Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo vs. Toki toshite koi wa
Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~
Everyone's talking about it, even now one month after it's release.
Or rather, everyone's been talking about it since the news were spread that now c/w track "Koi wa Hassou! Do The Hussle" wouldn't be Morning Musume's 28th single, but instead Tsunku decided to take a track off their 6th album, put a spin to it and release "Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~.
I dare say that the latest single of Hello!Project's flagship may be the single the most bashing has appeared about on the internet.
But why?
I must admit, I wasn't too overwhelmed by the concert rip of "Koi wa Hassou", so I was looking forward towards Momusu's new single with little anticipation. Yet with time, the song grew on me and couldn't wait for it's official release.
And then the news hit about "Chokkan 2" and I was completely baffled. I still remember the comment I left on the LiveJournal community from which I had gotten the news.
"I'm happy as long as we get Koi wa Hassou in some way. But if this is true, it makes me wonder. A remake of Chokkan? I like that song, a lot, but why a remake? Either make it the original song or a new one, otherwise people might think you're running out of ideas!"
Which is, now that I think about it, only half-true.
Sure, no one really knows why Tsunku decided to make a remake. Maybe he really is running out of ideas.
But maybe he just saw the potential Chokkan could have with the current line-up of Morning Musume, with Kaori, Rika and Mari gone and the 7th generation bringing fresh life into the group.
When I listen to the original song, Chokkan ~Toki toshite koi wa~, there are several things I notice which are different in Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~.
Of course the lyrics are different, but that's not really what catches my eye, or rather, my ear. Because, seriously, most H!P songs don't feature deep lyrics and Chokkan 1/Chokkan 2 are no exceptions.
Instead, Chokkan 1 appears to be more 'whole', more a group song than Chokkan 2.
For example, let's take a look at the first refrain:
In Chokkan 1, it's sung by all members.
In Chokkan 2, though, we have one of the new "subgroups" (Mini Moni version 3, Risa, Konno, Sayumi, Koharu) singing the refrain, while "Tanpopo version 4" (Miki, Eri, Ai-chan) sings the new, added chorus ("oshitari hiitari shitenaide ... etc.").
And while in Chokkan 1, Tsunku did the 'souda souda' grunting in the background, in Chokkan 2 it seems to be done by "Pucchi Moni version 4" (Yossi, Makoto, Reina), even though my ears keep failing me when I try to hear the girls over Tsunku's still obviously existing grunting.
In Chokkan 1, all members with the exception of Mari got one single solo line (not counting the duet lines, of course). Mari got two, btw ^_^
In Chokkan 2, only six of the ten members get solo lines (again, not counting the duet lines). Reina, Eri, Koharu, Sayumi, Miki and Ai-chan.
So, what happened to Risa, Yossi, Makoto and Konno? Why didn't Tsunku give them lines beyong those they sing together with other members?
I don't think it's got anything to do with popularity, because even though Makoto seems to be the least popular member among fans, Konno is one of the favorites.
So, what other reason could there be? Vocal ability? No, that's a definite no, because, they can sing, all four of them, even though some might argue that Risa and Konno can't but that's just a small amount of fans. Also, to be honest, Sayumi is one of the weakest, vocally speaking, yet she got a solo line.
So why?
I have no idea.
The rest of the song is divided between the three subgroups and the only part that features all members singing together is the last refrain, sung twice.
Looking at this, it's clear that Chokkan was at first never intended to be a single. All recent Morning Musume singles were heavily divided into solo lines, similar to Chokkan 2, and since Chokkan 1 isn't, it is the only conclusion.
Yet, as already mentioned, Tsunku must have seen the great potential Chokkan held, otherwise he never would have pulled it out of the dark now, brushing it up and releasing it as a single.
And looking at the Oricon charts, it definitely wasn't a bad decision. It turned out as #3, which is still, even with the miserable numbers of singles actually sold, still a good enough position.
That Chokkan 2 is the lowest selling Momusu single ever is another point. During the first week, only 43,535 copies were sold. To show how low these figures actually are, here are the first week sales of other singles:
Morning Coffee = 95,060 (first actual single)
Daite! Hold On Me = 183,500 (first #1)
Love Machine = 241,540 (best-selling single overall)
Koi no Dance Site = 600,860 (best-selling single during the first week)
Renai Revolution 21 = 515,490 (last high-selling single)
After RR21, the sales have constantly dropped, until Morning Musume no Hyokkori Hyoutanjima marked the point of selling below 100,000 in the first week (72,594).
But I don't want to write about the declining sales, even though it is obvious, and in my opinion, Morning Musume lost lots of its charm and competitive spirit when Yuko graduated, and maybe, if you know that RR21 was her last single, you will agree with me.
Yet where does that put Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~?
No matter how bad it sells, no matter how much bashing has appeared on the internet, lots of people have still reacted positivly.
It is, after all, a great song. It already was back on Ai no dai 6 kan with the old line-up and it is now as a single with the new line-up.
Let's just hope that Tsunku won't pull something like that again on us.
The reaction might not be as positive the next time.
