GAM - New Single, New Outfit

So after the much discussed Gay Great Aya and Miki single "Melodies", they have a new song coming up and a new outfit. It is their 3rd single now, to be released on March 21st. It's called "Lu Lu Lu".

Had a listen of the radio rip of Lu Lu Lu, and the supposedly coupling song (B-side) Family, it's a rip from Mikitty's Dokimiki Night radio show.
[ Note: For preview purposes only. ]



"Lu Lu Lu". What a title... The good thing about it though, is that it is easy to remember, even if you don't remember/like the song. It makes you want to look for that phrase, and when it's found, you're halfway to the song already. (But I don't think the songwriter/lyricist think of it as complicated as I do ^_^)


Honestly, I like the song "Lu Lu Lu" (or "Lululu". Not sure which is right). Sounds like a nice song to be made into a soundtrack of a movie. One thing though - Mikitty has gotta start learning how to do harmonies. You can't leave it all to Ayaya all the time. As for "Family", this rock & roll piece ain't a family song. ^_^
Tom has pre-ordered the single, and I hope he enjoys it.



But you know what pops into my head when I saw the single cover? 90's duo and pop sensation - Wink. Somehow something is telling me that the current GAM is an after-millennium version of Wink. (Maybe it's the hat? ^_^) If that's true, GAM may be much more popular with the release of their 3rd single, just as Wink did with theirs. But I may be dreaming, cos' I'm not sure if "Lululu" can top the Oricon charts.

We'll see if a GAM-only concert ever take place, just as boldly declared by Ayaya and Mikitty in the Hello！Project 2007 Winter Shuugetsu！ 10th Anniversary Concert. Maybe Aida Shoko (one half of Wink) can give the girls a few pointers. (Note that Aida Shoko is currently working with Up Front Works)



Lastly,..... mini-skirt one-piece for the outfit. Probably going for a 1920's kind of fashion, an era where the 'GAM' takes their name from.


What I don't understand is that if this outfit is for showing them legs, why are they are given high stockings that goes past the knees? Show the legs but cover 'em up again? What's the point?



Wink image taken from http://www.idollica.com/wink/Wink.html

Celebrating Aibon's News with Karaoke

So.... how did everyone deal with the recent news on our dearest Kago Ai?

For me, I went karaoke, on that same day itself. Dai Manzoku!

The next few days after was hectic, occupied with lots of office work and personal stuff as well. But nevertheless, I'm still thinking about last Friday. :)

It was the first time I stepped into a 100% Japanese karaoke. It's called Yumekukan - 夢空間. It's located at Plaza Mont Kiara, obviously to serve Japanese karaoke-goers. They're customer-base range from school kids to executives. I've never stepped inside because I don't have anyone to go with me. It wasn't the first time I sing Japanese in karaoke, but the company of people I go only sing Canto-pop and Mando-pop songs (I'm always the odd one in the group). Furthermore, the other karaoke boxes have limited Japanese songs, and very outdated. In fact, they have at most two Morning Musume songs - "The Peace" and "Love Machine". Yumekukan have almost one full page of 'em, not counting the other Hello! Project acts. In terms of recency, the songs date up till "Aruiteru". A pity, I would picked "Egao YES Nude". :)

The interior of Yumekukan is pretty much like any karaoke box that I went before. But the only difference is that it absolutely CLEAN. They've got only 8 rooms at this place, but sufficient enough to sustain them for 6 years. The menu and rates are expensive, but they are the only Japanese karaoke for miles around.

But enough with the advertising... they didn't pay me for this... ^_^

So I checked in with chu3nii, only the two of us. We sang for 3 hours, and extended 1 hour after that. If it wasn't for the expensive rates, I would have gone for a 7 hour marathon - just like Reina would. (Trivia: Tanaka Reina mentioned that she once went for karaoke for more than 5 hours ALONE, in the 19th episode of Hello Pro Hour show)

The whole night, I sang more non-H!P songs. Cos' it would look darn silly singing "Go Girl - Koi no Victory" all by myself. Chu3nii even asked me to sing "Shabondama". I didn't have enough time, otherwise I'll choose some Berryz Koubou ones. :)

Some H!P songs that I sang:

W (DoubleU) - Shiroi Iro wa Koibito no Iro [ Lyrics ]
Matsuura Aya - Happiness [ Lyrics ]
Mini Moni - Minimoni Telephone! Rin Rin Rin - [ Lyrics ] v(^o^)v

... and I couldn't find Kusumi Koharu's "Balalaika", nor Momusu's "Odore! Morning Curry". :)

At some point, I suddenly thought of Yaguchi Mari's performance at the Uta Doki show and her fantastic rendition of "Touch" (タッチ / Tacchi) - by Yoshimi Iwasaki. It was the theme song of an anime/manga of the same title "Touch". That was my best song of the night.

