In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in what’s new in J-pop.
With that in mind, here’s where you come in: I’m one person with one set of musical preferences, so please embed any other new J-pop tracks you’ve enjoyed in the comments so we can get a fuller spectrum each week.
*And just like I do with my reviews, I’ll wait until full versions of songs are available before posting them in this round-up. This will mostly apply to Johnny’s groups, who still limit the majority of their YouTube uploads to shorter, edited versions.
2023 Index: Feb 1 – Feb 18 // Feb 19 – 25 // Feb 26 – Mar 3 // Mar 4 – Mar 10 // Mar 11 – Mar 18 // Mar 19 – Mar 25 // Mar 26 – Apr 1 // Apr 2 – Apr 8 // Apr 9 – Apr 15 // Apr 16 – Apr 22 // Apr 23 – Apr 29 // Apr 30 – May 6 // May 7 – May 13 // May 14 – May 20 // May 21 – May 27 // May 29 – Jun 3 // Jun 4 – Jun 10 // Jun 11 – Jun 17 // Jun 18 – Jun 24 // Jun 25 – Jul 1 // Jul 2 – Jul 8 // Jul 9 – Jul 15 // Jul 16 – Jul 22 // Jul 23 – Jul 29 // Jul 30 – Aug 5 // Aug 6 – Aug 12 // Aug 13 – Aug 19 // Aug 20 – Aug 26 // Aug 27 – Sep 2 // Sep 3 – Sep 9 // Sep 10 – Sep 16 // Sep 17 – Sep 23 // Sep 24 – Sep 30 // Oct 1 – Oct 7 // Oct 8 – Oct 14 // Oct 15 – Oct 21 // Oct 22 – Oct 28 // Oct 29 – Nov 3 // Nov 4 – Nov 11 // Nov 12 – Nov 18 // Nov 19 – Nov 25 // Nov 26 – Dec 2 // Dec 3 – Dec 9
THIS WEEK: Dec 10 – Dec 16
Adachi Yuto (Pentagon) – Dat Girl
The whole Pentagon dissolution has been pretty messy, but now the members are branching out into solo careers. That means Japanese work for Yuto. This song is alright. The verses are better than the chorus.
Bump Of Chicken – Sleep Walking Orchestra
I like the surging energy of this track. The Celtic elements remind me of Mrs. Green Apple’s Magic, but the sound is much more subdued.
Dave Rodgers – Flash In The Night (ft. Motsu)
This is only tangentially “J-pop,” but I must include it for all you eurobeat lovers out there!
ICEx – Shibuya PM6:00
I like this better than their debut. It feels quirkier and less generic, yet still upbeat and poppy.
Jin Akanishi – Can I
The synth/electro elements of this are really nice.
Kiro Akiyama – Scrap Boooo
There’s a nice power to parts of this. I’m definitely intrigued.
Nicole (Kara) – Gravity
When I heard this was going to be an upbeat dance track, I immediately thought “please be Sweetune, please be Sweetune, please be Sweetune.”
It’s not Sweetune, and it’s not that great, either.
Official HIGE DANdism – SOULSOUP
Apart from January’s White Noise, Official HIGE DANdism have had a hard time capturing my attention this year. I like how upbeat this is, but it’s not their strongest song. It may grow on me, though…
One Love One Heart – Happy Christmas
A cute Christmas song from the group.
Sexy Zone – Jinsei Yuugi (Game of Life) (song of the week!)
Amidst this week’s end-of-year countdowns, I didn’t get a chance to write a full review on Jinsei Yuugi, but I like it a lot. It has a bit of that “Run” energy in the way it never lets up, though the song itself isn’t as strong (few things are!). I love its ferocious intensity, and it’s a very easy song of the week!
Shuta Sueyoshi – Neverland
I’ve been waiting for another album from Sueyoshi, and hopefully this is a harbinger of that. Otherwise, it’s a fairly forgettable entry in his catalog.
Twice – Dance Again
An absolutely solid holiday track.
Watwing – I Don’t Care (song of the week!)
Okay, this is one of their best songs. It takes a bit to get going, but once that chorus hits the synth beat is so satisfying. This is another song of the week.
White Scorpion – Manazashi Sniper (song of the week!)
This is technically from last week, but I thought it was too promising not to share. It’s very Sakamichi-coded, but an excellent example of the sound. It’s my third song of the week.
This week’s old favorite:
Sasuke – J-Pop Wa Owaranai (2019)
I don’t know where this little scamp went, but I was obsessed with this banger when it came out. The music video is super entertaining, too.