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I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.

Wednesday, June 2, 2021

Mami Kingetsu -- Twilight Avenue(トワイライト・アヴェニュー)

 

I remember getting the very first iteration of Sony's PlayStation in the mid-1990s. Basically, I was all for the puzzle games and the Sim City sort of software. Some of my friends, on the other hand, were more game for the dating sims which had me knitting my brows in some mystery. Me and Casanova were light-years apart in temperament and passion so I thought some of those buddies would have had much better luck with flesh-and-blood 3D folks than me, but I'll leave it at that.

My anime buddy has mentioned a supposedly legendary dating sim for the PS and other platforms called "Tokimeki Memorial"(ときめきメモリアル), and I gather that one of the popular girls there was Shiori Fujisaki(藤崎詩織). From what I've read on Wikipedia, she and the other characters were far more innocent on this game than some of the other more lascivious examples out there.

In any case, the seiyuu for Ms. Fujisaki was Mami Kingetsu(金月真美)who has been in the voice acting industry since the mid-1970s. However, she also began a singing career in the mid-1990s, and between 1995 and 2001, Kingetsu has released 12 singles, and up to 2015, she has also released 12 albums. 

Her 10th single from December 1999 is a cover of Stardust Revue's(スターダスト・レビュー)"Twilight Avenue" which originally came out as a single back in 1983. Written by Machiko Ryu(竜真知子)and composed by band leader Kaname Nemoto(根本要), Kingetsu's rendition is a soaring daytime ZARD-esque pop take compared with the sunset Margaritaville AOR feeling of the original. I'm kinda wondering whether Nemoto was actually helping out quietly with the background chorus. I'm also not sure whether her cover was ever included onto an album.

6 comments:

  1. I thought most people got the PS1 for Final Fantasy VII.

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    1. Hello, Jim. Perhaps, but that wasn't me. Never got into those games. Yourself?

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  2. Yeah. Was an RPG fan before PS1. Had FFIV, Seiken Densetsu 1 and 2 (Final Fantasy Adventure and Secret of Mana). Longed for FFVI which wasn't released here. Then I saw FFVII with its 3D, and was hooked. Was also a fan of Legend of Zelda A Link to the Past and Link's Awakening as well.

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    1. I definitely have one friend who's been heavy into the fantasy adventure games for years. He showed me one a couple of years back, pre-COVID. I can imagine that those games have been a godsend during COVID since people can play them for days on end.

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  3. Mami Kingetsu has some really catchy songs. She always has worked under the Konami label and the Tokimeki Memorial saga. I always loved this song by her:
    https://youtu.be/I3rNPatGa2U
    The song is so 90's with those synths and horns. Also this gem is worthy mentioning:
    https://youtu.be/5MMrEYoLtAo

    Saludos amigos!:)

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    Replies
    1. Hello, Pocari! Thanks very much for the tip...I'll have to check them out.

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