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
THIS WEEK: Dec 24 – Jan 6
[Alexandros] – todayyyyy
I know this is a popular band but I don’t have much familiarity with their music. This is a good, sturdy rock track.
Aina The End – Sail
Red:birthmark is a near impossible high to surpass, but I like this new single a lot. It’s got a nice groove.
EBiDAN – Stage Of The Universe (song of the week!)
The EBiDAN groups have done collaboration singles before, but this is my favorite of them all. A great thumping dance beat and catchy hooks combine to create a nice start to the year! It sounds very much like a Snow Man track, actually.
Exile B Happy – Morning Sun
I love everyone involved in this and the energy is so bright and happy. The mixing feels a bit muddled, though.
Gen Hoshino – Why
I’m just not the target audience for his music. I find this snoozy.
IVVY – The Way I Am
A bounding pop beat and smooth vocal performance. This is enjoyable.
Madkid – Fly
A nice, driving beat with anthemic melodies and the occasional rap breakdown. It feels like a standard anime theme.
NAQT VANE – Nowverse
NAQT Vane’s debut album comes out this week and it sounds like it’ll be great. This has that satisfying Hiroyuki Sawano sound in the chorus (more on him later…).
NCT New Team – We Go!
I like this more than the last song they released, but the market for “J-pop acts modeled after the K-pop sound/image” is getting more crowded by the day.
Number_i – GOAT
I really, really, actively dislike this. I find it a very unpleasant, irritating listen.
Riri from FEMM – Living In The Spotlight
This is in keeping with their mannequin concept, but the song itself is a fun blast of straightforward dance pop.
SawanoHiroyuki[nZk] x TXT – LEveL (song of the week!)
I wrote about this here. I loved it!
Snow Man – Love Trigger
I wrote about this here. I was very underwhelmed.
The Super Fruit – Juicy Smile
This song does nothing for me, but they have a track on their new album called “I My Me Meow” and I find that very funny/charming.
Vaundy – Zero
90’s alt-rock nostalgia in full bloom.
Yoasobi – Heartbeat
I love the gospel influence but the song itself is kind of dull. The production/arrangement really compensates.
This week’s old favorite:
Kanjani8 – Musekinin Hero (2008)
In honor of Kanjani8 putting their music up on streaming, I figure I have to spotlight their (possibly?) best single.