The edges are a bit cut off, though you can see all the girls autographs clearly, except the diamond in the corner of Risa’s photo (which I have noticed most other Gaki autographs don’t have… o_O I have a special Risa autograph!! <3). Just to refresh your memory (and to show the entire diamond (I have become fixated on this thing... XD), this is what they looked like pre-frame:

And now it’s up on my wall with my Berryz Koubou calendar… I can’t wait for 2010 when I’m going to get a Morning Musume calendar to match the frame. ^_^

So, to commemorate post #100 on fields, I recorded fomab podcast #4. The total running time is 1h 4min and I talk about Anime Expo, video games, anime, ebay and other randomness. It’s just a fun little thing of me rambling. I do have one serious point within the podcast which mentions a member of the JPHiP forum passed away a little while after AX, and I just felt that I had to give a salute out to him (Jabronisaur) even though I didn’t really know him (I met him very briefly at the Hello! Party sign-in/welcome table), and to his friends and family who continue to grieve his loss.

So, the tracklist for this podcast is Morning Musume filled (surprise surprise):

1. Shouganai Yume Oibito (39th single)
2. Honki de Atsui Theme Song (4th Ikimasshoi!)
3. Koe (Ai no Dai 6kan)
4. Jounetsu no Kiss wo Hitotsu (Platinum 9 Disc)

The podcast can be found here. Hope you enjoy! ^_^

The girls look gorgeous on this cover! I totally got this LE version (was it A or B? I can’t remember XD) for it.

Let me tell you exactly how much I love this song. Back in February of 2008, I did a Morning Musume singles ranking – taking the 42 singles of Morning Musume including Ai no Tane, the Gumi’s and the anniversary group (Morning Musume Tanjou 10nen Kinentai) [this was up to Mikan]. In my top 10 from that time, the newest single was Kanashimi Twilight, ranked at #6. Looking over my ranking again, I’d have to put Shouganai into the 5th position of my all time favourite Morning Musume singles (#4 of the current 39 Morning Musume singles). [Check the original rankings here Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.]

This couldn’t have come at a better time, as I am definitely going to be at Anime Expo for Morning Musume’s continental US debut, and having two awesome releases in a row has definitely gotten me psyched up. But more on Anime Expo later… First let’s get down to reviewing this wonderful song.

The song
Everything about this song is absolute win for me. The driving beat keeps the energy up, but the strings a strong dramatic feeling to the song. Add in the high range piano popping in and out throught the verses, tickling you at the start pre-chorus and then highlighting the body of the chorus gives you this really dreamy quality that leaves me feeling like I’m floating on a puffy white, if not slightly downtrodden (would that make this more gray?) cloud. It’s not a ballad, but the melancholy mood keeps it mellow for me, despite the strong drum beat.

As for the vocals, it’s a nice line distribution and I love all of Aichan and Risa’s lines. I need more Risa voice in my life, and this song, as well as Yowamushi (Naichau Kamo’s b-side) have been giving me at least a little more of that. ^_^ The melody is beautiful, and adds to the melancholy feel.

The b-side
This is a fun b-side! It’s funky and playful, and everytime it comes on, I want to start dancing. This song is the official theme song for anime expo! I’m sure you all know about the OPV contest for this song. I wanted to submit an entry, but I know didly squat about video editing… I get too frustrated when things don’t work the way I want them to right away. XD Also, I don’t have the time to work on it, seeing as I’m going on vacation for a week to Florid (I leave in about 5 hours) and the OPVs are due on the 19th.

I love the instrumental in this song with the synthetic video game-ish sounds in the background. Am I a geek for having the “Ahhh… ahhh… ahhh.. ahhh.. AHHHHHHH!” part as my favourite vocal section of the song? XD I just LOVE singing that part.

I really need to get to sleep, so I won’t go into the PV for this release, but I will say the dance shot is quite pretty and the “storyline” bits are good too. I love Risa’s outfit… I love ties. XD

Morning Musume made their way back to #1 on the weekly Oricon chart with this single, and again I find that to be perfect timing. It really puts them in a good karmic boost as they get ready to do their first North American (non-FC related) performance. And with that being said, please check out this post on IW. That’s right! I may get the chance to interview Morning Musume for International Wota, and we’re looking for IW readers to submit any questions they might have for the girls (or Tsunku).

It’s time for bed to get ready for 2 days of driving! I’ll be back in a week!

It’s time for another installation of Wota Wonderings. Volume 4 was delayed by a month due to my brother being swamped with finals for school, but it’s better late than never, right?

The question posed this month is:

Hoping we’re not all shallow wotas, imagine your favourite idol (or musical personality) switched bodies with someone you don’t find “visually pleasing”, would it affect your love for that idol in any way/shape/form?

I think the best way to look at this question would be to look at my top 4 girls of Hello! Project at the moment.

From left to right: Natsuyaki Miyabi, Takahashi Ai, Niigaki Risa, Yajima Maimi

First let’s take a look at the remaining 5th generation of Morning Musume. When these two first joined Morning Musume, I was just getting in to Hello! Project. I hadn’t watched the 5th gen auditions at this point, so my first viewing of them was when Mr. Moonlight was released. Unlike 6th gen (particularly Reina) who got solo lines in their first single with Morning Musume, 5th gen had practically nothing (with the exception of Risa’s opening line, which rotated between the other girls at other performances some times). So, what were my first thoughts on these two girls?

For Aichan, I was not particularly fond of her, for I found her very awkward looking. Was it the hairstyle? The ears? I’m not sure, but I have to admit that I didn’t find her very attractive and that threw me off from liking her initially. But come the next single they were involved in, I heard Aichan sing her “hontou no kimochi wa kitto tsutawaru hazu” line at a live performance and I immediately fell in love with her. She still looked awkward as heck to me, and it wasn’t until much later when she truly blossomed into the beauty that she is now, but with that one line, she immediately moved up to near the top of my Morning Musume ranking.

I have to say that for Risa, while I thought she was a cutie, she stayed in the bottom half of my Morning Musume ranking for some time. This had nothing to do with her look, but rather her voice was quite painful to listen to in her early days. In the same performance where I fell in love with Aichan, I cringed with Risa’s follow up “We’re Alive” line. It wasn’t until I heard Risa sing her solo version of “Furusato” (in 2003?) when my opinion changed for her. I think I was kind of amazed that she wasn’t yelling for once. Now, I find her voice absolutely soothing, and it’s one of those voices for me that can calm me down anytime I need calming (she’s on a short of people who include Miyabi, Matsuura Aya, Taylor Hanson, Lea Salonga and Angela Aki).

