Idols I Have Loved: Favorites of 2012 by artist

[topazera]

Hey f-list! How are you? Is 2013 treating you well so far? This first week has been fine for me but fingers crossed I don't have a black cat cross my path or get attacked by a turkey (more likely, they have been chasing the mailman) and jinx the whole thing. :) Guess what though? I'm not quite done with 2012. LOL, okay, I thought of doing an end of the year Idols I Have Loved music post since about December 8th but I just haven't gotten things together until now. SO, if everyone isn't over reminiscing yet, here's my contribution!

The criteria for who I was going to discuss in this post was basically: only if I've followed more than one release and actively kept up with their performances, they're in. I like a looooooot of people casually but this post was going to get out of control if I just blabbed about everyone I've had a whirlwind romance with this year. :P These artists were people I, unexpectedly or not, knew and felt a lot about this year!

Since we live in a) the tumblr era and b) the policed YouTube era, I've included both celebratory gifs for each artist (epilepsy warning... in fact, seeing them all together, I really think I should have just used pictures. A LITTLE INTENSE.) and uploaded files if you want to follow along! Sorry if the files are kind of big, I originally made them to make gifs off of and thought why not share. ♥ All files with more than one part need to be joined and then the ending changed from .psd to .mp4. All files of Korean artists (except for one), were originally encoded by Gallade and reencoded to mp4 by me. All files are 720p, with one exception at 450p. :)

Click the spoiler to find out if you are interested in the people represented in the post (or don't and be surprised). Also, there are spoilers for one Kouhaku performance in this post, click for which one: Arashi, Kanjani8, Hey! Say! JUMP, Perfume, f(x), Miss A, Gain, Jokwon, Seo In Guk! Contains spoilers for Kanjani8's Kouhaku performance, if you haven't seen it yet!

Idols I Have Loved
Favorites of 2012
by artist





Arashi






Favorite PV: Wild at Heart
Favorite Performance: Music Station 2012.05.04 - Face Down
Favorite B-side/Album song: Welcome to our party
Most Listened to Song: Face Down

Sighhhhhhh~~~ Arashi and I had a good year. ♥♥ Is there any way a year that contained both Wild at Heart and Face Down could be anything else? ♥ I was really happy that Arashi got to do a lot different things: Wild at Heart was a goofy, glittery, cuddlepile, Face Down was DANCE DANCE BE BADASS and Your Eyes was pretty ballad where you can stand in one place and sing. Popcorn was an album I fell for fast and hard and I'm still going strong listening to it. And even with all this, this year will probably be most remembered as the year of Arafes! WHICH WAS TRULY LIKE THE CLOUDS WERE PARTED AND A HAND EXTENDED TO LIFT US INTO THE HEAVENS!! WE NOW HAVE GIMMICK GAME AND TOKEI JIKAKE NO UMBRELLA PERFORMANCES ON DVD. I'm seriously going to be lighting incense every year on December 26th now, in an offering few around me will understand. XD

I picked this performance of Face Down… because there was really no other choice. It is the alpha and the omega. If I had to pick my jam of this year, Face Down was it. And I just don't think any subsequent performance can touch this one, that so sweepingly and completely caught my heart. Sometimes knowing someone is fighting injury makes things a little painful to watch but here, it just makes sense. Oh, of course, that's why Nino is owning us even more than usual and stealing this Ohno-drama song from its rightful owner. :DDD I swear, out of the nineteen moments that I selected as my favorite to maybe gif (19!!), Nino had a solid four when everyone else was lucky to have one. Fucking Nino. XD

I've already written a lot about Popcorn and I think the brilliance of the Wild at Heart PV is pretty self-evident! I have trouble talking about Arashi because I feel like I just live in these trenches day and day out but if anyone wants to chat, I would be happy to~~

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 292.2 MB change name ✒ 20120504 Msta - Arashi - Face Down.mp4

Kanjani8




Favorite PV: Aoppana
Favorite Performance: Kouhaku Uta Gassen 2012.12.31 - Naniwa Iroha Bushi + Musekinin Hero
B-side/Album song: Merry Go Round
Most Listened to Song: Ai Deshita

Picking from this year's Eito material was by far the hardest decisions! I thought all their releases this year were both really solid and really different, so it's impossible to measure them against each other. It made me so happy to see the Eito Rangers debut! But then I love band songs so Ai Deshita was a winner! But then I also horn sections and ska influences so I adored Aoppana! And then do I even count Crouton… seriously, I was washed away into Kanjani8 love for a whole day and made no choices. ♥♥

