I preordered Hikki's "Heart Station" last January. It's been around 10 days since the release but I still haven't gotten the album yet (It could take around 14 days for YesAsia's shipment to arrive). Anyhow, I couldn't wait anymore so I downloaded the whole thing. I'm in the mddle of work so I can't post in-depth reviews of the tracks, but here are my unbiased initial reactions to each:

1. Fight the Blues

When the intro began, I had to check the calendar and make sure I was in the right era. It sounded like music from the 80's.

2. Heart Station

Heard this one when it came out as a single. Mid-tempo, light-hearted, catchy, and feel-good tune. Reminded me of Keep Tryin'.

3. Beautiful World

Nice mid-tempo song. Very simple, yet unfortunately, very easy to forget. A filler track.

4. Flavor of Life

Who doesn't know this song? Anyways, I think I didn't like this song when it came out long ago. It grew on me when I watched HYD2 though.

5. Stay Gold

Ah...VERY beautiful piano background. Not the best in terms of vocals, but it's the kind of song that relaxes you. Some people might get TOO relaxed and fall asleep halfway, but as for me, I LOVE it.

6. Kiss & Cry

When I first heard Kiss & Cry last year, I listened to it on loop for 12 hours straight while at work; no kidding. I love the tempo, the beat, the Hotel Lobby-ish part. I just love the song.

7. Gentle Beast Interlude

I LOVE this interlude. This has to be my favorite among ALL the interludes in all her albums.

8. Celebrate

When Celebrate started playing, I had to check whether I was really listening to Hikki. Granted, I know Hikki sings songs from the whole genre spectrum, but this really surprised me. It sounded so.......HOUSE. But kudos to her for this track, I rather liked it.

9. Prisoner of Love

Me: *listening to Prisoner of Love*
sister: *starts gyrating her hips*
Me: LOL! Wtf are you doing?
Sister: It sounds like a strip club song.

Anyway, when I first heard Prisoner of Love, my first thought was that it was TOO mainstream. To be fair, it had the trappings of a Hikki song: the vocal acrobatics, slow verse yet fast chorus feature (like Blue), fading ending. BUT, it sounds like something someone like say, Rihanna, would sing. In fact, I'm inclined to send the song to Perez Hilton and see how he'd like it (Perez Hilton often features foreign-language artists he likes in his gossip web site).

Of course, I first liked Hikki for her more commercial songs like First Love and Automatic. But I've been so used to her being so artsy-fartsy over the recent years, this threw me off balance. Nevertheless, I love the song for its strong bass. It's a LSS (Last Song Syndrome) kind of track and it's been haunting me for the last two days.

10. Take 5

A paradigm of Hikki's artsy-fartsy music. Like Kairo in Ultra Blue.

11. Boku wa Kuma

*headdesks*

12. Nijiro no Bus

The verses and bridge sounded okay, the chorus sounded funny.

13. Flavor of Life upbeat version

Ugh. I hated it before, I hate it now.

Does anybody know where I can get an original Suikoden II PS1 CD for under $50? It doesn't have to be mint condition, as long as it still looks decent and it works.

I already looked at ebay; I'm looking for other sources of the CD at the moment.

BTW, for those who recently added me to their friends' list, just wanted to tell you guys that this isn't a J-urban journal anymore. Thanks a lot!

Happy New Year everyone!!!

I hope you all have a great 2008. XD

To all those who commented on my prior post, of course I'd keep you all in my friends list (and add those whom I haven't yet). I merely wanted to know who wants to keep reading my entries because they will be excessively fangirly, slashy and personal from this point onward -- something which I couldn't do before in my own journal.

Whereas when this was a J-Urban LJ, 90% of all the people who friended me are leechers, I want 2008 to be different and actually be "friends" to an extent with with the people in my f-list.

Hence, this will be one of my last public entries. Unless I'm pimping Nihon Watch or Ongaku Street, all my entries will remain private.

