GWAVE announces SuperFeature 10, goes for Gold

MOSAIC.WAV are not the only ones going through a hot summer of back-to-back releases, GWAVE are also celebrating their 5th anniversary in style. To commemorate the occasion, they've turned to Trustus Jones, famous record label owner who published "Sweat Of My Balls", CB4's only album. To quote the man: "Gold, gold, GOLD! If you can't trust me, you can't trust us!" Yes, their website was given a brand new paint job, but it retains all of its splendid functionality, which most Japanese game-makers should look into. Because we all know that these folks couldn't design functional websites if their life depended on it, so this is a nice change.

Much like I put up new banner art in celebration of MOSAIC.WAV month, this new paint job also accompanies the release of a new album from the GWAVE camp. As you no doubt remarked from the promotional banner, this one is called 「ＳｕｐｅｒＦｅｔｕｒｅ’ｓ　Ｖｏｌ．１０　ゴールデン パロ・スペシャル」. You'd think that after years of typing it half-right, they'd get it right some day, but no they decided to make it worse and take out one of the useless vowels of "Feature". It almost reads like fetus too, gross. Sorry, sorry. Engrish is funny and all but sometimes it's really annoying. I think I'm gonna drop them a line...

So hey, about the contents of Vol. 10 itself. The secondary title is 「-May-Be SOFT Hyper Audio Fan Disc- 」 which suggests a compilation of previous theme songs for a specific game company, much like the last volume was a compilation of U's past FrontWing themes. It seems the company is celebrating 15 years of putting big anime boobs over endless scrolling text and calling it a game. So of course, GWAVE turns five, -May-Be turns 15, OMG we have to do something about this! The albums comes out September 26 2008 and so far, 5 songs out of 17 have been revealed, along with some BGM/drama tracks and the promise of a sweet not-so-secret-anymore track. The rest are, according to GWAVE, being "planned in complete secret", whatever that means. Total running length will be nearly 70 minutes.


Interestingly, ARM of IOSYS fame is listed as a guest artist. I could be wrong but this may be the first IOSYS/GWAVE partnership. I can't wait to see what song it is, I'm pretty much out of the IOSYS loop these days, but his hardcore electronic tracks never cease to amaze me, so I'm hoping for something in line with that. There is also Rita, but that is hardly a surprise considering her numerous past collaborations with GWAVE. Other producers include sumiisan (slightly known for his Prism ARK work), total punk rocker milktub (tons and tons of eroge themes, most popular for Green Green) and a couple of others whom I've never actually heard anything from, so this should be very, very interesting indeed.

Denpa, not denpa? When rabid fans collide

Here in North America, it's pretty "common" to label artists like MOSAIC.WAV, UNDER17 and IOSYS as denpa musicians. I never really thought that the denpa label could hold negative connotations, especially since み～こ likes to drop lyrics such as 「Welcome to DEMPA world!」 [sic] in 2005's "SPACE! WAVE! AKIBA-POP!" or 「みんな～～！　電波びんびーーん！？」 in 2004's "We Love AKIBA-POP!!". So it's fair game to assume that the label also holds in Japan, despite a plethora of other applicable terms such as Akiba-Pop, electropop, gamewave, etc.

But much like the term "hentai" was twisted around and appropriated by outsiders, there's always a possibility that "denpa" is perhaps not the best way to refer to MOSAIC.WAV's music. This has always been in the back of my mind, despite my decision to go ahead and name this blog in honor of the genre. My fears were confirmed recently when a Japanese fan contacted me about a number of topics, one of which being the liberal use of "denpa" on my blog.

DENPA　NO　SEKAI　でこれを言うのは変かもしれませんが、MOSAIC.WAVは「DENPAソング」ではないと思っています。歌詞も曲も緻密に計算されていて、極めてメッセージ性が強いからです。彼らの作品は様式としてはDENPAソングそのものですが、それ自体が計算された演出であるため、表現の本質はDENPAとはまるで逆なのです。

Basically, "even though your website is named Denpa no Sekai, MOSAIC.WAV don't write denpa songs". I agree with him when he says that their style, lyrics and music is "precisely calculated and extremely complex", but then he states that such elements are the complete opposite of the essence of denpa. Basically that they're too good to be identified with the lowly denpa label. This message confused me highly, so I wrote back asking for more precisions. I told him that in North America (and anywhere outside of Japan, really) this new genre is relatively unknown and that we possibly use the label wrongfully, but with good intentions. Of course, if I'm propagating wrong information about my favorite sound unit, I want to correct the situation. Here's what he wrote back with.

