Tag: 手越祐也

Memories of Tegomass 4th Live “Tegomass no Seishun”

2 Comments

Tegomass no Seishun was the first tour I went to, and travelled around the country to see, since I started living in Japan. Previously, I had only been to the Kansai Area where I live, or Tokyo and occasionally Nagyoa, which is the closest venue to Kansai. For Tegomass no Seishun, I went to Fukuoka, Osaka, Nagoya, and Yokohama. Each venue was a different experience for me and I wanted to share some of those memories.

Osaka

Osaka was the first leg of the tour and I was able to hit for tickets, despite it being one of the smallest venues of the tour. I hit for the first day, second show so it was one of my first times going to the first day of any Johnny’s concert tour. The day before was presale goods, so I took the train out from Kyoto, where I had been living at the time, in the heavy snow and went to buy goods for me and some other friends. The fondest memory I had was this mother and her son in front of me in line and the boy was just chatting away about Massu the whole time.

The next day, one of my friends came down from Nagoya and we hung out before the show, being at the venue when the first show of the day got out. You could see everyone was in high spirits as they came out and I was so excited when they finally let us into the venue for the second show. I had no idea what the set list was going to be like, so during the concert I got excited when certain songs came on. The venue was so small, so we really could hear Massu and Tegoshi when they sang “Aoi Bench” with out any microphones. I cried at that song, and every other time I heard it when I went to the tour. My first impression of the concert tour was “Wow! Tegomass has grown so much!” I had been to the Mahou tour over 2 years ago, so it was almost like a “Hey! It’s been a while” and “Wow! Look how much we all have grown”.

Yokohama

I went home to America a few days after the Osaka venue for almost a month, and when I came back I was still on Spring break from my MBA program. My friend Rosie from Thailand and I had been planning a trip for this tour since it was announced, so after a brief trip to Hiroshima for sight seeing, I went to Yokohama and met up with Rosie. We were only able to go to 1 of the 4 shows, but this time was a different feeling because it was an arena venue, not a small hall like Osaka.

To be honest, Yokohama was not my favorite show because they seemed too focused on the technicalities versus showing the fans a good time. They were filming at the afternoon show I went to, but I believe that the evening show is what was actually put onto the DVD and the afternoon show was just a dress rehearsal for recording the night show. It was still an amazing show, but I think it was because the last show I had been to was in a small hall where they could give the fans more attention, it was a bit of a change to go to an Arena venue. When I go back and look at the DVD, they did an amazing job at filming this tour though! I am glad they filmed Yokohama.

Fukuoka

After the Yokohama venue, Rosie and I took the Shinkansen 5 hours from Tokyo to Hakata for the next part of the tour. This was my first time to Fukuoka, so I was excited to explore southern Japan a bit! It was the beginning of April, so the Cherry Blossoms had just bloomed in Fukuoka. It was quite warm for the beginning of April and the venue was right by the sea, so we were walking around the pier before the concert. It was so pretty!

My favorite memory was when we were standing around the side of the venue near the pier and we saw a group of girls gathered around looking towards the venue. They would like squeal every few minutes at something and Rosie, my other friend Monica and I, couldn’t figure out why. Eventually after a few times, we figured out it was a soccer ball that popped up every so often over the top of the venue wall. Everyone knows that Tegoshi plays soccer before the concerts, so we all assumed that it was him playing with a few people before the show. Eventually, the security guard began to shoo everyone away.

Fukuoka was my favorite leg of this tour. Tegomass were both in high spirits and the venue itself, Marine Messe Fukuoka, was big, but not huge. You had a good view of the stage and the layout from wherever you were sitting. We went to both days, the first day we were in the 10th row of the stands and the second show we were up towards the back of the stands on the second floor. In both seats you felt involved in the show!

Nagoya

A last minute decision spurred me to go to Nagoya, the last venue for the tour. Nagoya is only a 45 minute Shinkansen ride from Kyoto, so about a week previous, I decided to go, at the invitation of some of my friends who were also going. I met up with some amazing Tegomass/ NEWS fans and we talked for so long about the concert and everything that happened! I stayed at my friend’s place in Nagoya with her other friend and it was basically a whole slumber party in her small apartment with blankets everywhere on the floor! We talked until the late hours of the night and was one of my favorite concert memories to this date.

