Mushroom Sky - The Music

Orbiting

2009-07-03T21:49:00.004+10:00

So Lungs leaked, and it is extremely brilliant. But that was to be expected, so it is a little sad. The power of expectations is sickening, isn't it. There are no surprises left in the world, especially in one where albums leak in parts which leads to a RUINED LISTENING EXPERIENCE.

Anyway, the focus of today is on the death of a pop group. Bellefire started out successful, did amazingly in Ireland, and scratched some sort of success in the UK. But soon after their sophomore album they were no more, despite huge success in Southeast Asia.

Fucking Southeast Asia. Why promote in Malaysia and the Phillipines, when that's about as effective as sending a letter to Radio 1 begging them to playlist VV Brown or Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Perhaps the Bellefire girls only have themselves to blame. Effort and money could have been better spent elsewhere. Sending off one of them to Big Brother could have made at least 2'000 in terms of album/single sales.

But anyway, this is for real. They are no more, and this is not one of those situations where members return a decade later, reassemble and take another crack at an album. This is actual death of a pop act. Cruel, tragic death. Maybe Bellefire died a long time ago, but only today can their true loss be felt.

R.I.P Bellefire.

JESUS FUCKING CHRIST

2009-06-28T00:46:00.004+10:00

WE DONT KNOW WHAT ELSE TO SAY, SERIOUSLY.

Something so great

2009-06-26T23:24:00.009+10:00

So we were lazy and were thinking of taking a long break (a usual trend if you've been following this blog) but then something happened.

"Remedy" is like being teleported back and forth between planets where organisms party rabidly in order to live.

And just when we thought we've been hit hard by Little Boots, another wave washes over.

"Tigerlily" is fucking amazing. La Roux managed to outdo Little Boots thanks to their effort of making some of the best songs in recent history.

However, 'the third cut is the deepest' as the folks behind Silent Hill 3's marketing campaign would say.

Oh look here, a random Florence and the Machine album track, and it sounds like 100% pure Jesus. If only you knew how hard we're trying to not mention the utter brilliance of an LQ "Cosmic Love" which we heard on Youtube the other day.

This has been one hell of a month.

Doing it yourself

2009-05-20T20:15:00.001+10:00

Thank you once again.

This "music business"

2009-05-20T00:29:00.006+10:00

We were feeling pretty down for the past two Mika Nakashima singles and lost interest in writing about her for a while. Behaviour of this sort was caused by the less-than-stellar quality of "Orion" (which became one of her bigger hits) and her latest effort "Over Load". "Orion" was a predictable and uplifting ballad with a kind of a pleasant twangy sound while "Over Load" sounded like a rework of Life minus the brilliant piano intro.

However now that the full single is out, it's obvious the fault is Mika's. She isn't talentless, she's just presented with substandard people to arrange her music. This is a fact, made evident by the Kenmochi Hidefumi remix of the track, which layers her vocals with laidback and more pleasant instruments, giving it a more jazzy and relaxed feel. In other words, it is fucking brilliant.

Then on the B-sides frontier we have the absolutely amazing "No Answer". It has near-perfect arrangements and some very sweet melodies, and hence this possibly made the instrumental more enjoyable than the track itself. Such a strong song, and it's not even mentioned on the single cover nor has it received any advertising.

It's all a major fuck-up if you ask us. The Kenmochi Hidefumi mix should have been the single version, backed up with a second A-side in the form of "No Answer", coupled with two music videos as well, instead of just one pretty low budgeted one done for "Over Load". The woman's last album went platinum for heaven's sake. Give her more.

Digressing for a bit though, it's amazing when you consider that in about slightly more than a year Mika Nakashima will be selling more copies of future albums than Ayumi will.

Ugly old quiche

2009-05-18T11:19:00.006+10:00

So what's up lately? Definitely not the Sugababes' career, as Keisha Buchanan digs deeper into the grave of the Sugababes with an angrily bitchy comment on her Twitter.

"Oh we just wanted to give a BIG 2 fingers and a Kiss our Ass to the sad prat who made that YouTube video about Us against GA. Get the **** over it. We like what they do. We Love what we do. We are a completely different band. Who gives a **** if we've had 2 line up changes... Even more reason to show us support & respect because we are still surviving!!!

WE have had Nearly TEN yrs In this industry with with 7 albums 5 number ones HUGE sales across EUROPE not only in the UK. We write. Sing live. We have never Sold our selves out to the media. Who we thank for all their support so far but its never been about that. We're about the music.

Love and support to all the up and coming girl bands. BUT their will only ever be ONE sugababes and even though the last album wasnt A huge hit (lol) Who gives a sh!t. We are not giving up. And we STILL remain (According to OVER ALL SALES) THE BIGGEST GIRLBAND FROM THE UK! Thanks to all our real fans and supporters we love you xxxx "

I don't think any explaining needs to be done. It's just appalling how she reacted to a fanmade Youtube video. Just because you sell more doesn't mean you're not shit, honey. Perhaps it's time Keisha stepped aside, as she's done enough damage to the Suga's reputation, image and discography.

Perhaps it's time to reinstate Siobhan.

Colliding cultural catastrophe

2009-05-18T11:04:00.007+10:00

The Eurovision contest came and went this year and we had no idea the finals were over until 3 days after. What could have contributed to this? Perhaps the dramatic reduction in terms of hype and news coverage. Though the contest is no short of controversies this year, it's still considerably less mentioned or covered by media compared to the years before.

Now if you're from the UK then perhaps the opposite might be true. How the fuck "It's My Time" got fourth is anyone's guess, it's about as exciting as television static. The only worthy part was when Jade Ewen accidentally bumped into the violinist onstage. Scooch was definitely more deserving.

In any case, Norway's Alexander Rybak is clearly worthy of the win, and he could give David Archuleta a run for his money if promoted right, don't you think? A decent voice, impressive violining skills, evidently good songwriting, a winning smile, and a bone structure stolen from Annie. What more could a guy possibly have? Debut album out in a few weeks as well. If we weren't so smitten we'd be sending hate mail.

Also worth mentioning is the Estonian entry, "Rändajad", which is clearly amazing, more amazing than all the songs combined (minus "Fairytale") multiplied by 8293. It came in sixth place.

What's sad about all this is that there's an 85% chance that anyone who has anything to do with the competition will fade away into obscurity in about 12 months. :(

The video we've been waiting for is out

2009-05-16T12:04:00.005+10:00

Here it is, ladies and gentlemen.

And what a shocker it turned out to be.

Basically someone somewhere decided to chop the song and remove the amazing transition bits so as to "retain audience attention" or whatever they call it. This unbelievably foolish thing to do has resulted in a very bad edit of the song, as featured in the video. How stupid can record companies get? This is an example. It's either idiocy or plain sabotage.

Besides that, the video is really pretty. Some interesting and questionable dance routine, a sprinkling of dramatic acting, and a floating coffin in the beautiful spring sunshine. Perfect, really.

Intense outrage...

