Please Stand By

We interrupt our regularly scheduled blog posting to bring you this clip of Hyoyeon scaring Jessica as they listen to a recording of a Haunted School story.

We will resume regular blogging tomorrow. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.

Puri Puri Still Rockin' in 2012!

Just finished watching Princess Princess sweet but brief concert performance they did for the ALL THAT LOVE~ Give&Give Charity Event, and I have to say that while a bit rusty (and can you blame them, it's been 16 freakin' years), the power of those five girls is still there and watching them do the classics like "Diamonds", "Oh Yeah!". "M" and the almighty  "Seven Years After" was still as gripping as ever! Okui Kaori, Nakayama Kanako, Watanabe Atsuko, Konno Tomoko and Tomita Kyoko- THEY'RE BACK!

Was magic to see all five of them together going through the moves once again, and I have to say that there were quite a few times when it looked like I was watching an older video of them in their heyday, the poses and gestures were almost dead on same! That's what years and years of honing your act will burn into your subconscious and it's like they'd never forgotten it!

Even better than the performance though was the sweet lil documentary they shot covering the five memebrs lives as they worked out their schedules to begin performing again, and it was like seeing old friends (and could conceivably be called "Platinum Days Make III)- the clips of them interacting with each other and rehearsing in the studio are the best! And LOL, watching Kyoko as amother of a couple of rambunctious kids had me cracking up!

I'm sure they'll be fireing on all cylinders come November, so Japan better look out!

A Surreal SNSD Experience

Girls Generation on Late Show with David Letterman

And speaking of Shojo Jidai, I finally got around to seeing that performance from earlier this year when the girls appeared on the LATE SHOW with David Letterman here in America! Don’t know if if was more surreal to hear the words “Girls Generation” coming out of Dave’s mouth as he introduced the band (and having Regis Philbin comment “Whoa!”), seeing him actually holding a copy of their “The Boys” CD in his hand…

Dave with Bill Murray looking on

…Or watching the performance and afterwards when Dave’s done thanking them... 

 and as they’re wrapping up the show, seeing Bill Murray talking to Seohyun and Jessica!

I was like rubbing my eyes thinking, “This is a merging of two worlds that I never thought I’d ever see cross!” LOL

Talkin' 'Bout My (Girls) Generation!

Like my love of the Beatles widened my horizons to appreciate all those other British Invasion groups like the Rolling Stones, Kinks and my all time favorite group The Who all those years and years ago, like my Love of Idol Group CoCo introduced me to the amazing world of J-Pop with acts like Ribbon, Moritaka Chisato, Amuro Namie and Princess Princess, so have amazing South Korean group KARA brought me on board to the magic of K-Pop! And thanks to online community, forums and streaming sites, (as well as a small group of dedicated friends), I’ve been getting into a whole slew of new K-Pop acts to love, and KARA aside, the group that has pulled far and away from the pack and have stolen my heart is (you guessed it) Shojo Jidai/SNSD, the mighty GIRLS GENERATION!

Though I’ve liked their music for awhile now, it was watching their antics on variety/reality/music shows via streaming video sites/online forums where I feel like I really got to “know” the girls, and though I’ve already stated how much I lustlove Jessica, I can now firmly state that I truly love each and every member of this group, and see how every person is a valuable component that make this group such an unstoppable force. You’ve got the hip chicks, the chicks with amazing vocals, the girls with the dance skillz and of course the sexy n gorgeous ones as well, making for a package stronger than the sum of its parts!

Having said that, I’ll admit that some of the girls are closer to my heart when watching them either on shows or onstage, when checking them out, I’ll inevitably find myself searching out the screen looking for my favorite members, and though of course opinions like this aren’t set in stone (and, as with all idols, is ever-changing and mercurial), I thought I’d take the time out to praise some of my cherished SNSD princesses, if not for any other reason than (Like my earlier KARA post) so that my friends will know who I’m talking about when I bend their ears about them!!

5. Hyoyeun

If there was one SNSD member that I could say I remembered from the first time I saw the group perform, it would have to be the group’s self-proclaimed “dancing queen” Hyoyeon. At the time, I noted her as “That girl in the group with the really hard features”, funny how those same looks were what attracted me to her later on! 

In fact, I got so hooked on her looks that when I began watching the more “recent” videos, I had a hard time getting used to her “lightened eyebrows” look. Watching her in all those variety shows, I fell in love with her strong, tomboyish personality, (love watching her give her fellow members “the business”!), love that raspy voice of hers when she's talking, and man, can she bust a move!

