Hi everyone! happy new year! Sorry about the lack of posts but uhh my waning interest in AKB and my hectic real life have been a bad combination this holiday. However, one of those things has changed now with this event!

AKB is funny. When I actively try to find reasons to like them again they go and release Ue Kara Mariko, which is their worst single ever (obviously IMO, this is a blog everything is IMO etc.) and I try and order their Seibu Dome concert and the people in my building lose my parcel and all of that just makes me rage.

But when I’m already over them, they go and do something amazing, like this concert and I’m baffled and don’t know what to feel anymore xD I think I’ll just stop trying to analyze things and go with the flow… So here’s the set list and some comments from this year’s Request Hour concert, which in case you don’t know, it’s an event held every year in which fans vote for 100 songs out of AKB’s discography and they get performed during 4 days.

There are several things that made this AX different, the main one being that subunits (Watarirouka, no3b, Not yet etc) weren’t available to be voted for this year, and the other one is that none of the graduated members would be coming back this year Between this and the anniversary show which didn’t have graduated members either I’m pretty sure they won’t be coming back for any AKB stuff anymore, which makes me sad beyond belief. But anyway.

Here’s the set list and pictures thanks to HoneyRoastedPeanuts @Stage48

Day 1

00. Guruguru Curtain (Nogizaka46): lol “rival” group coming through. Honestly, I love this song, it sounds retro and the Nogizaka girls are still unpopular so girls who sing decently are allowed in senbatsu. We’re finally understanding that instead of being “rivals to destroy” it’s like rivals in the sense that they help you improve or whatever, it sounds more aspirational than anything else so it makes a bit more sense

100. Theater no Megami (B5) (AX11 51): This one took quite a dive. The main theme of B5, a very cutesy song. Kinda meh tbh

99. Pajama Drive (B3 Watanabe, Hirajima, Nakagawa): This song didn’t rank last year so I’m incredibly surprised and happy that it managed to climb up again. I guess that with Mayu fans not having Warota solos to vote for they went for her stage units. I really like this song and B3 in general so I’m glad they made it.

98. Dakishimeraretara (K5 Kasai, Kuramochi, Sato): Another one that didn’t rank last year! I love this unit, it sounds so good! And the lyrics of the song are super beautiful as well. Original Team K is the best thing that ever happened to AKB, so I’m incredibly happy to see it well represented in this concert. Chiyuu <3

97. Dear my Teacher (A1) (AX11 86): One of the most iconic AKB songs yet it keeps falling and falling I’m glad that it made it this time anyway, even if just for nostalgia’s sake. Sad that there weren’t graduated members there to perform it but you can’t win ‘em all I guess.

96. Anata ga Ite Kureta Kara (Setlist Greatest Songs Kanzenban album song) (AX11 19): This is a very touching song and the PV with shots of the girls when they were just starting out in AKB was also really nice. To fall from top 20 to 96 is pretty tough but every year there’s so much more competition that just making it in is amazing in itself

95. AKB Sanjou! (A5) (AX11 97): This song managed to go up from last year! It’s one of my favorites, and the theme song of Team A and AKB as a whole for a while during 2009.

94. Higurashi no Koi (H1 Takahashi, Masuda) (AX11 79): I’m glad that this wasn’t performed by Team 4. Listen, I like Team 4 a lot, I think they are amazing, but honestly, this is the only chance we get to watch the original line up do it, while Team 4 do it all the time in the theater. Great song, it’s funny that it’s always hovering in the last spots even though it’s a fan favorite. I hope it keeps ranking.

93. Wasshoi E! (E1): Since people could vote separately for this or the original Wasshoi B! I’m glad that the SKE girls of Team E (who are great) managed to snatch this position! Great reward for their hard work.

92. High School Days (Team 4 and KKs from Koko ni ita koto album): I don’t like this song much, but any Team 4 presence in here is welcome, especially if they’re singing their own songs haha

91. Kataomoi no Taikakusen (B4 Nito, Komori, Yonezawa) (AX11 47): I love Moeno, so I’m glad she managed to earn this position for her unit song.

90. Seifuku Resistance (K5 Itano, Nakatsuka, Yokoyama) (AX11 37): Another huge drop for Tomochin’s unit, but my baby Yui manages to rank here with her unit!!! So proud of her!!!

89. To be Continued (K5): This one didn’t make it last year, but managed to appear this year. The lyrics to this song are so pretty and meaningful, I’m glad people appreciate it even though it comes from a stage. K5 was so underrated because it didn’t sound like typical idol music

88. 16nin Shimai no Uta (K4 Sato, Matsubara, Kobayashi) (AX11 85): Yiiiiihaw! xD I love this song with all my heart. It’s so campy and ridiculous! Introducing all of the Team K members with one of their main personality traits. Priceless! I hope it never stops ranking! Shame that the graduated members couldn’t be there for it

87. Seventeen (Greatest Sogs Kanzenban album) (AX11 66): Cute song! Also the last remainder of their amazing Defstar era.

86. Nakeru Basho (Beginner C/W) (AX11 56): DIVA the B-side sub unit shows up with this beautiful ballad. One of the prettiest songs of recent AKB and definitely one with fantastic vocals.

85. Ice no Kuchizuke (Flying Get C/W Itano, Oshima, Sasaki, Maeda At, Takahashi, Watanabe, Shinoda): This is one of 5 AKB songs I absolutely adored last year so I’m super glad it made it!

84. Hikkoshimashita (K6): More Team K!!! Always a great thing <3 This song is really meaningful to the girls because it’s about someone who moves from their old house and yet promises they’ll never forget their old friends. The girls relate to it because of the shuffle.

