOP
2) SADISTIC LOVE
3) RESCUE
4) WATER DANCE
5) ONE DROP
6) WHITE WORLD (Nakamaru Yuichi's Solo)
7) care (Akanishi Jin's Solo)
8) 1582 (Kamenashi Kazuya's Solo)
9) PIERROT (Tanaka Koki's Solo)
10) Hana no Mau Machi [The Town Of Dancing Flowers] (Ueda Tatsuya's Solo)
11) WIND (Taguchi Junnosuke's Solo)
12) Kimi Michi (Your Road)
13) Shunkashuutou (The Four Seasons : Spring , Summer , Autumn & Winter)
14) White X'mas (Album Version)
15) NEIRO
16) MOON (Regular Edition Track)


Break the Records -by you & for you- is KAT-TUN's 4th studio offering . This's their 3rd original album & it's scheduled for release this coming Wed .

4 singles made the cut in the guys's brand new album & this comes almost 10 months since their last studio album KAT-TUN III -QUEEN OF PIRATES- .

The limited edition comes with a 36 page booklet while you have to make do with a 15 page booklet & a bonus track MOON for the regular edition .

This's the 2nd time their album feature solos material for each of the members , the 1st time such a thing happened was for their 2nd album offering cartoon KAT-TUN II you .

As such , I will review the solos separately from the singles & the group album efforts .

DON'T U EVER STOP is the band's 7th single & I think it's quite a fitting way to kick things off with it & here I was real worried on whether will their 'oldest' single in Break the Records -by you & for you-will make the cut as you're able to find the extended -LIMITED EDITION- video of the song pertaining to the DVD contents of KAT-TUN III -QUEEN OF PIRATES- so thank goodness it was left intact !

I have a soft spot for DON'T U EVER STOP because this was the 1st single that I heard of the guys in full & it's frankly interesting that they made use of glass breaking noises for the melody .

My only grouse about the song's that the guys should have included the -LIMITED EDITION- version of the song since after the 2nd chorus , there's an extended version of Nakamaru's beatboxing which was fantastic but other than that it's a good start for an opening tune .

SADISTIC LOVE is the 1st new album group offering & yes I still stand corrected in the fact that it should have been either an Ueda or a Tanaka solo haha .

Other than that , it really does sound like a cross dimension of 7 DAYS BATTLE & T∀BOO . I think it's great that Ueda was able to sing the lead in most parts of SADISTIC LOVE because I frankly don't think it's fair to just keep letting the 2 co lead vocalists Kamenashi & Akanishi to keep doing that all the time so it's nice for a change .

RESCUE is the group's most recent / 10th single prior to the release of their new album offering . This was used as the opening theme song for Nakamaru & NEWS's Masuda Takahisa's drama of the same name titled RESCUE - Tokubetsu Kodo Kyujotai .

To me this's their most experimental & heavily English influenced single that they have released to date . I frankly was shocked that the chorus were in perfect English & for them to able to execute this , it's pretty something & their dictation's clear which's great .

While their other singles have a more rock based influence , it doesn't qualify for RESCUE . Instead what you get's a mean mix of futuristic electro tune which's so insanely catchy , I dare you not to listen to RESCUE without humming along with it .

The fact that there's rapping done by Tanaka & beatboxing done by Nakamaru on RESCUE just step things up to a whole new level , music wise & both the song & the drama go in synch with each other extremely well . You can hear the sound of heartbeats & fire in the beginning of RESCUE .

Just like DON'T U EVER STOP , I felt that the guys should have included the video version of RESCUE as after the 2nd chorus rolled out , it has a really great extended instrumental mix that I simply adore but oh well sometimes you can't always get everything that you want so this will do .

WATER DANCE is KAT-TUN's 2nd group album track & I really loved the preview when I 1st heard it & for me to be able to finally hear the full version , it was worth the wait .

I love it that it's such a lushed chilled out piece of no. . I don't know if I can consider this as a ballad but I suppose so ? & it's nice to hear Nakamaru leading in most parts of WATER DANCE . I like that because I honestly think that he can sing really well .

I can't help but compare WATER DANCE with Splash ... (aside from association of the song titles) except in this case WATER DANCE's a lot more better in every single aspect as Splash ... frankly creeps me out to a certain extent .

ONE DROP is their 9th single which the song was used as the opening no. for co lead vocalist Kame's drama Kami no Shizuku .

Because of the fact that ONE DROP was used to promote a drama that placed heavy emphasis on wine , you're able to droplets of it in the introduction of the song .

I still think that this song sounded like an slightly upbeat version of their 4th single Yorokobi no Uta & it's quite on the mellow side which's quite rare as usually when you think of rock influenced music where it should have fast & thumping beats , it doesn't go for ONE DROP's case .

People might not like it as it probably sounds generic but I have no problems with ONE DROP . It's funny that I tend to overplay the song a bit more than RESCUE :O

I jump all the way to track #11 Kimi Michi (Your Road) since I mentioned before I will review the solos separately from the group's singles & album tracks's counterparts .

I still stand corrected in the fact that I find Kimi Michi probably to be the weakest album track in Break the Records -by you & for you-. In fact I had to take a lot more listens than before finally remembering how Kimi Michi sounds like .

I did had deja vu vibes of 「un-」when I 1st heard Kimi Michi as I can't help but realise how both tunes had the same opening bridge .

But after that's out of the way , I think Kimi Michi's a decent group offering . It does sound like RUSH OF LIGHT to a certain extent too . Just that I will not consider Kimi Michi as my fave album track in this context .

Shunkashuutou (The Four Seasons : Spring , Summer , Autumn & Winter) is probably their less rock inspired tune in here & it's a bit more on the poppy side but not full blown guitar pop like their 2nd single SIGNAL .

For me I find Shunkashuutou real cute on 1st listen as it sounded like a cross dimension between YOU & I LIKE IT . It's pretty much those kinda songs that will put you in a really good mood & tend to get you humming along to the melody & beats as you listen to Shunkashuutou .

White X'mas is the final / 8th single that made the cut & in this case , you have an album version & it's the guys's 1st Christmas holiday inspired ballad & it's their 2nd ballad released as a single after their 3rd one Bokura no Machi de except in this case , it's their 1st commerical ballad to feature co lead vocalist Akanishi on vocals .

Honestly , I really thought that the guys was going to re-record or maybe even re-arranged the song after I saw the words (Album Version) on the album tracklist but it turns out it's exactly the same thing as what you will hear in the single version of White X'mas .

The only difference's after the guys delivered the 2nd chorus of the song , there's an apperance of Tanaka's rapping . As such I was a bit disappointed cos here I was assuming that it might be something different overall but there were only minor adjustments involved .

But other than that , I still love White X'mas . The melody is just beautiful to boost & the tune that accompanied Tanaka's rapping is ain't 1/2 bad either & I hope this will not be the last ballad that the guys will release as a single .

NEIRO's the 2nd last / last song (depending whether you get the limited or regular edition) & this's a very nice ballad .

I love the way that the guys's vocals were able to harmonise really well together . Even though the melody's nothing fantastic to shout about , they more than make up for the lack of it with the harmonisation of their voices .

MOON's only found in the regular edition of the album & this's still 1 of my fave album tracks simply because I never expected that KAT-TUN's able to do an fusion mix of Enka meets hard rock no. .

I was frankly shocked when I 1st heard MOON because the opening of the song caught me by surprise & I was thinking would it be the 1st full Enka tune that they have done ? but HELL NO .

After the 1st 20 secs of MOON is out of the way , the song made a 360 degree U-turn & in comes an angsty mean mix of hard rock which brings you in mind of their previous hard rock tunes such as HELL , NO , Ai no Command & LIPS .

I still think that it's something that Evanescence might have delivered except in this case , KAT-TUN has no problems executing this & I think it's fantastic to close the album with such a big bang , literally .

Ok I have finished reviewing the singles & the new group album offerings , it's time for me to talk about the solos , 1 by 1 .

1) WHITE WORLD (Nakamaru Yuichi's Solo) - this's an amazing ballad that Nakamaru delivered . After key of life & SMACK , I really thought that he might sing another uptempo tune but turns out in this case , it's a ballad which's a nice change .

Initally I was a bit disappointed that he didn't had a hand in writing WHITE WORLD cos I was really looking forward to another solo that he might write but not anymore .

This somewhat Christmas inspired tune is sad & somewhat nostaglic , you definitely can tell it from the melody & the lyrics & I wouldn't be surprised if you can call it a distinct cousin of White X'mas .

Nakamaru has once again proven to me on why I really love his solos a great deal & this time round , it's no exception in the form of WHITE WORLD .

Lyrics , music & arrangement : Katsuhiko Sugiyama

2) care (Akanishi Jin's Solo) - the only 'old' song to make the cut in Break the Records -by you & for you-, it's the 2nd co lead vocalist Akanishi's solo which's titled care .

A fan favourite , care was performed by Akanishi pretty much a lot of times before the group's official music 3 years ago .

Frankly I was surprised when I 1st heard care & I treated the song as a totally new no. on my end since I only just got onboard their music last April / May .

It's a very simple & sweet guitar pop/rock no. which's a sharp contrast to the otherwise Americanised & dirty gritting sounding LOVEJUICE & I like this type of music , there's no way you will not like it at all .

The only grouse for care's that I find it a bit too short . He should have extended it by a few secs or so . But other than that , he definitely should sing more of such tunes in future as I think it fits his voice well & kudos to him for having a hand in cowriting it .

Lyrics ：Akanishi Jin / Kazunari Ohno　
Music & Arrangement ：Noriyoshi Matsushita

3) 1582 (Kamenashi Kazuya's Solo)

The only song be it group album offering or solo to have no.s as a song title , it's the 1st co lead vocalist Kame's no. , 1582 .

I honestly wasn't expecting much at all before I heard 1582 . However all that changed when I found out that the person who wrote it was the very same person who wrote for Kame's w/o notice ?? as I was real worried on whether will 1582 sound like a w/o notice ?? part 2 .

As much as I find w/o notice ?? cute & amusing , I really wanted him to release another serious tune but thankfully , after I finally got the chance to listen to 1582 , I throw every assumption I made outta the window .

He's probably the last person that I expect to try out a mean mix of experimental futuristic fusion blend of electro meets trance/rock tune with a violin thrown in for good measure & as a result , you get a really great catchy somewhat angsty tune which I absolutely adore .

The only turn off about 1582's after he sang the 1st chorus of the song is some weird panting/sucking sounds which really freaked me out but other than that , 1582's fantastic & it's such a great listen . It's hard for you NOT to get hooked onto it as each listen goes by .

It frankly still doesn't match up to the brilliance that's of Kizuna but 1582's more or less on par , alongside with someday for somebody which's great & Kame more or less has proven to me on (again) why he deserved to serve as co-lead vocalist in the group alongside with Akanishi .

Lyrics : n
Music ：M.Y　
Arrangement : Yuichi Hamatsu

4) PIERROT (Tanaka Koki's Solo)

This's honestly my least fave solo on Break the Records -by you & for you- because there's just something about Tanaka's solos that I either like or dislike .

I was actually laughing when I finally had the chance to listen to PIERROT & the fact that my younger sister said that it sounded like a Pokemon or a Beyblade tune's not helping matters either -_- .

But in due respect , I definitely prefer this charged up explosive hard rock tune as compared to PARASITE which still freaks me out cos of the lyrical content & it's commendable on Tanaka's part in writing & co-composing PIERROT .

