I ordered a bunch of CDs recently over the past couple months and they've all arrived. It's been a while since I have this many at once, so I thought I'd do a little write up. This isn't a review of the albums, more like an insight into why I bought them and a little info about the groups.
(Top Row L to R: EMPiRE, Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku, and Beyooooonds)
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(Bottom Row L to R: Kodomo Dragon, Baby Kingdom, and Ladybaby)
First up is Ladybaby. I was aware the them, but didn't start following the group until their new lineup in 2018. Their MV for their first single as 4 members, "Hoshi no nai Sora", really got my attention. At the time, there were a bunch of pseudo metal Idol groups in Indie scene, but none of them really interested me. Ladybaby were exactly what I was looking for. There's definitely some Baby Metal influences here, but Ladybaby specifically label themselves as Kawaii Core, and I think they differentiated themselves enough from the former to create their own identity.
Unfortunately, things didn't turn out so well for them. In October 2019, they announced the group would be going on hiatus. Typically, Idol groups don't come back after taking a hiatus, so this might be the end for them. There were definitely problems behind the scenes. They most likely ran out of money and couldn't keep going. There was huge gap between the release of their first and second singles with the new lineup. Ladybaby released some digital singles to tide fans over, but it's difficult to generate money without something physical to sell. I believe the delay was due to looking for a new record label. They found one for the second single, but it was too little too late.
This compilation album, "Reburn", includes all their releases over the past two years. I never bought the singles, so I'm happy they put this out. Unfortunately, there's no DVD as a bonus. It would have been nice to include the MVs that weren't on the physical singles. They did do a good job on the booklet though. There's some nice pictures inside and it's on high quality paper.
EMPiRE is part of the WACK stable of groups which includes BiSH, GANG PARADE, and others. They debuted in December of 2017 and are a collaboration between WACK and Avex. They were meant to be kind of a little sister group to BiSH. I've always liked their sound which is a departure from most of the music their company releases. Their songs are almost entirely electronic and vary between dance and more melancholic vibes. I still really like their debut digital release in Dec. 2017.
EMPiRE has maintained the same design aesthetic with their costumes over the past two years, so they are instantly recognizable. Their overall concept is very artistic, but they occasionally veer into more traditional WACK-like territory with bizarre and disturbing imagery. Their MV for "Black to the dreamlight" was temporarily banned on television due to graphic imagery, so it had to be re-edited for broadcast. "The Great Journey" is their second full album and the first on CD. Their previous releases were on Cassette, so it's nice to finally get something a little more convenient to play!
Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku, Ebichu for short, is part of Stardust Plant, the Idol Division of Stardust Entertainment. Together with with Momoiro Clover Z (aka Momoclo) and Team Shachi (formerly Team Syachihoko), they form the Stardust Sisters. The debuted in 2009, one year after Momoclo, so they celebrated their 10th Anniversary last year. "Music" was released with the Anniversary in mind.
Ebichu has been very consistent with their releases. They might be the most consistent of all the Stardust Planet groups. There's 12 of them, so that's saying something! I own two other Ebichu albums and handful of singles, so with this purchase, my collection is becoming substantial.
Kaho here is super tall, so I like how she's playing up her height by not fitting into the frame.
I got a photocard of Rika. She's probably my third favorite member, so I'm okay with this.
Beyooooonds is a new group from Hello Project. And yes, you write the letter "o" 5 times, lol. They're a combination of 3 smaller groups: Chika Tetsu, Ame no Mori Kawa Umi, and the 3 winners of H!P's "Only You" audition. Their concept is a bit hard to define as they mix theater into live performances. I took this directly from their page on the Hello Project Wiki to help explain:
"The name was chosen with hopes of the group growing freely towards the future, beyond their existing framework, with the group aiming for an ever-changing appearance similar to slime."
I didn't followed H!P that much last decade. Once my favorite members of Morning Musume left the group, I was no longer invested in the company. I started following the H!P again in 2017. Groups like Angerme and Juice=Juice caught my attention, but I hesitated to buy anything. After Beyooooonds released their debut single "Megane no Otoko no Ko", I couldn't hold out any longer. I enjoyed the song more than I expected and the MV was allot of fun. H!P really can't go wrong with putting a bunch of girls on a train.
Even though I liked their debut, I can't justify buying singles anymore. I do make exceptions (I bought a bunch of copies of C-ute's final single), but I typically wait for an album to be released. Thankfully, I didn't have long to wait. Idols mainly focus on singles nowadays, so Beyooooonds probably won't release another album anytime soon.