I ended up in the Arena right near the back stage, and Massu and Tegoshi both came close to me and were singing “Kiss kaeremichi no love song” in front of where I was. My favorite memories of this concert was Massu jumping down from the stage and handing a child one of the sign balls near the back stage.

“See you Next Live” appeared on the screen after the encore at every concert. In Nagoya it held an even more special meaning to me, because it marked the end of my first tour I had traveled for. Tegomass is my favorite concert to see live because of the live music and the band that backs them up. I can see them time and time again and never get bored becauase each time is totally different.

This tour I spent with such a variety of people and made so many memories. A concert is more than just seeing the group live, its connecting with fellow fans who love the same thing as you as well.

To Tegomass and all the people who I met back in February 2014 to April 2014, Thank you. It’s a tour I will never forget.

Album Review: NEWS – WHITE

Leave a comment

NEWS-WHITE

NEWS “WHITE”, released on February 28th 2015, is NEW’s most recent album released a year and a half after their previous one. This time they used the theme of “white”, which has always been their “group color”. They also experimented with new sounds and new concepts, such as implementing a short film in the album. It topped the weekly charts, beating Acid Black Cherry.

The Songs

MR.WHITE

This is the title song of their album and also what their short film was based off of. I heard it on Koyama’s radio show K-chan news in the middle of February and I loved it the first time I heard it! This is a different type of sound compared to what NEWS has done in the past, with a “funk” vibe to it. I love the combination of the beat with the horns. The vocals are amazing and the key really suits their voices. When singing on music programs to promote the album, they always sung this song and you could see how confident they were with the concept through their performance.

KAGUYA

KAGUYA was NEWS’s most recent single that was released in January. It has a very “modern meets old” feel to it and is an “epic love song” that showed a more sensual side to NEWS. For a full review of this single, please click here to read my post about it.

NYARO

NYARO was originally released about a year ago, but only as a Bra commercial tie-up song for the brand Walcol. The fans have never heard the full version of this song, so it was great to finally hear it. It’s a very NEWS like “summery” song. It has a country feel to it with fiddle like sounds and country like guitar. Paired with the kind of dance beat in the background, I think it makes a new and interesting combination. The echo of “Nyaro” in the background in the chorus makes it such a fun and catchy song that get’s stuck in your head.

SEVEN COLORS

SEVEN COLORS was the theme song for the 2013 and 2014 FIFA Club World Cup and is personally my favorite of the three soccer songs that they have released. Since both times were in Morroco, it has a dance-electronic beat combined with African drums.  I like the uptempo-ness of the song combined and the variety of sounds.

Weather NEWS

Weather NEWS is probably the most news-like song out of this whole album to me. It’s a call and response song, very much like “4-Fan” was in their 2013 “NEWS” album. The whole concept of having a call and response song is such a fun concept to me and makes me feel involved in the concert and with the other fans as well. For the music, it’s a very simple song with simple lyrics, and it was a very nice surprise to have Shige do the rap part and not Massu, who had seemed to take on the rap parts since Yapami had left the group.

Super Sonic

NEWS normally has one “hard dance” song on their album, and Super Sonic was this album’s dance song. What makes it different than the other dance songs that they have done more of an electronic and dubstep feel to it, which seems to be a theme in Asian pop in general recently. When I first heard it, it sounded reminiscent of an Arashi song from their “Digitialian” album. It’s like a combination of a rock song and a dance song combined together and is probably my favorite dance song of theirs to date.

Black-Jack –Inter- and “BYAKUYA”

I combined these two together because one leads into another. Black Jack is an interlude or kind of intermission into the other part of the album, but more specifically into BYAKUYA. It’s a dubstep type song that you would probably hear in a club and somehow merges well together with the fantasy like sounds in BYAKUYA.

Now speaking of fantasy, BYAKUYA is an all out fantasy song, a cross between a pirate theme song, like out of Pirates of the Caribbean, and something out of Harry Potter or “Nightmare Before Christmas”. If you think about it, it also sounds like something that KAT-TUN would do, an epic song that has lots of “visuals”. There is so much going on in this song that you have to listen to it a few times to really hear everything. The first time I heard this song I felt a combination of “What is this epicness?” and “What did I just listen to?” because there was so much going on.