Overall, it was a fun experience. If chu3nii comes to my neighbourhood again, I'll be sure to go back there with her again.


Two negative points to highlight:
1) The backing music for the karaoke songs are not the original music. It sounded like it was produced by some independent musicians. So there are some discrepancies in terms of tempo, and sound.
2) The videos playing in the background are not the original PVs. What we see are also self-produced videos, where some are reminiscence of those J-Doramas scenes that we always watch on video.

We concluded that, while the karaoke boxes do pay for the royalties and copyright for using the songs, there are further copyright charges to be imposed should they use the original PV and music. To avoid that, the karaoke music and backing video are self-produced.

The end result ain't too bad. I mean, compared to those American oldies karaoke where the backing music are played with some old Casio keyboards, with a backing video of some random tourism sceneries and some girl walking around with a straw hat trying too look cool and breezy... It ain't too bad, really.

I wonder if it was the same in Japan........

Kago Ai on Friday 3 ... Translation Summary

I don't have the time to translate the ENTIRE article, but I thought I'd post a summary of it.

I want to provide a translated summary of the article, but Hello!Online have it posted already.
Those guys there are uber-effective!

EDIT:
Okay, I have problem accessing Hello!Online just now. But I want this good news to spread. So here it is:

Source from Hello!Online

Full Article summary:

- Kago's been working in the UFA offices since January 23rd.
- The photos of her on the street were taken while she was on her way to the office.
- She's working in the office because UFA wants her to get back some self-confidence, and to help her to start from scratch by learning about how the company works.
- The reporter was surprised that UFA let him meet Kago without any prior arrangement. Kago was quite nervous hearing that he comes from Friday (as they broke the news about her smoking incident in the first place. Interestingly enough, smoking, tobacco, etc., isn't mentioned in the interview part).

Interview tidbits:
"For that entire year, I haven't met my friends at all. I was scared to leave the house."
"At the beginning, I also had problems eating anything, and before I knew it, I had gone down from 47kg to 39kg"
"I didn't watch TV much. I saw Musume a few times, thinking "Ah, MoMusu. This is a new song"
"I didn't know much about household chores before, but being at home, I learned some cooking, cleaning and laundry. I started to like doing these."
"I'm cooking myself a lunchbox every day. When I come to the office, first I start with cleaning. My job is to serve tea to customers, and pick up the calls. I still have problems saying "Wait a minute, please" properly. (:D) Also, I'm studying kanji, reading newspapers and helping with searching information on the PC".
"When I was helping out backstage during the Yokohama Arena concert, I met with the members again. But as I lost weight, they had problems recognizing me. Even Nono passed by me without noticing. But everyone said, "Welcome back!" to me, so I was happy."
"Nono brought me a birthday cake, and we did the "Double U desu!" pose again after more than one year"
"I feel bad about how I betrayed the fans, especially the youngest ones. It still feels rough, even after one year. I lived by the motto, "Let things flow" until now, but I realized that doesn't work in the real world. My aim is to be positive and work hard from now on. I don't know when it will be possible, but I really want to sing again."

UFA's stand

"The last year's incident was very serious, so we had Kago stay in 'house arrest' in Nara for almost one year. We checked up on her to see if she had learned from it, and talked to her parents, and now we've allowed her to return to Tokyo. Fans and ordinary people might think we are underestimating this, but by observing her behavior and taking into account that she's already 19 years old, we decided to start preparing for her comeback. But as for exact dates or details, these are unsettled yet."

Mine is a bit longer, but H!O gave us the most juiciest part of the article. Indeed, the first page is all boring stuff on the scandal history, how they discovered Aibon in Tokyo.... blablabla. It's like they are trying to protect their journalistic integrity there. The remaining pages is where the important points are. So click and go there to have a look!

I'm smiling away as I publish this post from my workstation. I need to get back to work now, before they start to think I've gone crazy.... because I've been acting weird since 1:51 P.M. yesterday!

But before I go..... *ahem* (clears throat)

\(^o^)/ WHOOOHOOOOOO~~~~~~~~~~~!!!!!!!!

Kago Ai on Friday 2...... Clearer Scans

Welp... I went to the store alright, but nope, no latest issue of Friday (the one with Aibon), it seems like we are at least a week late over here. Apparently, it's already on sale in Okinawa, Japan. Probably that's where these scans come from.

Luckily for us, the larger and clearer scans are already up in the uploaders.








Other than having to break my vow of not purchasing Friday anymore since February 2006, yes I am happy for this news. But there are some things that I'm thinking about...

Just why... why has it got to be FRIDAY providing this follow-up news?

