This is my general mid-year Last.fm Charts post. I swear I’ll review something soon XDDDDD. I’m feeling lazy lately :P. As usual, this is my Top Ten for the past year according to my last.fm profile, not including the artists I spammed when I was changing artist tags (i.e. SNoW).

1. Kalafina – 702 Plays
Last Year: 3rd.
Kalafina takes over Vienna Teng’s spot from last year! This one is pretty self-explanatory since I’ve been spamming their first and second album all year. They were 3rd last year.

2. BENI – 576 Plays
Last Year: n/a
Needless to say, I’m addicted to this pop-R&B girl. She’s even the current theme for LW! Plus, like Kalafina, she released two albums since my last last.fm post. Her soft R&B makes good study music :3 :3 :3.

3. G.E.M. – 318 Plays
Last Year: n/a
G.E.M.! I don’t know why she didn’t appear last year, but here she is this year! Her first full album was released the past year. :3

4. A Fine Frenzy – 288 Plays
Last Year: n/a
A Fine Frenzy was a recent obsession, plus I basically have all their songs on my iPod which adds a lot of my play counts in general. They have such lovely, beautiful music :3 :3 :3. Again, really nice studying music~~.

5. ayaka – 285 Plays
Last Year: 2nd
ayaka’s still here! She was 2nd last year because if Sing to the Sky. There’s no particular reason why she’s still here other than I still really like her :3 :3 :3. Oh, and her going on indefinite hiatus makes me sad.

6. Brown Eyed Girls – 260 Plays
Last Year: n/a
I have no idea how I played so much BEG music because I barely know what’s on their albums. Abracadabra only makes up for about 40 of these plays. But there we go, our first Korean entry here~~. It just barely beat KOKIA in the rankings :3.

7. KOKIA – 257 Plays
Last Year: n/a
Again, there’s no particular reason KOKIA is here other than she’s awesome. I did mass review a few of her albums this year and I used to have a lot of songs of her’s on my iPod. But yeah, it’s KOKIA. She’s awesome :3.

8. Rie fu – 254 Plays
Last Year: 7th
While Rie fu’s play count hasn’t decreased much from last year (it was around 270 last year), her ranking went down by one place. But yeah, I still adore this girl, even if I didn’t like her recent album all that much. Again, iPod influence since I have a lot of her songs on it.

9. Superfly – 236 Plays
Last Year: n/a
iPod, iPod and more iPod. Oh, and she did release an album the past year too…

10. Onitsuka Chihiro – 225 Plays
Last Year: n/a
Did anyone say DOROTHY? Oh and more iPod plays.

People who appeared last year but didn’t appear this year:
(This year’s rankings are not marked if they didn’t make the top 50)
Vienna Teng (19th), BONNIE PINK, capsule, Aira Mitsuki, JYONGRI (12th), Angela Aki, Fukuhara Miho

2009, like any other year, has its share of really good and really terrible albums. I’ve tried to narrow this down to around 5 albums, like I did last year, but as always, I didn’t end up with 5 albums. All albums on this list I would not hesitate to buy despite the ludicrous prices for CDs in Japan. For the non-Japanese albums on this list, I’m basically saying I’d pay $30 for the album even though standard prices are a lot lower.

Albums are sorted alphabetically by artist name, not by preference.

A Fine Frenzy – Bomb in a Birdcage

This band (of which only the main vocalist, Alison Sudol, is known) is one of my recent favourites. Their debut album was pretty, but lacked quite a bit of variety. This album brings in a poppier, more upbeat side to the band while including some of their more signature sounds from their first album.

Samples: Blow Away| Happier | Electric Twist

G.E.M. – 18…

It’s been awhile since I’ve actually liked an artist from Hong Kong (although G.E.M. is technically from Shanghai… but her music is focused mainly in the Hong Kong area). G.E.M. gives the HK pop scene a long-needed revival last year from her EP, which made my 2008 list and her song “Where did u go”. Her music isn’t particularly super original in the overal world music scene, but she boy does she have a voice. While I find a lot of Hong Kong singers really boring, G.E.M. not only has soul, she writes her own lyrics. Her debut album continues her streak of addictive music and lovely ballads. While looking for videos for this post, I just realized I missed her coming to Toronto. :(

Samples: All About U | Game Over | A.I.N.Y. (愛你) | 想講你知

Kalafina – Seventh Heaven

Unlike FictionJunction’s earlier self-cover release, which was a bit of a mixed bag for me, Kalafina’s debut album features a more solid vocal performance from all the members of the group and probably one of the strongest group vocal work from a Japanese group for awhile. Kajiura Yuki plays on the strengths of all three of the girls’ distinctive voices. As usual from Kajiura, we get her distinctive style of songwriting. It’s been awhile since I was THIS excited for a Kajiura release.