There's nothing particularly exciting about the packaging or the booklet for this version, but it came a with a sweet clear file as the bonus.
It's currently in my place of honor.
*The spot was previously occupied by the 3D clear file from Momoclo's 5th album.
Now it's time to switch gears and talk about some Visual Kei. The glory days of this genre are long gone, but I've always had a soft spot for it. I don't follow the scene that much, but there's a handful of groups that I check in on from time to time. Both Kodomo Dragon and Baby Kingdom are on BP Records.
I Really liked Kodomo Dragon's first two albums, but when I heard the singles leading up to the Wolfman album, I felt like they had ran out of ideas. Wen I checked up on them again, I liked what I was hearing. It felt like they got their mojo back. I was really anticipating this album when it came out in March 2019, but I ended up not buying it until now. (The song below is an old favorite of mine)
Why did it take so long? Well, for a long time I ordered all my Japanese CDs from YesAsia. I've only had one bad experience with the site, so I kept using it. A couple years ago I discovered that CD Japan not only gives you points, but includes pre-order bonuses like posters, so I switched entirely over to them. When Kodomo's 4th album came out, I couldn't find it on CD Japan. This was unusual. I probably could have contacted them to see if they could add it, but I was lazy. I eventually went back to YesAsia, and low and behold, there it was. I'd also been getting into Baby Kingdom last year, and since shipping takes so long with YesAsia (It's based in Hong Kong), I thought I might as well add their album too.
There's nothing special about the packaging of "Tegura Magura" and the booklet just has the lyrics, but here's the photocards I got.
(Chamu - Drums & Yume - Guitar)
I wasn't sure about Baby Kingdom when I first listened to them. Their music was okay, but not particularly memorable. That was back when they were on a different label. Since signing with BP Records, they've grown a bit and I was impressed by some of the digest videos they uploaded from their concerts. Like I said, I added this to my order because shipping takes so long, but I like them enough that I probably would have bought the album eventually.
"Age + Plus" is their debut on BP Records. They offer a good counterpoint to Kodomo Dragon. Baby Kingdom has a fairly light rock sound, while Kodomo favors a darker and heavier sound.
The artwork on the discs of Baby Kingdom's album is worth noting.
And here's the photocards.
(Monyo - Bass & Shiki - Guitar)
And that about does it. One of these days I should make a post showcasing all the photocards I've accumulated over the years. Maybe for the 2nd Anniversary of my blog. I could do several posts just on all the H!P cards I've got, so maybe a "best of" would suffice.
After graduating from Keyakizaka46, Imaizumi Yui (aka Zuumin) spent 2019 transitioning into an acting career. She made her acting debut in the stage play "The Atami Murder Case: Atami Satsujin Jiken LAST GENERATION 46".
She was also featured in her first Crown Program. It was basically a reality show that ran for 3 episodes over the summer and focused on Zuumin turning 20 and becoming a woman. Each episode focused on a a different theme like health, beauty, and a first date!
That was only the beginning. The perpetual baby is starting off 2020 with a bang. To start off, she's participating in the add campaign for "GiRLS by PEACH JOHN" a new brand for women in their teens and 20's.
In addition she'll be she'll be starring in two episodes of the TV Tokyo Drama "100 Character Ideas Made Into a Drama". It's part of an ongoing series where ideas taken from viewer submissions are turned into a show. The stories vary between love, comedy, and suspense. Zuumin will take on 5 different roles across the two episodes. In the first one, she plays the wife of a YouTuber.
— 100文字アイデアをドラマにした！📝テレ東毎週月曜深夜0:12放送中 (@tvtokyo_note) January 15, 2020
To top it all off, Zuumin will be starring the stage adaptation of Azumi (kind of on the nose for Imaizumi to play Azumi, lol). Based on the Manga, it was originally adapted into two feature films in the 2000's, both starring Ueto Aya. The story follows the orphaned Azumi as she's trained by an assassin to carry out a secret mission. This role is a departure from the undercover detective she played in the Atami Murder Case as she'll be adding sword play to her repertoire.
It's been a while since I've written about Last Idol Family. I've been meaning to update more posts from OneHallyu, so I went all the way back to the early days of the group to post some random things from that period. I'll be backing up more Last Idol posts over the next couple weeks.
These are from some random tweets I posted on December 27th, 2017. It can be difficult to embed tweets on blogger, so I'm just going to re-post the pics. Some tweets no longer exist, so these are what's left.
