Friday, May 29, 2020

Ebichu Kannai Devil gif Spectacular!!!


Starting in March, Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku became regular cast members for the 2nd Season of Kannai Devil, a weekly music variety program. The 30 min. program takes place in the fictional coffee shop "Kannai Devil" in Yokohama and is hosted by the owner Eiji Ooba and regular customer Kamura Mami. In each episode, the two are joined by a different member of Ebichu playing the role of a part time employee. After some unscripted banter, the three are visited by a musical guest and they discuss various things about their lives. Kannai might be a reference to Kannai Station in Naka-ku, Yokohama. It's also a popular name for the Ooka River in Naka-ku.

Since it's a dialogue heavy show, it's not practical for me to do a full translation. However, there are some funny and cute moments courtesy of the members of Ebichu, so I thought I'd make some gifs. I also recently purchased a real screen capture program and this is the perfect opportunity to test it out.

Intros

Hinata:



Riko:


Rika:


Talents

Hinta shows off her special skill of making a funny face:


Riko's baton twirling:


Drawing Fails!

There's a segment on the show where Mami and the member of Ebichu have to draw an animal after being told it's name. The results were questionable, lol.

Riko and Mami draw a Red Panda:


Riko and Mami have to draw a Clouded Leopard:


Rika and Mami have to draw a Dromedary or Somali Camel:



Bonus #1

I think they were talking about Rika's photobook, but they were trying to play a trick on Mami by pulling out on her old ones. That's why she's so eager to hide it.


Bonus #2

I made a lower quality set of gifs from Ebichu's MV for "Sweet Sweet", but decided to make another set since I better software.




You can watch the full episodes here:



Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Faky "half-moon" Interview

*Faky "half-moon" Interview with Music Voice. Published on 4.2.2020.

"Faky starts in the true sense as 5 members find confidence and look towards the future"


Next Generation Girls Union Faky will release the single "half-moon" on February 26th. After Anna announced her graduation in December 2018, former Def Will member Hina and Taki from the Philippines, who is extremely popular with teens, joined Faky to create a new 5 member system in their 3rd season.

(*When they say 3rd season, they most likely mean 3rd Generation)

Last year, they released a dance trilogy with the theme of Girl Power under the new system. They also performed at allot of live events to strengthen their unity. The first release of 2020 "half-moon" includes the feelings that Hina expressed on the AbemaTV show "Don't Be Fooled By The Moon And The Wolf". This medium number that Lil' Fang put Hina's feelings into, adds a whole new dimension that's different from the previous Faky. In this interview, we listened to the members talk about the changes to group under the new system, their feelings about "half-moon", and asked the 5 of them about their enthusiasm for future activities.

(*Since it's a big part behind the creation of half-moon, I looked into Hina's reality show. It started airing on March 30th. If I understand it correctly, it's a documentary style dating program where a group of high school aged girls who want to fall in love and go on a series of dates with members from the male team. However, one of the men is a wolf, who is acting and trying to stir things up. The goal is for the girls to discover who is the wolf. It was inspired by the Mafia game which is also known as Werewolf in different parts of the world.

Since it started airing, Hina's Instagram followers have been increasing rapidly. As of April 9th, she has almost 450k! The show seems to appeal to not only female, but male viewers as well. Hina opened up a YouTube Channel on April 9th, and as of the 13th, her first video has almost 1M views!!!)

"I want to show Girl Power naturally"

--One year has passed since you started the 5 member system. How does it feel to change from 4 members?

Mikako: Going from 4 to 5 is a really big deal. Would you say painting power? Of course, I feel like the power balance is bigger now.

(*"Painting power" refers to a newer term that's kind of vague. It came from discussions in 2ch threads among people who were interested in painting and manga. It can be interpreted to mean "artistic power/drawing power". I don't completely understand it myself, but this is the basic idea. It can be applied in different ways, but I'm not completely sure how Mikako's using it. She could just mean that the group has leveled up and is more dynamic)

Akina: Because the two of them (Hina and Taki) were born and raised in different places, we have a new essence which I felt was a plus. I think it's become fresh and easy to understand.

Lil' Fang: When we were 4 members, it felt like everyone was laid back. You might say we were all different from each other. However, when we became 5, it showed us a something like a new way of life. I wanted us to get a little bit stronger, and now that we've gotten closer with each other, I think it's gotten better. Also, now that we have 5 members, there's a desire to show Girl Power naturally in our 3rd season.

