Bwa. I’ve been gone too long. Truth is, not much has happened in the Johnnys world that interests me much lately. There’s the Gokusen movie stuff, but I’m not really into dramas. Too much cheesiness. Arashi has a new single, but I think it might just be Arashi’s most boring single yet. Ug. I pray that the next one is better.
CDTV’s anual “guy I want as a lover” ranking is out! Now that’s actually interesting. Let’s look at the top 10. (sorry, the girls are in this too).
Jin wins! For the 5th year in a row no less. Kame in second is also good. And Nino made the list! That’s cool. I’d have expected Sho to rank higher, but of course, I’m pleased.
I know I’m a week late, but here’s a review of Arashi’s latest single release, another double A side.
Crazy Moon- Kimi wa Muteki
Song- I’m trying to be objective about this, but the truth is, I would like this song a lot better if I hadn’t heard “Believe” first. This song is like “Believe”’s little brother. It’s not a bad song, but “Believe” was just SO great, that it pales in comparison. The sort of chanting part is kind of lame, but the rest is good. Somehow though, I just can’t get excited about this song.
PV- Wow. A glorified dance-shot PV from Johnny’s. Really?? What are they in a gym or something? The only thing that saves it a bit is the fact that this song has an awesome dance. In fact, I’m tempted to call it Arashi’s best single-paired dance ever!
Ashita no Kioku
Song- Pretty good, as far as Arashi ballads go. I’m not a fan of Arashi single ballads in general. In fact, I can hardly name one that I like. Their album ballads are better for some reason. Anyway, this one has a very nice melody and background instrumentation, and they put a lot of emotion into their singing. It’s not going to go down as one of my favorite Arashi songs ever, but I’m sure it will fit comfortably around the middle of the list. The only thing that bugs me is the random saxophone at the end. It feels cheesy.
PV- So all of the creativity and artistry that was missing from Crazy Moon’s PV is present in spades in this one. WOW!! This PV is just perfect. The guys are adorable and emoting like crazy, the setting is clean and simple, but with some nice little touches to add interest, and the thing with them taking pictures and the pictures ending up showing something different is really clever. I’m still trying to figure out what it all means, but in the end, I think it’s meant to be partially up to the viewer to interpret.
Oh, and by the way, Arashi’s next single has already been announced, so look forward to that! I was kind of hoping for an album, but 3rd single of the year is nice too!
So… I’ve done estimates, and I think I can keep my GIF/Screencap series down to 6… I think.
Before I go on with that though, I just can’t wait to show this performance. If you watch one Arashi performance this year, make it this one! (or make it a higher quality copy of this one).
Last performance of the last encore. It’s absolutely pouring (don’t worry, it didn’t start raining until the very end), and the boys just go crazy with this song. What’s it even called? All kanji, hmmm. 5, something that looks familiar, something that may have to do with rain, middle. I could certainly look it up, but I’m feeling too hyper for research.
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They’re coming off a 3 hour concert, so you know they’re exhausted, they’re also soaked, but still, this here is pure fucking JOY. Oh, and LOL at how Jun just doesn’t want to leave at the end. Everyone else is long gone… Matsujun is still shouting stuff at the crowd.
I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again. I LOVE IT!! I don’t want to be so overly enthusiastic so soon… but it’s definitely in my top 5 Arashi singles right now. I’m going to wait a while and see how I feel about it in a few months or so before I decide exactly where it fits in on my top list though. The song has a great build up to the chorus, which is exciting, catchy, clever, and to pull out a cliche, really makes you want to dance. I especially like how everything gets all quiet and still after the bridge, only to launch you back into the energetic chorus with a key change. You can almost see the confetti/fireworks flying, were it a concert performance. Sure to be a crowd pleasing moment. Everyone’s has solo lines too, which is a nice bonus.
As for the PV, I can’t be quite as enthusiastic about it. Yes, the guys look good, but the whole feel of the PV seems a little too subdued to me. I wish there was more color, less formal clothes (Jun, I’m looking at you, and you look like a penguin), and just a brighter feel over all. I mean, the nature images with the water and the grass are nice with the “brand new world” theme, but I really don’t think the almost black and white color scheme fits. I do like the solo shots in the hallway with water running down the walls, that’s a nice effect. The dance looks pretty cool too, though I wish they had shown more of it.
Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!!! I’ve decided, this song totally pwns “One Drop”. It’s so much more complicated and interesting. If you can’t tell, I really love this performance. The sunglasses! The Juniors dancing as “fire”. The live singing! (at least on the solo/duo parts. a lot of the “one drop” performances had a lot of lipsyncing), the “i’ve already had enough” part where they get added in on harmonies one by one, all the echoing parts, oh, and Jin being a little Bakanishi at the very end of course. It’s so perfect!!!!
“One Drop” short version PV has been released! What’s with JE always releasing only the short version at first lately? It’s kind of annoying. I want to see the whole thing!
