Here we go again! Last year we kicked off the article by taking a look at the Japanese poll, but it seems this year's event was cancelled due to lack of time by the owner (I know that feel, bro). Still, a crying shame when you consider that this website held polls every year since 2003. Here's hoping someone takes over for 2012. However, that still leaves the 2ch 2011 Eroge Poll with a few Denpa picks, but mostly total domination from KOTOKO, Duca and of course 榊原ゆい. Here's the video compilation on Nicovideo.
So, short of having a Japanese top 10 to compare with, we thought we'd invite a Japanese writer to give his comments on our picks! Introducing our good buddy mossya, who's been a fan for quite some time. He contributes to a great blog (take-subの日記) on which he posts his M3/Comiket gets, as well as multiple MoeElectroDenpa mixes which are quite popular. Obviously this guy knows what's up so Mandi and I are glad to have him on board. That said, here's our 2011 sampler!
So, short of having a Japanese top 10 to compare with, we thought we'd invite a Japanese writer to give his comments on our picks! Introducing our good buddy mossya, who's been a fan for quite some time. He contributes to a great blog (take-subの日記) on which he posts his M3/Comiket gets, as well as multiple MoeElectroDenpa mixes which are quite popular. Obviously this guy knows what's up so Mandi and I are glad to have him on board. That said, here's our 2011 sampler!
| Title: | ろり☆ぱら! (opening song) |
| Singers: | 天城あくる & ココ & mega |
| Composer: | ちゃぼ |
| Album: | ちびロリっ！ |
| Released: | M3-2011春 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Zero-Shaft had a tremendous year and really, any of their ロリっ！ songs could have been a contender. This one just happened to have a nice intro and ココ on vocals, which is always a big plus. mandichan: The dark humor of the lyrics balances out the cuteness of the vocals. A fun song that makes a good representative for the series as a whole. mossya: ロリっ！ソングに定評のあるZero-Shaft。完全合法です！2011年、素晴らしい企画力と物凄い作曲量で萌電波ソングを量産してくださいました！納得の一位です。この曲に関しては何より語りが致死的ですね！ココさんに罵られたい！お兄ちゃんとか呼ばれたい！！！ほああああ！！！！ |
| Title: | 電波LOVE～でんぱあいす～ |
| Singer: | ちぃむｄｍｐ☆ |
| Composer: | さつき が てんこもり |
| Album: | 電波LOVE～でんぱあいす～ |
| Released: | C80 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Another year, another big album for the beautiful ちぃむｄｍｐ☆ girls. How will they be able to top this one in 2012? Time will tell! In the meantime, they've also released a couple of drama albums which are also worth checking out. This song was composed by Lord Satsuki and nicely conveys the feeling of a playful day at the beach. mandichan: ちぃむｄｍｐ☆ has been a blessing for denpa fans, continuing the welcome trend of original denpa groups, as opposed to those focused on Touhou or other derivative works. mossya: 桃箱さん＋愛原圭織さんのユニット。作曲はさつき先生！いつもよりキラキラしてます。歌詞もきゅんきゅいで素晴らしいですね。作詞は七色ビタミンのちなさん！このアルバムには"らじおONAIR♪"って曲も入ってるけど、桃箱さんのラジオはM-waveで金曜夜８時からです！ネットでも聴けるよ！(桃箱のmofumofuらじお) |
| Title: | なめこのうた |
| Singer: | おでんぱ☆スタジオ |
| Composer: | ベイビー・レモネード |
| Album: | ろりーたプラネット★ミ |
| Released: | C81 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: After a collaboration with とろ美, おでんぱ☆スタジオ didn't skip a beat and released a new single featuring 井上みゆ. We went with this one because they released a PV along with it, but it also highlights BB.Lemonade's unique style. mandichan: This song can and will get stuck in your head! Just be careful about singing it in public! These guys have some of the wildest lyrics I've ever heard. mossya: 性的ですね！！！所謂キャラメルダンセン的なループ→廃人コースの電波ソング！なめこを知らない海外の人がこのPVをみたら発狂しますね。知ってても発狂しました！！！最近のアルバムはゲストボーカルも豪華だけど、トラックのクオリティも高くて素晴らしいです。 |
