Rock-o-Matic: J-Pop

Hola amigos and strangers. This week I'm looking at Japanese Pop Music, or more commonly known as J-Pop. I was first introduced to J-Pop during college. WTUL, Tulane's radio station, regularly played Pizzicato 5. Oh God, how i love the Pizzicato 5. When I traveled to Asia this one time I was also exposed to C-Pop (Chinese Pop) and K-Pop (Korean Pop). The videos on MTV Japan and whatever they have in China is mesmerizing. Chinese people rap?? Apparently so. But this week I look at J-Pop in all its various forms (except rap). The big sushi in Japan, so to speak, is Hitomi. Actually, I don't know that, but I read it on the internet. She's like the Madonna of Japan, so the gays will love her, right Jeff?

Hitomi - Go To The Top

I'm also smitten with those old Japanese songs. They're kitschy and catchy, such as the song from the Pinky Chicks. The song "Yopparatta Ojosan" tells the story of a woman who goes to a bar to meet a date and steadily gets drunk while she waits for him. But he never shows. Classic. Then of course is the Mothra song, well known from the Mothra movie (1961) as performed by The Peanuts. Again, classic.

Pinky Chicks - Yopparatta Ojosan
The Peanuts - Mothra's Song

Finally, I close with a Shonen Knife track that's sung in English (I think) and is characteristic of the non-sensical crossover Japanese-English songs that came from a genre of artists such as Pizzicato 5 and Shonen Knife.

Shonen Knife - I Am a Cat