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
2024 Index: Dec 24 – Jan 6 // Jan 7 – Jan 13 // Jan 14 – Jan 20 // Jan 21 – Jan 27 // Jan 28 – Feb 3 // Feb 4 – Feb 10 // Feb 11 – Feb 17 // Feb 18 – Feb 24 // Feb 25 – Mar 2 // Mar 3 – Mar 9 // Mar 10 – Mar 16 // Mar 17 – Mar 23 // Mar 24 – Mar 30 // Mar 31 – Apr 6 // Apr 7 – Apr 13 // Apr 14 – Apr 20 // Apr 21 – Apr 27 // Apr 28 – May 4 // May 5 – May 11 // May 12 – May 18 // May 19 – May 25 // May 26 – Jun 1 // Jun 2 – Jun 8 // Jun 9 – Jun 15 // Jun 16 – Jun 22 // Jun 23 – Jun 29 // Jun 30 – Jul 6 // Jul 7 – Jul 13 // Jul 14 – Jul 20 // Jul 21 – Jul 27 // Jul 28 – Aug 3 // Aug 4 – Aug 10 // Aug 11 – Aug 17 // Aug 18 – Aug 24 // Aug 25 – Aug 31 // Sep 1 – Sep 7 // Sep 8 – Sep 14 // Sep 15 – Sep 21 // Sep 22 – Sep 28 // Sep 29 – Oct 5 // Oct 6 – Oct 12 // Oct 13 – Oct 19 // Oct 20 – Oct 26 // Oct 27 – Nov 2 // Nov 3 – Nov 9
THIS WEEK: November 10 – November 16
Da-iCE – Orange Youth
I feel like I continue to drift away from Da-iCE’s music with each new release…
DXTEEN – Level Up
I wrote about this last week but now it has a video. It’s a fun song.
Hoshimachi Suisei – Awake
The energy and textures in this are really great.
King & Prince – WOW
This song has been around for awhile but now it has a music video. It’s one of their better efforts as a duo.
Kis-My-Ft2 – Curtain Call
I’m not sure I’ve ever had an ultimate bias group drop off so quickly. I still adore them in their imperial phase, but this new music is just not it.
The Last Rockstars – Psycho Love (song of the week!)
This song came out last summer but the video was never released until now. I still love it a lot. Unfortunately, it was announced this week that Miyavi has left the group.
LE SSERAFIM – Star Signs
Sadly, this falls on the boring side of city pop influenced music. It’s kind of a snooze.
Max – BOOM BOOM BOMB-BA-YEA
I love Max and wanted to love this, but it’s too repetitive and gimmicky for me. Luckily, there’s a couple of great high NRG tracks on the single.
Nogizaka46 – Hodoukyo
Very pretty and seasonal.
One N’ Only – Savior
Meh. Doesn’t do much for me.
ONE OK ROCK – Dystopia
I wrote about this a few weeks ago. Now it has a music video. I like it!
PG – WA・BI・SA・BI (song of the week!)
These are literal children and the hook is obnoxious, but for some reason this is really appealing to me. I think it’s the early-2010’s EDM energy.
Philosophy no Dance – Koi no shabadubidu
That instrumental’s very groovy.
Seventeen – Shohikigen
A pretty, but kind of dull, ballad.
Shouta Aoi – Da La La (song of the week!)
I love the electro beat. This is quite fun. Who says “da la la,” though?
Shunta Sono (M!LK) – Saa Kyomo Ippozutsu Mae e
Definitely rockier than I expected. This guy was really good in the recent drama Smells Like Green Spirit, too.
Sirup – Game Over
Too downbeat for me.
Stray Kids – Giant
I wrote about this here. I didn’t care for it.
The Super Fruit – Kimito Bokutono Success Theory
I have a soft spot for these guys, but this isn’t their best work.
WATWING – Hell Fire
Definitely not the sound I was expecting from them!
Wednesday Campanella – So Many Wishes
The production’s really cool on this one. Not sure about the melodies yet, but I love the grandness of the chorus.
White Scorpion – Kokoro ga Me wo Tojiru
Their debut album is incredibly solid but this is one of the more boring songs on it.
Yuya Tegoshi – Flashback
It’s still so weird to me that he’s joining XY. I’ll always love his voice, though, and it’s fun to hear him back on a dancier track.
This week’s old favorite:
Sekai No Owari – RPG (2013)
How about a classic Sekai No Owari hit for this week? It’s hard to believe this was released over a decade ago. It still sounds so fresh and unique.