YuyoDrift

If this is the case I sincerely hope that the OG VK fans come out of the woodworks for this. The way the scene has been recently, I feel "now or never" couldn't apply any more than it could with this.
 
I really can't believe this is real. I was literally just asking myself if Mako would ever come back. To see that Asanao gets to play alongside them is one of the most epic things he can be known for to me lol.

@heresytrash I saw your blog-post about the anime film A Silent Voice. It was great to read your thoughts on it. I personally wrote an entire paper on this film and felt that there was a lot of things I took from watching, that it had to be put on paper.
 
I personally consider it on of my top 3 favorite anime films of all time.

Would you believe me if I told you there's a well known competitive Smash player called Gackt? He's apparently one of the best players in the world.
Gackt himself has taken a liking to PUBG and plays competitively, so perhaps he'll gravitate to Smash someday and take on his copycat.

FLCL fans be excited for this one (@YuyoDrift). I know I am!
 
Pre-orders are open tomorrow for UK and North America:
 

 
https://blog.alltheanime.com/flcl-vinyl/

Okay so I talked shit about FLCL Alternative but it wasn't that bad. It redeemed itself by the second episode and the rest was p good. Progressive though? Progressive is actual trash all the way through, I do not recommend. 

Yeah basically. A lot of ppl are enraged about the jokes he's been making, and he's definitely pretty out there, but personally, I think he's both hilarious and clever in how he illuminates the ridiculousness of a lot of sensitive issues.

Not gonna lie doe, Jojo would have been #5 (and bumped Violet Evergarden off), but I just can't get anyone else to watch it, making me think I'm the only one who thought it was good, so I must be wrong lol.

Unpopular Opinion: I liked the whole series 
 
EDIT: Don't know whether that reaction was sarcastic or not but ok lol

Would it help if you add in when you started watching anime? I'm looking at some of these and could use that info to not judge your guys' tastes lol.
 
Began watching: 1996 with Sailor Moon
 
1. Golden Boy (English Dub)
2. Vision of Escaflowne (English Dub)
3. FLCL (I'm being reasonable here) (English Dub)
4. Initial D
5. Violet Evergarden (English Dub was good. #fightme)
 
Cowboy Bebop/Samurai Champloo/Trigun would be in this list, but I wanted to take into account more than just the impact/nostalgia.
Plus they are timeless classics, so people are already aware they would be on people's top 5.
 
edit: Also for shits, I am now adding my 6-10 here.
 

I would argue that for Gackt it was most likely his Redemption Single, which was also used as part of the OST for Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus.
You did get it right with the Gazette doe.
Versailles could have been Ascendead Master but eh.

Well there are a shit ton of reasons why I enjoyed the anime, and the most surprising to people is when they hear it was with the English Dub, which 80% of those who watched it hated.
 
The first episode or so was hard to get used to (you'll see why), but they're necessary I think to establish the character somewhat. I'd say watch it first and then come back, because I may be 1-2 decades ahead of you when it comes to anime (binge watching for me has many downsides, one of which has to do with properly digesting and understanding each episode, which was no problem when you had to wait until the next day/week for the next episode growing up), and I've understood what it is I enjoy and what I don't enjoy.

Would it help if you add in when you started watching anime? I'm looking at some of these and could use that info to not judge your guys' tastes lol.
 
Began watching: 1996 with Sailor Moon
 
1. Golden Boy (English Dub)
2. Vision of Escaflowne (English Dub)
3. FLCL (I'm being reasonable here) (English Dub)
4. Initial D
5. Violet Evergarden (English Dub was good. #fightme)
 
Cowboy Bebop/Samurai Champloo/Trigun would be in this list, but I wanted to take into account more than just the impact/nostalgia.
Plus they are timeless classics, so people are already aware they would be on people's top 5.
 
edit: Also for shits, I am now adding my 6-10 here.
 

Honestly I combine this and the repetitiveness of work/being predictable itself to be my major factors. Any change in my routine, like coming in to work an hour later while I go for a coffee or take the scenic route that I never have before to see the mountain landscape REALLY does a lot for me here in CO. Even something as spontaneous as taking a personal day off to sleep is a great change of pace lol.
 