B-sides, ugh, forget it! I think Kanjani8 has the most consistently wonderful b-sides of any group I follow. There are so many times I listen to them and think "Why didn't they save this song for an a-side!! I want them to perform on music show, gosh!!" I seriously love five out of seven (not counting the Eight Ranger theme. XD …Or Crouton.) of the b-sides this year. In the end I picked Merry Go Round because I think it's really fresh and clear, it really caught my ears and I found myself reaching for it more than others. I think it does a great job featuring different voices and harmonies. I really love Ryo's voice and the Yasu background "Merry Go Round~" and the harmonies during the chorus are just so good. EITO. ♥

For performance… it was a really hard choice but eventually I had follow my heart and pick Kouhaku. :) Even though it was the very last hours of the year. XD This performance simultaneously made me so happy, just grinning from ear-to-ear, and also really emotional. For them to be standing on the stage of Kouhaku, so obviously over the moon to be there, and to put in a performance that just radiated warmth and lit up the venue… I was just so proud to be their fan. ♥ I haven't been made teary-eyed by Naniwa Iroha Bushi in a long time but it totally got to me to see it performed with, like, fancy costumes and back-up dancers on such a prestigious stage! It's impossible to take off my fangirl blinders but I did think it was a stand out performance even at Kouhaku. :) So it really shouldn't be seen as a slight to this year material that in the end I picked something else to represent the year, this just felt like a summit of so many years of work. ♥ Kouhaku was really a great tie-breaker for every performance of ER and Ai Deshita on Music Station, to drop in some honorable mentions. :)

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 300.7 MB change name ✒ 20121231 Kouhaku - Kanjani8 - Naniwa irohabushi + Musekinin HERO.mp4

Hey! Say! JUMP




Favorite PV: N/A (There was only one XD)
Favorite Performance: Shounen Club 2012.02.03 - Super Delicate
Honorable Mention: Music Station Super Live 2011.12.23 - Over
B-side/Album song: N/A (not into them enough to listen to b-sides)
Most Listened to Song: Beat Line

This was the first year I was into Hey! Say! JUMP and for a long while, it was begrudgingly. XD Ahaha, HSJ is all the things I told myself I didn't have a need for: YOUNG PEOPLE and A MILLION MEMBERS. But really, I should have known better. XD What wound up hooking me was a) that honorable mention performance at the end of last year, that I caught by chance and then got super into and watched a million times (Chinen's stupid backflip, this is a little your fault!!) and b) they are at least all over eighteen now. :D I'm really liking them as a dance-based Johnnies group, the songs I've been into have been: Over, Super Delicate and Beat Line. Basically if they keep calling back to that path sometimes, I'm going to be all over it. ♥

I picked this performance because getting into HSJ really taught me that you can leave it to Shounen Club to get things right for true fans of a song. XD I haaaaaate when they cut off the ending or make them speed it up or don't use the right camera angle for moves that are supposed to be viewed from the front and… honestly there are just a lot of pitfalls that other music shows fall into. XD This one is just THE performance of Super Delicate… see, this is why it was a little embarrassing to admit at first: I like HSJ enough to have all these opinions now. I HAVE STRONG OPINIONS. I think I'm finally growing past my OH NO, I HONESTLY AM INTO HEY SAY JUMP puberty. :D :D

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 261.9 MB change name ✒ 20120203 Shounen Club - Hey! Say! JUMP - Super Delicate.mp4
Honorable Mention || MF: [001] 138.3 MB change name ✒ 20111223 MSSL - Hey! Say! JUMP - OVER.mp4

Perfume



Favorite PV: Spring of Life
Favorite Performance: SUMMER SONIC 2012 2012.09.21 - Spending all my time
B-side/Album song: Communication
Most Listened to Song: Spending all my time

Perfume was EXQUISITE this year, in my book. Seriously, deciding between Spring of Life and Spending all my time was difficult because they granted two of flawless concepts, Perfume-as-robots-who-fall-in-love and Perfume-as-rogue-telekinetics. Really, what more needs to be said! We had a year with both those things! I think in the end I loved Spring of Life's concept most of all but got more obsessed with Spending all my time as a song/performance. Also, I wasn't sure if I should count it as a b-side, but Hurly Burly was ALSO amazing?? Just: KUDOS, PERFUME, KUDOS! ♥

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 249.6 MB change name ✒ 20120921 SUMMER SONIC 2012 - Perfume - Spending all my time + Polyrhythm.mp4

Miss A





Favorite PV: Touch
Favorite Performance: Music Bank 2012.10.26 - I Don't Need a Man
B-side/Album song: Over U
Most Listened to Song: I Don't Need a Man