In regards to Miyabi, I fell in love with her voice first, from listening to her in Munasawagi Scarlet. I knew she was in Aa!, but I didn’t follow the Kids until October 2007, after re-discovering Miya. It really was Miya’s voice that pulled me in, for I wasn’t too fond of her hairstyle in the Munasawagi Scarlet PV. Though, I did watch VERY BEAUTY soon after that, and she was quite pretty in that one. I think a lot of H!P fans just started to acknowledge Miya’s hotness fairly recently – with the release of Buono!’s “Gachinko de Ikou!” if I’m recalling correctly.

Finally we get to Maimi, and unlike the three previous girls I’ve spoken about, I did not start liking Maimi because of her voice. Back in her days of ZYX, she looked really awkward. Nothing near the stunning beauty she is today. I wasn’t hugely fond of ZYX in the first place ’cause back then, because Shimizu Saki and Tsugunaga Momoko of Berryz Koubou annoyed the heck out of me in that group. So, I really started paying attention Maimi after watching C-ute’s Tokkaiko Junjou video, and I have to admit that she was already quite beautiful at that time. Airi was initially my favourite C-ute member, but Maimi slowly worked her way past Airi and Chisato to make it to my top C-ute spot. I think the trigger for me was a mix of watching her spacey, absent-mindedness in video and the photoshoot photos of her 1st UTB feature.

So, in most cases, my favourites have come about due to their vocal abilities. It’s not my fault that these girls have grown to be stunning young women. If they switched bodies with someone less attractive, they’d still be my favourite girls simply because I love their voices. Though, I think Maimi would drop a bit in my list, or at least drop back to the #3 spot in C-ute, for if she wasn’t as gorgeous as she is, Chisato and Airi would definitely hold an edge over her with their voices.

Also, I think I should mention my current favourite J-music artist outside of the UFA umbrella, Angela Aki. She’s probably the least glamourous pop-singer ever. Sure, some of her album or single covers have her in slightly dressy outfits, but have you seen her live? She’s in jeans and a jersey or hoodie. The first live I watched of her was on youtube of the Final Fantasy Voices concert where Angela’s in jeans, a t-shirt and a zip up hoodie. She sits at her piano and has a full orchestra in formal attire behind her, and I was just amazed. I’ve talked with my brother about this and his response to me is always, “With a voice like hers, she can wear whatever she wants.” And I have to agree with him on that.

Though, while she obviously doesn’t dress to impress (unlike the H!P girls who are almost always [minus monkey suits] glammed up), I think she’s quite pretty. But I think it’s quite obvious that on the Angela Aki front, her looks have very little to do with my love for her and her music.

All right, so the title of this post was a little more dramatic than the actual post was, but that’s okay. Here are some other Wota Wondering answers for this month:

Wota Wonderings 4 – Are You a Shallow Wota (Solo Space)
WW04 – Are Looks Everything? (Tsuyoki de Yukoze!)
Wota Wonderings: On looks versus abilities… (boylikesmusic)
Wota Wonderings 004:Looks Or Talent? you decide (take off is now!)
[Wota Wonderings 04] It’s what’s outside that counts. (Renai Revolution 21)
Wota Wonderings 004 – Are You In The Shallow End Of The Pool? (Selective Hearing)

And so without further ado, here is my review of the Hello! Project 2009 Winter Hello! Pro Award ‘09 Concert, AKA Elder Club’s graduation concert. T__T <3

01. Ame no Furanai Hoshi dewa Aisenaidarou? (Morning Musume, Berryz Koubou, C-ute and Mano Erina -> All)
At the start of this performance, I started getting all upset… “WTF?! It’s the EC grad concert!! GIVE ME MY EC!!!!!” and then, we get to the second verse, and Wonderful Hearts parts like the Red Sea to make way for Elder Club, and I was like “THAT’S RIGHT!!!! YOU BEST BE MOVING!!!” And I was sitting there laughing at myself on how into the concert I was with the first song. Also, Aya getting the solo line along with Nacchi for the Elder Club’s verse was awesome and put me into a great mood for this first song.

I have to say that I was absolutely surprised to see that at the end of this first song, Maimi was already brought to tears, as was Yuko. I wonder how many of the other girls were that moved by just the opening song.

02. Manopiano (Mano Erina)
In the past few months, I have quickly become obsessed with Angela Aki (thank you MorningBerryz! ) and I have since bought 2 of her albums and her 2 concerts on blu-ray… After watching loads of Angela playing piano and singing, I just cannot get into Manoeri and her piano bit. I’ve talked with a few people about this on wotachat, but Manoeri looks so awkward playing the piano. It also doesn’t help that I’m not too into Mano’s voice either.

3. Minna no Tamago (Shugo Chara Egg)
I haven’t really gotten into Shugo Chara Egg, but I have recently gotten back into watching Shugo Chara, and thus I’ve been hearing this song at the start of every episode for the span of 13 episodes. It’s so catchy, I can’t help but sing along every time. I do love Yuuka – she definitely caught my interest being in High-King, and I love Kanon Fukuda (the green girl, aka Amulet Clover). The girls put on a great performance.

4. Come Together (Ongaku Gatas)
I have both Rika and Hitomi in my top 10 for H!P, but I never got into Ongaku Gatas. It was a nice performance though, and I do love Rika, Hitomi and Asami! <3 4th and 5th generations are my favourite Morning Musume generations. ^_^ I like Satoda Mai enough... I can't say much for the rest of the Gatas girls though... I don't know anything about them.

5. Kenchana ~Daijoubu~ (Maeda Yuuki)
I’ve never really listened to Maeda Yuuki through my years as a Hello! Project fan, but I will not deny that she has a lovely voice. The song is very pretty, but the style just isn’t my cup of tea.

06. Uwaki na Honey Pie (Satoda Mai with Korenaga Miki, Noto Arisa, Sengoku Minami and Sawada Yuri)
Lookie! It’s Mai again. You know, I don’t get why they couldn’t put Miki and Konno in with Mai for this performance. I mean, this was the time of Country Musume ni Fujimoto Miki to Konno Asami. However, it was still a nice performance by Mai. This song has funny dance, but I’ve always enjoyed its quirkyness.

07. Kuyashi Namida Porori (Nakazawa Yuko)
Like Maeda Yuuki, I haven’t really followed Yuuko’s career. However, I DO know this song of hers. XD I’ve always loved Yuuko’s character within Hello! Project, and it funny how her character is completely unlike the kind of songs that she sings. But that’s okay Yuuko’s awesome, and she has a beautiful voice as well.

