medorē #27 – All About Idols II

featuring Karen na Ivory, ≒JOY, Cho Tokimeki♡Sendenbu (and more!)

Feb 02, 2024

First roundup of 2024!

What’s good and welcome back to another installment of the medorē! In case you’re not familiar with what this is all about: this is a segment I occasionally do on the blog where I compile a short list of some of the Japanese songs I’ve been enjoying lately and just give my thoughts on them. It’s really that simple! Not only does this give me the opportunity to show my appreciation for these great tracks and artists, but I also hope I’m able to provide you all with some cool suggestions; and maybe you’ll find a brand new artist to check out!

Usually these medorē roundups consist of a random assortment of songs I’ve been listening to but sometimes I do choose a specific theme to base my lists on, which is exactly what we’re doing today. This time around, we’re revisiting a past topic and as you may have noticed by the title, we’ll be talking about (non-anime/2D) idol groups. Funny enough, the last time I did this very same theme on the medorē was almost a year to the day, back in February 2023. So it is a bit of an interesting coincidence that I felt the urge to do another medorē revolving this topic, as well as me starting off the new year by checking out a bunch of idol music (some of these songs are also ones I ended up finding a few months ago that I thought were worth mentioning). And similar to last time, I tried my best to give you all a nice variety with this roundup, so hopefully you’ll be able to find at least one cool song or interesting group to listen to!

That being said, let’s jump right in!

♫ 「Never Give!」 White Sneakers (from Karen na Ivory)

If you follow me on my socials, or happened to check out my 2023 song roundup in December, you’d probably know that I became a big fan of TAKANE NO NADESHIKO last year. I really do love their music, the members themselves are definitely a fun bunch, and I’m looking forward to what they do in the new year (they actually have their major debut later this month!). But in relation to them, I recently became curious about their sister/senpai unit in Karen na Ivory, who are also produced by the HoneyWorks music group. And just like Takaneko, I feel like they have their own set of enjoyable tracks and covers that might be worth checking out, whether you’re a Takaneko fan or someone who generally follows idols.

And a week or so ago, Karen na Ivory debuted their brand new subunits (in which the main group gets split up into smaller side units) and songs; and out of the three, I’m really digging “Never Give!” by White Sneakers the most. Not only because the group contains, probably, three of my favorite Kareai members so far (Fukuda Hinata, Tsuchiya Remi and Teramoto Rie) but the song kinda goes hard. I enjoyed the light and fun rock sound to it, the shouting lines at the beginning hype you up and set the overall tone for the song, and I think this type of music fits really well with each members’ vocal styling and even their general personalities. Similar to how I feel about the other two subunits, the youthful and determined vibe that this song gives off seems like a great fit for Hinata, Remi and Rie respectively, based on what I’ve learned about each of them. (the MV taking place at a baseball field was also a plus lol)

That said, I do hope that Takaneko does something like this (technically they have, but I meant officially) in the future!

♫ 「Tongue Twister」 AMEFURASSHI

For the past couple years or so, I’ve come across many of the STARDUST PROMOTION/PLANET-produced idol groups. I will have to give a lot of credit to Leap since he did introduce me to my first StardustPro unit back in 2022 (TEAM SHACHI), which then led me to becoming interested in some others such as BATTEN GIRLS, B.O.L.T, ukka, Cho Tokimeki♡Sendenbu (whom we’ll also be talking about a bit later on), and more recently, AMEFURASSHI.

It was difficult to choose which Amefura song I wanted to showcase here, since “Blow Your Mind” and its K-pop vibe honestly impressed the heck out of me. I even thought that some of the vocals in that song reminded me of certain vocal stylings heard within the popular Korean pop group TWICE, and how Japan is continuing this, sort of, trend of emulating the genre/sound of Korean pop music.

But while “Blow Your Mind” is certainly a bop, I thought it’d be fun to talk about another song instead: “Tongue Twister”, off their Coffee album from last year. Main reason why is because, as you may notice when listening to the song, AMEFURASSHI implements and performs a ton of Japanese tongue twisters within its lyrics. Now, this isn’t anything new; I think the most recognizable example of this idea is from fellow Stardust idol group Momoiro Clover Z, with their wildly popular/memed track “Nippon Egao Hyakkei”. But in either case: it’s incredibly impressive that these idols can make these fast locutions look easy, plus it’s pretty cool that they were able to make these tongue twisters into coherent and decent-sounding lyrics (at least, to an English-speaking person like myself). I feel like these kinds of songs just wouldn’t work in English (maybe with the exception of music geared towards children) so it is kinda neat that Japan has been able to create these fun and catchy pop tracks with the use of well-known tongue twisters.

