Dolorous Haze

That’s All, Folks!

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 13:00:47 +0000

For reasons I don't want to go into right now - nothing disastrous, more of a re-assessment of priorities and time available - I'm ending this experiment for the foreseeable future. Which, knowing me, means I'm shutting the site down for good. Thank you for reading, and maybe I'll see you all again in the future! P.S. - I'll be putting the rankers back up on American Wota when I get the chance.

Kuroki Meisa Promotes Attitude With Wallpaper

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 11:00:35 +0000

Wallpaper: Meisa Kuroki’s “Attitude” « Karakui – Okinawan Pop Culture. You can always count on Karakui to point the way to great Okinawan-related wallpaper.

Tsuyoki de Yukoze! On Tettekette

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 09:00:05 +0000

An Short Interlude « Tsuyoki de Yukoze!. Murr explains how Takahashi Ai received that particular nickname. For those who don't know, Ishibashi also bestowed the greatest ever H!P nickname to Iida Kaori.

Koike Yui On Sabra.net

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 07:00:44 +0000

Yui Koike ~ Sabra.net [2009.12.25] | Jappydolls. She's got a wonderful smile and looks great in a bikini. What more could you ask for?

Delicious Cake Project On Where H!P Outsells AKB

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 05:01:03 +0000

The One Place Where H!P Still Outsells AKB « Delicious Cake Project!. I won't spoil the reveal, but will say that this is an interesting angle to take on idols and how they manifest throughout the culture.

Karakui Reviews Sanshin Apps

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 03:00:11 +0000

App Review: iSanshin (i三線) for iPhone & iPod touch « Karakui – Okinawan Pop Culture. App Review: Sanshin (三線) for iPhone and iPod touch « Karakui – Okinawan Pop Culture. These are thorough and knowledgeable reviews from Richie of two apps that lets you play the sanshin on your iPod Touch or iPhone. So if you ever wanted to accompany Berryz Kobo to "Piriri to Yukou", here's your chance!

KAT-TUN 2 Me Has More Top 100 JE Songs

Ray Mescallado — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 01:00:15 +0000

KAT-TUN 2 Me » Top 100 Johnny’s Songs: Part 6. When Celestia mentions "the gayest Arashi PV", I knew exactly which one she meant. It's the only Arashi video I ever bother to watch, actually. Gotta love the rainbows!

Chemical Pictures Welcome The New Year

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 23:00:11 +0000

Rock Japan Elec-tric. Rock Japan Elec-tric. I'm sharing these posts mostly because that bowl of noodles and tempura shrimp make me REAL hungry.

Cartoon Namie Appears In Gundam Ace Magazine

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:00:24 +0000

The Three Metalheads Profile Girly Berry

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 19:00:30 +0000

The Three Metalheads » Blog Archive » One for the K-pop fans - Girly Berry. Henkka introduces us to a Thai girl group quartet, focusing on their music but also providing some great eyecandy along the way.

AKB48 At Japan Record Awards and Kohaku

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 17:00:41 +0000

Sweet Japan: AKB48 at Japan Record Awards. Sweet Japan: AKB48 NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen RIVER SUPRISE 2009-12-31. The dominant girl group of the year perform at a couple of popular shows. This DOES feel a bit like a passing of the guard, doesn't it?

Wonder Girls Face Lots Of Jet Lag

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 15:00:54 +0000

The WonderGirls to carry out their promotions in China alongside with that in the States « K Bites. I have to admire their bid to become world stars, but maybe they should focus on one hemisphere at a time?

Radiant Dawn Looks At All His Best

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 13:00:05 +0000

~ALL MY BEST~ well… most of it. ;D Part 1! « Radiant Dawn. Ethan starts his own review of the past year, considering the best and worst A-sides. Again, though: why number it if it's meant to be in no particular order?

Beyond the Sea Looks At Singles Of 2009

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:00:44 +0000

2009 In Review ~All the Singles…Put Your Hands Up?~ « Beyond the Sea ~ The Style. Edition. Lex goes over his Top Ten, and for the Worst he even throws in some macros to add insult to injury. Gotta love that!

Nyu chan desu!!! Turns Attention To Old Ladies

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 09:00:32 +0000

2009 rankings – Top 5 songs to torture old ladies with « Nyu chan desu!!!. First deflowering virgins, now torturing old ladies. I can't wait to see what's next. Also, the shout-out to Tom Swift amused me.

Yonasu Profiles COMA-CHI

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 07:00:14 +0000

COMA-CHI | yonasu.com. Yonasu employs many superlatives for this female rapper, and I have to admit that the last clip in the post - "perfect angel" - is really good. Definitely worth following up on.

