So, the name of the game is to pull one over Momo - they're trying to see if she'll drop her character.
First up, they put her through an interview. They start off with simple questions, and start heading off to more difficult questions to see how she'll cope
What the most interesting show you've been on? - I've got 100% confidence in my face. My own potential scares me
We'd like to know about the true Momochi, how are you normally? - I've always been like this
Are you worried about being criticised by the world? - The people who say that are just jealous
Which entertainer is difficult to get along with? - Kasuga-san from Oodori (one of the people listening in). We've got too many similar points, for example the image colour for both of us is pink
The sales tax increase - Can't do anything because it's for the country. As a student, I don't really have Okanemomochi (money)
What to do to stop wars in the world - Maybe if Momochi says Yurushite-nyan
You'd expect nothing less from Tsugunaga Pro.
Next segment, when Momo goes to introduce herself with her Momochi board to the more senior entertainers, one of them will get mad at her.
The first one she meets responds normally.
At the second one, she drops by as the guy 'happens' to be shirtless.
He looks at the board and is like 'WTF is that? Couldn't you greet us more properly"
Her Yurushite-nyan makes him appear even more pissed, and she freezes up while he starts lecturing her.
Aw~ poor Momo.
He makes her promise to stop using her board when she goes to introduce herself to the last group of senior entertainers. Even her manager steps in to apologise for her.
He does get worried and peeks on her while she's discussing what to do with her manager.
She does still end up using the board - and the 'enraged' comedian pops out.
Karin: Juice=Juice has had a lot of mature songs, but among all them Ijiwaru Shinaide Dakishimeteyo feels the most mature. There are lots of falsetto parts, and we were insecure when it came to the falsetto parts during the recording, and we were left wondering nervously whether our singing was any good due to the difficulty. Especially just before having to sing the part that goes "Onegai", In my head I'm like "what should I do, what should I do?" and my heart beats hard. But recently I've been pretty successful. And the lyrics are quite sexy. Since I'm the youngest, I'm pushing myself to the limits when it comes to singing.
Sayuki: I love this song. The songs up to now have been mature, and when I'm singing I pay attention to keeping up a feminine expression on my face, but this time the facial expressions are very difficult. When I think I'm putting on a composed expression I seem to look mad, but having said that even smiling pleasantly is different. I had to deal with the music video shooting while thinking about a lot of things.
Yuka: For Hajimete wo Keikenchuu, Juice=Juice has had lots of cool songs, but this is the first cute one. Up to now we've always been concious of "being cool, being cool" , but this time it's cute, generally speaking. There's no feeling of restraining our voices, we sing directly with our natural voices, and to that extent, we were able to fill the lyrics with emotion. We'd like you to pay attention to the nuance of the speech-like lines at the end of the song.
Tomoko: For the music video there weren't many dance scenes, there were a lot of scenes where we were acting out. It was fun getting to act in such a way for the first time, but it did feel a bit embarrassing. But, since we had to do it with confidence, we tried our best. The colour of everyone's image fruits were used as the basis for the rooms in the shooting, so all the rooms were cute.
Akari: When we start singing Hajimete wo Keikenchuu at live performances, at the beginning I stand in the centre and do a bit of air guitar. Since everyone else is sitting, I was really nervous standing alone and facing the audience. I wondered if for our usual centre Karin-chan, does she always sing and dance every time under such strain?
Celestia is holding her annual vote for the top 10 of 2013 H!P songs here.
Since I went through all the trouble of going through all the songs, here's my top 10:
10. 新・日本のすすめ！ (Shin Nippon no Susume!)
I was floored the first time I heard the opening. I would've suspected Maro, except that the lines following that were undoubtedly hers.
Which brings me to MeiMei. My prior expectations of her have been revised from high-energy vampire to include her singing ability. As far as I'm concerned, she and Maro now make up the backbone of S/mileage's vocals.
9. 愛の軍団 (Ai no Gundan)
This is Tsunku showing off that he can make artsy pieces, not just hit music. No strong hooks, but a smattering of things here and there. Nothing that stands out directly, but underlying it are hints of what Tsunku's learnt from all these electro singles. At the very least, the (not very educated) music snob in me enjoys it.
And the choreography is similarly interesting. Again, there's nothing flashy. Yet it's very precise, controlled, very deliberate. Not only is that tiring to perform, it also means that mistakes become even more obvious. So even dancing-wise they had to push themselves to the next level.
8. 涙も出ない 悲しくもない なんにもしたくない (Namida mo Denai Kanashiku mo Nai Nanni mo Shitakunai)
MaiMai is my least favourite C-ute member, be it for singing or in general. Yet this song is undoubtedly MaiMai-centric. So I had to wonder - was I liking this song despite MaiMai being the lead? Should I place it higher for that?
After looping it, I've come to the conclusion this song actually makes the most of MaiMai's vocals - that slight, pleading lilt that finishes off each phrase fits it well. I'm impressed.
7. すっちゃかめっちゃか～ (Succha ka Meccha ka)
For Berryz, I tend to prefer them when they're doing fun, upbeat songs. This is a classic example of them in that element - a hyper genki song with them in pajama hoodies! Sign me up. I'd say Saki's version is my favourite, with her hooks and uppercuts.