08. Happy☆Happy Sunday (Tskishima Kirari feat. Kusumi Koharu with Frances and Aiko)
…. SAVE ME!! Well, unlike in the Wonderful Heart concert, where there was debate over where Koharu was lip syncing or not, there’s no question that Koha was definitely lip syncing here. You know, it’s sad that I can’t take Koharu’s voice ’cause she has some really catchy songs. Also, Frances and Aiko are cute…. And tiny. XD The taller girl (sorry, I don’t know which one is which) definitely has the “keep your eyes wide open 8D” bit down.

09. This is Unmei (Melon Kinenbi)
I don’t quite know what my favourite Melon Kinenbi song is, for I haven’t listened to enough of their music. However, I have a top 3 that I could not put in order for the life of me. This is Unmei is one of those three. This is such an awesome song, and the girls had a lot of energy. Just as in the Elder Club winter concert, Megumi’s pant/shorts combination really weirds me out. XD

10. Forever Love (C-ute)
It seems there were quite a few people who weren’t too impressed with this release of C-ute’s, but I absolutely love it. The beat is awesome, the girls look amazing (I love these outfits – ties are one of my weaknesses, along with hats) and Maimi and Airi are two of my favourite C-ute members, so I have no problem with them being front and centre. XD Airi and Maimi were totally solid here.

11. Dakishimete Dakishimete (Berryz Koubou)
Ties in the last song, Miya in a fedora in this one… <3 I love this single of Berryz Koubou, and I actually have a review that it pretty much all written up for this song but I haven't posted yet because I haven't taken any screencaps yet. I have to say that in both the Wonderful Hearts winter concert and this one, Risako has sounded quite good... Particularly in comparison to how she sounded in Berryz's fall concert.

12. Tanpopo (Kaori Iida, Yaguchi Mari, Ishikawa Rika, Konno Asami, Niigaki Risa and Shibata Ayumi)
AWW!!!!! Mari and Kaori walking onto the stage with tears in their eyes!!! T__T I teared up, myself, but no tears actually fell.. However…. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO CUT THIS SONG SHORT!!!!! That was so upsetting!!!! Also, I would have been a lot happier having just Mari, Kaori and Rika for this song. 3rd gen Tanpopo was just blah in my opinion, and they only released one song. They had nothing to do with the awesomeness of Tanpopo (both the song and the group). Buuuh.

13. Baby Koi ni Knockout (Yasuda Kei, Yoshizawa Hitomi and Ogawa Makoto)
I used to be obsessed with this song. I knew the dance through most of it (I won’t remember most of it any more). I actually sang and danced to it before music class in high school. My teacher walked in and gave me the most surprised looked as she saw me dancing. Let’s just say I was one of the quiet ones in class. XD

Anyway, good performance by the girls, and while Makoto never released a single with Pucchi Moni, I actually really liked “Wow Wow Wow” which was on one of the Pucchi Best albums, I think. Thus, I have come to accept her within Pucchi Moni more readily than I have accepted 3rd generation Tanpopo as a “true” part of Tanpopo even though they released “Be Happy Koi no Yajirobee”.

14. Chocolate Damashii (Matsuura Aya)
LOL.. Aya looks like a cat of some sort with her print outfit and the fluffy tail. XD Aya was still injured at this time, right? It’s too bad that she wasn’t at full strength for Elder Club’s final concert. However, she rocked out as she always does with a wonderfully solid performance. I love the flow and melody of this song. Aya is just too awesome for words.

15. Yeah Meccha Holiday (Matsuura Aya)
Again, so sad that Aya couldn’t run around and dance full out for this song. It was awesome watching the crowd dance along with her. You can see the wota in the background so clearly, and you could totally feed off their energy even just watching the DVD.

16. Egao ni Namida ~THANK YOU! MY DEAR FRIENDS~ (Matsuura Aya with Melon Kinenbi, Ongaku Gatas Eggs, Berryz Koubou, C-ute, Mitsui Aika, JunJun, LinLin, Mano Erina, Miyoshi Erika, Okada Yui, Hello! Project Eggs)
Three Aya songs in a row… She definitely was one of H!P’s best and brightest (well, in my opinion, THE best and brightest). I wonder if anyone else will have most of H!P as their background singers and dancers in this concert (*makes a mental note to pay attention when Nacchi does her solo stuff*). For some reason, I don’t think anyone else will have quite the same spotlight shone on them… This really goes to show the success Aya had as H!P’s best selling soloist. I’m so glad that I’ve been able to follow along with her career since as early as LOVE Namidairo. <3

Aya’s so awesome, she gets half of Hello! Project as her backup singers/dancers. <3

17. Hare Ame Nochi Suki (Morning Musume Sakura Gumi – Minus Kago Ai)
OMG!!!! MY FAVOURITE MORNING MUSUME SONG EVAR!!! <3333333
Only Kago's missing, but whatcha gonna do? Also, I know this isn't a full Morning Musume song, but this beats all Morning Musume songs for me... Please refer to my Momusu singles ranking posts (up until Mikan, I think). Hitomi was a little bit out of breath for this song... But OMG Sakura Gumi reunion!! <3 I love these outfits (though, why are they wearing the Sakura Mankai, and seriously this song is just soooo beautiful. I was about to go ballistic for there not being enough Risa in this song (I know she didn't sing much in it originally, but with Kago lines being distributed around, I was waiting for Risa to get her turn), but then she got the last 3 "Suki"s, which made me happy. ^_^

18. Ai no Sono ~Touch My Heart~ (Morning Musume Otome Gumi)
Otome Gumi reunion! I definitely like Sakura Gumi a lot more than Otome Gumi, but that’s because I’m a ballad freak. XD I love this song by Otome Gumi as well. It’s nice to see the full original ensemble back together here. No extra line distribution required for this song. It’s songs like these two that are what I was waiting for with this concert… I know I could go back and watch old concerts from when these groups first came out, but it’s different seeing how they are now, 5? years later… And oh, so nostalgic… <3

19. co.no.mi.chi (Buono!)
I love Buono! to death… But hearing the intro to this after Sakura and Otome Gumi was kind of a let down… I was so getting into the old school stuff.. I mean, come on, Ayaya followed by my favourite Morning Musume song, and just a general blast from the past… And it also didn’t help that the girls were a little bit off key in this song… How sad. Momoko sounded really weak in her solo line for the last bridge. I don’t know. I think it’s not good for me to be commenting on Buono! right after the performances that I just saw… -_-;

20. Debut! Koisuru Kado ni wa Fuku Kitaru (Ice-cream Musume)
LOL.. So, I don’t listen to Ice Cream Musume… And when they started singing in Japanese, i was so shocked. I went straight into wotachat and asked Mars and Juju about it, and got some funny internet looks from them. XD Whoops. My bad.

