J-Fashionable Manga Series

So with Fanime right around the corner for me in a couple of weekends; I've been in a pretty anime/manga-y mood lately so I decided to list a couple of J-Fashion manga recs out there for you fashion savy people who want a good series to get into! These are all highly loved by not just me but a variety of other people. Each series caters towards various fashions and audiences. Some series are more well known or popular than others so I'd thought I'd show love to a variety of series that I think are great! Hopefully you will find one that suits you in this list!

1. Paradise Kiss

Honestly, I think ANYTHING by Ai Yazawa is super fashionable. She has this type of artwork that really reminds me of a fashion mannequin that designers draw out when they're first blue printing out clothing. However, with this being fashion themed-what type of person would I be not to be listing Paradise Kiss as a fashion savy series. The story follows an uptight highschool girl named Yukari who's always been in the shadow of her younger brother and honestly just wanted to please her mother by getting into a ellite college like she did when she was in high school. She at first is the type of person who feels like people who linger around with art and fashion probably are dawdling or wasting their time but soon finds a group of fashion students who really help her find herself and show her that fashion is just as serious as any other profession. So eventually Yukari falls in love in the series with a guy named George while finding herself and befriends Isabella, Arashi, and  Miwako who are creating a clothing label under the title 'Paradise Kiss' Yukari totally turns into a rebellious teenager who possibly could have found her true love in life; not just George but modeling!

I absolutely love all of Ai Yazawa's works so of course like any of her series-this has tons of beautiful artwork and lots of twists and turns. A lot of her own designs are featured in Paradise Kiss and it almost makes you wish they were real. There's a lot of essentric clothes that don't fit under any J-Fashion stuff but there is Zipper style/Lolita/Punk ect. So you have a great variety. This is a crazy popular series that ended up getting an anime series as well as a theatrical live action movie. I honestly think this is a series for fashion lovers in general even if you're not into J-Fashion. That or if you want a good romance.

2. Othello

Othello is so great! It's a little bit of an older series but really shows a couple of different fashion genres. It's a story about a girl named Yaya who is just trying to get through high school by being well liked. She's a huge pushover and super bullied by her two friends who passive agressively put her into horribly situations. Secretly though Yaya is a gothic lolita going by the alias 'Nana' on the weekends and adores the visual kei band Juliet that she has in common with many of her visual kei/lolita friends. Around new year she receives a magical girl henshin compact from her seven year old self via time capsule. And some how through that she receives her alternate bold out going personality 'Nana' who is the exact opposite of her. Nana ends up getting Yaya out of various bad situations and helps her stand up for herself. So the big question is will Yaya ever truly find herself as a person and be bold and bright as Nana or will Yaya always rely on her alternate personality?

Not only in the series is gothic lolita and visual kei fashion featured but there are big hints of Nana possibly being a gyaru in some chapters. I can't exactly prove that's what she is doing but think of Nana wearly wild and sexy clothing and ripping up Yaya's lolita while Yaya dresses very modest and lady like unless she's cosplaying the visual-kei band Juliet. She's kind of secretly a goth in a way?

I really adore this series not only because of the fashion but also because it shows a beautiful era of those fashions that no longer exists today. It's a shame that there isn't a live action adaptation of Othello because I would totally look forward to seeing it!

3. LIFE 

LIFE is more of a school related manga admittedly but really shows a realistic side of a girl's life while still being scary and over the top. Fashion wise is really has only a couple of aspects but I feel like the villain Manami Anzai could possibly be considered a 'kogal' which is a school girl that wants to be gyaru. She kind of has that villainous princess complex while being fashionable with her accessories and such.

LIFE is a very controversial manga series I feel because it deals with taboo subjects such as bullying, child abuse, rape, self harm/suicide, ect. I included it in my rec list because while it is fashionable I feel like in a lot of ways it's very relatable to all audiences-especially those who are in high school still because it IS so controversial and it does deal with everyday stuff.

Ayumu is the main character of the story who gets accepted into a prestigious high school due to her best friend helping her out to get in so they could go together. Ayumu's best friend doesn't get into the high school due to neglecting her studies to help her unfortunately. The best friend ends up cutting off her friendship with her and fails an attempt at commiting suicide.