わかりにくい言い方をしてすみません。日本語の「DENPA」とは「電波」のことで、これは「意味不明」「何を考えてるのかわからない」「頭がおかしい」といった意味の隠語です。しかし、巧妙にメッセージを織り込んでいるので、「意味不明」な要素は皆無なのです。

Bottom-line? It's OK to refer to MOSAIC.WAV as denpa musicians. However in Japan, the term means more than just a musical genre. While it originally was used for "radio waves", it can also be used to describe unintelligible thoughts, semantic obscurity and being plain old crazy-in-the-head. Previously, the genre could be likened to the "Outsider Art" category, especially when you consider the oldest denpa songs which had no message and purpose outside of the eroge realm. But MOSAIC.WAV stirred up a storm with their multiple fictional characters and purposely ironic throwback riffs and song structures, meaning that they can no longer be considered "just" denpa artists.

もちろん、彼らが意図的にDENPA的なサウンドを作り出している理由は、メッセージが伝わらなくても楽しんでもらう為です。だから、DENPAソングと呼んでも良いし、ただ音楽を楽しめば良い。しかし、日本人である僕が、英語圏の人々に向けてMOSAIC.WAVについての文章を書くのなら、彼らの深いメッセージ性について書いておきたかったのです。この点が、「DENPA」と呼ばれる音楽でもMOSAIC.WAVとそれ以外のグループの間にある大きな差だと思っているのです。

He urges me, as a non-Japanese purveyor of MOSAIC.WAV news, to illustrate the distinction between standard denpa music and what the band has been releasing. As you can tell, he holds them in incredibly high esteem, as can be expected by a Japanese fan who's likely seen them live multiple times and owns every single thing they put out. Overall this was a good conversation that spanned multiple emails, even though at first I was afraid we were way off with the denpa label. We both agreed on the fact that they have evolved far beyond the simple premise of the genre and are pushing the style to a whole new level, where they currently throne unchallenged.

MOSAIC.WAV to appear on AnimeTV [updated]

[video update] I'm not sure whether or not MOSAIC.WAV performed the song, but they at least they appeared before the camera for a short interview. They discuss the game itself and the theme song, the new eroge single which I will write about next week, plus they get to plug their performance at Animelo. Funny how Mi~ko appears taller than Kayamori-san!

[original article] I wasn't kidding when I said 2008 was gonna be MOSAIC.WAV's biggest yet. This coming Friday, they will appear on AnimeTV Japan*, a well-respected and long-standing 番組 which airs on various channels and features interviews with anime and game creators, as well as voice actors and other anime-related celebrities. Most shows end with a live song performance, recently-discussed keitai game theme 「おりじにゃ〜る！」 in this case. I have no doubt that Lantis arranged the whole thing, but I'm thinking that Koike-san pulled some strings in choosing which song would be performed, seeing as how he wrote it and all. It's not a bad choice as it is highly marketable, but it doesn't show them for who they really are. Also note that 3 autographed MOSAIC.WAV albums will be given away, they don't say which one but I'm guessing Amusement Pack.

Although over 400 AnimeTV episodes were made since 2000, only about a dozen are fully available on Nicovideo. There are, however, multiple interview and performance segments available, but you really have to know what you're looking for. This doesn't bode very well for us common folks without Japanese television, so unless a kind soul uploads the performance to Nicovideo or Youtube, forget about seeing this. In the unlikely event that you've got access to Japanese channels, here is the programming schedule for this particular episode of AnimeTV. I checked, and none of the channels offer online broadcasting. It looks as though cellphone users can freely check out interviews, but I doubt that would include performances. If anyone finds out how to watch it online, please let me know.

