I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
Credits
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.
Didn't quite believe that I hadn't ever put up such an Author's Pick before. I've probably got some sort of Favourite Anison list out there but just haven't come across it in some time. However, such as it is, I did want to get a list up there showing how some of these anime themes can get under my skin to have me bust a move...or a hip because they are so funky and catchy.
It's been another Sunday with the anime buddy for some new programming from the spring season. And I gotta say that one of the weirder pilot episodes for an anime I've seen so far this year belongs to TV Tokyo's"Kumamiko: Girl Meets Bear"（くまみこ）. It's all about a miko (shrine maiden) by the name of Machi who desperately wants to leave her isolated hamlet in the mountains and go to school in the big city. The problem is that her best friend, Natsu the talking bear, isn't too keen on the idea. As someone who started post-university life in a town in the Japanese Alps, I can relate to Machi's plight to a certain extent although I liked the former Tsukiyono-machi very much (it was absorbed into what is now Minakami City); once a month, I just had to get some city under me by heading by Bullet Train down to Tokyo.
As I said, the out-there humour was quite something in the pilot episode with Machi doing a bit of cursing and getting accused of having a "deeper" relationship with Natsu while an even younger girl suddenly screamed "SEXUAL HARASSMENT" and "DON'T TOUCH ME!!" at the dopey civil servant. The following four episodes weren't quite as hilarious and the pacing hasn't been quite as fun which means I'm not totally convinced of success as of yet.
However I think the ending theme has become an earworm for me right from the end of Episode 1. Sung by seiyuu Natsumi Hioka/日岡なつみ (Machi) and Hiroki Yasumoto/安元洋貴 (Natsu), "Kumahiko Dancing" has got that funky rap down pat to a catchiness that is along the lines of last season's "Hoshizora Rendezvous"（星空ランデブー）from the nutty "Sekko Boys"（石膏ボーイズ）. "Kumahiko Dancing" was written by Ryuji Sakai（坂井竜二）and composed by Shingo Yamazaki（山崎真吾）.
(April 21 2017: I came across a pretty good remix of the song by no.19 u-z on YouTube. There are quite a few remixes out there.)
I think this might strike readers from outside of North America rather ironically but currently there is a massive snowstorm smashing into the eastern half of the United States while Canada stays quite calm. CNN is doing a full court press.
Meanwhile, KMM Dan（KMM団）will probably have a grand old time at the karaoke box singing this tune, if the above video is any indication. Yup, it's been a couple of years but I'm finally putting up the other song by the group of seiyuu involved in "Witchcraft Works". Not as much of an earworm as "Witchcraft Activity", "Saturday Night Witches" was also written and composed by the technopop unit TECHNOBOYS PULCRAFT GREEN FUND as an interesting tribute to what I think is old 80s synthpop. It's not quite full funky R&B and not quite full New Wave but it is an intriguing Japanese tribute to the music of the big hair, gaudy makeup and broad shoulders that was all the rage back in the decade of my high school and university years.
In terms of the lyrics, it's all about having a great time downtown tripping the light fantastic, preferably without the gigantic violent bunnies. I very barely head out on Saturday nights nowadays so there is definitely a natsukashii element listening to "Saturday Night Witches"...all those old discos, trips to Kuri and late-night midnight snacks.
Not too long ago, I wrote on Yasuyuki Okamura's（岡村靖幸）funky little number, "Viva Namida", the opening theme for "Space Dandy"...one of the number of anime that I've been watching since the beginning of the new year. Well, during the same showing, I was also witness to another anime by the title of "Witchcraft Works" which seems to have become the big hit of the season.
As I did with "Space Dandy", I will also give my brief fractured description of "Witchcraft Works" through comparison with examples of old TV programs and movies. The show seems to be a mix of "Terminator", "Bewitched" and "I Dream of Jeannie" with some pretty nifty special effects. However, as much as I have enjoyed the first few episodes featuring the adventures of Honoka and Ayaka, my ears and brain pricked up at the very end of the episodes when this Ceti Alpha Eel of an ending theme managed to burrow deep into my brain where it still resides.
This would be "Witch Activity" by KMM Dan（ＫＭＭ団...The KMM Group）, the coven of teenage witches which has so far antagonized our aforementioned heroes with all manners of hocus pocus, giant bears and bunnies. And I think the coven is having better success breaking the fourth wall and ripping us anime fans down to size with this earworm than getting at Ayaka the witch. The technopop unit TECHNOBOYS PULCRAFT GREEN-FUND was responsible for unleashing this infectious melody. The unit itself was formed all the way back in 1995, but with their first album, "music laundering" coming out over a decade later in 2006.
The music alone should be investigated by the CDC, but what got me at "Hello" was the staccato opening by the KMM girls (voiced by their respective seiyuu) themselves. With the music and the vocals, I didn't stand a chance. I ended up listening to the YouTube video for the ending credits of "Witchcraft Works" a few times after getting home from my anime buddy's place that night, and then a few more times after that until the official single was finally released a few days ago, and a Good Samaritan uploaded the song onto YouTube. Frankly, I don't think the full version of "Witchcraft Activity" actually adds any further audio Valhalla than what I have already heard through the credits, but it's early days.
From CD Japan
Now, when you check out the photo above for the single, you will see the cover in which the KMM Dan is positioned eerily like the famed German techno band, Kraftwerk, for "The Man-Machine". My anime buddy also pointed out that "Witch Activity" also sounded like the band's "Radioactivity".
Well, I'm not quite sure about that....perhaps if the melody for "Radioactivity" were sped up? But in any case, I did enjoy seeing the parody cover.