83. FIRST LOVE (Namida Surprise C/W Kato Rena) (AX11 16): Wow. I’m shocked that people voted for this even though Togasaki already said beforehand that Ono Erena wouldn’t be coming back to perform it. This is her signature song, so to speak, so it’s shocking that people still went and voted. Maybe they were hoping TGSK was wrong? Maybe they just like the song and it doesn’t matter who sings it? (I’m mainly on that camp, this is one of my favorite AKB songs ever). On the other hand, Kato Rena singing it! She’s a kks who has been heavily pushed lately, performing Nagisa no Cherry in their recent AKB Kouhaku concert and stuff. The thing is, she is the least energetic performer I’ve ever seen so she’s not going to be in my personal top 100 anytime soon I guess she’s being groomed to be the next Team 4 ace, since Minarun failed spectacularly.

82. Iikagen no Susume (Koko ni Ita Koto Akimoto, Katayama, Matsui Rena, Miyazawa, Shinoda): I guess people did like the album after all

81. Kimi ni Tsuite (Beginner C/W Maeda At, Kasai, Katayama, Nito, Matsui Sakiko) (AX11 28): MINT! <3 Their best song and all! Ohhh AKB fans are starting to develop good taste I see (j/k)

80. Blue Rose (K2 Akimoto, Masuda, Yamauchi, Miyazawa) (AX11 90): Blue Rose manages to climb 10 positions! ;_; So happy! This is a fantastic song, so legendary! Kinda sad that Meetan wasn’t there with her gold bikini, but Ranran is super hot and I’m sure she did great!

79. Sougen no Kiseki (K3) (AX11 75): This song is so meaningful and beautiful ;_; I cried like a baby when they sang it in Erena’s graduation ceremony. OMG so so so so happy with all the Ori K love!

78. Nagisa no Cherry (A2 Maeda At, Aigasa, Hasegawa, Murayama) (AX11 52): Surprised that Maeda fans allowed this to drop so much, but I guess they had too many songs to vote for and they spread too thin. The backup dancers are from HKT48 I think.

77. Overtake (Koko ni Ita Koto): I think this song has atrocious lyrics (like work harder unpopular girls, because that’s why you’re unpopular, you’re lazy lol) but it’s the Team A song of the album so I guess people wanted it in…

76. Koi wo Kataru Shijin ni Narenakute (S3) (AX11 96): With all the great group songs in S3 this is the one that ranks? I’m baffled. Especially because it actually went up from where it ranked last year

Encore:

DIVA - Lost the Way: World premier of their new single, including new members (that hopefully will remain backdancers or I’ll have to kick Akimoto).

Iwasa Misaki - Mujin Eki: Enka princess of AKB sings her beautiful and incredibly sad debut song.

AKB48 - Flying Get: I don’t get this one lol They should’ve done BINGO or something that wouldn’t rank IMO, but this is the song the new fans know so I guess it makes sense. Poor Wasamin having to dance to this in a kimono xD

Expect the rest of the list later this evening or tomorrow because I have to study now xD See you then!

Warning: Swearing ahead. I swear like a sailor IRL and this is very stream of consciousness so read at your own risk.

So, here’s the thing. I received my copies of Ue Kara Mariko today, I had even forgotten about those lol I didn’t even want to bother with them because I kind of hate that single, and I regret spending so much money in it, but I decided that as long as I already have them, might as well open them and see what I got in the picture department, just out of curiosity because I’m never lucky with these things.

I open the bubble wrap, and turns out that the CDJ bonus pic is Reinyan plus Sakiko in their Danso gear. FYI, Reinyan is in my top 10, so I was happy and smiled a bit. Then I opened my Team B CD, because it was the first one, and OMG. I got a Yui picture you guys ;_; and it was just her face, smiling her beautiful smile and uhhh her eyes are so pretty and she looks so happy, I love her guuuuuuhhhh how could I ever think of leaving this fandom Yui needs me I literally gasped and started tearing up when I saw her picture. No kidding. Idols are SRS BSNS.

Then I opened Type K and there was Reinyan there. OMG. Another Reinyan picture ;_; And OMG she needs me too, because nobody remembers the time when she was in senbatsu any more, and because I love how much she loves Team K and she was Maimai’s best friend, and gosh I love Maimai guuuuuuhhhhhhhhh

And then I opened Type A and… there was a picture of Chiyuu ;_; who is my favorite Team B member and overall top 4. And I looked at her and thought of how lovely she looked and how she’s been so brave in the face of idiotic wotas and her pelvic disease and the inept shitbags of HoriPro who fail to push her. And how she cried so much when she was shuffled out of Team K because she loved them so much, but she still set out to do her best, even though she’s only slipping in popularity more and more. And I’m crying again you guys.

I’m not an emotional person at all, I swear this was all so weird… I don’t really believe in fate, but a coincidence like this? Wtf.

Anyway, I’ll wipe my tears and brave through the music and PVs of this single because of my babies. Because of Yui, Reinyan and Chiyuu. Yup.

So here you have it: The weirdest pseudo transcendental review you’ll ever read. Brought to you by the powers that be, who confabulated to include pics of Cat’s top 5 members in her otherwise hated Ue Kara Mariko CDs in order for her to be touched and weep like a baby to the Kajiura Music iTunes is playing right now, and make her actually listen to and write a proper post about AKB’s music for the first time in months. Yup.

So, let’s start with Type A.

1. Ue Kara Mariko (Mariko from the top): I’ll be honest with you guys. I don’t think there’s ever going to be a chance for me to like this song for what it is. It sounds like UG stuff, especially like Dakishimechaikenai mixed with some verses straight out of whatever filler Stage song (lol Stage song. Good times.) The chorus is a little catchier but it still fails to impress me. Ugh the break is stupid. I hate it. I’ve heard it a million times before wtf. (also, I am aware that this is idol music, that doesn’t mean it has to suck though)

Also, I’m mad about the fact that this song is entirely about Mariko. I’ve never felt strongly about her either way. I know that there was a time where she was hated by a lot of international fans because of her absences from the theater, but I didn’t care about that much, since my oshi was Oshima Mai who was literally never around lol. I honestly thought Mariko would graduate before Mai, but that didn’t happen, she just never graduated and probably never will lol. I thought she could be funny some times, and sassy and all that was alright. But I never really cared for her, and honestly, I care even less now that there’s a whole song about her supposed “sadistic” character.

