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[Andrew]

How did you first discover Kaela Kimura?

[Jeff]

For me it was one of those things like Puffy, it just seems like I've always known about her and I don't remember where I first heard of her.  I actually resisted her charms for a while... I felt a little jealous thinking she was stealing some of Puffy's audience, but on my last trip to Japan I finally picked up her latest album and I was hooked.  Then I went back and heard some of her earlier stuff like "Real Life Real Heart", which is a great song.  Now I'm on my way to a complete collection.

side note, but it seems like even Americans that like Japanese music are really resistant to anything new... we're always way behind Japan and it's not just because we don't know about new artists.  It always seems to take me about 3 years of success in Japan before I'll even listen to a new artist, and I've seen other people actually say disparaging things about new artists because they're seemingly threatened by them (not here, but places like Amazon [US] reviews or other general j-pop forums).  Japan is the opposite; they latch on to new people and discard the old on a whim, but we get stuck on a particular subset of ultra-popular artists (which seems to include Ayumi Hamasaki, Utada Hikaru, the Hello Project and maybe Puffy) and then refuse to make room for new ones.  I mean, I still don't see many people in the US talking about Koda Kumi, and she's been huge for years now.

Getting back to Kaela, trying to change my own musical stubbornness is what finally opened my own tastes up to her.  There's room for Kaela *and* Puffy.  At this point, they're preaching to different audiences anyway.

[Anthony]

I was kind of like Jeff; I knew who Kaela was, but didn't pay much attention at first. I think the first time I actually sat down to watch some of her videos on YouTube, the first one I picked was "Tree Climbers." Probably not the best one to start with, as even today it's not one of my favorite songs. But I decided to give her another go, and my buddy got me her three albums for Christmas in 2006. I was hooked and ended up getting all of her singles in short order (though I've yet to get any DVDs).

As for getting into other artists, it's not that I'm stubborn, it's that there's so much out there -- not to mention the cost involved with importing tons of CDs from Japan, especially since I have a completist streak -- that accounts for my slowness in getting into new artists. I don't really frequent YouTube too often, and I don't like to download music (not making any value judgments here, it's just not my thing), and I can't buy new CDs all the time, so I've got plenty of artists on my "to check out" list. It just takes me a long while sometimes before I can finally get into someone new. And it's not like I can just bop down to the nearest Best Buy and sample stuff on a whim (actually, there's a Japanese store near me that carries a decent stack of stuff, but CDs are still $30+ apiece there).

[Andrew]

The first I heard of Kaela Kimura was seeing that the guy who ran the old site “Puffy Rocks JP” also had a section on her.  I got her album “Circle” in 2006 along with CDs by Shonen Knife, TM Revolution, Tamio Okuda, Utada and some others while looking for “Another Puffy” group to enjoy.  I only listened to it once and didn’t think much either way.

While looking for another subject for a second fansite last month I gave “Circle” another listen to and was much more impressed.  I just got “Scratch” in the mail today so I’m actually listening to it for the first time as I type.  I can see why it hit #1 on Oricon – very nice.

So the challenge now is coming up with as much info on Kaela as I can find.  I did a big sweep of Google for English websites with info, but only seem to find the same 20 or so basic facts.  Boy I wish my Japanese studies were coming along faster so I could quickly read all the Japanese content.  Study, study, study…

[Jeff]

The first I heard of Kaela Kimura was seeing that the guy who ran the old site “Puffy Rocks JP” also had a section on her.

That site was run by five or six people who collectively went by "Puffy Master Japan".  At least a few of them are on MySpace, and one of them (PMJ2) regularly posts videos of Puffy and Kaela there.  He is probably who finally convinced me to really give Kaela a serious listen.  I'm pretty sure it was seeing "Beat" from Live Scratch - which he posted before its release - that did it.  I didn't give her enough credit before seeing that; figured she was just a cute girl they found, with no real talent.  But she has a *lot* of talent, and that video was the first thing that really showed me.

Another of the PMJ's is a massive Kaela fan, and she was probably responsible for most of the Kaela stuff on the Puffy Rocks JP site.  Not many of the PMJ's actually seemed to be very big Puffy fans by the end.  I think they are too young - PMJ2 is 22 and PMJ3 is I think 20.  I don't know the rest of them, they seemed to have dropped off after the site went down.  I don't really know why they started that site in the first place.  I still have my suspicions that PMJ2 used to work for Puffy in some capacity - he is definitely in the music industry, he definitely knows them (though he denies it in one breath, then talks about hanging out backstage with them in another) and has all sorts of expensive pro recording gear and a $5,000 guitar.  My theory is that the site was basically an official site, made to look like a fan site.  It was viral marketing.