I don't think he has sang a solo ballad before . I think he should do that in the future because I think he has a good voice to carry out a ballad on his own .

Lyrics : JOKER
Music : Atsushi / JOKER
Arrangement : Atsushi

5) Hana no Mau Machi [The Town Of Dancing Flowers] (Ueda Tatsuya's Solo)

Ahh such a nice mid tempo piano influenced no. delivered by Ueda .

According to a broadcast of radio show R-ONE KAT-TUN that's hosted by him & Nakamaru , Ueda said he wrote & composed his new solo during the period of his 1st stageplay Romeo & Juliet .

Hence , the content of the song fits the world of his debut stageplay .

Ueda's solos are something that I always look forward to because I consider him as the most musicially gifted in KAT-TUN .

After last year's superb Ai no Hana , it's nice that he delivered another Romeo & Juliet inspired no. in the form of Hana no Mau Machi . Mood wise , it's more cheerier & carefree as compared to the latter which's awesome .

I'm still hoping for the day that he can put Love in snow on a CD as that's a song that's long overdue to be given the CD studio treatment .

Lyrics & Music : Ueda Tatsuya　
Arrangement ：kao

6) WIND (Taguchi Junnosuke's Solo)

The very 1st solo that Taguchi had a hand in writing & co-composing , is titled WIND .

I wasn't really expecting that much for Taguchi's case since this's the 1st time that he did everything hands on except for arrangement so I went with an open mind for his .

I like the opening which's a nice piano introduction & after that's out of the way , WIND became a very chilled out lounge inspired tune & this's probably something that Ken Hirai might do .

Not that it's a bad thing but I can sense that Taguchi had a fun time singing WIND & considering that it's his 1st solo composition , it's commendable .

Then again his previous solos efforts like Natsu no Basho & SAMURAI☆LOVE☆ATTACK are also equally worth listening out to .

Lyrics : Taguchi Junnosuke　
Music : Taguchi Junnosuke / Gin Kitagawa
Arrangement : Gin Kitagawa

===

Wow what can I say ? after last year's superb album offering KAT-TUN III -QUEEN OF PIRATES- , I really thought that KAT-TUN wasn't able to live up to music exceptations with Break the Records -by you & for you-but they have proven me wrong once again with this solid new offering of theirs .

Compared to KAT-TUN III -QUEEN OF PIRATES- , you definitely can tell that their new album's more experimental in that they dabbed in music genres that they have never done before as compared to their previous studio offering .

Music genres like electro , trance & even enka were dotted across the songs in Break the Records -by you & for you-. Combined that with their signature rock sound , it takes you on an extremely wonderful music joy ride from the start to the end .

All the solos are very well defined in their own respective right which shows to me that they know what their vocals strengths & weaknesses are & how they work them for / against their advantage .

Unlike cartoon KAT-TUN II you where the major drawbacks that the album suffered were inconsistency & shaky music direction route/grounds , you don't find them in the guys's latest album .

It's a good thing in a way that I decided to keep exceptations for Break the Records -by you & for you-as low as possible before its commencement release date this Wed because I know for a fact that KAT-TUN -QUEEN OF PIRATES- was so amazing that it probably be hard to top things or even sound more superior than the other .

But I'm really glad to say that Break the Records -by you & for you-has really exceeded my music exceptations & this has immediately gone straight to the top of my fave album of the 1 1/2 of 2009 , Johnny's wise .

It's great to see that as each album goes by , KAT-TUN's able to try out different music genres & also in the process experiment as time goes by , be it whether the final ending product's bad or good & also the overall production for Break the Records -by you & for you-is more sleeked & polished .

Do yourself a favor & buy a copy or 2 of Break the Records -by you & for you-, you'll be glad that you did so . You wouldn't regret listening to this latest album offering of 1 of Japan's most talented Johnny's boybands .

If experimentation & rock meets other music genres songs are your thing , then Break the Records -by you & for you- will be the album for you to listen to .

Aqua Timez - Honto wa Ne (That's True, Right ?)





Honto wa Ne (That's True, Right ?) is found as track #5 in Aqua Timez's 3rd album Utai Sarishi Hana which was released last month on the 11th .

I wanted to blog about Honto wa Ne for quite sometime but somehow I always forgotten about doing so but it's better late than never .

This's probably the only album track that received a music video of its own , hence for today's entry cos I remembered seeing the song being played on MTV Asia / China a while back .

It's pretty much a standard pop/rock offering that the guys & girl have delivered . It's nice to know that lead singer/frontman Futoshi sounded really carefree in Honto wa Ne & the melody's just beautiful to boot .

You definitely can't go wrong with cute keyboards beats & also synth in here .

NEWS - Labyrinth , OPEN YOUR EYES & Share (LIVE at TOKYO DOME) (Koi no ABO's B-sides)





Labyrinth , OPEN YOUR EYES & Share (LIVE at TOKYO DOME) are the 3 B-sides found in NEWS's 11th single Koi no ABO which will be released this coming Wed .

I love Labyrinth on 1st listen because it reminded me of Ai no Matador which's found as track #1 in their 2nd album pacific . With such great Latin Spanish tinged beats & an insanely infectious melody , it's no doubt that I got hooked onto Labyrinth within moments .

The next 2 B-sides are only found in the CD only edition of Koi no ABO .

I remembered when I 1st heard the radio rip of OPEN YOUR EYES , I was a bit surprised because I thought the music style was very similar to something that temporary Johnny's trio THE SHIGOTONIN released , with regards to the material that they put out in their 1st & last single Kyoka Suigetsu .

Not that it's a bad thing but it's nice to see NEWS getting outta their music comfort zone & tried their luck in singing OPEN YOUR EYES which's quite an old school country enka influenced tune .

The LIVE at TOKYO DOME of Share is the final B-side in Koi no ABO & this's the 1st song that NEWS has wrote & composed together . I believe the live version of Share was recorded during their WINTER PARTY DIAMOND in TOKYO DOME concert .

I must say that considering that it's a live rendition , it does somewhat sounded suspiciously like a studio song but I give it the benefit of the doubt in here .

I frankly feel that the live take of Share is the weakest B-side outta the mix because I had to take a few more listens to it to remember how it sounded like as compared to the other 2 B-sides which I have no problems remembering so after a few listens .

Then again considering the fact that it's the guys's 1st B-side that they had a hand in writing & composing together , I should cut them some slack . Music wise , it's less complicated & simpler as compared to Labyrinth & OPEN YOUR EYES which's cool & it's a pretty good mid tempo tune .

The 1st new material that NEWS has delivered for 2009 is worth the wait . I like the A-side as it's an insane piece of 80's influenced no. & the B-sides pretty much delivered well in each of their own right .

Some people might not appreciate or accept the somewhat discotic numbers found in the guys's brand new single but personally I don't see any harm in them trying out new styles when comes to music , be it whether the final product sounds good or bad .

At least NEWS doesn't sound stagnant in this case , music wise & they have proven so in the form of their latest single release Koi no ABO .

Aoyama Thelma Tour 2009 "Diary" DVD Details



Tracklist :

1) My Beginning
2) HIGHER
3) ONE WAY
4) My dear friend
5) Nando mo (How Many Times)
6) Kono Mama de (Like This)
7) Last Letter
8) Walk
9) MADONNA
10) Mama e (To Mom)
11) Mamoritai Mono (I Want To Protect This)
12) Daikkirai Demo Arigatou (I Hate You , But Thanks)
13) Rhythm
14) I ☆ You
15) Paradise
16) DIARY
17) Soba ni Iru ne (I'm By Your Side) feat SoulJa
18) Todoketai ... (I Want To Send ...) Feat KEN THE 390
19) GOOD TIME



Aoyama Thelma Tour 2009 "Diary" is Aoyama Thelma's 1st concert DVD release & it's scheduled for release on 17th June .

All of her recent singles inclusive of her latest one Todoketai ... Feat KEN THE 390 are included in her maiden DVD release .

For me the tracklist's pretty much solid . It's great that most of my fave songs of hers are included in Aoyama Thelma Tour 2009 "Diary" such as HIGHER , GOOD TIME & Mama e although I'm sore that Konomama Zutto didn't made the cut which's a big shame as I feel that's 1 of the more prominent tracks in her LOVE ! ~THELMA LOVESONG COLLECTION~ compilation album .

But regardless of which , do buy Aoyama's 1st DVD when it's released in due time on 17th June .

At the meantime , I'm waiting in anticipation on what new material that she will have up her sleeves for release in due time .

Kobukuro - Summer rain & Rururu (Niji's B-sides)





Summer rain & Rururu are the 2 B-sides found in Kobukuro's 17th single Niji which was released last Wed .

Summer rain serves as an opening song for the anime Cross Game & their label mate ayaka is in charge of the ending song in which the song in question here's Koi Kogarete Mita Yume which's the 2nd A-side of her 10th single Yume wo Mikata ni / Koi Kogarete Mita Yume .

Hmm I'm not sure if I'm right to say this but Summer rain is probably the 1st song of the duo that's being used for promotion for an anime . But in anycase , just like the A-side Niji , Summer rain is another great upbeat peppy folk tinged no. that Kobukuro has delivered .

I guess you can say that it lies in the same vein as Niji which's good .

Rururu is a very simplistic tune in the sense that it's just the guys singing with a backing of an acoustic guitar completed with folk edges around the song . It wasn't memorable to me on 1st listen but in due time I gradually began to like this after a few listens to it .

Niji's the 1st proper single that I listened to of Kobukuro in full & I must say that it's a great single that they have delivered . Ever since I listened to my 1st Kobukuro song which was their 14th single Tsubomi , I knew that somehow or another , they're 1 artiste that never fails to deliver the goods in which in this case I'm probably right in saying it .

I'm waiting in anticipation for somemore new material of the duo . Who knows maybe they will release another album this year after the massive success that they have gathered from their last studio offering which was the million seller album 5296 .

But until then I will be satisfied with this latest release of theirs in the form of Niji .

OLIVIA - Love Love Love & Undress (Sailling free's B-sides)





Love Love Love & Undress are the 2 B-sides found in OLIVIA's 11th single Sailing free which was released last Wed .

Clocking in at 6:01 mins , Love Love Love is sure 1 very long B-side & here I was thinking could it be a Ken Hirai cover but nope it's an original song .

Love Love Love on 1st listen really reminded me of the mid tempo driven no. Dream Catcher which was found in OLIVIA's 5th mini album The Cloudy Dreamer . Not that it's a bad thing since I adore Dream Catcher but basically Love Love Love sounded like a sequel .

Except in this case , Love Love Love's longer & it has a beautiful melody to boost alongside with some gorgeous strings .

In the case for Undress , it's a nice peppy pop/rock tune which's a contrast if you're compared it against Love Love Love mood wise although I must say that it's nothing outstanding , it's just well a typical song that OLIVIA might come up with but it's still good in my books .

Sailing free's actually the 1st single that I listened to of OLIVIA in full as I didn't do so for her previous singles & I think all 3 tunes in her new single are pretty much well crafted/defined in their own right & it helps that she wrote & co-composed everything in the single which's commendable .

I do hope that she will not stop releasing material as she's a very under-rated musician , it's just that I don't want to wait for another 3 years+ before she dropped a new single yet again .