2009-05-15T14:26:00.001+10:00

...channeled into more toying around.

Shocking how well the two tracks go together. Now if only someone would be commissioned to make an official version somewhere. :(

Writer's block...

2009-05-14T15:45:00.001+10:00

...translated into producer capabilities.

Thank you ladies and gentlemen. We appreciate the honour.

Not such a fucked up world

2009-05-13T03:40:00.004+10:00

Running photoshop as a precautionary step, we were expecting the worst.

Seems like there was no need for any amount of image doctoring after all, to prove that Tyra Banks is about to make one of the biggest mistakes in the history of America's Next Top Model when she unearths Teyona as the winner in a couple of days.

Why Allison should win? Don't ask us, just head over to any ANTM comment box on Youtube. Though the main reason for us to be rooting for her is because she's a hilarious nerd with an interesting personality who also appears utterly stunning in her photos.

Trust Ann Shoket and Tyra to screw us over soon enough.

Less than perfect timing

2009-05-12T01:20:00.007+10:00

If "Battlefield" was released a bit earlier, it would have gotten quite some publicity due to the Iraq war and the Bush administration and all that rubbish. Think of the possibilities. Radio refusing to play the song for fear of causing injury due to the 'sensitive situation' the country is in, which in turn generates a huge amount of interest, prompting endless streams on Youtube, eventually leading to massive download figures and record-breaking sales.

However, now that we have you-know-who in charge of America, everything's washed over with an annoying glow of radiant hope and everlasting cheer, which does no good when it comes to selling using controversy. Nobody is excited anymore. Everything is just too 'ok' now.

Moving away from our political rant, Jordin Sparks has really done a great job with this lovely pop thingy which you can listen to right here.

© Jive Records 2009

That was an approximately 30 second clip of "Battlefield" in case you didn't know.

Though when you think about it, if we lived in a perfect world, Rihanna would be the one releasing "No Air" with Chris Brown, and then following it up with "Battlefield" right after the whole Chris Brown incident where she looked like she just managed to escape a brawl with a few angry hookers in an alley. And in a perfect world, both songs would be massive #1 hits on both sides of the ocean, thanks to so much controversy.

Basically we know we don't sound very sane now, but it's almost 2am and frankly, we 'can't be bovvered' with Jordin's terribly clean image and slightly above average sales for an Idol-winner. This is a song written by Ryan Tedder. Why was it given to Jordin of all people? Also we're starting to believe Mr. Tedder has something for black women. He has written a total of 3 massive hits to date, "Bleeding Love" for Leona Lewis, "Halo" for Beyonce, and now "Battlefield" for Jordin. Why won't he come up with something for, say, Nadine?

"Battlefield" remains an amazing song regardless.

Deadliest of synths

2009-05-11T20:27:00.006+10:00

As pictures of Rihanna rubbing her clitoris circulate throughout the net, we thought it would have been appropriate to give her the "treatment" and write something about her such as previewing a new song, etc. Unfortunately, nudity really doesn't help in making an artist's discography more appealing, as we found out while listening to her shitty albums. Instead, we'd rather waste our time talking about one of the best things to ever happen to music, namely La Roux.

Lead singer Elly has such a deliciously shrill voice that makes everything utterly listenable. Her vocals sound piercing and sharp, and to some extent "tinny", but that works in her favour of course. And the music, oh the music. It's best described as spectacular and very, very synth.

© Kitsune/Polydor Records 2009

As you can hear clearly in the above clip, La Roux is basically genius. So far every single song they've put out have been nothing short of amazing, and "I'm Not Your Toy" is a great example of that. The synthesizers are perfect, the lyrics are adorable, and her vocals are lovely.

As debut single "In For The Kill" hit #2 and is still in the Top 10, the astounding second single "Bulletproof" has been pushed back for a mid-June release. And following this, their self-titled debut album will be out on the 29th of next month (simply put, a decade away from today).

PS: We're almost a hundred percent sure Chris Brown leaked those pictures by the way. That hilarious woman-beater.

Maybe, if ever

2009-05-09T00:31:00.005+10:00

What does this picture say about Kings of Convenience?

a) It could be that the rumoured album they've been recording over a decade now (it sure felt like it) has been postponed indefinitely and might not even see the light of day, as these young men are tired of the 'life in the fast lane' they've become so accustomed to since the release of their first two albums.

b) It could be that they're trying to play a prank on fans, and they've actually recorded the album and it is currently locked up somewhere impenetrable, like a vault somewhere, or somewhere unexpected, like the depths of someone's refrigerator.

c) It could be that they haven't done any recording and have in fact, been lazing around their beautiful Norwegian beaches in the sunrise and sunset, procrastinating and maybe even secretly dreading the fact they haven't had any work done in years.

d) Or maybe they're trying to point out that the title of their album is "MAYBE" in a clever and humorous manner.

God only knows how much we pray that option 'd' is the case, but somewhere deep within our hearts we are almost sure it's the horrible and agonizing 'a'. But perhaps they may be forgiven, for "Riot On An Empty Street" remains as utterly listenable today, 4 years and 11 months since it's release. Come June, it will be a full five years, which is clearly bad for a popular recording artist as momentum works wonders for chart positions, and chart positions are amazing for publicity.

We hate it when artistes take hiatuses, let alone ones that last longer than 12 months. So imagine our pain when brilliant stars like Natalie Imbruglia and Bic Runga take anywhere from 3 to 5 years between albums. But perhaps it's always worth it.

Still, sadness beckons.

Mythril #1

2009-05-07T22:51:00.010+10:00

Sometimes there's only so much one can attempt to harp about the current music scene. Which is why this will be about a song that was written in the middle of the last decade. Don't get us wrong, we're not saying the 90's was an era of great music, in fact far from it. Nowhere else will you find a blog that truly despises the 90's as much as this one.

However, there was one particular gem that stood out amidst the sea of rubbish (e.g. Aqua, N*Sync, and god forbid, Westlife). While Europop and Mariah Carey were taking the world by storm with cheese and melodramatic balladry, one amazing woman remained steadfast. She, Tori Amos, managed to shift millions while maintaining her 'creative control' and 'artistic integrity'.

While she released a string of ultra-brilliant songs and albums in the 90's, our favourite will always be "Hey Jupiter", probably the most heart-wrenching song known to mankind. It's possibly the only song that has two official versions that are equally effective in making a sane person suicidal. Judge for yourself if any of the mutterings here makes sense.

© Atlantic Records 1996

That was the Dakota version by the way, also known as the single version and the one that is played most often on tour.

And in 1996, a song like "Hey Jupiter" could actually gain enough traction to chart on the Billboard charts somewhat, where it reached #94 on the Billboard 200 (also the albums chart). Meanwhile in the UK and Australia it was a Top 20 single. How radio could playlist such a song remains a mystery, especially when today Radio1 wouldn't even air anything that they consider to sound too "tinny".

