Hosome

If Melt Banana and The Aprils had sex at a carnival, Hosome might have been their bouncing baby beast. Given an overstuffed toy-box, some half-broken electronic gadgets and a metronome better suited from some sort of Lovecraftian ritual, that child would grow and produce this sort of childish yet intricate music.

Slathered in a thick layer of echo and reverberations, it's a bit tough to pick out any sharp outlines in Hosome's music, though that's probably for the best. There is so much going on in each short slip of a song that trying to focus only causes the listener to miss out on most of the track. The keyboards pump out a drunken carnival stomp, while the guitars swing along with the unpredictable drum lines. The dual male/female vocals also keep things swirling and spinning around as they interweave, calling back and forth to each other across the midway.

Another interesting aspect of the band (as if they need anything more) are their live shows. In a live setting, all of the haziness is stripped away and the band is a much more raw and powerful force. They play virtually non-stop, and the light-speed sonic barrage is overwhelming. Live, they transform from a swirling, art-rock technicolor, pop roller-coaster into a seething, math punk, blistering fury of sound. Hosome is the real deal.

BUY HOSOME RELEASES AT HEARJAPAN, CDJAPAN AND ITUNES

"You Want To Be A HEN"



Official Site
MySpace

Members:
Hayato Nakajima - Vocals, Guitar
Shikiko Osawa - Vocals, Keyboards
Yoshifumi　Kuwano - Bass
Ryohei Toda - Drums

Albums:
Jakamashi Jazz - 2009/09/09
New Fascio - 2007/12/12

"Venetian Acrobat Son"


"Nihilistic Country"


Live


Live


Live

Hyacca (百蚊)

When it comes to expecting the unexpected, Hyacca (literally "100 mosquitoes") has cornered the market. A bit like Midori in the chaotic indie jazz department, a bit like Toddle in the lo-fi indie rock department and a bit like, well, just about anything. Covering heavy rock, indie rock, punk, post everything and even a little new wave, the band seems happy to jump into any style, as long as it is raw and hard edged.

Their songs can shift from soft, tinkering jumbles to full-on distorted rock-outs to something in-between. Utilizing both male and female vocals as well as some totally spastic guitars, the band seems determined to do anything other than stand still. Even to vocals change up from simple singing to all out screaming. Many of the band's photos seem to focus on the large number of foot-pedals the guitar players use and the general chaos of the stage, another sign that the band likes to throw everything they have into their music, letting the pieces fall where they may.

Active since at least 2005, the band is something of an enigma, with little info available either on their site, their label's site or their MySapce page. With all the constant shifting, pushing themselves to the breaking point, it's a little tough to find anything to hold on to. That might be the band's weakness, a lack of any real definition. While a band like Hyacca would never (and should never) try and write a radio friendly pop hit, they could use more of something memorable to keep listeners coming back. They do achieve that from time to time, like on both "ライオット," (which sounds a little like Mass of the Fermenting Dregs,) and "スカイライン," (sounding like the aforementioned Toddle) but for the most part they do their best to push the audience away. Again, that's OK when that's likely to be exactly what their audience is looking for. We'll just have to see what Hyacca does next. It's been two or three years since their last (and first) full length release, a lifetime for a young band.

ライオット (Live)


Official Site
MySpace

Members:
Goshima - Guitar, Vocals
Kajiwara - Guitar, Vocals
Harajiri - Bass, Vocals
Sasaki - Drums

Albums:
Sashitai 2006

Telephone Number (Live)


刺したい (Live)


ヘアヌード


チャーリー (Live)

Henrytennis

Unmistakably jazz with a strong dose of rock experimentalism and down-tempo post rock jams, Japan's Henrytennis is indeed the "progressive/rock/jazz" band they profess to be. Formed in 2002, the band has only released a single album thus far. Perhaps this famine of material is the result of the several line-up changes (and the unfortunate loss of Chie Takizawa's voice and flute) the band has already undergone. Another reason could be that they are simply a live band focusing on live shows.

While on tape they do have the air of a band a bit more used to free-form expression, their sole album Eight Rare Cases does contain a lot of well developed moments. While you may not see it in their various live clips, they at one time seemed to have a more vocal slant, featuring dual male and female leads. The songs on the album are blissed-out and hazy, with swinging underpinnings and a smokey atmosphere. More twee-pop than jazz or rock, they are fleshed out with plenty of tiny xylophones and reverbed-out Rhodes-esque keys and guitars. These softer tracks are surrounded by more frenetic instrumental songs. While not in the same league as the much heavier Downy or sgt., they do at times come close, providing a softer alternative. Instrumental bands like Miaou and Mono also come to mind, though Henrytennis is definitely the more jazz influenced of the bunch.