More Charmy Ass Shots

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 05:01:30 +0000

Your Opinion Doesn't Count..It's all pop culture to us: Hump Day Eye Candy Extravaganza. You really can't go wrong with Rika's posterior. Also, Happy New Year!

Rock Japan Elec-tric Performs With Steve Appleton

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 03:00:13 +0000

Rock Japan Elec-tric. Elec shares some clips of Steve Appleton's show where he played bass. The last two are particularly interesting.

SNSD TaeYeon and SuJu ShinDong Win Radio Awards

Ray Mescallado — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 01:00:08 +0000

SNSD TaeYeon and Super Junior ShinDong awarded the radio newcomer awards at MBC Drama Awards « K Bites. Congratulations to both - but what's up with ShinDong's hair? It reminds me of the early Beatles - or the public obscenity penis hairdo from DMC.

Some Candid Amuro Photos

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:00:51 +0000

Pink Wota Reacts To Ayu Concert Setlist

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 21:00:08 +0000

Pink Wota » [News] Countdown Live 09-10 ~Future Classics~ Kneejerk Reactions. Vee finds a great deal to like from the initial reports on Hamasaki Ayumi's latest tour. The T-shirt is indeed pretty nifty! And I like the part about the spoon.

BKI Has Poll For Favorite Berryz

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:00:10 +0000

Year end ranking : Girls @ Berryz Kobo International. Year end ranking : Songs @ Berryz Kobo International. Interestingly enough, my three choices for the top poll were also at the top of the overall results...

Exile, Big Bang Win At Japan Record Awards

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 17:00:12 +0000

51st Japan Record Awards: EXILE, BIG BANG - Tokyograph. This is the second year that Exile took the grand prize, while Big Bang became the first Korean group to win Best New Artist. Congratulations to both!

Kanjani8 Claims Top Three Spots In Oricon Weekly Chart

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:00:06 +0000

Charts: Kanjani8 takes top three - Tokyograph. A very impressive feat, but now I'm guessing some others - Koda Kumi, maybe? or another JE act? - will try to top it with four singles.

HanKyung Contract Trial Begins January 8

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:00:12 +0000

HanKyung’s Contract Termination Trial Begins Jan 8 « K Bites. Holy crap, that was fast - and his lawyers are maneuvering against possible delaying tactics from SM. What this means for Super Junior - especially the others allegedly filing suit - still remains to be seen, of course. But I'm thinking SM will be doing some major PR damage control in the coming days and weeks.

Amuro Namie Looking Sweet In with Magazine

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:00:38 +0000

Eff Cooze Gets Jiggy

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 09:00:22 +0000

F.cuz gives 1st tease with ‘Jiggy’ « K Bites. Seriously, this is all turning into a strange single-entendre joke.

Ichii Sayaka On Sabra.net

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 07:00:21 +0000

Sayaka Ichii ~ Next Stage | Jappydolls. Sayaka is looking great! Now how about some Ayappe eyecandy? I know she's still hawt, too.

jrocknyc On Deleting Music Files

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 05:01:24 +0000

jrocknyc: with some sweet oblivious antidote cleanse the stuff'd bosom of that perilous stuff. Go is trying to figure out the best way to separate musical wheat from chaff, and is seeking advice. The comments section is even more interesting than usual, as a result.

Hikaru Genji Akasaka Akira Faces New Drug Charges

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 02:59:57 +0000

Hikaru Genji's Akasaka caught for drugs again - Tokyograph. Apparently, it takes an old school boy band idol to show all these Jpop and Kpop upstarts how to really get into trouble.

Deflowering H!P Virgins, One Song At A Time

Ray Mescallado — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 01:00:28 +0000

Time to rank! – Top 5 songs to deflower H!P virgins with « Nyu chan desu!!!. So I picture Maeda Yuuka with Metallica's "One" playing softly in the background and then we turn it up and break out the trapeze and... What? Ladybird is talking about how to get people not into H!P to like their music? Never mind, then. And I'd think "Rottara Rottara" would be a natural for this list.

jrocknyc Finishes Best Albums Of Decade

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:00:10 +0000

jrocknyc: The Best Albums of the Decade Part 9: 2009. Go ends the decade in review with a huge four-way stand-off. That was a pretty good review series, wasn't it? I found it the best so far this year.

Getting Morning Musume Soaking, Sopping Wet

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:00:17 +0000

Pocket Morning Weekly Q&A (week of 12/27/2009) - Hello!Online. Pervy Morning Weekly Q&A « Morningtime. Morningtime does a nice job of further interpreting the answers the girls gave. And yeah, they really shouldn't ask that question if they don't want certain images dancing in the minds of wota.