I had thought that UFA and FRIDAY would be sworn enemies after the smoking scandal, but no... their reporters even get served tea by Aibon. Something tells me that there is an underlying agreement between UFA and FRIDAY.

Okay, we all know that the paparazzi and the entertainment biz have to co-exist to stay alive. That one cannot live without the other. But shouldn't there be a line drawn somewhere?

I'll get to reading the scans now...

Kago Ai on FRIDAY! [ UPDATED ]

UPDATED 5:51 P.M. : From FRIDAY content listing, apparently this article will be published on 9th of March. But I wonder how the contents got leaked out...

m.m.p. has the article excerpts. Found the same the contents at 2ch, BUT I am unable to confirm the authenticity of the excerpts.


FRIDAY article excerpt:

元モーニング娘。の加護亜依が、喫煙問題で謹慎処分を受けて丸１年。
その彼女、今は上京し、事務所で「修業生活」をしているのだそうです。
フライデーは彼女の事務所に取材を敢行。応接室に現れたのは・・・。
復帰はまだ先のようですが、元気そうでなによりでした
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　フライデー

Other excerpts and comments by Aibon herself:

『・今は事務所でお茶くみと電話番してる（記者にもお茶を出していた）
・ファンにもスタッフにもメンバーにもいろいろ迷惑かけてスマンカッタ
でもやっぱり「歌いたい・・・」
・去年は実家で家事ばっかりやってた　友達にも会わなかった
今は都内で自炊生活してる
・今までは「なるようになる」と思って生きてきたけど、今は違う
お母さんから「自分の人生は自分で切り開け」と言われてきたけどやっと意味がわかった
・横アリでひさしぶりにメンバーにあったけど痩せたので誰にも気づかれなかった
・この前辻が事務所にケーキ持ってきてくれた 』


事務所
『復帰させたいとは思っているが時期も方法も未定 』

EDIT: Good man epifanes at Hello!Online have saved our time and went ahead to translate partially:

- currently, she is serving tea and taking phones at the agency (she served tea to the Friday reporter as well)
- "I feel bad for (what my action caused to) fans, staff and members, but I definitely want to sing again"
-last year she spent doing household works all the time, no time even for meeting friends. Currently she is living in Tokyo and cooking for herself.
- up until now, her life motto was "Let things flow", but it changed. She finally understand her mom's saying "You should open up(decide) your own life"
- she met the members after long time in Yokohama Arena, but as she lost weight, no one recognized her at first
- Tsuji brought her a cake to agency a while ago

Agency: We are thinking of wanting to let her (Aibon) return, but the timing and method is still undecided.

If this was for real, I don't mind Aibon working part-time or serving tea for a little while longer,.... until the shackles have been taken off, of course. ^_^

I'm still be going to the store to double check. At least NOW I know how the cover looks like.


Bring back Aibon! \(^o^)/

==================== @@@ ========================

UPDATE 3:32 P.M.:
Found the full text from 2ch ==> 上京、事務所で“お茶汲み”修行生活

"Going to an office in the capital city(Tokyo), 'serving tea' training life"
?? O_o ?? Man... she better not be working as a OL (office lady) or tea lady or something...



Additionally, I found out that lots of people having calling up the H!P fan club for news and....
.... you know what, I'll stop here and just stick to getting the magazine. It's all hear-say stuff anyways.


And I got a job to keep too...

==================== @@@ ========================

Published: 1:21 P.M.

Thanks to Anna for the headsup!

Found Kago Ai's picture on the FRIDAY magazine from the uploaders.






I could not find similar info/pic from the Internet FRIDAY website.
Usually, it's typical of FRIDAY to pre-announce their scoops and headlines before it hits the stores and online accounts. But I could not find anything there, and I don't have an account with FRIDAY.

So let's just analyse what we got...

Picture #1: What we have here are only a few big readable words that I'm concerned about - 上京修行.
And a small "奈良 ->". We got "Going to the capital city from Nara to study". O_o
Can't make out the first two words from that line on the top right but it translates to "[ XX & Confession ] Scoop"

Picture #2: Now, it's this picture of Aibon sitting down with a cuppa on hand that caught my attention. What is THIS? An exclusive interview? For the same magazine that caused her career??



I'm busy at work now, will go to the stores tonight. And if it is available, I suppose I will ...*sigh*... BUY the magazine, to confirm the news and to see what it's all about... AND to check if it is an old picture after all.


......*sigh*... so much for boycotting FRIDAY...


For those who have the mag and have more info on this, please share with us. Thanks!

°C-ute HAS come!

Yes that's the name of °C-ute's TV show. But really, they have set great record for themselves. °C-ute HAS come!

