Right? It's crazy to think back when I got into JPop I would just blind buy CDs (happily, I liked to be surprised) but nowadays we have YouTube (to an extent), Spotify, iTunes and social media accounts from our faves.

I still buy blind CDs from Hey Say JUMP and many others :shakehead

^Yay, glad to hear it. I don't tend to anymore as it's always so easy to check out at least 1 song or sample from an album. Although I do avoid listening to any singles before I buy an album.

Music news: Hikki will contribute a song to Yosui Inoue Tribute to be released on November 27th.

I was watching Paralell Wold Love Story (パラレルワールド・ラブストーリー) on my flight back from Tokyo and the whole time I was wrapping my head around where I knew it from. Right before the end I remembered seeing the trailer because it has an Utada tie-in - which played right after that lol

Shiina Ringo and Utada's new song/video was leaked by the music video's production company YT channel but the powers that be are doing a good job getting it deleted from the Internet.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EHxFLXeX...jpg&name=small

I actually got to hear it before it was deleted. It was really good! I'm excited to purchase it!!

Omg what? I'm so excited now!:heart

is it from the Shiina's new album?

Yes, it's the "special" unannounced track from her new best album out next month

I see! I really like the idea of this new collabo in her new best! It would be nice if they work together in a project or something, like a single. Their voices are beautiful together ♡

I dunno, but I don't really feel the song...?

Nijikan Dake no Vacance is hikki-ish with some distinctive elements from Ringo and the chemical reaction is quite phenonmial. This new song is very Ringo (well obviously lol it's for her best album), and somehow it doesn't feel much hikki element injecting into the songs except her voice. Maybe I need to listen some more to appreciate the song. Unlike this song, I fell in love immediately with Nijikan.

Btw, is hikki wearing a wig in the pv, or did she cut her hair?? Or did they film the pv long before...? Hikki's hair style resembles her Anata era (when she took the song cover).

Is this the third song they’ve done together?

Technically yes.

• Two versions of I Won't Last a Day Without You - first one live version with Hikki singing the first verse. Studio version in Ringo's album "Utaite Myouri: Sono Ichi", with Ringo singing the first verse instead.
• 二時間だけのバカンス (Nijikan Dake no Vacance) - in hikki's Fantôme.
• Soroban - in Ringo's upcoming best album

I really want to listen to it. Someone ripped the song / PV before it was taken down?

The pv is official out, and the title of the song is 浪漫と算盤.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXJdG0elwSY

The first thing I noticed is not the tetris CG, but that both of their faces are smoother lol.

God so surprised by the number of views already, 657K in just one day!!

The song is alright. Not my taste but nice to see Hikki still active.
I think her voice and Shiina’s are nice together.

Yeah... I still can't get into the song. At least hikki is in.

I'm more looking forward to the studio version of hikki's 少年時代!! Can't wait!