Haruka (on the far right) posted this bts pic of the final lineup of the 7 member incarnation of Last Idol, before Aya and Yako graduated and they changed their name to LaLuce:
From a release event at Sunshine City posted by Someday Somewhere's Mahiro on 12/19:
(L to R: Rio, Aya, Midori, Mahiro)
Pixel Last Idol post by a fan on 12/19:
Midori posted this pic of her with Aya on 12/21:
The entire first Gen of Last Idol Family posted by Love Cocchi's Honoka on 12/23:
Midori posted this Birthday message to Yako on 12/26:
Midori's Message:
"Happy Birthday Yako! When I came back to Last Idol, Yako-chan made the most time to say hi and talk to me. I can't thank you enough. I will do my best to help you make this a good year. Congratulations on turning 20!"
Midori and Abe were featured in the December issue of Flash Special, the first members to be featured in a magazine. Here are the best pics I could find at the time.
Prior to the end of the 1st season of Last Idol, the current Interim members did a magazine shoot for Weekly Playboy. At the time, I thought it was odd that they would do something like this before the lineup was finalized. I suspected that the show was scripted, so I think this was supposed to be the final lineup. With the exception of Rena, all the members featured here made it to the end. Rena defeated Midori in their battle, but withdrew a few weeks later allowing Midori to compete in a "Revival Battle" for a chance to rejoin the group which she won.
I was able to find some decent pics and even a video with others:
Various Last Idol Family buttons sold at fan meetings:
Last Idol standee key chains:
Last Idol clear file:
A profile pic of Chou Cream Rockets from a Model Press article that was posted the first week of January 2018. It's mainly a bunch of comments from select members of each unit:
I started this project all the way back in April of last year. I've worked on it off and on since then, but haven't touched it since September. After looking it over again, I don't think I can add any more to it. This is the best I can do, so it's time I finally posted it. It was an overly ambitious project and I could have made it simpler, but I'm too thorough and couldn't resist going in depth. As far as I can tell, there's nothing like this in English. I couldn't even find a comprehensive history of TRF in Japanese from a single source. I know some books have been published, but there's nothing extensive online. Anyway, I'm excited to finally post this. It's also my first post of the new year, so I'm happy to kick things off in such a big way!
*Even though the text is finished, I will be tweaking the pics and videos over the next few days. Also, as you're reading it, keep in mind that I started writing this around April 2019.
A little background on inspiration for this project. This is the first of the original pieces that I mentioned in my 1st Anniversary post. Ever since I looked into Sakura Nao's appreciation for Hide, I've wanted to do longer projects like that. This year, I hit on a few subjects that I thought were well suited for this kind of in depth look.
Why TRF? Well, They popped into my head a couple months ago and, as much as I enjoy their music, I realized I didn't know a whole lot about them. While doing a little searching, I found there isn't that much information about them. As far as I can tell, there isn't anything substantial about them in English. Even their Japanese Wikipedia page just has a basic timeline, and a long list of their releases and accomplishments. As I did more searching, I was able to find info scattered across multiple sources. So, I decided to collect all the information I could find and try to construct something close to a retrospective.
I was hoping to include some more quotes from the members about their glory days from the 90's, but there aren't many interviews with them online. The few I found are superficial and don't discuss that period. The best I could come up with is a lengthy interview with DJ Koo from last year.
~ Let's Start the Rave: A TRF Retrospective ~
(L to R: SAM, Etsu, Yu-ki, Chiharu, and DJ Koo)
If you're a western JPop fan, you most likely have heard of Globe. Consisting of Tetsuya Komuro, Keiko Yamada and Marc Panther, they racked up a ton of hits in the second half of the 90's and their self titled debut album "Globe" is one of the best selling Japanese albums of all time. A group you might not be as familiar with is TRF. I don't see them mentioned as much as the rest of the TK Family when international fans talk about great Avex artists.
TRF, or TK Rave Factory, is the first group Tetsuya Komuro produced for Avex, and the first group on the label. They were active during the majority of the 1990's, and again in the mid - late 2000's after a hiatus. Here's a look back at the group that paved the way for Avex's dominance in the 90's.
~ TMN Song Meets Disco Style ~
(Rare photo of Komuro and Matsuura from the early days of Avex)
After a successful music career in the 80's as part of the group TM Network, as well as several solo releases, Tetsuya Komuro, or TK, spent the early 90's focusing on writing and producing for other artists. It was during this period that he helped pioneer dance music in Japan.