I will reply to all the people who commented on my earlier entry later when I have time. As of now, a party's brewing downstairs and I'm not there! So I'll see you all on 2008!!!

This journal used to be the single most active J-urban centric LJ. Over the course of 2007, I had found the career I was looking for. And unlike the average person who, over the course of his life, changes careers at least four times, I knew right from the onset that I've found that one thing I'd do 'til the day I die.

Sadly, most of my time's dedicated to work and what's left of my 24 hours is spent bonding with my family, getting in touch with friends and spending time with my first love -- writing fiction. Uploading albums to introduce you to new artists and connecting you with new albums of your favorite J-urban stars can't be a part of my life anymore.

My last big contribution to the worldwide J-urban music scene would be (potential) interviews with two J-urban stars early next year. After that, I would take the obscure role of updating ongaku_street every now and then and doing occasional promotions of my group in various communities.

Thank you very much for being a part of METROPOLIS -- the J-urban music LJ. It's time to bring a closure to my stint as a J-urban music champion.

Come January 2008, this LJ would be a journal where I'd talk about Tenipuri, Slam Dunk, general J-music, J-dramas, yaoi, Nagase Tomoya/Oguri Shun, manga, anime, Nihon Watch and personal matters.

Hence, I could only keep particular groups of people in my friends list.

IF YOU'VE ADDED ME TO YOUR LIST BECAUSE OF J-URBAN MUSIC, I THINK IT'S FOR THE BEST IF YOU DE-FRIEND ME.

You'll get nothing out of this journal anymore. For your J-urban music dose, please join ongaku_street instead.

On January 1, 2008, I'll be making a friends cut. I will only keep real life friends, Slam Dunk and tenipuri fandom friends, Nihon Watch and DOPAMINE staffers, and friends from my J-urban music days whom I've had personal contact with or had become friends with.

Thanks for making me a part of your J-music lives these 2006 and 2007. I hope you have a great 2008 and happy new year to all of you.


Love,

Mitsu

PS: If you don't want to get cut off my friends list or if you want to be added to my friends list if you haven't before, reply to this post. Otherwise, thanks a lot again and see you around!

PPS: As a clarification, the impending friends list cut is not to weed out those who don't comment on my entries, but those who've added me to their list solely because of J-urban music. =)

I know everyone's on Holidays and busy, but if anyone's reading this, I need IMMEDIATE help on translating a sentence in Chinese text. When I mean immediate, I mean I need it within the next hour or so.

The sentence is:

华硕精品本本新年“集结”丰富豪礼

I think there's a location indicated there. That's what I'm looking for. Google translated the location as "rich-ho." Is there a "rich-ho" in China/Taiwan/Hong Kong???? Help me out here, onegai.

MitsuiSelphie is ALIVE people! Been busy but still alive.

My mom and I went Christmas tree shopping today. I had to withdraw some cash so I went to the bank. Unfortunately, the flooring was made of shiny tiling material and I slipped! It was because I was wearing my 5 year old trainers which soles were almost completely obliterated. Everyone squealed and stared at me. I hung my head in shame.

What'd I do? What did you think I'd do? I bought new shoes, of course!!! I was supposed to buy a new pair of Nike Sakura Ueno Court Force Hi, but it seems the model's not available here. I ended up buying a pair of Nike Men's Free Trainer 7.0, gray/red/black colorway. Not too shabby, don't you think?

When I got home though, I found out that when I slipped, I also ripped my pants' crotch! OMFG! The rip was small so I didn't notice it. But WTF! Sales people were kneeling by my feet while I was buying shoes! T_T That's so embarassing.

Anyhow, we then went to buy a 7-feet Christmas tree. This is our first Christmas tree since I was 10 -- our family's not big on Christmas trees at all. Since I got a job now and could afford it, I dragged my mom to the mall to buy one.