4. Tiffany

Though she was just about the last member I learned to recognize on face value, pretty Californian born Tiffany has risen to become one of the girls I constantly fixate on! Actually, Fany (as they call her) was just another one of the girls in the background to me until I watched the “Hello Baby” reality show, and then...

Above and Below: Pretty Tiffany showing concern in "Hello Baby"

...I dunno, there was something about how she looked that  reminded me of all those girls I had crushed on in elementary school, indeed, she looked like she could have grown up right here in Hawaii! Additionally, her uneasiness and vulnerability around taking care of a baby really warmed me to her! After that, I always looked out for her!

3. Seohyun

Watching the Intimate Note special, I was immediately touched by adorable Seohyun’s sweet and innocent demeanor. Amidst the raucous and lively girls of SNSD sat this quiet and reserved girl who to me gives off a decidedly “Christian” vibe, with her gentle way of talking as she speaks about conscientious living and eating healthy, and it was fun to see her talk about how she’s “not interested in guys right now”…

...such a good girl, and even onstage, she’s the one that reminds me most of the old Pony Canyon acts with her genki gestures and cheery smile! And if that wasn’t enough, Seohyun’s got a stellar set of pipes-WOW can she sing!

2. Yuri

Everyone reading this already knows who I’ve long rated as my favorite member of SNSD (see below), but if there was anyone who could challenge Jessica for that top position of Number One, it would have to be the beautiful Yuri, coming in at a VERY CLOSE second!! 
Though I consider Jessica the “Babe” of SNSD, for total statuesque SEXINESS, the prize would have to go to the fantastically Model-looks of bronze stunner Yuri! 

Girls’ Generation is noted for the cool dancing featuring those LONG, Long Legs, and the person who personifies this most MUST be Yuri, and watching her either struttin’ down the runway in concert or simply crossing her legs during interviews can send me into seventh heaven! 

Yuri, Yoona and Sooyoung

Seohyun and Yuri

On stage, she commands a “Goddess” aura, and yet, offstage she’s generally one of the more laid-back and silly girls, and it seems like every time I see her, she’s impressing me with her cool athleticism, gentle kindness and warm camaraderie with the other members, always playful with a twinkle in her eye, and OOOH that smile of hers could sail a thousand ships…! Though Yuri’s at 2nd place right now, don’t be surprised at all if one day soon she makes the move for first!

1. Jessica 

I don’t know how much more I could gush about our delicately girlish and feminine Ice Princess here that I haven’t already blathered about a hundred times, but I’ll tell you something I HAVE noticed…When I first got into SNSD, I though that Jessica was going to be the “Kimura Takuya”,“Ishikawa Rika”, or “Matsumoto Jun” of the group; that is, the standout attractive one that EVERYONE inevitably chose as their fave…in this short time I’ve been immersed in SNSD, I’m finding this not to be the case, and among the fans of GG I’ve talked to, not ONE of them even counts Jessica as a member they LIKE, much less their FAVE, additionally, I’ve been discovering that (at least among selected online community) a lot of hostility seems to be aimed at her :(  …Nobody be hatin’ on my ‘Sica! 

Luckily there are enough videos of fans coming up to her and just GUSHING all over her about how much they love her and how gorgeous she is, extending the LOVE! Heck, if I could, I’d be doing the same! Yep, she’s my Number One, Troo Dat!

Stay Tuned for further developments with Girls Generation!

KARA ReACTIONS

Had some friends over this past weekend and decided to show them a few of my favorite KARA videos. These friends didn't listen to J-pop at all, really (except for the odd clip I'd show them once every blue moon), but I knew that KARA's hotness would extend over any language barriers that might prevent them from enjoying the experience. They ended up really digging the scene, and I had to laugh at some of the interesting comments them made during the viewing!

On Seeing KARA for the first time:
Friend One: "Man, They're so damn Pretty!"

Friend Two: "Are you sure these girls are KOREAN? They Look Japanese."

Then Seeing Gyuri appear onscreen:

Friend One: "Okay, that one looks Korean."

On Seeing the famous "Butt Dance" for the first time in the "Mister" PV::

(Both of them): "Whoa."

Seeing the Girls in their multi-Colored  "Mosaic" outfits for the "Step" PV:

Friend Two: "Man, those Koreans really go for it with those colors!"

Upon the abrupt shift in  the song style during the bridge of "Step":

Friend One: WTF! Man, you can do whatever you want in a song if you're pretty, eh?"