♫ 「Mayonaka no Binetsu」 UNLAME

Social media is honestly such a fascinating thing. There are many reasons why one would say that, but in my case, I thought it was wild how a TikTok dance trend where people look like they’re magically gliding led me to a really sick song from an idol group lol

Formed through the “OUT OF 48” audition program and consisting of active AKB48 members and other aspiring idols, UNLAME absolutely lives up to their name; especially when it comes to this song cause “Mayonaka no Binetsu” really is some heat. I immediately loved this track when I first heard it on their Instagram page, as it gives off a really nice groovy, city pop feel to it. It’s something that’s easy to vibe to, and similar to what the visuals are showing off here, I imagine this song would kinda hit different when listening to it on a nice moon-lit night. However, I think the main takeaway with this track is definitely within the vocals. All seven members of UNLAME sound very good here, the chorus is actually pretty catchy, and even the sprinkling of rap sections + English words throughout the song were executed fairly well.

Judging from this one song, UNLAME’s got a lot of promise so I’m definitely looking forward to whatever they release next!

♫ 「Warning」 MOONCHILD

If you use Apple Music and are an avid fan of idol music, you may have come across a certain playlist called ‘IDOL BOX’. It’s essentially AM’s curated playlist of the latest releases from a wide variety of idols/idol groups, and while I don’t browse it that often, there have been times where I just randomly pop in and see what new stuff I can find. And out of the many songs on the playlist’s most recent lineup, this track from MOONCHILD was one that caught my attention.

MOONCHILD is certainly an interesting group. If you’re in any way familiar with the J-pop group NiziU and how they’re actually produced by a wildly popular Korean entertainment company (JYP), the same type of thing is (sort of) happening here with MOONCHILD. These four were selected from a competition held by LDH JAPAN and, most notably, HYBE Labels Japan (the Japanese subsidiary of HYBE Corporation). And as many will probably know, HYBE has been responsible for producing world-renowned K-pop groups like BTS, SEVENTEEN, LE SSERAFIM and NewJeans.

And while MOONCHILD is not *directly* being produced by their parent company (unlike NiziU and JYP), you can still kinda get a heavy K-pop vibe from this group, especially within a song like “Warning”. I’d say it’s most evident when hearing these four sing (entirely in English, too), as their deeper and mature-sounding vocals are pretty reminiscent of other female K-pop groups I’ve listened to. But music-wise, it has a really nice low-key atmosphere to it, and the combination of the acoustic guitar and that sweet beat just works splendidly here. A super solid track, for sure.

♫ 「Muboujin」 ≒JOY

Well, considering that I’ve given many praises to =LOVE and ≠ME in the past, I figured I’d complete the Sashihara Rino trifecta by talking about her latest idol group endeavor: ≒JOY (pronounced ‘nearly equal joy’). They recently saw the release of their debut mini album, and coming into this, I thought that Niajoy and their music would have a familiar tone when compared to their older colleagues. And yeah, I do think that’s pretty much the case here.

Similar to the discographies of Ikorabu and Noimii, Niajoy also expresses a sense of ‘variety’ with their music, with them having a cool mixture of more upbeat/energetic tracks like “Sweet Sixteen” to much more dramatic-sounding songs such as the one we’re talking about here: “Muboujin”. Additionally, I’ve seen other people describe the music from the Sasshi groups as somewhat in-line with the usual 46/48 units, and while I haven’t listened to a ton of stuff from those groups, I would say this Niajoy track might be the closest example to that comparison. “Muboujin” gives off Keyakizaka46 vibes, with its cool dramatic expression (both in terms of the music and visuals) and strong instrumentals. Another thing that’s worth noting is Niajoy’s vocals, as I’ve always thought that the Sasshi groups do a nice job showcasing each and every member’s vocals. Similar to what I said about ≠ME in a previous roundup, you’re able to get a good idea of how each Niajoy girl sounds and they honestly all fit the overall mood of this song.

That said, while I’m much more invested in being a fan of =LOVE and ≠ME at the moment, I can tell that ≒JOY definitely has a lot of talent themselves and maybe I’ll take the time to learn more about them one day!

♫ 「Te to Te」 LINKL PLANET

It seems like within these past couple years, a lot of people, myself included, became fans of the Gundam franchise after seeing how good the Witch from Mercury anime was. Obviously the Gundam series has always been well-loved and popular, wayyyyyy before the airing of WfM, but I don’t think it’s that much of a stretch to say its following got a bit of a boost or surge, thanks to the great story and relationship dynamic shown between Suletta and Miorine. It definitely led to more people diving deeper into the franchise by watching some of the other anime series and even trying out the hobby of plastic model building with Bandai’s super popular Gunpla line.

…emphasis on that last part because- well, believe it or not: LINKL PLANET is an idol group that takes on a ‘plastic model’ theme. The group is being produced under Bandai and they’re even labeled as an official PR ambassador for the brand, so that kinda explains the existence of this idol group (lol). But as much as this seems like a cheesy/wacky attempt at promoting plastic model kits, LINKL PLANET’s music is actually not that bad.

