i was kinda crazy how "Seishun Amigo" became the #1 single of 2005, with it being released just 3 weeks prior to the new ORICON year.

dude, if i had the money, i'd totally buy Arashi's calendar. but i don't and there are other releases coming my way, so i gotta make some sacrifices.

i was sad the Japanese market didn't have the "Believe" single. i was totally going to buy it too. xD i'll just wait for the OS.

I know that's very insane , who would have thought it sold SO much prior to the end of Oricon :thud , it was still in the top4/5 ranking the next year too (I think)

I never believe in buying artistes's calendars Eirynne no matter how much I like them . It's a waste of $ imo & besides I always am getting free calendars every year & I can make do with soft copies scans of it

There's always HMV HK Eirynne & they accept only credit card as form of payment & it's quite pricey (kinda expected since it's Japan press we're talking about) - http://hmv.com.hk/search/search_2008...arashi&fmt=Any

I gave that link a few posts back to Alice as well but I have a feeling she might not buy it as it's pricey even though I really enjoy using HMV HK's services as compared to stupid YesAsia

The way HMV HK packaged my items & it's shipped using normail registered airmail , my stuff comes within 4-5 days & it's <3

if not there's always OS press & I'm still pondering whether I want to buy both CD + DVD's of the single when it's out in Taiwan in exactly 2 Fri's time but at the moment I already told my friend Cliff to reserve both copies for me in due time :D

for me, it's a collector's thing. and having owned KT & T&T's previous calendars, they are worth the money, imo. scans of their calendars don't do justice, tbh.

nahhh, i'll just stick with YesAsia. :P as much as i would like to try other services, i can't back down a site with multiple OS versions, free shipping & free toys, lol. it's just more convinient for me, really. and in all honestly, i've never had a complaint about them.

yeah I understand where you're coming from . Maybe because I'm not really that much of a collector & I find it pointless to buy a calendar where I can get free ones :laugh

my younger sister did wanted to buy ARASHI's from the local Kinokuniya but in the end she didn't cos it's not cheap at all (even though they imported it directly from Japan)

:laugh ok ok

I used HMV HK a lot to get OS presses of stuff (most recently for Koda Kumi's TRICK) & it's good

after what YesAsia did to ONE DROP in my case I'm quite hesistant to use their services again T_T

The standard shipping is registered airmail? If I opt for the speedpost I'd have to pay more than double the price of standard airmail. If you've used the standard airmail before and it arrives safely then I might just buy from HMV Hong Kong.

I just want it to arrive safely. Sometimes stuff from Yesasia don't arrive, you know. Or it arrives with cracked case or something.

:yes , you can read more details about it Alice via http://hmv.com.hk/help/availability.asp

trust me , I have been using HMV HK for almost a year now & I can guarantee you on that they're fantastic & wins over YesAsia (even though customer service wise it's a different issue altogether)

HMV HK's a bit tricky in that they don't tend to post pics of the items that they're selling online but you can roughly guess whether is it Japan or OS presses based on the price & also the catalogue no & record label

these 3 attributes are big giveaways in distinguishing between both presses .

I don't know where you're living & all but for me , I get my items within 4-5 working days from HMV HK . They shipped out Koda's TRICK on Mon morning & I got it on Fri morning :thud

:)

1st pic I see in the April issue of Duet :

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/7919/73178994.jpg

:D & I'm getting my CD only of Believe / KNK later on from the local HMV , hurrah !

I'm living in Malaysia ^^. So I'm rather surprised that the standard airmail arrives in Spore within 5 days.

1st day sales: 214,618
2nd day sales: 135,103
3rd day sales:47,280

214,618+135,103+47,280 = 397,001

what you're living just across the Causeway/Tuas checkpoint ?! :laugh

so which state you're living in then & yes it's fast :yes

& guess what ?



you can download scans of it which I did up earlier on via http://www.ahsforum.com/forum/showth...45#post1851045

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April Wink Up Scans - http://community.livejournal.com/ara...oms/10775.html

:no to MatsuJun's hair still & were the pics shot in Aust ? :shrug

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April Duet Scans - http://community.livejournal.com/ara...oms/11245.html

pretty cool :yes

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Ohno in the cover of the latest Only Star - http://community.livejournal.com/arashi_on/1453140.html

I can't wait for Sakurai to make a cameo on Ohno's show now :D

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TV LIFE scans - http://community.livejournal.com/arashi_on/1452825.html

1 word on Sakurai - WOW

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3rd day Believe / KNK total sales updates :

1st day sales: 214,618
2nd day sales: 135,103
3rd day sales: 51,063

214,618 + 135,103 + 51,063 = 400,784

awesome , it has officially crossed the 400K mark ! & they officially have the biggest sales for the year , for a 1st week opening & total , single wise .

