Sorry about missing these big news pieces, but we here now to talk about some graduation announcements that well are more or less sad to hear. On top of Momona Kasahara’s graduation coming up we have some new ones.
First up is the announcement from Tomoko Kanazawa who is graduating due to her Endometriosis and to be honest, I’m surprised she kept going as long as she did with the group despite the condition it had on her. Honestly losing Karin, Sayuki, and Tomoko all in a year’s time is quite startling as I’m just sad that the Juice=Juice I came in with is more or less gone now (Yeah, Akari Uemura is the last one, but she never really was a powerhouse vocalist like the 3 aforementioned girls) so it’s really going to be a change of pace.
I loved Tomoko since Day 1 as she had such a unique voice and really that interesting husky tone gave her so much character to stand out in the group even in their indies days too! Though J=J did get new members so the final single will both be a debut and a final single….
Then came the shocking-ish announcement that Masaki Sato would also be graduating (due to IBS). I know she’s been having problems with it most of 2021, plus the back issues from a couple years probably didn’t help either. Maachan over the years for me has been quite a wave. She started having higher-pitched vocals when she joined and tried to mimic Reina Tanaka a little bit (she was her favorite). Though over time, Maachan has seriously upped her game in the group, being more vocally stronger and her presence was very cool and sometimes kind of sexy. She was just wild I’d say and she really was on her own wavelength during her tenure with Momusu. Likewise, she does have one more single to do before graduating so it’ll be interesting to see how things turn out.
Kind of sad though that Momona isn’t getting a final single with the group (her graduation is in like 2 weeks). Oh well…
Huh, seemed like it’s been forever since I’ve done one of these, but it’s mostly because there wasn’t a whole lot released in between the last time I did this and now. You can also blame this pandemic for slowing the group down a bit though with releases. Anyways, this post is going to talk about PVs from 2019 to now which includes a new generation of girls; Mei Yamazaki, Homare Okamura, and Rio Kitagawa joining the group at the end of 2019 (debuted in 2020). That means the PVs we will be looking at are; I surrender Aisaredo Ai, Seishun Night, Jinsei Blues, KOKORO & KARADA, LOVEpedia, Ningen Kankei no way way, Junjou Evidence, Gyuusaretai Dake na no ni, and Renai Destiny ~Honne wo Ronjitai~ (pretty much the entire 16th ~That’s JPOP~ era). Let’s get started!
I surrender Aisaredo Ai
The Song: So the song itself is interesting because it’s the only one in this post that was not on the “16th ~That’s J-POP~ album, instead it was actually part of Momusu’s 20th Anniversary best album which had pretty much all the A-sides they released since Mikan to current day (with 2 new songs, but this is the promotional track). Also the first without Haruna Iikubo since she graduated.
What Genre is it?: Dance and Rock fused together…it’s a song meant for lives to pump up the crowd some.
The Premise: N/A
The Setting: Unfortunately, it’s a live stage performance MV, though they did try to spice it up somewhat be making it like a lyric video and flash a lot of weird annoying effects like blurs, camera shifts, black & white, and split-screening and it’s just annoying to all hell.
The Outfits: White and casual seems to be the in-thing for the MV, of course since it is from a live concert. Some are wearing dresses, some pants, some hats, and some other accessories they wanted to wear. Simple, but kind of blah because it’s just white outfits.
The Choreography: Lots of fist-pumping going on in the MV and since most of the focus I had was pulled towards the effects from the video, the choreo isn’t too wild, but the group gets by. Lot of it is them running around and just pumping the crowd up, but from I saw, yeah it could’ve been a good PV dance.
PV as a whole: Yeah, using live footage for a PV is kind of a lazy copout to me, but it was for a song that’s left on a best album so I guess I understand the lack of effort into the “PV” of this song. Not really my favorite and the song itself isn’t quite all that memorable to me either (despite finally hearing Reina, Kaede, Chisaki, Akane, and Maria more in solos.
Seishun Night
The Song: Starting up a new era after the end of the 20th anniversary, Seishun Night was the first song to be revealed and really that’s kind of just the important thing here. Nothing much was really all that special about the song here. Will say that even though Chisaki has the focus, the vocals mostly went to Mizuki, Sakura, Masaki, and funny enough Miki!
What Genre is it?: Disco-funk for sure!