I now understand why recreational activities like going to the beach, camping/hiking in the mountains, or even traveling somewhere else to get away are still a thing, and I've never done most of those things due to being a shut-in.
 
I can barely fathom the idea that kids of today are being conditioned to believe these things are not necessary (i.e. wilderness and exploration) and online stuff are all you need in life, so why do all those things when you can watch someone else do those things? Yeeesh, I've sure changed a lot in these last few years lol.

Honestly I combine this and the repetitiveness of work/being predictable itself to be my major factors. Any change in my routine, like coming in to work an hour later while I go for a coffee or take the scenic route that I never have before to see the mountain landscape REALLY does a lot for me here in CO. Even something as spontaneous as taking a personal day off to sleep is a great change of pace lol.
 
I now understand why recreational activities like going to the beach, camping/hiking in the mountains, or even traveling somewhere else to get away are still a thing, and I've never done most of those things due to being a shut-in.
 
I can barely fathom the idea that kids of today are being conditioned to believe these things are not necessary (i.e. wilderness and exploration) and online stuff are all you need in life, so why do all those things when you can watch someone else do those things? Yeeesh, I've sure changed a lot in these last few years lol.

Honestly I combine this and the repetitiveness of work/being predictable itself to be my major factors. Any change in my routine, like coming in to work an hour later while I go for a coffee or take the scenic route that I never have before to see the mountain landscape REALLY does a lot for me here in CO. Even something as spontaneous as taking a personal day off to sleep is a great change of pace lol.
 
I now understand why recreational activities like going to the beach, camping/hiking in the mountains, or even traveling somewhere else to get away are still a thing, and I've never done most of those things due to being a shut-in.
 
I can barely fathom the idea that kids of today are being conditioned to believe these things are not necessary (i.e. wilderness and exploration) and online stuff are all you need in life, so why do all those things when you can watch someone else do those things? Yeeesh, I've sure changed a lot in these last few years lol.

You ever just feel sick of looking at your computer or phone screen, wanna just leave it all and live it out in some cabin in the woods near a town and just garden, work on personal projects, and grow old with a pet?
 
Yeah, me too.

You guys are clogging up this thread.
Take it to PMs if it's really that interesting of a side-topic.

Thanks for that.
 
Found an article about it here.

You guys are clogging up this thread.
Take it to PMs if it's really that interesting of a side-topic.

Well one that I want to start recording now is with my childhood/neighborhood crush appearing in my dreams.
 
The dreams themselves are often different, and sometimes I feel like they keep reoccurring because they are premonitions to the future (I have had dreams years ahead, where I'd meet my current gf, with such detail like her name and the way she smelled, while never once seeing her face), but in a couple dreams she and I were together and living back home in Chicago. It always feels like an alternative timeline that I'm witnessing/living in my dream, and for all that science can barely understand regarding this, there could be some truth to what happens in the dream itself, as I am strongly given the impression that this was supposed to be the life I should be living.
 
If you've seen the film Inception, then you know about the main character's wife, who believed that the life she was living was nothing but a dream, and her real existence required her to "wake up" (leading to her committing suicide as an attempt to get back to "reality").
My dreams (and my view on it) perfectly mimic this entire thing.
 
It terrifies me/creeps me out because she and I had a falling out almost 10 years ago, only because I went and confessed my admiration/infatuation with her, after so many years of back-and-forth "does he/she like me?" encounters growing up with friends. I won't share those details here, but I did it because I couldn't move on with my life knowing that there could have been a "what if", and in the end I was left with something worse than the answer I wanted, I was devasted. We've since then grown apart as friends (as is what normally happens unfortunately), and have no trace of her on my social media. I've grown to accept that life has to be this way, and we can't turn back the dial. This is living with the decisions you make in life.
 
