Globe

Talk about synchronicity!

Yesterday I responded to a post by best chemistry regarding the Hello Project where I went on about J-idols and J- pop in general…saying how I found it difficult to relate to this very popular Japanese IV and music scene.

So what happens? Someone who I work with was cleaning out their music CD collection and handed me a Japanese CD call Faces – Place by a band called Globe (I had never heard of them). I politely said thank you and thought little of it, thinking if it’s a throw-a-way for them I will likely follow suite.

Imagine my surprise when I found myself completely intrigued by the band. The wide selection of music genres, Keiko's soaring vocals weaving around the ever-shifting music. Pretty amazing pop melodies with complex music as the foundation. I just loved the way Keiko Komuro sings in English with her captivating accent, as well as the random sprinkling of Japanese too. Internet searches say this band is J-pop!

…I am very impressed with this CD and will avidly begin looking for more of their material. This is not what I remember or imagined J-pop sounding like. What a pleasant surprise. clapclap

Here is the Wikipedia page on the band "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globe_(band)" ...seems they began back in 1995 and are still around today. Isn't that rare for J-pop?

Below is the Faces Places CD and a recent picture of the band.

i dont know this group yet. i know only a few of jpop groupes.
i think jpop is large catalogue Laughing

Hello Prisoner and Kamikaze,

I've never heard about this band before seing his name on this topic. I think I have no song older than about six or five years in Jpop concern. Jpop oldies, considering that Seiko Matsuda is a Jpop singer I only have a few song of her, but not your band Globe.

best thing to do is to gather a few media and listen them. I will test this band.

I will give it another listen to tonight just to make sure my first listen wasn't completely off. My expectation was so low (expecting nothing but high pitched irritating fluff) that I remember thinking...wow, this is very good...

Don't spend too much time looking for download links just yet. If it's really as good as I remember, then I will find sample links Idea

i wanna say jpop and kpop are commercial musics. no way groups are doing business for long time and stay famous. pepole split and other groups awake ^^

Thanks mood,

That's kind of what I thought too, and your remark helps me understand better why I am liking this band...they are not J-pop Embarassed

Probably some boneheaded American is labelling any music to come out of Japan as J-pop and I believed them tongue

Hello Prisoner and Mood,

The term Jpop is somewhat variable and it's difficult to cut the category from other music styles. in Jpop you have pop which should also mean poular in the land of the rising sun. I think everything that is broadcasted and having a large audience could be Jpop. well, we have at least two knowledgeable members here on KnT, Fumiko and Benten. I guess both could join this thread and give their own definition. I'm ashamed to say that but my definition which is a mere reflect of my investigation, thus is far from equitable, because I'm a only girl audience. I bypass without moving my little finger any song who contains male voice. I know there are male Jpop singer and bands, like Gackt, Arc en ciel and others, but never I've heard a song yet.

back to Globe,

in opposit with Keiko Kumagai's band Ars Nova, I've found quickly some video clips to complete my first impression.

two captures from a song named On the way to you.

five captures from a song named Faces places.

so Keiko (the singer) seems to be a blonde on these appearences. that's disturbing, there are some recent appearences of Keriko Kumagai (Ars Nova) in which she's blonde too.

when I watch these pictures, especially this one :

this remembers me this :

Spoiler:

as far as I've not heard many songs, I can't tell more. but somethings are quite interesting.

That is a nice bit of research best chemistry. thank you! clapclap

Yes, I think it would be nice to get benten and Fumiko's (when she returns from Japan) thought on J-pop. Globe have got my interest going. All I can say about this band right now is that the song Faces-Places has been running through my head to for the last 3 days. I really like what they have got going in that song and love where Keiko takes her melodies. The rest of the album has not struck me as outstanding. But one terrific song is still better than most that I've heard over the last few years cherry

I would like to hear some songs of this group, I do not know them. They are like Dream, yes, more Eurobeat type of JPop? I will try to find some album by them and listen.

Anyway best chemistry asks my attitude: I prefer to listen female singers, but I think this is true most Japanese audience, and I do not know why this is truth. We should look in Oricon charts to see sales of male vs. female singers and groups, I think females will be very much more sales except for old style Japanese music, we call enka. However, men White Team have won Kohaku uta gassen New Year singing contest on TV equal number of times with women Red Team, each won 27 times during history.

I do not like "visual kei" style of JPop music like l'arc en ciel and Gackt, and I think man's voice is sometimes rough for song. But I like variety of women singers and groups! I like folk and rock singer Yui, I like rock group Puffy, I like R&B style Namie Amuro and Hikaru Utada, and I like jazz of Matsuura and Tomiko Ban, also I like some pop type songs such as Matsuura when younger, but they are not my favorites. JPop is big category cluttered with many things, like closet stuffed with many styles of clothes!
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Fumiko