ONE –for the win-

One -for the win- was the 2014 FIFA World Cup theme song that member Tegoshi was also the main caster for.  This song has a more Latin feel to it, which really surprised me the first time I heard the song. This song is one of the songs that gets stuck in my head so easily because the chorus says all the names of the countries that participated in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

White Love Story

Out of all of the songs on the album, this has to be the song that struck me the most. It is such a light and fluffy love song, but more specifically a wedding song. The lyrics are so sweet and the harmonization combined with the piano and the lyrics make me tear up every time I hear this song. This song personally showed me an evolution in NEWS, a maturity from the typical love song to something that was deeper in a sense. The lyrics talk about a man treasuring a woman so much and wanting to make her happy and protect her from now on. At one point the lyrics say “You are my Heroine”, it might seem sickly sweet to some people, but I think that it’s a beautiful song and a beautiful melody, which makes it on my top songs on this album.

Ai Kotoba 「愛言葉」

Ai Kotoba is the song that NEWS wrote themselves for their 10 Year Anniversary Event. NEWS has gone through a lot in the past 10 years, going from 9-8-6 and then to 4 members, so this was was a song dedicated to the fans and them coming this far as 4 members. It’s a very sweet song with a simple melody, but a deep meaning. It’s  a special song for the members, as well as the fans. When I heard it in the countdown this past year, I was crying so hard.

Solo Songs

Koyama Keiichiro – Romeo 2015 「ロメオ２０１５」

This was a song that Koyama and former NEWS member Nishikido Ryo did as a duet together in a concert a long time ago and Koyama decided to revamp it as his solo for this tour. It has a latin flair, but it is quite simple if you listen carefully. It is sexy in a subtle way and the vocals aren’t too harsh and it suits Koyama’s voice very nicely.

Masuda Takahisa – Skye Beautiful

The first time I heard this song I didn’t know what to think of it and I didn’t like it that much. I was very confused at the rhythm changes, going from soft and “mysterious” to hard dance club like music. I had to listen a second time before I actually understood the tempo changes and how it all flowed together, and then it became one of my top songs on the album.

Tegoshi Yuya – Anata 「あなた」

Coming from his solo last album/ tour “Lovin U”, this was a bit of a disappointment to me when I first listened to it. It was very simple love ballad compared to the previous two solo songs, really focusing on the voice more than anything. It was quite boring for a while, but once I listened to it a few times and felt the lyrics and the piano, I began to like it more.

Kato Shigeaki – Escort

Escort is my favorite of all of the solo songs this tour, just for the beat of the song combined with the lyrics. Shige wrote the lyrics of the song again this time, and I think he was trying to spin off of his previous solo “Dreamcatcher” with “flowery” lyrics again. I like the piano and “funk” kind of vibe to the song and it flows very nicely, although some of the English lyrics make me giggle every time I listen to it.

Overall impressions

This album was a new direction for NEWS, they experimented with some new styles of music, but you could still very much feel classic “NEWS” throughout. It showed a more mature side of NEWS in a way, an evolution almost. In particular, Byakuya and Black Jack –Intern- and Kaguya were a bit out of the ordinary for NEWS, but it gave them a more mature feel. My favorite songs were White Love Story and NYARO, along with Weather NEWS, which were the most “NEWS” like songs on the album, in my opinion.

I hope you enjoyed this review! What do you all think of NEWS “White” album? Please let me know what you think in the comments below and press the like button if you enjoyed this post.

Johnny’s Talk: Why do I love Johnny’s?

9 Comments

Recently, I have been asked by some readers how and why I became interested in Johnny’s and I decided to write down some of my thoughts.

Tegomass no Mahou - Kobe, December 2011

Tegomass no Mahou – Kobe, December 2011

Starting in December, I have reached the point in my life where I am transitioning from school to a full time job and it isn’t the easiest transition. During this transition though, I have been really taking the time to think about why I love the things that I do and prioritizing my time accordingly. As most of you know, Johnny’s is something that I have loved since I was in my first year of University and I have just grown to love it even more over the years and since I have moved to Japan. Why do I love Johnny’s so much? Why do I dedicate so much time to something seemingly just taking my money? I will be explaining some reasons why I love Johnny’s in this post.

