【予選1st 第12ブロックC】OTONOVA2023  - Original bands vs original individuals

I am very happy that Mudia exists and supports artists of all kinds. I am happy that there are events organised like Otonova2023 in in which I am participating for the first time.

As someone for whom life would be empty without music, I'm very excited about the Otonova2023 event and I'm looking at all the performers taking part.

I have looked through the musical work of all the participants in this block and I can say that it is a very diverse group, which makes me very happy because it will be an interesting duel.

I am very curious to see how this block will turn out, where we have four amazing personalities such as:

1.CAFUNÉL.

First of all, congratulations to CAFUNÉL for a great performance during the first round of Energenza2023 Japan 👏.  CAFUNÉL is a big family band that tastes three times better than one. The band's name comes from the Portuguese word 'cafune', which means 'the way you gently comb your fingers through your loved one's hair'. They play light-hearted music that touches the heart, but at the same time their performances are capable of getting you up and dancing. Each of their performances is different. The amazing thing is that the vocals change with each song. The line-up sometimes changes too. Even the genre changes. They deliver a variety of songs, one of which is sure to appeal to many listeners. Their current line-up is:

Vocal & Flutes - Yuko

Vocal - Misa

Bassist & Vocal - Takaaki Kitagawa

Keyboard: Nokonoko

Guitarist - Los Angeles Otani

Percussion - Rei Fujita

A.S. - Mizukichi

T.Sax. - SJ

Tp. - TAO-paipai

Tp. - Kiichi

Tb. - Norinori Johnson

On 17 July 2022, they premiered their new single "Gokuraku Torihana"

It is well worth visiting their Tik-Tok account (@cafunel2017) and Youtube channel (@cafunel) to learn more about their work. There are plenty of live performances there.

To better illustrate Cafunel's work, below is their beautiful song 'Bird of Paradise'."

"Bird of Paradise"

Composer: Yuko Aoyama, Takaaki Kitagawa

Lyricist: Aoyama Yuko

鏡か布か見紛う水面に

すう、とこの手を差し入れて

かき乱してみたくなるけれど

それが命取り

予感が笛鳴らしたけど

空を降りて 足を取られ

波へ

極楽鳥 風に揺れる

海沿いの中央分離帯

力抜いて あなたの手に

身を委ねれば傷つかない

楽園顔の日差しに 心奪われて

人魚のふりで泳ぐあなたの好きなこの色

侵食したあなたの価値観が

何度も傷に塩を塗る

温度差とは恐ろしいものだ

やっと立ち止まる

最後の糸が切れぬように

忘れたふりしていたキイを開けて

記憶に胸つかまれても

明日にはなくす感情と識って

極楽鳥 風に揺れる

海沿いの中央分離帯

次の風に吹かれたなら

あなたにはもう傷つかない

かわく時までオレンジの翼を広げて

誰より自由に泳ぐ私の好きなこの色

2. 2.甲斐ヒロシ (Hiroshi Kai)

Hiroshi Kai was born in Fukuoka, but currently lives in Tokyo. While in high school, he met the band 銀杏BOYZ, which ignited in him a love of rock music. Hiroshi started to learn guitar and now plays alternative rock on acoustic guitar. His dream is to create his own unique style.

Hiroshi has an album 'Kichijyouji in April 22', released in 2020, which contains 8 songs. It is well worth visiting Hiroshi's Youtube channel (@nninetagarden1) to check out his wonderful rearranged hits by Nirvana, DO-SE or Mechanical Romance. We also have the opportunity to view recordings of his live performances and his original songs.

3. THYPALM

Started in July 2022 THYPALM is a three-piece psychedelic rock band from Osaka. Centered around Hirosetaki (Vocalist / Guitarist), Hiroki Akiyama (Basist) and Sakagen (Drumer) were formed as members. Their sounds are psychedelic and rock'n'roll. Armed with a one-of-a-kind sound, he trips the floor today as well. Their goal is to hold my own outdoor festival. The band has their first EP 'CHEMICAL', released on 15.07.2022, containing four tracks. For a better illustration of their work, below is the track "Psytune" from the said EP.

PSYTUNE

作詞/作曲:ヒロセターキー

編曲:THYPALM

叫べ もっともっと足りない

ガラクタの兵器じゃ

可もなく不可もなく 

掻き消した この日々と肖像画

そりゃおかしくないとやってられない

彷徨ったエイリアン

幾度も駆け巡ってなぞるのは

さあ 誰の焦燥か

最先端で 攫って行って

夢じゃない この衝動

暴れ回れ 最初の君の歌

秘密はもう避けられない

絡まった 正義感

可もなく不可もなく

暴かれた あの未来の放浪者

そりゃおかしくないとやってられない

彷徨ったエイリアン

幾度も駆け巡ってなぞるのは

さあ 誰の焦燥か

最先端で 腐ってないで

夢じゃない この衝動

離れ離れ 最古の君の歌

最先端で 攫って行って

夢じゃない この衝動

暴れ回れ 最初の君の歌

最先端で 腐ってないで

夢じゃない この衝動

暴れ回れ サイコの君の歌

You can get a closer look at the band's sound by visiting their Youtube channel (@thypalm9389), which features an MV submitted to Otonova2023 for the song 'Psytune'.

4. Koshi Amagasa

Koshi Amagasa is 21-year-old university student singer-songwriter. She decided to become a singer-songwriter when she was a senior in high school and have been writing lyrics. She basically write lyrics in English because she want her songs to be heard not only by people in Japan but also by audiences all over the world. Of course, she also write lyrics in Japanese. Her speciality is tap dancing.

Koshi Amagasa is active on social media and music-distributing media such as Tik-Tok (@koshiamusic) and Youtube (@koshiamagasa7858), where we can get a closer look at her original work. To better showcase her work, below is her original song 'Feel the heartbeat'.

"Feel the heartbeat"

Music, lyrics, recorded and mixed by Koshi Amagasa

Lyrics: 

You open your eyes slowly in the dark morning 

It seems you’re lost in a deep forest 

Did you forget where you were going? 

I  don’t think you can ever run away 

Beware of the voice 

I can see him behind you 

Beware of the voice 

he’s gonna kill you soon

If you go west, it’ll be getting darker

But if you go east, it gets too bright

And try your best not to lose your mind

put your right hand on your chest to feel the heartbeat

You’re falling down slowly without knowing 

you’re at  the bottom of the ocean 

Did you forget how to stand?

I don’t think you can ever go back 

If you go west, it’ll be getting darker

But if you go east, it gets too bright

And try your best not to lose your mind

put your right hand on your chest to feel the heartbeat

The party’s over, everybody’s gone

you’re alone in the middle of the night 

Try your best not to lose your mind

put your right hand on your chest to feel the heartbeat

Among this diverse foursome, it is hard to choose a favourite, as each represents a different kind of music. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for all the performers on the block and I'm already looking forward to seeing how they will do in the qualifiers for Otonova2023.

I ask everyone to give it their all.