The Premise: Well it seems to me that the story-line is that Chiichan wants to play VR and well she ended up being the focus for the PV and finds herself amongst the other Morning Musume members and does things with them like make-up and outfit changing to the point where Chisaki starts to dance while wearing her VR headset.
The Setting: When it begins, Chisaki is by herself in what looks to be a traditional Japanese room (with the paper doors and such). After she dons the headset, the setting changes dramatically so a rather cybernetic setting with a crazy pipe design and that’s really that, it does mostly end at blue, but during raps, it’s more of a warmer orange tint. The solo shots and close-ups are in the dance area too so there’s all that. Kind of cool and pops out especially when it’s zoomed out for the group dance.
The Outfits: It seems to me that only Chiichan, Kaedii, and Yokoyan have more than one outfit for the PV. Chisaki’s is seen the most since she’s the focus wearing sweats and sleepwear (and big glasses) and she maintains that through the PV. for Kaede and Reina they have kind of casual outfits and were helping Chisaki find hers, it’s shortlived (only seen during verse 1) and the rest of the group (plus the 3) have the main dance outfit which are these sparkly black and silver outfits. Simple, but neat and fits the look of the PV.
The Choreography: I actually kind of dug the choreo in this one a lot. Not a whole lot on the formation this time (I actually questioned whether or not we left the formation days behind). Still it’s a really fun dance and there’s parts where I kind of dug the messyness (like the rap sections and the walking like models part) it’s a fun dance and it did a lot to push Chisaki here.
PV as a whole: Seishun Night was a burst of energy that “I surrender Aisaredo Ai” wished it had when it came to it’s funky sound and energetic performances from everyone. What I can say though is, I’m not sure it pushed Chisaki the way UFP wanted it to because she only got a seldom few lines despite her having the visual focus. I kind of like the song, but at the end of the day, it’s kind of in the middle of the pack for me.
Jinsei Blues
The Song: Likewise with Jinsei Blues, there doesn’t seem to be anything to note about the track itself since the single was kind of in between the end of their 20th anniversary and the soon to be added 15th Generation members.
What Genre is it?: For some reason it does kind of give a little “Are you Happy?” vibes, but otherwise it’s a kind of dance track with slight tribal-esque tones going on.
The Premise: I think the PV got me all confused about what was really going on in the video. It felt like the group was doing a LOT of clean-up (at least was the case for most of the members like Mizuki, Akane, Reina, Chisaki, Sakura, Miki, and Masaki with Kaede working on music and Ayumi & Maria with dancing and somehow Erina was helping out too with the cameo appearance by recent MM alumni, Haruna Iikubo. Which led to Maria & Ayumi auditioning for something to just randomly have the group pop up and dance and sing at the end before fainting. It’s kind of structured weirdly for me and seem like there should’ve been more to this PV.
The Setting: Seems like they’re all working at some studio for the most part, most members are just in various places in and out of the building. The dance-shot looks a little like “A gonna” but it’s a stage I think. It’s nice they’re around inside a building versus just a set at least.
The Outfits: Work clothes to casual clothes for most of it. I think Ayumi & Maria get extra outfits as they do an audition dance in different clothes, but otherwise they don’t really do anything spectacular here. The work clothes are cute on some though (Reina).
The Choreography: Of what we got to see of it (basically, the bridge to the end), the bridge is super cute with the shimmys and formation here, but then loses me with the final chorus section with the flat-palming rubs and the hopping going around. Wished we saw more of it to be honest.
PV as a whole: I think the song is great, one of the better ones under Fukuchan’s leadership and it’s a generally good time, the PV is a little confusing to where it wanted to go. It did show the hardships of cleaning up and making the place clean and whatnot, but I’m not sure how it works with helping Harunan out or the dance auditions and then just randomly put the close-up/dance shot at the end…it kind of seemed clunky to me as a MV. Still good song thooough!
KOKORO & KARADA
The Song: So here we are finally with the single that introduced us to the newest members of Morning Musume, Mei Yamazaki, Homare Okamura, and Rio Kitagawa. Boy, did they kick off with an interesting single. If I remember right though, KOKORO & KARADA predates the new members so that’s why they aren’t exactly promoted through the track (it was better shown in the other 2 A-sides).