(*I'm not sure what Lil' Fang meant in the first two sentences. I get the sense that she was saying when they were 4, the members weren't that close yet. Now that they've become 5, they're a more tight nit group)

--One year has passed since Taki and Hina joined. How do you two feel now?

Taki: When I was about 15, I met the members of Faky and listened to their music. At that time, I never thought I would ever be a member. After working over the past year, I feel like I made a good choice. Now that all the puzzle pieces have been put together, I'm confident that I didn't make a mistake in joining.

--Do you engage in any activities that are different from the image you convey?

Taki: Before joining, I thought everyone was so serious. In reality, they weren't serious at all (laughs). At the beginning of our activities, I felt like I didn't talk at all before live performances, and that's not me at all (laughs).

Lil' Fang: I saw it that way too (laughs).

--That's a little understandable. How about you Hina?

Hina: Before joining Faky, I belonged to a different group under the same office, but Faky was always around so I was always watching them and thought they were a cool group. I had allot of pressure and anxiety about joining.

--What anxiety did you have?

Hina: I wondered if fans would accept me as a new member. However, over the past year, we've performed live in various places and released the single trilogy, and I feel like I've received allot of support. Over time, I feel like I've gained confidence as a member of Faky.

--I've heard that the dancing was also very difficult.

Hina: It was. There were two skill checks before joining and I did a month of strength training. The training was very difficult because everything was controlled, from the time I got up in the morning to the distance of the run. After one more skill check, I finally passed.

--Has everyone trained like that?

Lil' Fang: The timing was different for each of us. Now, we've leveled up and manage ourselves. During our 1st season, I trained 6 hrs. a day, 6 days a week.

Mikako: 6 hrs. is short. Normally, it was 8 - 10 hrs.

Taki: I couldn't dance at all and wanted to get better, so I went to the Dance Studio in Shibuya and had lessons from 11am until 11:30 at night. By the end of the day I would be crying, but thanks to that, in one year I was able to raise my skill.

"Feelings about 'half-moon' draw near"

--Well, "half-moon" has been released, and it's been said that Lil' Fang used Hina's thoughts to write the lyrics, so can you talk about the circumstances surrounding that?

Lil' Fang: It was unlikely that a member would appear in a love reality show during in the 7 years that Faky's been active. Everyone felt that something unknown would happen, so I thought it would be meaningless to Faky if it wasn't expressed through music. After Hina's appearance, I thought "why don't we make a song about her feelings?". I consulted with Akina during the time I was writing the lyrics.

--Did Hina give a list to Lil' Fang?

Hina: That's right. I always keep a diary. It's very big with a nice scroll style width, and sometimes I write about how I feel.

--From heavy to light. Lil' Fang, how did you feel reading Hina's personal thoughts?

(*When the Interviewer says "from heavy to light", I think they mean the tone of Hina's response after Lil' Fangs more serious one)

Lil' Fang: She seems like a girl who struggles with her thoughts and takes allot of detours. However, I think her detours increase because she has allot of experiences. I thought, let's do our best not to let Hina surpass me when she's my age.

--Is there any member who's close to Hina's thoughts?

Lil' Fang: I might be the closest, so I was effected by many places in her diary.

--Mikako, how did you feel about the lyrics when you read them?

Mikako: I guess I felt like I'm the opposite of Hina's personality and didn't think I could put myself into the lyrics. I was troubled and listened to the song allot while thinking about the answer. I wanted to express it by drawing on my own life. Over the 25 years of my life, I haven't focused much on romance, and I don't think that was a good choice. I talked with Lil', got some tips and decided "I'll sing and focus on life". At live performances, I sing to express my thoughts about the path I've take during my life.

Akina: I'm different from Mikako. Of course, life is important to me, but when it comes to romance, I get really tense. even though it can be painful, I'm happy to sing lyrics about our expectations for the future.

Taki: At the time of the recording, I told Lil' and Mikako "I need help because I don't understand Japanese". I still can't read Japanese words, so I read it in Romanji. From there, I wrote out the lyrics and was able to understand the feelings behind them. I felt like it was a song that could be sung with various themes instead of one topic. I think the lyrics convey different emotions every time you listen to them.

Lil' Fang: The gist of the song may change depending on what words the listener picks up.

--Hina, when you saw the lyrics, was there a phrase that resonated with you the most?