At the end of Sept. 1992, TK proposed a new Unit to Avex's CEO Max Matsuura (Komuro had started a business relationship with Matsuura that year). It was the result of the release of "TMN Song Meets Disco Style", TMN standing for TK's group TM Network. From what I can tell, Matsuura pitched the idea to Komuro, who eventually agreed. Komuro himself could not be personally involved as he traveled to Miami in August to work on the "Hit Factory" album, so Matsuura would oversee the project in his absence.
Enter Dave Rodgers, the Italian songwriter, composer, and producer who is considered the Godfather of Eurobeat. In 1990, he started a collaboration with Avex. Among other projects, he would produce the "TMN Song Meets Disco Style" album for Matsuura. It was presented by Komuro and released under Rodgers name. The album is exactly what you would think based on the title; Disco remixes of TM Network songs.
(TMN's Music Video for "Get Wild", the opening theme for the City Hunter Anime)
(Dave Rodgers' version from TMN Song Meets Disco Style)
When Komuro returned from Miami, he learned about the album's success. It ended up being a surprise hit and would go on to sell 200k copies. This was probably thanks in part to the changing musical landscape. ZOO, along with L.L. Brothers, were two groups that found success in 1991 when interest in dance music was growing. Komuro was already familiar with the club scene in Japan, but the performance of TMN Song Meets Disco Style must have proved to him that there really was an audience out there for this kind of music.
Komuro had devoted himself to dance music in the early 90's because discos were becoming popular, and many people went to karaoke after leaving the disco. The songs Komuro typically sang were the kind that had to be sung in the style of Southern AllStars, ZARD, etc. TMN Song Meets Disco was designed to target people who weren't fans of TMN. The group's albums were only sold as "first press", so no back orders were placed and the songs couldn't spread beyond their fans.
A quick note about Avex. At this time, they were a very small company that focused more on marketing than releasing music. They only had 30 employees. According to Chiba Ryuhei, who was the Managing Director at a Management Company at the time (and would go on to manage TRF):
"Avex was a place where Dance Otaku gathered who would find music from the US and Europe that Japanese didn't know about. It felt like a company that informed and sold Japanese what was cool in the scene."
Chiba continues:
"'TMN SONG MEETS DISCO STYLE' had a big impact. Avex wasn't a major record company at the time, but gained a reputation for being at the core of what was considered cool among young people. Because of this, Komuro thought it would be beneficial to get a new Unit out from the Underground scene by utilizing this brand."
~ TK Tracks Night ~
Before I go any further, I should talk about TK Tracks Night to put all this into context. Komuro had been sponsoring a series of club events called "TK Tracks Night". The first such event was believed to have taken place on 1991.10.15 at the Maharaja in Niigata (He may have been holding events as early as Spring 1991 at a different club, but they weren't called TK Tracks Night). The Maharaja was part of the chain of luxury disco clubs developed by the Nova21 group throughout the 80's and 90's during Japan's economic bubble. With their opulent decor, full course meals, strict dress codes, and celebrity guests, they brought about a second disco boom in the late 80's.
(I believe this is the interior to an authentic Maharaja from the late 80's)
(Clubbers at either the Tokyo Maharaja or Juliana's)
(Video from the Nagoya Maharaja sometime in the '80s)
The name for the event comes from Komuro's first label "TK Tracks" which was created especially to manage these events. Komuro himself appeared and performed regularly.
Chiba met Komuro through the events at the Maharaja in 1991. According to him, Komuro was already planning to put together a Disco Unit when the TK Tracks Night events started. Komuro had asked Chiba to keep an eye out for DJs, Singers, and Dancers who might fit the concept:
"The idea was to find artists at the events, a Singer, DJ, and Dancers, and create a Disco Unit."
It's not necessary to appreciate TRF, but there is one other person I should mention. A man named Kitamura Yutaka (or Kitamura Yuta) set up TK Tracks for Komuro. There isn't much information about Yutaka. He has no Wikipedia page and it seems like he worked mainly behind the scenes. He was actually a classmate of Komuro in High School, so that's how they met. Kitamura worked as a business adviser for the Nova21 group. It was this relationship that led to Komuro sponsoring TK Tracks Night. While attending Nova21 events, Komuro met Max Matsuura, and the rest is history. Kitamura is kind of a foot note in this story, but he's a key person that helped connect TK and Matsuura.
~ Group Formation ~
The name of the group was first proposed by Matsuura as "TK Rave Factory". Of course, TK is the initials of Tetsuya Komuro, Rave was taken from the dance events that were becoming popular in the West, and Factory was taken from the title of the album "Hit Factory" which Komuro had released in Oct. of 1992 (The product of his trip to Miami). Techno Rave Factory had also been suggested. Originally, it was written in lower case letters, but changed to all upper case with the single "Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen" in 1996.