B-sides's song/music credits ::

Love Love Love

Lyrics by OLIVIA
Music by OLIVIA , rui
Arrangement by Rui & Kansei (from fade)

Undress

Lyrics by OLIVIA
Music by OLIVIA , Rui
Arrangement by Rui & Kansei (from fade)

ARASHI - Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ (~You Are Invincible~)





Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ (~You Are Invincible~) is the 2nd A-side of ARASHI's upcoming 26th single Ashita no Kioku / Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ which's scheduled for release on 27th May .

The 2nd song of the guys's brand new single is currently used in the new ad for makeup line Kose .

I had a bit of a nostalgic feeling when I 1st heard Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ because it reminded me of some of the band's older works , most evident SUNRISE Nippon which was great because I was really missing of their early works so when Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ came on , naturally I was stoked about it .

Song wise , it's another piece of catchy song that ARASHI has delivered . It does sound like a cross between SUNRISE Nippon & also their most recent hit Believe . Not that it's a bad thing since I like both songs & it's quite interesting a portion of their past & recent material are presented musically in Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ which's cool .

The 1st A-side Ashita no Kioku (Memories Of Tomorrow) will be reviewed in due time .

ayaka - Koi Kogarete Mita Yume (The Dream You Yearned For)





Koi Kogarete Mita Yume (The Dream You Yearned For) is the 2nd A-side of ayaka's 10th single Yume wo Mikata ni / Koi Kogarete Mita Yume which will be released tomorrow .

The song's served as the ending theme song for the anime Cross Game while her label mates , the folk duo Kobukuro's in charge of the opening theme song & the song in question's Summer rain which's the 1st B-side taken from their 17th single Niji .

Unlike her 1st A-side , I find Koi Kogarete Mita Yume unfortunately not memorable on 1st listen . It was quite forgettable & boring for my liking & I couldn't remember how the song sounds like only after a few listens .

At least the tune began to pick up a bit of pace in the latter part where there was a slight burst of orchestra strings which's probably the saving grace of the song .

Found as a B-side in the single , it's the (2009/2/13 SHIBUYA-AX LIVE ver) of Kimi ga Iru Kara (Because I Have You) which was originally found as track 13 in her 2nd album Sing to the Sky .

Personally I feel that ayaka's 1 of the very rare artistes that can sound the same be it whether you hear her voice on a CD or live which's not easy to accomplish at all & no surprises , I really like the live take of Kimi ga Iru Kara & it helps that it happens to be my fave album track on Sing to the Sky too .

ayaka overall delivered a pretty neat single . Except for Koi Kogarete Mita Yume which I feel is the weak link in here , the other tunes are pretty much solid in their own right .

She's said to be releasing another single on 8th July , titled Minna Sora no Shita (All Under The Sky) which will be used for in the ASIENCE ad .

KAT-TUN - Break the Records -by you & for you- Album Covers

CD Only Regular Edition :



CD Only Limited Edition :



Tracklist :

1) DON'T U EVER STOP
2) SADISTIC LOVE
3) RESCUE
4) WATER DANCE
5) ONE DROP
6) WHITE WORLD (Nakamaru Yuichi's Solo)
7) care (Akanishi Jin's Solo)
8) 1582 (Kamenashi Kazuya's Solo)
9) PIERROT (Tanaka Koki's Solo)
10) Hana no Mau Machi [The Town Of Dancing Flowers] (Ueda Tatsuya's Solo)
11) WIND (Taguchi Junnosuke's Solo)
12) Kimi Michi (Your Road)
13) Shunkashuutou (The Four Seasons : Spring , Summer , Autumn & Winter)
14) White X'mas (Album Version)
15) NEIRO
16) MOON (Regular Edition Track)




The covers for KAT-TUN's 4th album Break the Records -by you & for you- are finally up & running via here & frankly I think both are pretty cool & classy !

I was expecting something much worst than this considering that they don't exactly have the best covers when comes to their singles/albums so I was more or less pleasantly surprised when I saw them earlier on the guys's official record label website .

That & also I like the font type that were used for both covers as it makes things even more chic & sleek .

Just so you know , the regular edition comes with a bonus track MOON which's an awesome piece of enka meets hard rock tune while the limited edition will come with a 36 page booklet & no MOON's not included .

I hope the pics inside the 36 page booklet will be something to look forward to in due time when the album's out .

Break the Records -by you & for you- is scheduled for release on 29th this month so be sure to get a copy or 2 to support 1 of Japan's most popular Johnny's boybands .

CD Review :: Kuroki Meisa - hellcat EP

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :



Tracklist :

1) Hear the alarm ?
2) Like This
3) Bad Girl
4) Criminal
5) No , no , no
6) SEX
7) Lost
8) THIS IS CRAZY



hellcat is model/actress turned singer Kuroki Meisa's debut mini album . It was released 2 Wed's ago on 8th April .

No singles are included in hellcat . Instead , 3 album tracks received music videos of their own & while Kuroki didn't wrote any lyrics in hellcat , she co-composed 3 of them in the form of Criminal , SEX & Lost .

Before I go on , just a bit of f.y.i in that Kuroki's label mates with Yuna Ito & YUI . All 3 ladies's music material are released under STUDIOSEVEN Recordings .

Hear the alarm ? is a great hot R&B tune to get things started & it's 1 of the most recent & not to mention addictive tracks that I have came across & I love it that it gets seriously & insanely addicted as each listen goes by .

I love the somewhat futuristic sounding melody pertaining to Hear the alarm ? I should add .

Like This is her 1st digital single which was released last year on June 18th as Chaku-Uta and June 21 as full Chaku-Uta . It was used in Toshiba's Sportio (au) commercial which starred Kuroki herself .

Just like Hear the alarm ? , Like This's also another catchy piece of R&B tune . I remembered when I 1st reviewed about Like This alongside with Bad Girl , I didn't like it for some weird reason but I'm ok with this now .

Bad Girl is the 1st album track that received a music video of its own on hellcat & it was used in the Toho film Crows Zero II .

To say that Bad Girl's just a bad ass tune on all levels's an understatement . I wouldn't go into how raunchy the video's for Bad Girl since it's more for the guys to watch & not for me to see but you can definitely see yourself hearing such a tune in a club where people just get down & dirty on the dance floor .

Criminal is the 2nd album track to receive a music video & this's the 1st song that Kuroki had a hand in co-composing .

I really adore Criminal on 1st listen as the beats , lyrics & the tune gel very well together . That & also the music video's kinda like a mini movie of sorts which's like Tomb Raider in a way & it's so neat .

No , no , no is another good song although I realise compared to the other tracks on hellcat , it has a more poppy side of things which's a good thing so that Kuroki's able to balance things out & prevent the album from becoming a full blown R&B effort .

SEX is the 2nd song that Kuroki co-composed & well with a song title like that , I can't say anything much other than the fact that this's 1 hot mid tempo R&B tune & the chorus pretty much said it all when Kuroki sings 'going crazy cos I'm thinking about sex' .

Lost is the last tune that was co-composed by Kuroki & this's sorta the only ballad in hellcat which's nice as sometimes too many upbeat tunes in a single album can be a bad thing so I'm glad that she decided to sing this ballad inspired like no. .

THIS IS CRAZY is a great track to close off her debut mini album & this's 1 of my fave album tracks . I just love the whiplash effect pertaining to the melody & it's a guilt pleasure song to listen to .

Wow , what can I say ? Kuroki Meisa's hellcat is 1 of the most surprising albums that I have came across for the year , let alone for a debut album .

I was real impressed with the quality of the songs found on hellcat & here I was at the beginning being very skeptical to listen to her music especially since Kuroki's by right an actress & a model & for her to start a music career , it's tricky business but it's great to know that the production , songs , lyrics , melody found on hellcat is an overall real solid effort .

My only grouse's that being a mini album , hellcat doesn't tend to allow Kuroki to showcase other type of genres that I thought she might do especially ballads as Lost's pretty much the only ballad of sorts found on hellcat .

I suppose she decided to stick to more funky upbeat R&B tunes as frankly she doesn't have the best vocals around so she did so to cover her somewhat limited vocal ability .

But other than that , a great job that Kuroki Meisa has accomplished & the fact that she had a hand in co-composing 3 tunes on hellcat is commendable . The nun has really left the building (watch One Pound Gospel & you know what I mean) & this's essentially hot bitch R&B music at its best .

Do yourself a favor & buy/listen to hellcat , you'll be surprised on what kind of music journey Kuroki Meisa has in store for you from the start to the end & hopefully this wil mark nothing but new music beginnings for her .

I hope she can release a new single & hopefully a full length album in due time but until then , I will just settle in playing hellcat on my stereo in enjoying this solid debut offering that she has released .

Ken Hirai - Ken's Bar II Album Details

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :



Tracklist :

1) Open
2) even if ~instrumental~
3) New York State Of Mind (Billy Joel)
4) LOVE ~Destiny~ (ayumi hamasaki)
5) Boku ga Donna ni Kimi wo Suki ka, Kimi wa Shiranai (You Never Know How Much I Love You) (Kusunose Seishiro)
6) DESPERADO (The Eagles)
7) MOON RIVER (Jazz Standard)
8) Intermission
9) Because Of You (Ne-Yo)
10) LATELY (Stevie Wonder)
11) Wakareuta (Farewell Song) (Miyuki Nakajima)
12) Heart Of Mine (Bobby Caldwell)
13) Shiroi Koibitotachi (White Lovers) (Keisuke Kuwata)
14) Close
15) Stardust (Jazz Standard)



Ken's Bar II is Ken Hirai's 2nd cover album . It's scheduled for a release date on 27th May & this's his 1st release of 2009 .

It has been 6 years since his 1st original Ken's Bar album was released .

God , I have been waiting SO long for a new Ken release & I'm so happy that he's going to release his 2nd Ken's Bar album next month & I love the album covers , they're both very old school & sure beats pretty much all of his album covers & I prefer them over his 1st Ken's Bar album cover too .

In case you're wondering what's this whole Ken's Bar album all about , it's simple really . Ken selects his favorite songs and covered in his own style . The music is primarily jazz oriented , but covers of many blues numbers are present as well .

In the 1st Ken's Bar album , he covered songs such as Norah Jones's Don't Know Why , The Jackson 5's A.B.C , Louis Armstrong's What A Wonderful World among others .

Frankly I'm not really a covers person to begin with but I have to say that Ken does justice to the original tunes . I love it that he used his own style & he pretty much stay original to the no.s & didn't butcher them that much & with a great voice like his , you know he'll bound to do no wrong at all .

& this time round in Ken's Bar II , wow , he has chosen to cover some classics in the form of ayumi hamasaki's LOVE ~Destiny~ , Ne-Yo's Because Of You among the mix .

I'm real happy to see his takes on Jazz Standard's MOON RIVER , The Eagles's DESPERADO (originally found as a B-side in his 20th single , the awesome Hitomi wo Tojite) & also Stevie Wonder's LATELY that make the cut on Ken's Bar II .

I have heard him sang LATELY in the last Ken's Bar Christmas performance that he did & it was really awesome . I'm surprised that he has choose to cover ayumi's LOVE ~Destiny~ which's really interesting when I 1st found out about it .

I hope he will do a good job in covering LOVE ~Destiny~ as it's 1 of my fave songs of ayumi & that goes for Ne-Yo too (surprised that he didn't covered So Sick) .

In anycase , Ken's Bar II will be released next month on 27th & I can't wait for that to happen .

GIRL NEXT DOOR - Reasons for tears (Seeds of dream's B-side)





Reasons for tears is found as a B-side in GIRL NEXT DOOR's 4th single Seeds of dream which was released yesterday .

