In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in what’s new in J-pop.

With that in mind, here’s where you come in: I’m one person with one set of musical preferences, so please embed any other new J-pop tracks you’ve enjoyed in the comments so we can get a fuller spectrum each week.

*And just like I do with my reviews, I’ll wait until full versions of songs are available before posting them in this round-up. This will mostly apply to Johnny’s groups, who still limit the majority of their YouTube uploads to shorter, edited versions.

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2023 Index: Feb 1 – Feb 18 // Feb 19 – 25 // Feb 26 – Mar 3 // Mar 4 – Mar 10 // Mar 11 – Mar 18

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THIS WEEK: March 19 – March 25

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AKB48 – Doushitemo Kimi ga Sukida

AKB48 have pre-released their newest single ahead of its physical release next month. It’s a fun burst of energy – sprightly and feel-good. I really appreciate the bounding energy of the chorus.

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ATEEZ – Limitless

I wrote about this here. I thought it was okay.

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Bullet Train (Chotokkyu) – Mora Mora

Mora Mora is the single taken off of Bullet Train’s new album B9. The album is so-so (and this song is fine), but I’m intrigued by their addition of new members. Their new vocalist is quite good!

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JO1 – Tiger

I wrote about this here. I didn’t like it.

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NAQT VANE – Chronic

This one has a great bounce to it. That chorus hits hard. And with super-producer Hiroyuki Sawano as half of this project, I’m not surprised it’s awesome!

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Nogizaka46 – Hito wa Yume wo Nido Miru (single of the week!)

I wrote about this here. I liked it a lot and it’s my single of the week!

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PKCZ(R) – Gravity (b-side of the week!)

I’m not sure you could call this a b-side since there’s no accompanying a-side, but for the purpose of this feature I’m calling anything without an MV a b-side. Either way, this is the kind of straight-up, high-tempo dance track I tend to love.

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This week’s old favorite:

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Generations – Taiyou Mo Tsuki Mo (2017)

This is one of my very favorite tracks from Exile Tribe’s Generations. That opening guitar riff is epic, and the song doesn’t lose intensity from there.

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