I get it, Sado was an amazing character in Majisuka, but come on. It’s not the unfairness of the fact that the whole song is about her, it’s the fact that I don’t care about her at all tbh. If this was a song about Reinyan I’d be all over it, seriously, but a song about Mariko? Bleh. And it sucks, to make things even worse.

Why do Janken singles always get the worst themes? Ugh. At least Chance no Junban is a cheer up kind of song that you could possibly relate to, but this? lol whatever.

Move over Namida Surprise, here’s the worst AKB A-side ever for me!

2. Noel no Yoru (Noel’s Night): You see, AKB is such an original group that they repeat everything they did last year. Including the B-sides of their singles and their tie in campaigns. I’m overwhelmed by the sheer originality of everything they do /bitter.

I don’t really like this song. I’m annoyed that Maeda gets the only solo line (wrong fandom to be in amirite amirite) and the synth sounds like a really cheap H!P B-side.

Yoyaku shita Christmas at least had a memorable melody line. Or I’m biased and in denial.

Oh wait, Yuko gets a solo too! I LOVE THIS SONG lol j/k. Anyway, let’s give credit where it’s due: It’s always nice to hear something different from the 5 person lines in every other AKB single or B-side. And the little almost a capella verse is cute.

Verdict: Cute but completely forgettable and someone needs to destroy that synth.

3. Rinjin wa Kitsuzukanai -Team A- (The Neighbor won’t be hurt): I can’t write that third word in the title to save my life. This song is right up my alley <3 It sounds dark and mysterious and I’m absolutely head over heels with it!!!! Why can’t A-sides be like this? Obviously Akimoto gives his best song to Team A because lol he doesn’t even pretend he cares about the other teams. Sucks to be a fan of anyone else (especially Team 4)

I don’t even know what else to say about the song, I think it’s musically interesting in the way the verses are organized and the little refrains, this is totally going to be my jam this winter (although there aren’t seasons in my country :D)

Now let’s do PVs Since I didn’t care for this single AT ALL after listening to the preview of the title track, I’ve never watched them. I might have had an epiphany of Team K love with the pictures that came with the single but even that won’t make me screencap it right now xD

1. Ue Kara Mariko:

Basically… The PV is amazing I can’t believe this awesome video was paired with such a stupid song lol.

So we get a little bit of back story (just the way I like my AKB PVs <3) where we see Minegishi, Fujie and Kobayashi (a KKS) talking about how they are selecting the next class president through Janken, and Miichan is obviously stoked and being her usual “shaku” self. Reinyan is a bit unsure of how she’d do at it, and then they see Mariko the teacher walking by, they all admire her and think she’s really cool and whatever.

Then there’s a scene where a discouraged Reinyan is praising her cool teacher and Mariko tells her that they are very much alike, but Fujie doesn’t believe it. Shinoda says “Hair ornaments suit you”. Apparently, when Mariko was a student she won the tournament and became class president.

Then we move to the actual tournament, and it bummed me a bit that the girls who placed lower in the ranks aren’t included in the story part. Mostly because Maeda Ami fails to impress me and there’s a ton of her instead of Suzuran, Mizuki or Chiyuu who are girls I really like lol. Better luck to my favorites next time I guess… The funny thing is that they managed to leave the SKE and NMB girls almost completely out of the picture (NMB girl is also really uncharismatic from the 2 secs of screentime she got) but I’m sure that if Jurina had placed even last she would’ve been center or something. Oh Akimoto, you are such a rascal.

Anyway, the tournament goes on and on until the final between Miichan and Reinyan, and we get to see Fujie sulking in the floor thinking she’s never going to make it, and then Mariko comes in and without saying anything, pins a white flower ornament in her hair and smiles at her. We see some sort of flashback that Mariko was wearing this ornament and a white dress when she won, then Reina *~miraculously~* changes into the white dress and beats Miichan, everyone is joy joy happy and I’m smiling like an idiot

Sayaka in senbatsu makes me happy btw, and Mariko’s performance in this was flawless and made me like her more.

I still hate the song though. And I think that Mariko is a terrible center for some reason when I was watching the live performance she didn’t catch my eye even once. But well, this is her moment in the spotlight let her enjoy it.

2. Noel no Yoru:

Standard fare of girls doing christmasy stuff, pretty cute except for the fact that they gave Yui the worst outfit I have ever seen in my life ughhhhh. Also Sumire and Lovetan <3 Cute.

I kind of hate how washed out they all look with their pink and white outfits and honestly that furry thing in the hem of their hats looks cheap.

Takamina needs to dye her hair a darker shade again, light hair has never done it for her IMO.

And well, yeah, none of this matters because you see, this is the second time in recent AKB history that there’s a shared center between Maeda and Yuko I guess Ota Pro just pestered them to do it this way because of Yuko’s drama (which I totally haven’t watched lol I’m the worst fan ever) but I really really hope this continues because Yuko is amazing and she should be center. I don’t even care about sounding biased or hurting somebody’s *~feelings~* by saying that. I’m a badass like that.

3. Rinjin wa Kitsuzukanai:

Team A was conceptual and pulled it off beautifully with Kurumi to Dialog last year, and after hearing their song I wanted them to have a kickass PV and I wasn’t let down. I love the contrast between the dark look (both Maedas greatly impressed me with their beauty in this setting) and the pure innocent white dresses in the forest. I feel like there’s potential for a lot of symbolism in the video and I would like to go back to it when I’ve read the translated lyrics, but so far I’m a fan.

Now let’s move on to K version.

Here I’m going to tell a bit of a backstory (why the hell not, this is already almost 3000 words long lol). Last year was really tough for me, I was out of uni and had to move back with my parents and well, it was really hard. It’s annoying to have them pester you about the smallest things, and at some point things got really bad and it seemed like they just didn’t want to support me anymore. This was all around the time Chance no Junban was released, and ALIVE really really resonated with me with its lyrics about pushing forward no matter what, even if you are completely alone and if you feel like you can’t go on. I have a special connection to that song, and it made me anticipate this year’s Team K song a lot.