21. Hitoshirezu Mune wo Kanaderu Yoru no Aki (Puripuri Pink)
Poor Atsuko standing out in her purple coat, standing in the middle of 1st and 2nd gen Momusu members. XD This was my least favourite 2005 shuffle group, but it’s a very pretty song.

22. Magic of Love (Inaba Atsuko and Maeda Yuki)
I don’t listen to these two very much, seeing as neither have been all that active in H!P, but I can’t deny that they both have beautiful voices. At least Atsuko has a matching outfit buddy in this song.

23. Screen (Abe Natsumi)
I never really followed Nacchi’s solo career, but after seeing her perform this song here and at the Elder Club concert, I’m really liking this song. … Wow, only 1 Nacchi solo song… Even being the sweetheart of Morning Musume doesn’t give her more than 1 solo song at the Elder Club graduation… But then again, she’s going to be performing in other subgroup things (ex. Sakura Gumi, and Morning Musume OG later), so I guess it evens out.

MC.
Tsuji looks so different. Did she get a nose job? Her face just looks so different. I noticed this a little while ago from photos on her blog…

23. Suki na Sempai (Morning Musume’s 5th Generation)
5th gen!!! My 2nd favourite generation!! It was so sad when they performed this at Konkon and Mako-chan’s grad concert … And it’s their graduation concert AGAIN… Poor Aichan and Risa. XD At leaswt the girls aren’t ready to bawl their eyes out in this performance. It’s definitely got a happier feelt than the last time they performed this together… And, uh, are they trying to take us back to when the gokkies first joined by putting Risa’s hair like that? <3

I was originally thinking of just putting a photo here to show off Risa’s flashback hair, but after finding this video, I couldn’t help but stick it in this review. It’s a great mix of the 3 defining moments of Morning Musume’s 5th generation (which just happens to be my 2nd favourite Momusu generation). The girls were so cute, and such newbs back in 2002. In 2006, well it’s hard to tell how much they’ve improved ’cause they’re so overcome with emotion as they’re singing. And we don’t get to hear much singing from the 2009 concert here, but it’s amazing to see how much the girls have grown from when they first joined Morning Musume 7.5 years ago.

25. Romantic Ukare Mode (Fujimoto Miki with Hello! Project Eggs)
As I said in my top 10 H!P ranking, I never followed Miki’s solo career, but I definitely know this song and I do love Miki’s voice.

26. Kacchoii ze! JAPAN (Biyuuden with Berryz Koubou, C-ute and Hello! Project Eggs)
Okay, Erika’s opening yell was kind of weak compared to Rika and Yui’s. Dude… like every outfit Yui’s worn this concer has been eye popping… O_O Yui also looked a little unstable standing on one leg. This is a fun song, but not one of my favourite Biyuuden songs.

27. Naichau Kamo (Morning Musume)
This is the first Morning Musume song that I have absolutely loved since Kanashimi Twilight. That’s a long Morning Musume drought for me. I’ve listen to every one of their singles in between, but none of them have stood out to me…

28. Resonant Blue (Morning Musume)
… Well, at least they didn’t turn this into a full H!P song like they did in the Wonderful Hearts winter concert. I thought this song as the opening for the Wonderful Heart concert was absolutely HORRIBLE. I do love how Risa gets so into the dance for this song…

29. Namida no Iro (C-ute)
So, the girls wearing the cover outfits for Edo kind of threw me off… Also, I found that after the intro dance bit, they energy really went down during their walk around the stage. There was absolutely no energy being given off by the girls. I love this song to death, but this particular performance of it didn’t do anything for me.

30. Madayade (Berryz Koubou)
… Why? T__T There isn’t enough Miya in this song for my liking. The girls definiely had more energy than C-ute did at least… And Miya’s line was lovely. <3 (Yes, I'm biased and going to comment on the wonderfulness of Miya in her one line in this song. XD) Also, Miya running past the camera near the end of the song and flashing the peace sign was so cute. ^_^

31. Morning Coffee (Morning Musume 1st Generation Members)
The Woo goes and Yuko looks overcome with emotion already. XD And the camera stays away from her right after that… XD I love these old school Morning songs. The utilization of harmonizing makes me so happy. They need more live harmonies in H!P songs.

31. Koko ni Iruzee (Morning Musume up to 5th Generation Members)
And here comes Morning Musume up to 5th gen. ^_^ <3 This is seriously making my day.. (my birthday just ended, but it's still the 15th in other time zones, so that's okay... Lovely birthday present from H!P XD) Nothing beats the original members singing their own song.. Yuko definitely had to do a lot of running for this number. XD Wasn't that why she graduated from Morning? She couldn't keep up with the young ones, right? XD

33. Love Machine (Morning Musume and OG Morning Musume -> All)
Okay… fine, bring out the rest of Morning Musume. I would have gladly continued on with a few more OG songs. So, Aichan got Maki’s solo line with Nacchi and Mair. Awesome. Lol, I looked down for a minute to type, and when I looked up, Miya was on screen. <3

34. Michi Naru Mirai he (All)
I don’t know this song… XD But I like the energy of it, and the distribution of lines. I like the generations singing their lines together. It was a short moment, but seeing 4th gen singing together (*cough*minusKago*cough*) gave me a lovely warm feeling… Too bad there wasn’t a 4th gen song equivalent to the gokkies’ “Suki na Sempai”.

The Graduation
I thought I would cry at some point during this concert, but I didn’t… I think the fact that the girls weren’t individually saying goodbye to the graduating members made it less emotional for me. I know that previous Morning Musume graduation concerts have brought tears to my eyes… Maimi was really close to breaking down while reading her letter, while Captain was surprisingly strong through her speech (meaning she didn’t waver much). She had a bit too much mascara, though, and it was so sad to watch that lone tear streak down her face at the end of her speech. Aichan… Poor girl. I was amazed she held it together the whole way though. Her voice definitely cracked – I mean, her and Risa have been around the longest from what is left of Hello! Project. She’s been with these girls for 7.5 years. However, considering how she’s broken down at previous graduations, I think her holding it together here gives us a glance at how she’ll keep herself together as she moves forward to lead Hello! Project.

