KAT-TUN 2 Me

So, I kind of doubt anyone reads this anymore since I haven’t updated in so long, but just in case someone does, this is me letting you know that I’m not dead and I haven’t started hating Johnny’s or anything.

In fact, currently I am having a serious dilemma. To see Arashi this weekend or not to see Arashi this weekend. Reasons to see them being that I love them to death and this will probably be my only chance to do so. Reason not to see them being that the very cheapest nosebleed section seats, too far from the stage to even have a hope of telling who is who, are going for over $500. Sort of decent seats are more like $1000. That is freaking ridiculous but I really want to see them but I don’t know if it would be worth that kind of money just to sit so far away it’s not like I could really see them.  Why did they have to get so darn popular when I happen to be in Japan? It’s both a curse and a blessing I suppose. I’m happy for them, but sad for me and the price of concert tickets.

The other news is that I’ve been having fun with a little “Top 100 favorite songs” video project over at my other blog and the female idol side of things, so I’ve decided to do the same for my 100 favorite Johnny’s songs. I’ve already figured out the list, and while there is a lot of KAT-TUN and Arashi, especially at the top, there are plenty of songs from other groups as well. Look forward to it!

~Celestia~

Okay. Concert ticket thing has been resolved. Thanks for your interest.

I’m afraid I have some bad news about the whole Arashi concert thing.

Word on the interwebs is that they are getting much stricter about checking that only fan club members are attending the concert with their assigned tickets. Some kind of thing where you have to register your ticket before the show? I dunno. What this means is that while I’m still sure I can get tickets, I’m now much less sure that I’ll actually be able to see the concert.

Naturally, I am rather pissed off about this. I mean, why should I have to pay a bunch of money to join a fan club if I just want to see a concert? If I’m joining the fan club just to get the concert ticket,  because it’s the only way, then the real price of the ticket is like 10x what they claim they’re selling them for. And even if you join the club, you still might not get a ticket. Seems like sketchy business dealings if you ask me.

Anyway, I’m still going to try to go for sure, but I need to know which people, if any, are still interested in trying to attend with me. If I’m buying two tickets, I’m afraid I will have to demand payment whether or not we get to see the show.

Now, I’m hoping that it’ll all work out, but I can understand people not wanting to take the risk. It’s not a problem for me to buy just one ticket… just a little bit lonely.

~Celestia~

PS. And since that was kind of sad. Let’s all look at how utterly girly Ueda looks.

Do I see lipstick and eyeliner? That’s our pretty pretty princess.

Just a quote from a recent magazine that I enjoyed. Source is HERE.

Ohno: I’ve come to accept that everything [about Nino] is wonderful.
５人　「アハハ、恋人かよ！」
5 of them: Ahaha, just like lovers!
相葉　「受け入れてくれるっていいわ～」
Aiba: It’s nice that you’ve come to accept him~
櫻井　「そんなニノことを？」
Sakurai: So it’s like that with Nino?
大野　「大好きです <3」
Ohno: I love him! <3
松本　「気持ちが強い！（笑）ブレないね」**
Matsumoto: Your feelings are strong! (laughs) It hasn’t faded at all. **

Aww,

~Celestia~

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.

Word,

~Celestia~

December 4th, 5th, and 6th. Tokyo Dome. Arashi 10th anniversary concert tour.

You can bet your ass I’ll be at at least one of those. Probably two.
Anyone want to come with? I live in Japan, and I’m sure I can get tickets, though how much that’s going to cost I don’ t know yet. Must be 18 or over to apply. Leave a comment if you’re interested.

Oh. By the way, the first 3 concerts of the tour are at the Olympic stadium, but I’m thinking I’ll wait for the Tokyo Dome shows, because that place is soooo fricking huge, I’m worried about getting seats where I can’t see anything. Also, as an outdoor venue, it could be less enjoyable if the weather doesn’t cooperate. That said… if it looks like I can get some really cheap tickets at the very last minute, I might just try it.

And as for the simultaneously announced full singles collection, 10 years worth of singles from A.Ra.Shi to Crazy Moon, plus one new song and other member selected favorites on the first press edition…well, that’s going to be a “must buy” for me. I don’t buy a lot of CDs (just all of the concert DVDs, lol), but I can’t resist a complete Arashi collection in one purchase.

~Celestia~

The Oricon chart for the first half year’s single sales is up. Here’s the top 10.

**1位 : 64.6万枚 … 嵐/矢野健太 starring Satoshi Ohno「Believe/曇りのち、快晴」
**2位 : 55.6万枚 … 嵐「明日の記憶/Crazy Moon~キミ・ハ・ムテキ~」
**3位 : 45.2万枚 … 秋元順子「愛のままで…」
**4位 : 37.7万枚 … KAT-TUN「RESCUE」
**5位 : 35.0万枚 … 遊助「ひまわり」
**6位 : 33.1万枚 … KAT-TUN「ONE DROP」
**7位 : 27.6万枚 … NEWS「恋のABO」
**8位 : 25.3万枚 … EXILE「THE MONSTER ~Someday~」
**9位 : 23.1万枚 … 羞恥心「弱虫サンタ」
*10位 : 21.1万枚 … KinKi Kids「約束」

Over half of the top 10 belongs to Johnny’s! Congratulations! Even more fantastic, both #1 and #2 are going to Arashi (and Crazy Moon is still currently charting in the weekly top 10). I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they managed to repeat their 1-2 finish from 2008 on the 2009 yearly chart as well. KAT-TUN is holding a very respectable 4th and 6th place. Also, we have NewS at 7th, and Kinki Kids at 10th.

~Celestia~

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!

~Celestia~

Fresh off the website, Arashi’s latest single has sold 230,022 copies in the first day!

Hooray! That’s even better than “Believe” (the best selling single in Japan so far this year) did on its first day even though I think Believe is a better song

I’m quite happy to see that Arashi’s steady rise in popularity seems to still be continuing. Maybe I’ll write about the PVs for this one later.

~Celestia~

Did I ever mention that the pamphlet for the Break the Records tour has a huge, 4 page pull-out guide to the Juniors in the back? Yeah, I know this is a crappy picture. Please also enjoy the view of my bag, my rug, and my toes.

172 idol hopefuls, I think. Worse, I don’t think this is ALL the Juniors, but rather just the ones participating in this concert. It’s most of them, but still… There’s just not enough room for 172 boy band members in Japan, so you know that for the vast majority, this will be the furthest they will ever get. Learning routines for just about every song ever made by Johnny’s, performing in concert tour after concert tour (because once one group finishes a tour, another one starts), never having the fans even notice you, hours and hours of your childhood spent in a rehearsal studio,  desperately competing to be noticed and get your chance at a real debut, and being paid next to nothing for all of this. Not only that, but quite a few of them look EXACTLY like little girls, which can’t be fun for a boy. AND, of course, knowing that someone brand new like little Juri Tanaka (who is already in some sort of unit) has a ten times better chance at a debut than you just because his brother is already an established Johnny (see HSJ’s Keito Okamoto). AND knowing that Johnny has a habit of deciding whether or not to put kids in a unit for totally random and unrelated reasons, like thier ability to play volleyball (see like half of Arashi and some of V6).

It must suck to be a junior, but then again there are tons of guys who failed their audition who would kill for a spot.

And by the way, when is Kiss My Foot 2 (can’t spell it) going to debut anyway? They seem to have collected a sizable number of fans now. Isn’t it about time? I mean, I will never be a fan, mostly because I could never admit to being a fan of a group called “Kiss My Foot 2″ without suffering terrible embarrassment, but still it seems like they’re ready, doesn’t it?

~Celestia~