Komuro came up with the concept for the group. He wanted it to look like you were actually at a disco club, with a DJ in the back and dancers on the stage. TRF would be the first dance focused Rave group in Japan. At the time, dancers stayed behind the artist, so this was the first time they were full members and came to the front. In the future, groups like Exile would utilize this concept and expand on it to great success. I've read that this concept might have been a response to rise of Karaoke where anyone could stand on a stage and sing. Komuro might have thought the group needed to be more dynamic to be able to sell it.
Musically, Komuro intended TRF to appeal to fans of the Disco scene, but also wanted to incorporate Techno which was popular at the at the Nova21 clubs to broaden the fanbase.
(ZOO's debut single "Careless Dance". You can see Yu-ki with the dancers)
For the first two members of TRF, Komuro wouldn't have far to look. A beauty school graduate from Ehime Prefecture, Yu-ki was a member of the previously mentioned group ZOO. In 1990, she competed on the audition program "DA DA LMD" and won which allowed her to join the group. ZOO debuted in May 1990 with the single "Careless Dance". Yu-ki can also be seen in the PV. She would leave the group in 1991.
(Highschool aged Yu-ki)
At a TK Tracks Night event in April '92, Yu-ki participated in one of the Dance contests that were sometimes held, and caught the attention of Komuro, who was a judge. Yu-ki recounts her experience:
"I lived in Osaka, but I was interested in Street Culture and Music, and went to the clubs to watch the dancing. So, my Senior at the time said to me "why don't you enter the dance contest? If you win, you can get a coupon to a Hot Spring." The contest had ended in Osaka, so I went to the one in Gifu, and danced to a Chaka Khan song with 3 other people. Because of that suggestion, I won, but I wasn't particularly interested in dancing."
She goes on to say:
"Mr. Komuro, who was a Judge, seemed to already be thinking about putting together a Rave Unit at the time, asked me 'Is that okay?', and I was scouted. That's how I became a vocalist in TRF. Up until that point, I hadn't sung for him at all, and never had a vocal audition.
The person who was with Komuro at the time was Chiba-san, the current Vice President of Avex. He said 'That girl's good, isn't she?' and that's how I got it. I think I fit the vocal image they wanted to create."
DJ Koo had been working as a DJ at the TK Tracks Night events and was a member of the group The JG's. He'd also had some experience working with Avex before, although I'm not sure in what capacity. In late 1991, The JG's song "Spark It Up" was being used in a CM for Suzuka Circuit, a motor sport race track. Komuro would have been familiar with the JG's through the club scene.
DJ Koo recounts his early years in the music business:
"I'd always DJ'd at Discos, and I would make edited versions of my sets with peers. This helped me get the attention of a label (Avex), and I created a Remix team called DJ HONDA or the JG's. In that Unit, we created Dance Mixes that were suitable for albums by major artists. Wink, Hayami Yu-chan, and Oginome Yoko-san were some of the people who wanted to make Dance Mixes in the world of Pop Music. I did a dance mix on Toshinobu Kubota-san's first album, and also one for Go Hiromi-san...I was doing allot of things."
How he was chosen:
"In my case, Komuro-san was holding a Rave event, so I was introduced to people because I wanted to DJ there. Originally I was offered a job as an Event DJ, but since I was doing Remixes, I participated in the production of the album as a recording assistant. That's how it started."
(*DJ Koo doesn't specify which "album" he's referring to. I don't know if it was an album for Komuro prior to joining TRF or to the Eurogroove series that he worked on with Komuro from '94-'96)
(DJ Koo with Komuro. Date unknown, but likely during Koo's DJ era or the early days of TRF)
There were no problems when Komuro chose Yu-ki and DJ Koo as the first two members of the group. However, there were some issues with his next pick. He was interested in the hip hop dance unit MEGA-MIX that was led by SAM. At the time there were 8 members.
Komuro had seen the group on the tv show "Dance! Dance! Dance!". Touji Hideo was a member of MEGA-MIX and had won a spot on the TM Network tours "Rhythm Red Tour" and "Tour TMN EXPO" around that time. He was said to have introduced Komuro to the tv show. At the end of the TMN Tour in April of 1992, two other members of MEGA-MIX, Goto and Yusa, had been on the tour and may have helped Komuro get in touch with the goup.
Chiharu confirms how Komuro learned about MEGA-MIX:
"Komuro-san often watched the program "Dance! Dance! Dance!, and he sent SAM an invitation 'Do you want to dance to an original song', and it grew from there."
