KAT-TUN 2 Me

Shirtless JinJin is worthy of its own update. The sex hair is just a bonus. I MUST buy this magazine! Good thing I leave for Japan in a little over a week.

~Celestia~

PS. New poll up!

Well, it’s his birthday now in Japan anyway. So, I dunno, go tie something plaid around your waist to celebrate or something. XD

He’s been in a bunch of magazines lately thanks to that Speed Racer dubbing thing, so here’s a picture or two.

So damn pretty.

Otanjoubi Omedetou!

~Celestia~

Is anyone actually coming here for news? I have my doubts, but there have been a few happenings worthy of note.

First, Uebo is going to have his own solo concert! Congrats to him for being the first KAT-TUN member to do one. Apparently all of the songs are going to be composed by Ueda himself. Impressive!

Second, it’s old news, but I never mentioned it: Nakamaru will be having his own solo stage show. Congrats to him too! That’s two of the “forgotten” KAT-TUN members getting individual recognition, two to go. If we’re really going in reverse KAT-TUN order, Koki should be next.

Third, Arashi’s next single “Truth” has been announced with a release date of August 27th. It’ll be the theme to Ohno’s new drama. That’s three singles and an album already for Arashi in just over half a year. I wonder if they’ll end up making it four for the year? Three seems to be the usual quota for the higher profile Johnny’s groups, but Arashi looks to be getting a big push this year, so we’ll see.

Fourth, is not news, but just to say that I’m feeling a tiny bit stressed about going to this KAT-TUN concert. I’m just worried that some of the fans could be unfriendly to a JE concert “newbie” like me. I heard some complaints in the fan communities about newbies at the recent Arashi concerts who didn’t even know the appropriate chants and hand gestures to go with the songs. The hardcore fans were practically accusing them of gravely insulting Arashi with their ignorance of the dances and other concert etiquette. I know the movements that go with the chorus of Real Face and that one swirly part of Harukana Yakusoku, but that’s it. Eep. I don’t want to piss anyone off…

Fifth: A tiny picture in the corner of an article about Oh-chan’s new drama. It was taken on-set. I love it when they take photos like this, and I admit to being a bit more obsessed with these two than usual lately.

And Sixth: If you haven’t read the post ahead of this, you should, because it’s much better than this one.

Word,

~Celestia~ 

This entry is for a couple random odds and ends that I’ve been meaning to post. But first…

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION!!!!!!!!!!!

I’ve figured out a way to acquire KAT-TUN tickets for one of the Ishikawa performances (7/20 or 7/21). The catch is that it’s spendy. What I want to know is if any English-speaking fan close to my own age (22) would want to accompany me. I’ll warn you, it’ll cost you at least $200, probably more. I have never paid that much for concert tickets before, and I swear that never will again, but this may well be my only chance to see KAT-TUN live, and if that’s the price that I have to pay, so be it. The problem is that I have to buy the tickets in a pair, and it’s just too expensive for me to justify paying for two and then dragging along a friend who isn’t even a fan. If you are willing to pay that and you are SURE you will be able to be in Ishikawa, Japan on the designated day, leave me a comment. I’m very serious about this offer, and I’m looking for a commitment here.

Next-

So, have you seen Cartoon KAT-TUN lately? There seems to have been a major format change. No word as to whether or not it’s permanent, but it looks like they’ve built a fairly elaborate set, so it might be. So far we have Ueda working out shirtlessly, Koki looking at weird pictures with some guy, Jin being shocked and scandalized by girls who tell him that they date 3 guys at one time (Jin: I don’t date a girl unless I think I could marry her some day… Girl: Hahahaha! You’re so young. *Jin looks worried and confused*), Junno reading love letters and then writing one…to himself, Kame wandering around asking random people “What is love?” (Baby don’t hurt me. Don’t hurt me. No more), and, the best part, Maru being horribly horribly embarrassed by the lady he’s interviewing about “adult love”. It’s so fun to watch him squirm. The boys are all separated now though, so I kind of miss them interacting with each other. Here’s a picture about the show.

Finally-

I feel like I’ve been neglecting Arashi lately. Here are some very cute and love-filled pictures to make up for that.Thumbnails, so click for bigger.