“Te to Te”, while mostly serving as a PR music video for Shizuoka Prefecture (aka the plastic model capital of Japan), was a really easy-going and fun track to listen to. It’s approachable, has a nice variety of sounds and instruments that all mix well together (ranging from pianos, trumpets, steady percussion and a touch of digital noises), and it’s a little amusing to hear an idol group sing about various aspects of plamo building such as runners (the plastic that holds the model parts). It’s simply just a fun pop track/MV that does a nice job of showing the appeal of Shizuoka, and it may also inspire a few people to try out Gunpla/plamo building themselves.

Think it’s also worth mentioning that I first found out about LINKL PLANET through Ryousangata Riko: a light-hearted live action TV show that revolves around plastic model building (here’s a fun episode for the fellow Love Livers). They provided the ending theme songs for the series and one of Rinpla’s second-gen members, Ishida Yuka, actually had a role in its second season! (the main character in that show is actually played by another idol, too)

(Lastly, Rinpla has a section on their website where they showcase the Gunpla and other plastic models that each member has worked on themselves, which I thought was kinda adorable :P)

♫ 「hapila blue」 Cho Tokimeki♡Sendenbu

Speaking of Love Live, did you know they produce an entire musical theater performance now?

Yes, indeed they do. And while most of us overseas fans haven’t had the opportunity to watch said musical, it’s actually been really interesting to learn about its performers, since there are a lot of interesting connections/names that can be seen. A good handful of the School Idol Musical’s cast are, in fact, current or past members of various idol groups such as Sato Minami (AKB48) and Horiuchi Marina (Sakura Gakuin). And one name that has stood out to me is An Julia, who is currently a part of the popular StardustPro unit Cho Tokimeki♡Sendenbu.

Now, considering that Tokisen has come out with a few super viral tracks that have been used throughout social media, such as the ultra catchy “SUKI! (CHO ver.)”, it wasn’t that difficult to hear about this group. I’ve enjoyed some of their previous hit tracks, and only recently have I taken a deeper look at their discography, after learning about Julia and her involvement in the Love Live series. And yet again, Tokisen recently released another fun and well-received song; this time with “hapila blue”.

They just know how to make a hit. It really does seem that way; not only because the MV for “hapila blue” has almost two million views in a span of two weeks, but it’s also pretty darn catchy and memorable. It checks all the right boxes when it comes to joyful/cutesy idol music; from the bright and sparkly sounds and energetic backing beat, to the ladies’ fun vocal performances. The latter in particular, cause the lyrics and vocals within “hapila blue” have been stuck in my head for a while now lol

♫ 「Koko ni Aru Kotae wa」 Zsasz

You’ll notice in this song’s music video that there’s definitely a heavier and more emotional mood throughout. Reason being that this is the final music video that idol rock group Zsasz would ever release, as they were set to disband a month or so after. This was also coincidentally around the time when I first discovered Zsasz, and similar to my experience with another idol unit called ‘rirunede’… once again, my timing was certainly unfortunate 😅

Even then, I think “Koko ni Aru Kotae wa” was both a good introduction to this group and a song that really exemplifies who Zsasz was. As I’ve said many times whenever Leap gives me an alternative idol album for the Exchange/Rate segment, I don’t usually listen to these types of ‘unconventional’ idol groups. However, something about Zsasz and this track intrigued me; whether it was the heavy rock sound they give off (which I occasionally enjoy) or the fantastic vocals. I mean, idol stuff aside, this is a really solid rock track. I’d imagine many fans of this style of music would appreciate what’s being heard here, in terms of the intense and traditional-sounding instrument performances. But I do also enjoy how Zsasz still managed to make their music sound very idol-like, thanks to each member’s great and strong vocal performances. I could tell that these five felt really passionate about what they sing about and how they do it, which does make their disbandment feel a bit more saddening.

Even though I’ve only heard a few songs and known about Zsasz for a couple months, I really enjoyed what I heard from all of them and hopefully they’re still active in the idol space!

Aaaand that’s all I got for you today!

Hope you all thought this was an interesting roundup. There are so many cool idol groups out there and being someone who has really gotten deep into the general idol scene this past year, I just hope that I was able to give some of these units a bit more exposure. They deserve it and it’d be neat if you found a new group to check out! And who knows, I may make this an annual theme for the medorē segment now :P

Also, if you’d like to listen to these songs on Spotify, I made a dedicated playlist! Feel free to save it :D

Lastly, let me know your thoughts on any of these groups/songs! And if you have any idol recommendations yourself, I’m all ears. I’d love to add more stuff to my music rotation!

Thanks for reading!! :D

-al