SAM goes into more detail:
"At that time, we had a strong belief that the team would be famous as Dancers instead of background performers. We had a policy that 'we don't dance behind the singer'. So when we were offered an original song, we became interested."
"In Komuro's mind, he had the concept of 'I want to make a Unit with Dancers' and that 'the Dancers had to be pros'. Because we danced so earnestly on the show, the Producer informed us we received an offer. At first, the 8 of us in MEGA-MIX thought we would make original songs, so I felt like 'We've made it!'."
Recording was already underway for TRF when Komuro approached SAM about MEGA-MIX joining TRF, so he invited them to the studio to listen to what they'd been working on. They weren't expecting to hear Techno based tracks, and most of the members were reluctant to join.
Chiharu:
"I never dreamed there'd be a Vocalist or DJ."
SAM recounts:
"It was completely different from what we expected. On the way back from the listening to the demos, the members had a discussion: 'Should we quit?' and 'What should we do?'. Eventually, we all decided to do it as a job. So, for a while, I didn't have a contract and got paid once a month/a one time payment."
In the end, 5 members of MEGA-MIX left to continue pursuing Hip Hop dancing. Only SAM, Etsu, and Chiharu would join TRF.
~ Debut ~
(TRF's first Music Video "Open Your Mind")
TRF rehearsed from Dec. '92 - Jan. '93 and debuted at the "TK Rave Factory" event at the Yokohama Bayside Club. After ending the "TK Tracks Night" events in Spring '92, Komuro started the "TK Rave Factory" events in Dec. of that year, likely in anticipation of TRF's debut. In early '93, Komuro would often say "The Rave will come this year". Also, While appearing on the early morning TV Show "Ugou Goluga", he would say "Let's Rave", so he was definitely trying to get Japanese familiar with the term "Rave" and setting the stage for TRF's debut.
One month later, on Feb. 25th, 1993, TRF released their debut single "Going 2 Dance/Open Your Mind" simultaneously with their debut album "trf ~ This is the Truth ~". It's a bizarre debut. Open Your Mind sounds a bit more like Darkwave than Techno, but it's close enough. This is probably the edgiest concept they ever tried and not reflective of how they would appear throughout the rest of their career. I actually think the cap Yu-ki is wearing is just made out of duct tape, lol. There's no MV for GOING 2 DANCE. It's closer to the sound that they would become famous for, but there's less of an emphasis on the vocals, so it probably wouldn't have lent itself to a video interpretation. It was likely meant to be something that people could dance to in clubs.
Going 2 Dance/Open Your Mind didn't chart in the top 100 on Oricon, but trf ~ This is the Truth ~ reached #14. Selling around 65k, it wasn't the success Avex was hoping for. They didn't get allot of media exposure in the beginning, but over time hoped that word would spread to the club scene and that there would be some crossover with TM Network fans.
According to Komuro, he didn't know how to handle Techno, and no one in his circle did either. Even tough he'd been interested in club trends since 1990, he payed more attention to House music. TRF's debut album was likely made too quickly. In addition, there was an over emphasis on English lyrics, which may have turned people off.
~ Success ~
After another unsuccessful single "This Is The Joy", TRF released "EZ Do Dance" in June '93, followed by the mini album of the same name in July '93. (There's some discrepancies in TRF's discography. EZ Do Dance is listed as their 2nd Single, but it's actually their 3rd. For the sake of proper numbering, I'll be using their Wikipedia discography, so EZ Do Dance will still be considered their 2nd single. This Is The Joy may have been released un-officially as a single or issued as part of a dance compilation or remix album)
While still rooted in Techno, more pop-like elements can be heard, and most of the lyrics are in Japanese. It was a rapid change from the harder Techno sound heard only 6 months earlier. Komuro said his approach this time was to use fewer tracks and minimize the melodies to make the songs simpler so they'd be more memorable and stick in your head. It was this song that gave him confidence in his producing ability. Karaoke was also something he took into account with this song.
What started out as more of a Disco/Techno focused project, evolved into something different, and TRF's sound can start to really be heard here. Interestingly, in the demo stage, SAM said it was impossible to dance to a song with such fast bpm. Here's a great live performance from Aug. 1995. Should the video get taken down, here's a gif I made for reference.