Honestly, I am not a big °C-ute fan. I only enjoy two of their songs - "Masara Blue Jeans" and "Ookina Ai de Motenashite". Then again, mostly it's because I'm a Berryz Koubou kind of guy. Still, I never forget them because of Suzuki Airi's cuteness, and Mai Hagiwara is just too adorable. ^_^

But an amazing accomplishment for °C-ute - their first major single Sakura Chirari ~桜チラリ~ under the zetima label, have debuted on Oricon at number 3, beating Garnet Crow and Soul'd Out in the process!



For the benefit of those who don't know - °C-ute have 4 songs to their credit, all of them are released under indie labels, and are sold only in concerts and event venues. This is the first time °C-ute is presented to the mainstream market by releasing under a major recording label, zetima (the same label Morning Musume singles are released).

Sakura Chirari is, of course, written by Tsunku himself. Arrangement is done by Takahashi Yuuichi, who also arranged for the Momusu A-Team's "Bokura ga Ikiru My Asia" and "Juunen Ai" - which explains why all the accordions in the song.

What we have here in Sakura Chirari is simple dance choreography and cute costumes. Allow me to highlight one brave move that the producers have made - the girls get solo lines without the help of the Tsunku ghost. Compared to Berryz Koubou, I still think the girls are pretty weak singing by themselves. Amazing that they are able to rank so high on their first start.

Also, I managed to have a listen to a preview of the B-side track "JUMP". A very happy-poppy upbeat song. Are we seeing a rising force that can rival Berryz Koubou? ^_^
I am interested to see what these young girls, with an average age of 13 yrs old, can achieve this year.


My, my, my.... Maimai is just so CUTE!


Suddenly, I miss Murakami Megumi... I wish she is still around for this.

'Koe' by Morning Musume - Self Duet

I'm back! And sitting down at my comfy lair, typing away in my blog and surfing the net for Jpop stuff. Feels great to listen to some Jpop and H!P songs while having dinner once again. Ahh~~~!

Thought I'd share what I found during my holiday break.

A Youtube user Kiyoshi Shishido have used a previous video of myself playing Morning Musume's "Koe" on my guitar, and combined a split screen video of himself singing along to it.




I have no idea how he did it...


I was surprised the first time I saw it. He's got good voice, even did harmonies. But I am truly flattered, that someone would sing karaoke to my poorly recorded video. He offered to do more, and I asked him to choose from any of my vids. ^_^


Footnote: Did a background check on Shishido. It appears that he is a currently a college student aspiring to be a model and actor.

Jin's Holiday and Reflection

First of all, many many many thanks to all who have been coming back to visit this blog! (^_^)v

I am in in the middle Chinese New Year celebration, and taking a long break in the process. Overall, I had an enjoyable timeout from work and stress, but rest assured I did not forget about this site. So thanks again to all. :)

I went back hometown to my parent's place. Coupled with lots of house visits and activities, I am totally cut off from the Jpop world. All my songs and CDs are in my hard disks and are 200 kilometres away from where I am typing here right now. It's a strange feeling of not getting my daily dosage of Jpop and Hello! Project goodness since Friday. But I'm sure that I'll be blasting my speakers away once I get back on Wednesday.

Now that I'm back online, I noticed a few things. One - the Jpop world has been considerably quiet now. Then again, so is everything else in the world. The first few months of the year has always been like this. So now I'm looking forward to see what would happen when summer comes. Two - other major Hello! Project based/related sites have major improvements. With lots of news, updates and features to cater for everyone, certainly taking all site visitors and surfers seriously. Also the blog world as a whole, cos' I keep finding new blogs popping up here and there from beginning of January till now. Is there a world phenomenon going on that I don't know about? Or the awareness of the power of blogging is picking up again?


SoOOOOoo....., what else? Ah yes, during this break, I took opportunity to do some reflection, on my life, job, .... and my blogging. (Gosh, this must be the n-th time I blog about blogging)

On blogging:
Firstly, I thought that I should improve this site. Perhaps improve it's user-friendliness by adding more widgets and the like. Secondly, generate revenue from site visits. Plus, I thought it would be great if I can help endorse Hello! Project merchandise. Just a little bit of support from a rabid H!P fan. But there are a few hiccups.

Adding widgets and stuff slows the site down considerably. It's times like this I wish I have registered my own so that I can host my own scripts/images locally. No doubt the migration will be darn painful, because Blogger don't have backup features.

Google Adsense rejected my application because of linking and copyright issues (newsgroups, video clips and images). And Amazon.com (English version) list of H!P merchandise is SO limited (compared to the Japan version). Yesasia.com hasn't gotten back to me yet. Plus, I notice that some ads slows down the site too.