| Title: | オシエテスキシテ♥773 |
| Singer: | 白石なごむ |
| Composer: | きくお |
| Game: | ナナミの教えてEnglish DS ～めざせTOEIC®TESTマスター |
| Released: | February 2011 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: 白石なごむ and きくお are a dream team in my eyes, so here's hoping songs like this (and the ones featured on 『ぱらのいあ☆らヴ』) are just the beginning. The gratuitous abuse of the はいはいはい singalong is pure icing on the cake. mandichan: Nagomu is great, and this song makes a fine introduction to her currently unfortunately small library of music. I would love to hear this one live! mossya: マジでもっと評価されるべきユニット！！！でも一般受けしづらいのもなんとなく分かるのです。むっちゃ濃いからね！やっぱエロゲとかとタイアップしつつも今まで通り商業主義に絡めとられない曲を作り続けてほしいですね。応援してます！ |
| Title: | 飛び出せ! Sweet Sweet Magic☆ |
| Singer: | ななひら |
| Composer: | nana(sevencolors) |
| Album: | プチリズムさん！ |
| Released: | C80 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Not really familiar with nana(sevencolors) as a composer, but when samples for this album were first released, I remember being blown away by the opening track! Of course with ななひら on vocals, you're in for an out-of-this-world experience. The プチリズム had two great albums this year (as well as a re-release of the first one) so that's a lot of songs to choose from, but this one was a no-brainer. mandichan: As always, this series is full of memorable songs, making it tough to chose. The arrangement builds up well and showcases Nanahira's voice to its fullest. mossya: プチリズムシリーズは神…！ |
| Title: | Future Diver |
| Singer: | でんぱ組.inc |
| Composer: | 小池雅也 |
| Arranger: | 前山田健一 |
| Album: | ねぇきいて？宇宙を救うのは、きっとお寿司…ではなく、でんぱ組.inc！ |
| Released: | November 2011 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Perhaps what I like most about でんぱ組.inc is that they bring a human dimension to denpa songs. The girls are real and in-your-face, which is not something you can get from your favourite doujin vocalist. It's been a long road to the debut full album, but it was worth it! Having 小池雅也 and 前山田健一 on board kinda helps, too. mandichan: Although Dempagumi.inc has been around for a while, this year it feels they finally really came together as a group. I'm glad that they finally released an album so those who can't come see them live can join in the fun... but if you have the chance, come see them, or at least check out their newly released live DVD! mossya: 2011年はアイドルが日本の一般社会で市民権を得た年でしたが、それでもでんぱ組がオタク的なアンダーグラウンド感を保って活動しているのには好感が持てますね。この曲をAKBが歌ったとしても決して電波ソングには為り得ないのです！！！ |
| Title: | オンナのコって♪マジ☆超えんじぇる!! |
| Singers: | あべにゅうぷろじぇくと feat. 佐倉紗織 & 白沢理恵 |
| Composer: | どれちゅ |
| Anime: | 快盗天使 ツインエンジェル |
| Released: | August 2011 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Not sure what can be said about ave;new projecto that hasn't been said already. どれちゅ has this formula down to a science, even though we've been seeing more and more experimentation lately. While somewhat more "traditional", this Twin Angel OP is still absolutely insane and great primer material for those new to the genre. mandichan: I would prefer to feature 気まぐれ?つんでれ～た～, but me and denpanosekai couldn't see eye to eye on that one. Still, this one is fun, especially live when you can chant "Kyun Kyun Tokimeki Paradise!" Plus it marks ave;new project's first anime single. |
| Title: | two of us～姉さん、それは事件です～ |
| Singer: | doubleeleven UpperCut (akari) |
| Composer: | 山下航生 |
| Album: | NUMBERS!! -Do you like Upper Cut?? 3!!- |