Samples: SPRINTER | oblivious (Live) | 夏の林檎

KOKIA – KOKIA∞AKIKO ～balance～

KOKIA makes the list again with another mini-album. Granted, I haven’t listened to this as much as I would have liked, but every time I put it on for background music, I’m always in awe at just how beautiful KOKIA’s voice and compositions are. In my mind, there is no doubt that KOKIA has one of the most versatile voices in Japanese music. There’s really not a song that I can think of at the moment on this release that I do not like.

Samples: 花宴 | Infinity (Live) | 道化 (Live)

Rie fu – URBAN ROMANTIC

Even though my reaction to this album was a little less enthusiastic than her past three albums, I really do love the direction she’s heading in despite needing a little bit of fine-tuning (IMO). Nevertheless, Rie fu still has her usual charm, beautiful music with a bit more drastic experimentation this time around. The result is a lovely mix of her acoustic charm with an electronic feel.

Samples: Romantic | Something in my Head | Money Will Love You (English Version)

Vienna Teng – Inland Territory

Vienna Teng’s fourth album is very unlike her first three (but then again, so was her third album). Part of this is because of Alex Wong’s production. The result is an excellent package of unique songs with Teng’s usual soothing voice and excellent writing.

Samples: Antebellum (Live) | Stray Italian Greyhound (Live) | Grandmother’s Song (Live)

Notable Mentions:
4minute – For Muzik
BENI – Bitter & Sweet
Davichi – Davichi in Wonderland
Dew – Present
LOVE – Confetti Love Songs
Onitsuka Chihiro – DOROTHY

I’m procrastinating from studying taking a break from studying to write my first LW post in months. Not only that, I’m excited to write for LW for the first time in ages, so please be kind to what may be evidence of my poor and deteriorated writing skills (more than it usually is I mean). I’ve said for years that I wanted to do something like this, but I was never able to throw one together in time before the new year rolled around, so the solution is to do it early for 2009 (and I don’t really care for anything else that’s going to be released in the next two weeks).

Highlights
1. You may steal her night, but you can’t steal her crown. (Namie Amuro)
How is it possible that this woman released 1 single and 1 album, and still commands without faltering? Once again, this year was all about Namie (well last year was a big EXILE year, but when is it ever not?). Highly successful tour, DVD, single, album, she’s still riding a very strong wave when she came back into full-fledged prominence back in 2007. I’m not complaining though, I’m still waiting for Amuro to hit another musical rut, but she continuously proves me wrong by producing entertaining music and always with style and character.

2. It may not be heaven, but pretty close. (Kalafina)
Wakana, Hikaru and Keiko work in such beautiful harmony, I can never get enough of them. I was so ecstatic that they continued with their career after their big Kara no Kyoudai tie-in, most recently releasing a single with no tie-in, “progressive” (seriously, they deserve tie-ins for every single they release). It’s like getting presents everytime they announce a new release. Always a great group to look forward to.

3. From this point on, there’s no turning back (BENI)
Nothing made me happier (except Amuro) than to see BENI enjoy mainstream success this year. All “boring mid-tempo R&B songs” comments aside, she was solid. So she hasn’t exactly explored multiple genres, she’s only been with UMJ for about a year, and this style is new for her at the least. BENI established a fanbase and support by being consistent. She now has a promising career where she can grow and explore as an artist. Definitely keeping my eye on her for next year.

Lowlights
1. “GIVE ME UP”? Grant requested. (Tamaki Nami)
That may be a bit harsh, considering I still occassionally listen to her (and I still keep up), but that doesn’t mean most of her material has done much for me this year. In contrast to BENI, Tamaki has been all over the place with the type of music she’s releasing, leading me to wonder where she plans on going with her career. She does look like she’s having a lot more fun with this new label of hers, and though I don’t completely hate her new songs (I kind of liked “Friends!” – it was cute), she just wasn’t very memorable, even more of a disaster than anything else this year.

2. You said it, That Ain’t Cool. (Koda Kumi)
Yes, yes, I know “TRICK” wasn’t this horrible album, and I agree. However, it was a bland, run-of-the-mill Kuu album. Token ballad, token hit-it-hard hiphop/R&B track, cutesy pop stuff, cheesy ballad, it’s nothing I haven’t heard before. What was “3 splash” again? I barely noticed she was about to release a single with some kinky-looking video that was supposed to be cute? How about the sisterly disaster of “It’s all Love!”, and the collab/remix album combo? I admit, DRIVING HIT’S (I still laugh at that) wasn’t as bad as I thought it was, but I still wouldn’t listen to it. Seems like a typical year for Kuu, except she failed to secure any truly attention grabbing releases (I used to like one release by Kuu per year, despite not really liking her as an artist).

3. It’s a bit premature to be viewing her as “history” (ayaka)
I mean this with all due respect. It’s a shame that she is putting her recording career on hold indefinitely, and the Jpop scene will really miss a talent singer-songwriter such as herself. I wish ayaka all the best in her future and hope she regains her health during her time off.