So I guess the conclusion is this: No ads. Minimal widgets.

In the end what I decided that this site is to stay true to my original purpose - a fan blog of Hello! Project and Morning Musume news.

So to everyone reading this, please continue to check back and visit again. Thanks for the support! v(^o^)v

Egao Yes Nude Debuts at No. 2 on Oricon

Had a great Valentine's Day. A nice dinner and received a cool gift. What more could I ask for?

Oh no, there is something else that has brighten my day ^_^ ->

Morning Musume's 32nd single "Egao Yes Nude" released today has debuted on Oricon charts at No. 2!

Source from Oricon Daily Ranking

Absolutely fantastic! And no, I'm not disappointed at all. Considering the competition that they have to face this week, it's a great achievement. Whether it is due to the addition of 8th gen member Mitsui Aika, or the recent tragic turmoil of Yoshizawa Hitomi, or the Hello! Project 10th Anniversary celebration, or the great reception of this upbeat single... nobody knows. But I'm REALLY happy nonetheless!

Though it rarely happens, I'm looking forward to see if it can climb up to the No. 1 spot later on. But it's EXILE they're up against... so it's hard to say. So we'll see what happens.... ^_^

Aibon Fans Too Desperate For News...

... that they have to start digging the information graveyard.

Lately, I've been patrolling the Japanese domain for news on Kago Ai, and what did I found? Lots of people have been scavenging the old pics of Aibon, and after comparing her debut pictures and her recent ones, Aibon is suspected of undergoing plastic surgery.

Sure, we're all desperate for a teeny amount of update on Aibon's status, but no point coming up with stories like this to fill up the void. If we have compare any of our pictures back when you are 12 years old and ... say, 16 years old, OF COURSE you'll see a difference. People grow up. Girls for that matter, undergo a hundred transformation from puberty to late teens, in my opinion (And that's what make the girls so special ^_^ ). It's a time where you begin to show your facial similarities of your parents. Moreover, with that many weight changes in Aibon's lifetime, there's bound to be lots of differences. (And even if she did go under the surgeon's knife, so what? It's a common trend in the entertainment scene. No need to make a big fuss about it, correct?)
And I'm not posting any of those "comparison pictures", don't wanna ride the wrong wind.


Take myself for example. I'll be frank - that pic on my Blogger profile ain't recent. In fact it was taken about 4 years ago. Even though I am long past my teen years, I still look different now because of my rapid weight changes. See for yourself ->

Here's me 4 years ago:

Here's me today:

See the difference?






Okay..... I'm sorry. That's not me. But everyone is allowed to have fantasies, yes? ^_^
Besides, I think I've made my point already. \(^o^)/




NOTE: For those who don't know, that's Korean heartthrob and the star of "Winter Sonata" - Bae Yong Joon.

Egao Yes Nude ~笑顔YESヌード~ Lyrics and Translation - UPDATED

By popular search demand, here is the Morning Musume 32nd Single Egao Yes Nude ~笑顔YESヌード~ lyrics. This time the nihongo and romaji lyrics sourced from elsewhere, as noted below. Made some corrections. Also added English translation.



Links here (so that you don't have to scroll down ^_^)
Nihongo lyrics
Romaji lyrics
English translation


Nihongo lyrics source here.

Nihongo

笑顔YESヌード - モーニング娘。

溢れる光【吉澤】　
漂うブラックベリー【新垣】　
愛して止まないその瞳【吉澤】　
ねえ抱きしめて【高橋】　
このままじゃ居られない【藤本】　
でもね×４　ラブリー×４

涙が出たり【新垣】　
この恋ミステリー【吉澤】　
もう振り返られないみたい【新垣】
どうしてそんなにやさしいの　
一人が淋しいじゃない【光井】
あなたの希望を聞かせてよ【田中】　
唇乾く前に【久住】

笑顔YESヌード　
あなた　だけの　私　だから　
遠慮　せずに　強く　してよ　
どんな　夜も　ついていくから【ユニ】
笑顔YESヌード　
だけど　だけど　すごく　素敵　
遠い　遠い　夢の　はずが　
なぜか　なぜか　あなたの胸で【ユニ】　
笑顔で眠る【光井】

キスしたばかり【藤本】　
二度目のフェブラリー【高橋】　
誰にも負けないこのメロディー【藤本】
もう乱れてる【新垣】　
このままじゃ壊れるわ【吉澤】　
でもね×４　ラブリー×４

お茶してみたり【高橋】　
おしゃれなベーカリー【藤本】　
ほら二人で出かけましょうよ【高橋】
どうしてこんなに楽しいの　
真夏が待てないじゃない【光井】
世間の予想は信じない【田中】　
女の勘で行くわ【久住】

