Ikemen 3 -- Koi no Matenrou（恋の摩天楼）

 

The latest mega commercial complex got its grand opening in Tokyo on Friday. Azabudai Hills opened up its doors to the masses and it joins its Hills siblings: Roppongi Hills, Toranomon Hills and Omotesando Hills. There's been a lot of construction and change in my old stomping grounds since my last visit there in 2017, so I've got a feeling that I may need a new guidebook to grope my way around Japan's capital.

So, in tribute to that event, I was searching for any matenrou-based music since I've encountered a few such songs over the years. Well, it didn't take too long before I came across this new tune. "Koi no Matenrou" (Skyscrapers of Love) is a snappy and snazzy song about finding love among those steel and glass towers and holding on for dear life because the couple doesn't know what tomorrow will bring. 

The December 2009 song is so far the only single performed by Ikemen 3（イケメン3）. The three singers involved all have their own KKP files: Daisuke Kitagawa（北川大介）, Hiroshi Takeshima（竹島宏） and Keisuke Yamauchi（山内惠介）. Considering that they were put together as a male enka aidoru trio under the aegis of the predecessor of NHK's "Uta Con"（うたコン）, "Kayo Concert"（歌謡コンサート）, thoughts of Gosanke came to mind. Sure enough, the J-Wiki article for Ikemen 3 were given the nickname of the Heisei Era Gosanke. Not sure if there have been any reunions among the three but now that almost 14 years have passed by, I think the aidoru label can be taken off.

"Koi no Matenrou" was written by Koyomi Asa（麻こよみ）and composed by Kohei Miyuki（幸耕平）. It's again one of those songs that can be quite amorphous in terms of its genre. I can go with neo versions of enka and Mood Kayo but I can also use the convenient term of New Adult Music with a kick of Latin thrown in for good measure. In the end, it does feel like an adventure of romance in the big city.