Compared with the A-side Seeds of dream , Reasons for tears is 1 of the more stronger , memorable & harder sounding tunes that the trio has dished out in recent times & it's great that the song was able to make a rather strong lasting impression on me when I 1st heard it as compared to Seeds of dream .

It's a pity that it wasn't released as an A-side along with Seeds of dream as I'm very sure Reasons for tears had plenty of potential to be a good one . It's only a matter of time whether will this be made available in their future 2nd album , just like what happened with regards to Breath which was found as a B-side in their debut single Guuzen no Kakuritsu .

I will not review Guuzen no Kakuritsu (Oh My Gold Mix) & ESCAPE (ice cream mix) which're found in the single as I'm not a remix person to begin with . That & also I'm pretty much lousy when comes to describing of remixes but in general the trio's 1st single of 2009 that they have released's a good one .

At least Reasons for tears was able to make up for the initial disappointment I had with Seeds of dream .

The trio is already scheduled to release 2 more singles within the months to come . 1st up will be Infinity in which its release date's 10th June . Infinity will be used as the theme song for Horikita Maki's Dorama Atashinchi no Danshi .

Followed after Infinity , another new single titled Be your wings will be released & it will be the theme song for the new Tales of whatever game . The release date for Be your wings's currently unknown but the band's official site put it as somewhere in the summer .

KAT-TUN - SADISTIC LOVE , Kimi Michi (Your Road) & MOON





SADISTIC LOVE , Kimi Michi (Your Road) & MOON are 3 brand new group effort album tracks that're taken from KAT-TUN's upcoming 4th album Break the Records -by you & for you- which will be out on 29th this month .

These 3 songs were leaked out on the net within the past few days , the 1st being MOON followed by SADISTIC LOVE & then just today Kimi Michi .

Found as track #2 is SADISTIC LOVE . On 1st listen , it does reminded me of a cross between 7 DAYS BATTLE & T∀BOO in which it's not a bad thing as I really like the songs that I have compared against SADISTIC LOVE .

My fave part of the song is when Ueda sang the 2nd bridge of the song which was awesome & the fact that JOKER rap is presented in SADISTIC LOVE just take the song to even greater heights .

At this point in time , I still wished that SADISTIC LOVE was a solo tune that I can see Ueda or let alone Tanaka might sing it haha but oh well this will have to do .

Found as track #12 is Kimi Michi which's probably so far the weakest album track that I have heard at this point in time . It's probably the album version of 「un-」 as I find Kimi Michi real un-memorable on 1st listen .

It took me a few listens to remember how Kimi Michi sounds . On the music front , it's simpler in terms of music arrangement as compared to SADISTIC LOVE , MOON & also from the preview of WATER DANCE .

It somehow reminded me of RUSH OF LIGHT to a certain extent too . Kimi Michi's no doubt a grower but I think at this point in time , I wouldn't really consider it to be my fave track on Break the Records -by you & for you-

Only available in the regular edition of the album , it's MOON & oh man , this was very unexpected on 1st listen . It has enka influences in the beginning of the song which really surprised me .

Slower but surely , the mood has changed real drastically to a pretty much hard rock tune with the tinkling of the pianos thrown in for good measures . It somehow reminded me of material that Evanescence might released but this's awesome stuff .

MOON's so far 1 of my fave group album tunes at this point in time & I just love how unique it sounds as KAT-TUN's seriously the last artiste that I expected them to do a cross dimension enka meets hard rock tune & MOON's great stuff . I just love it how catchy it goes as each listen goes by .

There're still 3 more album group effort tunes that haven't leaked out at this point in time which're WATER DANCE (a preview has been floating around & it sounds very promising & lushed) , Shunkashuutou (The Four Seasons : Spring , Summer , Autumn & Winter) & NEIRO .

That & also the T-TUN's solos since Kamenashi & Akanishi's ones have already leaked out a few days ago but judging from the material that have been leaked out so far , I'm going to have a feeling that Break the Records -by you & for you-might have a greater chance to sound even better than KAT-TUN Ⅲ -QUEEN OF PIRATES- (which's my fave album of last year) .

Who knows , Break the Records -by you & for you-might shot straight to the top of my fave albums list for 2009 once again & I wouldn't be surprised & if the rest of the album will sound equally sleek/polished/hot , this might be it .

Tsuyoshi - Sora (Sky) ~ Utsukushi ware no Sora (The Beautiful Sky)





Sora (Sky) ~ Utsukushi ware no Sora (The Beautiful Sky) is Tsuyoshi's new solo single . It was released on Fri alongside with his brand new solo album Bigaku ~ my beautiful sky in which Sora ~ Utsukushi ware no Sora is not included in the album .

If his name sounds familiar , that's because he's 1 1/2 of the duo KinKi Kids , Domoto Tsuyoshi & this time round , he choose to release his brand new solo material be it single or album under the name Tsuyoshi .

& while usually new single/album releases are out on Wed's in Japan , Tsuyoshi's case's different . Both were released on Fri on the same day as his 30th birthday & in this ballad he invited traditional Gagaku musician Dogi Hideki as a guest .

I was very surprised when I 1st heard Sora ~ Utsukushi ware no Sora because here I was thinking that it will sound the same as the kinda music that he does in KinKi Kids but it's very old school , indie & alternative sounding to a certain extent .

Despite the fact that Sora ~ Utsukushi ware no Sora stands at over 7:02 mins long , the song kept me very interested & captivated from the start to the beginning which's great & hats off to Tsuyoshi who took every single step in writing/composing & crafting this beautiful ballad .

Definitely something worth checking/listening out for the weekend .

BREAKERZ - Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... (Thousand Times ... 10 Thousand Times ...) ~Acoustic Version~ (Everlasting Luv / BAMBINO ~Bambino~'s B-side)





Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... (Thousand Times ... 10 Thousand Times ...) ~Acoustic Version~ is only found in the CD Only edition of BREAKERZ's 5th single Everlasting Luv / BAMBINO ~Bambino~ which was released 2 days ago .

Originally found as track #1 in their 2nd album CRASH & BUILD , this's the 2nd song that they have done an acoustic version of , the 1st being Dandelion which the acoustic version was found in their previous single GRAND FINALE .

Oh my god , I was SO & very blown away when I finally managed to hear the acoustic take of Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... . The original take was 1 of my fave songs on CRASH & BUILD (that goes for Dandelion too) & for the trio to do up an acoustic take of Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... , it's more or less a dream come true for me , music wise seeing that I love acoustic songs .

The original version of Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... is a straight up mid tempo rock affair . For the acoustic version , the guys incorporated a fantastic sweeping orchestra melody & great strings thrown in for good measures & at the end the final product's just so stunning for words .

& here I thought they can't top things after they did the acoustic version of Dandelion on GRAND FINALE & needless to say , the acoustic take of Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... is just epic sounding beyond words .

After releasing 5 singles , 3 albums & a mini album & counting , BREAKERZ has proven to me on why they deserve to have my full support ever since I caught hold of their music last June/July .

It's amazing for the trio to come up with bigger & better things as each single release of theirs go by & judging on how Everlasting Luv / BAMBINO ~Bambino~ is faring so far on the Oricon singles chart (it shot straight to #1 on the 1st day , making this their very 1st release to debut on top on the chart , be it single or album) , I say that things have come a long way for them & Everlasting Luv / BAMBINO ~Bambino~ is yet another top notch single that they have delivered .

Nanzenkai ... Nanmankai ... ~Acoustic Version~ song credits :

Lyrics & Music : AKIHIDE
Arrangement : BREAKERZ

Yuna Ito Feat Spontania - Ima Demo Aitai yo ... (I Still Miss You ...)





Ima Demo Aitai yo ... (I Still Miss You ...) is a song sung by Yuna Ito & this's an answer call song to the duo Spontania's tune in which their version titled Ima Demo Zutto (This Much Remains) was released on Jan 28th featuring Yuna on vocals .

At this moment , no word on whether will this be released as a physical single but I'm assuming it's a digital single at this point in time & a music video has been shot for Ima Demo Aitai yo ... .

Man answer call songs seem to be the trend these days (think Aoyama Thelma & most recently KAT-TUN) & no surprises that Yuna has jumped into the bandwagon .

I was very surprised when I 1st heard Ima Demo Aitai yo ... because here I was thinking that it will be another depressing yet great ballad ala in the same vein as Ima Demo Zutto but it's actually a relatively upbeat tune !

The mood for Ima Demo Aitai yo ... is even more cheerier by every single level as compared to Ima Demo Zutto which's really cool & I like it that Yuna sounds very calm & at ease in here although I can't help but wonder if Spotania's playing 2nd fiddle to her of sorts in here .

In anycase , another good song that she has delivered & Yuna will be releasing her 3rd album titled DREAM on 27th May & I'm quite sure that Ima Demo Aitai yo ... will be included .

It will be weird if that's not the case .

ARASHI - Ashita no Kioku (Memories Of Tomorrow) / Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ (~You Are Invincible~) Single Details



Source



Ashita no Kioku (Memories Of Tomorrow) / Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ (~You Are Invincible~) is ARASHI's upcoming 26th single .

Scheduled for release on 27th May , this comes barely 2 months since the release of their last single Believe / Kumori Nochi , Kaisei & it's the group's 6th overall double A-side single release & the 1st single to be released back to back , double A-side single wise .

Just like their last 2 double A-side singles , Ashita no Kioku / Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ will be released in 3 different formats in which both CD + DVD's are already sold out via preorders within mins on CDJapan .

Ashita no Kioku will serve as the theme song for fellow member Sakurai Sho's brand new drama ie. the 2nd season of The Quiz Show (in which Kanjani∞'s Yokoyama You will have a supporting role in it) while Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ is currently used in the new ad for makeup line Kose .

Oh man you have no idea how I reacted when CDJapan sent me an email update on this 2 days ago & it just seem like yesterday Believe / Kumori Nochi , Kaisei was released .

This's the guys's 5th single release after they released Dream"A"live & J-Storm is sure making every single effort & sparing no expenses on them seeing that this year they're celebrating their 10th anniversary .

So looks like the rumours with regards to Ashita no Kioku are true after all . I didn't expect they will be releasing Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ alongside with Ashita no Kioku which surprises me & unlike their past 2 double A-side singles , the CD only of Ashita no Kioku / Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ this time round will contain instrumentals instead of a bonus track & here I was thinking that they might include season or Green as a B-side on the single :(

Frankly I really don't know what to expect this time round from ARASHI as Believe / Kumori Nochi , Kaisei was so awesome . I have a feeling that Ashita no Kioku might be a ballad while for the full version of Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ (since I have heard a tiny preview of it that was played on the Kose ad) , it might be something upbeat to balance things nicely .

In anycase , I'm waiting in anticipation for Ashita no Kioku / Crazy Moon ~Kimi wa Muteki~ to be released next month on 27th . Now what's left for the guys's to release a DVD pertaining to their Dream"A"live tour & hopefully a new studio album . If not a best album will be great as it doesn't make any sense for them not to do so as this year's their 10th anniversary .

If all 3 releases are able to see the day/light in due time , then everything will be set in stone for the guys .

KAT-TUN's Akanishi Jin & Kamenashi Kazuya's Solos - care & 1582





care & 1582 are the 2 solos songs sung by the 2 (co) lead vocalists of KAT-TUN's Akanishi Jin & Kamenashi Kazuya's & they're found as track #7 & #8 in the group's upcoming 4th album Break the Records -by you & for you- which will be released on 29th this month .