This was the turning point for the group, and EZ Do Dance was a massive success. The single would reach #14 while the mini would reach #4. The single would go on to sell 790k copies. It even won the 35th Japan Record Award for the Music Video category. It's become one of the most highly regarded songs that Komuro's created. During the auditions for his next group "globe", it was this song that Keiko sang. She even recorded her own version "EZ DO DANCE -meets KEIKO-". The song is so enduring that, when TRF returned from their hiatus in the mid 2000s, SAM, Etsu, and Chihara released a work out/exercize DVD series based around the dance: EZ Do Dancercize.
Chiba attribute's the success of EZ Do Dance to catching on with DJs and being recognized as "Cool music to play in the club". That led to the song being used in a Sea Breeze CM which allowed it to spread to the general public:
"TRF kind of came out of nowhere. They looked liked a foreign group and had a fresh sound with a catchy song that came from the underground. They created a situation that made people wonder 'who are these guys?'"
~ Re-organization ~
Even though I said earlier that only SAM, Etsu, and Chiharu would join TRF, there were actually 11 members in the group when TRF released the MV for EZ Do Dance, Komuro included. The line up for this single is a little confusing. Based on what I read, only SAM, Etsu, and Chihara had joined TRF, but maybe it was at this time when the other MEGA-MIX members left, and not at the time TRF debuted.
Shortly after EZ Do Dance was released, the lineup was paired down because Komuro thought there were too many people on stage, and the faces of the members would be obscured. I've read that this was a big reason why ZOO disbanded. The group lived up to it's name by featuring a huge lineup, and fans couldn't form a strong connection with them. There isn't much information on them, but a dance group called Sound Cream Steppers was featured on EZ Do Dance, and the 3 of them left. Whether they were called that at the time or if they started using that name afterwards is unclear. They're still active today.
Prior to the release of EZ Do Dance, Komuro wasn't sure if the group would have a set line up. When the group was formed, Yu-ki wanted to make solo releases, and SAM, Etsu, and Chiharu wanted to dance abroad, so they had different visions for their future. Komuro considered the possibility that TRF might not be a typical band where the members are permanent, and he might have to add new members in a rotating lineup. However, after this success, it seemed like the 4 of them realized they had a good thing going and made TRF their focus.
Komuro performed with TRF until August 1993 at the "avex rave '93" event, when he became just too busy with other projects to continue. For the remainder of their career, the group would consist only of Yu-Ki, DJ Koo, SAM, Etsu, and Chiharu.
~ Visual Style ~
I really should mention TRF's style. Their clothes were very much of the time; bright colors, velvet and vinyl fabric, with feathery accents. Yu-ki also frequently wore oversized hats. They would change up their look depending on the concept of the MV. For one single, they'd dress like they came straight out of a club. For another, they'd be in an exotic location and dressed in something suitable for the region. Next they'd have a darker, more gothic look, before changing once again for a desert themed video with all white clothes.
As the years went on, they started dressing more conservatively. Yu-ki wore suits from time to time, but kept her trademark short hair pretty much throughout the entirety of the 90's and even colored it red for a time. She grew it out slightly towards the end.
~ Hit After Hit ~
(TRF's 7th Single "Boy Meets Girl)
From this point on, TRF were on a role. Starting with their 5th single "Samui yoru dakara...(Because it's a cold night)" in Dec. 1993, they would release a total of 15 consecutive top 10 singles, including 5 #1's. While recording Saumi yoru dakara..., Komuro lived about 5 min. by bike from his studio. He said that while riding his bike in the cold, he though of the phrase "Because it's a cold night" and proceeded to write the melody over the course of the 5 min. trip. DJ Koo had said that Yu-ki was "really happy to sing such a good song".
When TRF debuted, they were seen more as a TK project with the goal of entering the world of Disco. From '94-'95, the perception changed and they were seen more as their own group. You can also hear SAM, Etsu, and Chiharu singing on the chorus of more of the songs.
Chiba gives some insight into how they released different versions of the songs for greater appeal:
"If you don't put a pop element in there, it will be difficult for people to accept it. There are two types: an original version, and a remix version for the clubs. The pop version was more famous, but you always made two. The remix version might not become well know, but it would be cool."
(TRF's 10th Single "Overnight Sensation 〜Jidai wa Anata ni Yudaneteru〜)
Their first #1 was "survival dAnce 〜no no cry more〜" released in May 1994. It was also their first million seller. The next 4 singles would also sell 1m each. It's a rare feat to have 5 consecutive million selling singles. To my knowledge, only 5 other Japanese artists have accomplished this. B'z and GLAY are in this group with TRF.
Their 7th Single, "Boy Meets Girl" was the hardest song for Komuro to produce. It took an entire month to complete it. After this single, Komuro would also step away from the recording process and serve only as a producer. Moving forward, he would send DJ Koo demos who would come up with the vocal direction for Yu-ki.