And the most hilarious comment of the day after watching KARA's unbelievably sexy and hot dance gyrating hip moves in the"Wanna" PV:

Friend Two: "You know the difference between watching these videos as opposed to those other idol videos like Morning Musume is that you don't feel bad about the thoughts going through your mind, since that's obviously what they intended."LOL!!!!!

A Strange Sense of Deja Vu with ATARU

Just finished watching the Nakai Masahiro/Kuriyama Chiaki/Kitamura Kazuki crime drama ATARU, the story of a fledgling girl working under a cynical supervisor unable to crack a murder case until said girl makes contact with a quirky young man with an odd power he uses for deduction that helps them crack the case...Solid story, and I know ATARU’s been getting LOADS of rave reviews, but I have to say, this drama reminded me not just a LITTLE of “Kagi No Kakatta Heya”, LOL! 

Ah well, they’re both pretty interesting dramas, so it looks like I’ll have to tune in to BOTH of them!

SNSD: Jessica Still The One!

Jessica Jung, SNSD

With all of this recent immersion into the world of K-POP, I’ve inevitably been coming across many of the other popular acts while maneuvering through the pages of Youtube and Daily Motion looking for more precious KARA gems, from 4Minute,T-ara, 2NE1, and of course, the good old reliable GIRLS GENERATION!

Girls Generation! It was inevitable that I would get back into these girls now that I’m so involved with K-Pop, for SNSD (or Shojo Jidai, or whatever you want to call ‘em was one of the first Korean artists I put onto my J-pop mixes (the first artist credit goes to the invincible BoA, followed by Tohishinki) so I already knew they were something special!

Looking back through my blog though, it seems like the only mention I made of them here (besides their appearance on the Kohaku along with KARA) was when I wrote up on how much I loved SNSD member Jessica Jung after watching those fun VITA500 CM clips! Since that time awhile ago when I declared Jessica my favorite member purely by her pretty look and cute demeanor, I’ve gotten to know those Nine Members of SNSD a lot better , but wouldn’tcha know it? Gorgeous Ice Princess Jessica is still my all-time favorite!

Jessica and The Girls

Now, my appreciation of SNSD is growing every day,(and HEY, I can even point out and name all of them, a feat I couldn’t have managed back then) and have even managed to develop a love for several of the other girls (Yuri and Seohyun, to be precise), but as my love of the group is growing, my adoration for Jessica is moving along at the same steady pace! This chick has it all: Luscious looks, that cool-but-stand-offish attitude, and my can she sing! Wow, that girl can really hit it!

"Kagi No Kakatta Heya" Promises to be a Fun Ride!

The New Drama "Kagi No Kakgatta Heya" starring Arashi Leader Ohno Satoshi as a quirky Security Locksmith with an interest in the theory of the "Locked Room" Murder Mysteries looks like it's gonna be a fun one! The always affable Toda Erika is on hand to bust out the spazziness in yet another one of her adorably zany roles, and Sato Koichi rounds out the cast! I'll definitely be checking up on this one!

Your Kick-Ass KARA Performances: "LUPIN"

Besides being one of KARA's most rocking and thrilling songs ever and having the distinction of separating the earlier "Cute and Fun" image of the group and their later "Cool and Sexy" look, the song featured some of the most AWESOME dance moves, full of all the lush glamour and tuff bravado that would become the group's signature style, and no clip shows this better than this incredible performance KARA did on the ComeBack HOT ISSUE stage in 2010!

PS: As far as Mini-Albums go, LUPIN is a masterpiece! Not only did it introduce the world to KARA's smoky, exotic new look, it features songs Lupin, Umbrella, Rollin', Lonely, and a minor POP PERFECT tune with the bright, energetic feel-good song TASTY LOVE, another BIG favorite of mine!

Kara "Binks" (Korean Version)

Was quite thrilled (and somewhat relieved) to find that the Korean Version of that absolutely sweet and adorable KARA song "Binks" that I heretofore had thought only available as a bonus on the "Girl's Talk" Limited Edition CD, was in fact one of the tracks on their "Jumping" Mini-Album along with the original Korean versions of Jumping, Love Is, and Sweet Days! WHEW!

Though Of course I'm still trying to get ahold of those elusive Limited Editions of the awesome "Girls Talk" albums, it's nice to know that getting the edition (Version C) with those bonus songs isn't quite as imperative as it was before! In fact, now I can concentrate on getting the ones with either the 28 page Photo Booklet or the one with the Bonus DVD!

Edit: Version B (the one with the 28pg Photo Book)  is the one I ended up going with, and should hopefully be arriving at my doorstep in a few weeks if I'm lucky! Crosses Fingers...