笑顔YESヌード　
あなた　だから　私なのよ　
愛し　合えば　とまら　ないわ　
終わり　知らぬ　ロミオとジュリエット【ユニ】
笑顔YESヌード　
だから　だから　少し　怖い　
近い　近い　恋の　はずよ　
でもね　でもね　あなたの胸で【ユニ】　
疲れて眠る【新垣】


あなたと見てたわ流れ星【久住】　
ゆっくりな流れ星【光井】
願い事を唱える前に【道重】　
手を強く握ったの【亀井】

笑顔YESヌード　
あなた　だけの　私　だから　
遠慮　せずに　強く　してよ　
どんな　夜も　ついていくから【ユニ】
笑顔YESヌード　
だけど　だけど　すごく　素敵　
遠い　遠い　夢の　はずが　
なぜか　なぜか　あなたの胸で【ユニ】

笑顔YESヌード　
あなた　だから　私なのよ　
愛し　合えば　とまら　ないわ　
終わり　知らぬ　ロミオとジュリエット【ユニ】
笑顔YESヌード　
だから　だから　少し　怖い　
近い　近い　恋の　はずよ　
でもね　でもね　あなたの胸で【ユニ】　
疲れて眠る【高橋】

Romaji source from JPH!P Forums

Romaji

Egao Yes Nuudo - Morning Musume.

Afureru hikari
Tadayou BURAKKUBERII
Aishite yamanai sono hitomi

Nee dakishimete
Kono mama jya irarenai
Demo ne (Demo ne) Demo ne (Demo ne)
RABURII (RABURII) RABURII (RABURII)

Niyaketetari
Kono koi misuterii
Mou furikaerarenai mitai

Doushite sonna ni yasashii no
Hitori ga samishii jya nai
Anata no kibou wo kikasete yo
Kuchibiru kawaku mae ni

Egao YES NUUDO
Anata dake no watashi dakara
Enryo sezu ni tsuyoku white yo
Donna yoru mo tsuite iku kara

Egao YES NUUDO
Dakedo Dakedo Sugoku Suteki
Tooi Tooi Yume no Hazu ga
Naze ka Naze ka Anata no mune de
Egao de nemuru


KISU shitabakari
Nidome no FEBURARII
Dare ni mo makenai
kono MERODII

Mou midareteru
Kono mama ja kowareru wa
Demo ne (Demo ne) Demo ne (Demo ne)
RABURII (RABURII) RABURII (RABURII)

Otoshite mitari
Oshare na BEEKARII
Hora futari de dekakemashou

Doushite konna ni tanoshii no
Manatsu ga matenai ja nai
Seken no yosou wa shinjinai
Onna no kan de yuku wa

Egao YES NUUDO
Anata Dakara Watashi Na no yo
Aishi Aeba Tomara Nai wa
Owari Shiranu ROMIO to JURIETTO

Egao YES NUUDO
Dakara Dakara Sukoshi Kowai
Chikai Chikai Koi no Hazu yo
Demo ne Demo ne Anata no mune de
Tsukarete nemuru

Nanana... Yeah...
Wow... Baby

Anata to miteta wa nagareboshi
Yukkuri na nagareboshi
Negaigoto wo tonaeru mae ni
Te wo tsuyoku nigitta no

Egao YES NUUDO
Anata Dake no Watashi Dakara
Enryo Sezu ni Tsuyoku Shite yo
Donna Yoru mo Tsuite iku kara

Egao YES NUUDO
Dakedo Dakedo Sugoku Suteki
Tooi Tooi Yume no Hazu ga
Naze ka Naze ka Anata no mune de

Egao YES NUUDO
Anata Dakara Watashi Na no yo
Aishi Aeba Tomara Nai wa
Owari Shiranu ROMIO to JURIETTO

Egao YES NUUDO
Dakara Dakara Sukoshi Kowai
Chikai Chikai Koi no Hazu yo
Demo ne Demo ne Anata no mune de
Tsukarete nemuru

Note: After translating, I find that there are some underlying sensual overtones here. But that's my interpretation. It's up to you on how you interpret it yourself. Gakimon has a different take on this song, which is quite interesting.



UPDATE: Englisht Translation updated. Man, I suck at comprehending the first and second person context. Many thanks chu3nii! (^o^)/..... and of course, Anon too. (Pls don't hide, we can be friends, yes?)


English Translation

Egao Yes Nude - Morning Musume.

Overflowing light
wafting fragrance of blackberry*
Eyes that I cannot stop loving
Hey, please hold me
I cannot remain this way
oh but, it's lovely...

