J-Pop
I was a manga and anime fan back in the 90s when the previous wave hit the UK, only to eventually recede in the face of tabloid squawking about animated video nasties. As a trainee weeaboo before the term was even coined, it made sense that the music of mainstream Japan would hold equal fascination and novelty for me. Nope, its day-glo cheeriness, insipid lyrical content and latent disposability rubbed me up the wrong way even back then.

I gave it a proper chance, but it did and continues to do nothing for me. It always seemed weirdly incongruous that an anime about massive fucking robots would be bookended by some waif squeaking about the vagaries of love against a backing track that would embarass a Eurovision entry.

It seemed mystifyingly bad in the 90s, and it appears to be even worse now. Dunno. Maybe my irony gland has packed up.
( the_other_jeff_lebowski Croutons on my tits, Tue 20 Oct 2009, 17:42, 2 replies)

I used
to listen to Dir en Grey. In a sort of selfconciously ironic way. They toured the UK last spring, and in a fit of nostalgia I went to see them. They were actually quite good.

But about jpop- I think it's the squeakiness
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Tue 20 Oct 2009, 20:01, closed)

I'm exactly the same.
Extreme Japanese music is great, however; they're fucking nutters. Give me some Catasexual Urge Motivation or Guilty Connector or NOISM any day.
( Angry Boss Bee I love horses, death to other animals, Wed 21 Oct 2009, 16:35, closed)