| Released: | C80 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Love these guys! Pedal to the metal, one album after the other! Now they've even started focusing on live concerts, which is a rare feat considering 100% of their songs are eroge OP material. mandichan: Fun spoken lines sprinkled in pump up this relatively calm (hey, i said RELATIVELY) production from deUC! mossya: deUCの電波ソングはホントにライプで聴きたい感じのが多いですね。煽りがまじパナイ！この曲もそうで、イントロの合いの手とかのあざとさといったら！！歌詞も結構アレですがエロゲソングはやっぱこうじゃなきゃっていう。 |
| Title: | ヒャダインのじょーじょーゆーじょーで |
| Singer: | ヒャダイン |
| Anime: | 日常 |
| Released: | August 2011 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: You might be surprised to see Hyadain pop up in a denpa sampler, but you have to admit this song is insane. I've had nothing but respect for this guy ever since he started releasing his video game remixes on youtube sometime ago. These wild anthems were really a form of denpa, if you think about it. Not to mention the whole female/male dual vocals thing... mandichan: Hard to resist the temptation to feature a male vocalist, lots of shock element there. Impressive how he can make such wacky songs and still come off as a "cool" guy. He's awesome in my book, and so is this song. (And Nichijou!) mossya: 上のでんぱ組.incの曲もそうだけど、2011年は前山田さんがむちゃくちゃ強かったですね。トラックもいいけど、ヒャダインの場合はピッチ編集で男でも電波ソングを歌えるんだ！歌っていいんだ！っていうのを示した功績も大きいと思いますｗ早速"ARM子"とかフォロアーが生まれてるしｗ |
| Title: | えっへん≦(￣^￣)≧どやどす天狗自慢 |
| Artist: | MOSAIC.WAV |
| Album: | えっへん≦（￣^￣）≧どやどす？天狗自慢 |
| Released: | C81 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: The Giants of Denpa strike again with a wonderful Uju theme song! These are always deliciously over-the-top and this year's edition is no different. They had a solid album earlier in the year, as well as a fantastic "best of" album with some sweet new songs... but this is their wildest stuff yet! mandichan: MOSAIC.WAV is still keeping their Uju themes fresh while keeping them (somewhat) unified in sound. I love the smug looking emoticon in the title to match the "Doya!" theme! |
| Title: | なむ×きゅん |
| Singers: | とろ美 & きこうでんみさ |
| Composer: | ARM |
| Album: | なむ×きゅん CD |
| Released: | C80 (DVD), C81 (CD) |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: Here's some math for you: 仏教 + IOSYS + とろ美 ＝ 電波!! It doesn't get any simpler than this! With Jester Misa by their side, Queen Toromi and Lord ARM rule the World of Denpa with an iron fist. We're not worthy! This blood-pumping hymn is quite memorable, but make sure you check out the CD for even more. mandichan: A worthy sequel to Ryohoji's previous theme. I just hope Toromi doesn't forget all about making her own original songs too! |
| Title: | ゆるしてあげないもん (ending song) |
| Artist: | U |
| Album: | ULTRA☆U -GALAXY- |
| Released: | September 2011 |
| Comments: | denpanosekai: U has had a pretty big comeback in late 2011, let's just hope she won't make us wait so long for another album! Her unique voice and innate songwriting ability usually translates into timeless classics. I still remember quite vividly her 2005 songs as if I heard them yesterday and I'm quite confident this album will have the same effect! mandichan: This year we were truly blessed to have a new album release from U, as well as have her make lots of great songs for others. Although her works for the anime probably YuruYuri received more exposure than her solo works, it's her solo stuff that will always be best to me. |
Honourable Mentions
denpanosekai's picks ※ 天然ジェミニ - お月見うどんてゐ!※ cello - 通称！デンパリ娘 ※ nanano - 小町ちゃんの超すごい三途の川ツアー ※ 月葉 - じゃあ僕もう二度寝の歌作り増すよ! ※ BeatMario+ARM - ゆめゆめよめめ | mandichan's picks ※ 桃井はるこ - ジェットスマッシュ!※ ave;new feat.白沢理恵 - 気まぐれ？つんでれ～た～ ※ おいでよ!妖精の森 - gdgd妖精s ※ Os-宇宙人 - エリオをかまってちゃん ※ 33.turbo - uta-oh | mossya's picks ※ しゅな(藤森ゆき奈＆上田朱音) - 恋向聴※ リズナ - Sakuramichi Overdrive ※ Chia - 幽谷ラップ!おはよーごじゃいます! ※ ココ - Subconscious Trip ※ メトロポリちゃんV - てゐのデート大決戦脳内戦略会議室!! |