At the end of the day, I found out I spent a whopping USD$360 today. T_T That's sans the Reader's Digest and National Geographic subscription I paid for a few days ago, plus seven books from Amazon. I think I've already spent around $500 since December 1. So much for saving up >_<


-Mitsu

You can find MitsuiSelphie in Nihon Watch, blogging about the different Japanese subcultures.

This is a song by American R&B artist, Ne-Yo, featuring Utada. For full details, see this post in Nihon Watch.

Hi everyone! New updates in ongaku_street

Everyday - Sonomi
Best of - Doberman Inc.
My Family - GROW
Beats Legend II - DJ Celory aka Mr. Beats
"Summer Time Love" (DECKSTREAM REMIX) (Feat. Arkitec and L-VOKAL) - m-flo
Indigo Waltz - Toshinobu Kubota
Black Swan Songs - Epik High
Deckstream Soundtracks - DJ Deckstream
Goodie Memories - Hinouchi Emi
BoA Hip-Hop/R&B Compilation
They Say - Masaya Wada
FOR ALL MY LADIES (worked by ICEDOWN) - Soulhead
Ya-Kyim - Keep YA Head Up (feat. HOKT)
World of Music - Zeebra
DJ KAORI'S J-MIX - DJ KAORI
SPECIAL FORCE - Nitro Microphone Underground
Soul Tree: A Tribute to Kubota Toshinobu - Various Artists

Check all that out and a lot MORE J-urban dope in ongaku_street


Peace,

MitsuiSelphie
Nihon Watch: Your Japan Mag-Blog

Nihon Watch: Your Japan Mag-Blog

is formally launching today, November 15, 2007.

We're inviting everyone to check out our new web site!!!


Posting schedule is as follows:

MONDAY
Topic: Manga

TUESDAY
Topic: Fashion and Out of the Box Japan

WEDNESDAY
Topic: J-urban music, culture, and fashion

THURSDAY
Topic: dramas, movies, musicals, and celebrities

Topic: Japanese gadgets

FRIDAY
Topic: J-pop & J-rock music and artists & Japanese food

SATURDAY
Topic: Trivia/Everyday Japan

SUNDAY
Topic: Anime & Japanese games (still looking for a blogger for this)

Thank you very much to all those who submitted their applications. To those I accepted into the team, please wait for further instructions to be sent out next week. We're delaying the launch a bit because we're still looking for more people. The projected date of launch is November 4, 2007.

As of now, Nihon Watch: Your Japan Mag-Blog is STILL looking for more writers. Here are the positions stil open:

5. Anime (including topics about seiyuu and animation studios)

Blogger 1: MitsuiSelphie
Blogger 2: Nikki Hiiragizawa
Blogger 3: Looking

If you know that there's more to anime than Naruto and Bleach, you might be a good fit. We're not only looking for those interested in anime though. We need someone who's keeping abreast with news about anime, seiyuu, and animation studios.

6. Manga (including news about manga-ka and publishers)

Blogger 1: MitsuiSelphie
Blogger 2: DeVelicious
Blogger 3: Looking

We're looking for someone who's keeping tab on what's hot and new in the manga industry for shounen, shoujo, yaoi and yuri (yes, for EVERYTHING). If you know the terms Ribon, Jump, BeBeautiful, Inoue Takehiko, CLAMP, and Yamato Nase, then you might be a good fit.


10. Japanese Games

Blogger 1: Looking

We're looking for a gaming fanatic who's got a predilection for Japanese games. Basically we're looking for someone who keeps abreast with what's new in the Japanese gaming scene and could write: reviews of Japanese games, news on upcoming games, news on what's hot, up and about in Japanese gaming studios, etc. etc.

To apply, please see my prior post. I'm still accepting MORE applications for all the subcultures mentioned. If you don't think you can join us, please tell your friends and your friends' friends about us. Thank you very much!

8. Japan correspondent

This one's optional. We're looking for a non-Japanese (or a Japanese who's been raised abroad) who's currently living in Japan to blog about the current happenings from the country itself. We're expecting a LOT of pictures from our Japan correspondent if we're lucky enough to find one.