Ok, so after storytiem, here comes the review

Zero Sum Taiyou (I have no idea what this means lol): I like this song, sure, it’s not a rocking and head banging anthem like ALIVE, but it sounds really Team K-ish and I missed that kind of sound. Basically, this could’ve fit right in K4 and it makes me nostalgic and I want to cry again BAWWWW MY LOST YOUTH why am I so full of feelings today?

Anyway, this one is a bittersweet love song and I like how it sounds like something out of the 90s. Basically, I’m disappoint that it’s not the second coming of ALIVE (or Korogaru or Hana to Chire or MARIA or Blue Rose or KimiPega or Yume no Kane…) but I like the song for what it is and it sounds pretty cool.

Now the PV review:

This PV is so perfect <3 I was hurt that so many people hated it though I’m always hurt when people hate anything Team K does because I can’t deal with people hating on the things I like. Yes I need to grow up. Anyway, in this PV we have 2 parts, the first one is basically a dance shot, and the girls are all dressed up as guys in suits and ties and some of them wear hats and Sae makes me question my sexuality for the umpteenth time in this fandom but what else is new xD

My Team K bitches are so fierce man! Especially Yuko! Wow! Those dance sequences look kickass because of how many great dancers Team K has. Sayaka looks lovely too and ofc Yui my baby although she looks nothing like a boy. Also Akimoto, stop trying to make Tomochin happen, it’s not gonna happen.

I always forget that Tanamin, Yonechan and Nakatsuka are in AKB lol they looked pretty good in this PV though. And well, everyone else does too except for Miichan and that horrible hat. Yikes.

Anyway, the second part of the PV is where people started going wtf and hating on the PV. Here’s a picture of their costumes:

when most people saw that they went “lolomg peacocks? what is this?” but actually, they are dressed up as otokoyaku from the Takarazuka Revue. Otokoyaku are the women who play men, btw. I know next to nothing about Takarazuka and I would’ve probably been in the wtf camp if it wasn’t for the fact that Sae cosplayed as an otokoyaku for the AKBINGO Iromoea game a million years ago.

So yeah. Anyway, I love this concept so much! I know for a fact (not really) that Team K seems to be very popular with girls in the west but Idk if they have the same appeal in Japan. What I do know is that they are supposed to be the cool team, and according to many young girls in Japan, it doesn’t get much cooler than “Danso” (that is girls wearing boys clothes and acting like boys) so it fits.

Also, the song is sung from a male POV, but that happens with a LOT of AKB songs anyway so it’s not that relevant.

I just want to say that Yuko is an amazingly expressive performer and I could really feel the intensity of her emotions in the PV, which again reminded me of how much I love her. ILU YUKO NEVER CHANGE.

Finally, Type B:

Yobisute Fantasy (A fantasy where you call me by my first name): I like this song It’s cute and really bouncy and makes me smile! I was probably the only person in the world who loved Love Jump last year, and this time it’s no different. It kinda sounds like a shoujo anime opening from my childhood although I can’t remember which one. Anyway, it brings me happy memories and that makes me love it. There’s this weird part where they all say their first names but I didn’t even notice it until I payed really close attention xD It doesn’t bother me at all.

BTW, a little bit of context. In Japan it’s customary to call people by their last name unless you’re really close to that person, so the girl in the song wants to become so close to the person she likes that he’ll call her by her first name. Cute.

Now the PV review:

It’s really cute, and probably my favorite of the bunch! That might be because it’s also really fucked up lol There’s this really weird teddy bear that turns them from marionettes into real girls, and Mayu and Yuki are in love again and Chiyuu is perfect <3 I want all of their costumes too, this just looks so fun! It’s like what idol music should be like

Also, the theater version included Team 4’s song, Hashire Pengin, which was originally going to be the A-side until Mariko asked them to use a different song so they went off and wrote her the worst AKB song ever because she was a whiny bitch I’m kidding. But there might be some truth behind that…

Anyway, Hashire Pengin also sounds like an UG reject song, but at least it’s cute and way catchier than Ue kara mariblah. Oh well.

See you again next time, folks! I’m not preordering the stupid sakura single again because I wanted to kick myself when I bought Sakura no ki  ni narou, so I’m just going to wait and see if I like it. Feels weird not to preorder it immediately after I’ve been doing just that for over a year though But now I have more money for spending on different things! Yay!

Also, real life is scary and I might get married what is happening with the world? The end is near.

Hi everyone! The Idol Challenge has been getting a bit harder xD So I’m taking my time to think about the H!P questions, so I thought I’d review SKE’s latest stage in the meantime. I’m not a huge SKE fan because I have no time to follow any more groups that I already do, I already have to study a lot so my time is very limited. Also, SKE has a youthful energetic feeling to it that isn’t really my thing (I feel like I’m a bit old for that to be honest) so I kind of pass on their singles most of the time.

However, their original stages are amazing. S2 and S3 are certainly among my favorites ever, they are intense and have a great variety of songs, so I was obviously looking forward to Team KII’s first original stage!

With everything Akimoto Yasushi has on his plate right now (Team A, Team K, Team B, AKB singles, subunit singles, soloist singles, SKE singles, NMB singles, Nogizawa 46…) he has no time to write stages anymore, which is a damn shame for all of us old school fans who fell in love with AKB because of their stages. In Team KII’s case, it was even more heartbreaking, because they debuted a long time ago (in 2009) and they performed a revival of an old AKB stage, as it’s the tradition. Theirs was Team A 2nd “Aitakatta”, in the meantime Team S was getting their original stages, and well, pretty much everyone else was too. After a while of performing their rehash everyone was excited for something new, and then it was announced that they would be covering Team S’ second stage “Te wo Tsunainagara”. After performing that one for a while as well, finally an original stage was announced and everyone was really excited. That stage was rumored to begin around the end of last year, yet nothing ever appeared, and the girls had to keep performing the old stages they had already been given.