Rabu rabu rabu rabu!

Leave it to group whore Satoshi to make a sly grab for Sho’s crotch.

You know how in middle school girls sometimes write, say, “Ashley x Jason= <3″ all over their binders. They left out the =<3 on these shots, but given the theme, I think it’s implied. Also, it really weirds me out when they call Nino “Kazunari”. It’s almost as bad as when they call Aiba “Masaki”.

Damn it Aiba, raise your hand! Someone has to volunteer to be the girl tonight.

Cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeese!!

Wow. This entry was all over the place, wasn’t it. I’m working on a sort of project right now, so I promise that the next entry will be more coherent.

Later,

~Celestia~

I just realized that Jin’s name can be fashioned into a wide variety of puns. Yes, you should be worried.

I’m somewhat opposed to doing the same kind of entry twice in a row, but there were some pictures of Jin from a July magazine posted in a KAT-TUN community that I simply must share but there’s more to this entry than just eye-candy, so I’ll let myself off the hook. I ought to shrink these… but I just can’t.

This picture literally had me shouting obscenities at my computer.

Gold boots aside, another great picture.

Flawless close-up

And now that I’ve fangirled over Jin’s beautiful face, I’ll move on to fangirling over his beautiful voice. His normal speaking and singing voices are both lovely, but his crazy high falsetto is another thing all together. I regretfully acknowledge that there are many better professional singers out there than Jin, but there are very few who have a better vocal range. He can sing from low notes all the way up to notes that are well above the staff. To demonstrate, I’ve just spliced together the two best examples I know of. They come from ‘Never Again’ and the ballad version of ‘Gold’. Now, he may well be lipsyncing this in these live performances (I think not on the first one but probably on the 2nd), but even if he only sang like that in a studio, I’m still hella impressed that he can do this.

Online Videos by Veoh.com
And that, my friends, is what you call pure God-given talent. Rumor has it that one of the tracks on the new album features more of this ability of his. From what I’ve heard in previews so far, I already like the new album much better than their second one, so if that rumor is true, it’s just icing on the cake.

Mmmm cake,

~Celestia~

It’s been too long since I posted any eye candy! Here are some scans from KAT-TUN’s new TV Guide spread. They’re quite nice.

Well Kame, if you insist

Jin scoffs at his cherries. “I don’t need cherries to look sexy” he says. He’s right.

Taguchi’s been looking good lately, hasn’t he?

Both Koki’s solo and his facial hair as of late annoy me greatly. I’ve made his picture smaller as punishment.

Just give me your phone number Hon.

Give you what? A clue as to how to hold those cherries? Because you need one.

What’s this? Is Jin wearing one of his and Yamapi’s matching friendship necklaces?

Yep. They’ve both been wearing those a lot lately too. The Summer Time PV, the latest Cartoon KAT-TUN… Akame may be a thing of the past, but at least we still have Pin.

Group shot to finish things off. Love Kame’s strange little smirk.

As Usual,

~Celestia~

Thanks to my new-found passion for animated .gif making, I got a bit…carried away with KAT-TUN’s “Live of Real Face” concert DVD. There’s three sections here: Kame, Jin, and everyone else.

oooh. Touch yourself more Kame-chan.

and this post has officially gotten kind of porny.

Who me?

Leave it to Kame to do the suggestive eyebrow thing in the middle of the pretty ballad when half of the group is crying.

Yay! Koki let me borrow one of his pimping hats for the encore!

Lastly, this isn’t a .gif, but it is one of the sluttiest pictures of Kame I’ve ever seen, so I had to share it.

Next, behold Akanishi Jin, the sexiest creature ever to walk this Earth. You think I’m using hyperbole? Tehehe

*swoons*

What a sex kitten.

Oh God. No more touching your mouth Jin. You’re going to kill me.

*dies*

And the oft. forgotten T-TUN of KAT-TUN! I put the multi-guy stuff here too.

Damn. Princess is flexible.

Stupid Koki face

Stupid Koki pose followed by impressive Koki backflip

Not to be outdone…

Yay! I win!!!

Jin makes Maru sing part of his line at the beginning of ‘Harukana’. Lol

I will try to restrain myself from doing this for the Cartoon KAT-TUN 2 U concert any time soon, but no promises.