Totally Hello! Project Looks At Girl Group Sales For 2009

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:00:50 +0000

Top Selling Singles of 2009 « Totally Hello! Project. So AKB has sold more copies of fewer singles than all of H!P combined? The times, they have a-changed!

New S/mileage PV Previewed

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:00:48 +0000

S/mileage – “Suki-chan” PV Preview Released « Hello!SayuNii. An all-Yuuka all-bikini version of the PV is apparently being held back at the moment, but I KNOW they've got one planned. Right?

Past < Future Sells 87,000 In Second Week

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:00:20 +0000

Funky Monkey Babys Announce Best Of Album

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:00:12 +0000

Funky Monkey Babys announce best album - Tokyograph. This seems to've been a good year for the group, so this Best Of is a nice capper.

Crystal Kay Makes Drama Debut

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:00:07 +0000

Crystal Kay to make drama debut - Tokyograph. I've never been jealous of Crystal Kay before, but working so closely with Yamada Ryosuke? Ohh, be still my heart!

SM In Trouble If HanKyung Misses New Year Eve Concert

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:00:50 +0000

SM to face hefty compensation if Hankyung were to miss Hunan TV’s New Year Eve Concert « K Bites. More serious repercussions in the SM contracts war. It's ironic, given that the big worry were DBSK performances.

2PM TaecYeon Thinks He’s EPMD (Or Michael Corleone)

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 07:00:08 +0000

2PM TaecYeon on ‘couple’ performance with YoonA, “It is just for business” « K Bites. It's just business? A love song is just business? You whore! How much for a freakin' half-and-half, then, TaecYon? And does your pimp JaeBom get a cut, all the way in Seattle?

SaeYaka Paradise Has 39 Reasons

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 05:01:58 +0000

SaeYaka, Team K and AKB48 Paradise: 39 reasons to buy Sae's photobook. It's Sae eyecandy - lots of it. You don't need any more reason than that.

Big Bang Concert Tickets Sell Out In Five Minutes

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 03:00:44 +0000

Big Bang ‘2010 Big Show’ tickets sold out in just 5min in 1st window sales « K Bites. The five minutes is astounding, but they could have easily sold twelve times as many tickets - even more impressive!

Pink Wota Finds Hamasaki Ayumi’s Redemption

Ray Mescallado — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 01:00:32 +0000

Pink Wota » [Review] Redemption. Vee does a detailed track-by-track review of this single, finding it Ayu's strongest in the past two years.

Jappydolls Has Young Champion 24

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 23:00:33 +0000

Young Champion No.24 [2009] | Jappydolls. This one features Yamamoto Azusa and Nakamura Miu... Hey, I thought Nakamura retired a while back! Why won't she finally give it a rest?

Conflict Productions Does 2009 H!P Rankings

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 21:00:02 +0000

2009 Year End Hello! Project Rankings « Conflict Productions. Siggy writes, "Before I start, I apologize if I offend anyone due to my opinions." But he's doing H!P rankings. If there's anything that can be fighting words in wota world, it's saying your favorite idol is better than someone else's favorite idol! And wait! His blog is called Conflict Productions and he doesn't want to piss people off? Something's fishy here...

When Confucius Meets Rain

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 19:00:26 +0000

Chinese netizens object to Rain’s appointment as Goodwill ambassador of SanDong province « K Bites. Sounds like a Zen riddle, eh? But actually, Rain was chosen as the Goodwill ambassador for Confucius' hometown and some Chinese folks are upset that a Korean - even Korea's current pop god - was chosen. Maybe Rain should say something profoundly wise and in doing so prove his worth as a representative of Confucius. Now, let's all hold our breath and wait for it to happen...

jrocknyc On 2008’s Best Albums

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:00:46 +0000

jrocknyc: The Best Albums of the Decade Part 8: 2008. I appreciate taking a little time out to jab at Chinese Democracy.

Not Quite The Merchant Of Venice, But…

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:00:14 +0000

Young Magazine No.01 [2010] | Jappydolls. Yes, there IS a shot where models are weighing each breast on a scale. No, I don't know what the price per kilo is.

SNSD TaeYeon Declared Pervert

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 13:00:32 +0000

SNSD TaeYeon gets a new nickname “ByunTaeYeon”? « K Bites. ... Hey, she can ram a stick up my ass any time she wants. And I know I'm not the only one thinking that.

Blue Hearts Release 25th Anniversary Best and Tribute Albums

Ray Mescallado — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 11:00:27 +0000

The Blue Hearts to simultaneously release best album, tribute album - Tokyograph. Most of us know them for "Linda Linda Linda", but that's more than enough to love the band as far as I'm concerned. The tribute album includes tracks by Yaida Hitomi, Puffy, Beat Crusaders, and Melon Kinenbi! Boss Saito and company are sure keeping busy post-H!P.