To Apply

To apply, please email me the following:

1. The topic you're applying for
2. Why you think you're an expert in the topic
3. A link to or an attachment of an existent blog post/fan fic/story/anything which could demonstrate your writing abilities.

Send your applications to mitsuiselphie[@]nihonwatch.com with the subject "Nihon Watch Application: [insert your topic here]"

In follow up to this post about Nihon Watch looking for writers, I'd like to add one thing.

There's still another topic we'd like to open:

10. Japanese Games

Blogger 1: Looking

We're looking for a gaming fanatic who's got a predilection for Japanese games. Basically we're looking for someone who keeps abreast with what's new in the Japanese gaming scene and could write: reviews of Japanese games, news on upcoming games, news on what's hot, up and about in Japanese gaming studios, etc. etc.

To apply, please see my prior post. I'm still accepting MORE applications for all the subcultures mentioned. If you don't think you can join us, please tell your friends and your friends' friends about us. Thank you very much!

Hi everyone!

I am the owner and instigator of the Nihon Watch: Your Japan Mag-Blog project. The blog's still empty but if you want to take a look at it, then have a go.

The Theme of the Blog

The blog's theme is "How outsiders (non-Japanese who live in or outside Japan or Japanese who were raised outside the country) who have a predilection for the Japanese culture see the country as"

The Mechanics of the Blog

The blog tackles SEVEN different topics (more in the future) which are related to the many different Japanese subcultures. Each topic is allotted its own day and its own blogger. Which brings us to the purpose of this post...

( Read more after the cut )

To Apply

To apply, please email me the following:

1. The topic you're applying for
2. Why you think you're an expert in the topic
3. A link to or an attachment of an existent blog post/fan fic/story/anything which could demonstrate your writing abilities.

Send your applications to mitsuiselphie[@]nihonwatch.com with the subject "Nihon Watch Application: [insert your topic here]"

Hello peepz,

No music for now from me, but I have a new web site!

Watch Anime Online in AnimeJoint.com -- Your Anime Portal!!!

Visit AnimeJoint.com Now!
http://animejoint.com


AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com AnimeJoint.com

Hope to see you there!



Peace,

Sylphie

PS: Take note, there are a lot of broken links and videos, if you find any (and you will), please email me at contact@animejoint.com

Thanks! ♥

To bbbomb blog from Japan:

こちらこそ、会えてよかったです！そして、あなたのサイトに私のブログを紹介してくれてありがとう。私はあなたがすべての音楽と、
ongaku_street を楽しんいでることを願っています。またすぐに会えるといいですね！


-------------------

The above was translated by a friend. If it doesn't make sense, what I really wanted to say was:

Nice to meet you too! And thank you very much for featuring me in your blog. I hope you're enjoying all the music in here and in my community, Ongaku Street. Hope to see you around!


Peace,

MitsuiSelphie

I've just bought hosting with Dreamhost.com. I want everyone to know that I might be setting up a paid blog domain for METROPOLIS which will primarily be about J-urban music news and reviews.

Anyways, just so you know, Dreamhost.com has a promo which slashes $110.10 off your order. So that means if you signup for their one-year hosting which would cost $119.40 ($9.95 * 12 months), you only pay $9.30! Fantastic, isn't it?

Just enter 10ten10diez10dix10dieci10shi in the coupon box when you sign up. The caveat: it's only available to the first 1010 customers.

If you happen to be customer #1011, don't despair. You can still get $97 off your order (119.40 - 97 = $22.4)! Just enter this promo code: MAM123

Remember to enter the promo code or else, you'll be charged the full $119.40.

...NOT!

I was doing a vanity search earlier (actually, checking my backlinks to see how much I still need to get a PR4) when I encountered several write-ups about me and METROPOLIS. Here are a few:

Article about me #1
This one is a little embarrassing. It got a screenie of my entry about my financial problems! LOL.