It was very sad, especially because they had debuted a long time ago yet didn’t have a stage to call their own. Until earlier this year in the elections, when Team KII captain, Takayanagi Akane aka. Churi included in her election speech something along the lines of “Akimoto sensei, please write an original stage for KII soon!”  So with all the spotlight on him and the angry fans of KII wanting to emasculate him, he finally got his ass in gear and wrote the stage like a month ago. That is over a year after he was supposed to do so ugh.

Anyway, all this long intro is so that you know why this particular stage was so important, both for the girls and the fans. And for casual fans like me, having any kind of new stage is a treat, after all, this is the backbone of my particular fandom!

DISCLAIMER: All the pictures come from scrambled egg because SKE LODs have horrible quality and all the screenshots I took looked really awful.

1. Kizashi (Signs)

I’m a bit meh about this song, it has something dissonant about it that I hate in the instrumental build up before the choruses and verses. The girls are cute but and the choreography is impressive with all the position changes. lol at Shawako completely bumping into another girl and freezing for like 2 seconds. I’m not impressed with the outfits either, marching band meets inseki no kakuritsu? Meh.

2. Koutei no Koinu (Schoolyard Puppy)

This isn’t a screencap from this song, but it’s the same outfits, only imagine Ishida Anna with dog ears xD Much better! Really cute! Reminds me of Sobakasu no Kisu and the such. Annya has dog ears? How adorable. I’m really enjoying this one, the choreography is bouncy and cute without being psychotic like SKE’s usually are. It sounds reminiscent of Onyanko Club stuff. I love it.

3. Disco Hokenshitsu (School Infirmary Disco)

Oh, this is right up my alley. And I’m loving the new outfits! They look like Kuroi Tenshi’s plus a bit of Junjou Shugi’s. Great. The cheap synth is killing me a bit, but I guess that’s where the disco comes from, and the sass of the song kind of makes up for it. The little dance solos are interesting. The lyrics in this song are very very shocking haha about a girl who has a forbidden relationship with a teacher, but they are quite racy, I think I’d be up for translating this stage (I’ve done all of the other SKE original stages after all). I’m happy to hear dirty lyrics again, this is why I love stages: the songs can be about anything and everything, singles are just too vanilla.

4. Omatase Setlist (Awaited Setlist)

And we’re back to the Onyanko Club sound, I actually love it. lol Akimoto wrote them a song about how he didn’t give them an original stage until after like a million years passed since their debut. This is really cute, reminds me of Shonichi, only from the showa era xD and the girls look so happy. Awww. However, the cynical in me wants to side eye Akimoto for being like this, because it’s not like the girls didn’t try the damn hardest to get him to move and write them a stage. At least he gets point for writing “It’s like we were forgotten” in the lyrics I guess… Insight is important.

5. Cross (Takayanagi Akane, Wakabayashi Tomoka, Matsumoto Rina)

This is totally my jam. They all look cutesy, which makes it a little weird, but then they start rocking out like crazy, it’s a very interesting gap. I’m really loving the melody and the rock twist of the song. The only downside is that the costumes remind me too much of Glory Days :S But the song is flawless, the dance gets a bit weird with sentai positions and kicks, but it works anyway. Amazing song is amazing

6. Finland Miracle (Mukaida Manatsu, Yakata Miki, Akaeda Ririna)

Wtf is up with that title. This unit is cute. The music sounds like something from an old Kotoko album, but that’s a good thing anyway. I kinda dislike the costumes though, they look heavy and kinda out of place for the song, but they look like they might grow on me later. Overall nice, but Manatsu bores me a bit, and I think she is upstaged by the other 2 girls whose names I don’t know, especially the one in the blue outfit (who according to my research is Yakata Miki aka. Mikitty (!)).

7. Manazashi Sayonara (Furukawa Airi, Ogiso Shiori) Gazing Goodbye

Airiiiiin. Wow. Those costumes are gorgeous, instant favorites. And the song has a mid tempo chorus with beautiful sad verses, I didn’t know Ogiso could sing (oh wait she can’t lol) but she held her own anyway. Musically weird, but still works, and I like how they look like lonely cabaret girls xD What I don’t like is the abrupt ending I thought my media player had frozen and died lol

Even the title is like a Onyanko Club song xD I love the line distribution, and Sawako looks graceful and it’s interesting to have a song centered around her like that I really like the music, it’s again very showa idol, but that’s a plus in my book. I’m loving all of the costumes, and the choreography is definitely interesting in all of its calculated refinement, especially because not only Shawako is doing it but everyone else as well. AKB could cover this, with Komori as center I think Komori is better than Hata at it, but what do I know about ballet anyway…

11. Ima Kimi to Irareru Koto (Being with you now): Lovely outfits (they remind me of Kimi no koto ga suki dakara), and what a great dramatic start for this somber ballad! I love that it’s not just the whole group singing but duets or solo lines actually exist in the stage! And they aren’t all for the front girls! The chorus is a little weird, like it lacks a bit more punch, but it’s still a good song, and I love the electric guitar in the background. This sounds like something Melon Kinenbi might’ve sung I miss them

12. Winning Ball:

Now this is more upbeat and idoly, but I still think it has a bit of a retro feel. The dance is cute as well, with them doing a little bit of mimic and jumping around. A filler song, but a great one at it. I like the touch of having one of the girls hit a ball with a bat to try to make it fit through a tiny basketball net in one of the pillars. I highly doubt any of them will be able to achieve such a complex thing though xD

13. Akushu no Ai (Handshake Love): No picture for this one! Bad scramble egg xD Their outfits remind me of Shiokaze no Shoutaijou but without the ridiculous jean corsets. I like the fact that it’s not a ballad, but actually quite upbeat, which is a great way to finish the stage (I’m not too fond of ballads myself, so the lesser the better for me). I like it. The cute high five / handshaking thing they do is also adorable, especially when they get down from stage to shake fans hands xD BTW, they modified the stage and now it has a tiny runway which they mostly use here and in Kodoku na Ballerina and Nice to meet you. Bummer for the loss of seats, but it’s interesting to see what they will do with it in further stages (like in a million years amirite?)