Shedding tears
this mistery of love
Seems like there's no turning back anymore

Why are you so gentle?
It would be lonely when I’m alone
Tell me your hopes
before your lips run dry

Smile Yes Nude
Because I am yours alone
Do it forcefully without holding back
I will follow you no matter what night it would be

Smile Yes Nude
But still it's wonderful
A dream from a far
but somehow, I sleep on your chest with a smiling face **

We've only kissed
It's the second February***
A melody that will not lose to anyone

It gets confusing
I'll go crazy this way
oh but, it's lovely...

Like having tea
in a stylish bakery
come on, let's go out together

Why must it be so enjoyable/happy/fun?
that makes me can’t wait for the coming Midsummer
Don't believe in the world expectations****
Go with a lady's intuition

Smile Yes Nude
It's because of you that I'm like this
as long as we love each other, nothing can stop us
Unknown ending of Romeo and Juliet

Smile Yes Nude
That's why I'm a little afraid
A love that should be so close
But tiringly, I fell asleep on your chest

The shooting star that I saw with you
a slow shooting star
Before I chant for a wish
I held your hand strongly

Smile Yes Nude
Because I am yours alone
Do it forcefully without holding back
I will follow you no matter what night it would be

Smile Yes Nude
But still it's wonderful
A dream from afar, but
Somehow, in your heart...

Smile Yes Nude
It's because of you that I'm like this
as long as we love each other, nothing can stop us
Unknown ending of Romeo and Juliet

Smile Yes Nude
That's why I'm a little afraid
A love that should be so close
But tiringly, I fell asleep on your chest

* I don't know what this means,
** Meaning that the dream came true after all
*** Hinting at Valentine's Day? Some say that it is hinting at Yossie's second year as leader
**** Society standards?

Egao Yes Nude PV Review

The PV for Morning Musume single "Egao Yes Nude" is out, and I'm sure avid Hello! Project fans have already watched it.

Overall, as I previously mentioned, I didn't like the PV much. But that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it either. Fast tempo-matching clip sequences and lots of closeups. Filmed with low colour resolution for the nostalgic feel. Reminds me of "the Manpower" and "Ambitious Yashitenki Iijyan". Only two sets are used - the dance floor with glittery setup, and a HUGE bed. I still don't like the dance, but the PV editing deceivingly made it look so good. ^_^ And the costume? I have said it many times, and I'll say it again - They really should remove that white thingie from covering the cleavage!

Video Clip from Dohhhup

If it's too slow, then watch it here -->




Some points of focus. Had a lot of problem vid-capping, because of the fast video-sequence. They(the cameras) don't stay on one girl for too long.


Leads
Yossie and Gaki-san pair and Mikitty and Ai-chan pair. Great job, and looking great at it. I must highlight how happy I am to see Yossie and Gaki-san opening the verses, and they don't get this much of appeal time often.
Even though the sequences are short, Ai-chan still managed to get my attention with her poise and dancing.



Close-ups
Eririn looks great on every shot, while Koharu looks so different and pretty. And wow... Mitsui looks good. Mikitty is sexy as always.



The sensual touch
All of the girls lying on the same bed. The closeness, dreamy eyes, slow strokes, touching and eyeing the camera from the corner of their eyes... the sensual undertones is overflowing. Ooooh, I don't think I can look at Sayu the same way ever again. ^_^





Roll, baby, ROLL!
Momusu girls rolling on a bed. Oh man~~~ Reina especially, is so .... so... feline. ^_^ And Mitsui looks so cute too. Really took me by surprise with all her pedoliciousness!
I swear... this is exactly how the girls look like when they came over to roll on my velvet bed last week.......... hehehe! (^o^)v.....

Tsunku, Yaguchi Mari and Iida Kaori in Politics..... ?!

This is just absurd.

I was wondering what this was all about...


Later I found out that Tsunku, Yaguchi Mari and Iida Kaori are part of the supporting team for the mayor election in Kyushuu. Source from WHG.


Now I hold nothing against what they are doing... but just where the heck is the connection?! Tsunku is from Osaka, Marippe is from Kanagawa and Kaorin is from Hokkaidou.




Something tells me that these are old pictures, cos' Marippe's hairdo wasn't like this in the recent "Yaguchi Hitori" show. If that's so, this means this ain't the first time they are doing this. (Or maybe Yaguchi has used extensions in her show)

Is Tsunku's appetite for exposure that strong, so as to be affiliated with politics as well? It's fine that Hello! Project participates in various promotions of other merchandise and public campaigns. But does Tsunku intend to allow Hello! Project to be available for bookings in political activities as well?

.... I don't know what else to say.

It's time.... but Aibon's not back yet....

Countdown removed. Previous post removed. Kago Ai is not back yet.... (T_T)

Yup. No news. Zip. Zilch. Not a clue. I'm so disappointed.