Everyone's talking about it, even now one month after it's release.
Or rather, everyone's been talking about it since the news were spread that now c/w track "Koi wa Hassou! Do The Hussle" wouldn't be Morning Musume's 28th single, but instead Tsunku decided to take a track off their 6th album, put a spin to it and release "Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~.
I dare say that the latest single of Hello!Project's flagship may be the single the most bashing has appeared about on the internet.
But why?
I must admit, I wasn't too overwhelmed by the concert rip of "Koi wa Hassou", so I was looking forward towards Momusu's new single with little anticipation. Yet with time, the song grew on me and couldn't wait for it's official release.
And then the news hit about "Chokkan 2" and I was completely baffled. I still remember the comment I left on the LiveJournal community from which I had gotten the news.
"I'm happy as long as we get Koi wa Hassou in some way. But if this is true, it makes me wonder. A remake of Chokkan? I like that song, a lot, but why a remake? Either make it the original song or a new one, otherwise people might think you're running out of ideas!"
Which is, now that I think about it, only half-true.
Sure, no one really knows why Tsunku decided to make a remake. Maybe he really is running out of ideas.
But maybe he just saw the potential Chokkan could have with the current line-up of Morning Musume, with Kaori, Rika and Mari gone and the 7th generation bringing fresh life into the group.
When I listen to the original song, Chokkan ~Toki toshite koi wa~, there are several things I notice which are different in Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~.
Of course the lyrics are different, but that's not really what catches my eye, or rather, my ear. Because, seriously, most H!P songs don't feature deep lyrics and Chokkan 1/Chokkan 2 are no exceptions.
Instead, Chokkan 1 appears to be more 'whole', more a group song than Chokkan 2.
For example, let's take a look at the first refrain:
In Chokkan 1, it's sung by all members.
In Chokkan 2, though, we have one of the new "subgroups" (Mini Moni version 3, Risa, Konno, Sayumi, Koharu) singing the refrain, while "Tanpopo version 4" (Miki, Eri, Ai-chan) sings the new, added chorus ("oshitari hiitari shitenaide ... etc.").
And while in Chokkan 1, Tsunku did the 'souda souda' grunting in the background, in Chokkan 2 it seems to be done by "Pucchi Moni version 4" (Yossi, Makoto, Reina), even though my ears keep failing me when I try to hear the girls over Tsunku's still obviously existing grunting.
In Chokkan 1, all members with the exception of Mari got one single solo line (not counting the duet lines, of course). Mari got two, btw ^_^
In Chokkan 2, only six of the ten members get solo lines (again, not counting the duet lines). Reina, Eri, Koharu, Sayumi, Miki and Ai-chan.
So, what happened to Risa, Yossi, Makoto and Konno? Why didn't Tsunku give them lines beyong those they sing together with other members?
I don't think it's got anything to do with popularity, because even though Makoto seems to be the least popular member among fans, Konno is one of the favorites.
So, what other reason could there be? Vocal ability? No, that's a definite no, because, they can sing, all four of them, even though some might argue that Risa and Konno can't but that's just a small amount of fans. Also, to be honest, Sayumi is one of the weakest, vocally speaking, yet she got a solo line.
So why?
I have no idea.
The rest of the song is divided between the three subgroups and the only part that features all members singing together is the last refrain, sung twice.
Looking at this, it's clear that Chokkan was at first never intended to be a single. All recent Morning Musume singles were heavily divided into solo lines, similar to Chokkan 2, and since Chokkan 1 isn't, it is the only conclusion.
Yet, as already mentioned, Tsunku must have seen the great potential Chokkan held, otherwise he never would have pulled it out of the dark now, brushing it up and releasing it as a single.
And looking at the Oricon charts, it definitely wasn't a bad decision. It turned out as #3, which is still, even with the miserable numbers of singles actually sold, still a good enough position.
That Chokkan 2 is the lowest selling Momusu single ever is another point. During the first week, only 43,535 copies were sold. To show how low these figures actually are, here are the first week sales of other singles:
Morning Coffee = 95,060 (first actual single)
Daite! Hold On Me = 183,500 (first #1)
Love Machine = 241,540 (best-selling single overall)
Koi no Dance Site = 600,860 (best-selling single during the first week)
Renai Revolution 21 = 515,490 (last high-selling single)
After RR21, the sales have constantly dropped, until Morning Musume no Hyokkori Hyoutanjima marked the point of selling below 100,000 in the first week (72,594).
But I don't want to write about the declining sales, even though it is obvious, and in my opinion, Morning Musume lost lots of its charm and competitive spirit when Yuko graduated, and maybe, if you know that RR21 was her last single, you will agree with me.
Yet where does that put Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita sakana wa ookiizo~?
No matter how bad it sells, no matter how much bashing has appeared on the internet, lots of people have still reacted positivly.
It is, after all, a great song. It already was back on Ai no dai 6 kan with the old line-up and it is now as a single with the new line-up.
Let's just hope that Tsunku won't pull something like that again on us.
The reaction might not be as positive the next time.
posted by Freya @ 2:33 AM
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