The band seems to be very active in the live scene, even playing shows in New York. They host their own regular showcase called "Fuck Up My Underground Era" featuring a huge range of bands like Audio Safari, Gutevolk and Miaou. They obviously have their ear to the ground and a broad range of skills to draw from. Here's to hoping they manage to keep the band stable enough to release more material. It might also be nice if they brought the dual vocal style back as well, as it serves to really set them apart from the crowd. Just a friendly suggestion. The world could always use more pretty songs like "Landmachine."

"The Electronic Flute" - Live 2005 (Original line-up)



Official Site
MySpace (English)
MySpace(Japanese)

Members:
Yoshihito Okumura - Guitar
Yoshinari Kishida - Drum
Takeshi Horikoshi - Bass
Akihiko Ando - Saxophone
Toshiaki Sudo - Instruments
Koji Ueno - Nordlead2

Releases:
Eight Rare Cases 2006

Live 2008


Live 2008


Live 2008


Live 2008

Hartfield

Somewhere in the wash of shimmering guitar chords and distant drum beats, two voices echo, burbling up from some underground cave. This is the sound of Hartfield.

Formed in 2000 by the Takateru Kagawa, male half of the band, Hartfield took a few years to perfect its atmospheric shoegaze sound. They made several appearances on various compilations, perhaps most tellingly Seven Winters, a compilation of like minded artists, apparently released on a label called Curse of My Bloody Valentine. They shared some pretty good company, including Luminous Orange and Coaltar of the Deepers.

It took them three tears to release their first mini-album L.I.B.R.A. Their first full-length release quickly followed. At the time they were performing with a full band, including a drummer and bassist. Somewhere along they way they parted with their rhythm section are today are listed as a duo. To be fair, Takateru and Yukari, the female half, really are the stars. They share not only lead vocal duties, but dueling guitars as well. Not that you're likely to be able to separate their guitar tone from one another. It's tough to overstate the staggering amount of delay, reverb and distortion that blankets everything on their recordings. It's the audio equivalent of a gale-force blizzard and tsunami battling it out over a barren landcape.

That's not to say that their songs are all gloom and doom. In fact, despite the chaos, they are rather bright, with a rosy glow around the edges. At times they are even downright upbeat and poppy, a bit like some of Supercar's early, fuzzed out tracks. (See "She Knows" below.)

The band has toured both in Korea and the US. Their album True Color, True Lie was released in three different versions for Japan, Korea and the US, proving their sound translated very well across cultures. They are apparently in the process of recording their next album (since 2005,) so let's hope we hear more from this impressive duo very very soon!

BUY HARTFIELD RELEASES HERE!

"Reason"



Official Site
MySpace

Members
Takateru Kagawa - Vocals, Guitar
Yukari Tanaka - Vocals, Guitar

Releases
L.I.B.R.A. 2003
True Color, True Lie 2004

"She Knows"


"Today Forever"

Hoff Dylan (ホフディラン)

If ever there were a shining example of a "good guy" band, it would easily be Hoff Dylan. They've been pumping out their blend of UK rock and uniquely Japanese wackiness since the mid '90s. Think Oasis, only with an honest sense of humor in place of their off-putting sense of self-entitlement and you'll start to get an idea.

Releasing albums since their debut in 1996, they've stuck rather close to the same sound over the years. Every once in a while they'll inject a few disco beats and tripped out effects into their jangly brand of rock. For the most part, they stick to Beatles-esque production (check out "Universe" on 31st Century Rocks) and simple, extremely catchy tunes.

Their sense of humor shows through in a couple of their singles. The cover art for their 1997 single "Kimi no Kao" is a shot of Dylan McKay of Beverly Hills 90210, and inside is nothing but similar shots of characters taken directly from the show. As if that wan't odd enough, their more recent single from 2007 "Kamisama Kamisama Hotoke Sama" features a recreation of the "Kimi no Kao" cover, only this time with noted McKay impersonator Nadagi Takeshi. That may be all a bit too tongue-in-cheek for fans who are out of the Hoff Dylan loop, but it proves that their music can be just as fun and silly as it is gentle and melancholy.

Buy Hoff Dylan releases here!