35. ALL FOR ONE & ONE FOR ALL! (All)
This is such a happy song that you can’t help but smile as you watch them perform it… Even knowing this is the last time you’ll see the Elder Club as members of Hello! Project.

I’ve always loved how this song goes by groups as they joined Hello! Project. The flow is as it was in the original PV up until we hit the former H!P Kids. In this performance, Berryz Koubou and C-ute switch order, for back when H!P All Stars came out, C-ute wasn’t C-ute yet, and the H!P Kids (who were made up of the future members of C-ute) were formed before Berryz Koubou. But now, the H!P Kids are no more, and Berryz came before C-ute… XD Isn’t that all so confusing? Then, the last group that comes out has increased by quite a few members. Yui and Erika (Biyuuden) have added on Koharu, Aika, Junjun, Linlin, and Mano Erina. It’s kind of sad that the none of the eggs who’ve been featured, ex. Shugo Chara Egg, or even the Ongaku Gatas Eggs, were special enough to get something in this song.

As for the solo lines, Hitomi got Kago’s line and Aichan got Maki’s line. From the first time I heard this song, I had wanted Aichan to have a solo line in it, and I’m so happy that she did in this performance. Though, watching it, I find it’s really lop-sided on the solo line distribution, seeing as Ayaya is the only person to get a solo line who was never in Morning Musume. Favourtism much? XD

And that ends my Elder Club graduation concert review… Could it have been any longer? XD Well, I’m sure it could have, for I’m quite an accomplished rambler. However, to sum it all up, I thought this was a lovely send off for the girls who have given so many years of their lives to giving us, the fans, some wonderful and memorable moments. I could have done with a full length version of Tanpopo, and it’s too bad that Mini Moni didn’t have a reunion here (though there are only half of the original group was here). But, the song selection was fabulous overall, and it really brought me back to the good old days.

These girls who graduated have been a part of my life for about 7.5 years, and it’s sad to see them go. I look forward to seeing them progress in the entertainment world, if that is the path they choose (I’m particularly waiting to see/hear more of Aya), and if they decide to drop off the celebrity radar and go back to a normal life, I wish them the best of luck in all that they do! *Hugs Elder Club*

This month’s topic:

The music industry has had many tie-ins with animes and doramas. Of those tie-ins, did one manage to capture your interest and get you hooked on their music? Or, did one manage to change your perspective of a musical act?

As a 2nd part, did you end up watching the anime or dorama in its entirety or give up once the musical act’s tie-in ceased?

And for you non-anime/dorama watchers, have there been any CM tie-ins that had a similar effect on you?

My first real brush with J-music came from watching the anime Sailor Moon. Back in 1995, I stumbled upon this annoying wide-mouthed crybaby on TV with tearing pouring from her eyes and I was intrigued. I quickly became engrossed in this cartoon with a different drawing style from what I was used to and immediately started looking up anything I could related to it. I became interested in the Japanese version of the show when I realized that the North American version had cut some episodes due to irrelevance and/or “inappropriateness” for American television.

As I looked up information on the Japanese version, I found some image songs and was quite interested to see that the seiyuu were the ones who actually sang for their characters, unlike in the NA version where a singer would be brought in to sing for the characters (ex. Sailor Mars singing “Oh Starry Night”).

I fell in love with the main song of the Sailor Moon R Movie “Moon Revenge”, and I was able to find some of the individual Senshi’s image songs, like Sailor Venus’ (my favourite Senshi) “Route Venus” and Sailor Neptune’s “Unmei wa Utsukushiku” which is a beautiful song which I still randomly feel like listening to today.

Moon Revenge – The Peach Hips (LOL Sailor Moon R movie. So dramatic. XD)

Unmei wa Utsukushiku – Katsuki Masako

Though I never really followed up with these seiyuu after watching the series, they hold a special place in my personal musical history, for this was the beginning of my musical journey into the J-music sphere.

Moving away from anime, a Jpop artist that I discovered through a video game and followed up with for at least a little while afterward was Hamasaki Ayumi.

I am a huge video game fan, particularly of the RPG genre. So, back in 1999, bought the game Thousand Arms for the PlayStation. The game interested because me because in addition to it being an RPG, it also had a dating simulation aspect to the game – the main character would take girls out on dates through the game, and as your intimacy increased with each girl, you could forge more powerful weapons. I have to admit that this is one RPG that I never got very far into (unlike the Final Fantasy series where every installment that I’ve played, I’ve at least gotten to the last disc, if I haven’t beaten the game).

However, the opening theme for this song was “Depend on You” by Hamasaki Ayumi. It was quite surprising to have the original Japanese theme song for the US release, but I wasn’t about to complain because I fell in love with that song.

Hamasaki Ayumi – Depend on You (Thousand Arms Opening)

After that, the next Ayumi song I got into was “Boys & Girls” which was again featured in a video game – this one being Unison for the PlayStation 2. I had gotten the North American version of the game, and for whatever reason, my brother decided to look up the Japanese tracklist. There, he found out that Ayumi’s “Boys & Girls” was the song for KC and the Sunshine Band’s “That’s the Way (I Like It)”, and Morning Musume’s “Love Machine” was the Japanese song for Apollo 440’s “Stop the Rock”. Oh man, that Japanese track list was so much better than the North American version (and looking at this track list right now, LOL!! Dschinghis Khan was on the Japanese version too XD). At that point in time, my brother got me to listen to Boys & Girls because he really enjoyed that song, and he knew I liked Ayu from Thousand Arms. He didn’t introduce me to Morning Musume at that time, for he hadn’t been particularly impressed by “Love Machine”. We didn’t appreciate their being on the original Japanese track list until a few years later.

Hamasaki Ayumi – Boys & Girls (Sorry, I couldn’t find the PV for the song, or a clip from Unsion.. -_-; But awesome song)

I followed Ayu on and off for the new few years, loving quite a few of her album songs and singles. I stopped paying attention to Ayu in around 2003, with the last singles of hers with songs that I know being “&” and “Forgiveness”. Looking through her discography is getting me into an Ayu listening mood. I think I need to put on some “Real Me”, “Ourselves” and “Greatful days” now. XD

More recently, I have become a huge fan of Angela Aki. A few months ago, MorningBerryz wrote a post on her favourite final fantasy themes. In the midst of her favourites, which contained some of mine as well, she mentioned Angela Aki singing the theme for FFXII. Somehow, when I played through that game (and I beat FFXII), I never paid attention to the theme song. I think it may have been because I was a little upset with game for it’s lack of romance. XD But after reading that post of MB’s, I listened to the song and fell in love with Angela Aki’s voice.