~Celestia~

I’ve taken the liberty of uploading a much clearer version of KT’s Music Station performance than what’s been floating around youtube.

Online Videos by Veoh.com

That means it’s time to comment on the costumes and dance! They’ve gone with a black and white with shiny silver accents this time. KAT-TUN really isn’t a fan of bright colors, are they? They almost always wear primarily black and white, sometimes with color accents.

Jin’s costume mysteriously seems to lack the shininess. Also, whatever is going on around his neckline confuses me. You know what though, who cares? We can see a fair amount of his chest, and he’s not hiding most of his face with a hat, so I’m happy. Is it just me or is he looking a lot like he did back when “Real Face” was released? His hair is almost the same now as it was then. Not that I’m complaining. It’s a good look for him. Much better than blond hair, or his permed hair before that. Here’s hoping he doesn’t decide to change it to something stupid and unflattering again any time soon. The costume is similar to one of the from the “Real Face” PV too. Kame has a purple hat this time. It seems like an odd choice since the official accent color is silver, but I’m not going to question it. As expected of KT, the costumes all look like they got in a fight with an angry paper shredder. Kame’s twirl looks pretty cool with all the various strips of fabric attached to him fanning out. See?

Ueda is in white again, which I approve of. The “Fallen Angel” motif works well for him. Koki in something hooded and Maru in a blazer are also no big surprise. Junno’s jacket is very very shiny, and his haircut still makes him look about 5 years younger. In conclusion, these costumes don’t break into any new or creative territory for KAT-TUN, but they are certainly smexy and easy on the eye, and no one looks like a janitor this time so I’m going to give them a thumbs-up…..WAIT A MINUTE!!! Is Kame wearing fluffy, white, schoolgirlish socks/ankle warmers?? ROFL! He totally is!

The dance is really nice, and they look more synchronized than KAT-TUN usually does. My one complaint is that I wish that the moves had been just a bit bigger. I guess I should just be grateful that there is a proper dance this time. It’s been far too long since they actually made them, you know, move. KT was originally hand picked from the juniors to be a dancing unit, and they’re all good at it, so it seems like a waste to release danceless singles.

As predicted, the single is pretty much the Akame show. The stars are in their own little line in front for most of the song while the rest dance behind them. It wasn’t Kame’s best singing, but Jin was great. I don’t think anyone else got any solo lines either, though I do like the Maruda duet lines in there. I feel a bit bad for T-TUN, but my sympathetic pangs are quickly pushed aside when I see Akame doing sexy hip rolls side by side.

Oh, and they’re on Music Station again next week, so look forward to that. Hopefully they’ll perform in front of a live audience again like they did with their second “Lips” appearance.

TTFN,

~Celestia~

Since I’ve started blogging, I’ve been working on expanding my “blogging skillset” which almost makes me sound professional, doesn’t it? So far, I’ve figured out the basics of screen-caps and OPVs. My next endevor is animated gifs. Here’s my first attempt, a batch from Arashi’s most recent concert tour. It’s just the animations. I haven’t quite mastered special effects or adding text or anything like that yet. Still, I think they look pretty nice. I’ll probably make some for h!p stuff next. Now I just have to figure out how to use photoshop, subtitle things, and if I ever get really really ambitious, design whole websites.

Hope you enjoy!

oooh. tough guys

Sho demonstrates some of the ridiculous lovely “Carnival Night” dance moves

jump my minions! jump!!

could he be any cuter?

Jun-pits! Lol.

What kind of Ohmiya fan would I be if I didn’t include this?

I think Matsujun is the most “gif-able” Arashi member

and whoever would have thought that the sexiest moment of the concert would belong to Nino? Maybe I’m just weak to guys “tsk”ing at me

Nice angst Aiba, but it would have been better if you’d ripped your shirt off too
Sho and Nino’s silly silly dance.

awww. Sakuraiba is Arashi’s 2nd cutest couple

My apologies to anyone with slow internet.

.Celestia

KAT-TUN’s new song is due to play on the radio in a couple of days with the first live TV performance (already??) a couple of days after that. In the meantime, I’ve been distracting myself with American Wota’s Johnny’s Singles Ranker, but since some of my favorite songs are album tracks or B-sides instead of singles, I just went ahead and made my own lists. I’ve already done KAT-TUN, but here are Arashi, Other (meaning not Arashi or KT), and an overall list. I’ve kept the explanations short so as not to bore you.