What Genre is it?: EDM but the piano and strings do give me some vibes of both “The Vision” and “Toki wo Koe Sora wo Koe”
The Premise: N/A
The Setting: Very futuristic green-screen going on here with a lot of effects (like “Egao no Kimi wa Taiyou sa”) but the video is mostly made up of close-ups, the dance-shot which looks like a cube and some wild other effects going on with the girls like black/white motifs, soundwaves and pops from the girls. There’s just a lot of cool digital effects going on in the PV so I’m really visually satisfied by it all.
The Outfits: They’re all kind of in one main look for this one and it’s a black outfit with white stripes going vertically (some have one, some two). Simple outfits this time it seems.
The Choreography: Not quite as formation-y as I’m used to seeing, but there’s something going on in the choreo that I really enjoyed. Very punchy and athletic looking that’s for sure. Though knowing it does surround Masaki, Sakura, and Mizuki is kind of meh to me…still a good dance regardless
PV as a whole: I feel like this was the EDM song I needed after being caught in surprise by “Mukidashi de Mukiatte” a while back, it’s progressive hits well and softens up at the nicest places…yeah this was a pretty neat song, though not good for finding the new girls’ vocals here.
LOVEpedia
The Song: The next two tracks are paired together because they share the same melody, but it’s with different instrumentation and lyrics. LOVEpedia seems to be more youthful and genki sounding with some of the focus going to the younger members of the group (especially the 3 newbies that had joined).
What Genre is it?: Dance/Pop/Electronic?
The Premise: From what I could gather, LOVEpedia is pretty much about Rio, Mei, and Homare getting to know their senpai and what kind of ____ LOVE they are throughout the video!
The Setting: Well oddly enough, the beginning has the 3 new members (from their “Ningen Kankei No way way” outfits) opening a book that leads to the book. There’s so many different sets to this MV for sure showcasing all the non 15th gen members showing their skill to the new girls of the group. Though there is the dance shot area which is a flat stage with cutouts all over and the gold barrier (that looks like an opened book) as well. Very colorful video for sure though!
The Outfits: So like I said above the new girls do find themselves wearing a different PVs outfits at the beginning and during and even the end of the PV here…but most of the video we see the group donning this bubblegum pink, silver, and blue denim dresses (especially for their dance shot and the side storyline). They’re OK, kind of basic looking, but it gives the song a bit of a youthful look to it.
The Choreography: What I notice most for the choreography for this song is that it’s very arm/hand heavy and quite bombastic as well. Very energetic and pops out a lot for me. I especially love the intro with Rio, Mei, and Homare…especially since they’re the stars of the song.
PV as a Whole: While not as dramatic as “KOKORO & KARADA”, LOVEpedia is fun, genki, and just full of personality especially for the new girls and some of the newer members that have joined! I do like that each member got to show a side to them to kind of let the new girls ease in with them. Great song overall and had a pretty awesome PV to go with it!
Ningen Kankei No way way
The Song: Like I said above, the melody is shared between this and “LOVEpedia” but has different instrumentation and lyrics. That said, Ningen Kankei was the more serious of the two tracks and the focus leans more on the older members this time around. So members like Sakura, Mizuki, Masaki, and Ayumi have more lines over the newer members. Also has that weird “Turkey in the Straw” bit in the bridge…which is how I remember it by.
What Genre is it?: Dance pop as well, but maybe a little more disco-y and such.
The Premise: N/A (Thought there would be with the girls and the cell phones, journals, music, and such…but no)
The Setting: Not quite sure where they shot this, but it’s definitely nice to see Momusu somewhere besides a studio. The Dance shot is in some kind of building, but solo shots of the girls look to be outside at night which is pretty neat to see and then seeing the dance shot move outside too, was pretty awesome as well. Maybe not as prolific and interesting as the “LOVEpedia” PV, but this brought back some nice feels of the girls shooting a PV outside.
The Outfits: Just one this time and all the ladies are wearing more serious outfits but all of them are either light blue to dark blue (with the new members donning some white as well). It’s alright, and they made the effort to make all the girls look different so that’s a plus.
The Choreography: Definitely took notice that the PV really focused in on the choreography of the group moreso here than the previous PV. Lot’s of movement and different formations used as well. No one in particular was leading the pack. well maybe Maria but yeah, we got to see a lot of faces up-front.