Article about me #2
Different screenie, but same article as #1.

Article about me #3
This one is different a little more in-depth. It even mentions about my being a Filipino. And look, ongaku_street is featured too! Thanks a lot, whoever you are. That's a free backlink right there so I thought I'd return the favor. ♥

Article about me #4
A very short blurb about METROPOLIS.

Article about me #5
Another article. It says about half of my entries are personal, and hence visitors who wish to download should use the tags to sort through the uploads. Not bad~

The one who started it
Hatena was one of the first who linked back to me. I think it's an RSS reader, I'm not sure.

At least now I know why 90% of my LJ hits is from Japan. Don't believe me? See this:

New Updates in ongaku_street

&I- Miss Monday
By Phar the Dopest - Haji ja nai
Movin On - Nana
Miracle - Minmi
I Love You Baby - Minmi
Jetto Kiryuu - MEGARYU
Jyosho Kiryuu - MEGARYU
T.T.T. - Minmi

Plus almost 100 J-urban albums. Come on over to the newest J-urban crib in LJ town, ongaku_street

Hey all! new updates over at ongaku_street

Power - Toshinori Yonekura
Kiss & Cry - Utada Hikaru


Plus almost 100 posts on J-urban albums/singles/PVs. Head on over to the newest J-urban music community in town ongaku_street


Peace,

MitsuiSelpie
Formerly of METROPOLIS
J-urban Music Joint

New Updates in ongaku_street

Dabo - The Force
Sphere of Influence - Atlantis
I-Dea - Da Front and Back
MEGARYU - Motto Touku
Chemistry - All the Best (2 Discs)
Chemistry - Between the Lines
Chemistry - fo(u)r
Chemistry - Second to None
Chemistry - The Way We Are
Chemistry - Hot Chemistry
Chemistry - One X One


Plus almost 100 more J-urban albums (some of them member-locked). Please check 'em out at the new Japanese urban and roots music community in town ongaku_street.


Peace,

MitsuiSelphie
Formerly of METROPOLIS
J-Urban Music Joint

The entry below was written for a web site I work for (I'm a problogger aside from being a freelance writer) but was rejected due to...I don't know exactly, but perhaps my editor thought not many people are familiar with the Japanese? Anyways, whatever....enjoy the article!~

-------------------------------------------

Blogs should Mimic the Japanese

Yesterday, August 13, 2007, the oldest living person on earth passed away - a 114 year-old Japanese woman. According to Yahoo news, Yone Minagawa was still "sprightly" even in her old age. She lived her last days in a nursing home and proclaimed that her hobbies included getting enough sleep at night and eating right. Nothing your mother didn't teach you when you were a kid. Still, not everyone lives until 114 years old.

The Japanese are known for being extremely healthy. If you've been to Japan before, you'd know what I mean. Let me elucidate for those of you who have no idea about Japanese living. Meat is rarely served in Japan. Just when you think you've found an "American style" restaurant which could serve you proper American steak, you'd be sorely disappointed. "Steaks" in Japan are usually very thin slices of meat which could satiate no meat-lover.

Vegetables are among the "in" type of food in the country and no Japanese meal is complete without a radish or an eggplant side dish. I have a distant cousin who's Japanese and she snacks on dried seaweeds. Apparently, so does many others in the country. Fish, of course, is another favorite food as everyone knows. And I'm sure almost every one of you reading this has had a taste of sushi or sashimi at one point in your lives.

Other than a predilection for healthy food however, the Japanese also enjoy simple physical activities such as walking and bicycling. I've heard from a friend in Japan that there's a certain city (or is it a district) that does not allow motor vehicles to pass during a specific time so everyone has no choice but to go on bicycles or on foot. This information's validity requires further investigation but still, if it's true, it's a fantastic idea to keep in shape.

So, what do Japanese people, lifestyle, and society teach us about blogs? Here are a few I could think of:

( Read more )