In the end Ayumu ends up blaming herself for her best friend's failure and near death experience and oathes herself to be a better person as she starts up at the new high school. She ends up befriending Minami Anzai who is a rich girl with an extreme princess complex who doesn't like when things don't exactly go her way. Through this everyone in the class does get a lashing from Minami's queen bee like personality and a lot of aggressive bullying goes on right under the teachers/adult figures noses. Through that Ayumu learns the definition of what a true friend really is and who her true friends are.

Despite the darkness that looms over this manga series, I honestly think it's great. This series did get a great J-drama adaptation-so even if you don't read it and like live action series-think Hana Yori Dango but without the love interests/ikemen and it being wayyyy darker.

4. Ageha 100% 

It's a shame this series isn't as well known as it could be because honestly? It's so cute and great. Think a realistic magical girl series meet gyaru. It's got the cutesy DNAngel/Shugo Chara like feel going on while really showing beautiful hints of girls wanting to be beautiful through gyaru.

It's never exactly hinted that Rin/Ageha is a gyaru but judging from the implication of circle lenses/hair/make-up I can only assume so! The story focuses on a girl named Rin who is pretty homely looking and attends a high school that bans girls from wearing make-up. Because of this a lot of girls lack confidence for one reason or another and desire to be beautiful. After school there is a legend of a girl named Ageha who gives make-overs to girls who request her through placing a card with their name and class on the bulletin board. Nobody knows that shy little Rin is actually the glamorous Ageha! Through the series "Ageha" doesn't just liven her classmates through the art of cosmetics but also shows them that there's true beauty within them and that the products only are to enhance such things! She does this all while trying to hide her little secret from not only her classmates but her grandparents, the school council and staff-who are all against girls her age wearing cosmetics!

In all? It's a really fun lighthearted series to read! I highly recommend it!

5. Sailor Moon 

This is of course everyone's favorite childhood series but here's the catch-READ THE  MANGA. Naoko Takeuchi has beautiful artwork-beautiful silhouettes for her characters-and BEAUTIFUL CLOTHES. When I say clothes I mean designer clothes that exist in real life AND original designs. This manga is just beautiful on all levels. Not to discredit the anime series but the manga just really has beautiful clothes and I am hoping the relaunch of the anime series that will be based on the manga will feature some of those designs and show a variety of outfits and styles for the girls!

For those of you who don't already know what Sailor  Moon is-it's a very popular magical girl series about a typical girl named Tsukino Usagi eventually learns that she is a super hero that has to save the world from the evils of the universe. Each era has a different evil and through each era of course comes with different Sailor Senshi who befriend her or even happen to quite possibly be enemies. The series is a huge staple in anime culture-the anime is over 200 episodes long, there's going to RE-LAUNCH of the anime this July entitled Sailor Moon Crystal, a live action J-Drama series, various soundtracks, tons of musicals with different casts... SailorMoon has practically engraved it's name in history. It's appealed different audience but it's main audience is girls-and with girls come love, friendships, self-battles, and of course fashion. The great thing about the manga is that it really has a feminist vibe to it. Think Spice Girls with the whole 'girl power' vibe going and that's what Sailor Moon is in it's sparkly magical girl glory!

6. GALS

Also known as Super Gals, a lot of gyaru have gotten into Gyaru culture through this series. The series revolved around Kogal Ran and her friends who hang in Shibuya and do what was typical teenaged gyaru things like shop, bleach their hair, and go to Shibuya where they're either constantly being misjudged and misunderstood OR they're dealing with the bad things happening there. Basically it's a series that shows a couple of kogyaru's love of Shibuya and their good deeds to try to show that kogals are strong willed women who want to do the right thing. Of course they involve very gyaru elements like following the latest styles, going to mcdonalds, getting a tan, and having a great time with friends.

The series was created around the era that clothing brand Cocolulu was very popular So think of the gyaru who tanned and wore bright fun clothes and that's the era that GALS really shows. So think about the early 2000s and how great that era of gyaru fashion was!

Here's all the recs I have for you all! I hope you guys enjoy them! They're all really great reads with beautiful artwork to match! As for a personal update; with con season right around the corner I've been a little busy but hopefully I can bust out a couple more blog posts for you lovelies! Thank you guys for being so supportive and patient with me!