Johnny’s makes me smile. Plain and simple as that. Every time I listen to Johnny’s music (which is everyday) I smile. It gives me energy to start my day and calms me down when I am having a bad day. It’s just me and the music at that time. I also have many memories connected to the music and when a particular song comes on; memories of that time in my life flood back and make me smile. Now this can be true of almost any music, but Johnny’s is the music that I have relate the most to.

It’s not just the music that makes me smile, but seeing the boys that I support on TV, doing various projects, working their hardest and seeing them do amazing things makes me happy too. It makes me want to strive and work harder because I see them doing their best in a cut-throat environment and they still smile through it all, but at the same time are close to the fans. They aren’t perfect and can show their more vulnerable side and we know they are human.

Johnny’s gives me someone to support and grow with. After many years of loving Johnny’s, I have settled into whom in the agency I like the most and support the most. For me, that is mostly NEWS, with some other groups that I go and support; mostly the “You and J” groups, which consists of Kanjani8, NEWS, and KAT-TUN. Most of my favorite Johnny’s are not much older than me, normally between 25 and just over 30 years old. Throughout the years, I feel like I have grown with them and seen them accomplish more and more as we all grew towards our dreams. I know it sounds cheezy, but these boys (or I should say men) do amazing things and it makes me want to do amazing things as well. When I see their concerts and performances I am blown away by the quality and the hard work that is put into it. They might not be the most talented people in the entire industry, but you can tell that they work hard, and that is what matters to me. They don’t grow and fit one mold of Johnny’s; they all break off and do what they love to do. Take my favorite group NEWS for example: Koyama is a newscaster, and is an anchor for the news program News Every. Tegoshi loves soccer and is doing work directly related to it, even becoming a main caster for the FIFA World Cup in 2014. Massu loves fashion and now has his own column in a fashion magazine and designs the NEWS tour costumes. Shige wasn’t amazing at literature when he was younger, but he has already written 3 novels and many short stories and is Johnny’s first novel author. Once again, seeing them do amazing things makes me want to do amazing things as well and push myself harder. The best part is that there is a group for everyone to enjoy and there is such a variety of talent in Johnny’s.

Johnny’s lets me be a part of a fandom of amazing fans and being a part of something bigger than just me. Fandom is an amazing thing. I wouldn’t be the person today if it wasn’t for the people that I met through the Johnny’s fandom. Some of my closest friends I have made through this fandom and the experiences of traveling and meeting people from all around the world, are priceless. Fandom isn’t perfect by any means, but it is a mesh pot of amazing people from all around the world coming together that love the same thing. This isn’t just on the internet, but when I go to concerts and I look at the crowd waving their penlights in unison in support of that group, it moves me and I realize I am not alone in what I love. Concerts are one of my greatest joys to attend because I get to interact with fellow fans and I get to see the Johnny’s that I support in person and show my support, even if only I am 1 in thousands.

Tegomassu no Seishun - Fukuoka

Tegomassu no Seishun – Fukuoka, April 2014

10422234_10152711694736346_1448584380362894813_n

Kanjani8  Jyuusai – Osaka,  August 2014

Last, but not least, Johnny’s gave me a dream. Anime and Manga started me off on my love for Japan, but it wasn’t real to me after a while. When I found Johnny’s, I found a whole new culture and it opened the world to me. I never thought I would want to live in Japan before I entered University, but when I found Johnny’s I wanted to understand what they said, and I wanted to learn more about the Japanese culture. I dived head first into learning Japanese and studied business, and I eventually moved to Japan, then I wrote my business graduate school thesis on the business of Johnny’s. They gave me the motivation to move overseas, away from my family, to open my mind and push myself out of my comfort zone. I realized recently that the thing that I love the most is making people happy and giving them hope in a world that doesn’t do that well. Johnny’s does that for me and lets me find that about myself. From here on out I will be searching for exactly how I want to do it, but I know entertainment and Johnny’s is something that does that for me, along with Japanese Fashion and Music in general. I want to harness what Johnny’s does and let people understand that Johnny’s is more than just pretty boys dancing and singing.

cropped-10156004_10152068438722613_1447540280_n.jpg

I hope you all enjoyed this insight into some of my thoughts recently! Why do you like Johnny’s? What makes you happy? Have you found your dream and what is it? Please comment below to let me what you think!

