Japanese Music

The other ClariS post reminded me of this version of the Lycoris Recoil opening theme "ALIVE" from The First Take. This beautiful piano and strings arrangement really allows the two to shine. And how they shine! There should be no doubt after listening to this that they are excellent singers.

I'm sure the recordings for The First Take are rehearsed beforehand, but the actual perfomances are absolutely the real thing. I find it remarkable how perfectly the two harmonize, while the performance still retains its individuality distinguishing it from the original studio recording.

ClariS also did another great performance of their Madoka Magica OP "Connect" for The First Take.

ClariS have put out an 80’s inspired EP culminating in this Wink cover, which is also remixed. I grew up with the music of Stock, Aitkin and Waterman in the 80’s, and I’d like to think I’d have been into Wink if they had ever made it to the UK then. I find the 80s pop scene in Japan pretty impregnable, so it’s fun to have this insight.

Man, I had decided not to post so many Band-Maid tracks here, lest I need to rename the community. (Or maybe I should just create /c/bandmaid?)
But this song... I just can't get enough of it recently.

It has the perfect synthesis of everything that makes Band-Maid great: heavy but precise drums and bass lines by Akane and Misa driving the rhythm, Kanami's melodic guitar riffs, Saiki's enchanting singing augmented by Miku's harmonizing...

And I didn't even realize until I saw the subtitles on this live video that it's actually a very romantic song about unrequited love. That even adds to its appeal to me.

It's Friday, so a song about staying up late is fitting I suppose! Although admittedly my plans for tonight mainly involve continuing to watch the anime named after this song, which also used it as its ending.

The opening song Daten, also by Creepy Nuts, is also pretty well-known I guess, but more of a hidden gem IMO is their insert song Losstime with its very chill vibes.

Majiko, like quite a few Japanese singers I guess, started out singing covers of vocaloid songs. And it's these songs interpreted by her that I love the most. I've already posted her heartbreaking live performance of Kokoronashi here, but this is the song through which I discovered her. It was actually this fan-made video which also has English subtitles if you want to read along.

This song also features Majiko's signature killer move, where she starts out with a relatively subdued performance, but gradually increases the emotional intensity, until by the end you think you can hear her literally cry her heart out.

One of my favorites from MOSHIMO. There is also a faster paced song called Tsutta Sakana Ni Esa Yare whose MV references the last scene of this MV.

One of those tracks that randomly played in some mix and instantly captivated me. I think it's the combination of those hymnic chords and Leo's intense, almost plaintive singing.

The song was also the opening theme of the movie Code Geass Lelouch of the Re;surrection.

Leo Ieri has a great voice, but her other songs are a bit hit or miss for me. Another song of hers that I really like is Pain where she shows that she can also really rock out!

It's mentioned in the sidebar, and although I don't want to make it a hard rule (yet?), I really want to encourage you to provide some context on the music that you post here. Use the text field in your post for this.

What you like about a track, some background about it or the artist, or whatever made you decide to post it here. I think it helps others immensely to appreciate a track and increases the motivation to actually give it a listen. At least that's the case for me.
Just a sentence can be enough. Ideally, you will even spark some discussion.

Otherwise this community is at risk of being just a link dump.

BAND-MAID have released a best-of double album on the occasion of their 10th anniversary today (streaming/purchasing links: https://lnk.to/bandmaid_10thbest). Reason enough to bring out one of the classics, of course as the fabulous live video!

I'm a bit salty they completely skipped Europe on their extensive tour plan this year, basically doing only the U.S. and Japan. I REALLY want to see them live. Hoping for next year...

Music Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qemIiaQuQC0&pp=ygURbmVnYXRpbiByb2xsIGRlZXA%3D

One of my favorite girl rock bands has a new song out!

A few days ago I posted a song from Chatmonchy. After Chatmonchy's disbandment in 2018 Eriko Hashimoto continued to make music, now under her own name.

One of my favorite songs from Chatmonchy. I believe it was also the first song I've heard from them.

A high schoolers' band that randomly popped up in my feed. Incredibly good IMO!

BiSH-hoshi ga matataku yoru ni by BiSH performed on 2023-06-29 at Tokyo Dome. This was their last performance.

The song is a bit special to me because it brought me to BiSH last year. What I really like about this performance is that you can hear the chanting from the audience.

I didn't think such a conjunction of awesomeness could exist. Almost feels illegal

I'm new to this community and this is my very first post.

As my favorite band is SCANDAL, the choice what to post is easy. A classic from SCANDAL: Scandal Baby