Though it can be argued that the lovely Tori Amos hasn't put out anything heavily drenched in such pure and raw emotion since "A Sorta Fairytale", she's still absolutely amazing and a legend in her own right. Upcoming album Abnormally Attracted To Sin might be a return to form though, judging by lead single "Welcome To England".

Regardless, we salute you Tori Amos.

Bloody sadists

2009-05-06T19:49:00.004+10:00

It's easy to hate VV Brown.

Sometime ago, she released something inexcusably bad called "Crying Blood", and it was so bad, as bad as Kate Nash was when she had the nerve to let out "Caroline's A Victim". "Crying Blood" wasn't bad in the sense that it was lazily made or badly written. It was bad because it was annoying and irritating and not something anyone would want to listen, and the music video was equally irritating as well. It was like Brown intentionally spent a few hours/days/weeks in the studio to come up with the musical equivalent of a mosquito.

God how easy it was to hate her. And when you hate someone, you tend to pick on every attribute the person has. Case in point, Brown's hair. It looked absolutely disgusting back then. It was ugly, silly, and a failed attempt at individualism.

Fast forward 5 months, and that same hair is something elegant, fashionable yet classy, adorable yet, pardon the expression, fierce. It was beautiful, simply put. And all of a sudden, Brown seems like a really attractive woman.

Why the sudden change of stance? Well, simply because of this over here.

© Island Records 2009

That was just unbelievable, given her debut single. Like we mentioned earlier, Kate Nash went through the same phase, releasing the outrageously perfect "Foundations" after her very bad debut. Maybe this is a pattern. A trend observable in future popstars perhaps.

In any case, "Shark In The Water" is undoubtedly brilliant, and will ensure VV Brown becomes permanently fixtured in the Top 20.

And they crave affection

2009-05-05T08:14:00.006+10:00

Continuing on from last post's mention of taste, who knew Pharrell Williams actually had any? One of the most annoying men in the music scene, his own discography sounds absolutely awful and he tends to ruin other artistes work as well, as evident in Madonna's "Give It 2 Me". Thank god then that Gwen Stefani insisted on the ridiculous music loop in "Wind It Up", as the original Pharrell version was so dull, it was incomprehensible.

But moving on, let's get to his effort at redeeming himself. Presented below is a clip from a current popular song called "She Loves Everybody" by pop duo Chester French. What has Pharrell got to do with these two white kids, you ask? Well, he signed them onto his label. That's all. God knows why Chester French agreed though.

© Star Trak/Interscope 2009

That's probably the best bit of the song, right before it tumbles into an incoherent mess of guitars. It's not a bad track though, definitely very interesting when heard a few times, granted you ignore the cringe-worthy lyrics completely.

We were supposed to listen to the album as it had amazing cover art and then give it a few spins for a review, but instead we found out of a 7Digital promotion which enabled us to download three songs for free. Hence.

© Fascination Records 2009

One can only hope.

The death of humanity

2009-05-05T00:08:00.012+10:00

Tragedy befell the human race today. Something so bad, it's almost unmentionable. And whose fault is it? The British music buyers. And we always thought that the Americans were the most tasteless.

Earlier today it was confirmed that "Untouchable" was #11 in the UK. That's just horrid isn't it? One of the more amazing songs of recent times, peaking right outside the Top 10. It's like dying then standing right outside the pearly gates, never to be permitted entry. Untouchable, of all songs. That's like denying Mother Theresa or Gandhi from having a peaceful afterlife.

But then again, maybe we're all just reacting too negatively to this catastrophe. So what if it was merely a #11 for the goddesses. Sure, "Untouchable" might be the lowest charting Girls Aloud song to date, but does Nadine really care?

The answer is yes, of course she does. She's probably weeping into her pillow at this moment, having locked up Sarah and Brian in the dungeons for screwing up the whole thing by stealing Nicola's bits in the intro of the radio edit. Cheryl would be staring out of the window of her bedroom distraught, while Nicola would be in the kitchen looking at the knives, noticing how tempting they've become. Kimberly would be smiling in the garden, chasing a squirrel or something similar, oblivious to the entire disaster.

Let's relive the pain one more time.

© Fascination Records 2009

And that, ladies and gentlemen, charted at number 11. Nobody shall go unpunished. We repeat, nobody.

Once again the best song of 2009

2009-05-03T20:46:00.006+10:00

And not even half of the year has been wasted yet.

© Island Records Group 2009

"Lord, that chorus."

If things stay like this for Florence, the album must be very very very amazing indeed.

It begins with a musical saw...

2009-05-03T20:01:00.014+10:00

This is Sarah Blasko. She can be summed up in one word, and that word happens to be 'amazing'. It's been ages since her last ARIA-winning studio album "What The Sea Wants The Sea Will Have", which also can be summarized as 'amazing'. She returns this year with her upcoming studio album "As Day Follows Night", and this is preceded by the single "All I Want" which has premiered, literally, minutes ago on the radio.

You can listen to it here.

© Dew Process 2009

'Amazing'.

Very important future releases you should pre-order at this instant

2009-05-02T14:49:00.001+10:00

Florence and the Machine
Lungs
With a unique sound and some amazing vocals, not to mention beautiful lyrics, this album is surely one to be worshipped. Though I'm sure there'll be some awful "BRIT AWARD WINNER" sticker on the case.

1. Dog Days Are Over
2. Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)
3. I'm Not Calling You A Liar
4. Howl
5. Kiss With A Fist
6. Girl With One Eye
7. Drumming
8. Between Two Lungs
9. Cosmic Love
10. My Boy Builds Coffins
11. Hurricane Drunk
12. Blinding
Bonus: You've Got The Love

So yes, the 7th of July.

And then there is...

La Roux
La Roux
Delightfully shrill is how I'd describe the voice of singer Eleanor Jackson. Combined with a dark, interesting and almost 80's sounding set of arrangements, the songs of La Roux tend to lodge deep into your skull after a few listens.

1. In For The Kill
2. Tigerlily
3. Quicksand
4. Bulletproof
5. Colourless Colour
6. I'm Not Your Toy
7. Cover Your Eyes
8. As If By Magic
9. Fascination
10. Reflections Are Protections
11. Armour Love

And this one's out on June 29th.

Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)

2009-05-01T02:19:00.007+10:00

Looking glass so shiny and new
How quickly the glamour fades
I stop spinning slipping out of time
Was it the wrong pill to take

(Raise it up)

You made a deal and now it seems you have to offer up
But will it ever be enough

(Raise it up, raise it up)
It's not enough
(Raise it up, raise it up)

Here I am, a rabbit hearted girl
Frozen in the headlights
It seems I've made the final sacrifice

We raise it up
This offering
We raise it up

This is a gift, it comes with a price
Who is the lamb and who is the knife
The Midas is king and he holds me so tight
And turns me to gold in the sunlight

I look around, but I can't find you (raise it up)
If only I could see your face (raise it up)
Instead of rushing towards the skyline (raise it up)
I wish that I could just be brave

(I must become) a lion hearted girl
Ready for a fight
Before I make the final sacrifice

We raise it up
This offering
We raise it up

This is a gift, it comes with a price
Who is the lamb and who is the knife
The Midas is king and he holds me so tight
And turns me to gold in the sunlight

(Raise it up, raise it up)

And in the spring I shed my skin
and it blows away with the changing wind
the waters turn from blue to red
as towards the sky I offer it

This is a gift, it comes with a price
Who is the lamb and who is the knife
The Midas is king and he holds me so tight
And turns me to gold in the sunlight

This is a gift

God exists

2009-04-28T23:29:00.003+10:00

La Roux is without the doubt one of the most exciting things to ever happen in pop. Think Emilie Simon with a broader appeal minus the lyrical abstraction.