Dollywink Eyelash Revew: 01 Dolly Sweet (also a how-to-apply)

As most of you know, I am a CRAZY huge fan of Tsubasa Masuwaka who is a pretty popular Japanese  gyaru model in Japan. She endorses several products and has her own make-up line-for the eyes? It's called Dollywink. For the lips and face, it's titled Candy Doll. I have actually yet to find Candy Doll products and I'd really love to try them out-especially the newly packaged stuff. But today I'll be reviewing some eye lashes and the glue that comes with it. 

Dollywink is produced as a collaboration between Tsubasa and Koji cosmetics and seriously appeals to the gyaru/kawaii tastes with different types of eyelashes to choose from of different length, style, and thickness. The cute packaging is also a huge bonus with Tsubasa herself modeling off her own line. 

Usually, I don't invest into expensive eyelashes because they're quite disposable after a couple of uses. But being the Tsubasa fan I am and seeing that a Marukai in LA when I visited back in November for PMX had a type of combo package that included a full of glue and two sets of eyelashes for the price of the eyelashes only? It was steal I could justify because I was in love with Dollywink glue.

First off, i can't go back using any other glue EXCEPT Dollywink. The tube one is nice admittedly but the full sized glue comes with a wand and I have a lot more control over the application on the eyelash band versus if I use Daiso glue. Before hand THAT'S what I was using and super uncomfortable and pulls at my eye/I'll always have an eyelash malfunction with Daiso glue by the middle of the day. Why the Dollywink glue, I've never had that problem though I also think because I do use a higher end eyelash now-the band is a lot more flexible and less likely to pop off. 

As for the eyelashes, I chose a 01 pair because I wanted the classic Tsubasa Masuwaka doll-like eyes. Admittedly also, I love Tsubasa's older gyaru style versus the new one SO picking the older lash series  I thought would work in my favor. These lashes gradient in thickness and have thicker end at the end of the lash. This created a bigger droopier looking eye which was the style a while back for gyaru girls. 

Another appealing part is that these eyelashes are that they have a clear thin band. You don't have to worry about your eyelash band not fitting closely with your eyeliner Tsubasa herself says the secret to her dolly-like eyes is to not apply eyeliner and just apply the eyelashes straight on. So with or without eyeliner you're sure to still get a beautiful application. 

However because the eyelash band is so thin and fragile I do recommend being very careful if you want to use these for multiple uses. The eyelashes themselves are very very soft to the touch and do last a very long time. 

As for how they look on me-they look decent. I think for sweeter looks these eyelashes apply well. I'm more of an agejyo girl who likes crazy drag queen lashes but for things like Liz Lisa-these work very very well and aren't overwhelming. This was the look I did for last weekend's Cherry Blossom Festival in San Francisco last weekend.

The whole look together was very Liz Lisa inspired but I really wanted to bring out my inner Popteen gal while the weather was nice! 

These eyelashes I think look more full for ladies who don't have as high of an eye crease as I do. It's hard to really get the full affect that Tsubasa has since mine is way up there; so obviously my Dollywinks aren't going to hit my brow bone. These eye lashes are also crazy long. Longer than my actually eye extends but with extended eyeliner you'll have wider bigger eyes that will fit the lashes perfectly.

If you have eyes like I do here are a couple of ways to apply these lashes and them look their best: 

-DO: Apply upwards- Apply the eye lash up and not down. You want the eyelash to curve upward and be doll like and not exactly blend completely with your real set. 

-DON'T: Use heavy eyeliner- Heavy eyeliner will overwhelm this look and you won't be able to see the eyelashes. The heavier your eyeliner with these the more likely the band will just up and pop off. 

-DO: Use light shadows- Yet again, heavy eye makeup will overwhelm these eyelashes and it will look like you are not wearing any. 

-DO: Use Dollywink liner- Using a thin fine point eyeliner like Dollywink will allow you a crazy precise and thin eyeliner look that won't be overkill towards these eyelashes. Thin eyeliner works best!

-DO: Do go without eyeliner- Tsubasa  Masuwaka herself said that now a day, she doesn't apply eyeliner for her dolly-like eyes. However this does go for the that 'natural-cute' look she and every other gyaru is trying to achieve. If you like the old era Tsubasa-the Dollywink liner is the best way to go. 

-DON'T: Use any other glue- Koji or Dollywink works the best for these. You will ruin the lashes using Daiso glue or anything else-or at least when I did that happened. Plus Koji/Dollywink glue is very flexible and clear!

