My space

I have recently fell into the Momusu rabbit hole as I have been obsessively listening to their songs, watching their variety shows, as well as researching the fandom lore by spending hours on Hello! Project Wiki. One of the charms of Momusu is the different eras of the group, and each era feels like a totally different group. Although it had taken a while, I have finally familiarized myself with all the members as well as the eras and what make each of them unique and special. And since I have no one I can spazz about Momusu with, I just want to use this space here to write about all of that.

The beginning of it all. To be clear, the pre-Golden era time doesn’t really have an official time but I have seen someone named this era the “Morning era” and that seems fitting so I’m using it too. Since it was their early days, the group did went a few different several directions musically and concept wise too. But personally, I always find this era to have the most innocent and pure vibes, but I think it’s mostly due to the young age of most members at the time. From watching their MVs and performances, they seem to have this ‘deer in headlights’ looks about them, mostly Kaori and Nacchi, which I find endearing and even adds to the stage presence. Therefore, even when they did more mature songs like Daite Hold on Me or Summer Night Town, I view the songs as being under the perspective of a young girl trying to be older, rather than being an actual grown woman who fully understand love (which is kinda what I see Platinum Era represents, but we’ll get to that later),

However, this era was still a far more mature era than the subsequent era. In fact, music-wise, this era is a far cry from upbeat orthodox-idol pop tunes. Since Morning Musume was originally consisted of 5 finalists for a contest to find a female rock vocalist, I don’t think Tsunku intended the group to be an ‘idol’ group. This early Morning Musume felt more like a vocal group with lots of harmonization, and a lot less emphasis on dancing. Likewise, their music this era range from sultry disco (Daite Hold on Me), to serene summery sounds (Manatsu no Kosen), as well as slow-tempo ballad (Furusato). Also, everything from this era is just so deliciously 90s, like, the retro aesthetic is just impeccable.

Representative song – Daite Hold on Me!: Their very first 1st place on the Oricon chart and also secured them a spot for their first appearance at Kouhaku. Musically and concept wise, they continued where the previous single left off and express an even more passionate plea for love. While Summer Night Town had a clear color palette of blue, Daite Hold on Me had the mood of a passionate red color scheme. This passion and yearning for love can be felt through the lyrics and members’ vocals which seemed almost desperate. Also, this was the first song where there would be a sudden rap verse coming out of nowhere, which will a recurring thing in the future. Not that much, but it happens.

Personal Favorite – Summer Night Town: The debut single of 2nd generation, though you probably can’t tell just listening to the song cause they barely sing besides the occasional “for you” that get sprinkles in the background. Contrast to the innocent vibes of both their debut and indie singles, this single started to showcase more of a mature, sophisticated and even sultry sides of the group. Just like the settings of the music video, the song sounds like something you can hear in a 90s club. I just love how soulful the song sounds and the 1st gen members’ vocals really shine here with their solo lines. This song is one of the most performed pre-Golden Era song for a reason! (I pulled this info out of my ass don’t quote me on this)

If you’re not a hardcore fan of the group, when you hear the name Morning Musume, most likely this is the era of the group that you will think of. A group of girls with all kind of personalities and characters happily singing cheerful melodies while dancing funny moves that some would even consider ‘un-idolish’. But this was the image that helped shot Momusu to stardom, as Tsunku himself has put it, ‘lame, but fun!’. Morning Musume was THE idol group at the time, being a social phenomenon and securing all kinds of jobs (musicals, manga, movies, TV specials, …). Most of their biggest hits among the general public also come from this era like Love Machine, Ren’ai Evolution 21, and The Peace. But if I were to be honest, listening to all the singles from Love Machine to The Peace made me realized how similar those singles were, as well as how they were following the same formula. But hey, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

I would have to confess that I am quite basic for admitting that the Golden Era is also the era that attracted me to the group. While my current favorite era has changed, it is not hard to see why this era is so beloved. There was just so much content to consumed with this era, from weekly variety shows to sub units, it was just the gift that keeps on giving. Not to mentioned, all the members of this era were so different from each other and that really helps in a large group. We got TsujiKago as the bratty duo, Keichan as the teased old sister, Yuko who was the even older sister (or aunt) that constantly endure wedding jokes, Yossie being the most hilarious person ever alive on Haromoni Theater,… you get the pont.

Representative song – Love Machine: aka the song that would haunt the dreams of every members from every generations till the end of time. What can I even say about this song that has not been say before? Ever since the first time I heard this song, back when I knew nothing about the group besides the fact that the song was a massive hit, I realized why it was as widely loved as it is. The song really does not have any flaws, from the verses to the gorgeous pre-chorus, to the iconic chorus, all the tiny details in the instrumental and Tsunku’s background vocals really came together to made an amazing song. It’s just one of those songs that has that timeless quality to it that I can’t imagine anyone can resist. It is catchy, fun, super dancable and from the moment Gocchin sang her first solo line in the pre-chorus, I was all in. Seriously, the power she had at just 13 was insane. It’s not fair to say Gocchin single-handedly shot the group to fame, but it is undeniable that her vocals and presence really elevated the song in such a charming way.

Personal Favorite – Do It! Now: I would consider this to be quite a peculiar choice myself since this single is almost everything that the Golden Era is not: mature, (lowkey) dark, a more R&B sound, and a little bit of angst. However, it’s because of those things that this single stands out so well among all the other singles of the same era. Being a Gocchin oshi, it was already a guarantee that I would love the single considering this was her graduation single, however, this single has a lot of merits just by itself. Firstly, this song has a lot of solo lines, which is something I absolutely love since I adore hearing different vocals from the members. Every single one of them who was given a solo line DELIVERED, especially Gaki who was only 14 at the time and even Konkon with her little cute shaky voice. Not just solo lines, I love the duet parts in the chorus as well but we were so robbed of a Gocchin x Aichan pairing.

(To be continued…)