NEMOPHILA to Release Debut Album REVIVE!

REVIVE Jacket Cover

Rising Japanese rockers NEMOPHILA have been dubbed “an energetic heavy metal tour de force” by Metal Hammer, “kickass” by Distorted Sound, and band of the day by Maximum Volume Music due to their “bone breaking riffs and beaming positivity”.

Now, the wait for the band’s debut full length album is almost over! It has been announced that NEMOPHILA’s first studio album REVIVE will be released from our friends at JPU Records on CD from 14 January 2022. It's available to preorder now. The release will also include English lyric translations and romaji transliterations, allowing international fans to enjoy the lyrics regardless of their Japanese language abilities.

Since forming in 2019, NEMOPHILA have been releasing singles and updating their YouTube channel with live performances, music videos and covers of their favorite artists, leading to their channel passing 23.5 million views in a short time. Upon announcing the domestic release of REVIVE, NEMOPHILA also announced their first solo headline show in Japan, at Tokyo’s 2000 capacity LINE CUBE Shibuya, which sold out immediately.

REVIVE contains a total of 11 songs, including five tracks from NEMOPHILA’s first single “OIRAN” and third single “DISSENSION”, along with six brand new songs. It also features “OIRAN” and “Life”, two of NEMOPHILA’s most popular releases re-recorded and remastered. The album has been mastered and engineered by Jens Bogren, founder and owner of Fascination Street Studios (Opeth, Sepultura, Dimmu Borgir).

As we look forward to the upcoming release sure to check out their latest music video “HYPNOSSIS” below!

Singing Cosplayer Hikari Teams Up with French rapper, Suzuya!

Suzuya

Singing Cosplayer Hikari has been singing covers of anime and vocaloid songs, as well as cosplaying since the new year of 2021. Her 22 music videos of cover songs on YouTube have been viewed so far over 7 million times.
Her cover song of,  “Yume To Hazakura”, which was released on the 20th of April to music streaming and downloading services, was ranked highly on Apple Music J-Pop charts across 36 countries and became No.1 in 14 countries. She gained popularity especially in France and became No.1 5 times for the J-Pop Daily chart on Apple Music France. Also, she joined the event in the UK called, HYPER JAPAN ONLINE 2021, as a singer, cosplayer and model.

Hikari is going to join the album Là où les cœurs se pendent by French rapper Suzuya.This album will be released from E.47 Records today 3rd of December. Hikari voiced a Japanese female devil who, in disguise, tried to steal Suzuya’s soul. She was talking for 14 seconds at the beginning of the song “Voleuse d'âme” (soul thief) which is the 10th song of the album.

Suzuya has released many songs which were inspired by Japanese anime and games. The name Suzuya is taken from the character, Juuzou Suzuya, in the anime, “Tokyo Ghoul”. The album cover was done by illustrator Takato Yamamoto. His illustration is called “the Ukiyo-e Pop style” and “Heisei estheticism style” and he is well known worldwide. The 1st and 12th songs are created by Akira Yamaoka who created music for games such as, Silent Hill series. The female rapper from Kyoto, Edward(我), joined for the 5th song. And the 11th song was composed by Yow-Row. He is from the electro rock band GARI and he does vocals, programming, lyrics, composing, and arrangement. So many talented Japanese artists have got together for this amazing album.

Please check the album of Suzuya here and also check out Singing Cosplayer Hikari’s global success.

Nao Toyama & Kiyono Yasuno to Officially Form New Unit “Pokapoka Ion”

Popular voice actress Nao Toyama and Kiyono Yasuno, have officially formed a new special unit called “Pokapoka Ion.” They will be singing “Yajirushi,” the OP theme of the anime Slow Loop, which will air in January in Japan.

Nao Toyama and Kiyono Yasuno are also both members of the tactical music unit Walküre from Macross Delta. After performing together on a TV show in 2017, they hit it off and unofficially formed a unit in the hopes of one day singing as a duo. Now, five years later, the unit is official, and they will be singing the OP theme of Slow Loop. Pokapoka Ion, which was formed under the concept of “soothing people’s hearts and delivering vitality ‘vitamins’ for tomorrow,” seeks to deliver comfortable pop tunes that warm people’s hearts (“pokapoka” in Japanese) and shower them with negative ions!

The TV anime Slow Loop will be airing in January 2022 in Japan. Please look forward to the anime and the future activities of Pokapoka Ion! Be sure to check out their official website here along with a preview of their track “Yajirushi” below as well. 

Gray's Ongaku Go For November of 2021

Picking up after Ken and Luna, we’re another month down in 2021, and we at Ongaku to You would like our readers to know what has been filling our ears for the past month. Each track is available across all digital music streaming platforms with Apple Music being featured on this site.