Johnny’s Talk: What To Wear To A Johnny’s Concert/ Event?

11 Comments

One of the hardest things for me to decide on when I go to a Johnny’s concert or event is: What should I wear?

Now, I believe that fashion is very personal to everyone and what he or she chooses to wear is a reflection of who they are. Each person has their own style and what they like to wear and there is no right or wrong thing to wear to Johnny’s concerts! I personally like dresses and skirts and a more mature style of clothing, as well as when I go to Johnny’s concerts I don’t want to draw attention to myself more than I already do by being foreign. Some people like to dress up in cosplay or dress up to draw attention to themselves, so it is all based on personal preference and what you feel comfortable wearing! Even for Japanese fans there is a huge gap between the people who dress “normal” and the people who go all out and cosplay and dress up, so don’t worry too much about it! Fashion in Japan is so wide and varied that you won’t feel bad with whatever you decide to wear. So with all that being said, this post is about how I decide what to wear to a Johnny’s concert and maybe it could give you some ideas yourself on what to were when you go someday! Here are some questions that I ask myself when I go to a concert that help me decide what I will wear:

“What group am I going to see”? I always start out with this question. This is a big factor because each group has a different kind of presence and the fans dress differently and act differently as well. For example, NEWS fans are considered “fashionable” and the group itself has more of a “prince” type of image, so I will pick the overall theme of my clothing based off of that. KAT-TUN on the other hand has more of an edgy rock-like feel to them with darker colors, so I tend to wear darker colors to their concerts and try to be a bit edgier with what I wear, but still stick with my own personal style though. The most out-there group that I normally go to see is Kanjani8, and the way that the fans dress is very much a reflection of the group themselves. It’s always fun to see what Kanjani8 fans will wear to the concerts!

“Who is your favorite member”? Johnny’s groups usually have colors associated to the individual members in the group. An easy way for the fans and for the members themselves to identify whose fan you are is to wear your favorite member’s color to the concert. Sometimes I follow this, but other times I don’t. It all depends on the concert and the group for me, as well as where my seats are. For example, for Tegomassu no Seishun I chose not to wear my favorite member Massu’s yellow color in Fukuoka and Nagoya, but instead wore the green color that the concert goods and the theme of the concert was based off. In Yokohama and Osaka though, I wore Yellow.

What season is it and is the concert/ event outside or inside? This also plays a factor into what clothes I would wear as well. KAT-TUN’s countdown concert I wore dark clothes because it was winter and because they were edgier as well. NEWS’s concerts were inside and outside, so the outside concerts I didn’t dress up as much because it was in the middle of summer and I would be sweating a lot, but the inside concerts I decided to dress up a bit more because I wouldn’t be sweating as much. Also, waiting for goods outside can be a factor as well, so take that into consideration when you are choosing your outfit as well!

Will I be wearing any of the concert goods I am buying? For Kanjani8’s Jyuusai concert, there was a “happi” that they were selling and I wanted to buy it so I decided on the dress that I wore based on that. I thought the happi would look better with a collared dress, so I wore that. Another popular thing to do is to wear the concert T-shirt right after buying it or personalize the concert T-shirt for another show that you will go see in the same tour.

A note on Stage plays: For stage plays, I would recommend toning down what you wear to a concert if you normally cosplay or dress up a lot for these events. With stage plays you have to remember that the Johnny’s guy is only one member of the cast during this play (even thought he may be starring in it) and other people who aren’t Johnny’s fans will more than likely be attending as well for the other cast members who have nothing to do with Johnny’s. The purpose is to enjoy the stage play and support the Johnny’s guy, not for the Johnny’s guy to notice you or to draw attention to yourself, which is different than a concert. With this being said, there is a certain respect for the stage and arts when you go to see stage plays so please try to be respectful of that. The manners for concerts and stage plays are different is all, not that one is better than the other. For the most part, most people I see at stage plays dress normally and I don’t even know they are going to the play unless they are a carrying around a bag from the group that the Johnny’s guy in the play is in. I personally dress like I normally do everyday, but if it’s an evening show I might dress a bit more fancy.