Both songs were leaked out back to back on the radio within the last 2 days .

A fan fave , care's the only 'old' song available in Break the Records -by you & for you-.

I never heard how the song sounded like as I only came onboard the guys's music last April / May & as such , I treated care like a totally new song on my part .

I really love care on 1st listen , it's a great catchy piece of guitar pop driven tune . I like that it's something pretty much fuss free & I definitely see myself listening to this if I were to drive on the highway & the credit also has to go to Akanishi who cowrote the song .

My only grouse about care's that it's a tad short , it might be better should it be extended by a few seconds but other than that , this's a solid solo tune , very different from the otherwise dirty gritty LOVEJUICE .

The only solo song to have no.s in the song title in Break the Records -by you & for you- is 1582 . I frankly wasn't expecting much on Kamenashi's part initally .

However , after I found out the person who wrote 1582 for him is the same person who wrote w/o notice ?? , I got really worried cos I was hoping that 1582 wouldn't sound like w/o notice ?? at all .

As much as I found w/o notice ?? amusing & cute , I was really hoping it will be a 1 off thing on Kame's part .

Thankfully when I finally managed to listen to 1582 , my fears were relieved big time & this's really experimental on Kame's part .

He's probably the last person that I expect to try out an experimental futuristic fusion blend of electro meets trance/rock tune with a violin thrown in for good measure & as a result , you get a really great catchy somewhat angsty tune which I really adore .

The only turn off about 1582's after he sang the 1st chorus of the song is some weird panting/sucking sounds which really freaked me out but other than that , 1582's fantastic & it's such a great listen .

It still doesn't match up to the brilliance that's of Kizuna but 1582's more or less on par , alongside with someday for somebody which's great & Kame more or less has proven to me on (again) why he deserved to serve as co-lead vocalist in the group alongside with Akanishi .

If the rest of the solos that T-TUN deliver sound equally as good or on par with Akanishi & Kame , then I'm already predicting another great sounding album on KAT-TUN's part .

Song credits for care :

Lyrics ：Akanishi Jin / Kazunari Ohno　
Music & Arrangement ：Noriyoshi Matsushita

Song credits for 1582 :

Lyrics : n
Music ：M.Y　
Arrangement : Yuichi Hamatsu

YUI - again

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :





again is YUI's 13th single . Scheduled to be released on 3rd June , this's her 1st single release since coming back from a 5 months well deserved hiatus .

It has been almost a year since the release of her last single Summer Song & 5 months since the release of her 1st B-side compilation album MY SHORT STORIES .

Her new song will be used as the brand new opening theme song for the anime Fullmetal Alchemist .

I'm so very happy that YUI's back with something new & it didn't take long for her to return back to the music scene with again .

On 1st listen , the song's pretty different from what she does in the past . It's basically 1/2 angsty pop/rock & 1/2 ballad-y in the sense which's unique & frankly on 1st listen , it's not catchy at all but it does get better as each listen goes by .

Having said that , it's a good start for YUI to be back with her 1st single release of the year & as such , I guess I can pardon her in a way or 2 .

Sea & a ~YUI Acoustic Version~ of Summer Song will serve as the B-sides in the single .

NEWS - Koi no (Love) ABO

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :





Koi no (Love) ABO is NEWS's 11th single . Scheduled to be released on 29th this month , this's the guys's 1st single release of new material & it comes 5 months after the release of their 3rd album color .

Their new song is currently being used for promotion for the clothing company RUSS-K , their 3rd single to do so after weeeek & SUMMER TIME .

This's the 2nd time their single will be released in CD and CD + DVD formats , the 1st time that happened was their 6th single Hoshi wo Mezashite .

The DVD features footage from their live stage perfomance on December 31st '08 which took place at their NEWS WINTER PARTY DIAMOND in TOKYO DOME concert & the setlist is as follows & it lasts for 30 mins :

1) Happy Birthday
2) weeeek
3) Gan Gan Ganbatte
4) Hadashi no Cinderella Boy
5) SUMMER TIME
6) MC

Recomen aired the full song of Koi no ABO yesterday & wow , this's some really catchy stuff . When I 1st saw CDJapan's description of the guys's new single in that it has discotic numbers , I was surprised & it didn't help matters that I couldn't detect any influences of disco when I 1st heard the 30 secs preview of Koi no ABO .

But at least now after the full version has surfaced , this screams disco chic all over the place & it kinda reminded me of their other B-side songs like BEACH ANGEL , Bambina & Gan Gan Ganbatte a bit .

I really love Koi no ABO on 1st listen , at least it's attention grabbing enough unlike SUMMER TIME & the midst of the song where Tegoshi lets it all out with his powerful vocals is frankly no doubt the highlight in Koi no ABO .

Good stuff , I'm so happy that NEWS's finally back , I was getting really worried when they went all MIA on me after they released color .

3 B-sides are found in the single namely Labyrinth , OPEN YOUR EYES & Share (LIVE at TOKYO DOME) .

OPEN YOUR EYES & Share (LIVE at TOKYO DOME) are only found in the CD only tracklist of the single & be sure to check out the live version of Share in due time because this's the 1st song that NEWS has wrote & composed together .

KAT-TUN - 4th Album Updates (Album Title & Tracklist) & New ARASHI Single ?




The album title & tracklist for KAT-TUN's upcoming 4th album have been announced .

The title of the guys's brand new 4th record has been revealed as Break the Records -by you & for you-& as expected there will be 15 songs on the album , 16 if you were to purchase the regular edition of Break the Records -by you • for you-.

After the exclusion of 4 singles , 6 solos , you will get 5/6 new songs depending on which edition you decide to buy .

Tracklist :

1) DON'T U EVER STOP
2) SADISTIC LOVE
3) RESCUE
4) WATER DANCE
5) ONE DROP
6) WHITE WORLD (Nakamaru Yuichi's Solo)
7) care (Akanishi Jin's Solo)
8) 1582 (Kamenashi Kazuya's Solo)
9) PIERROT (Tanaka Koki's Solo)
10) Hana no Mau Machi [The Town Of Dancing Flowers] (Ueda Tatsuya's Solo)
11) WIND (Taguchi Junnosuke's Solo)
12) Kimi Michi (Your Road)
13) Shunkashuutou (The Four Seasons : Spring , Summer , Autumn & Winter)
14) White X'mas (Album Version)
15) NEIRO
16) MOON (Regular Edition Track)


I'm pretty netural about the guys's new album title . I think Break the Records -by you & for you- is real enduring for that matter .

Before I talk about the solos , I want to say that I don't really like the fact outta the 1st 5 songs on the album , 3 of them are already singles that they have released .

They should have spread out the singles more towards in the mid section but I suppose they did so in order to give more album time for the 6 solos .

I was actually hoping that SADISTIC LOVE will be a solo no. haha but it's interesting that it's a group effort & for it to be slotted in between DON'T U EVER STOP & RESCUE , this should be something interesting .

I also look forward to hear WATER DANCE & MOON . I wouldn't be surprised if both songs will be ballads judging from the titles but I could be wrong about it .

Apparently there will be JOKER's rap in the album version of White X'mas which's pretty woah considering that the single version doesn't have it .

So this means both versions will sound different & all the more I can't wait to hear the album version of White X'mas .

Album group songs wise , SADISTIC LOVE , WATER DANCE , Shunkashuutou will have traces of Tanaka's rapping & you wouldn't get to hear JOKER's rap in Kimi Michi , NEIRO & MOON .

Solos writing , music & arrangement credits :

WHITE WORLD (Nakamaru Yuichi's Solo)
Lyrics , music & arrangement : Katsuhiko Sugiyama

care (Akanishi Jin's Solo)
Lyrics ：Akanishi Jin / Kazunari Ohno　
Music & Arrangement ：Noriyoshi Matsushita

1582 (Kamenashi Kazuya's Solo)
Lyrics : n
Music ：M.Y　
Arrangement : Yuichi Hamatsu

PIERROT (Tanaka Koki's Solo)
Lyrics : JOKER
Music : Atsushi / JOKER
Arrangement : Atsushi

Hana no Mau Machi [The Town Of Dancing Flowers] (Ueda Tatsuya's Solo)
Lyrics & Music : Ueda Tatsuya　
Arrangement ：kao

WIND (Taguchi Junnosuke's Solo)
Lyrics : Taguchi Junnosuke　
Music : Taguchi Junnosuke / Gin Kitagawa
Arrangement : Gin Kitagawa

care's the only 'old' song which made the cut on Break the Records -by you • for you-& this's quite surprising especially since this's quite an old Akanishi solo .

I never heard the live version that Akanishi did with regards to care since I only came onboard the KAT-TUN's music bandwagon just last April / May but from what I know , it sounds nothing like LOVEJUICE or PINKY at all in that it doesn't have an American style & etc & care's something that he used to do before he & the rest of the guys were able to finally debut 3 years ago .

& wow at Ueda's . I absolutely adore Ai no Hana & BUTTERFLY which he cowrote with Akanishi for that & for him to write & compose Hana no Mau Machi , I hope this will be another amazing solo even though I'm still hoping for the day that he includes Love in snow somewhere on a CD in the near future .

WIND's the 1st solo that Taguchi has a hand in writing & also co-composing too which's so cool . I do hope that this will be a good tune as I really like Natsu no Basho & SAMURAI☆LOVE☆ATTACK . His new solo song might be a ballad , I'm not really sure but hopefully it will be something nice as this's his 1st song that he has wrote himself .

As for the rest of the solos , Nakamaru's WHITE WORLD sounds really interesting . I hope it will be another great one as I love SMACK & key of life whereas for Kamenashi's 1582 , it's a ? & for this , I really don't know what to expect as it's quite unusual for him in the sense that his's the only solo song that has no.s instead of words .

Hopefully it will be a serious tune . w/o notice ?? was amusing & cute on every single level . I'm crossing fingers that 1582 will be an awesome Kizuna or someday for somebody part 2 .

In the case for Tanaka's PIERROT , it's also another ? & I'm hoping that it wouldn't be something like PARASITE where he overdosed on the scream factor . I have a feeling that this will be another standard rap fare seeing that he wrote PIERROT & co-composed it .

Then again he doesn't have weird solo titles like Make U Wet , PARASITE for nothing so yeah .

But regardless of which , I can't wait to hear everything that the guys has in store for Break the Records -by you & for you- in due time & I suppose covers for both the regular & limited editions will be out in a matter of time .

Break the Records -by you & for you-'s release date - 29th April .







ARASHI is said to be releasing another new single which's titled Ashita no Kioku (Memories Of Tomorrow) .

Ashita no Kioku will serve as the new theme song for Sakurai Sho's brand new drama The Quiz Show . This probably explains as to why they weren't doing a new song for Matsumoto Jun's drama Smile .

So far there's no confirmation as to when Ashita no Kioku will be released at this point in time .

Well as much as I welcome another new single , I really hope that ARASHI will release their 9th album or maybe a best album in the months to come because I feel that it's already & extremely long overdue on their part to release a new album especially since you already have 4 singles in the bag (One Love , truth / Kaze no Mukou e , Beautiful days & their recent single Believe / Kumori , Nochi , Kaisei) .

If not there's no telling as to when is it ever possible for a new album to materialise at the rate they kept on releasing singles but anyway from the sound of the title , I wouldn't be surprised if Ashita no Kioku will be a ballad .

I could be proven wrong about it in due time .