*Make no mistake, I'm not talking about the (defunct?) American version!

tvk 　　
8月9日（土）24:00～24:30

シーエスGyaO
8月11日（月）24:30～25:00
8月12日（火）8:00～8:30
8月13日（水）8:30～9:00
8月14日（木）25:30～26:00
8月15日（金）24:00～24:30

AT-X　　　　
8月15日（金）16:30～17:00
8月16日（土）20:30～21:00
8月17日（日）25:30～26:00

First MOSAIC.WAV keitai game theme 「おりじにゃ〜る！」

Not content with dominating the PC erotic game theme songs, MOSAIC.WAV recently expanded their area of expertise with their first cell phone game theme song. A short version MP3 is available for download. Actually I'm not sure if it's erotic, but eh, it probably is considering the title translates to "My wife is a homunculus" plus the game is designed to be played with one hand. Otherwise why would people bother buying and playing it? Well, perhaps for the theme itself, in this case, since getting the game seems like the only option for owning the full version of the song. As a bonus, it seems they are including a ring tone, so you can be slightly less obnoxious next time someone calls you while you're in class!

So how about a short review, ね？This is one of the cutest songs they have performed in a while. The game's main artist, who is really pleased with the result and MOSAIC.WAV's professionalism, seems to think it is really similar to 2006's 「ふぃぎゅ＠」 and I have to agree, to some extent. It does contain the same saccharine vocals and mid-tempo pace laid on top of aggressive drum patterns. However it lacks a bit of impact and personality, factors which will probably improve once the full version is made available on their next album (as if it's not gonna happen!) An interesting fact is that Kayamori-san may have had little input in this one, explaining the apparent lack of game sound FX and experimental techniques. It so happens that 4-EVER (meaning both Koike-aniki and the very cute オカザキシュン) laid the song's foundations down, the extent of which is unspecified at the moment. Overall, it's not as over the top as I've come to expect from MOSAIC.WAV, but a little breather never hurts once in a while.

Mi~ko sings a... pachinko theme song??

After years of singing top notch eroge theme songs, mi~ko was recently asked to perform for the other end of the dubious gaming spectrum AKA the pachinko slot machine industry. The latest product from industry veteran Net Corporation is 【アカネ55】 (Akane go! go!), based on an actually good-looking new IP that's sure to turn heads. I'm not kidding, I am actually feeling the strange desire to play pachinko right now. There are currently two ways you can hear the song, one is by playing the short 30 second sample on the bonus page (1st item) or by checking out the promotional video (annoying registration required).

But of course most respectable Japanese promo videos get the NicoVideo treatment, so save some time and skip the registration. Among other things, it features classic "evil laughter" from チョイワルン at exactly 4:20, so if the prospect of my favorite anime cliché present in a mi~ko song isn't enough to get you to check out the promo, then I don't know what will. What's that you say, you don't know how to register at NicoVideo? Why don't you ask the internet for some help. Sadly (and this is according to mi~ko herself) since this is not official MOSAIC.WAV work, a single CD will not be released; so good luck getting your hands on the full version! (drop me a line if you ever find it)

August is MOSAIC.WAV month at 電波の世界

Here at Denpa no Sekai, we don't fuck around the bush; we burn it down to the ground like a Californian forest in the summertime or Canadian igloos in the face of global warming. From August 1st until August 31st, we will be providing you with more MOSAIC.WAV coverage than the entire Internets combined have to offer. Why, you may foolishly ask? Long story short, because we can, and we will. Or perhaps it's a show of respect to their first participation at Animelo Challenge, a clear sign of prosperous times to come for the Akiba Pop unit. It could also be that my birthday is around the corner and that I want to live my life to the fullest before I die (no one lives past 30). Either way, there's nothing you can do against the incoming torrent of opinion, information and (hopefully) entertainment. Here's an incomplete list of what the ominous future holds:

• Complete 「Amusement Pack」 review
• Complete 「Space! Akiba-Pop」 review
  
• Top 5 songs you've never heard
• Comprehensive review of ALL official singles
• A very special article that can't be revealed just yet
• Multiple articles and opinion pieces
  
• 1. MOAR (in September)
  
• 2. ...
• 3. PROFIT!!!
  

Of course there may be additional, non-MOSAIC.WAV-related articles popping up here and there, given that C74 is approaching rapidly. So does the whole thing sound too good to be true? It's going to happen, and if I could just ask something in return, it's that you faithful readers spread the word about this blog, its articles and of course the best denpa band in the world : MOSAIC.WAV. And by the way, if you're a long-time lurker or first-time visitor, feel free to introduce yourself in the comments section... the more of us, the merrier!

Finally, as you can probably see, we have awesome new banner art courtesy of mandichan. I just need to come up with a better logo...

Picture used with permission from おやまん.