Here are some pictures of what I have worn to past Johnny’s concerts!

Tegomassu no Seishun - Fukuoka

Tegomassu no Seishun – Fukuoka Picture courtesy Monica (blog: the beauty of existence)

Kanjani8 - Jyuusai

Kanjani8 – Jyuusai

Tegomassu no Seishun - Nagoya

Tegomassu no Seishun – Nagoya

Masuda Takahisa Stageplay - Strange Fruits in Osaka

Masuda Takahisa Stageplay: “Strange Fruits” – in Osaka

Was this helpful? What do you normally wear to Johnny’s concerts? Please let me know in the comments below!

Top 5 Spring-Like Songs of 2014

5 Comments

Spring is already in full swing here in Japan. The Cherry Blossoms bloomed, their petals have already fallen, and summer is beginning to peak on the horizon as the temperature continues to rise by the day. I find myself inspired by music that has a seasonal feel, so today I wanted to write a post on my top 5 favorite songs of this Spring before the season changes! They are in no particular order, just how I feel like presenting them! Also, I am a big fan of J-pop, so all of these songs are Japanese songs.

 

#1: SAKURA, I love you? – Nishino Kana （西野カナ）

Though this is a sad love song about not being able to get over some one, the beat and the sound of the song is very Spring-like to me. I can listen to this song over and over again and feel myself walking through a row of Cherry Blossom trees. Even when its not spring I like listening to this song to make me feel like I am back in Cherry Blossom season. The music video is beautiful and every time I go to Karaoke I have to sing this song with the music video playing in the background.

#2 “Sakura Girl”「サクラガール」- NEWS

This song has a lot of the same sounds as Nishino Kana’s song above. I think it is the synthesizer that makes the beat of the song very spring-like to me. It’s a sad love song about a fleeting love, just like the short time a cherry blossom tree blooms for. I love the harmony and the chorus of “La, La, Love, Sakura”. Just like the above song too, I can just imagine walking through a row of cherry blossom trees and can feel the emotion of not being with someone anymore who you loved dearly.

#3 “Sayonara ni Sayonara”「サヨナラにさよなら」-  Tegomass テゴマス

This is a slower song compared to the other two songs, but the softness and sweetness of the song and the lyrics make me think of a love that starts in the Spring and the promise of never saying goodbye. The Piano and the music video also give it a spring-like feel as well! This song was also released Spring of 2013 so I have the image of this song being a spring song in my head. This song is also my favorite Tegomass song, next to Kiss “Kaerimichi no Love song”「キッス帰り道のラブソング」。

#4 “Haru Meki”「ハルメキ」 – Tegomass テゴマス

Another Tegomass song! Somehow I relate Tegomass with Spring recently and I think it’s because in 2013 they had Spring single releases and this year they had a Spring tour. This song is a song off of their new album “Tegomass no Seishun” . The title means “Spring Like” or the “Coming of Spring” and the lyrics are all about how everything is becoming like spring and the flowers are blooming. I love this song because its very upbeat and is a different type of spring song than is mentioned above, because it isn’t a love song.

#5  “Hana ni Omoi wo”「花に想いを」 – Tegomass テゴマス

The final pick is also a Tegomass song. This was the B-side track from their “Neko Chuudoku” single and I had no idea it was the B-side until I heard them perform this song in the concert tour I went to. The Harmonica and the the country-like feel to this song really makes me feel like I am in the country side in America with a bunch of flowers around me. It’s a different feeling than the first few songs, because America and Japan have different perceptions of spring. Spring is about flowers blooming, but in Asia it’s specifically the Cherry blossoms and plum blossoms that it revolves around. In Americ,a its about flowers blooming in general and Easter. This song really makes me smile while I am listening to it walking somewhere recently, and I can really feel that spring is here!

 

I hope you all enjoyed this post! Please comment below and tell me your favorite songs of this Spring and why! I look forward to hearing them!

Review: Tegomass – Neko Chuudoku テゴマス「猫中毒」

4 Comments

Neko Chuudoku is Tegomass’s 7th single and it was released on May 22, 2013. This was their 2nd single in 2013 following  their previous single released in March 2013, Sayonara ni Sayonara 「サヨナラにさよなら」. The direct translation of Neko Chuudoku is basically “Cat Obsession”.