Allow us to be "frank"

2009-03-29T22:19:00.002+10:00

Once you get past that inexcusably bad pun of a title, think of this scenario. Say you are presented with two choices. And you only get to pick one. And the one you do not pick will melt and dissolve into the cement leaving only a sour odour of dissapointment, not to be available ever again in the universe.

Exhibit A:

© Island Records Group 2009

Exhibit B:

© All Around The World Records 2004

Nothing against Frankmusik who is amazing and clearly worthy of all the accolades and attention he gets, but we'd go with the second option, which clearly showed a greater degree of potential and creativity in the shitty world of R&B, rap and hip hop. :(

Anthonio

2009-03-24T08:26:00.001+10:00

Obviously one of the best songs that will be released ever. Excuse me while I put the clip on loop and sit in a corner.

Top Honours 2008

2009-01-31T16:21:00.016+10:00

After much deliberation, it has been decided that...

Pop Artist of the Year
Beyoncé
Britney Spears
Gabriella Cilmi
Katy Perry
Sarah Brightman

While they were all special in one way or another, Katy Perry stormed through 2008 with I Kissed A Girl and Hot N Cold which basically charted everywhere and were great songs themselves. Coming second was Britney Spears with her massive, A-rated comeback followed by Sarah Brightman thanks to her accomplished studio effort "Symphony" and her work on the soundtrack of "Repo: The Genetic Opera".

Pop Group/Duo of the Year
Girls Aloud
Goldfrapp
The Saturdays
Take That
The Ting Tings

Arguably also deserved by The Ting Tings who came out from nowhere and produced a brilliant set of tunes, Girls Aloud wins here for their significant releases in 2008, among them the Top 10 hit Can't Speak French and their number one chart entry "The Promise" that showed just how some music never gets tiring.

Pop Song of the Year
Gabriella Cilmi - Sweet About Me
Girls Aloud - The Promise
Goldfrapp - A&E
Sarah McLachlan - U Want Me 2
The Ting Tings - Shut Up And Let Me Go

Making a clean sweep at the ARIA Awards showed how much potential this young woman had as an artist, and her album has gotten some positive remarks from critics worldwide as well. But this track, Sweet About Me, will be a classic, one that will be played decades from now on for its sheer catchiness.

Pop Album of the Year
Girls Aloud - Out Of Control
Goldfrapp - Seventh Tree
Sharleen Spiteri - Melody
The Ting Tings - We Started Nothing
Yael Naim - Yael Naim

The Ting Tings narrowly edged out the Girls' effort due to their innovation and creativity, as heard in their songs. That's Not My Name, annoying but brilliant, was a number one hit for them, while the ever amazing Shut Up And Let Me Go won the hearts of music listeners both sides of the ocean.

Foreign Artist of the Year
Ami Suzuki
Ayumi Hamasaki
Hikaru Utada
Alan
Yuna Ito

For her ultimately excellent album Heart Station, Utada beats pop diva Ayumi Hamasaki in this category despite the latter releasing some of her best work in recent times. However, Utada is no stranger to awards, with every release of hers gaining well-deserved attention from the public.

Foreign Song of the Year
Ayumi Hamasaki - Days
Ayumi Hamasaki - Green
Ayumi Hamasaki - Mirrorcle World
Hikaru Utada - Stay Gold
Yuna Ito - miss you

Having three songs in the nominees list might have been a bit of a feat to pull off, but Hamasaki's A-sides in 2008 were so strong they deserved more than they got. Despite being number ones, their sales figures were paltry compared to the sales of her Top 10 singles many years ago. A close contender for this honour was Utada's Stay Gold, but Green won for the way it plays out in an epic manner.

Foreign Single of the Year
Alan - ひとつ
Ayumi Hamasaki - Days/Green
Hitomi Shimatani - 雨の日には雨の中を風の日には風の中を
Namie Amuro - 60s 70s 80s
Yuna Ito - miss you

As mentioned before, Hamasaki's 2008 singles were some of her best in recent years, and Days/Green boasts two excellent A-sides that showed her knack for a ear-catching melody, narrowly beating out Alan's ひとつ.

Foreign Album of the Year
Ami Suzuki - Supreme Show
Ayumi Hamasaki - Guilty
Hikaru Utada - Heart Station
Kumi Koda - Kingdom
Mika Nakashima - Voice

Heart Station was shocking; it was everything an album should be. All the tracks were single-worthy and unique, yet they melded together perfectly. Critics and fans alike may point out that the album contains outtakes from previous studio effort Ultra Blue, but why waste some brilliant songs when you can make them work together?

Newcomer of the Year
Duffy
Gabriella Cilmi
Katy Perry
Alan
The Ting Tings

Both The Ting Tings and Katy Perry brought a strong fascination for music when their songs first debuted on the radio. Perry's I Kissed A Girl was both controversial and superb, while That's Not My Name gave a sense of originality while boasting a hok that pounds itself into your head. While both won over fans like no other, The Ting Tings deserve this honour more for being one of a kind; no other bands of the moment sound or even look like them.

That's all we have folks, here's to 2009 bringing us more of the "same old shit" as Popjustice would say.

FINALLY

2008-11-23T10:54:00.009+10:00

After the most disastrous series of chart positions of her career, the posh princess is back! Despite being 4 months pregnant she serves it up for a Mascara advert.

Lord she's gorgeous. Look at those lips and eyes and that beautiful skin. Song sounds semi-decent, most probably a Top 15 "hit".

Guri-guri

2008-11-09T12:01:00.011+10:00

Yuna Ito has been redeeming herself with her latest release and previous single "miss you". Still, she needs a few more songs like "恋はgroovy×2" to make us pretend we never knew "Urban Mermaid" and the entire "WISH" album ever existed.

AMAZING.

It's like an hour long advertisement (it's the GAP clothes line song for the holiday season) and it features some very nice effects. But the one thing that annoys me is her failed diva-acting and the way she tries to lip-synch to EVERY lyric in the song, even those belonging to the BG vocals.

Song : A+
Video: A

Also reviews

2008-11-02T11:00:00.007+10:00

Girl groups have gone into a frenzy the past fortnight or so.

It started with the Sugababes.

Well, actualy the Saturdays but they get stated second for no clear reason.