PV as a Whole: While not as intriguing and exciting as its sister A-side, Ningen Kankei No way way felt a bit more like Morning Musume was together as a group for the song as we got to see lines from mostly everyone and the dance-shot was a bit more together and had more interesting inside it. It was an OK PV.
Junjou Evidence
The Song: Really, there’s not much to say song-wise for Junjou Evidence (or the other A-side for that matter), but I suppose it was the last single before the album released. Otherwise nothing too noteworthy to mention.
What Genre is it?: Dance/Pop with a lot of electronics
The Premise: N/A
The Setting: The first thing I see is a drone flying about over the group located in a parking lot, a little strange, but once again do enjoy the fact the girls are outside at least for some of the dance-shot. Though a lot of the music video is also shot in a room (especially the solo, and duo shots).
The Outfits: It seems there’s one uniform outfit this time and it’s this reflective silver and black and unfortunately they’re all the same so kind of blandish to me, but I do like the shinyness of it all.
The Choreography: I mean you see most of it through the PV (minus the solo and duo shots), but the dance is pretty safe and to the books, nothing too flashy or strange…well maybe except that “GO GO TRY IT” section…that was a little odd, but otherwise typical.
PV as a Whole: Can’t say I was too intrigued by this one. It just seemed a bit too much of a regular dance-shot for me to be too invested on top of the song not really all that interesting either. Not their worst, but definitely nowhere near their better works.
Gyuusaretai Dake na no ni
The Song: Likewise with this one, this one doesn’t have anything really interesting to note about it…other than it’s the secondary A-side to the single so let’s move on!
What Genre is it?: More electronic than “Junjou Evidence” a bit more in the vein of the Electro Momusu we’ve been seeing.
The Premise: N/A
The Setting: Takes place on a stage (like both Oh my wish!” and “Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke” did in the past). Though there’s solo shots of the girls in front of a curtain and then there’s some shots of them in a black room with the members tied to fabric ropes. Then there’s just a pure white room where the girls keep teleporting out. I don’t know how all this correlates, but it makes for more of an interesting video than the other A-side to be honest.
The Outfits: I feel like the beige/brown outfits in this video kind of both sticks out, yet makes things look dull too? Considering it is the main outfit for the whole video, I’m a little sad that there wasn’t another thrown in their for like the solo shots. Well, I guess there’s the small accessories like the bunny ears and whatnot, but otherwise yeah, not the most interesting outfits they’ve pulled off and kind of reminds me of “Jiyuu no Kuni Dakara” because of the brown tones.
The Choreography: Kind of a more dramatic set of choreography…very flowy and smooth at times…though I will say I remember this one from the butt sway they do during the chorus…little odd considering the younger members of the group, but it’s still a decent dance overall!
PV as a Whole: Better than “Junjou Evidence”, it’s still not quite reaching the higher levels of the group’s better videos out there to be honest. At least the song is decent and the dramatics of it sounds really nice to listen to. The PV though is still mostly a dance-shot with solo shots and a few interesting moments.
Renai Destiny ~Honne wo Ronjitsu~
The Song: As the promotion track from their “16th ~That’s J-POP~” album, Renai Destiny didn’t quite get a PV only ending up as a lyric video, but I still included because it might as well have been in the same league as “I surrender Aisaredo Ai”.
What Genre is it?: Electronic Pop, pretty much expected…but there’s some guitars in it too!
The Premise: N/A
The Setting: It’s a live stage performance (or 2?) Nothing too fancy to speak about.
The Outfits: So why I said two live stage performances is because the group is in two different outfits during the MV. One is sparkly red outfit, but the other is just the same but with a white jacket over them. Nothing too spectacular as I think these are just tour outfits. Little better than some of the outfits I’ve seen from them recently.
The Choreography: So the main focus is the dance and yeah it’s pretty good, lots of things going on though and little moments that are cute and such (like Kaede’s moment in the first verse). It’s not as crazy as one would thought it’d be, but it’s still a fun dance to watch!
PV as a Whole: Of course, this wasn’t going to be a strong video because it’s not meant to be, but for what it is and after the crazy editing from “I surrender Aisaredo Ai”…seeing this isn’t too terribly bad. The text does kind of block the live performance a bit too much IMO, but the group looked good and excited for perform this. Not a high ranking PV overall though….
SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG, BUT HERE IT IS…Hopefully I won’t take too long to get the next one out!
Iroppoi Twilight Game 