-DO: Feel free to layer another pair of Dollywinks. A lot of models in the magazines do layer their lashes. Personally I don't do it with Dollywink because they're my nicest set of lashes and most expensive so I don't want to ruin. 

As you see I used a couple of Dollywink products and Tsubasa-endorsed for my full on look Dollywink wise I used the lashes, point lame eyeshadow pen in 01 WHITE (which I will be reviewing soon! <3), and the Dollywink pen eyeliner in BLACK. I also used the Princess Mimi's in Sesame Grey for a fully 15.0 mm dolly effect! 

In all I love Tsubasa and Koji's Dollywink line a lot. I am a huge fan and highly recommend any J-Fashionita to treat themselves to her products or at least her eyelashes at least once in their life time! They'e very pretty and comfortable. Perfect for dolly looks, lolita, and sweeter gyaru styles like Ank Rouge or Liz Lisa! 

Kouakuma Ageha's cease in publication to also end the Agejyo era of gyaru fashion?

The news has spread around for a little bit about the infamous agejyo/hostess gal glam magazine Kouakuma Ageha to no longer exist and this can mean quite a couple of things for the girls who are into gyaru fashion. Personally Ageha was my only hope left for a crazy magazine after I found that Popteen was having an identity crisis and Egg just wasn't as appealing as it was before.

 I personally, first got into Ageha way back in high school because of the shiny pictures that caught the attention of everyone on a bookstore here where I had lived. You just couldn't ignore Ageha. So many girls picked it up to look. Not because they were into the hostess life style but because of the layout of the magazine. It was crazy cramped full of information on how to do your hair and make-up and showed really gorgeous clothes that obviously caters to hime/agejyo/hostess style gyaru. 

Another appealing point about this magazine was the fact that it shared the personal lives of the models instead of throwing whatever under the rug because they were an "idol" of sorts. It was honest. There was even a death of very popular model back in 2009 I believe. In all, despite it being a girly and glamorous magazine-it still had its dark points. I felt like was pretty relatable because of that probably for the women who read it. 

So does this mark the death of the agejyo style for gyaru? Quite possibly-in a slow painful type of way. Agejyo has been dying for quite a while as a style. Honestly with fast fashion claiming its territory far and wide in the J-Fashion districts and markets-the trend gyaru wise-is to look frumpy casual or look like a twelve year old. Honestly neither are appealing to me and I previously made an article on the 'Neo-Gyaru' trend a couple of months back on why it's happening and my honest to god opinion on it.

A huge concern is-what is going to happen to the models for Ageha? Sakurai Rina being the most popular is the one I woe over honestly. But there is also girls like Himena as well who I wonder how they'll fit these uniquely styled girls in other magazines or whatever when honestly? They're style is very distinct. I can't see any conforming to the newer trends fully for these ladies. That or will they no longer be models? That will sadden me as well.

Another thing that's REALLY going to hit this style of fashion is the fact that ma*rs, Princess melody, la parfait, Jesus Diamante, Jewels Shop, and Glavil are going to take a major hit. Why? Their clothes are featured majorly in Ageha obviously because of the style they're in-a lot of the ads in there are for that style specifically.  Their ads are in other places too, no doubt but things like ma*rs and Jewels Shop especially are going to take a hit since they had a sexier appeal that doesn't fit that mainstream mold that other publications are catering to fully. 

Now a  theory of what could happen could either be-one, another hostess style magazine will open up. This is doubted honestly, I would be shocked actually.

 Two? This is a far stretch honestly saying this but while Popteen has went that really cutesy little girl route-EGG has always been the gyaru bible for these girls. They have featured dia, and the occasional ma*rs brands. While they're not fully the way they are nor are they going completely the casual route-perhaps to broaden their audience-they'll adopt what Ageha had to leave behind. It is only a theory and probably isn't going to happen but I think it would be a great idea for EGG to stay true to what it was originally for. It was and IS and should be always-a gyaru magazine. So if they cater to ALL styles and all walks of life-I feel like they'll do well. 

So what do you all think personally? Do you think Agejyo will die as a style? Do you think any other magazine will adopt Ageha or leave off where Ageha failed to do so? 