Season




Official Site

Makoto Watanabe - Vocals, Guitar
Yuhi Komiyama - Vocals, Keyboard

Releases
多摩川レコード - 1996/12/06
Washington, C.D. - 1997/08/20
Hoffdylan - 1998/08/05
31st Century Rocks - 2001/04/25
Psycho Pop Killer Bee - 2002/05/22
Enkyori Renai wa Tsuzuita - 2007/06/21

To The World


Get Ready!


My Thing


恋はいつも幻のように


長い秘密


Stand


マフラーをよろしく




遠距離恋愛は続く


欲望


スマイル

Haruko Momoi (Halko)

Haruko Momoi began her career in Under17. Along with guitarist Masaya Koike, the duo churned out a huge number of anime and dating-sim themes over their two year or so carreer. A couple of their most memorable tracks were "Kujibiki Unbalance" from the anime-show-within-an-anime show of the same name featured in Genshiken, and "Mail Me" from the rather strange horror film Suicide Circle (aka Suicide Club). The latter was a rather odd choice considering the girl group performing the song is using it to brainwash everyone who hears it into killing themselves. Anyway, the two broke up at the end of 2004 in order to pursue solo careers.

Since then Momoi has indeed gone on with her singing career, releasing several albums full of just about exactly the same style of music as her Under17 days. Being a computer otaku since her childhood, many of her songs are video game related. The best example of both her gaming and anime fetishes are the two Famison 8bit albums of anime cover songs done strictly in 8-bit Famicom style ala YMCK. When not totally immersed in chip-tune land, she sticks to the tried and true super saccharine and chirpy anime-pop style, with techno beats, light guitars and super squeaky vocals. She does mix things up with softer ballads and straight up rock songs, but for the most part she caters to the glow-stick waving, cosplay wearing, meganekko fetish crowd.

She is also an active anime seiyu, voicing a large number of characters in both anime and video games. She made her first visit to the US at Anime Expo in 2007. There was a lot of drama surrounding her appearance (as well as just about every other performer that year) but the show went on, much to the joy of her many fans. She returns to the US at Anime North in May of 2008.

Sunday Early Morning

Buy Momoi releases here! | Listen to Momoi here!


Official Site

Major Releases:
Under17 - Best Album 1 Bishōjo Game Song ni Ai wo!!
Under17 - Best Album 2 Moe Song wo Kiwameruzo!!
Under17 - Best Album 3 Soshite Densetsu he...
momo-i quality (2006)
Haruko☆UP DATE SONGS BEST (2007)
Famison 8BIT (2007)
Famison 8BIT STAGE2 (2007)
COVER BEST (2007)
Sunday early morning (2008)

21st Century


Mail Me


Lum no Love Song (that's Azusa Yamamomto in the video, not Momoi!)


Akihabalove done by Momoi and Perfume - Warning, it might melt your face off with the ultra kawaii radiation!

Hello! Project

I'm sometimes asked why I haven't reviewed [insert band name here], or am told that a profile isn't quite in-depth enough for [crazy fan of insert band name here.] This is usually the case for the really popular bands. I can certainly understand how the hardcore fans will always want to see their favorites in the spotlight (see any of my entries on Polysics for an example of this in action,) and I'm always happy to see such pure enthusiasm for any Japanese band.

The truth is that, in these cases, I feel it's much better for people to just Google or Wiki the band's name and gather the info themselves from the unlimited number of fan-sites that are out there. Together they can all do a much better job at covering the details than I can. That amount of depth and obsession isn't exactly what ZB's A-Z is about.

All of this is a long-winded way for me to explain why I don't always cover the major label/studio conceived pop bands. It's certainly not because I don't enjoy listening to them. In fact, one of the first Japanese pop groups I became a fan of was Morning Musume. Of course this was most likely because they are everywhere. It's tough to open any mainstream Japanese music magazine or watch any popular count-down music show and not see them pop up, sometimes more than once. Plus the sheer strangeness of Hello! Project to the first-time viewer is enough to force interest.

In a very small nutshell, Hello! Project (or H!P) is the product of the Up Front Agency. H!P is a collection of a huge number of young girl singers/idols. These girls form many smaller groups or solo acts, sometimes shuffling (hence the term Shuffle Group) in and out of other groups. Morning Musume is the largest collection of girls, hovering around a dozen or so at any one time. Much like Latino boy-band Menudo, the girls are "graduated" out of the group when they reach a certain age.