Editions

Limited Edition A: CD + DVD

1768_900

Limited Edition A comes with the song Neko Chuudoku itself, as well as a テゴ.カラ、which stands for Tegoshi Karaoke. So that means that Only Tegoshi’s voice shows up on this track, rather than a regular Karaoke or both of them singing on the track. It also comes with a DVD of the Music Video and Music Video making.

Limited Edition B: CD + DVD

1380_900

Limited Edition B comes with the Neko Chuudoku song, as usual,  and this time マス.カラ、which stands for Massu Karaoke. So this time its just Massu’s voice on the track. The DVD that comes with this edition contains the dance version of the Music video as well as “Tegomass Sensei Catness” video, which is them teaching the fans how to dance the dace of Neko Chuudoku. Fun fact, if you press the cartoon cat on the DVD menu of this edition, it will give the whole dance music video of them facing backwards so that you can follow along dancing with them!

Regular Edition: CD

tumblr_mln8zkHrpI1ra07eco1_r1_500

The regular edition only comes with a CD but it contains 2 extra songs, plus the real karaoke track for Neko Chuudoku that doesn’t contain any vocals at all. The 2 extra songs are 「シュプレヒコール」”Shipurehicoru” (which means speaking in chorus, or together) and 「花に想いを」”Hana ni Omoi wo” (which means “Expressing feelings with flowers”.

My Thoughts

The Song

Neko Chuudoku is a upbeat “Ska” like song that really leaves you wondering “What the heck just happened in this song?” LOL! I truly love this song, when some others don’t, but I will say that its not my favorite song from Tegomass. Tegomass diverted from their normal type of music a bit and decided to do a dancing (well…. sort of dancing) song this time. Normally they have more mellow-like songs they release as singles, and on their album they have some other upbeat songs, but this is the first time they released a single with a really upbeat feel to it. The only exception to this I can think of is Tanabata Matsuri, but that wasn’t even upbeat as compared to Neko Chuudoku. It’s also really short compared to other Tegomass songs they have released in the past.

The B-Sides

I normally don’t pay too much attention to the B-sides on singles sometimes until they are performed live or they have a significant impact on the fans and this time was no different.  I didn’t listen to the B-sides of this single closely until I heard them during the live performance of their 4th Live Tour, Tegomass no Seishun. After they performed these songs at the concert, I fell in love with both of the songs. シュプレヒコール」”Shipurehicoru” is a very easy listening song  with a violin- like sound in the background and very nice guitar and piano. The vocals and harmony is amazing and the rhythm of the song is amazing as well! 「花に想いを」”Hana ni Omoi wo” is a different type of song that reminds me of the American south and spring and summer with a harmonica, guitar and fiddle- like sound in the background!

The Music Video 

The Music Video is very different from their past videos, as a reflection of the different style of song that they were trying out this time. I like how in the full version of the music video, they start out from being “cool” and then all of a sudden change into the big Cat Costumes and start dancing a cute dance and doing crazy things that they interpret themselves from the lyrics of the song. It’s vibrant and colorful and is a stark contrast to the previous single they released 2 months prior, Sayonara ni Sayonara, which was very mellow and them just singing without much movement. I am looking forward to when they have a concert to see how they will incorporate Neko Chuudoku into the normal way they do their concerts because they normally don’t dance (except for 1 song). I kinda wonder if they will actually wear the big cat costumes during the concert because they wore them in all of their promotions for the single release.

Extras

Another cool thing they did different this time was the “Tegomass Sensei Catness” video. On the LE B Edition, Tegomass teach you the dance to Neko Chuudoku themselves in a cute way that is very Tegomass like. I like that they did this because this IS their first dancing music video and the fans probably would want to learn the dance to it. The making of the Music Video was different this time because they put humor into it by having a competition between Tegoshi and Massu that was based around cat like things. They didn’t do it all at once either, so it made it interesting to do some behind the scenes and then some competition interchangeably, with a punishment game for the looser of the competition at the end.