Up is amazing by the way, just that for no clear reason somebody somewhere decided to make it sluggish-sounding and tedious and shit, in an attempt to bog the album down.

And last but definitely and no way in hell the least we have Girls Aloud with their fifth studio album.

Compared to a similar time of the year in 2007...

Bloody amazing.

This should be a lesson to all the girls out there who still make mediocre albums despite being in the industry long enough to have seen 2372093 lineup changes, and newbies who just can't scratch it but might have the potential to do so in the future depending on whether they sell enough to avoid getting severed off in a bloody dispute with their labels.

Makes me bipolar

2008-10-10T22:19:00.007+10:00

One of the most beautiful songs of recent years, "U Want Me 2" hit #105 on Billboard recently. It's by Canadian chanteuse Sarah McLachlan, arguably the most listenable of "successful" Canadian artistes worldwide.

Anyway, "U Want Me 2" which is on her upcoming album "Closer", a greatest hits compilation, is truly a stunning piece of work, both lyrically and musically. But her vocals are absolutely outrageously brilliant, the volume of emotions she managed to convey without mutilating her singing is unbelievable. She sounds like she's singing alright, but her sorrow can be felt so clearly, it's searing.

© Nettwerk/Arista 2008

Beautiful. The best part must be the opening piano loop thingy which is repeated at the end of the choruses.

The Promise is...

2008-09-15T21:00:00.005+10:00

..jesus dancing at night in a field of flowers while rainbows explode in the sky and rain down colourful ice drops and snow and shine like gumdrops of pure sunshine.

© Fascination Records 2008

It makes the Boots ad song sound like "glitter".

Also Sleeps With Butterflies

2008-09-07T17:17:00.005+10:00

So I casually flicked on the television and surfed channels that fateful afternoon. TV sucked, and I never watched much anyway, other than sitting in front of MTV or Channel V. On that day, MTV sucked as usual, repeating every bloody song over and over again.

Then it was Channel V, and it was Record Shop I think. It's this segment where they play new music videos from around the world.

And then this happened:

© Epic Records 2005

Gorgeous piano, and a very familiar woman. Beautiful gorgeous artwork and set, wow. My heart raced wow. I have never heard the song before, only read about it. So I raised the volume and stared at the TV transfixed. The music video was extremely gorgeous. And the song, oh the lovely song. I couldn't forget it for weeks.

So after it ended, I was sad and wanted to watch it again. I did manage to though.

Hamasaki.

2008-08-28T21:41:00.003+10:00

The Ayumi marches into the cellar,
Grabs a baby from the corner,
Gleaming eyes of endless horror,
Teeth ripping off infant ears.

The Ayumi gouges out the tiny eyes,
Licks its lips and takes a bite,
Juicy blood that drips like wine,
It rips the skin of the innocent child.

The Ayumi savours the taste of youth,
Juicy intestines spurt like fruit,
It smiles to show the taste was good,
The crying baby has gone mute.

The Ayumi swallows the little corpse,
Crunching it with chomping jaws,
Crunching on without a pause,
Savouring the taste of a mother's loss.

© 2008 DERIKURI™

Another one bites the dust

2008-08-06T20:31:00.004+10:00

A sad day perhaps, as news have surfaced that a singer has passed away on August 4th. The JPOP singer is in her 20s, and she hails from Japan. She has sang for a famous anime too.

With deepest regret we have to announce that it is NOT Hamasaki Ayumi. As much as we would love to witness her 死 and put it on Youtube so it can be immortalized and rewatched again and again, the sad bitch just never seems to let up.

Still, this is about Kawai Eri, not Hamasaki Ayumi. Known for her works in the soundtracks for Tales of Symphonia, Aria the Animation and Crayon Shin-chan, she passed away due to a terminal illness she has been struggling against.

Despite that, we have to admit that when we heard that a JPOP singer died, we were crossing our fingers and chanting "Ayumi, Ayumi, Ayumi, ..." under our breath.

If only deafness in the left ear killed. :(

Ayumi Hamasaki New Single Confirmed!!

2008-08-02T00:28:00.012+10:00

We have done an intensive research on locating the essence of Ayumi and coming up with possible song titles she would pick. Therefore we can infer that her next single will be called either one of these....

Gorgeous World
Inner Beauty c/w Fashionista
Hefty Girl c/w DANCE ON ME
SEX MYTH c/w first time
pain in my HEART c/w shine always
thank YOU c/w bittersweet
LOST WORLD
thank YOU c/w When You Were Here <--- Our bets are on this one.
Endless Happiness
GO!GO!AYUMANIA
tempurature
complexion
SEMENASTIC
FANTAStrick day
Beuatiful Lie
beautifool girl
HANABI episode III <--- And this one, who knows?
2gather LOVE
Cameo Angel
ALLways beauty
(Sir)CUS
YOUniverse

=======================================

And moments after coming up with these, we received an update stating that her next single will be ONE'S ALL c/w Claim. Now who would have thought of that.

=======================================

Weeks later it was confirmed to be GREEN c/w Days. Now, that is something.

New Music

2008-06-08T10:42:00.005+10:00

Coldplay's new album is so bloody amazing omg it completely eclipses their previous effort X&Y. Viva la Vida makes X&Y sound slushy and overly synthy. I love love love it so badly now. There's a dramatic increase of noticeable instruments and innovation in the arrangements. 9/10. Best: Cemeteries of London.

I randomly downloaded Adem's Takes and it was quite good too but I only listened to Unravel and some other track repeatedly for a while. Initially I thought it was amazing then my friend said it was whiny and now I think it is a bit whiny kinda. Also became quite samey after a while and not very exciting. Not my type probably. 6.5/10. Best: Unravel.

Also Alanis Morissette is suddenly amazing with the new album Flavors of Entanglement which is utterly brilliant in places and overall a very solid and strong record. The rocky songs are great and she does amazingly in the sparse and heartfelt tune "Not As We". 9/10. Best: Underneath.

And Perfectly Clear by Jewel which is set to be her lowest selling album in her career is also very good indeed and should not be so ignored. Jewel's attempt at country still sounds pop to me but she has many strong songs here though the fact that the most immediately likeable song here "2 Become 1" was initially from her 0304 album does say something. 8/10. Best: 2 Become 1.

Also The Ting Tings which are suddenly very famous due to an iPod commercial does not drown in the hype thanks to a rather brilliant debut album. We Started Nothing got to #1 in the UK and it contains many amazing tracks that are a lot better than the first single which gets terribly annoying after the first 5 listens. 8.5/10. Best: Fruit Machine.

And Mika Nakashima further digs deeper into the grave she established for her career by creating a ghastly project with three obese people.

Reinventing Ayumi

2008-05-14T03:35:00.004+10:00

Ayumi's role model is Madonna.

Then shame on her for breaking Madonna's golden rule: Re-invention.

Madonna never does the same thing twice, so every album is a completely different body of work from the other. No matter how terrible her album sold, no genres were directly repeated. But what about Ayumi? Lol no! She crushed that commandment ages ago when she dared to make Blue Bird and then had the nerve to follow it up with Glitter.