The H!P sound is pure, cold filtered, beech-wood aged pop. While the style of each group (somewhere around 50 I think, including solo acts) may differ slightly in both look (from the size of the girls (literally!,) to their ages, to their costumes) and sound (from traditional folk, to "reggae," to pop), it's all essentially the same vein of pop. This is possibly a result of almost all the music bring written by a single person, Mitsuo Terada.

From here, I leave it to the fans. I highly recommend the excellent blog-collecting-blog International Wota. There you can find any number of links to fan sites and blogs covering the entire spectrum of Hello! Project news, as well as other pop groups, including news, reviews, blue-sky speculation and latent fan-boy/girl-ism. Of course there is also Wiki and ThePPN.

Happy hunting.

H!P All-Stars - All for One & One For All



Mini Moni - Aiin


I still love Mini Moni.

W (Double You) - South Paw (Pink Lady cover)


Yeah, they my look innocent...

Review: Halcali Cyborg Oretachi (2007)

[NOTE: This review originally ran on Japanator on July 19th, 2007]

It's been three years since we last heard a new album from Japanese bubble-gum b-girls Halcali. While their two previous albums were full of playful beats and lo-fi electro blips along with their happy faced raps, they were also released on a small label. Since then the young and playful duo has been moved to Epic/Sony, and we all know what that means. Makeover! Can they survive the transformation from humble b-girls to major label idols? What about the dancing pandas? Won't somebody think of the dancing pandas? Let's take a look and a listen to their brand new album major label debut Cyborg Oretachi after the jump!


01 Doo The Hammer!! / 02 It's Party Time! / 03 Koi no BUBUBUN / 04 Twinkle Star 05 Endless Lover's Rain / 06 LOOK / 07 Cyborg Oretachi / 08 Driver's License 09 Fessu de Ouissu! / 10 Tougenkyo 11 Tip Taps Tip / 12 Harukari Michi~19 no Yoru

Halcali has been making a slow slide away from rap and into pop for a while now. In fact they've always blurred the lines between genres, so this is certainly nothing new. It's undeniable that with Cyborg Oretachi they've gone much further into the pop category. Sure, there are still the trademark trade-off raps and good-times beats, but these are always offset by a much more sing-song feel to every song.

"Doo the Hammer!!" sets the tone with some classy piano riffs and some classy breaks, leading into the dreamily sung chorus. Still, it retains the good ol' Halcali spirit. [Good Album Anticipation Levels: High.]

The next song and most recent single "It's Party Time" brings a much softer style to the mix. The title couldn't be further from the feeling. This is more of a driving home from a long day at the beach kind of song, not a going to the club kind of song. [Party Factor: N/A]

It's Party Time


"Koi no BUBUBUN" starts off with a very pretty glistening intro, then breaks into a very boring, slow beat. The analog synth bass is pretty awesome, but the general hazy feel and "bububun" chorus bring this down into worst song ever territory rather fast. [Skip Factor: 10.]

This, in turn, leads right into best song ever territory with the phenomenal "Twinkle Star." Even though the single was released over a year ago, I can still listen to it as if it were new today. The drum & bass beat is just rounded off enough to fit the pop mode, and the bass line is one of the most infectious ever. Add in the brilliant string samples from The Magnificent Seven with the break-neck vocal delivery and you have a recipe for pure sonic bliss. This is what Halcali is all about. [Repeat factor: High]

Twinkle Star


"Endless Lovers Rain" Ah, here we go. Ballad time. Heavy on the piano and tremolo strings. They've had some nice slow songs before, but this is straight up TV drama/film soundtrack balladtry. It's a nice song, but again, not their forte. [Irrelevance Factor: Moderate. Bonus Points: Sounds almost like a Katamari song during the rappy bits, but not quite.]

"Look" is a definite candidate for most J-pop song on the album. The rapping is almost a cast off in favor for the extended choruses. Overall it's a bit like their previous "Baby Blue" single only without any of the fun spirit behind it. Again, it's a good song, just too sleepy and dreamy. [Rosy Glow Factor: Off the scale.]

Look


And now, we have to take a break from reality, because the next song involves Polysics, and my brain leaves my body whenever Polysics is around. Even before I knew they (most likely just Hiro) had written this song I had a feeling that it must have something to do either with them or another new-wave electro band. It's a bit ironic that the title track is vastly different than anything on the album. It features a very tight, electro beat with fast, arpeggiated bass lines and the trademark Polysics blips and bleeps throughout. There is even a Hiro guitar solo (although it could just be cats fighting on the fret board...as usual) and a vocoded part! The vocal delivery is very robotic and stilted which suits the title ("We, The Cyborgs"). This is what Halcali is all about, yet this is what we get very little of on this album. [Zac Has To Clean His Shorts Factor: Yes.]