The last thing that I liked is how they continued to do the TegoKara and the MassuKara thing. They started to do this with Sayonara ni Sayonara and they continued to do so with Neko Chuudoku. I really like this because I can sing the part that I like to sing and not feel awkward just with the regular Karaoke track and I can “pretend” that I am singing a duet with either Massu or Tegoshi. I think a lot of the fans feel the same way about it as I do and it became popular so they continued to do it on this single. I hope they continue to do so in the future because that was a brilliant idea!

Final Thoughts

I think Tegomass did a good job with this song and shook things up a bit by bringing something different to the table. The one thing I will say though is that I don’t know if they should have released it at this time because their previous album Tegomass no Mahou and their single before this Sayonara ni Sayonara were a huge step towards being more “Adult Cute-like”, and then they went straight to something like Neko Chuudoku. If someone wasn’t a Tegomass fan before, they might have been confused at the difference and not liked it. I personally love this song, but I think if they wanted to keep up with their image they should have released it before Sayonara or just not released it at all. All in all, as a decently long time fan of Tegomass, I like how they shook things up and I am looking forward to when they release a new album because I want to see how they want to present themselves after 2 years!

What are your thoughts? Feel free to tell me in the comments below or tweet me!

*DISCLAIMER* I am still learning Japanese and these translations of these song titles, Japanese content, or any other translations from Japanese aren’t perfect. Please bring to my attention if you think I have any errors.

Tegomassu no Mahou 3rd Live Tour- Kobe World Hall, December 10, 2011

Leave a comment

Today was one of the best days that I have had here in Japan!

It started out with the hour and 15 minute trip to Kobe World hall. After that, we bought goods and went back to Sannomiya to eat lunch and to wander around a bit.

The concert started at 5:00pm and we got there at about 4:45pm.

So, I will talk about the concert as best as I can remember. No set list, but I will give some highlights. This really isn’t a concert report, just somethings that I want to share with other fans. Its in no particular order, just how I remembered it in!

*Stage Set Up*

-Kobe world hall is so small compared to the big domes. Our seats were the 3rd row from the top towards the center and they were AMAZING!

-The stage was centered with 2 big “runways” jutting out and 2 small ones. The 2 big ones are what had the Miso Soup bowls and moons that they rode on.

-The main center stage is where they mostly performed on and that rose up and rotated many times throughout the concert.

– The band was under the rotating main center stage and you could see them very well!

– 4 big screens on top of the center stage that showed such cute animations with every song!

– There were stars EVERYWHERE in the hall! They lit up at different times in the concert.

*The Concert* 

-Tegomassu look hotter in person. Just sayin’

-I LOVED their costumes!

-During Miso Soup, they were in Miso Soup Bowls. Tegoshi stayed put for the most part, but Massu was playing with the chop sticks and even pretended to play the guitar with one of them at one point!

-Hajimete no Asa started acapella because the hall was so small. I could hear their voices perfectly when they sung it.

-The did a really funny rap thing in order to get us to sit down for the MC! I was laughing so hard the whole time they did it because Tegoshi was using his “magic” to get us to sit down. They can’t be gangster … hahaha!

-My favorite part of the concert is when they had us sit down for like 3 songs and they sat on stools and sung. I was tearing up really and I never do. Most people stopped moving their penlights or turned them off and were just listening to them sing. It was amazing.

-During the encore, the Tegomassu Band was REALLY getting into the Orengatang Cheeta Panda song! It was really fun!

-Tegoshi was controlling our volume for the “la la la”‘s during that song.

-During the MC, Massu said that he had been to see the Kobe Illumination the night before (which me and my friend went to after the concert) and Tegoshi went on a mountain near Kobe earlier that day with some of the Tegomassu band. He showed a picture.

-After the MC was almost over and the band had come back, Massu talks to Tegoshi without the microphone and the says he forgot something or had to do something and rushed off stage for a few minutes, leaving Tegoshi there talking to the audience. I think he had to go to the restroom because he had been drinking a lot of tea or something during the concert. It wasn’t water because it wasn’t clear.

Well, that is all that I can remember right now. If I remember anything else, I will put an edit to this post! I will be posting again tomorrow about tomorrow’s events and then a video about my feelings of the concert and such as well.

Thanks and I hoped you enjoyed!!