14. Bowling Ganbou (Bowling Wish):

I hate bowling shirts, so I’m not thrilled about this costume, however it’s nice that they gave each girl a different color I do like the technoish beat in the background music of this song and the electric guitar riffs! However, I feel like it might get a bit lost with so many similar sounding songs in the stage ;A; I’ll need to listen to it more to decide, but it sounds promising. The dance is pretty standard except that the girls take turns to mimic bowling and the others standing as bowling pins xD

15. 16shoku no Yume Crayon (16 colored crayons of dreams):

Cute. I always like self referential songs, and this one is upbeat without being too hyper Now the bowling shirts colors make sense , and it’s pretty clever! Overall I like it, but it might be the bottom of the Team songs for me right now because the others are so over the top xD KII is a stupid name though, so there wasn’t much that could’ve been done about that, sadly.

16. Ramune no Nomikata (How to drink Ramune):

Oh, now we get the ballad. SKE ballads tend to be better than AKB’s so I have hope xD Funny that this is the only stage after K5 to be named after a ballad. Well, the song is cute, and I like the acoustic guitar, but uhh… A bit underwhelming, especially the verses. The ramune props are cute though.

17. Single Medley:

Unnecessary, should’ve been Ai no kazu, which is a great song. And this is just so pointless xD Reminds me of the old times when singles were stage songs (and Team A always got a bunch of them in their stages) But uhh. No thank you. And the outfits are ugly too IMO, at least they should’ve shuffled up the colors a bit.

Overall, I feel like this is a great stage, definitely reminiscent of the good old days when all of the kami stages were written. The retro sound that made me adore AKB is present in almost every song, which is amazing for me personally. The girls of KII are a little bit less about crazy convulsive dancing when compared to their S counterparts, but they sound better than their senpais (and I’m not into intensive dancing anyway lol) so they might pretty much be my favorite SKE team so far (I know nothing about E, but I won’t bother with the LQ LODs until they get an original stage. Yup.). A great stage, and IMO better than A6 and B5.

CODA: I’d like to take this small space to wish a speedy recovery to one of my favorite AKB girls, Kasai Tomomi, who apparently has peritonitis, a serious condition. Since she’s been blogging and all, I’m a little bit relieved, but I still wish her all the best, and I hope that she can get well soon, and hopefully not have any sequels that might affect her in her life later on.

Ok, so I’ve been meaning to do this for a long while! You guys must know by now that Not yet is my favorite AKB subunit because it includes my 2 top members, Oshima Yuko and Yokoyama Yui <3 On top of that it also includes the always hilarious Sasshi and the gorgeous, quirky and kind Kitarie so it’s win all around With that said, I’ve been dying to review this single ever since it came out, but I haven’t had the time for various reasons. The PV is my favorite idol PV so far this year, it’s simply fantastic and super well done IMO, so I’ll review it with a million screencaps sometime soon, hopefully xD

However, the reason why I like Not yet other than the fact that all of its members are in my top 10 is the fact that I really like the songs they get, I find them pretty and the lyrics are always able to put a smile on my face I never got around to reviewing Shuumatsu, their debut single, although I loved it to bits, so I want to strike the iron while it’s hot and do it with Naminori Kakigoori before it slips away from everybody’s mind

Naminori Kakigoori was the second single release by AKB subunit Not yet formed by the following members:

Oshima Yuko ace of Team K and center of the group

Yokoyama Yui the new star of Team K

Sashihara Rino of Team A, known for her Hetare (useless) character and quirky blog posts

Kitahara Rie of Team B, known for being Sasshi’s best friend and partner in crime xD

The single was released on July 6th, and its theme is summer! I’ll review all of the tracks and provide lyrics translations as well because I feel like they are an important part of the reason why I like the songs so much

Naminori Kakigoori achieved the No. 1 weekly position having sold 156000 copies on its first week, coming just 3k short of their debut single. I don’t know the overall sales so far though so if anyone could let me know I would really appreciate it!

1. Naminori Kakigoori (Surfing Shaved Ice):

Here are the lyrics translation courtesy of STUDIO48 and loveandcoffee

Surfing and shaved ice
Are the things you like the most
As the third thing
Please fall in love with me

Your skilled board
Sliding on the blue see
Has forgotten
The beach

I wave my hands at you widely
But you don’t notice me at all
You’re a free
Flying fish

I pretend I’m a little sulky
And flip over my love
My back will get sunburnt
Because a certain someone isn’t here
To help me apply sun oil

Surfing and shaved ice
Are the things you like the most
You don’t notice
Anything else at all
Surfing and shaved ice
Are the things you like the most
As the third thing
Please fall in love with me
Before summer is over…

You’re finally back
With your hair wet
And you look
Very pleased with yourself

You laugh
As you eat melon flavoured shaved ice
You kind of irk me a little

You’re surrounded by the things you love
You’re happy, aren’t you?
You’re like a little boy…
I voiced my sarcastic remark
To the sun in the sky…

Waiting a ton of time on my own
What’s gonna happen to the two of us?
When I look back,
I feel so lonely
Waiting a ton of time on my own
What’s gonna happen to the two of us?
I feel uneasy when you’re not here
Please remember the third thing…
Surfing,
Shaved ice…
I wonder what do they
Have in common

Maybe I’m not enough?
Am I not enough?
But see, I don’t mind
If I’m not your number one favourite…

Surfing and shaved ice
Are the things you like the most
You don’t notice
Anything else at all
Surfing and shaved ice
Are the things you like the most
As the third thing
Please fall in love with me
Before summer is over…

So, as you can see, even though it’s an upbeat summery tune it’s actually a sad song about a girl who knows that she isn’t her boyfriend’s first priority but she still loves him so she tries to stay with him despite of this. This tradition of upbeat music but bittersweet lyrics is a classic in AKB’s discography, and it think it paints an interesting contrast, I also like how the song isn’t overly gloomy or melodramatic either lyrics wise, it keeps the whole scene it paints quite light hearted. Music wise, this time the song is a lot faster than Shuumatsu Not yet and it also gives every girl solo lines, which are very much welcome! The song is very poppy although it has some sparkly sounding elements (reminiscent of Kakigoori?) and some guitars. I like the stacatto sound of the interlude a lot since it makes it stand out.