Much like the previous bad to good switch, we now go from good to bad with "Driver's License" (feat Rhymester). It's everything I dislike about hop-hop, namely slow, lazy beats and no actual music. Just a few tinkly rhodes chords and a lot of "Uh huh, yeah, come on" crap. [Skip Factor: Mandatory.]

"Fessu de Ouissu!" again brings us back into regular Halcali territory, but only when compared to previous songs. Its shuffle beat may get the conga lines going, but I think they only have those on the old-people cruise ships, so maybe this is more of a step sideways than forward. [Shuffleboard Factor: Not Today, My Arthritis Ya Know.]

"Tougenkyo" is firmly rooted in J-pop/rock territory ala Puffy-AmiYumi or Ai Otsuka. There is a very brief break for some rappage, but it's really just a fun, very cleanly produced rock song. It actually reminds me a lot of the main theme in Attention Please. You know, "Pretty Woman?" Yeah, again, what have you done with my Halcali? [Genre-bending confusion: Total.]

Tougenkyo


"Tip Taps Tip" is another well worn single, and another look at just how far the girls have been pushed into idol territory. We're talking Ayumi Hamasaki levels here. Again, it's a pretty song, but it's just so tame and like shopping at the Gap that I can't help but shed a tear as the rambunctious and devious young girls I used to know give way to maxed out credit card trophy wives. [Needing a Tissue/Lamentation For Things Lost Factor: Just Leave Me The Box.]

Tip Taps Tip


And finally "Harukari Michi~19 no Yoru." This is much like a mix of "Fessu de Ouissu!" and "Tougenkyo" with a dose of disco for good measure. Super duper pop idolatry here folks. Slick club beats along with funky disco guitars and strings. "Let's go down to the Sports Bar so I can get my drink on!" *groan* [Thank God It's Over Factor: Devastating.]

On the one hand, Cyborg Oretachi may help to expose Halcali to a much wider audience, but the question is, as always, is it an audience worth reaching? The songs certainly aren't bad, just bland and predictable (with a few exceptions.) Where they go from here is anybody's...oh who am I kidding? They are only going to get more bland and homogenized from here on out. Check out their older material while you can.

Tomoyasu Hotei

Let's just get this out of the way first; if you don't already know who Tomoyasu Hotei is, just skip to the first video "Battle Without Honor of Humanity." You'll go "Oh yeah! That song! OK." Considering that the song has its own Wiki entry, it's probably safe to say the song is more popular than the man who wrote it. But Hotei is far more than one song. Not only is he an exceptional guitar player, he's an accomplished actor and generally mean looking dude, a look which is what scores him his various acting roles. His musical style covers all sorts of guitar driven territory, from blues to rock and just about everything in between.

Battle Without Honor or Humanity



There doesn't seem to be an official video for this song, so why not watch along with some FFVII:AC visuals?



Quite possible the worst video ever made, but I really like the song, so what can you do?

Hang On The Box

"The nice girls don't play rock, so we don't need more nice girls."

I'd like to take a moment and break from the Japanese bands to mention Hang On The Box from China. Mostly because they're just plain awesome. Also because they are an all women band playing punk/rock and roll in China, which I think deserves some sort of medal. Formed in 1998, HOTB came together almost without even being a band at all and performed to a ruthless crowd at the legendary "Scream" punk club in Beijing. The violent reaction from the crowd only solidified their resolve to became the best band possible. They are now signed to Sister Benten, a Japanese label, and have since gone on to tour the world. There's an excellent interview up here on WomanRock.com. Best bit?

The bands like CLOUDDEAD, Liars, Modey Lemon ... they're so excellent, but why do people still like to listen to Linkin Park, The Vines... ? There are too many things that are ready to improve. Some bands are too shit but they would get out their CD anywhere. We're a lot better than them, but we can't get out our new CD. That makes me feel sick.

HOTB's sound ranges from punk to rock to softer, almost delicate songs to a sort of DIY/pop experiment. They are very catchy, yet at times very serious. Also, while they are an all girl group, they seem to have a dude on guitar for live shows (as seen in that photo up there.) They are definitely a band to watch out for.

