安良城紅 – GEM
Artist: 安良城紅 (Beni Arashiro) Album: GEM Release Date: 04.25.2007 I’ve always been very hesitant to dig into some of BENI‘s older material as an avex artist because we all know what avex can do to artists with little support from the label: the music comes out sounding cheap, uninspired and straight off a generic template. … Read more
BENI – さつきあめ
Artist: BENI Single: さつきあめ Release Date: 04.24.2013 I think this single was the release I was anticipating the most for 2013! We all know BENI went on a cover album raid in 2012 and became highly successful for it (hell, COVERS 2 and COVERS are 3rd and 4th on the iTunes Albums Charts today and it’s been over a year … Read more
The Evolution of BENI
![BENI [Satsuki Ame]](http://4lvy.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/beni-satsuki-ame.jpg?w=440&h=240&crop=1)
Back in her avex days, BENI had released an album titled Girl 2 Lady, whose concept served as a milestone of sorts, meant to showcase a new, womanly and mature BENI (Beni Arashiro at the time), but I think her true transformation from girl to lady has peaked between the end of the year 2012 and the beginning of … Read more
Dissecting Koda Kumi’s “ピンク スパイダー” Controversy
Before writing my review on Koda Kumi‘s latest cover album, Color the Cover, I had no idea how bad the ピンク スパイダー controversy really was until one of my dearest plastic lovers, Jasmine, pointed it out to me on the comments section of the post, where we discussed the topic a little bit as well. After that, I … Read more
倖田來未 – Color the Cover
Artist: 倖田來未 (Koda Kumi Album: Color the Cover Release Date: 02.27.2013 It seems like Plastic Candy is becoming somewhat of a Mika Ninagawa haven of sorts, for yet again she’s being featured here, this time as the photographer behind Koda Kumi‘s Color the Cover jacket shoot and the director for one of the music videos from the … Read more
Is 90s R&B Making a Comeback?
![First Love [Promo]](http://4lvy.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/first-love-promo.png?w=440&h=240&crop=1)
Two of the most iconic musicians in world music to come from the 90s’ teen pop boom, Beyoncé (once again under Destiny’s Child) and Justin Timberlake have made very interesting observations about latest music trends with the release of their new material and have revealed a very ambitious mission they’re envisioning through it as well: “[in the 90s,] R&B was the … Read more
6 active minutes: Plastic Selection 2012
If you’re a long-time reader of Plastic Candy, you’re familiarized with the Plastic Selection section of the blog, but in case you’re only an occasional passerby or are just getting acquainted with everything around here, every end of the year I sum up my favorite releases of the year in two separate posts, one for … Read more
Holiday Candy: Nagaoka Accessories
Because I’m in the holiday shopping spirit, I’m going to suggest a series of products that not many people are aware of, but will definitely appreciate ♡ I was asked the other day how I’m able to take such good care of my music collection, since my CDs always look brand new when I take pictures … Read more
Holiday Candy: Namie Amuro’s 20th Anniversary
I would like to apologize for being away from Plastic Candy for a month already! This end of the year has been a little bit hectic for me, and I wasn’t counting on taking a break from writing, but I do have some juicy year-end posts brewing for you all so I hope you’ll be … Read more
宇多田ヒカル – 桜流し
Artist: 宇多田ヒカル (Utada Hikaru) Single: 桜流し Release Date: 11.16.2012 Today, out of the blue, Utada Hikaru‘s official YouTube channel was updated with a brand new song by the goddess of Japanese music herself (which is already available on iTunes as well)! I was absolutely taken by surprise and as soon as I clicked play, the … Read more