I have to give props to JYP to giving Miss A two very different projects this year! I really hope they keep trying different things with them, the members are so talented and they could do a lot. Of course, Miss A handled both the refined, eerie sexiness of Touch and fun, splashiness of I Don't Need a Man with aplomb. I think the real standout aspects of these singles were: the choreography of Touch and energy of I Don't Need a Man. I loooooove the slightly monstrous quality of Touch, I only wish they played with the zombie-ish aspect even more! I feel like they could have made something SUPER with the PV. And then in I Don't Need a Man, you could just see they were having such a great time performing it. I think Jia and Min's rap part needs a particular shout-out, ugh, SO GOOD. I'm not sure what the state of girl group music was in Korea, but this seemed like such an early 90s throwback to me and that is DELIGHTFUL. For some reason, I actually didn't get very into I Don't Need a Man when it came out but when I first started reviewing for this project and gave it another listen, I got hooked.

In the end, I decided to go with I Don't Need a Man over Touch, I can't say whether that's because it's fresh in my memory or actually the standout of the year! I selected this particular performance because they just seemed SO happy and having SO much fun. Also, Fei and Min's hair are the most flawless versions of their I Don't Need a Man styling and they are all wearing ties. Sighhhhhhh~~~

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 222.6MB change name ✒ Gallade_121026 Music Bank - Miss A - I Don't Need a Man.mp4

f(x)




Favorite PV: Technically N/A but-- Electric Shock XD
Favorite Performance: Mnet M!Countdown 120614 - Electric Shock
B-side/Album song: Beautiful Stranger
Most Listened to Song: Beautiful Stranger

f(x) meanwhile went a different way than Miss A: they released one song this year that was SO THEM. Seriously, it fit their concept so perfectly and just reveled in the neon and studs that is at the heart of f(x). Electric Shock is so seriously catchy and the choreography is so energetic and fun, I could watch this one endlessly. In fact, the album earned the distinction of the first kpop release I bought a copy of, so that should speak to how much I loved it. ♥ I'm really happy with the way this one showcased their voices: of course Luna's as always but there was also a delightful amount of Amber's singing voice!

That performance was selected for being a sweet spot of styling, staging and energy. :) (I tend to skip Jet when I watch but when I tried to cut it from the file, it wasn't happy so you get it! But I'm going to just talk about Electric Shock!) I know we already saw these outfits in the PV but I love them. Basically we get three whole sets of prominently displayed LEGS, which includes Luna and Krystal in shorts (♥♥) and Sulli wearing what would have been a dream outfit for me in high school (I totally had items in my closet that could have been put together into that sort of combination. XDXD), and then Vic in leggings (which are almost as good, they are hot leggings) and then while not one of my favorite Amber outfits, there are bare arms. Everyone's hair is also SUPER GOOD at the same time, especially of note are Vic's bangs with the low-lights in them because that was the best. :) (LMAO, I feel like I'm commenting about superficialities too much but when they perform the song so well so many times, it really comes down to styling!) I also really like the lighting of this one, as this song really suits a shift to dark lighting and lasers during the chorus. And the gifs showcase both of the key points I looked for when picking the best performance: how well can you see the Krystal part in the beginning and did they include shots of the couple dancing in the middle. MY PRIORITIES. :D

This whole single is also really good, I've listened to the whole thing straight through a lot which isn't how I listen to things most of the time. I have to give a special shout-out to Beautiful Stranger because when I checked my iTunes, it had definitely overtaken Electric Shock as my most listened to song this year. I reeeeeally like that one. ♥

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 361.3 MB change name ✒ Gallade_120614 Mnet M!Countdown - f(x) - Jet + Electric Shock.mp4

Gain



Favorite PV: Technically N/A but-- Bloom
Favorite Performance: Music Bank 2012.10.05 - Tinkerbell + Bloom
B-side/Album song: Tinkerbell
Most Listened to Song: Bloom

I've looooooved Gain for about a year and a half now thanks to We Got Married but Talk about S was the first solo release I was around for and it was everything I could have hoped it to be. ♥ The album teaser for Tinkerbell inspired much keysmashing when it first hit and would have inspired my Halloween costume, had Halloween not been cancelled in my part of the world due to Hurricane Sandy. XD Every single creative decision on this album was on point. I adored that the main track Bloom was labeled as 19+ because it pushed ladies owning their sexuality and deciding to have sex for the first time and oh yeah, Gain is putting her hand down her pants on camera. :D :D Gain is just cool and you can tell that she really loves her projects and believes in them and she's just really good at what she does. I love her. ♥

I picked this particular performance because while all of her performances are pretty much perfect and I could wholeheartedly recommend watching a whole lot of them, it was just too hard for any other to beat this first one (in the pink sweater ♥) in my heart. ♥ Plus you get a bonus performance of Tinkerbell here!