Others: I sort of regret that the entire discography of most of Johnny’s groups gets relegated to 5 “other” songs, but Kanjani is too crazy, SMAP can’t sing, I have an irrational dislike of NewS (i’ve got to hate at least one of the groups in the “20 somethings” catergory, right?), HeySayJump is too young, V6 bores me, Tokio isn’t cute enough, and I really prefer groups to soloists or duets. So now that I’ve effectively discredited the entire Johnny’s universe save two groups….

5. Weeeeeek, NewS- Is more of a chant than a song, but consistently gets stuck in my head, and that’s got to be worth something

4. Hakka Kandii, Kinki Kids- Beautiful song, but I like the KT/4 Tops version better than the original

3. Seishun Amigo, Kame/Yamapi- Let’s face it. This really only ranks so highly because Kame is in it.

2. Sekai ni Hitotsu Dake no Hana, SMAP- Sweet summer memories and unworldly catchyness

1. Hitoribotchi no Haburashi, Tokio- Such a touching and emotional song. LOVE it!

Now for Arashi! Generally, I like them a lot more than I like their music, but they’ve produced enough music over the years that it’s not difficult to pick out 10 songs that I really enjoy.

10.Rain (Ohno Solo)- I always find myself singing this. Ohno’s voice is awesome, as usual, but it mostly earns this place based on the “gets stuck in my head” factor

9. Pika*Nchi Double- Some of Sho’s best lyrical rapping, especially at the bridge with each member taking turns singing something behind it. That part totally makes the song.

8. Right Back to You- Kick-ass dance, and one of Arashi’s few songs that might almost be considered cool. At least it would if it was still the 90’s.

7. Kitto Daijoubu- Another relentlessly happy song that always puts me in a good mood. I like the section with the individual solo lines.

6. Love so Sweet- This song is so cute. Matsujun’s nasaly solo makes me laugh every time though, especially if he’s singing live. I know this particular single was for his drama, but I’m firmly of the opinion that Matsujun should dance in the front, look pretty, and never ever sing unless he’s being covered by Ohno or at least two of the other members.

5. Pika*Nchi- Very high energy. I like the guitar and how it breaks from the rockish sounding verses to the “dakishimete” chorus.It might rank higher if the star inserted in the middle of the title didn’t annoy me so much.

4. Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi- Cute! I like the triumphant “Arashiiii” part and Ohno’s introduction

3. Sakura Sake- I love to sing along to this one, especially the “Wa-oh!” parts. I listen to this in the morning to wake myself up sometimes.

2. Happiness- Is Arashi defined. Shamelessly happy, shamelessly fruity, and full of “yay!”. It also has my favorite Arashi PV by far.

1. A.RA.SHI- They love the song so very much, and I love them so very much, how could I not also love the song so very much? That, and the “WE. ARE. COOL.!!!” line makes this an easy choice for first.

Are you tired of lists yet? Too bad! Here’s the overall top 20 ranking out of all of Johnny’s (that I’ve bothered to listen to)

20. Love so Sweet- Arashi

19. Butterfly- KT (Jin/Ueda)

18. Yorokobi no Uta- KT

17. Pika*Nchi- Arashi

16. Hakka Kandii- KK

15. Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi- Arashi

14. Will Be All Right- KT

13. Seishun Amigo- Kame/Yamapi

12. Sekai ni Hitotsu Dake no Hana- SMAP

11. Sakura Sake- Arashi

10. Your Side- KT

9. Wilds of my Heart- KT

8. Gold- KT

7. Happiness- Arashi

6. Keep the Faith- KT

5. Precious One- KT

4. Hitoribotchi no Haburashi- Tokio

3. A.RA.SHI- Arashi

2. Harukana Yakusoku- KT

1. Real Face- KT

It’s mostly KAT-TUN by the time you get to the top 10, but that shouldn’t be too surprising. As my last order of business, to make this post more kattuny, a bit of Kame eyecandy. Oooh, sexy introspectiveness!

Over and Out,

~Celestia~