Hina: I thought the lyrics were captured so accurately that it's difficult to choose a number 1. When we were working on this song, I never thought I could write in this way. The balance between the emotions was perfect so anyone who listens could empathize with it.

--The sense of balance was good in the parts where you entrusted your thoughts, right? Now, regarding the sound, it shows us a different side of Faky than in the past. What did you think when you first heard the music?

Mikako: It was a different from what we've done before, so I was looking forward to what would happen when the five of us rode this sound. At the same time, it was even more fun to think that a brand new Faky would be delivered to the world again.

Akina: It's unusual for a song to stand on it's own and convey a message without choreography. I feel like there's a closer connection to the audience when singing a song like this.

Taki: It's the first time I've experienced this. When I was standing on stage and singing, I felt like I couldn't see anyone (in the group). However, when the Sabi (low Japanese vocal tones) comes in at the conclusion, I suddenly realized that everyone was around and it was a strange sensation.

Lil'Fang: I totally get that! There's an image of passing each other when the formation changes. We're close, but it's like passing someone in the street, and finally, you meet them face to face. I got that kind of sense when I realized that the 5 of us were there.

--Hina, are you conscious that you're singing about yourself?

Hina: It was so difficult when I saw the lyrics for the first time because the lyrics were so honest. If I thought too much about myself while singing it, then it would have been a mess. However, now the struggles and suffering from when I was writing take shape, so I thought it would be better to sing with the feelings from that time.

"I am confident that this is Faky from now on"

-- Is the title of the song "half-moon" taken from the Moon in "Don't Be Fooled By The Moon and the Wolf".

Lil' Fang: In the end, I couldn't change it. Looking at the notes Hina gave me and her role on "Don't Be Fooled By The Moon And Wolf", along with her difficulties being in Faky, it was hard to convey both. However everyone has that emotion, but the contrast with Hina's is getting stronger and I think it's getting harder to reconcile them both. I feel like there are few people who can separate the two, so in the song I wanted to convey that "It's natural for there to be two". So instead of a full moon, I decided on a half moon.

(*This was hard to translate, but if I didn't make it clear, I think Lil' Fang is saying that there are two sides to Hina, who she is in private and who she is in Faky, and she has difficulty reconciling that fact)

-- Yes, we all have both Yin and Yang. Can you tell us if you have any favorite lyrics or a phrase from the song.

Mikako: I liked the lyrics "I walk while holding my heartache, I own my life". When I read this line, it really struck a chord. There are also words that come in quickly like "leaf". I wonder if it represents my current feelings, so I felt like that part was particularly important.

Akina: For me it's the beginning of the Sabi "half-moon the other side of me". I sang in unison with 5 people for the first time and I think you can feel the strength of it. This is a key point for me, so I hope you pay attention to it.

Taki: I love the entire chorus. It's a hook that appears in the world of the song quickly, so I like it.

Hina: If you're watching the TV Show, I wonder if you can picture these scenes while listening to the lyrics. However, even if you're not watching the show, I think you can still feel something and understand the various meanings of "half-moon".

-- On the contrary, After listening to the song, I thought watching the show would give you a different insight.

Hina: It's an idea I haven't had before, so I'd love to hear your impressions.

-- In conclusion, can you tell us about Faky's prospects.

Lil' Fang: The 5 of us came together about a year and a half ago, and there have been some twists and turn until we took this form. Sometimes we had to start over from square one, but with the power that each of us had, sometimes we'd start from 100. Mikako was also talking about this, but it feels like the power balance of the 5 of us has finally arrived. Our breathing is in sync and I think it took us a year and half to gain the self-confidence to feel like, from now on, this is Faky.

As the culmination of this, on May 31st at Shibuya duo Music Exchange, we'll be holding our One Man Live "Faky One Man Live, New Age". From that point on, I think that Faky will really start as a 5 member group. The time for training is over. From here, it will be a challenge of our abilities to convey what fees like Faky now and I would be happy if you come to our lives!

Monday, May 4, 2020

Mameshiba no Taigun - "Surprise Common Sense Quiz!"

This year, Mameshiba no Taigun started a Variety Show on their YouTube channel. Each episode features the members undertaking different challenges, some of which involve punishments if they fail to complete them.