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 252.6 MB change name ✒ 20121005 Music Bank - Gain - Bloom.mp4

Jo Kwon



Favorite PV: N/A
Favorite Performance: Inkigayo 2012.07.01 - Animal
B-side/Album song: Something 'Bout You
Most Listened to Song: Animal

Kwonnnnnnnnieeee!!! ♥ I don't even know, guys, my affection for Jo Kwon is a little ridiculous. :D When I first met Jo Kwon, I didn't think I was going to love him, I thought he was a bit much but slowly he spread like a glittery lichen across my brain and I too was felled. :DD Things that used to seem over-the-top are just now everyday Kwonnie to me. This is a very roundabout way of saying: when I heard Jo Kwon was getting a solo debut (OMG YES, BABY!) and dancing in eight-inch Jeffrey Campbell heels (GET INTO MY EYES) and releasing two copies of his album, one where he has mint green hair and you get a 3D poster and another with an androgynous photobook based on said heels (SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!)… I flipped.

For me, the great with about Jo Kwon is that he does nothing by halves. Everything about this release was SO him and I think it overall worked super well! Both the track and the performances for Animal were amaaaazing and you could see they just really were what he wanted to do most right now! While I think it's definitely true that were totally Gaga-influenced and that he wasn't dancing up to his level due to the heels… that doesn't actually take away from the end result for me? It was creative and pushing what male artists do anywhere and just… snaps for you, Kwon-ah! :DDD I also think his album was really solid musically, I listened to it a lot last summer. There were great dance tracks (Animal, Awesome Girl, Lipstick, Wingardium Leviosa) that I bopped around town but he also got to do a little of everything! Who's Loving You Now was all pop-anthem, Something 'Bout You was such a great, simmering rocker, Heaven was a really beautiful duet that showcased his voice and Just a Kiss is some awesomely pronounced English by a non-English speaking artist! I really would like it if 2AM would head into a Something 'Bout You direction for upcoming singles, I love that mid-tempo, growly rawness and it's different enough from dance music that I think it wouldn't be stepping on 2PM's toes.

This performance of Animal had been selected as my favorite for a long time because I think it was the perfect mid-point in the process. In the first one, I think Kwonnie isn't quite sure on his feet yet, a little nervous probably. And then in later ones, he's a thing to behold but I think he's a little too good in those heels, the extra kicks and stuff sometimes pull him off beat. But here it's the perfect balance! Plus that gold plumage outfit is my favorite one. ♥

Performance || MF: [001] [002] 257.7 MB change name ✒ Gallade_120701 SBS Inkigayo - JoKwon - Animal.mp4

Seo In Guk



Favorite PV: All for You (with Jung Eunji for Answer Me 1997)
Favorite Performance: MBC Show Champion 2012.04.17 - Tease Me
Honorable Mention: Mnet M!Countdown 2012.09.06 - All For You (with Jung Eunji)
B-side/Album song: Time Machine
Most Listened to Song: Shake It Up

Definitely the most unexpected entry on the list, I've only known been listening/watching his stuff for about… five weeks now. :D (And honestly... I fell for Eunji first and probably harder, but she is surrounded by girl-group members so I haven't delved into the music side yet.) However considering the amount of material I've just consumed, I'm counting him. I first saw Seo In Guk as stoic, pining teenager Yoon Yoon Je in one of my favorite dramas of the year, Answer Me 1997. While watching, I honestly had no idea he was a singer at all. If you had asked me to guess, I would have said he was solely an actor! So it took a while for my brain to acclimate to the fact he actually entered showbiz by winning Korea's first big singing competition, Superstar K, in 2009 and that's what he's primarily known for! Some facts about Seo In Guk in found important in realigning my thinking:

1. Dude has a really lovely voice! I think my favorite stuff is actually his most recent, which is a good sign. I love the mellow, R&B direction he went in for his Perfect Fit album and I've probably listened to the song Tease Me the second most after the adorable and super catchy dance track Shake It, released last year. And honestly, his duets with Eunji for Answer Me 1997 were maybe the best use of his voice. They made me think the pair of them should be automatically cast as the singing voices for every new Disney movie that come to Korea and needs to dub the romantic leads. They were DREAMY. So yes, Seo In Guk really is in the post because I seriously dig his music. Top three tracks: 1. Shake It, 2. Tease Me, 3. Calling You.
2. He is completely not his character! He is not Yoon Yoon Je at all! :D I know this should seem obvious but it's emotionally, it's not! Especially when you use Eunji as a counterpoint: she really resembles Sung Shi won of Answer Me 1997. ♥ While Seo In guk… is actually this grinning, goofy puppy of a person with an adorable tendency to spit out these unpolished answers whenever he's interviewed. That leads us to the third point…
3. Seo In Guk is not an idol! I actually have found it super interesting to get into someone who is not only outside the idol system but actually an idol reject. He turned to reality program Superstar K after he got rejected from JYP, not the only once but twice. The first time because he was too heavy-set for them (unhappy face) and the next time because he had messed up his voice due to developing bulimia after his first audition. Wow, an actual example in the media of how crushing the body-obsessed culture of kpop can be! SEO IN GUK. ♥ And the guy is still facing stigma now, both for being a cable television star (two of the major networks still have him blacklisted, apparently, which limits his promotion :() AND for being perceived as an overnight success who didn't throughly pay his dues through the idol system. After learning his backstory, I just really respect the guy and he's such a sweetheart and I just really want to support him as well as I can from here. :)

Oh yes, the reason I chose this performance was because the backing track is really low here and I thought it was actually really great, to just rely completely on his voice. It might not serve the song as a whole as well, if you haven't heard it, but as a newfound fan I liked it. :)

Performance || MF: [001] 68.6 MB change name ✒ 20120417 M!Countdown - Seo In Guk - Tease Me.mp4
Honorable Mention || MF: [001] 153.7 MB change name ✒ Gallade_120906 Mnet M!Countdown - EunJi & Seo InGuk - All For You.mkv

Other Favorites of the Year:

Favorite Songs from Dramas
1. Hikari e - Miwa (Rich Man Poor Woman theme)
2. Confession - Deli Spice (from Answer Me 1997)
3. Itchin' on a Photograph - Grouplove (from Sprout)

Favorite Variety Shows
1. Himitsu no Arashi-chan
2. VSA
3. Shin Domoto Kyoudai

(...yes, I wrote this just to express how much I still LOVE HnA and am SUPER SAD it will be gone!! Also I want to talk about Shin Domoto Kyoudai but how. How to express the majesty. XD)

New Discoveries of the Year
1. Hey! Say! Jump
2. Jung Eunji
3. Seo In Guk

Most Thrilling Releases of the Year
1. Arafes (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!al;sdkp'd;lf)
2. Eight Ranger movie
3. Popcorn

Okay, I think that's all the decision-making I can handle! I'd love to hear about what were your favorites this year in the comments, if you have anything you want to gush over! Favorite songs or favorite performances or people who had a good year. ♥

Comments

[nicefinalbeam.livejournal.com]

Seriously. Seriously.

Also, I wish you would post about these things more! You bring me smiles.

[topazera.livejournal.com]

I have to continue to go about my daily life while this exists, Nino.

Aw! Thank you, truly. And thank you particularly for the encouragement! ♥♥ I want me to post more about these things too! ;) Really, the same back at you, lady, even though I haven't commented yet. I am just really bad at even looking at posts when I am getting close to finishing one of my own but I am EXCITE about 80 whole caps of HnA goodness!!

Let's just all use lj more, huh~ :)

[elfiepike.livejournal.com]

yesss THIS LIST IS GREAT because even if i'm not into something, reading about what you're into is always fun!! plus we have a lot of overlap in favorites (face down, electric shock, i don't need a man) and you introduced me--through raving about them on tumblr?--to ga-in's bloom, too! which, GOSH.

side note: i saw a live where the back up dancers were in black and i have to say, while they were still really great, the white is so awesome because they stand out and you can see their tailoring and their moves so clearly. I HAVE A LOT OF BLOOM FEELINGS.

i hadn't seen kanjani's performance yet, so thank you for that. AND FOR ANIMAL, TOO, DEAR GLOB. i think zebra queen would approve!! and now i'm imagining the universe in which zebra queen and jo kwon put on concerts together and take over the world.