NEWS - Koi no (Love) ABO Covers

CD Only Cover :



CD + DVD Cover :





Johnny's Entertainment has released the covers for NEWS's upcoming 11th single Koi no ABO & very nice covers for both editions .

I love the whole setting/backdrop for both covers , you definitely can't go wrong with black , grey , silver & red in this context .

CDJapan described the whole single that has discotic numbers which's erm interesting & judging from the 30 secs preview I have heard so far in the guys's new RUSS-K ad (since Koi no ABO is used currently to promote the clothing company , their 3rd single to do so after weeeek & SUMMER TIME) , I can't pinpoint any disco influences in Koi no ABO .

Then again it's just a preview so it probably wouldn't be fair for me to judge how good/bad Koi no ABO sounds like at this point in time so I just will leave it for the benefit of the doubt .

CD Only Tracklist :

1) Koi no (Love) ABO
2) Labyrinth
3) OPEN YOUR EYES (CD Only Track)
4) Share (Live at TOKYO DOME) (CD Only Track)

CD + DVD Tracklist :

1) Koi no (Love) ABO
2) Labyrinth
3) Koi no (Love) ABO -karaoke track-

The DVD features footage from their live stage performance on December 31st '08 which took place at their NEWS WINTER PARTY DIAMOND in TOKYO DOME concert & the setlist is as follows & it lasts for 30 mins :

1) Happy Birthday
2) weeeek
3) Gan Gan Ganbatte
4) Hadashi no Cinderella Boy
5) SUMMER TIME
6) MC

Koi no ABO will be out this month on 29th so be sure to get a copy to support NEWS .

Mika Nakashima - Over Load





Over Load is Mika Nakashima's 28th single . Scheduled for a release date on May 13th , this comes 2 months after the release of her 2nd compilation album NO MORE RULES. & it's her 1st single release for 2009 .

Written by Mika herself , Over Load will be used as an insert song to the TV spot featuring producer Kazuto Okawa of Ageha Spring Works .

Wow , what a different music feeling that Mika has brought to the table . I was really blown away the very 1st time I heard the full version for Over Load .

It does sound like LIFE in a way but it has a bit of an oriental twist thrown in for good measures & combined that with her great smoky trademark vocals , it gives you a really nice mid tempo jazz meets oriental tune in the form of Over Load .

Great stuff I say , this's shaping up to be another fave Mika song of mine as time goes by .

No Answer & a Hidefumi Kenmochi Remix of Over Load will serve as B-sides in the single & I should add that No Answer's also written by Mika too .

Kobukuro - Niji (Rainbow)





Niji (Rainbow)'s folk rock duo Kobukuro's 17th single . Scheduled for a release date in 2 Wed's time ie. 15th April , this's the duo's 1st single release of 2009 & it comes 6 months since the release of their previous single Toki no Ashioto (The Footsteps Of Time) .

The guys's brand new song will be used as a tie-up no. with the airline company JAL (Japan Airlines) .

I always have loved some Kobukuro & it's great that they're finally back with something new as I was really missing some material of them after they released Toki no Ashioto & of course Anata to which they sung together with fellow label mate ayaka .

This's no doubt classic Kobukuro in that Niji's a great piece of soaring folk influenced no. which reminded me of their 13th single Kimi to Iu Na no Tsubasa .

It's great that Kobuchi & Kuroda's vocals were able to compliment each other extremely well although I must add that Niji's not as attention grabbing as Kimi to Iu Na no Tsubasa on 1st listen but still , this's a really top notch song that Kobukuro has delivered .

Summer rain & Rururu will serve as B-sides in the single & Summer rain will be used as opening song for the upcoming anime Cross Game & if I'm not mistaken , this wil be the 1st time that their song will be used for promotion for an anime .

Their label mate ayaka will be on charge of the ending song in which it's Koi Kogarete Mita Yume which's the 2nd A-side of her 10th single Yume wo Mikata ni / Koi Kogarete Mita Yume .

CD Review :: Kanjani∞ - KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou

2 CDs Normal Edition Cover :



2 CDs Limited Edition Cover :



2 CDs + DVD Cover :



Disc 1 Tracklist :

1) Big Sky Blues
2) Speedy Wonder
3) Osaka Obachan (Auntie) ROCK (type LAK2)
4) Futari no Namida Ame (Our Rain Of Tears)
5) Goujou ni (Unrepentantly) GO !
6) Great Escape ~Daidassou~ (~Great Escape~)
7) Sayonara wa Itsumo (Goodbye Is Always)
8) Jimoto no Ousama (King Of The Local)
9) Zukkoke Otokomichi (Go For It ! Man's Road)
10) Energy
11) Tabi no Hate ni wa (At The End Of The Journey)
12) Arigatou. (Thanks.)
13) Kanfuu Fighting

Disc 2 Tracklist :

1) Ryuu Ware (Subaru Shibutani's Solo)
2) Watashi Kagami (Mirror Me) [Shota Yasuda's Solo]
3) MAGIC WORD ~Boku Nari no ...~ (~Of The I ...~) [Maruyama Ryuhei's Solo]
4) Mamoritai (Protect) [Okura Tadayoshi's Solo]
5) WONDER BOY (Yokoyama You's Solo)
6) Forward (Murakami Shingo's Solo)
7) stereo (Ryo Nishikido's Solo)
8) Gachinko Session "Itsuka Mata (And Someday) ..." [unplugged version of Itsuka Mata] (2 CDs Limited Edition Track)

KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou is Kanjani∞'s 2nd album . It was released 2 years ago on 6th June in 3 different editions , a 2 CDs normal edition , a 2 CDs limited edition in which the 2nd disc contains a bonus track (Gachinko Session "Itsuka Mata (And Someday) ..." [unplugged version of Itsuka Mata] & a pack of 7 character cards while last but not least , in 2 CDs + DVD format in which the footage of the DVD contains a short movie entitled Zukkoke Otakara Panic .

3 singles are included in KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou & the title of the album means Zukkoke THE GREAT ESCAPE (alternative spelling used on album covers – Zuccoke) .

Unlike their previous album KJ1 F·T·O which featured some albums tracks that were done by sub bands within the band / duet / trio , in KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou , you get a 2nd disc containing solos from all 7 members which's a 1st for Kanjani∞ .

Big Sky Blues is the 1st album track to get things started . Even though I feel this's slightly less catchy than F·T·O , but still Big Sky Blues's a nice funky blues inspired no. .

Speedy Wonder follows suit after Big Sky Blues . Both are considered to be slightly mid tempo tunes & frankly I couldn't recall how Speedy Wonder sounded on 1st listen . It was only til I gave it a few more listens & after that I managed to recall how it sounds .

Osaka Obachan (Auntie) ROCK is the 1st A-side of the guys's 4th single Osaka Obachan ROCK / Osaka Romanesque & you wouldn't find Osaka Romanesque in here but instead you can do so in disc 1 of KJ1 F·T·O as track #3 .

In KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou , you get a type LAK2 version of Osaka Obachan ROCK . The single version sounds more crazy & over the top while the album version , it's somewhat more mellow but yet it still has that crazy whack attitute that it displayed which I like .

Futari no Namida Ame (Our Rain Of Tears) is track #5 & it's probably no doubt 1 of my fave album tracks on the guys's 2nd album simply because it has a great enka melody & it's so catchy & for this mid tempo ballad , you just need to make use of really good vocals & a melody & you combine both aspects & you will get this which's no doubt a star track in KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou .

Not to mention I love the trumpets that're blaring in Futari no Namida Ame which gives the song the much added edge it needs .

Goujou ni (Unrepentantly) GO ! is another fave album song of mine as it's quite a crazy & fun pop/rock tune . You can tell that the guys have so much energy & fun in singing Goujou ni GO ! which's really cute .

Great Escape ~Daidassou~ (~Great Escape~) is another somewhat weak link in KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou as I really find it un-memorable on 1st listen just like Speedy Wonder but in due time , I manage to figure out how both tunes sound after undergoing numerous listens for both .

Sayonara wa Itsumo (Goodbye Is Always) is the album only ballad & it's such a keeper & no doubt a gem . You can tell from the title it's pretty much a bittersweet song . I love the way the guys harmonise themselves in Sayonara wa Itsumo which makes the song sounds even better as each listen goes by .

Jimoto no Ousama (King Of The Local) is an amusing tune & that goes for the song title as well . It's quite a crazy song like Osaka Obachan ROCK but it's subtle to a certain extent but still this's a nice pop song to listen .

Zukkoke Otokomichi (Go For It ! Man's Road) is the group's 6th single & this's actually 1 of my fave singles of Kanjani∞ . I love it that it's fun , crazy , over the top in a good way & this song would definitely put a smile on your face super big time the moment you listen to it .

Prior to Musekinin Hero which was the song that changed my whole perception on the group music wise , Zukkoke Otokomichi was considered as my Kanjani∞ gem .

Energy is track #10 & this's a cute fun light hearted song . It's a real relaxed guitar pop no. & I like it when the guys go 'e-n-e-r-g-y' all over the place in here .

Tabi no Hate ni wa (At The End Of The Journey) is track #11 & surprisingly with a title such as Tabi no Hate ni wa , at 1st I thought it might be a ballad but boy was I so wrong .

It's an upbeat pop/rock tune even though I must say that just like Speedy Wonder & Great Escape ~Daidassou~ , I found Tabi no Hate ni wa really forgettable on 1st listen but unlike Speedy Wonder & Great Escape ~Daidassou~ , it was easier to remember how Tabi no Hate ni wa sounded like because of the somewhat strong electric guitar backing pertaining to the melody .

Arigatou. (Thanks.) as the song title suggest , is a song that the guys sung in thanking their fans & it's a nice tune that the group delivered straight from their hearts which I adore in them .

Kanfuu Fighting is the group's 5th single & at that time of release , it was their best selling single until the 1st week sales of Musekinin Hero outsold the whole total of Kanfuu Fighting .

As the song title suggests , it's pretty much an amusing enka tune that has shades of well kungfu influences & it's quite funny in a good way that they thrown in a few chinese words for good measures in the spirit of keeping Kanfuu Fighting to what it supposed to sound like .

I've reviewed disc 1 of KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou & now it's time for me to review the solos that're found in the 2nd disc so here we go !

1) Ryuu Ware (Subaru Shibutani's Solo) -- What a great mid tempo song that lead singer Subaru delivered . It's no secret in that I considered him to be the best singer in Kanjani∞ & in here he didn't disappoint in the form of Ryuu Ware .

It's quite old school to a certain extent , with the big bang jazz , blues , trumpets & saxaphone influences going on in here but still this's fantastic stuff .

I look forward to hear his brand new solo no. words in the group's upcoming 3rd album PUZZLE when it will be released in exactly 2 weeks later from today .

2) Watashi Kagami (Mirror Me) [Shota Yasuda's Solo] - a pretty cool solo that Shota sung in the form of Watashi Kagami .

He doesn't really have the best vocals in the group but he makes up for it with plenty of spunk in here & nice guitar pop/rock melody going on in here .

This's a keeper .

3) MAGIC WORD ~Boku Nari no ...~ (~Of The I ...~) [Maruyama Ryuhei's Solo] - A cute & amusing song done by Uta no Onii-san Maruyama . It probably sounded like something that you might hear on Uta no Onii-san in a way with the whole cheerleading inspired tune of sorts .

But still this's a nice energetic no. . I suppose Maruyama decided to do such a song in a bid way to conceal his somewhat weak vocals just like Shota & it served him well in here .

