Jpop: Top 10 of the third quarter of 2014

As we are heading into the last quarter of 2014, I am summing up what I blogged about in regards to Japanese pop from July - September.
First, I would like to mention Wagakki Band and their "Hanabi" as a honorable number 11:

Anyway, here are the ten best music videos or acts:

10. Perfume - Cling Cling. First I must re-iterate how mingy Perfume's record company is, releasing only short low-res videos of Perfume's great videos, but when that is said this song was also not a bigfavorite of mine as it felt a little generic musically. Still, it feels like a good start of this autumn which will end with me (hopefully) going to Perfume's concert in London in November.

9. Hoshino Michiru - Night Voyage. This is a prime example of one of the reasons why I keep coming back to japanese music - there are just so many odd songs that seems to exist in a small universe of their own, it's like the inverse of western music somehow - mainstream is being "off-stream" - songs that doesn't have a wide hit potential is allowed to get their chance. Some are fails, but some are unexpected pleasingly experiences.

8. Tempura Kidz vs Charisma.com - Mummy Killer. Charisma.com impressed me with their strong-willed debut last winter, and they keep exceeding in showing off their will to go their own way, this time with dance group Tempura Kidz in an 80s parody.

7. Suiyoubi no Campanella - Sen no Rikyū. This odd homage to the originator of the japanese tea ceremony as we know it today is another likable song from this duo.

6. Dempagumi.inc - Chururi Chururira. The girl otaku's made another superb video and if the song honestly hadn't been (as usual...) a bit too energic, it would have been higher on the list, haha. ;-)

5. Urbangarde - One Piece Double Suicide. This video, another cozy avantgarde piece from Urbangarde, imakes me think of a number of animes with cool girls that use cool weapons.

4. FaintStar - Like Spilled Water. The debut has a dream quality that I liked, and I hope they will cintonue with the same sound.

3. NeoBallad - Hachinohe Song. As Omodaka is one of my all-time favorite Japanese musicians, I was of course thrilled when I heard Neoballad's new song. The combination of traditional Enka-style song and modern electronic instruments is simply so sublime in my mind.

2. C-ute - The Grieving Heaven. In many ways there are both more creative songs and definitely cooler videos in this list, but C-ute again manages to deliver a song that is the essential idol hit, nothing more, nothing less.

1. FEMM - Whiplash, Party All Night, Fxxk Boyz Get Money, Wannabe, Unbreakable, ... well there is no discussing it, I am sure that this is THE new act of Japanese pop in 2014. A fantastic number of high quality videos, all sung in english and with mostly good songs, if any japanese group is going to make it abroad, FEMM is the best new candidate in years.