[topazera.livejournal.com]

Aw, thank you elfie!! I definitely got to that point when I was writing this where I was thinking "ugh!! who wants to read all these words, what are you talking about anymore!!" so I'm v. glad to hear it was fun to read~ ♥

Hee, I'm glaaaaad I could help pass on the Bloom love. IT IS AN EASY THING TO LOVE, FOR SURE. :D And I totally agree about the shift to black for the back up dancers! I know they love to mix up the styling for Korean performances (since they have so many of them!) but the white is just betterrrr. So much more of a pop! And personally, I like when the stick with white and the pop of bright color because well, it's called Bloom. ♥

You're welcome! ♥ Ugh, isn't Animal great?? Like, he just went for it and dancing in those heels is straight-up impressive! Actually, I really recommend watching the practice video for it too because I think it shows off the heels/choreo even better. ♥

Zebra Queen and Jo Kwon would totally be fast friends. They would blow the top off the world and rule with fierce. :DD

[emodiva.livejournal.com]

Seriously, this was such a good year for Arashi!!! FACE DOWN~ And that Kouhaku performance!!!!! *_______________*

And I know Arafes was a concert for the fans, but I didn't expect it to translate to DVD SO WELL!! It's like they tailored it specifically for us fangirls!!! THE CAMERA ANGLES 8D

[topazera.livejournal.com]

I was so ridiculously proud of Arashi at Kouhaku!! I thought the night went so well and their performance was so great and the crowd love them so! *SNIFF*

I know, I always expected it to be wonderful as a DVD could be since HEY, we are fans too!! but they really did capture it masterfully. ♥ I went through such a range of emotions watching it: I screamed (literally and a lot) and laughed and cried (but only once! ahaha, less than usual) and just felt like I was really experiencing it. Snaps for you too, DVD producers! ♥

[emodiva.livejournal.com]

Btw because of your recommendation I now really love f(x) XD Electric Shock is AWESOME!!!

[topazera.livejournal.com]

EeeeeeEEEee~ (E-E-E-Electric shock XD) Isn't f(x) the best?? For a number of reasons, I find them to be the kpop girl group that clicks with me the most. ♥ I don't hold this against the members themselves, but in some other girl groups... they all just feel the same. Long hair, feminine etc etc so in f(x), I really appreciate how everyone is allowed to be different. ♥ I mean, other groups are too, I just am the most attached to f(x)... okay, I'm giving up on this topic but I hope the gist came across. :)

Anyway, I'm really glad you gave Electric Shock a watch, I think it's suuuuuuch a fun single! :DDDD

[emodiva.livejournal.com]

I get what you're saying lol I totally agree!! It usually takes a while for me to warm up to girl groups but I jumped on f(x) really fast XD I really like their sound~

[satoyan]

ARASHI. I AGREE WITH THE FIRST THREE CHOICES COMPLETELY. ... The fourth one I have no idea, but hey MAYBE I AM THE SAME THERE, TOO, IDK.

EXCELLENT CHOICES, EXCELLENT GIFS, EXCELLENT WORDS, FACE. <3<3<3<3<3

PERFUME. I AGREE WITH NOTHING BUT WAIT LET ME FINISH: AND THAT JUST SHOWS HOW GREAT PERFUME WAS THIS YEAR, THAT THEY HAD SO MANY AMAZING THINGS TO LOVE!! SERIOUSLY, WHAT A GOOD YEAR FOR PERFUME. <3<3<3

MISS A. IDK WHAT I WOULD ACTUALLY CHOOSE HERE BUT I AM FILLED WITH LOVE FOR THEM.

F(X). ELECTRIC SHOCK OMG, ELECTRIC SHOCK IN ALL CONTEXTS AND ALL RESPECTS!!

I didn't know most of what you said about Seo In-guk! I will have to investigate further. :D

THIS POST IS FABULOUS. YOU ARE SUCH A CHAMPION. ♥♥♥

[topazera.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENT AND ALSO FOR SUPPORTIVELY NUDGING ME ALONG ALL THE WAY! ♥ It really does help my (sometimes laborious) process a lot. ♥

I TOTALLY ACCEPTED WHAT YOU WERE SAYING ABOUT PERFUME IMMEDIATELY. :DD I feel like if I made these choices a different day, I might have made other choices because there is no Perfume thing that I did anything less than adore this year! PERFUME. ♥

Seo In Guk being here was the only thing I thought might really surprise you since I haven't really mentioned how much poking around I have down with him. :DD If you ever need directing towards subbed things with him, I feel like I have already found about 90% of them by now. XD

♥♥♥!!!!

[insipid-paragon.livejournal.com]

I have missed your stuff SO MUCH. Just last weekend I found myself going through past lists and caps and reminiscing and here you are back again! I'll just think I made it all happen with the power of my BRAIN. ;)

[insipid-paragon.livejournal.com]

Also, damn do I love Perfume. I cannot even count the ways, because it approaches innumerable, but one reason is definitely because of how emotional and excited they got during Polyrhythm here!