I don't know when this was updated, but their 8th single "Crazy Gonna Crazy" is listed as TRF's best selling single according to Oricon with a total of 1,587,000 copies sold. It was also the first release in a project where they released a single every month for 3 months. It was used as the opening theme for the Fuji Television Drama "Gaman Dekinai!".
Their 10th single "Overnight Sensation 〜時代はあなたに委ねてる〜" released in March 1995, won the Grand Prize at the 37th Japan Record Awards. It was the first time an Avex artist received this award. It was used in CMs for Honda Live Dio. In terms of bpms, Komuro said it was made so it would be easy to dance to, as a thank you to the dancers for all their hard work. Here's a live perf from the awards. No idea how long it will be up. This wasn't even on YouTube 6 months ago.
(These are the only pics I could find from the 37th Japan Record Awards)
Should the video from the awards get taken down, I made this highlight gif to at least give an idea of what it was like. They were definitely on top of the world at this point.
TRF also put on some amazing live shows. In December 1995, they held their first concert in Tokyo Dome. It released on VHS the following year and titled "Brand New Tomorrow in Tokyo Dome ~ presentation for 1996 ~". It featured a full band and dozens of dancers.
TRF would continue to find success over the next two years, but as is usually the case, it wouldn't last forever.
~ Decline ~
(18th Single "Unite! The Night!")
In 1998, TRF's success would start to decline. You could attribute this to multiple factors. Starting with their 18th single, "Unite! The Night!", TRF began producing their own songs and working with other song writers. Up to that point, Komuro had still been at the reigns. "Unite! The Night!" and the following single "frame", performed well on the charts, but afterwards, sales dropped off considerably. Their 20th single "Try or Cry" released in April 1998, was their first not to chart in the top 10. I guess Komuro just had that magic touch.
Something similar happened with MAX. Their first 3 studio albums, as well as a greatest hits collection, all sold over 1 million copies each. As soon as they started writing their own songs for their 4th studio album "Emotional History", their sales dropped.
Times and musical tastes were also changing. Female soloists like Hikaru Utada and Ayumi Hamasaki were becoming very popular, and Morning Musume had started another Idol boom. I'm not familiar with every group at the time, but there were likely other newcomers that were competing With TRF. Even globe was not immune as their sales dropped around this time as well. I think the fact that Komuro was experimenting with Trance music contributed to the decline. Trance wasn't popular yet in Japan, but he stubbornly kept going in that direction for the group.
Due to the poor sales, after their 25th single "He Lives In You", TRF would go on hiatus in 1999 while members focused on solo activities. Yu-ki did some voice acting work, DJ Koo worked as a producer, SAM did choreography for artists like SMAP, V6, Boa, and Namie Amuro (his wife at the time), Chiharu did choreography for artists like Ayumi Hamasaki, and Etsu was in charge of the jacket design for the "Burst drive Mix" series.
They reunited in 2006 with their 26th single "Where to begin" and still perform together to this day. I'm not going to cover TRF's reunion period since the focus of this article is their heyday in the 1990's. Yu-ki also made a handful of solo releases in the late 90's, so I might cover that in another article as well.
~ Final Word ~
In closing, TRF's impact can't be overstated enough. They were the group that allowed Tetsuya Komuro to hone his producing skills and put Avex on the map. They helped popularize dance music in Japan and spread happy vibes across the country. Their influence continues to be felt in any group that places an emphasis on dance and vocal combinations.
Further listening:
(12th Single "Happening Here")
Additional Comments:
It was difficult finding good quality pictures for TRF. There's a surprising lack of decent pics from the 90's. Most of them are from their reunion in the 00's. I guess no one's bothered to take screen caps of magazines they were featured in from that Era.
The best I could come up with were some hi res caps of the jackets of their singles. On top of that, I looked through tons of covers from magazine like "What's In?", "Myojo", and "CD Data", and I could only find 3 magazine covers on which they were featured. It's strange for a group that was selling millions of records. I found more mag covers with Globe and Judy and Mary. They were very successful at the time, but were they more in demand than TRF? Maybe I missed some popular magazines from that time. It's a mystery.
Bonus:
To give an example of the kind of impact that TRF made, here's a fun bonus. It's not uncommon for Japanese game developers to base characters on celebrities. Well, it looks like Yu-ki was the inspiration for the character of Vice from the King of Fighters series. The similarities are uncanny. Someone on the team was a big TRF fan.