Incidentally, PMJ3/Marimo has had this "Kaela Rocks JP" banner on her MySpace page for years now, but I could never figure out where that site actually was until right now.  I think the site itself is pretty new - but there actually is a "Kaela Rocks JP" site here:  http://kaelarocksjp.hp.infoseek.co.jp/

Members are here:  http://kaelarocksjp.hp.infoseek.co.jp/member/

PMJ3 is KRJ3.  And she's the webmaster of KRJ.  I believe PMJ2 - the guy who posts all the kaela and puffy videos on myspace - is also KRJ2.  I wonder who KRJ10 is - she's from the USA!  Is there a "neko-chan" here?

As for getting into other artists, it's not that I'm stubborn, it's that there's so much out there -- not to mention the cost involved with importing tons of CDs from Japan, especially since I have a completist streak -- that accounts for my slowness in getting into new artists. I don't really frequent YouTube too often, and I don't like to download music (not making any value judgments here, it's just not my thing), and I can't buy new CDs all the time, so I've got plenty of artists on my "to check out" list.

I wasn't singling anybody out... it's just a general thing I've noticed, including on the old Tofu boards and especially reading through reviews on the US Amazon.  Some of the older Puffy reviews, from when they first debuted here, are both pretty brutal and downright nonsensical.  Stuff like "why would anyone listen to these two lesbians!  Utada Hikaru is the best!"  As if Puffy somehow prevents people from listening to Utada Hikaru.

I don't have that attitude, but it definitely takes me a while to warm up to anyone new.  I guess it's different when you're actually *in* Japan and you're surrounded by these artists all the time.  Still, I wonder how certain artists got so popular here to begin with, to the point where they just cannot be dislodged even among fans of JP music.  In some cases I know the music is just that good, but in other cases, it's pretty debatable.  And there are probably other artists with great music that we completely ignore... Kaela's in that category, I think.

[Anthony]

Yeah, I knew you were just speaking generally. I was just explaining my personal mindset re: new Japanese music; sorry if I came off as defensive.

I used to love checking out the Puffy AmiYumi Rocks JP site. I'll definitely have to check out the Kaela Rocks site; hopefully it'll get filled in a bit more as time goes on.

[Andrew]

Jeff: That site was run by five or six people who collectively went by "Puffy Master Japan". 

Hmm that reminds me.  The last time I checked that site before it closed it had a picture of four or five people with black bars over their faces.  They all seemed to be in their 20s or 30s.  Wish I had taken a screen shot now.  I wonder if it was their farewell “big reveal.”

[Jeff]

Jeff: That site was run by five or six people who collectively went by "Puffy Master Japan". 

Hmm that reminds me.  The last time I checked that site before it closed it had a picture of four or five people with black bars over their faces.  They all seemed to be in their 20s or 30s.  Wish I had taken a screen shot now.  I wonder if it was their farewell “big reveal.”

All I know is that PMJ3/KRJ3/Marimo is insanely cute.  (I hope my wife isn't reading this!)  She used to have pictures of herself on her MySpace page, and she is seriously cuter than Kaela.  But she was under 20 when she was on that site.

I think I remember seeing pictures of PMJ2 also.  I have a pretty clear image in my head of him, at least, that I'm sure came from somewhere.  Though maybe it just was that series of images with the bars over their faces and my mind is filling in the rest.  I never really talked to any of the others, so I didn't pay much attention to what they looked like.

[Puffy Love]

As for getting into other artists, it's not that I'm stubborn, it's that there's so much out there -- not to mention the cost involved with importing tons of CDs from Japan, especially since I have a completist streak -- that accounts for my slowness in getting into new artists. I don't really frequent YouTube too often, and I don't like to download music (not making any value judgments here, it's just not my thing), and I can't buy new CDs all the time, so I've got plenty of artists on my "to check out" list. It just takes me a long while sometimes before I can finally get into someone new. And it's not like I can just bop down to the nearest Best Buy and sample stuff on a whim (actually, there's a Japanese store near me that carries a decent stack of stuff, but CDs are still $30+ apiece there).

I'm surprised you don't do YouTube often.  I'm practically hooked on it.  From being shocked by seeing Boogie Woogie #5 on LinkTV's World Music show 5/6 years ago to now virtually knowing the history of Japanese rock, I'm doing pretty good and I have to thank YouTube for that.  Just last night I pulled up the videos of Yuki on PaPaPaPaPuffy and then went and listened to Judy and Mary videos.  One could see the reverence for Yuki that Ami and Yumi have for her and then one can listen to the music and know WHY they worship her!!