Angela Aki’s “Kiss Me Good-Bye”

After that, I looked Angela up on youtube, and saw that she did her own version of my absolute favourite Final Fantasy theme song, “Eyes on Me” from FFVIII. I love Angela’s piano version of the song. I love the simplicity of just piano as the instrumental, and again her vocals are absolutely superb.

Angela Aki’s cover of “Eyes on Me” to FFVIII video (Squall & Rinoa <3)

So with respect to Angela Aki, I am a brand new fan, but I have quickly become enamoured with Angela. I got her latest album “ANSWER” and I’m sure I’ll be looking forward to any future releases by her.

Now, I didn’t cover much on anime like the original question asked. However, I find that with the songs I like from anime’s I don’t tend to follow the group afterwards. I only listen to the songs from the anime soundtrack. The one exception would be Buono!, but I was listening to them because they’re a part of Hello! Project (and Miyabi’s in that group) rather than because of Shugo Chara! I tend to watch anime for the anime rather than for a musical group who does the opening or ending theme.

There are obviously some musical acts I enjoy who do enjoy who have done anime themes, but I didn’t watch the anime to listen to their music and I didn’t get pulled into an anime (again, excluding Shugo Chara) because of a certain music group. I watched through most of Inu Yasha, but I wasn’t watching because artists/groups like Hamasaki Ayumi, BoA, Do As Infinity, Every Little Thing or Day After Tomorrow were singing the themes. I listened to those people outside of the anime and watched the anime for the story. And in most cases, I think it was my brother who got me listening to the musical acts (minus Ayumi in this particular bunch).

*EDIT: This is my bad, but I realized there is one anime that got me into a musical artist, and that would be RahXephon.

Oh Ayato, you hot anime man. <3

For all intents and purposes, RahXephon introduced me to Sakamoto Maaya, and while I didn’t follow her after watching RahXephon, I did love the music she did for the anime. “Hemisphere” is a wonderful song, one of my favourites of hers. Another of the RahXephon songs that I absolutely adore is “The Garden of Everything” which features Steve Conte

Sakamoto Maaya “Hemisphere” – RahXephon opening

Sakamoto Maaya feat. Steve Conte “Garden of Everything”

Like I said, I didn’t follow Maaya after watching RahXephon, but a few years later, while watching the anime Tsubasa Chronicle, I realized that Maaya sang the ending theme “Loop”, which made me feel reminiscent towards her RahXephon works and look up what other music she had done. And it when at this point that I realized that Maaya had also sung a song for Card Captor Sakura, which blew my mind because I loved a lot of Card Captor Sakura music. Anyway, Maaya is one of the few artists that I picked up through an anime intrigued me enough to find out what else she had done outside of the anime(s) that I discovered her in. So in her case, it was the anime that brought me to her, so of course I finished watching the series’ (though I actually dropped off of Tsubasa Chronicle at some point – I should finish off that series because I do love Syaoran and Sakura).

Sakamoto Maaya “Loop” – Tsubasa Chronicle 1st season ending

And now that I’ve pushed far too many youtube videos at all off you, I’m done! XD /EDIT*

Check out other responses to this month’s wota wonderings!
Wota Wonderings 003 – The Ties That Bind (Selective Hearing)
Wota Wonderings 3 – Tie-Ins (Solo Space)
Wota Wonderings: Mendol – where the guys are girls and the girls are hot. (boylikesmusic)
Wota Wonderings 003: It’s All Yui Horie’s Fault (Somewhat) (The Groove Music Life)
Wota Wonderings 003: Kirarin Revolution and Hot Guys (Merry Go Round)

The task set out for those trying their hand at this month’s Wota Wonderings is this: “I [johpan] challenge you to find the best example of idol love.”

This is a fitting topic, or rather challenge, for the month of February as February holds the highly commercialized day of love, Valentines Day. However, I find that the challenge is too unspecific. How does one find “the best example” or anything? A piece of fiction, a song, a movie, a television show… Can someone name “the best” SINGLE example of any of these things? Truly, this would be impossible, for every person is different, and thus has different tastes and ideas on what “the best” would be.

The same can be said for idol love. Who is to say that one way of expressing love for one’s idol is better than anothers? In this month’s challenge, johpan listed a few examples on how one could show their love for an idol:

The sky’s the limit to what you feel counts as love: could be a poem, artwork, a cover or remix, a huge collection of merchandise, the list goes on.

Just looking at this list, one person could be an amazing artist, and thus expresses their love through beautiful drawings. Another may be eloquent and able to describe their love through words. Another may feel the best way to express their love through more materialistic ways and will buy as much idol merchandise as they can. Who is to say which form of love and apprciation is best?

So on that account, I will have to fail at this challenge, for I cannot begin to assume which form of expression is best. However, just being part of this blogosphere, where all of these fans write about the music they love, we are all expressing our love in various ways.

From a pic spam post, to a review on a PV or album, to a remix, they all take time and energy, and in most cases, the post is written because of the bloggers love of the topic, the group, the music or the person being written about.

Using myself as an example, I have 3 blogs dedicated to Jpop, 2 of which are are worship blogs dedicated to a single idol (per blog). Within this blog, I do reviews on singles, PV, albums, concerts, and so far one movie and one musical. In addition to that, I have my Memorable Snippets series in which I go through a sorts of old video clips I have of Hello! Project and share some of my favourite ones with all of you. And I do all of this because I love the music, I love the idols and I want to share that with anyone who’s willing to read, watch or listen. I mean, I’ve been with this blog for a year and 3 months… It’s obviously not just some passing fancy.

My Matsuura Aya worship blog Shine More is sadly not updated very often. However, I do hope to remedy that soon (lol, I’ve been saying that since I started it. XD). But on this blog, I’ve done multiple posts showing my love for Aya. I’ve been torn because these posts solely written on Aya could very well be put on Shine More, but I don’t want to double up the same post in two places, but I do want to showcase Aya here, on my main blog.

Anyone else finding this to be a really hot pic of Aya? Hat and glasses? <3

My Natsuyaki Miyabi worship blog Last Forever has been around a little longer and has a much larger amount of posts. The reason for this is two-fold. Firstly, she has been a lot more active musically within Hello! Project since I started blogging. Secondly, she is not a soloist. So when I do a write up on Berryz Koubou’s latest PV or Buono! latest album, I can do a separate post on Last Forever just showing screencaps of Miyabi, or gushing about how much I loved her part in this song or that. I can’t do that with Aya…

With that said, I would have to say my personal favourite representation of my own idol love would have to be the birthday countdown that I did for Miyabi’s 16th birthday. After posting a video or pic spam post for the 16 days prior to her birthday, I celebrated the actual day with a video or her and Risako singing Berryz Koubou’s “Today is My Birthday” from Berryz Koubou’s 2005 Fall concert, and followed it up with my own rendition of Buono!’s “Kiss!Kiss!Kiss!” – lyrics written especially for the occasion.

