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.
2023-2025 Index
2026 Index: Dec 28 – Jan 3 // Jan 4 – Jan 10 // Jan 11 – Jan 17 // Jan 18 – Jan 24 // Jan 25 – Jan 31 // Feb 1 – Feb 7 // Feb 8 – Feb 14 // Feb 15 – Feb 21 // Feb 22 – Feb 28 // Mar 1 – Mar 7 // Mar 8 – Mar 14 // Mar 15 – Mar 21 // Mar 22 – Mar 28 // Mar 29 – Apr 4 // Apr 5 – Apr 11 // Apr 12 – Apr 18 // Apr 19 – Apr 25 // Apr 26 – May 2 // May 3 – May 9 // May 10 – May 16 // May 17 – May 23 // May 24 – May 30 // May 31 – Jun 6 // Jun 7 – Jun 13 // Jun 14 – Jun 20 // Jun 21 – Jun 27 // Jun 28 – Jul 4 // Jul 5 – Jul 11 // Jul 12 – Jul 18 // Jul 19 – Jul 25 // Jul 26 – Aug 1
THIS WEEK: August 2 – August 8
Ado – Monstruo (song of the week!)
An interesting twist on her sound. The vocal is intense as usual. I love the brass breakdowns. The production gets more insane as the song goes on in the best possible way.
AEN – X To Z (Next To Me)
I wrote about this here. I thought it was overly generic.
Aile The Shota – Ongaku
I really don’t like those incessant vocal effects.
aoen – BOoM×2 DROP
Creative choreo. Bad song.
BUDDiiS – Crash Paradise
Forced fun.
ENJIN – Right Now, Kono Natsu
Oh, I love a breezy summer song. This pairs nicely with TWS’s offering this week. Not nearly as good, but still very nice.
EXWHYZ – Faded (song of the week!)
This has a really satisfying pop sheen and great build. Simple, but very effective.
Fruits Zipper – 1,2,3,FOOOOUR
That title is so extra. This is fun, exactly how you’d expect it to be.
Hayato Sano & Jinto Yoshida (M!LK) – Tsumi to Batsu to Ame to Kiss
This is like an old KinKi Kids song. I appreciate the nostalgia.
I.ADORE – Idolize
It’s always interesting when voice actors get into the real-life idol game. This song’s just okay, though.
INI – Beyond The Sky (song of the week!)
I’ve always loved the rock sound for them. They’re having a strong year.
izna – Dumb Hot!
Yawn.
JO1 – Sakura
I think their whole US EP is produced by Dem Jointz? It just makes them sound like everyone else, which is depressing.
Lil League – Bokuwosagashiteta
An uncharacteristic ballad from them.
ME:I – Flute
It was all I could do not to turn this off immediately when that annoying flute sample came in. The rest of the track is not much better. Awful “chorus”.
Milk Talk – Milk & Honey
This has a really nice groove to it. Great background/mood music, if nothing else.
NAQT Vane – Breathe
I wrote about this a few weeks ago and now it has a music video.
Queen Bee – Suspense
It feels like it’s been forever since we’ve heard something more upbeat from them. Even if it’s just a b-side, I’ll take it.
RE-GE – Spectacle Summer
A sweet, surging summer track.
STARGLOW – GOTH
There’s nothing goth about this, but whatever.
TAKARA – Time Is Money
Yeah… this is a no.
Travis Japan – On My Road (Stadium Version)
Suitably anthemic, I suppose.
tripleS moon – Dream Dress (song of the week!)
This isn’t anything super momentous, but I really enjoy its breeziness and especially the bursts of brass.
TWS – Soda Soda (song of the week!)
I wrote about this here. I loved it!
TXT – Nice To Meet Ya
A bit too muted for my taste, but I like the overall indie rock sound.
VIBY – Gotcha
This group’s name is so funny to me. The song is… fine. It’s perky.