(*They have the best thumbnails, lol)

In the two most recent episodes, "Surprise Common Sense Quiz", the members answered a series of questions on a variety of subjects. All of them had to answer correctly or they would have to undergo a punishment game as a group. The punishments are all listed on a board, 9 in total, and each round a member draws a question randomly from a box. Whether they all answer correctly or not, the punishment is checked off and they move on to the next round.

My intention was just to translate the punishment board because, even though some will be obvious to anyone with a basic understanding of Japanese, others might not be so clear. After writing up the list, I wanted to translate the quiz portions as well and decided to turn this into a full blog post.

You can both episode here: Part 1 and Part 2.

Punishment Board


Top Row:

- デスソース (death sauce)
- センブリ茶 (Senburi Tea)
- パンスト被り (Pantyhose wearing)

Middle Row:

- 顔面洗バサミ (Face Scissors)
- ゲテモノ食い (Getemono Taberu),
- コンビニダッシュ (Konbini Dash)

Bottom Tow:

- 足つぼ大丈夫サンライズ (Ashitsubo Daijoubu Sunrise)
- メンバーの嫌なところ暴露 (Exposing the members dislikes)
- クロちゃんの口臭 (Kuro-chan's Bad Breath)

Episode 1!

Question #1: "The Astronaut Gagarin's famous quote "The Earth is__".
(*Gagarin is Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet Air Force Pilot and the first human to travel to outer space)

Answer: "Blue."

Kaede, Hanea, and Nao answered "青かった" (It's blue) which is correct. Aika got it wrong and I think Miyuki was close, but didn't quite have it. The members now have to face their first punishment game.

- Face Scissors: Pretty self explanatory, but you put the close pins on your face and have them pulled off.


Question #2: "In which direction does the sun rise and set in Japan?"

Answer: "Rises in the east and sets in the West."

Kaede, Hanae, and Miyuki answered correctly. Aika and Nao had it reversed. Time for the next punishment game.

- Seburi Tea: Senburi is also known as Swertia Japonica, an extract is an extract from the Swertia Japonica plant native to Japan. It has been recognized for centuries as promoting long life, strength and wisdom. It has a very bitter taste and is said to be the most bitter crude drug (herb).


Question #3: "What metal is the Japanese 1 Yen coin made of?"

Answer: "Aluminum."

Everyone got it right, so they avoid the acupressure performance of Daijoubu Sunrise.

- Ashitsubo Daijobu Sunrise (Acupressure Daijoubu Sunrise): Based on other variety shows, I'm guessing that the members would have to sing the song while getting an acupressure treatment on their feet. Depending on which points on the foot are pressed, it can be quite painful. After re-watching the episode, they included a picture of a mat with a rough surface on it. The members would probably have to step on this while singing.

Question #4: "They succeeded in humanities first powered flight. Who are these siblings?"

Answer: "The Wright Brothers."

Aika and Miyuki got it wrong. They both answered "Space Brothers" which they found amusing.


(*Space Brothers is actually a Manga. Here's the synopsis straight from Wikipedia:

In the summer of 2006, Mutta Nanba and his younger brother, Hibito, witness what they believe to be a UFO, which flies off towards the Moon. Hibito decides he will go onto the Moon whilst Mutta decides he will aim for Mars. Nineteen years later, in the year 2025, Hibito has become a fully fledged JAXA astronaut assigned to go on a mission towards the moon.  Mutta, on the other hand, has not been so successful in achieving his dreams. As Mutta eventually recalls his past ambitions, he receives a letter stating he has been accepted to join a JAXA training program for new astronauts. The series follows Mutta as he seeks to become an astronaut and achieve his longtime dream just like his brother did)

Here's a good image from the Anime adaptation.


The members have to play a punishment game.

- Exposing the members dislikes: This time, they have to say something they dislike, which is about other members. Looks like they just talk about whoever's sitting to the left of them.

What Hanae dislikes about Nao: "When you get sleepy, your attitude gets worse."

What Nao dislikes about Miyuki: "She suddenly yells in public."

What Miyuki dislikes about Kaede: "She hates dogs and children."
(*Sounds like Kaede didn't like the dogs that were on the set of the MV shoot for Daijoubu Sunrise)

What Kaede dislikes about Aika: "The bathroom is dirty (Aika and Nao live together in the dorm)"
(*Kaede says something about pink dirt stuck there)

What Aika dislikes about Hanae: "Her legs are thin and her skin is white."