6. 哀愁ロマンティック (Aishuu Romantic)
Sayumizuki!
My take on this is that it's a continuation of Suki da na Kimi ga. Arranged by the same person as well.
Suki da na Kimi ga was set at the early days of the relationship, where the girl is in madly in love and sees no imperfections.
Aishuu Romantic is set further along the relationship. The girl is starting to get more possessive, more jealous of the guy's interactions.
5. ねぇ 先輩 (Nee Senpai)
Representative of the cool S/mileage style, this time with a touch of parapara.
Plus points because I think that I'm typical of the senpai alluded to in the song.
4. あったかい腕で包んで (Attakai Ude de Tsutsunde)
Probably the slowest song on this list.
Am reminded of Very Beauty - a minimalistic song, no electronic gimmicks, mainly hinging on the strength of the vocals.
And you can trust C-ute to do such a song justice.
3. A B C D E-cha E-cha Shitai
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 *smooch* I love you 'Uh-oh'
2. Crazy 完全な大人 (Crazy Kanzen na Otona)
C-ute decked out in grungier versions of the Kiss Me Aishiteru outfits.
There is some slight bias in this choice, as it was in the Crazy Kanzen na Otona events where Tsunku made that epic Budokan and France announcement. You know shit's going to go down when you hear a Tsunku version of any song. And of course, I re-listened to that Tsunku version several times before daring to actually continue on and listen to the announcement.
Even without that though, it's a solid dance track that I'm happy to stick on repeat. And it's C-ute, so I'd be happy to watch it all day long as well.
1. わがまま 気のまま 愛のジョーク (Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke)
Not. Even. Close.
I say that, but I was torn between this and Crazy Kanzen na Otona. The reasons for that are more to do with my feelings as a fan to the Crazy Kanzen na Otona release event though. Objectively, I'd say this is the better song.
This is Tsunku showing off that he knows how to write a hit song. Contrast that with Ai no Gundan, where he shows off that he knows how to make pretty art.
The 'thump-thump-thump' of the slap choreography.
The repeated "Makenai", repeated not just in words but in music - the same note repeated the first time around, with just a minor change in the first word when it comes around again.
The whispered "Aisaretai"'s building into a huge drawn "A - I - SA - RE -TAI".
And that decision to have Maachan do the final 'Aisaretai'.
That - sheer genius. Especially when you hear it live.
It's not that she does it well. Truth be told, with each note, you wonder if she'll pull the next one off. And yet she does, syllable by syllable, leaving you super pumped in the end.
I dunno, if it was done by, say, (Takahashi) Ai-chan, I know Ai-chan would've pulled it off well while still making it seem like a walk in a park. But you know, listening to Maachan struggle for it and finally pulling it off - isn't that part of what being a fan is about?
Honourable mentions: Everything by Juice=Juice: I love them to bits, all of them, yet nothing was awesome enough to break into the top 10. S/mileage - 大人の途中 (Otona no Tochuu): "Oh My - God!" More parapara from S/mileage, and I love the piano part in the mid 8 Morning Musume - ふんわり恋人一年生 (Funwari Koibito Ichinensei): Laid back, mellow song about being on a date, with Eripon and Ayumin rap parts. What's not to love? S/mileage - ええか！？(Ee ka!?): Another example of the cool S/mileage, this time with a hip-hop feel. Morning Musume - ブレインストーミング(Brainstorming): TORIPURU II KOTO GA ATTA NANDAKA II KIBUN
Above is MaiMai's famous statement, "つんく♂とか来て楽しかった". This would be the video played just before they were announced as the Hello! Project Kids.
I usually translate it as "Tsunku♂ or something came and it was fun".
The phrase is notable mainly because of the lack of honorific (i.e. 'Tsunku♂-san' or 'Tsunku♂-producer'), and the 'or something' part, which makes it sound even ruder.
For some reason, I always thought that that was the standard translation.
Truly, thank you very much for always supporting Morning Musume。 as well as Hello! Project.
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude.
Well then、 without delay、 this is an announcement regarding Morning Musume。.
I would like to alter how Morning Musume。 is addressed as a group.
Morning Musume。、 from 1st January 2014 , will have their group name changed into 「Morning Musume。 ’14」.
It will be read as 「Morning Musume One Four」.
Being rechristened in 2014 after 17 years of being 「Morning Musume。」、
For the sake of the group continuing on for 10, 20, 30 years from now on
「The single of the song entitled ○○○○, when was that song from！？」 or 「○○-san、 which age of Morning Musume was she from？」
I think such simple questions can be easily answered by distinguishing them with the 「year」 address.
Accordingly, the plan is to address them as 「Morning Musume。’15（Morning Musume One Five）」 from 1st January 2015.
Well、we’ll try to go ahead with this and if it turns out to be confusing、 we might give it up、（lol）
At any rate、 from the beginning of the new year to the extent of supporting the girls who have become 「Morning Musume。’14」 、 by all means please treat them well！
Morning Musume。’14′s 55th single will be on sale 29th January 2014.
From now、it’s the start of a fresh sensation！
6th December 2013
Morning Musume。 Producer
Tsunku♂
