Hiroko Yakushimaru - 夢十話

Now back to our usual programme. Are you ready for some Shōwa idol?! Because that's what you getting today! The silly person I was, tried to avoid most idol related stuff, prefering to stick with more regular pop artists or underground-ish stuff. Yes, the industry is shitty, currently reaching never seen before levels of shitty (though it can be said k-pop is the contemporary king of shitty), with a good deal of tragic stories, but you know what, it's not like the western pop music industry is that much different. So, yes, it's possible to enjoy this kind of music while also being critical of its  business practices. If there is anything Idolm@ster taught me is that, it's all about chasing your dreams, fostering friendships, and shady producers are not to be tolerated. Besides, even in a sea of genericness, mass produced mediocrity, it's possible to find some precious gems, and this album is one of them.
夢十話 [Yume Jūwa], literally translated "Dream Talk", is Hiroko's 2nd album (according to Wiki; Thanks Wiki!) and charted pretty high during its release, achieving an impressive 2nd place. So, as you can see, pretty damn popular.  She was an idol, meaning she multi-tasked, acting, singing, and whatnot (I don't know about her modeling, most idols modeled, even some "adult modeling" on ocassions, but I don't think that's something that should have that much attention now, so let's just move on), rising to prominence with the leading role in "Sailor Suit and Machine Gun", a weird as fuck, and depressing, yakuza movie (which, to make thing even more head-scratching, has a really beautiful cinematography; artsy stuff, I guess). The single she recorded for the movie reached number 1.
So what about the music itself? Well, it's no exaggeration to say this album is one of the best Kayōkyoku I've ever heard. It's my opinion, as obvious as it can be, but believe my curatorship here, ok? There's just something quintessential about this album. Idol pop is generally very upbeat, with a teenage energy (this vibe, one of main reasons, actually, for me to stay away from most of it) with the usual melodramatic/romantic balladry here and there, but it doesn't stray much from the same formula. It's lowest common denominator Pop. Not setting myself to say 夢十話 is the most innovative thing, because it's not, but it's different from most of the common cutesy stuff. It can't escape the Christmas single curse, though, so you see, it's not without its flaws. It has all the tropes of 80's Japanese Pop (hence it being so popular at the time), but cliché is not a problem per se, you gotta learn that, my kouhais. It takes all that's necessary for the genre and gives it a great deal of personality. It stays mostly mid-tempo (ballad mode) but speeds up from time to time, subtly. It has an air of maturity, you know? Take '水の中のイエスタデイ~再会物语' and '过去からの手纸' for example, with its New Wave/Post-Punk inclinations. '天に星.地に花', the opener, has the most traditional music influence, it's the perfect example of what Kayōkyoku sounds like. Then 'スマッシュ・ボーイの微笑み' comes up next to hype thing up a bit, but take notice how elegantly it does. '千年の孤独' is not afraid to bring THE FUNK, but check how Adult Contemporary it is.
Well, there it goes, the dreaded genre name I was afraid to bring up... But that's how it is. That's what I feel that makes "夢十話 " stand apart, its sense of maturity, seriousness, but it still knows how to "get down". You know, like that single aunt of yours, she's sober, elegant, may act and say some corny things, but you can't help but love her, because she knew what she was doing, and it was good, and maybe, just maybe, those kids who are into the 80's revival , with their vaporwaves and synthwaves and whatnot, might dig her... I hope I'm making myself clear here.