Jpop: Top 20 of the fourth quarter of 2015

With a few exceptions, this last quarter of 2015 seems dedicated to the odd, the different and the ugly, which is in some sense is just business as usual for what makes me love the japanese music world.

20. Riemann Mic - Re: Gokun OK. If nothing else, I liked a lot of "ugly culture" videos this autumn, with aesthetics that one would maybe think is un-Japanese, but they are very much a part of Japanese culture, believe me. ;-)

19. Inshow ha - Pretty. The life-size ice copies gimmick aside, this is very much the sound of Inshow ha again, in a good way.

18. Daoko - ShibuyaK. A rather new and young aquaintance but then she also has a very fresh and interesting take on the jpop sound.

17. Suiyoubi no Campanella - Ra. It is obvious that this video shows that SnC is getting more and more recognition for their music as it is their most expensive and visually impressive video be far.

16. Suiyoubi no Campanella - Medusa. If 'Ra' is carried by its visual strength, Medusa is more a meld of a sound and vision - yes, a typical good SnC video in other words.

15. AoA - Oh Boy. First single from their japanese debut this song and video delivers all of what the fans expects in terms of looks, choreography and sound, but I find it slightly repetitive in the long run.

14. Crayon Pop - Dancing all night. Their second japanese single is actually one of their better songs the last year, and the video shows of yet another of their excellent and nerdy dance numbers.

13. 0.8Syooogeki - Words of rainbow color. Both very beautiful *and* very punk, that is a feat in itself. Love this video.

12. Sloth - Bi Bi Bi. The video is on the trashy side, but that just suits the Serebro cover perfectly, with Tokyo rapper Sloth managing to make the song even more addictive.

11. Rip Slyme ft Chay - Jump. The sounds of this are really cool and modern, combinating perfectly with the video.

10. Beddo In ft Ijiri Okada - C-tone beauty-eggplant. It seems I have managed to dig into  more than average of ugly videos these last few months...this is another one. Charming in all its burlesque.

9. Tokyo Karan Koron - Spice. Her voice! Those guitars! So harmonic and sweet.

8. BoA - Lookbook. Yet another good song from the queen of asian pop.

7. Asakura Saya ft Gomess - River Boat Song. Super charming Saya involves autistic rapper Gomess to reach even further with her very personal take on traditional japanese enka songs.

6. 5572320 - Ponpara Pekoruna Papiyotta. This video is so very much an indirect tribute to Queen, with its pompous and crazy video and arrangement. So impressive.

5. Asako Toki - C’est La Vie ~Onna wa Ai ni Isogashii~. Asako Toki's jazzy voice is a golden jazz voice and here it comes perfectly to its right, creating a small soft universe with her singing.

4. Mizuki Nana - Super☆man. She has already made several popular songs for animes and such, but this song cought my eye for being so positive and just happy, which felt refreshing and perfect for Mizuki Nana.

3. Osaka Syunkasyuto - Furo the King. Singer Maina is so impressive in her cover och Rainbow's original song and this video version is so completely crazy and captivating!

2. Rebecca ft Charisma.com - Friends. Yep, two covers for top three, but the new version of this song is all about the nerve of the song and the contrast between Rebecca's and rapper Itsuka's singing, it just takes the song to the next level.

1. Frederic - Owarase Night. A close fight but the guys of Frederic won this on creativity, and I really love their sound.

Jpop: Rebecca ft Charisma.com

This is a really cool cooperation - the front singer Rebecca of a 80s rock band Nokko and modern rap duo Charisma.com does a nice electronic dance track out of a hit from 1985. Love the sound and contrast between the voices.

• Rebecca ft Charisma.com - Friends (フレンズ)
• Rebecca - Friends (original sound)

Jpop: Happiness

With "Juicy Love" I think Happiness has finally taken the step from wannabe's to a group in their own right as the music finally has that quality that makes it stand out a little more. Yes, Happiness is still very much about dance moves and eye candy, but they move to a song that is actually catchy and listenable on its own.

• Happiness - Juicy Love
• Happiness - Sunshine Dream
• Happiness - Wish
• Happiness - Friends
• Happiness - Kiss Me

Trip to Sapporo: Day 18 - Going home, what was the Top 5 of Sapporo?

(Click here for first day, yesterday or for all trips)

Sitting on my bus home from Arlanda Airport in Sweden (thx Swebus for the free wifi), I thought I would sum up the things I appreciated the most in an informal list. There are lots of other things but these ones I would like to give extra thanks for.

5. The Ishiya Chocolate Factory. It proved to be so much more than just a peek at the production line. Really quite the perfect goal for a family trip or anyone who is interested in chocolate, history, toys, english Tudor buildings, and/or gramophones.

4. The Tower of Sauron. Well, not really. But what do you call a 100 meter high monument made of iron that looks like an 1:1 replica taken straight of of Lord of the Rings? This is for sure one of the hidden tourist gems of Sapporo city.

3. The Snow. I mean - really? It was just fantastic how much snow Sapporo got, it almost snowed every day. To increase the effect, in Japan the snow isn't so much taken away as piled up in high walls so it is not unusual with 3 meter high snow walls even in the city. I got to rekindle my love for snow from when I grew up in the north of Sweden. I love snow(the video…)!

2. The Unexpected Friendship with Minami and Mikael. Just from a spontaneous contact made by Minami at the Mandrake store, I got to experience a genuine New Years celebration with them, but more important, we had some great times and I really appreciate these random encounters in life, they can mean so much. I wish you both the best of luck and I hope we meet again.

1. BUIE Gakuen, or rather it's residents and the openness of its welcome. I have already talked so much positive about the shared living of BUIE Gakuen in Sapporo, but again I must press how great an idea it is. People in the ages between 20 - 50 sharing facilities and lives instead of just living alone. This may not be the main point, but as a recently divorced man I want to point out that I know for a fact that several relationships and even marriages have started here. Everyone there, I don't know when I will come back, and many of you will have moved on by then, but I wish Kenji and all of you the best of luck with finding happiness.

Trip to Korea and Japan: Day 18 - I will miss you, Sapporo! (また会いましょう)

(Click here for first day, yesterday and all trips)
Last day in Sapporo meant a lot of farewells. Staying at Buie Gakuen has meant so much for me, and I have people and friends there, some who I actually think may last for a long time (I hope) even if we are separated physically. I know I am emotionally at a stage in my life where to be careful about these things, but still my impression of Sapporo as a whole is of a big city with a soft heart. It doesn't feel like a city you disappears in, instead it welcomes you. All my contacts with museum curators, professors, strangers and others has all started and ended in very positive tones. I know this is only scraping on the surface of a much more mixed bag of truths, but still, I will treasure its memory.

 Curry food is actually very popular in Hokkaido right now. This was a super delicious SoupCurry that Kenji-san treated me with at his favorite restaurant. The base tasted excellent but also all the vegetables and meat was so varied and nice. Mushrooms, egg, carrot,zucchini(?),chicken,...

And in the evening it was BBQ on the roof. Here you see Kyokushin Karate Master Francois (sorry, soo bad spelling) taking on Judo Sensei Ayaka in a fight to the death. Just kidding! But it was this kind of informal evening when everyone joined up and brought meat, potatoes, drink, and shared it together.  There was soccer (my team won, yay) and very hentai japanese words explained in explicit detail (I think, I didn't understand anything...).

Aw, this I will really miss. So, I am not saying sayonara, instead:また会いましょう. ^_^

(Click here for the next day)