[topazera.livejournal.com]

AWWW, you are TOO KIND! ♥ It is about the nicest thing possible to hear, that you were remembered even when you've fallen off the posting bandwagon~ ♥♥ It's nice to be back! I totally want to post again soon, I already another idea churning. :) I feel like I'm among my people once again. I'm sure I subconsciously heard your brain calling~ *squishes*

Perfume, gosh, they are just so charming~ ♥ So good at what they do and also so happy to be doing it. That performance of Polyrhythm is also the besttttt. I don't know, I sometimes think that it's a shame they don't often sing live due to the nature of their music but also, I could never say a Perfume performance is at all lacking. They love their audience and both we and the audience there live love them. PERFUME. ♥

[littlealex.livejournal.com]

I don't really know how to formulate a reply except to say I HAVE BEEN SO OUT OF IT WITH ARASHI THIS YEAR AND LOOK WHAT HAPPENS!!!! I caught the singles, but mostly because I kept up with the dramas. I had no idea HnA was getting the axe, it took me ages to work out what Arafes was and download it, and I have no idea what you're referencing with Nino! I have lost touch with Arashi, and I don't know how to keep up. Things are hard for people to download, but it's extra hard in China where half the sites are blocked. I just want to keep up with the news, too! I don't know what to do. Hopefully my resolution to be more active in at least LJ if not fandom in general will work out. I need some sort of Arashi news feed! Sigh...

Anyway this was a lovely post and I miss Arashi and YOU!

[topazera.livejournal.com]

nods That is TOTALLY UNDERSTANDABLE! The way idol music moves, sometimes you are busy for one week and suddenly you have five pieces of news behind and have no idea what is going on. :DD I can't even imagine what it's like in a country that limits your download access. In this era, we really need to have people in the comms who are just dedicated to mirroring on redundant sites.

re: Nino, during the time they were filming the Face Down promotion, he tweaked his leg in some way and was just powering through the injury because you know, idols and their schedules. :( It's more obvious in the HeyX3 performance that was filmed earlier but again, hard to know exactly how bad it was since we go by a lot of fan speculation/worry. But Nino feelings~~

I need some sort of Arashi news feed!
I have thought the same thing! About many artists too, I just want to keep up on the news but it seems like no one ever just... simply writes the week's events down. Unfortunately, I have no idea if there's some good option that already exists but I still think it's a brilliant idea for a simple lj commm or twitter something. :)

I have missed posting and interacting with fandom and venting my love and talking with you too!!

[littlealex.livejournal.com]

Yeah... I'm mostly just getting over my not understanding everything and watching shows when they come on the Chinese streaming sites, because at least I get to watch them. But for anything outside of dramas and their regular TV shows I really need a news source! Because I can't watch everything, damnit! ;) I added aramatheydidnt's "arashi" tag back to my friends list so I guess I will get some news off that... it's just also filled with boring uninteresting crap like oricon charts...

Poor Nino! Always has some sort of pain. I'm sure he's okay though, fans tend to blow these things way out of proportion. I mean, idols to crazy things (Kame falling off stage, being pumped with painkillers and sent back out to finish a show), but the company doesn't leave them for dead if there's something seriously wrong (Aiba's lung collapses, etc). The show must go on, but not to the point it's going to kill someone; financially speaking they're worth more to the company alive than dead, so... you know... Not that that's a great way to look at it, but at least it means we know they're not going to run them into the ground too badly.

[topazera.livejournal.com]

Yeah, arama's Arashi tag sounds like about the best you can get! Although that also means you have to deal with the comments of arama... but at least someone always posts the big news there. XD

nods Yeah, I couldn't help getting a little swept away in the fan worry, even knowing it's probably overblown worry, but I also try to put things in perspective and think "really, the last thing Nino would want would be people fretting over him and not focusing on whatever job he's currently executing". :D

It's a mercenary way of looking at it but it's also true and reassuring. ♥

[littlealex.livejournal.com]

You only have to deal with arama's comments if you read them ;) The trick is not being tempted to follow the troll... ;)

I like getting caught up in some fan things, because some things are way more fun and entertaining when they're enjoyed in the sort of hyper-reality of mass hysteria that happens in fandom, but concern is not one of them. Just because we're working in a real-person fandom with real-person worries -- actually, strike that, especially because I'm in a real-person fandom, I don't want to engage with them emotionally. My main activity in any fandom is a fic writer, which means throwing shit at characters. Making them more human than they are in my mind hurts my enjoyment of it.

My god, does that even make any sense? Basically I am trying to say, when shit gets real, I leave them alone. Then when it's not real anymore/has cooled down/enough time has passed, I come back and use it for fic ideas.

I'm not even talking about Nino anymore. Kid will be fine. He's nearly thirty, and let me tell you my back and knee twinge and I'm not even dancing every other day of my life.