Rating: 5/5

2. Vermeer no Tegami (Vermeer’s Letter):

Lyrics translation by me, keep in mind that I’m not fluent in japanese but I try my best xD If you spot any mistakes, feel free to let me know about them, thanks!

On the table there are figs
ripening without noticing it
even though their sweet scent is inviting
somehow I can’t reach out my hand…

Only by
loving you
I’m causing someone else to be unhappy
I avert my gaze suddenly
and look for relief in
the light that comes through the window
Forgive me for this love…

I wonder what was written
in Vermeer’s letter
somehow my current self
understands it…
Even though I know that that moment was a mistake
I don’t have regrets about our unexpected meeting
My destiny

There are precious things
that disappear when you touch them with your fingers
if that happens then I’d rather close my eyes
and not see anything anymore

I know that I
don’t have the requirements
to love you
my room gets darker
everything
becomes the same under the blindfold
of love’s pain

Without even writing a reply to
Vermeer’s letter
my pure white stationary
represents the feelings in my heart
I can’t betray someone I don’t know
instead of hurting her
I’ll turn this into a memory
Your destiny

There are fruits
whose flowers don’t bloom
but secretly open
when the night comes
I will certainly remember
just like the bright sunlight
love is a memory

I wonder what was written
in Vermeer’s letter
somehow my current self
understands it…
Even though I know that that moment was a mistake
I don’t have regrets about our unexpected meeting
My destiny

So, first things first. This song is the standard B-side that came with all the types of the CD. The song was the theme of a Museum Exhibit called “Vermeer’s Love Letter” in Kyoto, which is probably where the title and theme of the song come from. Vermeer was a dutch painter, famous for his “Girl with a Pearl Earring” painting, but he also had a painting called “The Love Letter” which depicted a young woman getting a love letter, with imagery that suggests a tempestuous love (read the whole thing at wiki here). This is all important because the lyrics of the song tell a story about a girl who has a love affaire with a guy who is committed to someone else, the girl of the song realizes that she can’t hurt somebody else just because of her selfish feelings and decides to cut it off even though it saddens her. This way, she says she understands what was written in Vermeer’s Letter, maybe alluding to the fact that the letter might have been addressed to some guy’s mistress (this last part is my interpretation of it though) and she’s going to write a reply to it to put an end to their romance.

As it happens often with Akimoto’s lyrics they paint a very specific scene, and I think it’s pretty awesome how he managed to come up with a story that was fitting for the painting in question, without stretching things too much. It’s quite a grown up song too, which surprised me considering how the lyrics of their previous songs have been normal idol stuff.

Ok, so now, the musical part. This song is a ballad, and it has a bit of a dramatic undertone to it, especially during the verses. There’s a very interesting accordion (or something like that) arrangement that gives it its distinct flavor and saves it from just being another random idol ballad, but it isn’t enough to make it stand out particularly. Actually, I’ve heard it described as “museum music” xD which might have been what Akimoto was looking for? I think it’s relaxing and pretty but not much more than that.

Translation by me as well

Musically, this song sounds honestly a bit country, I like to think of it as Kokoro no Hashi no Sofa’s little sister because of its similar lyrics and music style Lyrically, it’s nothing to write home about, the usual friendship song, with some really cute lyrics and metaphors (the mirror one was pretty adorable IMO).

It’s perfect for making you cheer up if you’re feeling gloomy and remind you that you’re not alone, and it’s quite catchy in its simplicity!

Yokoyama Yui has a high pitched timbre, but I’d argue that she’s the best singer in the unit. She’s proven to be quite good live (listen to her cover of Ikimonogakari’s Bluebird) if you can tolerate her sweet voice xD and she works pretty well in the group because the rest of the girls have significantly lower registers.

Now, moving on to Sashihara Rino, she has an average voice, but she’s good at hitting all the right notes and can harmonize properly. I was actually pleasantly surprised to hear her solo lines in this single, even though I’ve never thought she’s bad, I used to find her voice very non descript, but she’s improved and now sounds clearer.

Last is Kitahara Rie. God knows I love Kitarie to death, she’s my second favorite Team B member, and she could do no wrong in my eyes until I heard her solo line in the a capella chorus here. Seriously, she was all over the place, her voice sounded kinda shaky and not right. I wish I knew more about music so I could point out exactly what was it that bothered me but uhh…  It might have to do with the fact that the song is a bit higher than their other stuff so she strains a bit. Anyway. girl needs singing lessons, because she’s amazing and all, but even when she’s harmonizing she’ll go off tune at times and stick out. And this is the recording so, yeah. Kitarie, I love you to death, but please take singing lessons ;_; all of them could use them, really, so that they harmonize better and not clash, because Yuko, Sasshi and Rie’s voices are quite similar and it really stands out when one of them isn’t getting it right.

Anyway, great song, I could definitely see this being a stage song, which is great in my book

Musically, I’ve heard people call it generic, but I actually quite like it and think it’s very catchy and melodic! It has a nice upbeat pace and nice and different verses that make it stand out. My favorite part is the bridge and how it leads to an almost a capella chorus to pick up the genki pace afterwards. Actually, it reminds me a bit of SKE’s music, because of the high energy and the fast pace. I just really hope I can watch a performance of this song at the next AX or anywhere, really. Should I vote for it? I was planning on voting for Korogaru Ishi ni Nare and ALIVE but hmmm… I like this song too much! I’ll figure it out when the time comes, I guess

Rating: 5/5

Overall Rating 4,5/5: Naminori Kakigoori is a very solid effort by the girls of Not yet that proves why they are the best selling sub unit of AKB (lol not really, that’s just because of their popularity but this was great anyway :P) Despite Shuumatsu Not yet not leaving a very good impression in a big chunk of the english speaking fanbase, they completely turned it around this time with a refreshing summer A-side and original B-sides that ranged from ballads to country and that were very well written, lyrics wise. To be honest, I feel like it was one of Akimoto’s better recent efforts, reminiscent of the lyrics of old stage songs, and I was incredibly happy to find out when I translated them, it definitely made it MUCH better to me, because I’m  nerd who likes to overanalyze idol lyrics 8B

The PV of the A-side also set them aside from their debut, where people were quite disappointed at the dance shot/close up format. I will review the PV and DVDs that came with the CDs next time

Even though they didn’t manage to sell more than their debut single, I was glad to see them performing everywhere and their events looked like a lot of fun! And with good reason, because Yuko, Rie and Sasshi are great at MCing and generally entertaining a crowd, and Yuko surfing was super badass!