4) Mamoritai (Keep) [Okura Tadayoshi's Solo] - The only ballad among the solo mixes , this's a really good no. that Okura has chosen to sing .

I adore Mamoritai the very moment I heard it & it's great that the song that's backed up by a simple piano melody sounds better as each listen goes by & kudos to Okura for being such at ease in singing in this context .

5) WONDER BOY (Yokoyama You's Solo) - what a statement that Yokoyama made in WONDER BOY . His solo's the only one that contains rap & singing that were both done by him .

I must admit that this's a really catchy piece of tune although you shouldn't take this seriously if you choose to listen to it if you're in a bad mood as it might tend to get you annoyed in a matter of mins in a way .

If not then this's a cool song to perk your day .

6) Forward (Murakami Shingo's Solo) - nice finger snapping melody that compliments Murakami's vocals in the form of Forward .

I like songs that fall under this type of category as it will bound to make you get addicted within an instance & Murakami sounded like he had a lot of fun singing in Forward which's good .

7) stereo (Ryo Nishikido's Solo) - written & composed by Ryo , this's pretty much a standard pop/rock affair that he dished out although I must say that compared to code (found on NEWS's pacific album) , I prefer stereo anytime of the day as there's not much yelling going on in here .

Aside from that , stereo has a neat melody hook which makes it a winner in its own right . Kudos to Ryo in taking charge of the lyrics & melody for stereo .

===

Thoughts on

Disc 1 - The 1st disc in KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou is no doubt a mature effort that the guys have put in as compared to their debut KJ1 F·T·O although I must say that there're at times when I found disc 1 quite samey .

I didn't like the fact that the beginning of KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou was real slow but at least it began to pick up the pace & the fun crazy mood sets in soon after Futari no Namida Ame was out of the way .

Not to mention a few songs took me quite a longer time than expected to remember how it goes but in a way after a few listens , the songs get the best of me & I really enjoy listening to KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou now .

That & also I like that no 1 song sounds the same on disc 1 which's a good sign as it shows that they're not afraid to try out different type of music genres .

Disc 2 - the guys really surprised me in that they actually do can sing after all ! I like the various music styles that the guys executed in here & it goes to show that they do know what their strengths & weaknesses are , vocals wise .

Props should be given to Subaru , Shota , Okura & Ryo for writing (if not writing/composing) their respective solos which's really commendable .

I can't wait to see what Kanjani∞ has in store in their upcoming 3rd album PUZZLE that will be released in 2 Wed's time & in which it will follow the same concept as KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou .

Until that comes about , do yourself a favor & listen to KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou , you'll be glad that you did so .

Karen Pang

# 10th Jan

# #1 BREAKERZ fan in Singapore since 2008 debut single ♥

# My music blog consists of JPop/Rock singles & albums reviews that I put my heart , efforts & soul into writing them as I'm disgusted with the way that JPop/Rock music is being treated/written/reviewed in Singapore so to the local media (yes you TEENS , Teenage Magazine & The Strait Times) , screw you all . I basically can write better JPop/Rock reviews , period

# My LiveJournal

# My Twitter

Upcoming New JPop/JRock Releases

# Kis-My-Ft2's 10th album Synopsis , 080524 , Wed

# Hilcrhyme's BEST 15 2009-2013 -The Beginning & Flying- , 290524 , Wed

# GLAY's 62nd single whodunit / Share , 290524 , Wed

# SID's 28th single Shokuzai , 290524 , Wed

# NEWS' NEWS 20th Anniversary LIVE 2023 NEWS EXPO DVD + Blu-ray , 290524 , Wed

# Hilcrhyme's BEST 15 2009-2013 -The Beginning & Flying- , 290524 , Wed

# SID's vocalist Mao's debut solo album habit , 290524 , Wed

# BREAKERZ's 8th album title tbc , 240724 , Wed

# GRANRODEO's vocalist's KISHOW debut solo album title tbc , July 2024

# GRANRODEO's 35th single title tbc , Sept 2024







# SPYAIR - Orange EP

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - PULL UP!

# NEWS - NEWS EXPO

# Shota Shimizu - Insomnia

# ayaka - Funtale

# NEWS - Ongaku -2nd Movement- EP

# KAT-TUN - Fantasia

# ayumi hamasaki - Remember you

# Hilcrhyme - SELFISH

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - FILMUSIC!

# NEWS - Ongaku

# B'z - Highway X

# Mika Nakashima - I

# KAT-TUN - Honey

# SID - Umibe

# flumpool - A Spring Breath

# GRANRODEO - Question

# Koda Kumi - heart

# ayaka - LOVE CIRCLE

# Aoyama Thelma - Scorpion Moon

# Hilcrhyme - FRONTIER

# V6 - STEP

# BREAKERZ - WITH YOU

# Shota Shimizu - HOPE

# Domoto Koichi - PLAYFUL

# Ken Hirai - Anata ni Narita Katta

# SPYAIR - UNITE

# GRANRODEO - Bokutachi no Gunzo EP

# YUI - NATURAL EP

# Fukuyama Masaharu - AKIRA

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - Fab! -Music speaks.-

# Koda Kumi - angeL + monsteR [MY NAME IS...] EPs

# ARASHI - This is ARASHI

# Shota Shimizu - period EP

# JASMINE - S EP

# Beni Daniels - MADE IN LOVE EP

# Mika Nakashima - JOKER

# BENI - Y/our Song EP

# Hilcrhyme - THE MC

# JASMINE - M EP

# AKi - Collapsed Land

# Kis-My-Ft2 - To-y2

# flumpool - Real

# FLOWER FLOWER - Target

# NEWS - STORY

# Koda Kumi - re(CORD)

# JASMINE - JASMINE2.0 EP

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - PARADE

# Kanon Wakeshima - odd sting & intrigue EP

# SID - Shonin Yokkyu

# KAT-TUN - IGNITE

# B'z - NEW LOVE

# GRANRODEO - FAB LOVE

# Kis-My-Ft2 - FREE HUGS!

# Matsushita Yuya - BLACK NEVERLAND

# NEWS - WORLDISTA

# Hilcrhyme - Hilcrhyme

# Yamashita Tomohisa - UNLEASHED

# BENI - CINEMATIC

# ayaka - 30 y/o

# GRANRODEO - M・S COWBOY no Gyakushuu EP

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - SENSE or LOVE

# Koda Kumi - DNA

# Shota Shimizu - WHITE

# SID - Ichiban Sukina Basho EP

# Aoyama Thelma - HIGHSCHOOL GAL

# ayumi hamasaki - TROUBLE EP

# Hilcrhyme - One Man EP

# Kis-My-Ft2 - Yummy!!

# NEWS - EPCOTIA

# FLOWER FLOWER - Spotlight

# Koda Kumi - AND

# B'z - DINOSAUR

# ARASHI - 「untitled」

# BREAKERZ - X

# Aoyama Thelmas - 10TH DIARY

# SPYAIR - KINGDOM

# SID - NOMAD

# V6 - The ONES

# Shota Shimizu - FLY

# Ken Hirai - Utabaka Dake ni.

# Acid Black Cherry - Acid BLOOD Cherry

# Kis-My-Ft2 - MUSIC COLOSSEUM

# Mika Nakashima - TOUGH

# NEWS - NEVERLAND

# Koda Kumi - W FACE ~inside~ & W FACE ~outside~

# GRANRODEO - Karma to Labyrinth

# GRANRODEO - Pierrot Dancin'

# Hilcrhyme - SIDE BY SIDE

# Kanon Wakeshima - luminescence Q.E.D

# ARASHI - Are You Happy?

# Mao from SID - Maison de M EP

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - DEAR.

