SCORE!!!

Marking a record seven posts in one month, meanwhile providing some Aiko information.  I finally figured out something that's been bugging the crap out of me since the first time I heard this song (almost three years ago).

At the start of 'Fantasy', Aiko sings something I presumed was English, because I never knew what she said.  Looking back at my data, I noticed that the song was originally done by Virginelle.  Lo and behold, the first couplets in Aiko's version of 'Fantasy' are from the chorus of the original song. Listen to it here.

Aiko sings (are you ready for this?):

"Carry on too many times for love / I only played as ever with your heart

I don't know, it's like a fantasy / You're only mine, oh what a melody"

Listen to Aiko again, and that's exactly what she's saying.  This is the most English she's ever sung on record.  I know, it doesn't make a lot of sense, and I know, it's hard to understand Aiko when she sings in 'Engrish'.  But I finally figured out what she's singing!  And now you can sing along, too.

Then, a few minutes later I discovered this little tidbit.  Aiko sits in a cafe during the Aishite ne Motto video, and this same place is the setting for a Capsule video.  Capsule was produced by the same guy who produces Perfume, and also did 'cosmic cosmetics'.  Observe:

New 'New Year's resolution': acquire all the Capsule music ever made. This stuff is catchy as hell!

新年おめでとうございま~す!

Well, a happy New Year to everyone out there, and good riddance to 2008.

I've ramped up the site a bit, added tags and a few more links, and hopefully soon should have a respectable fansite going.  For instance, click on "English" in the labels to your right, and you'll have four Aiko Kayo songs translated to our native tongue.

Aiko posted on her blog December 31 and sincerely apologized for taking a week off from posting.  Basically she said, things have been busy, Cheer Up * Indies recorded its last 2008 show, and that she'll try to be more consistent with posting in the coming year.  Also, she asks that we wish her luck for the New Year (ganbatte, Aiko-chan!) and that she'll try her best as always.

I'd like to make the same promise for this blog.  I'll stick to posting about Aiko (although if I increase posting, expect a lot of information about some of my other favorites), try to provide as much information as possible about Aiko as soon as possible, and be as generous as I can.

I hadn't noticed that 'Baba' commented on my first LOVERS HIGH review over a month ago, and said "Thanks for writing this".  I'm not sure if he (or she) was referring to the movie synopsis (probably the only one available, definitely the most in-depth), or the whole site, but a belated "you're welcome" to Baba, and everyone who might read this.  More to come, please check back soon;  and while you're at it, see if you can Google some keywords to get my site to come up prominently in the search.  I'm in there somewhere...

Finally, I'll post the first picture of Aiko I ever saw:  no longer on Wikipedia, but here for posterity.  It began my whole obsession, and is therefore responsible for bringing this site to you.  You can't look away!!!

Aiko has grown on me.

Ms. Kayo,

I wanted to share this with the 'net.  From early 2004, left; taken about a week ago, right.  You sure have changed in five years, but of course, you're still cute as always.  I definitely 'aishite ne' you, motto.  And not just because you said so.  But you did say so.

A Mysterious Picture

A real and tangible prize (taking a note from the Publius Enigma of Pink Floyd) for anyone who can unravel this mystery:  a picture titled "AiAiAi".

This is as high-quality as I've got, and appearing here are unmistakeably Kago Ai, and Takahashi Ai, but who's that in the middle?  This Aiko expert says that it is, in fact, Ms. Kayo.  But this has not been corroborated.  If it's anybody else, my guess is Tanaka Reina.  The only problem is that Ms. Tanaka Reina appears to be at the right edge of the photo.

So the mystery is this:  if this is indeed a photo of Kago Ai, Kayo Aiko, and Takahashi Ai, then why would Reina (who was chosen at an audition later than Aiko's) be there?  In other words, what event is this from?  H!P costume experts, I'm counting on you.

And if this is, in fact, from a later event, it's nice to see that Ms. Kayo gets along with the other girls who were lucky enough to be chosen, even a generation later.

Spanish, anyone?

This just in, spanish chicks love Aiko (more).  Not one, but three spanish-language overdubs of 'Aishite ne Motto' (be warned, amateur audio follows):

Milla version

MidnightSingers version

BeMyCaprice version

A Message to Paul Thomas (of 'hello!blog')

Paul, you don't know me, but we're about to become fast friends in the online sense. Observe, if you will, a favorite subject of mine wearing an appropriate piece of clothing:

Paul, I can see into the future. In it you own a jacket just like this. And it wasn't very difficult for you to obtain. That's right, if you still WANT this, I'm sending it your way, no charge.

That's right, the 2003 Hello!Project Sports Festival (in Osaka Dome/Tokyo Dome) tracksuit has been here in the Midwestern US, safe and sound since August, when Ohta sent it to me.

Many apologies that it's taken so long for me to speak up about it, but I am giving you this gift in celebration of Ms. Aiko Kayo's 23rd birthday (starting 9:00AM Dec 10th, US Central / 3:00PM Dec 10th GMT). No bullshit, it'll be yours to keep.

So I'll put myself in your shoes, and I have a feeling you're asking, 'why'? Allow me to explain:

1.) it's advertisement. If you or any of your readers have any interest in Ms. Aiko Kayo, they might discover this site as a result of this stunt. I'd like some readership.

2.) you said (in no uncertain terms) that you wanted it, but it seemed like you would have a difficult time rationalizing the cost. Well, I had the money, and I bought it specifically to give to you. Money is not the most important thing in the world, and making people happy may not be the most important, either, but I'd rather make people happy than have money.

3.) I wanted it, too. I'm also an H!P fanatic, and like you, I understand the significance of this item. To see it close-up, as well as owning it for some time has been pretty f**kin' cool. This is from the year that Yasuda graduated, and the NON-STOP concert is tops in my book.