Jin cloesups are HOT, Kame looks cute with his curly hair, and the dancing at the beginning almost looks…together? Must be an illusion created by the camera or something. Everyone knows that KAT-TUN refuses to dance in sync on principle.
In bad news, Kami no Shizouka sucks. Like seriously sucks and the ratings reflect this. It’s not Kame’s fault, the plot is just boring. Most of Kame’s fans probably could care less about wine! Sigh. I just hope he’s okay. I know he can be kind of sensitive and take his work really seriously….
Back to the good news, and maybe bad news for Kame, Maru’s drama is doing quite well. In fact, it’s currently sitting pretty at number 2 in viewership for this drama season. Looking forward to “Rescue” single stuff. After careful scrutiny, I think I like it better than “One Drop” though I definitely like both songs.
Finally, reader Soli pointed out something kind of interesting to me. Seems that a certain song by French R&B artist Priscilla sounds awfully familiar. Youtube link HERE. I’ve got to admit, the similarity to “Love Juice” is hard to deny. Coincidence? Plagerism? Either way, whatever. I never claimed to love Jin for his music composing skills.
Got to get to working on my member/group profiles.
My QOP DVD(s) are safely watched and in my possession, so I feel like I can finally write about it. Before I get to my favorite performances, a couple of general observations.
-I would unhesitatingly call this KAT-TUN’s best concert tour yet!
-I like that there was actually a little bit of a plot to the concert. Pirates (KAT-TUN), arrive on an island inhabited by hostile tengu, run around and fight with them, steal magic pocketwatch things, sail away. Okay, it’s a simple plot, but more of one than most concerts have!
-There’s something about the way they walk… I have a new theory, that to be a popular member of a Johnny’s group, you have to master the strut. Case in point, out of all of Arashi, only Matsujun really knows how to strut, and look who’s the most popular? Out of KAT-TUN, Ueda glides or skips, Maru’s all elbows and knees, Koki stalks, Taguchi strides and bounds, but only Jin and Kame really know how to strut and swagger. Coincidence?
-Have you ever noticed how elaborate KAT-TUN’s concert costumes are? I mean, you’ve got shredding, braid, buttons, ruffles, glitter, fur, feathers, sequins, and rhinestones galore…and all of that is on any single given jacket. It’s like they were attacked by the contents of a large craft cupboard, but somehow it all works out. Oh, and Ueda is definitely wearing a skirt again for the first costume.
-Jin’s performing is just so damn good when he’s actually trying. During this concert (and the one I watched), he vocally embellishes just about every single one of his lines, adds lots of harmonies where there were none, and he looks excited and happy to be there too. Compare this to most music shows where he looks dead bored and like he’d much rather be home sleeping off his hangover. Sigh.
-I’m pleased with how much more I can notice from watching my own DVD as compared to the low quality footage online. I’d really recommend buying it if you like what you see.
Okay, now my two favorite performances, one from the beginning, and one from the end.
Keep the Faith
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I was really looking forward to seeing this concert performed, and it did not disappoint. High energy, and sexy all over the place. Jin’s hair is beautiful, Ueda is definitely wearing a skirt, Junno’s got another “final fantasy” cape, and you work that pimp cane, Kame! Oh, and Jin really really likes that bell, which I’ll probably demonstrate more in the screencap post.
Crazy Love
The last song before the encore started. It’s so beautiful, and it seems so fitting too! I’m proud of how well all the guys sang. Needless to say, Jin’s big solo line in the middle is amazing, but everyone else did a very good job too, especially Nakamaru on his first solo line.
Next time, probably soon, it will be lots of screen caps, with (hopefully) witty commentary, so look forward to that.
I’ve made a video from the Queen of Pirates DVD footage! It’s a way for me to put my frustrated energy to use while I wait for my own copy to come in.
I had forgotten how into it I can get when I’m putting these together. I worked on it for, literally, 8 hours straight last night plus another 3 hours today. I’m still pretty unsatisfied with a few parts, but overall, I’m proud of the result. Just wish I’d had higher quality video to work with. It’s interesting making these. It’s kind of like putting together a puzzle, except you have to cut out the pieces yourself from a bunch of stuff that’s not even in the puzzle, and it’s still got to make a pretty picture at the end.
Hi! It’s been a while, huh? I’ve had some friends staying over at my apartment, and they’ve kept me pretty busy.
Since the “making of’s” can be kind of long, like I did with the DUES ‘Making Of’ I’ve attempted to pare the White X-mas ‘Making of’ down to its most amusing moments. The good thing about this ‘making of’ is that everyone seems to be in a good mood and friendly with each other. The bad thing is that they didn’t do much group shooting, so you don’t get to see the guys interacting very much.
I’ll have to admit. The majority of this is Koki making a fool of himself. This is exactly why I love Koki. He just seems to have so much fun with whatever he happens to be doing. I also want to give props to Junno, because he’s looking damn fine during the PV/making of. Finally, the subs on this video are done by NEWShFAN, not me.