So, all in all, I think this was a great release and I would recommend you guys to pick it up if you can, you won’t regret it! It’s idol pop at its finest and great for the summer! My entire holiday at the sea consisted pretty much of me humming Naminori Kakigoori, Bokutachi no Offshore and Ningyo no Vacance from AKB’s latest album (which I also want to review, but we’ll see).

See you next time for PV + DVD extras! As usual all comments are much appreciated

EDIT: Sorry about the spacing issues, I tried to fix them 10 times and no luck. Gah. Wordpress hates me and I’m totally dumb at this kind of stuff so please bear with me.

Ok, people, I honestly haven’t payed much attention to Acchan’s new single, so I figured it would be a good time to review it!

Maeda Atsuko - Flower

So, this is the day that the whole AKB fandom was pretty much expecting, where the top ace of the group would finally get her solo single and prove everyone what she’s made of.

So let’s see how did this single fare for me.

1. Flower: The title track, and also a theme song for the movie Acchan starred in, Moshidora. The song is a sweet laidback mid tempo tune, which greatly highlights Acchan’s sweet voice. The backing vocals are very good and help the song feel fuller. The PV for the song was a little story that I couldn’t understand very well xD We see Acchan and a little girl (presumably a little sister) embarking on a journey to meet their ill mother, but then when they meet the mom, the little girl becomes Acchan or something. It’s quite weird, but that’s nice because it makes people comment and leaves things a bit open to the viewer’s interpretation.

Rating: 4/5

2. Kono Mune no Melody: Moving on to the main B-side of the single, this one is a bit more upbeat and kind of rocky sounding. The instrumentation is very rich, however, I find myself not liking Acchan’s voice as much here, it loses a bit of its sweet quality when she sings in a powerful way and the amount of vibrato in the chorus doesn’t sound so good to me. I’m also not a big fan of the falsetto either, especially in the little a capella-ish chorus, it sounds as if she’s struggling. Anyway, good change of pace from Flower, but not that good of a song by itself.

Rating 3/5

3. Hoozue to Caffè Macchiatto: This song is the exclusive B-side of the Act 1 version of the single. The first time I heard it I thought it was kinda dull, but now that I’m listening to it more closely, I think it’s a beautiful song. A nostalgic ballad, it highlights Acchan’s voice very well, she’s really at her best singing slow paced songs IMO. I like this song a bit better than Flower because I feel like this one is more melodic, although Flower’s chorus is catchier.

Rating: 4/5

4. Yoake Made: Another ballad, this one is the B-side that comes with Act 2. It’s a bit happier in tone than Caffè Machiatto, and I like the little flute arrangement in the instrumental break. The chorus is very soothing, and Acchan sounds great, even with the falsettos.

Rating: 3/5

5. la Brea Ave: The Bside of the Act 3 version is actually my favorite song of the single. It’s a bit more upbeat, but they get it right this time xD Acchan’s vocals sound very nice, and the rockish instrumental and guitar riffs are quite nice! I can totally imagine her singing this live with a band! Definitely a great song, and one of the best *48 songs in a while.

Rating: 5/5

6. Brunch wa Blueberry: The song that comes with the Theater Version of the single. With this one we get a synth-y intro, and a laid back song with a bit of a reggae-ish feeling to it (lol it’s totally not, but I don’t know how else to describe it). It’s refreshing to hear it because it’s different to the other songs. My problem with it is that I hear a lot of synths everywhere, and I’m not too fond of that.

Rating: 3/5

Overall rating: 3.6

Acchan’s debut single is just what it should be, a collection of sweet songs to match her gentle character. The songs are very well done, and beautifully arranged for the most part.

Her vocals have improved greatly, but she still has a long way to go, and it also applies to her live performances, where she has often looked a bit shy or scared, I’m sure she’ll get there in time, and especially with the support of all the other girls, who love her a lot and the support of the fans as well I can only foresee great things in the future for Acchan and I definitely want to see where is she going to go next.

The extra DVD contents of the single deserve a special mention, because they included a 30 minutes long making of the Flower video (which I didn’t watch, not gonna lie. I just wasn’t that interested in the video, and I only have limited time, so yeah), a cut from the photoshoot where she picks some clothes (none of them are of my liking, but Acchan looks beautiful as always, and she’s a pro when it comes to posing <3) and an extra mini documentary about Acchan’s story within AKB, which I found interesting because we finally get to see the rumored footage from the A2 finale, where they asked the girls to express what was frustrating to them or what bothered them about the stage, and we can see Maeda really breaking down and crying because of the pressure of being almost a soloist in Nagisa no Cherry. I had wanted to see that so that bit piqued my interest.

The rest of the documentary is the same story we’ve all heard a million times: She’s just a normal girl, she didn’t choose to be the center, but she was still presented with that position, doing her best at it even though she has many antis (I was a bit shocked to see the footage of the first election when they call second place and a lot of people are screaming “MAEDA MAEDA” while she’s sitting right there. Wow. Harsh.)

Personally, I don’t think I’ll be following Acchan’s solo career closely or anything. I’m not the biggest ballad fan, and while they are beautiful and fit her style perfectly, they’re just not my cup of tea.