Question #5: "List the Zodiac 1 by 1 in order verbally."

(*Based on their answers, it looks like they were listing the Twelve Earthly Branches of the Chinese Zodiac,specifically the Kunyomi pronunciations. Kunyomi is a reading based on the pronunciation of a Japanese word that closely approximates the meaning of the Chinese character after it was introduced. These refer to months, not years)

Answer: In order, they are: "Ne, Ushi, Tora, U, Tatsu, Mi, Uma, Hitsuji, Saru, Tori, Inu, and I." Of course, each corresponds to an animal.

Kaede screwed up, twice actually, so they undertake one more punishment game.

- Getemono Teberu: It refers to something that is generally unpleasant to eat like reptiles and amphibians. This is wear the grasshoppers came in.


Nao's final comment after eating the Grasshoppers: "We've had our variety baptism."
(*You could say they've taken their right of passage. Trial by Grasshopper?)


Episode 2!

Question #6: "Who is the person who killed Oda Nobunga at the Honnō-ji Incident?"

Answer: "Akechi Mitsuhide."

(*About the The Honnō-ji Incident or Honnō-ji no Hen (本能寺の変). It refers to the forced suicide on 21 June 1582, of Japanese daimyō Oda Nobunaga at the hands of his samurai general Akechi Mitsuhide. This occurred in Honnō-ji, a temple in Kyoto, ending Nobunaga's quest to consolidate centralized power in Japan under his authority. I won't go into too much detail, but Nobunga had central Japan under his control and wanted to continue his military expansion by attacking the remaining three clans who were in a weakened state. While Nobunga's forces were spread out, Mitsuhide used the opportunity to take his troops to the temple where Nobunaga was resting (Honnō-ji) and staged a coup. While the temple was surrounded, Nobunaga committed suicide. There are theories as to why Mitsuhide betrayed Nobunaga, but the exact reason is still unclear)

Kaede is the only one who got it right, although she only wrote "Akechi". Aika wrote "Ishida Mitsunari", a Japanese samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period. I have no idea what Hanae wrote, but I don't think she finished. Nao wrote "Toyotomo Hideyoshi", a daimyō and politician of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan. Miyuki wrote "Sakamoto Ryoma", a samurai and influential figure of the Bakumatsu and establishment of the Empire of Japan in the late Edo period.

Time for the first Punishment game of the episode!

- Pantyhose wearing: It's pretty self explanatory.


The Punishment game for the next question is Death Sauce. They make a point of mentioning that Nao already experienced it at the Training Camp.

(*Death Sauce is made by the US company "Blair's Sauces and Snacks" and frequently served at the Wack Training Camp. It's insanely hot)

Question #7: "The Era before the Hesei is the Showa, but what is the Era before the Showa?"

Answer: "Taishō era."

Everyone got it correct, so they escape the dreaded Death Sauce.

Question #8: "Take turns and list the months from January to December in English."

Miyuki answered incorrectly, so they have to do a Punishment Game. The other members tried to help her by bringing up the "June Bride" tradition.

- Konbini Dash (Convenience Store Dash): This is pretty self explanatory, but I think there's more to it. As far as the show is concerned, the last person to arrive has to buy something for the rest of the members. They wanted Haagen-Dazs.

(*Konbini Dash is also a hashtag on twitter, but I can't find a good explanation. It's usually connected to video games like the super hot Dragon Egg mobile game. It might be really simple like you really need something, so you have to make a quick run to the store)

Miyuki was first to the Convenience Store followed by Aika, Kaede, and then Hanae. Nao picked the wrong shoes to wear that day, lol.

Question #9: "What number is behind 3 on a set of dice?"

Answer: "4."

Hanae is the only one to get it wrong, so it's time for the final Punishment Game. They remind her that each corresponding side can be added up to seven. Aika even wrote it out: 1/6, 2/5, 3/4.

- Kuro-Chan's Bad Breath: So, that concoction they made a couple episodes ago where they recreated Kuro-chan's bad  breath...yeah they're reusing it here. The usage is self explanatory. They're so efficient on this show. They should find more uses for it, lol.


The members get a dollop of the concoction on their nose and have to do their intro.



With that, the members conclude the quiz and survive this show for another week.

Peri Ubu - 2You Magazine Interview

*This interview was published on 2020.3.24. Peri Ubu has gone in an entirely different direction. After BiS disbanded in May 2019, sh...