I'm so proud *pretends to wipe away tears* truth / Kaze no Mukou e 1st week sales btw was 467,288 . I don't know if Believe / Kumorinochi, Kaisei can suppress that but you never know . There're still 3 more days before the 1st week of Oricon finish but in anycase , a big congrats to the guys :D

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AAA In Tokyo '08 DVD cover :

http://www.johnnys-net.jp/__image__/...-21280-227.jpg

:dead2 boring but it's the material/content that matters , I can't wait for the OS press to be out in due time in Taiwan :D

omg it's over 400k?! :weep

karen, i wish i had my single already :weep

yeah within 3 days it has cracked 400K :thud & don't worry Lisa , you will get your single in due time

I'm so proud of them :weep & I wouldn't be surprised if Believe / KNK's 1st week sales will suppress truth / Kaze no Mukou e's one

I'm actually in Sarawak, you know the in the island just south of Spore? So I'm actually across the South China Sea. :laugh
Gosh, I might just order from HMV HK the LE2 single. Since the Japan press is sold out everywhere, I'll just go for it then.

arashi @ MUSIC STATION!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhJ9Y74-CDU

what no way Sarawak ?! I also have another friend living there too , she stays at Kuching , how about for your case ?

& if you can't wait for the OS press to be out , then I guess you might as well order the LE2 single from HMV HK since they have plenty of stock for both CD + DVD's

great thanks Lisa :D

EDIT - scans of the guys in TV Life, TV Guide, TV Pia - http://community.livejournal.com/arashi_on/1452825.html

lovely scans :D , I will download TV Guide & TV Pia later after I get up from sleeping . My younger sister will have a fit when she sees the Sakurai ones :roflmao

It's flowers galore for TV Guide & TV Pia :D & MatsuJun MatsuJun , Lisa & I will gladly do a nice haircut for you now :innocent & the outfit he wore in TV Guide oddly looked like PJ's a bit :rofl

^ LOL kaori, tohoshinki are probbably jealous :laugh

I'm quite sure that RESCUE will overtake them when it's out next Wed

but regardless the case it's ok because I support both bands so it's fine regardless of the outcome

I didn't know Aiba came to S'pore 3 years ago to the Jurong Bird Park as part of his show :O - http://community.livejournal.com/ara...oms/10307.html

have you guys downloaded the MS talk that has been subbed ? http://community.livejournal.com/ara...52.html#cutid1

The screencap's already :roflmao

the whole #1 thing doesn't really affect me. sales improvement and the music is all i care about. if they overtake "ONE DROP" & "White X'mas" first week, they've done their job. i prefer "RESCUE" over "Believe / Kumorinochi, Kaisei" so being #2 won't stop me from listening to it, lol.

but yeah like i said, Arashi would probably have to clear a solid 300k or better to get that #1.

in the 1st thread for Rule / Sparkle , people were discussing about them , on how come since last year they have a rebound of popularity , just like what happened to Namie

it's quite something considering that they have been around for so long but yet it took them a good 8-9 years+ to get to where they're

you often don't see that happening at all which's a rarity

it's quite simple. they have face-value now. i don't necessarily think Arashi's selling purely because of their music (this is said of all Johnny's, but Arashi's been all over the place lately w/ TV, magazines, & other projects). you see all 5 members with big projects and Japan recognizes them a whole lot more than they did years back.

in all honesty, i love JE music, but is it the best that's out there? oh i don't think so. Johnny's just happen to have the greatest promotional aspects to them that other artists don't have. though, i think KANJANI8's the only JE group that doesn't rely on heavy promotional tie-ins and yet they sell as much as NEWS now.

it's different for Amuro, but i hope you see the point.