Seeing that people are no longer bothered with her doing summery pop to death, she then went on to suck out all the life from the rock genre by making one rock single after another. Fated, Talkin 2 myself, Decision, Mirrorcle World, rock versions of her singles from the previous decade (You & Depend On You "anniversary" (lol!!) versions), etc etc. Then there was also a terrible rock album called GUILTY which became her first album not to reach #1 (lol!!).

Her music gets progressively more soulless and tedious each time she repeats the same thing. What happened to the Ayumi before My Story came out? New Ayumi is like a terrible racist insult to the entire Ayumi discography with every new song a fatal virus she adds into the Hamasaki Music Collection.

Someone needs to stop her now before she loses every drop of credibility.

Or perhaps she already has.

Bye Bye Ayumi

2008-05-08T17:07:00.005+10:00

TOKYO, Japan - Famous Japanese singer Hamasaki Ayumi was involved in a fatal car crash the previous night. Investigations done so far has indicated that the accident happened due to the car hitting a lamp post while travelling at the speed of about 140km/h. The driver, Matsuko Hotaka, lost control of the vehicle due to unknown reasons. He passed away on the way to the hospital.

Reports have shown that the cars brakes were malfunctioning, thus causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. "We won't rule out sabotage in this case. It's possible that the brakes have been tampered with," claimed Gen. Honda Kobayashi. Further investigations will be carried out to determine the exact cause of the accident.

Hamasaki Ayumi is known as Japan's most famous singer; she is known throughout Asia and America. With sales exceeding 40 million copies in Japan alone, she is touted as Asia's biggest celebrity. However, recently her career has not been going well due to complications with her record label and competition from other stars in the industry.

LOL

Rivalry

2008-05-02T18:53:00.000+10:00

"Japanese singer RURUTIA, known for her epic and ethereal tunes, has made a comment about popular J-Pop singer Ayumi Hamasaki stating that she is "untalented and raw" and "doesn't know the least thing about music. I try my best at my music and AyuSAMA just sits there, doing what, posing naked for a single of little to no credits to herself?"No comment from either artists has been made at this time."

More mishaps

2008-04-05T15:22:00.007+10:00

Adorable Ayumi.

Mirrorcle World will be unleashed upon the hapless public in a few days but the Oricon prediction shows that it might be facing some competition from ZARD, a singer who died last year. How did a dead singer release a single? Ask Avex. God knows how they managed to get new material from ZARD.

Also Sugababes and another flop (by their standards when Mutya was around) that makes us think. Denial was a pretty good song too. The Amelle curse, perhaps? Already two singles failing to reach the Top 10, ghastly. And then there's Girls Aloud with their lowest-charting single, the amazing Can't Speak French. But how low is lowest when it's Girls Aloud? Well, a #9. But then again with all the radio support and promotion and Cheryl Cole drama, I expected a Top 5.

Times like these are tough.

Also Ayumi

2008-03-15T19:06:00.004+10:00

Once again in a cruel world where all justice is flushed down the public toilet to join dead goldfish, Mika Nakashima suffers in the charts. SAKURA ~花霞~ enters the chart at a lowly #9 and looks set to not perform spectacularly despite being a drama tie-in and a very beautiful song.

However, every cloud has a silver lining blah blah so despite that horrible fact we have to face, we still have things to laugh at. For example: Ayumi. New single covers for Mirrorcle World displays her nakedness with only her hands covering her lack of breasts and she also has fake butterflies in her hair.

If that doesnt reek of desperation I don't know what does.

In any case, I do fancy the song which is a gorgeous and dissonant piece of rock music that blends awkwardly at segments. Still it's all too little too late (and too rock) to revive her now almost-dead career.

Also the world is going to hell

2007-10-04T14:50:00.000+10:00

Eien no Uta debuted at #4 and sold around 4,000 copies on it's opening day. As if that wasn't traumatizing enough, Erika will probably be suspended for a year by her company. Also Ai's best studio album sells a measly 208,000 copies at #1.

Also poor moody Erika

2007-10-03T00:41:00.000+10:00

Some japanese thingy put up a poll asking about what you think of Erika's recent behavior. It seems like you weren't very happy as this is what you voted:

'My opinion has improved' got 4,435 votes. Apparently not many were pleased.

'My opinion hasn't changed' obtained 35,197 votes. I voted for this by the way.

'My opinion has worsened' garnered 227,795 votes. That's SIX bloody digits there.

The poor thing. But how much can one sympathize anyway after recent pictures have shown her uglier side.

A hilarious picture from the Closed Note movie premiere which Erika stars in. She's the one in the hideous green thing and the tacky blonde wig by the way. Despite this monstrosity, Erika is a very gorgeous woman. Notice the way she is not really giving a damn. Even fucking Yui is holding the sign and all she did was contribute a fairly terrible song for the movie.

And I leave you with excerpts from Erika-Fantasy, the best Erika Sawajiri blog out there.

"J-CAST reports today that a lot of people think retirement is the best thing for Erika at the moment! This event has caused a lot of chaos recently, but retiring just because of the negativity surrounding her at the moment would be crazy. Erika's official site has been flooded with traffic recently, making it hard, and sometimes impossible to even access the site. On Toho's website about Closed Note, the comments had to be disabled because of all of the negative notes left. Some people say they now have no interest in watching the movie now, just because of Erika."

Also Shayne Ward

2007-10-01T18:11:00.000+10:00

I kind of pity him. He makes his comeback with a brand new manwhore image and some half-decent pop tracks and a lot of hope but ends up losing miserably. He charted at #2.

What's so bad about getting a #2 single?

By now you would have found out that the Sugababes defeated him. "How?! The physical copies of their single aren't even out in shops yet!" you say. Well, by downloads only. This means, if Amelle had called for About You Now to be a sad download-only release, it would still have beaten Shayne and grabbed the #1 spot like it is doing now.

About You Now has just been released today, by the way.

Has any other famous girl group tried a download-only release before? Yes, All Saints did that with Chick Fit. It charted at #187 or something similar if not worse.

Of course Amelle's win makes me very happy. First girl group to score a #1 solely on downloads, second ever british act to achieve this feat, overall the 4th time this phenomenon had ever happened.

Besides, About You Now is the best pop song of the year so far. If you haven't listened to it yet, I suggest you do. Also watch the video.

But what happens to Shayne now? Oh well, who really cares anyway.

Also Ayumi

2007-09-26T01:52:00.000+10:00

Decision turned out to be amazing.

Pity about the sales then.

Also Secretly Canadian

2007-09-26T01:39:00.001+10:00

I stumbled upon this record company called Secretly Canadian yesterday. Their artistes are amazing, from what I've listened to.

The picture provided is the cover art of Jens Lekman's album "Night Falls Over Kortedala" which is due for release in around a week. It is brilliant. He has an amazing voice that sounds like it came from the 1960s and his music is so cheery and pretty and hopeful and bright. My favourite so far, discovered by Marcus.