I would put this song as being my most extreme/”best” expression of idol love thus far, for it not only required me to write lyrics (which not my forte, if you couldn’t tell) and sing the song (which isn’t a problem for me, ’cause I practically never stop singing… just ask my brother), but the biggest thing was my actually putting up my recording for anyone to listen to. I have a hard enough time with each post I write up – for my own blogs and even for every write up I do for International Wota. I always second guess my writing. Writing is a very personal thing, and blogging really puts you out there. Well, for me, singing is even more personal than writing. When I feel down, I don’t tend to read a book. I usually load up my favourite songs and allow the voices of my favourite singers, whether it be a Hello! Project member, Hanson, Lea Salonga or whoever, to soothe and calm me.

And so that is why I would say that this song best embodies my best example of idol love. I put a lot myself into it and left my self vulnerable… If that isn’t what you do for love (whether it be familial, platonic or romantic), I don’t know what is.

*For RSS readers, there’s an embed of the song… I think the plugin I use doesn’t give any message about it. I should look into that. XD

** Other wota wonderings 02 posts:
Wota Wonderings 2… I luff youuuu~ (H!P Fangirling like Nobody’s Business)
Wota Wonderings 2 – All you need is love! (Solo Space)
Wota Wonderings 002 (Selective Hearing)
Wota Wonderings 002: All you need is love! (Merry Go Round)
Wota Wonderings: Idol Love. (boylikesmusic)
Wota Wonderings 002: All You Need Is Love (The Groove Music Life)
Wota Wonderings 2 – Passionate Idol Love (Our Second Blossoming)

Matsuura Aya’s last album as a Hello! Project artist was released on January 21, 2009. My copy arrived today (or rather yesterday now, since it’s past midnight) and I happily opened up the album (which I had already listened to) to browse through the beautiful lyrics booklet. I have to say that the photos within are wonderful and Aya just looks absolutely stunning… Thus, I scanned all the pages with photos and posted them here. I would have just borrowed off of the H!O picboard, but the scans I saw were kind of grainy, and with pictures as lovely as these… Grain is not allowed! So, even if you’re not too interested in what Aya’s been up to musically, I’d recommend the eyecandy of her lyric booklet.

*Note to RSS readers: There are audio embeds with each song I reviewed, but there isn’t a note like my flvs have on the RSS. So if you want to listen to the songs, feel free to visit the actual site!*

I’ve listened to it a few times already, and I have to say it’s a beautiful album to go with a beautiful lyrics booklet – or should it be the other way around? I expected nothing less from Aya. That’s not to say this album is for everyone, and anyone looking for poppy, bouncy, energetic music is looking in the wrong place. I know many of Aya’s fans have not liked the way Aya’s career has progressed, and wishes she would go back to her pop idol image. This new mature style of hers is too “boring” for many Hello! Project fans. Well, not for me! Aya has an absolutely beautiful voice, and I think this more mature style suits her quite well.

A ballad by Aya is absolute win in my books… And this album, particuarly the title track (which we’ll get to) displays this quite nicely.

Omoi Afurete is an easy listening kind of album. Aya’s album was the topic of discussion in wotachat recently, and Murr ofTsuyoki de Yukoze! classified it as a light jazz kind of album. Now, I’ve always been very bad at figuring out genres of music – the whole “alternative” genre just boggles my mind, and I lump a lot of things into that genre when I truly have no clue what it should sit under. Anyway, I’m not quire sure if I’d call this album light jazz, but when I think of the songs on this album, I picture myself sitting in a small lounge-type venue, with Aya sitting on a barstool and musicans behind her providing the instrumentals. A relaxing atmosphere, with no chanting wota… From what I can gather, Aya’s already done a few shows like this, and CK of CK’s H!P blog attended one of these shows. I’m so jealous!!

The following is the tracklist of Omoi Afurete:
1. Kekkon Shinai Futari
2. Nanakai Utau to Ii Koto ga Aru Uta
3. beautiful day
4. Boomboomboom
5. Omoi Afurete
6. Rescue! Rescue!
7. Chuuou Kaisatsu
8. Shinju
9. Fallin’
10. Kizuna

Unlike my prior album reviews, I’ll only be going over certain tracks from the album, rather than going track by track. With that said, here we go!

1. Kekkon Shinai Futari
I absolutely adore this album. However, I have to say that the opening track doesn’t do much for me. I’m glad that I didn’t let this song turn me off to listening to the rest of the tracks (like one song would stop me from listening to an Aya album), because this opening track is my least favourite song on the tracklist. Adding to that, this track also happens to be the longest track on the album, clocking in at 6 minutes… Just a little bit too long for my liking.

Unfortunately, all albums can’t be like Buono!’s “Café Buono!” or Hanson’s “The Walk”, where I enjoyed every single track, I’d have to say that I enjoyed the rest of this album with varying levels of love for each song. So, 9 out of 10 tracks is still pretty good in my books.

2. Nanakai Utau to Ii Koto ga Aru Uta
With that being said, the second track quickly altered my mood, for I love this song. Nanakai Utau to Ii Koto ga Aur Uta (… long title XD) has a wonderful instrumental track filled with a beautiful piano line, soothing acoustic guitars, and a nice mix of woodwinds, horns and strings to round out the rest of the instrumental. I love the trills of the woodwinds. They make me want to pull out my flute and play my old high school band pieces. The melody is quite catching as well. The verses are calm and relaxing, leading into a more energetic chorus. I can’t quite describe what it is about this song, but it reminds me of something… I have been trying for days to figure out what it is about this song that is triggering this strange sense of nostalgia for me, but I have been terribly unsuccessful.

4. boomboomboom
Upon first listen through this album, I pegged this song as my favourite of the album. With a few more listens, it’s not quite the top of my list, but it’s definitely a nice upbeat number. It makes me want to start dancing everytime I hear it. With the constant whistles, I get the feeling of a carnivale kind of dance, but I keep wanting to salsa to this song.