# Ken Hirai - THE STILL LIFE

# BENI - Shiki Uta summer

# Kis-My-Ft2 - I SCREAM

# ayumi hamasaki - M(A)DE IN JAPAN

# MUSCLE ATTACK - HERCULES ROAD

# Aoyama Thelma - PINK TEARS EP

# Shota Shimizu - PROUD

# flumpool - EGG

# NEWS - QUARTETTO

# AKi - EPHEMERAL EP

# BENI - Undress

# SPYAIR - 4

# ARASHI - Japonism

# Aoyama Thelma - GRAY SMOKE EP

# ayumi hamasaki - sixxxxxx EP

# BREAKERZ - 0-ZERO-

# Domoto Koichi - Spiral

# Kis-My-Ft2 - KIS-MY-WORLD

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - JUMPing CAR

# Namie Amuro - _genic

# ayaka - Rainbow Road

# THE TURTLES JAPAN - ELECTRONIC HUMANITY

# ayumi hamasaki - A ONE

# Hilcrhyme - REVIVAL

# MUSCLE ATTACK - ATTACK

# Koda Kumi - WALK OF MY LIFE

# B'z - EPIC DAY

# Acid Black Cherry - L

# Kanon Wakeshima - Tsukinami

# NEWS - White

# FLOWER FLOWER - Shiki EP

# AKi - ARISE

# FLOWER FLOWER - Mi

# ARASHI - THE DIGITALIAN

# Anna Tsuchiya - LUCIFER EP

# Yamashita Tomohisa - YOU

# Aoyama Thelma - Lonely Angel

# Yamashita Tomohisa - Asobi EP

# Kis-My-Ft2 - Kis-My-Journey

# ayumi hamasaki - Colours

# KAT-TUN - come Here

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - smart

# Fukuyama Masaharu - HUMAN

# Miliyah Kato x Shota Shimizu - THE BEST

# JASMINE - Welcome to Jas Vegas

# SID - OUTSIDER

# Shota Shimizu - ENCORE

# Hilcrhyme - FIVE ZERO ONE

# DAIGO - DAIGOLD

# Koda Kumi - Bon Voyage

# Tegomass - Tegomass no Seishun

# MUSCLE ATTACK - MUSCLE

# KAT-TUN - Kusabi -kusabi- EP

# ARASHI - LOVE

# Yamashita Tomohisa - A NUDE

# Matsushita Yuya - #musicoverdose

# JASMINE - Complexxx

# SPYAIR - MILLION

# BENI - Red

# ON/OFF - DICE EP

# NEWS - NEWS

# Namie Amuro - FEEL

# AKIHIDE - Amber

# Kis-My-Ft2 - Good Ikuze !

# girl next door - Life of Sound

# V6 - Oh ! My ! Goodness !

# ayumi hamasaki - LOVE again

# Mika Nakashima - REAL

# flumpool - experience

# ayumi hamasaki - again EP

# Hilcrhyme - LIKE A NOVEL

# ayumi hamasaki - LOVE EP

# ARASHI - Popcorn

# Domoto Koichi - Gravity

# SPYAIR - Just Do It

# SID - M&W

# Yamashita Tomohisa - Ero

# Namie Amuro - Uncontrolled

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - JUMP WORLD

# Kis-My-Ft2 - Kis-My-1st

# Acid Black Cherry - 『2012』

# Shota Shimizu - Naturally

# ayumi hamasaki - Party Queen

# Matsushita Yuya - 2U

# KAT-TUN - CHAIN

# Kuroki Meisa - UNLOCKED

# L'Arc~en~Ciel - BUTTERFLY

# ayaka - The beginning

# Koda Kumi - JAPONESQUE

# Kuriyama Chiaki - CIRCUS Deluxe Edition

# girl next door - Agaruneku !

# Hilcrhyme - RISING

# ON/OFF - Legend Of Twins II -Zoku Futago Densetsu-

# BENI - Fortune

# YUI - HOW CRAZY YOUR LOVE

# Saito Kazuyoshi - 45 STONES

# Tegomass - Tegomass no Mahou

# SPYAIR - Rockin' the World

# BREAKERZ - GO

# ayumi hamasaki - FIVE EP

# B'z - C'mon

# School Food Punishment - Prog-Roid

# ARASHI - Beautiful World

# Aoyama Thelma - WILL

# Ken Hirai - JAPANESE SINGER

# GIRL NEXT DOOR - Destination

# Tackey & Tsubasa - TRIP & TREASURE EP

# Shota Shimizu - COLORS

# Koda Kumi - Dejavu

# SID - dead stock

# flumpool - Fantasia of Life Stripe

# Yamashita Tomohisa - SUPERGOOD , SUPERBAD

# Kuroki Meisa - MAGAZINE

# ayumi hamasaki - Love songs

# BENI - Jewel

# Hilcrhyme - MESSAGE

# Saito Kazuyoshi - ARE YOU READY ?

# Mika Nakashima - STAR

# Kanjani∞ - 8UPPERS (Pacchi Uppers)

# GLAY - GLAY

# Anna Tsuchiya - RULE

# NEWS - LIVE

# JASMINE - GOLD

# Domoto Koichi - BPM

# Aoyama Thelma - LOVE ! 2

# Hilcrhyme - Recital

# ARASHI - Boku no Miteiru Fukei

# Kanon Wakeshima - Shoujo Shikake no Libretto ~LOLITAWORK LIBRETTO~

# YUI - HOLIDAYS IN THE SUN

# Hey ! Say ! JUMP - JUMP NO.1

# KAT-TUN - NO MORE PAIИ

# BENI - Lovebox

# Matsushita Yuya - I AM ME

# Acid Black Cherry - Q.E.D.

# Acid Black Cherry - BLACK LIST

# school food punishment - amp-reflection

# Tegomass - Tegomass no Ai EP

# BREAKERZ - B.R.Z ACOUSTIC EP

# ayumi hamasaki - Rock'n'Roll Circus

# V6 - READY ?

# DAIGO☆STARDUST - HELLO CRAZY GENTLEMAN

# DAIGO☆STARDUST - The space toy

# Shota Shimizu - Journey

# Koda Kumi - UNIVERSE

# NEVER LAND - Beautiful Days EP

# abingdon boys school - ABINGDON ROAD

# BENI - Bitter & Sweet

# GIRL NEXT DOOR - NEXT FUTURE

# LANDS - Olympos EP

# flumpool - What's flumpool !?

# Kuroki Meisa - ATTITUDE EP

# Yusuke - Ano .. Konnan Dekimashita Kedo.

# KinKi Kids - J album

# Namie Amuro - PAST < FUTURE

# BREAKERZ - FIGHTERZ

# alan - my life

# LOVE - LOVE.IT EP

# B'z - MAGIC

# Dew - PRESENT

# Saito Kazuyoshi - Tsuki ga Noboreba

# Aoyama Thelma - Emotions

# SID - hikari

# Kobukuro - CALLING

# Domoto Koichi - mirror

# Tegomass - Tegomass no Uta

# ON / OFF - Legend Of Twins I -Futago Densetsu-

# Fukuyama Masaharu - Zankyou

# Kanon Wakeshima - Shinshoku Dolce

# GReeeeN - Shio , Koshou -SALT & PEPPER-

# flumpool - Unreal EP

# Yuna Ito - DREAM

# Kanjani∞ - PUZZLE

# KAT-TUN - Break the Records -by you & for you-

# Kuroki Meisa - hellcat EP

# Kanjani∞ - KJ2 Zukkoke Daidassou

# ayumi hamasaki - NEXT LEVEL

# Utada Hikaru - DEEP RIVER

# Utada - This Is The One

# Kanjani∞ - KJ1 F·T·O

# ARASHI - Dream"A"Live

# Kanjani∞ - Kansha ni Eight EP

# alan - Voice of EARTH

# Aoyama Thelma - LOVE !

# Koda Kumi - TRICK

# Aoyama Thelma - DIARY

# YUI - I LOVED YESTERDAY

# YUI - CAN'T BUY MY LOVE

# BREAKERZ - BREAKERZ

# GIRL NEXT DOOR - GIRL NEXT DOOR

# GReeeeN - A , Domo. Ohisashiburi Desu

# YUI - FROM ME TO YOU

# GReeeeN - A , Domo. Hajimemashite

# BREAKERZ - CRASH & BUILD

# ai otsuka - LOVE LETTER

# Mika Nakashima - VOICE

# BREAKERZ - BIG BANG !

# NEWS - color

# Anna Tsuchiya - NUDY SHOW !

# Soundtrack Of High School Musical 3 : Senior Year

# L'Arc~en~Ciel - KISS

# BREAKERZ - Ao no Mirai EP

# ai otsuka - LOVE PUNCH

# ai otsuka - LOVE COOK

# ai otsuka - LOVE JAM

# KAT-TUN - cartoon KAT-TUN II You

# OLIVIA - Trinka Trinka EP

# NEWS - touch

# NEWS - pacific

# ARASHI - Iza , Now

# ARASHI - One

# NANA Triple Billing

# OLIVIA - The Cloudy Dreamer EP

# Anna Tsuchiya - strip me ?

# ARASHI - ARASHIC

# KAT-TUN - Best of KAT-TUN

# Anna Tsuchiya - Taste My Beat EP

# ARASHI - Time

# Electrico - We Satellites

# ayaka - Sing to the Sky

# ayaka - First Message

# KAT-TUN - KAT-TUN III -QUEEN OF PIRATES-

# Koda Kumi - BEST ~BOUNCE & LOVERS~

# Jesse McCartney - Departure

# The Veronicas - Hook Me Up

# Ken Hirai - LIFE is ...

# Ashlee Simpson - Bittersweet World

# Ken Hirai - gaining through losing

# Yuna Ito - HEART

# Utada Hikaru - HEART STATION

# Ken Hirai - FAKIN' POP

# Yuna Ito - WISH

# Ken Hirai - SENTIMENTALovers

# Koda Kumi - Kingdom

# ayumi hamasaki - GUILTY

# ai otsuka - LOVE PiECE

# abingdon boys school - abingdon boys school

# ayumi hamasaki - I am ...

# ayumi hamasaki - RAINBOW

# The Great Spy Experiment - Flower Show Riots

# Koda Kumi - BEST ~second session~

# The Click Five - Modern Minds And Pastimes

# Soundtrack Of High School Musical 2

# Koda Kumi - Black Cherry

# Namie Amuro - PLAY

# Maroon 5 - It Wouldn't Be Soon Before Long

# ayumi hamasaki - Memorial address EP

# NANA starring Mika Nakashima - THE END

# Mika Nakashima - YES

# Jamie Michael - People Watching

# ayumi hamasaki - A BEST 2 -BLACK- & A BEST 2 -WHITE-

# ayumi hamasaki - (miss)understood

# ayumi hamasaki - Duty & MY STORY

# Muse - Blackholes And Relevations

# Utada Hikaru - ULTRA BLUE

# ayumi hamasaki - Secret

# Utada - Exodus

# Vanessa Hudgens - V

# The Veronicas - The Secret Life Of The Veronicas

# Jesse McCartney - Right Where You Want Me

# Maksim - Electrik

# McFly - Motion In The Ocean




# Fave Songs Of 2010

# Fave Singles Releases Of 2010

# Fave Albums Releases Of 2010

# Fave Songs Of 2009

# Fave Singles Releases Of 2009

# Fave Albums Releases For 2009

# The Best Music Releases For The 1st 1/2 Of 2009

# Fave New Acts Of 2008

# Fave Songs Of 2008

# Fave Singles Of 2008

# Fave Albums Of 2008

# The 1st Song I Heard From My Future JPop Acts

# The Best & The Worst Music Releases For The 1st 1/2 Of 2008

# Fave Albums Of 2007

# The Click Five - The Band Behind The Band Documentary

# 987 Control Songlist Set

# Hot Review Of Maksim's Electrik

# Lu Yong Find My Shoes Journey

# Eric Dill Of The Click Five Got Punk'd !



# October 2006

# November 2006

# December 2006

# January 2007

# February 2007

# March 2007

# April 2007

# May 2007

# June 2007

# July 2007

# August 2007

# September 2007

# October 2007

# November 2007

# December 2007

# January 2008

# February 2008

# March 2008

# April 2008

# May 2008

# June 2008

# July 2008

# August 2008

# September 2008

# October 2008

# November 2008

# December 2008

# January 2009

# February 2009

# March 2009

# April 2009

# May 2009

# June 2009

# July 2009

# August 2009

# September 2009

# October 2009

# November 2009

# December 2009

# January 2010

# February 2010

# March 2010

# April 2010

# May 2010

# June 2010

# July 2010

# August 2010

# September 2010

# October 2010

# November 2010

# December 2010

# January 2011

# February 2011

# March 2011

# April 2011

# May 2011

# June 2011

# July 2011

# August 2011

# September 2011

# October 2011

# November 2011

# December 2011

# January 2012

# February 2012

# March 2012

# April 2012

# May 2012

# June 2012

# July 2012

# August 2012

# September 2012

# October 2012

# November 2012

# December 2012

# January 2013

# February 2013

# March 2013

# April 2013

# May 2013

# June 2013

# July 2013

# August 2013

# September 2013

# October 2013

# November 2013

# December 2013

# January 2014

# February 2014

# March 2014

# April 2014

# May 2014

# June 2014

# July 2014

# August 2014

# September 2014

# October 2014

# November 2014

# December 2014

# January 2015

# February 2015

# March 2015

# April 2015

# May 2015

# June 2015

# July 2015

# August 2015

# September 2015

# October 2015

# November 2015

# December 2015

# January 2016

# February 2016

# March 2016

# April 2016

# May 2016

# June 2016

# July 2016

# August 2016

# September 2016

# October 2016

# November 2016

# December 2016

# January 2017

# February 2017

# March 2017

# April 2017

# May 2017

# June 2017

# July 2017

# August 2017

# September 2017

# October 2017

# November 2017

# December 2017

# January 2018

# February 2018

# March 2018

# April 2018

# May 2018

# June 2018

# July 2018

# August 2018

# September 2018

# October 2018

# November 2018

# December 2018

# January 2019

# February 2019

# March 2019

# April 2019

# May 2019

# June 2019

# July 2019

# August 2019

# September 2019

# October 2019

# November 2019

# December 2019

# January 2020

# February 2020

# March 2020

# April 2020

# May 2020

# June 2020

# July 2020

# August 2020

# September 2020

# October 2020

# November 2020

# December 2020

# January 2021

# February 2021

# March 2021

# April 2021

# May 2021

# June 2021

# July 2021

# August 2021

# September 2021

# October 2021

# November 2021

# December 2021

# January 2022

# February 2022

# March 2022

# April 2022

# May 2022

# June 2022

# July 2022

# August 2022

# September 2022

# October 2022

# November 2022

# December 2022

# January 2023

# February 2023

# March 2023

# April 2023

# May 2023

# June 2023

# July 2023

# August 2023

# September 2023

# October 2023

# November 2023

# December 2023

# January 2024

# February 2024

# March 2024

# April 2024

# May 2024

# June 2024




designer - Chronicles

imageeditor - adobephotoshop

music - radioblogclub

image - fortminorwebsite