Quick Best of 2009
Artist of the Year: Amuro Namie
Album of the Year: Kalafina: Seventh Heaven
Single of the Year: YUI: again
PV of the Year: 1. Sakamoto Maaya: Magic Number; 2. Kalafina: Seventh Heaven; 3. Amuro Namie: FAST CAR
Best Dance in a Music Video: BoA: Energetic (she basically competed with herself)

I realize that this is almost 8 months too late. Shush.

My favourite albums of 2008 (i.e. released in 2008), of course. I’ve been too lazy to build this list for the past few months. For srs. xD Done in alphabetical order.

ayaka – Sing to the Sky

ayaka is undoubtedly one of the best vocalists in mainstream Jpop music right now. I’ve been a big fan of her ever since she released “First Message” (which, yes, I did love). She continues the trend with this awesome album, her usual solid songwriting skills and her expressive, soulful but powerful voice. If you haven’t listened to this girl yet, you should because she’s a really good vocalist. Her songs aren’t avant-garde or anything (she writes solid upbeat pop-rock and ballads), but they’re enjoyable and ayaka delivers them with excellence.

Konya mo Hoshi ni Dakarete -

Winding Road (with Kobukuro)

Carly Rae Jepsen – Tug of War

Carly Rae Jepsen is an indie pop singer-songwriter from Mission, BC (Canada) and is mostly known for placing third in the second last season of Canadian Idol. To be honest, I was kind of expecting disaster after listening to “Bucket” on her myspace but was pleasantly surprised at the rest of the songs on her short album. Her music is mostly laid-back acoustic stuff and has kind of cute voice to go with it. To be honest, I don’t like her singles off this album as much as some of the other tracks on the album.

Sour Candy -

Money and the Ego

G.E.M. – G.E.M.

There’s usually very few Cantonese pop singers that I tend to like in the Hong Kong music business, simply because a lot of them either can’t sing, make really bad pop music or make the same kind of cheesy pop music. Granted, G.E.M. still makes pop music, but I enjoy it a lot more than a lot of the stuff I’ve heard in Cantonese. Her hit “Where did u go” is what made her popular and was the song that caught my attention. The rest of the songs on this EP are also quite good.Not to mention she has a really good voice and sings with a lot of emotion.

Where did U Go-

I’ll Be There (live cover *not on the EP*) -

JYONGRI – Love Forever

JYONGRI’s second album attempt is so much better than her first mediocre album. Not only that, she’s improved a quite a bit on her singing, and it’s very evident in all the ballads on this album. The album is a bit too ballad heavy at times, but it’s still very well sung and her music is really quite pretty. Her ballads are quite better than the ones on her first album, although her upbeat songs are nowhere near what “Possession” was, but are still cute and fun.

Lullaby for you -

Kissing Me -

KOKIA – Fairy Dance ~KOKIA meets Ireland~

So what if this was released the same year as The VOICE? I’ll go out on a limb and say that I liked this album so much better as a whole. This is KOKIA doing celtic music and she is fantastic in the genre. I am a big fan of celtic music and of KOKIA, but she just excels at this genre and I’m far from being surprised. She has the voice for it.

Lydia~Fairy Dance

Black is the Colour

Younha – Someday

Unfortunately, as much as I like Younha’s voice, this is probably the only really good release from her so far. The rest is rather lackluster or bland. This brings out Younha’s energetic singing more effectively, although being a bit more idol-y in some of her single releases (I’m talking about you, Gossip Boy — although the song’s still really catchy ;D). It covers a good range of genres in the one album quite well as well. It’s pretty much a strong effort from start to finish.

Memory (ft. Tablo)

Strawberry Days

1. Vienna Teng — 601
Attributed with my ongoing obsession with this woman, the Japanese presentation I did about her (when I practiced along with her music over and over again), and Inland Territory coming out during this year.

2. 絢香 (ayaka) — 495
Attributed to my Sing to the Sky spam.

3. Kalafina — 389
Attributed to my general Kalafina spam.

4. BONNIE PINK — 348
Attributed to my 10+ album review spree on Lost Wing. And general spam after listening to the albums.

5. capsule — 344
Same as above, except I spammed capsule a little less than I did BONNIE PINK.

6. Aira Mitsuki — 300
I like Aira enough to spam her this much? XD

7. Rie fu — 276
I’ve always liked Rie fu, and Urban Romantic came out this year. Spammed a little less since I’m not quite as enthusiastic about this release as some of the past ones. Still a good album, though. Oh, and I probably spammed a lot of her old songs when UR first came out.

7. JYONGRI — 276
Love Love Forever, but it’s not something that I can repeat for a long, long time (although I spammed it quite a bit when it first came out.

9. Angela Aki — 269
Again, wasn’t too, too fond of ANSWER, but I apparently spammed her enough. Oh, and I really liked Tegami, and that got played on repeat A LOT.

10. 福原美穂 (Fukuhara Miho) — 231
I loved CHANGE. A lot. And I spammed it. Oh, and she had her album Rainbow out this year, too. I couldn’t find a link to her PV on youtube though =(.