4.) thank you, sir, for the hello!blog. I found your site from Wikipedia footnotes when I was looking for (non-existent) news about Kago during her suspension. Fittingly, I also discovered Aiko via Wikipedia, and both she and your blog are precious finds in an otherwise sullen world. Many thanks for making W's 'Arreviderci' available, too... after hearing that, I bought all their recordings.

5.) it's my way of making amends with the Aiko/H!P past. She tried out, she was in the top 9 of 24,000+, and she didn't get the invite. But I doubt to this day that she would have a bad word to say about Tsunku or H!P. I'll do a post about it sometime soon. I discovered H!P because of Aiko's unsuccessful endeavor, wondering who they were, why she tried out, and what was so appealing.

6.) when it comes to this suit, you and I will have a story to tell.

Okay, so it's free, but on a couple of conditions you're likely to agree with:

1.) Please write a post on h!b when you receive this, mentioning my site AND the beautiful Ms. Aiko Kayo, maybe including a picture of you wearing the jacket...

2.) enjoy it. If you don't want it, I'll be proud to keep it, but more than likely will not wear it except in the most rare of occasions.

3.) remember my name (jyoru) and show some respect. From one H!P fan to another, from one Kusumi fan to another, this is to show that there are no political boundaries and no geographical boundaries so great that we cannot bond together as fans.

Paul, you do not want to know what kind of year I've had to get to this point. When I listen to Morning Musume, I just want to break down and bawl my eyes out; I haven't yet, but I may do so sometime soon. It'd be funny if it happened during something so inappropriate as "Boogie Train '03", but when it happens I'll let you know.

The final, most important piece, is that I do not know your address.  Please contact me at jyoru1211@gmail.com, if even to turn down this offer, and we can trade information.  Please note that I have never been outside the continental US, and if I ever travel I will be going to Japan, rather than merry old England.  But if I ever travel to your neighborhood (or you to mine), I'll owe you a beer or six-thousand.

Last, but not least... proof that I have it.  The second time I ever put the jacket on, tags intact:

Check out my homemade Minimoni t-shirt!

New Stuff

A whole month's worth of new Japanese music arrived in one glorious package.

First, there was Perfume's 'DREAM FIGHTER' and I respond with a resounding Hell Yeah to that!  The single continues Perfume's musical progression, and the c/w, "Negai" is a slow, hypnotic song that's got me very captivated.  It ends with a somber piano rendition of the main theme (an actual piano, perhaps) and doubtless, I'm still very much on the Perfume boat.

Next, Morning Musume released 'Cover You', a must-have tribute album to legendary (well, NOW you've heard of...) writer Aku Yuu.  A grand cover album in the tradition of W's first record; though W's covers still kick some unquestionable ass, here's some more songs to find the originals of.  Songs like Pepper Keibu (original) and (MM revamped).  A quick fan fave is 'Koi no Dial 6700', but there are 14 in total, like 'Dou ni mo Tomaranai' (or check out this version), or: oh-my-god-it's-chock-full'a-Japanesey-goodness 'Pin Pon Pan Taisou'. It seems like a couple of people have heard this song before. Untold numbers of J-kids singing and dancing in unison, with mecha-robots... they really know how to warm my heart. Is that Aya Matsuura MC'ing?

Finally, the first release of all these, SPEED's triumphant return with 'Ashita no Sora' and c/w 'Something New' which may be, in fact, too funky (not possible).  Again we get a line like 'Let's go out to the street' (?)  Somebody do a bit of research on Okinawa street gangs and reassure me that there aren't rampant amounts of dancing female foursomes blowing each other away for drugs and such.

But brace yourselves, gentle readers; I hate to break this to you, but there is one track I may never listen to again:  the 'White Love～STEADY～Body&Soul 2008' medley.  If this track serves only one purpose, it's to acclimate our ears to the sound of a much-older SPEED singing our old favorites on their new tour.  After that, well...

For good measure, they made sure to employ every available gospel singer to back them up on this one.  This isn't their weak spot, and it never was.  Always plenty of gospel singers wailing away on some really good SPEED tracks, and even if they're going over the top singing about things like 'Kiwi Love bayayayayaby wowowowowowowowowowowow!' (whatever that means), it'd be blasphemy not to have all them gospellers.

Every SPEED medley, even from back in the day, suffers because the songs contained within are on average 5 minutes at least, which meant they really had a beginning and an end, and the journey was magnificent.  To chop them off at around 2 minutes each denies the full force of the message and the spaces between sound like 'fuck it, let's do a different song now'.  There's no effort to combine these songs into one cohesive work that matches the profundity of any of the originals.

But my main opposition to this recording is that, look, Hiro and Eriko are ten years older now, and they're not screaming at the top of their lungs like they used to.  Which happens to be their old trademark, and what endeared me to those old songs in the first place.  Anybody who tries to build a time machine and go back to give them some control or nuance that they didn't have then should be killed before a good thing gets ruined.

Ladies, you're all beautiful and talented, but if this isn't you anymore, don't pretend.  Sing a whole set of new songs, throw in the odd oldie here and there.  But I'm kinda disappointed that you spent any time on this song, because you already recorded it years ago, and we still have it on CD.  And for every imitation you do of your thirteen-year-old selves, I wonder whether it's because you think you can do it better now, or because you think it'll be just as good as it was before (or the third, most likely answer: because the producers demanded it).  Seriously, I can put the old (real) 'STEADY' on repeat for weeks at a time if I miss it that much.

I don't mind the new 'heavier' backing tracks that come with the medley, and someday we may get to hear the new music with the old voices.  But time has moved on, and as much as I *love* the new songs, no matter how hard you try (with every available technology), you just can't recapture a moment.