[eightxeighter.livejournal.com]

Hi! I just reblogged something from your tumblr and I saw a link to your LJ. And I saw this post, so, even though we're not friends, let me comment.
I'm so glad you liked Merry Go Round (of Eito). It's also nice that someone appreciates the B-side tracks of their singles. Most of them are really nice to the ears [e.g. I to U from Tsubusa ni Koi].
I sound like a creeper. lol. I'm Jan, may I add you? ^w^

[topazera.livejournal.com]

lol, you don't sound like a creeper at all!! Hee, I wouldn't link to my lj if I didn't secretly think it would be nice if people clicked it and we became friends~ Sure you can add me, I'll add you back. :)

Merry Go Round ♥♥ B-sides are so fun, I feel like they give artists a chance to play with a lot of different things! And I don't know why Eito has such consistently good ones but I really think they do! *officially passionate about Eito b-sides* XD

aughhhhhhhhh! Tsubusa ni Koi is still my favorite single of the last two years. ♥ I still listen to Tsubusa ni Koi, I to U, and Hi & high all the time! In fact, I just added I to U to one of my get-in-the-mood playlists for a current drama I'm watching (I don't know if other people do this? make music to think about tv shows? :D) so I've been thinking afresh that it's just the BEST song. And when the EightxEighter (lol, I like your username btw ♥) DVD came out, the fact that both I to U and Hi &high were on it went a long way to making up for the fact that the original Topop was never put on dvd (a wound in my heart for a long time XD).

...so yes, you were definitely welcome to comment and nice to meet you! :DDD

[eightxeighter.livejournal.com]

What a great relief! Thank you!
Don't hesitate to talk about Arashi to me as well because I was their fan a year before Eito baited me. :D

So you really are passionate about Eito's B-sides. Speaking of Ai Deshita single, I also love Rurarira. So rare for Johnny's to have such striking song.

Oh, so you do things like that? How unique!! What drama are you pertaining to?

Same here. I was really shocked when I to U played after 365 Nichi Kazoku. shivers all over Thank you btw for liking my username. This is a new account, I had a really bad username on my past one. XD

Oh, so you do like Topop? Not putting it in the dvd/not performing it must have been too sad for you. But atleast they included Eightopop.

I talk a lot. I'm sorry. I hope we get along well. ^w^

[topazera.livejournal.com]

Oh that's good! I love Eito but Arashi is my most active fandom. :) Sadly, I only have so many hours a week where my brain is up for watching unsubbed Japanese and Arashi steals most of them. XD

Rurarira! Yes! That one was definitely in the running for my favorite b-side of the year too. I really like when they go for the more rock, hard-edged side of things. (I think it particularly suits Subaru's voice, sighhhh~) ♥ The chorus is really addictive on that one toooooo.

I also almost picked Onboro Story from Aoppana because I really love when Eito does ska! But in the end, though I love the song, I couldn't help think that I still love Hi & high better anyway so a different b-side should represent the year. And then I think Hana de Are is a really great song, very easy on the ears and showing off everyone's voices. And now you know my top four! :DD

Oh, so you do things like that? How unique!! What drama are you pertaining to?
Hee, yes, it's my fanmix-loving nature! Except I'm usually not creative enough in choices to actually turn them into fanmixes. :) That song I'm related to the asadora "Jun to Ai", lol, less for the lyrics than because it matches the title so well. "I to U" and "aishiteru to iu"... "Jun to Ai"... a jdrama about falling in love... see, it's really not that creative. :DD (I'm going to post on lj about it today, so you'll see if you didn't already on tumblr. XD)

This is a new account, I had a really bad username on my past one. XD
This one is so cute! When I saw it, I thought "Oh, good idea! I wonder when they got that, it seems like it would be taken quickly. :)"

Oh, so you do like Topop?
Hee, I adoooooore Topop! Yasu is one of my three favorite members and the bright colors of the PV and the song is so catchy... augh, I love it!! Someday I'm hoping to cosplay Yasu's Topop outfit since I also think that's the best. :DD

Hee, no worries! I'm a talker too just, as you can see, I often don't answer immediately. Sometimes at all, I apologize for my flakiness in advance! :)

[eightxeighter.livejournal.com]

Hiiii again :)

Omg yes. All the sidetracks in Aoppana. Hana de are, Onboro story and 8 Nen Mono <3 I'm a sucker for slower songs (like Hana de Are). The melody <3

Oh, I saw your Jun to Ai review post. Jun to Ai ----> I to U. You're a genius!! :D

Nice. I hope you would let us see your future Topop cosplay!! <3