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“Lost In Paradise” by ALI

Man, am I glad this is has been put back on digital platforms. This is one of my favorite songs of the year and I’m glad I get to enjoy it again. 

Check out “Lost In Paradise” here and the music video below!

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“A New Day” (feat. Phum Viphurit) by Nulbarich

I’m just a sucker for the sound of a synthesizer and this track has it in spades. I listen to this track and it takes me back to earlier days, which I find really enjoyable.

Check out “A New Day (feat. Phum Viphurit)” here and the music video below!

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“No.1” by DISH//

This is a song I wasn’t too high on when it first dropped, but I’ve come around and have been enjoying it as of late. I’m glad to see that DISH// is going to be performing at the Kohaku this year and I’m really hoping to hear this song.

Check out “No. 1” here and the music video below!

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“All Me” by IVVY

November has been a pretty slow month, so I’ve been going back and listening to tracks that came out earlier this year and reflecting on the year so far. “All Me” is a fun track that I just keep coming back to. So, even though I’ve already featured this number, I wanted to give it another shout-out.

Check out “All Me” here and the music video below!

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“Can’t Keep It Cool” by Akira Takano

Another track I’ve talked about here, but this is such a wonderful way to kick off his ENTER album, which is easily my favorite album of the year so far. There is a rush of life and energy in this track that keeps me coming back for more.

Check out “Can’t Keep It Cool” here and the music video below!

Luna's Ongaku Go For November 2021!

Picking up after Ken with another month down from 2021, we at OTY would like our readers to know what was filling our ears for the past month. Each track is available across all digital music streaming platforms with Apple Music featured on this site.

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“PLAYBACK” by JUJU

With the release of JUJU’s newest single “KotaeAwase” coming out this month, I went back and listened to her whole discography. “PLAYBACK” has been my song of the month as it reminds me of summer memories and brings back the good days. “PLAYBACK” is an uptempo song that immediately grabs you with its beat and JUJU’s fun playful vocals. It gives you the swing feel vibe and is a track that makes you want to get up and dance. It’s catchy tune, upbeat pop tempo infused with jazz gives it a nice flair.

Check out “PLAYBACK” here and the music video below!

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“My Dear” by BoA

“My Dear” is BoA’s 20th Anniversary Digital Single and I absolutely love it. BoA has come so far in the industry and this track shows off BoA’s new style of music. “My Dear” is a more R&B-pop track as it has the western feel in the composition, however, her vocal’s are still nice on the ears. The versus and chorus flow perfectly with the composition. “My Dear” is a mid-tempo track with beautifully smooth vocals that showcase BoA’s talent and versatility.

Check out “My Dear” here and the official audio video below!

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“stay with me” by Thelma Aoyama

Thelma Aoyama released her newest album Scorpion Moon in October last month and “stay with me” immediately caught my ear. I absolutely love Thelma’s ballads and “stay with me” hits everything I want in a ballad. The piano throughout the song is beautiful, Thelma’s vocals are smooth, strong, and soft right where they need to be. The lyrics are moving, making it the perfect ballad as the composition matches it perfectly. I love that Thelma is able to showcase her vocal range in “stay with me” and keeps it a simple and lovely ballad.

Check out “stay with me” here and the music video below!

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“BETELGEUSE” by Yuuri

Music Corner alumni Yuuri has been an artist I have been following since his hit “Dry Flower” and has been continously releasing fanastic tracks, “BETELGEUSE” is no exception to that. I fell in love with this track on the first listen and have had it on repeat almost all month. Yuuri’s powerful vocals fit perfectly with his folk rock style that I adore. “BETELGEUSE” pulls you in with its beautiful arrangement and Yuuri’s powerful vocals and leads you through the track like a story. Its such a nice tune to listen and sing-a-long to as it has that easy listening style of music.

Check out “BETELGEUSE” here and the music video below!

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“Natsugasumi” (THE FIRST TAKE) By Atarayo

I was not able to be on the episode featuring Music Corner alumni Atarayo, however, I absolutely fell in love with them. “Natsugasumi” is an absolutely beautiful track and THE FIRST TAKE version was what I heard first and was blown away by their vocals and music. The guitar, drums, and vocals all fit together perfectly. It’s the perfect pop-rock song as it has the touch of sadness which you hear in both Hitomi and MaaShii’s vocals as well as the lyrics themselves. The emotions that Atarayo express in their music seeps into your soul and that is exactly what “Natsugasumi” did to me.

Check out “Natsugasumi” here and the music video below!

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