Someone left a comment on my previous removed post.

Anonymous said...

Thay say she was seen near TBS on 24th January. That's all I know for now.

source: http://blog.livedoor.jp/kaho_milky/archives/51850667.html

3:25 PM

Thanks very much for the heads-up.


As for me, I went and searched the blogs in Japan domains(e.g. rakuten, fc2 etc.), and though I could not find anything informative, all the bloggers there seem to agree in one thing - that it was perfect timing that Aibon should be released from her suspension by tomorrow. Now, supposedly Aibon IS released tomorrow, and if any actions (press conference, announcements etc) is in queue, it will only start TOMORROW. Knowing UFA/Hello! Project usual practice, they will let us know in advance, and the actual day of release will come only weeks after. But if none of the mentioned ever take place, then I suppose we have no choice but to realise that the suspension is not over yet. Sad but true... :(

Now if you'll excuse me, I need go and drown my sorrows with a couple of beers...

Matsuura Aya..... and her Happiness

Couldn't sleep. All because of UFA/Hello! Project for no news on Aibon. So to occupy my mind before I go mad, I grabbed my guitar, played it for a while.......... then I recorded this song and made this video. Some mistakes here and there though.

Happiness by Matsuura Aya.
Combined the arrangement for Ayaya's Hello Pro Hour performance and her live rendition at Shinka no Kisetsu concert.




Love this song. Love the lyrics even more. One have to listen to Ayaya sing this one to realise that Ayaya is no longer that young cutie pie with cute demeanor of introducing her self with a high pitched "Matsuura Aya deeeesuuuu~~~". She is now a solid songstress in her own right, with great singing ability. A real woman. I prefer that she gets more songs like this in the future.

I wonder why they made Happiness is a B-side song. And what is furthermore baffling is that UFA is not capitalizing on her talent but kept her on a passive mode as noted by Mitsui of Ikimasshoi.


Was it because of her jaw injury? Okay so maybe... only maybe.... her injury in October have further delayed her possible next single release. And now she is not being kept inactive so as not to further aggravate her condition. But she seems to be okay now. Was it because of her participation as one half of GAM? The entertainment scene in Japan is not NBA. The media in Japan forget easily and will move on to the next focal point in an instance.


I for one, hope that Ayaya gets more opportunities to shine this year. UFA have been pushing Ayaya last year as a mature Jpop solo presense, and it's only logical that they follow-up much more closely in 2007. Otherwise, when the fans lost their interest, all their previous effort are wasted.

---

Ayaya in Hello Pro Hour


Ayaya in 2006 Fall Concert Tour ~Shinka no Kisetsu~

Koi No Vacance - W (DoubleU) on guitar

Happy 19th Birthday Kago Ai!

It's been 7 years that Aibon's been in the entertainment world, hasn't it? Well, 6 actually, minus 1 year from the suspension... Well, let's leave that one to the past, shall we?

As Nono mentioned before, being 19 years of age means that this will be the final year where you get to declare your age in teens.

It doesn't matter if Aibon is back with us..... err.... well, not true really. Cos at this moment, I'm clicking on the "refresh" button on Hello! Project official site, anticipating some sort of miracle news to appear............ ANYWAY, it's her birthday and I wish her best of health and luck. I pray that the wish she makes on this birthday will come true~~~ ^_^

I made this video to celebrate Aibon's birthday.


...... been a long time, gotten rusty.... AND I totally forgot to clean the lens before recording! ^_^
I had this one transposed ages ago, just no time to record it down. I guess now is a good time .... or I'll never get to do it.


Once again, Happy Birthday Aibon!

Egao Yes Nude PV............. 8 second preview

Found this on Youtube.com - 8 second preview of Morning Musume's latest single "Egao Yes Nude". Apparently from CD-TV.



The dance routine is the same from what we saw on the Hello! Project 2007 winter concert..... which is too simple for my liking, honestly. For sure, it's not Natsu-sensei who choreographed it. (I heard that she moved on to another company already). But then again, if it was too complex, Micchi will not be able to handle it.



Overall, I think they're playing it safe. The PV is still all about the girls essentially. Much like "Ambitious". I like the costumes, but they really should take out that white thingie covering up the cleavage. ^_^ (I'm such a pervert...Heh!). Additionally, I noticed from the costume is that only Sayu, Eririn, Reina and Koharu-chan don't get the cleavage, and only get a side bellage. On the contrary, Gaki-san, Ai-chan, Mikitty and Micchi gets the high bellage.
(I hope I'm using the bikini codes here correctly ...)


I hate to admit it, but I don't think I will like the PV that much. But then again, it's only 8 seconds and too early to decide. I'm still loving that song though. ^_^