Can I just mention how absolutely GORGEOUS Aya looks here? I mean, all the photos in her lyrics booklet are beautiful…. But WOW

6. Rescue! Rescue!
Keeping up with the upbeat songs on this album, Rescue! Rescue! is a fun number with an engaging melody. The verses are like those in Nanakai Utau to Ii Koto ga Aru Uta in that they’re slower and lead into a more uptempo chorus…. So this is a half-upbeat song, I guess. XD But still, a lot of fun.

09. Fallin’
You know, I’m just completely in love with Aya’s voice. It’s obviously no secret. Again, it’s the chorus that pulls me in for this song. That coupled with, once again, lovely woodwinds and strings bring it together nicely for me.

And again… GORGEOUS

05. Omoi Afurete
Now this song is absolutely gorgeous! The piano, the strings, the bass, the…. everything is just absolutely win! Aya’s voice is heavenly (though that’s not surprising)…. BUT I noticed something today during my drive home, that I wish I didn’t… You know how you notice that ONE THING in a song that once you hear it, it’s the ONLY THING THAT EXISTS? Well, I found it in this song. And I’m trying to drown it out because I love this song outside of that one thing. I don’t want to mess with the song for anyone who hasn’t noticed it… And maybe I’m just a little bit crazy (a little bit you say? o_O) and it only bothers me, but I’m going to “spoiler” this tibit out just in case. I hate the shaker in this song!!! It’s everywhere and doesn’t stop! It needs to die! Anyway, like I said, I’m going to try and ignore it… And here’s the song for your listening pleasure, because it’s beautiful and you should totally listen to it!

So, all in all, I highly enjoyed Aya’s last album as a Hello! Project artist. The title track is definitely the highlight of this album for me, even considering my newly found problem with the song. Although it hasn’t sold well in it’s first week, I wish Aya all the best in her future endeavours and hope that maybe out from under the Hello! Project name, she will be able to flourish more with this mature style. And don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about her last H!P single which is due out in a few weeks… That’s on pre-order for me. It will be coming with my Buono!2 album. I can’t wait!

I got home from work today, and there was a box waiting for me… Now, I had two orders that I was waiting on – a book by Hanson called “Take the Walk” and the complete series of Buffy the Vampire Slayer which I ordered off Amazon.com for a pretty decent price. My brother handed me the box, I looked at the shipping info, and…. HANSON!!!! <3

From Hanson’s official website:
“Take The Walk tells the story of individuals taking action to fight poverty and AIDS in Africa through vivid imagery and personal account from HANSON’s own experiences. The sale of each book will raise funds to benefit all five causes on TakeTheWalk.net.

I haven’t read the book yet, but I will definitely be getting to that soon. However, what astounded me when I opened up the package was what you see on the right side of that photo:

Heck yes, to another signed piece of Hanson goodness. I have the lyrics booklet from their 4th album “Underneath” signed by all three guys – I got it signed when they came to Toronto to promote the album back in 2004. So I have that in its case, one of my most treasured possessions, and now this, which I must go and get a frame for ASAP.

Here is the cover to the Take the Walk book. It truly is remarkable how these three guys have taken this matter to heart and are doing so much to raise awareness for a problem that plagues our world. The proceeds of their work go towards Africa, and yes there are many other parts of the world who need help as well. Hanson may be focused on just one section of the world, but doing things like this bring attention to the fact that this is a worldwide problem and hopefully other people with power, money and influence could catch wind and do more around the world.

But what I love about Hanson is that they’re not waiting on people with power money and influence… They are calling every individual to do what they can. In their particular case, whether it’s buying their single “The Great Divide” off of iTunes (proceeds from all purchases go to a hospital in Soweto, if I’m recalling correctly), joining them for a 1 mile walk barefoot that they host a few hours before every concert of theirs (they donate one dollar for every mile walked – 10 people on a walk equalling 10 miles), hosting your own walk to raise awareness (and if you register a walk through their webiste, they will donate a dollar for every person YOU get to walk with you), buying a pair of TOMS shoes (for every pair that is bought, another pair will be donate to a child in need – and TOMS shoes doesn’t give shoes to children only in Africa, they provide shoes all over the world), etc.

Their TakeTheWalk.net site has information on where the money they raise goes:

• Buy SMS Credits: Provide access to medical care through secure SMS messaging in partnership with Docvia. Learn more
• Fight Aids With Music: Provide AIDS treatment and research by supporting HIVSA when you purchase the song “Great Divide”. Learn more
• Donate Shoes: Provide shoes to children in poverty by purchasing TOMS SHOES. Learn more
• Build Schools: Help build a school and provide education to children living in impoverished areas of Africa, with Free The Children. Learn more
• Drill Water Wells: Provide clean water through Blood:Water Mission well projects in Sub-Saharan Africa. Learn more

They also have information on the site on how you can host your own walk, so if that’s something that may interest you, please check it out.

Personally, I wasn’t able to join Hanson on their walk when they were in Toronto last December, for there had been a snowstorm the night before, and my mom refused to let me leave the house until the roads had cleared up a bit. I was still able to make it for their concert that night, and I bought a pair of TOMS Shoes.

I’m waiting for Hanson to come back, and this time I will definitely be joining them on the walk. For anyone wondering, they do not do the walk barefoot if there’s snow… That would just be pointless if people ended up with hypothermia or having toes and/or feet amputated. They actually had to cancel the walk they had scheduled in Ottawa (capital of Canada and 4 hours away from Toronto) last year because the temperatures were ridiculously cold. It was around -30C (-22F) if I’m remembering correctly.

Hanson – The Walk
This is the title track of Hanson’s latest album. It’s a beautiful but melancholy song about the walks that we go on through our lives. I love the lyrics in this song, particularly in the bridge:

Everyone waits on the walk
Some are long and some small
But all of them tall
Everyone must make a choice
Will I go for it all
And possibly fall
The tightrope thin
I could possibly win
On the walk

The entire album is a collection of songs that are at times melancholy, other times energetic. But the unifying theme is that of hope – that we have the power to change the world. It may be a small scale change, it may be an enormous one for the betterment of the entire world. But no matter the magnitude, we have the power, and we can’t let that power go to waste.

*EDIT: I was thinking of this at work today… And I figure not many people will actually read this post. XD That’s okay. I liked writing it, but for those of you who did read the post (thank you, btw!) I thought I’d leave a little treat here at the end of my post (though, I guess some people might call this torture XD). Below is a recording I made a few months ago of Hanson’s “Fire on the Mountain” off of their The Walk album. The verses are kind of blah because it’s a little bit low for me. -_-; Anyway, only wu-san has heard this before, and I thought this would be a fun and relevant thing to add to the end of this post.