Husking Bee

I suppose you could call Husking Bee a sort of emo band, but since I absolutely hate anything to do with the "emo" label I'm just going to call them what they really are, an indie rock band. Actually, they are a bit reminiscent of British new-wave stuff, with very tight arrangements and a louder, bashing-away sort of production. And the rock. The band lasted just over ten years before breaking up in 2005. A tribute album was released in 2007, featuring a virtual who's who of J-rock, including Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Beat Crusaders, Mongol 800 and Asparagus. Husking Bee also contributed a song to the rock anime Beck, with singer Kazuya Hirabayashi providing the singing voice for Tanaka in the show.

Hora

Hora is one half of the electro/darkwave vis-kei band Schwartz Stein. In fact Hora was the main songwriter. He has gone on to release several solo albums featuring music much the same as that of Schwartz Stein, minus the vocals. Namely dark electronic songs, sometimes ambient but usually more dance oriented. A little like a trance version of KMFDM or other early dance-industrial bands. His sounds is a little more grand in scope, as is the case with most vis-kei projects. Vampires in space?

Hoahio

Hoahio is a trio of women playing experimental/improvised minimalistic songs on mostly traditional instruments like koto, mandolin and marimba. There are plenty of more unconventional elements though, with lilting vocals and electronic manipulation adding to the mix. Think lo-tech Japanese Enya in organic cyberspace and you might get close to the Hoahio sound. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be any videos in the interwebs, but you can here streaming clips of their songs here.

Mikio Hirama

Mikio Hirama was the guitar player in Shina Ringo's Tokyo Jihen band during their first album and tour. He left soon after to pursue his solo career. His music is rooted in a general mellow guitar rock sound with a slight blues tinge. Slightly Eric Clapton-like I suppose you could say. Mikio manages to mix the sounds up with other elements to keep it sounding fresh. He definitely has a voice made for a guitar player, but it gets the job done, and its...uniqueness...certainly adds to the overall vibe.

Hi-Posi

Miho Moribayashi has been making music under the name Hi-Posi since the late '80s. Along with Mitsuo Shindo as her producer, Hi-Posi creates a wide range of music, mostly a mash-up of styles from rock to jazz to dance (with two years of tap), all filtered through a computer and expertly electrified. Moribayashi's vocals are always light and whispery, often in contrast to the thickly layered music, though songs like "Atukai Nikui Koppu" and "Kaze no Kakudo ni" also show her dreamy, sleepy atmospheric side, which is a perfect compliment to her small voice. Moribayashi is also very active in creating music and voice overs for TV and radio advertising.

Hazel Nuts Chocolate

Maybe it's just me (it's probably just me), but it seems like there are many more women making solo indie electro-pop in Japan than in other countries. Anyway, Hazel Nuts Chocolate is indeed the work of a single woman (as far as I can tell) who goes by the name of Yuppa. She's released two albums, and a new single was released this year. Yuppa's music is very pop oriented, staying away from blippy experimental sounds and instead focusing on solid, upbeat, childlike dance tracks. Many of the songs feature a full band sound, which makes me wonder if she's really just a solo artist or if she has something else hiding up her sleeve.

Akiko Hamada

Since I've covered Go!Go!7188 and Yuu's band Chirinuruwowaka, I figure I might as well cover Go!Go! bassist Akiko Hamada's solo work too. First I should point out that she's Akiko Noma now, but I need to flesh out the "H" section, so I'm sticking with Hamada. Not that there's really much to add to what I've already said about the other two bands. Akiko's solo work is much the same, only a bit more down tempo and quiet. Her voice isn't as strong as it should be but it gets the job done. I'm not sure if her solo work is strong enough to stand on it's own, but fans of Go!Go! should definitely track it down.

Halcali

Halcali is a rap duo, the product of a talent search initiated by the band Rip Slyme. B-girls Haruka and Yukari had never sung or rapped before, but they were a hit and looked the part, which was all that mattered. Since then they've released three albums and several singles, all featuring their upbeat rhymes and dance-oriented songs. They are always very playfully and easygoing, irreverent, but safely so. All of their videos are very well done and usually funny, sometimes featuring elaborate dance numbers worthy of Busby Berkeley productions. Much like Puffy (Ami-Yumi) and The Do-Nuts, they are obviously factory made, but are nevertheless fun to listen to, and that's the point.

BUT HALCALI RELEASES HERE!