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PUFFY
RULES!
By
Dennis A. Amith, AsianConnections.com
For many years, fans in the US have wondered if PUFFY would
follow other Japanese artists and perform in America.
Music Japan's "An Evening with JAPAN'S NOT FOR SALE All-stars"
showcase was a huge success during the South by Southwest Music
Conference in Austin, Texas, March 18. The event featured Sony Japan's
brightest music stars and up-and-coming artists. This included the
only US appearance of the popular duo, PUFFY and performances from
Tomovsky, FEED, Polysics, and Love Love Straw.
Why all the noise? For several years, the popularity of Japanese
pop culture has slowly permeated other countries. In the United
States, that popularity has been shared through Japanese animation,
video games, fashion, movies and technology. With the popularity
of the Internet, people now have the opportunity to sample music
from different cultures around the world and among the many cultures
sampled, mainstream Japanese music (also known as JPOP) is at the
top of the list.
In Japan, fashion accompanying the style of
music is important. In Tokyo you can find many fans following the
trends of their favorite music artist or music group. One such group
popular for starting a fashion trend is the female duo known as
PUFFY.
The duo consisting of Yumi Yoshimura and Ami Onuki, two women
who are now in their mid-20's, came out of nowhere in May of 1996
with their debut single titled "Asia no Junshin" (True Asia) and
they have dominated the charts ever since. Of course, it helps when
you have a veteran musician and composer such as Tamio Okuda (lead
vocalist of the Japanese rock group, Unicorn) producing your album.
However, what made PUFFY so popular is their non-conforming style.
In many songs you can hear a little of the Beatles, the Who, Velvet
Crush, Stray Cats, Electric Light Orchestra, Unicorn and other groups
in their music. With each song you get something new, from "Circuit
no Musume" (Race Circuit Girls) which sounds like a song from
a racing video game, "Nagisa ni Matsuwaru Et Cetera" (About
Nagisa, Etc.) which uses a disco theme and "PUFFY de Rumba"
which uses a rumba theme.
As for the lyrics, the girls sing a lot about outdoor activities
and love but their lyrics are not told in a story-type way. In fact,
it's more about the random type of feelings and emotions that may
go through a person's head and that's what PUFFY likes to sing about.
In the song "Honey" by Ami (from their SoloSolo album)
she sings about going to a park and eating donuts and although she
is full, she still is able to give a kiss to the person she loves.
In the song "V.A.C.A.T.I.O.N", Yumi sings about going
on a vacation but she also sings about her preparation for the vacation
such as packing a swimsuit, a t-shirt and remembering to bring her
passport and video camera. These are examples of their lyrics and
although it doesn't make sense most of the time, the lyrics are
not written for a person to ponder on. The music of PUFFY is made
for a person's enjoyment. The lyrics are so simple that anyone can
sing along even if they may not understand the language. It is one
of the main reasons why PUFFY's music has attracted so many fans
worldwide.
When PUFFY released "Asia no Junshin", the super-producer
Tetsuya Komuro and his family of chart-topping artists such as Namie
Amuro, Tomomi Kahala, globe and TRF were dominating the Japanese
music scene. These individuals whose music were more dance and techno-oriented
brought on many copycat singers and groups and many listeners were
complaining about how many of the songs sounded too similar. At
the same time, artists such as Namie Amuro were responsible for
creating fashions trends among Japanese girls such as dyed-brown
hair, mini skirts and knee-high boots. A trend which came to be
known as the "Amura".
It appeared Japan was ready for a change and Sony and Okuda
had a plan. That plan was to bring back folk pop music that was
popular in Japan decades before and add a hip-twist of the 90s.
When "Asia no Junshin" was released, people were treated with a
style of music that was not common in mainstream Japanese music
at that time. What Japanese fans loved even more were the two girls
behind the song and their unique style that catapulted the duo to
the forefront of Japanese music.
When PUFFY appeared on the music television shows, the audience was
amazed at how different these girls were from the typical artists
at the time. Aside from the musical differences, the beautiful duo
would come on stage sporting long puffy hair, t-shirts they purchased
from used clothing stores, blue jeans or overalls and sneakers. Immediately,
the PUFFY fashion style became popular among Japanese females.
Adding to the mix of their popularity is the girls' keen
sense of humor that can be seen in their television interviews and
their on-stage performances. Nevertheless, if there was one main
factor that caught the attention of the viewer, it was their style
of dancing. It was a style that has been described as "dance as
if you were inebriated". During a time when almost every group seen
on television was dancing, PUFFY was a group that could not dance.
While this would be a negative for most Japanese pop stars, their
lack (or simplicity) of dance skills is a big part of the PUFFY
formula that makes them so popular. What's most important though
is that these girls can rock. Their song "Kore ga watashi no ikiru
michi" (This is the way I live), which is reminiscent of early Beatles
tunes, helped catapult the girls into stardom.
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