At the same time, these dreams make me wonder if something is going on in her life that maybe I am somehow able to feel, or rather, allowed to see. Could it be a life I could have had with her, and she's often thinking about it too? Could she be alone and regretting what happened that she wants to try again? God, the dreams are so vivid and intense that I often wake up by force because I can't admit that this would ever be a possibility for me, even in my dreams. Yet they keep coming back when I least expect it, and stronger, to the point where I will sit at the side of my bed for a while because I get anxious, as it wouldn't be hard for me to get in touch with friends and ask how she's doing. I choose not to, because the life I live now is the one I chose, and I am far away from home and even further away from her in so many ways, that I need to see all of this for what it is: reality.
 
 

To me, city-pop is just an extension of the old-school r&b/soul/funk stuff that I was raised on - everything from motown to Earth, Wind & Fire, and more. Basically, stuff that my parents used to listen to that's still dope to this day. So naturally, I enjoy this style of music.
 
I'll give a shout-out to HITOMITOI (一十三十一), who's a more recent artist than some of the names mentioned so far. She started off making some pretty quirky jpop in the early to mid 00's, but I don't think she's ever been particularly well-known...or at least I've never really seen her talked about much among overseas fans. Anyways, here last few albums have taken on city-poppish direction, and I think she's worth a mention!
 
 

So I went to watch QT's new film Once Upon a Time In Hollywood this weekend, blind, and I was so confused as to what this film was about until the very end lol.
It was probably not the best choice, but I did it, and for me it made the film a much better experience.

You guys are clogging up this thread.
Take it to PMs if it's really that interesting of a side-topic.

It was only a matter of time before I created this thread lol so here we are.
 
City Pop, also known/seen as シティーポップ (shitī poppu) online, is the name given to the fusion genre of funk/disco/jazz/easy-listening music that existed in Japan from the late 70's and well into the 80's, where it became the national soundtrack of the times, providing an urban expression to the success and wonders of the city-life. Japan at this time was thriving due to the technological advancements during the 70's that allowed Japan's economy to explode when it came to exportation of consumer electronics and more, essentially making them a conglomerate for tech in the next decade that followed, and creating what many refer to as an "economic miracle", yet to be seen again today.
 
Here are several articles I've saved over the years if you'd like to know more:
 
The Musical Almanac: Japan’s City-Pop
The Breathless Bliss of City Pop
A Dreamy Trip back to Japans Capitalist Fantasy of the 1980s
A Guide to City Pop, the Soundtrack for Japan’s Bubble-Era Generation
 
The recent return of the genre state-side (we're always late to this stuff) by a number of DJs on YouTube, SoundCloud, and even Band Camp have given City Pop a breath of new life, and the reception has been so great that studios existing back then have since remastered and re-released albums (even on vinyl) for collectors and new fans alike.
 
Edit: According to @colorful人生:
 
Very Cool!
 
While City Pop predates the surge of JPOP in the 90's and can be seen as one genre as a whole, I felt that City Pop deserved its own thread as the number of releases that spanned the 70's-80's are ENDLESS, and even today new music artists utilize/associate the music genre to their own work, so it's safe to make the distinction between the two.
 
Now I don't have a starter-pack for those looking to get into the genre, but I've listened to a major chunk of the releases online to give a great recommendations list for those curious. These releases are easily available on YouTube, are varied in musical style and year of release, and they were some of the first listens for me when I got started, so hopefully at least one of them will interest you guys.
 
(ラジ) Rajie - Heart to Heart (1977)
 
(山下 達郎)Tatsuro Yamashita - SPACY (1977)
 
(みき松原 ) Miki Matsubara - Pocket Park (1980)
 
(貴子間宮)Takako Mamiya - Love Trip (1982)
 
(パイパー) Piper - Summer Breeze (1983)
 
(知子亜蘭) Tomoko Aran - More Relax (1984)
 
(敏生角松)Toshiki Kadomatsu - After 5 Clash (1984)
 
(桃子菊池) Momoko Kikuchi - Adventure (1986)
 
(明菜中森) Akina Nakamori - Stock (1988) 
NOTE:
 
That being said, there are still many artists to check out, so here's are a few more names for you to search for in your spare time.
 
I'll come back and update this (took a couple days to put together lol) with more recommendations when I can.
 
So who else here listens to these J-Oldies?