And now I'm on this huge Ai Kago kick.....................there are so many Aibon fans who have posted vids of her or made OPVs that I can indulge my fascination of her to the point of neglecting the things I SHOULD be doing!   

[Anthony]

I'm surprised you don't do YouTube often.  I'm practically hooked on it.  From being shocked by seeing Boogie Woogie #5 on LinkTV's World Music show 5/6 years ago to now virtually knowing the history of Japanese rock, I'm doing pretty good and I have to thank YouTube for that.  Just last night I pulled up the videos of Yuki on PaPaPaPaPuffy and then went and listened to Judy and Mary videos.  One could see the reverence for Yuki that Ami and Yumi have for her and then one can listen to the music and know WHY they worship her!!

And now I'm on this huge Ai Kago kick.....................there are so many Aibon fans who have posted vids of her or made OPVs that I can indulge my fascination of her to the point of neglecting the things I SHOULD be doing!   

Well, I used to scour YouTube much more often than I do now, which is only once in a while. A big reason for cutting down is what you mention -- I could spend days there listening to stuff (I have a similar problem with Wikipedia, where I'll just keep following links to new articles for hours on end). A bigger reason, though, is my slightly obsessive nature; if I hear something really good then I'd want to go and buy tons of stuff because I like to physically have the CD in my collection...which I don't necessarily have the money for. And if I really get into a band, then my obsessive completist nature sets in and I want to collect as much as I can (because half the time there are awesome album cuts you just can't get on compilations or singles). With Japanese artists this can be bad for a couple of reasons: one, the CDs are expensive, and two, Japanese musicians release music at a breakneck pace compared to American acts -- very much like English-language artists in the '60s did. It's not so bad with my favorite '60s bands, because most of them don't record new music any more (except the Stones), but it's a different animal with Japanese rock acts (especially considering they release 2-3 singles a year to boot, and many of those have exclusive tracks). I shudder to think if I ever heard anything by, say, Yumi Matsutoya that I liked -- she's released some 30-odd albums, not even counting compliations! (Granted, she's more an exception, but still.)

I'm a big YUKI fan, too. I picked up her remaining albums I'd been missing just last month -- I could give you some recommendations if you're not overly familiar with her stuff. I also have Miracle Diving by Judy and Mary (picked it up for $7 used at a store nearby); it's good, but I think I like solo YUKI better.

And I've mentioned it on here before, but I'm kinda creeped out by the entire Hello! Project. Though I do recall seeing a couple of clips with (I think) W and Morning Musume singing with Pink Lady (whose best of album I own, and is kind of a guilty pleasure for me), and it wasn't bad...if you can get past the underage girls dressed in tiny outfits.

[Jeff]

And I've mentioned it on here before, but I'm kinda creeped out by the entire Hello! Project. Though I do recall seeing a couple of clips with (I think) W and Morning Musume singing with Pink Lady (whose best of album I own, and is kind of a guilty pleasure for me), and it wasn't bad...if you can get past the underage girls dressed in tiny outfits.

Well, Hello Project was one of the acts I had in mind when I called it "debatable" whether some acts' music was really good enough to have kept them at the top of western fans' favorite jpop lists for so long.  I definitely thought they were kind of a cute idea when they first hit, and I liked "Love Machine" as a throwaway pop song, but after a while it's just enough already.  I actually sort of started to like a few of them individually, as I'm sure most of their fans do, and followed their collective career if not their music for a while (not all of them are/were underage... Mari Yaguchi was 22 when she left, Maki Goto was I think 20, and one girl I liked who I'm forgetting the name of right now was the ripe old age of 27).  But these days I don't know a single one of them, and they're honestly just not very good anymore even as bubblegum pop.  The songs just aren't much fun, and the girls they've got now are almost particularly untalented and seemingly even younger than previous "generations".  They're even worse singers and dancers than they used to be.  And I don't see a single one that looks over 20 anymore.

Yes, I do agree it feels kind of creepy watching them.  Check out their US wikipedia page if you want to be *really* creeped out - it's gotta be one of the longest, most well-researched articles on the entire site.  Just imagining that most likely one or two guys probably wrote 95% of that post (and you can bet they were at least as old as we are) is pretty nutty.

AKB48 seems to be the more popular girl group in Japan right now, and just from looks, they seem a bit older than the current crop of Morning Musume girls.  They're also at least somewhat better trained and more professional, if their performance at the NHK Red and White new year's show a few days ago is any indication, so it's slightly less embarrassing to watch them.  But I still would never really call myself a fan.

[NishimoriNeji]

I was just looking for some new artists and found her single "Doko" and just cound't stop listening to Phone XD
after that I downloaded HOCUS POCUS, her latest album~
she sings really well ^^v