Also on the same label, Frida Hyvönen is an opposite of Jens in every way. Frida is quite obviously a woman. She has a very sharp and potentially annoying voice. Despite some uptempo songs, she does not do cheery or upbeat. Neither does she employ much instruments. Her piano is her weapon. But her work is very intriguing and enjoyable nonetheless. Her videos also own.

One more interesting person is Richard Swift. His music is also very different and strange but normal at the same time. It's like music made in the desert in the 1940s or something, I don't know. But it's very good. His voice is also very good.

If you are interested in any of this, go to http://www.secretlycanadian.com/mp3.php and download free mp3's legally.

Also SUGABAB BABES

2007-09-11T00:33:00.003+10:00

Looking at the music videos for About You Now and rival Girls Aloud’s Sexy! No No No… it would be absolutely acceptable to think that their budgets got switched.

About You Now looks like the Babes’ cheapest video to date if you ignore the stuff they did with Siobhan Donaghy which is easy to do since no one knows about those anyway.

Of course, cheap does not equal crappy. It looked like they spent 80% of the budget on the classy yellow dresses which are nice to look at (bar Keisha’s). Also by the looks of it the video is made for repeated views as it does not become dull after being played for about 10 times consecutively.

However the single cover is terrible.

Also Amelle’s extra surprise verse is amazing. Plus the way she said “then” is hypnotic. But she sticks her butt out too much. Keisha’s flirtatious and sexual attitude is disgusting. It’s a break-up/make-up song not Buttons you moron. Also Heidi is gorgeous and easily the best looking one even though Amelle is gorgeous too. Why chuck Heidi in the bridge when you can put Keisha there is anybody’s guess.

Also by now you should be able to figure out I don’t like Keisha much.

Also Glorious

2007-09-11T00:32:00.002+10:00

Natalie’s new album leaked a few days ago. It is quite interesting. On 2005’s Counting Down The Days, there was a little something done to the songs that made them kind of old-sounding and endearing. In Glorious: The Singles 97-07, that “little something” has drenched all the new songs. I found a few days ago while toying around with Nero Wave Editor that this “little something” was in fact just reverb.

Too much of a good thing is not good. Despite that, new track Amelia benefits greatly from too much reverb. However Against The Wall doesn’t, and it is a terrible excuse for a song on a Greatest Hits album.

Stuck On The Moon is quite nice. Be With You, after more than 20 listens, seems to be the most radio-friendly track of them all. Unfortunately, it is scheduled for a release. I think we already know how it will chart.

In fact, if she is going to film a music video for a doomed single, why not make it Amelia? The track is one of the most unique songs ever recorded by Natalie and it sounds dark and weird and strange and amazing. Also it is not happy but it isn’t depressing either. Plus Amelia has an extremely unique structure, like it was written for Girls Aloud but got rejected due to the sound. There are no sections repeated, so there’s no real verse, chorus or bridge.

In any case, go and buy Glorious: The Singles 97-07 now.

Also divine intervention in musical form

2007-09-11T00:25:00.000+10:00

Eien no Uta leaked and there are a lot of important things about this event. A summary:

1) Many have agreed that it is pure divine goodness packed in 5 minutes and 47 seconds. Unlike regular good songs which are like rides on a roller-coaster, this is more like waking up from bed and finding yourself in a new city with a beautiful sunset and reservations for a romantic dinner for two in Paris and upon looking at the mirror finding yourself already looking amazing and breathtaking.

2) A few people didn’t like it. They can die.

3) Also about how it leaked and the owner being furious as it is exclusive for his own site which I find amusing plus it displays the uglier side of humanity.

4) The cover image is obviously the best since Hi no Tori from 2005 too.

Also Natalie

2007-09-05T14:43:00.001+10:00

Some of you might already have heard of the supposed second single from her hits compilation album. It's called Be With You and it sounds very, very Natalie, unlike first single Glorious which also sounded like Natalie, but frustrated Natalie forced to create a commercial hit song to satisfy the record company.

First listen, it sounds like a album track. On second listen, it sounds quite lovely. On third listen, most possibly single-worthy. However, most people won't really bother to listen to the same song thrice so this wouldn't be a very good single I think. Also the arrangements are absolutely gorgeous.

And this could make an appropriate Christmas single. Maybe that's what they are planning. The piano/bell/chime thingies are terribly warming and endearing and delightful. Also Marc said it "sounds like Xmas and Santa Claus falls from the top of the mall" so ok.

Also yes, Natalie is one of the most amazing pop artists in the world.

Also Leaked Lately

2007-09-04T20:44:00.001+10:00

Sugababes and their amazing new promo for About You Now is really very good (predictably). The Sticky Remix is superb although Keisha sounds quite distorted with her vocals sped up. It's almost on par with the single version. Also I would like to listen to the other remixes again but the first 10 seconds put me off. So, maybe later.

Also some more Britney tracks leaked (since Gimme More received favourable reception so it's probably intentional) but I haven't bothered to download them yet. Also Marty says they are comparable to Rihanna B-sides so maybe never.

Also a Kylie track leaked (!!!) which prompted an instant "Save As..." but unfortunately it is Not exciting at all. Hopefully it won't be on the album unless somebody alters the arrangements and tweaks parts of the chorus.

Also yesterday an LQ but clear preview of Ayumi's last chorus of Decision was floating around. Surprisingly it was very Very good indeed and just might be what some EX-fans need to start liking her Again. Yes, Ayumi has hacked off parts of her fanbase again and again with destructive songs of death such as BLUE BIRD and STARTIN' which are absolutely terrible but appealing nevertheless. Fated is plain crap though.

AYOUME - SISTER SOUL

2007-09-04T03:58:00.000+10:00

Tracklist

01 Sister Soul
02 NUBIAN PRINCESS
03 Ancestor's Prayer
04 Sister Soul (Yasutaka Nakata-capsule Mix)
05 NUBIAN PRINCESS (WALL-2-HALL Remix)
06 Ancestor's Prayer (Ndebele Vers.)

Label: TOSHIBA-EMI
Date: 21.11.2007

New songstress AYOUME of African and Korean descent is set to take on the charts with her debut single SISTER SOUL. The soul/R&B track has heavy dance beats scattered all over it with tribal chants opening and ending the song. Due for radio in October, it will also have an accompanying promotional video.

The single comes with two B-sides. NUBIAN PRINCESS is a light-hearted dance track with strong African influences stamped over it. Ancestor's Prayer features a group of native African tribesmen chanting out special mantras. Track 6 is a special version of Ancestor's Prayer sung in Ndebele.

AYOUME's flawless vocals and pronunciation warrants a great time. A truly unique listening experience, ensure you get your copy.

Also Britney

2007-09-04T00:34:00.000+10:00

By now most of you will have already heard Britney's Gimme More and smiled rabidly and adoringly thinking the poor damsel has finally won the battle.

But I don't like it ok. Think of the stuff she's done.

1. Getting bald
2. Partying with Paris
3. Showing off labia
4. Entering rehab
5. Getting babies
6. Marrying
7. Divorcing
8. Watching husband put out shit album

Surely all that would have resulted in something much more grand and extravagant? Something that should sound like Oops! ...I Did It Again or Toxic? Something that makes us smile and scream "B IS BACK BITCHES" and actually mean it?

Gimme More isn't a disaster though. It is better than an In The Zone album track but still worse than a Nelly Furtado B-side. But I am very very Dissapointed with it. I was expecting amazingness, signs of greatness. It did appear but only in the opening 2 seconds.

Also Cold As Fire is totally disgusting and the vocals are shockingly bad.

Also RURUTIA

2007-09-03T22:18:00.000+10:00

Ok this is RURUTIA. She makes Very Atmospheric music. If you've never heard of her, don't worry. Nobody knows about her anyway, unless they come across her materials by accident. Why? Because RURUTIA also has (predictably) dismal chart positions in Japan.

So why her? Because she makes Atmospheric music. Plus she isn't hideous or funny-looking like Bjork. RURUTIA is Very Good at what she does. Her songs overflow with time, space, colours and various other characteristics. Am I talking nonsense? Maybe. But listen to the title track from her latest release Opus and you will understand.

Unfortunately, when she left Toshiba-EMI for some obscure label, she stopped charting. Lack of promotion? Maybe. But also consider the fact that RURUTIA never does interviews or fashion shoots or anything. What she does instead is maybe come out with a sparse amount of music videos. So who's to blame for her failure?

Also one of her more successful albums sold roughly 1,500 copies.

Also Sophie

2007-09-03T16:12:00.000+10:00

As you can see, that crappy LQ still is very obviously from Youtube. Anyway, Sophie Ellis-Bextor performed Me & My Imagination in the Sopot International Song Festival a few days ago. They did something to the keyboards and it sounds really cool in an odd way. Sophie is a Brilliant performer, by the way.

Quite a shame then it's not a very well-known festival, at least not in this part of the globe. It seems to be like Eurovision, where tons of performers from different countries come and flaunt their skills. Unlike Eurovision, the performances here aren't really bothered with and you won't be seeing any strange songs from unknown lands suddenly climbing your local charts.

Also you don't get the "we voted for UK as a protest towards the Eastern countries, not because they were good" drama.

Also Eien no Uta

2007-09-03T04:10:00.000+10:00

Ok I can say I have heard something truly amazing. It's called Eien no Uta (永遠の詩; Eternity's Song) and it is by (predictably) Mika Nakashima. I wasn't too happy about LIFE ok, and this just destroyed and shattered my expectations. From the 1 minute clip with a lot of annoying people speaking in Japanese thus obscuring Mika's amazing vocals, it sounds very breathtaking.

Think winter, My Sugar Cat, amazing, beautiful, elegant, dazzling, gentle, not too slow, warm, cool, snow and you have it. It may not reach #1, but the strong melody that isn't too strong and obvious like LIFE's guarantees it a Top 5 spot. Mika Nakashima amazes again.

As of now, no cover art, but it's getting released next month anyway, so expect a radio rip from the forums you frequent in 2 weeks.

Also Mika

2007-09-03T02:40:00.000+10:00

Ok this is the Best person ever in the galaxy. You will never see anyone like her. She is the one in your dreams. She is Mika Nakashima. She is also my Favourite Ever artist ok.

For the young, foolish and uneducated, she makes Amazing music. Music so good it brings tears to the eyes. Mika makes all kinds of music, it depends on the album. Pop Mika? Yes. Jazz Mika? Yup. Rock Mika? Ya, that too. Experimental Mika? Sure. Gospel Mika? Of course. You see, she's Multitalented and a Genius.

Ok I haven't mentioned her Voice. It's capable of reaching very high notes without effort. Her voice is Beautiful. It's not like Mariah Carey or Amy Winehouse "beautiful". It's what a woman should sound like. It's Brilliant and Lovely and Soothing and Amazing.

As you can see, she is also a Beauty. A Beautiful woman who can sing amazingly well is Rare. Mariah Carey is fat. Amy Winehouse is Hideous. See? Mika Nakashima is a Model. She advertises Kanebo's KATE line. She does it Very Well. You can watch her numerous commercials in Youtube.

Also she sang once in Music Station and there was Ayumi and Mika's vocals made Ayumi sound like Shit. This greatly increases her likeability. Also people clap louder for Mika than for Ayumi.

Plus Mika is Cool. She doesn't speak much, she doesn't smile much, but you know she is everything you want to be. You can't hate her. You know she's too good for that. She loves black too. And she keeps a cat. And also she makes mindblowingly stunning photobooks once in a while and they have enormous prices that will make you weep.

Also not to be confused with gay Mika from the UK.

Now that THAT's out of the way...

2007-09-03T02:07:00.000+10:00

Terrible, isn't it? Someone told me the covers looked like Coca Cola cans, that was spot on. Ayumi releases another uninspired effort that is bound to reach #1 and sell more than 100,000 copies. The predictability of it all makes the future look bleak. Of course Ayumi isn't half as bad as the morons a.k.a. Ayufans who make life hell. Fans please die ok.

Of course, despite this disgusting fact, we also have the very pretty Erika Sawajiri releasing something in November. And Kumi has another dull and tepid ballad for us which benefits from having an amazing PV where she moves around a little too much. If that doesn't excite you, then Mika Nakashima, goddess of holy light mercy shining hope and pure brilliance, will release her new single in October, and it is a gorgeous wintery reggae kind of track that is 100% amazing. Also Yuna Ito but I forgot.

First Off... Welcome and Thank You

2007-09-03T00:48:00.000+10:00

So I have decided to make a blog posting ~~stories~~ stuff relating to ~~Jpop~~ music. Actually to be honest I ~~do not~~ know much about ~~jpop~~ pop music; I just like to listen to a ~~handful~~ lot of singers and am also myself trying to discover additional quality artists ~~in the big scene of jpop~~. Thanks for visiting my site.

I am also not a ~~great~~ webpage designer. I believe in simplicity and in most things and I simply want to convey what I have to say. Maybe as I become more proficient in webpage design I will add some colours to the site but for now I will see......

Here are some of the artists I ~~like~~ love, ~~in no particular order except for the first 4~~:

~~MISIA~~ Mika Nakashima
~~Hirai Ken~~ Siobhan Donaghy
~~Hirahara Ayaka~~ Girls Aloud
~~Kawaguchi Kyougo~~ Bic Runga
~~Amuro Namie~~ Delta Goodrem
~~CHEMISTRY~~ Sophie Ellis-Bextor
~~KOKIA~~ Emilie Simon
~~MINMI~~ Kings of Convenience
~~Kimura Kaela~~ Natalie Imbruglia
~~Shiina Ringo~~ Rachel Stevens
~~Crystal Kay~~ Arai Akino

and tons more....