Cosplay Turned Fashion: Reira Serizawa from Ai Yazawa's Nana make-up Tutorial

Whether you like anime/manga or not-there's something about Ai Yazawa's series that really captures her readers/fans attention. Perhaps it's the borderline realistic edge that turns into fantasy that makes it relatable while still occasionally being a tragic fairy tale. Maybe it is also how stylish her characters are-they almost have stick like model-esque figures that feature beautiful clothing. 

Anything of Ai Yazawa's has captured my attention whether it's known series like Nana or lesser known series like Kagen no Tsuki. If you're into a good story line, beautiful artwork, and all that's in between? Her stuff is for you. I love looking at the clothes (some which are indeed real life brands and others her own beautiful creation) and fashion trends that really pass through her series. There's everything from punk rock babes to gyaru and lolita in her manga/anime series. And that's what makes it so beautiful and so relatable-because you almost want to be that if not DRESS like it 

Over the weekend a couple of friends selca whored some closet cosplays from the Nana series just because we were stuck at home and wanted to have fun. I took on the task of doing doing Trapnest's angelic songtress Reira who happens to personally be my favorite character in the series for a variety of reason. I really love her style too so capturing that was very important. 

So here i went tearing a part a knotted up dead  Megurine Luka from Vocaloid wig (which was straight btw) and spent four hours curling it strand by strand 2 am-6am with only a flatiron and wig brush handle to aid me so I could obtain the perfect mermaid-like waves that Reira has.

Personally I wanted to use a brown/pink blended wig for a more realistic touch since Yuna Ito was a brunette in the movie and Reira has pink hair in the anime/manga but the pink had to do since I was working with what I got and that was half of the challenge actually. 

Here are the results: 

Not bad for a closet cosplay! Reira has a very girly elegant style about her. Surprisingly I own more Nana Osaki pieces that Reira! I wore my Sex Pot Revenge necklace just to give that Nana feel plus she technically does have a 'lock' on her heart for various reasons! I used gloves to really make the look elegant and wore a long dress with it. I also placed a trademark glittery white flower and tiara in the hair to give it kind of a glamorous concert-like feel since she IS the vocalist of the band Trapnest! 

To figure out just how I did her make-up for these overly glorified selcas-here is the make-up tutorial video: 

Hopefully I'll be doing make-up tutorials a lot more often~! Perhaps or gyaru/lolita/and fashionable cosplay looks as well! Hope you guys enjoyed and found this helpful! What other Ai Yazawa series catches your fancy? I might POSSIBLY do another tutorial on another one of her characters so stay tuned!

Bring Out Your Girly Side Whether You're Gyaru or Punk with mac's Saint Germain Lipstick

Finally a fashion post while I was on a music fix! Recently a huge love of mine has been mac's Saint Germain lipstick which last I checked, was a top selling color in their line. It is a super vibrant girly pink color that really gives a great girly pop to any outfit I've worn. With spring here, girly colors are great. Even for when you are wearing black!

Something I love is how mac's lipstick bullets always look so damn sleek-they are quite literally bullets. The only bad part is I have to look at the bottom to see what color I have in my hand-an not to brag-but I'm quite the lipstick whore and own a shit ton of lipsticks from mac. I should take a leaf out of XiaXue's book and bling my precious lippies so I can tell them all apart while making them look super cute and gyaru-y. 

Anyway, as you see the color in the tube is quite bright. This is one of those lipsticks that is surprisingly seriously true to it's tube color. 

This is an old Harajuku-kei punk look that I incorporated the lipstick with. Look how true that color is from the tube! It really contrasted nicely with the black/silver/pink combination I had going on for this look. I wore mac's 'magenta madness' (which I've previously reviewed in a video) on the outers of my eyes so they'd look as bold as my eyes!

Up close shot of the lipstick. It's quite nice. The only thing about a lot of mac lipsticks is that if you have dry lips it will apply flakey. The lipsticks all kind of apply dry versus creamy but that's okay. I've always tried to make due since I really love the affordability of their lipsticks and the variation of colors. 

This is the full look. I've seen a lot of girls wear this lipstick but not a lot of girls that were as PALE as I am. I have the lightest foundation shade in every foundation brand I've tried and some that's not even light enough for me (yes for reals)-don't let my shitty lighting fool you for a second. Any girl I've seen that has been as light as me has worn super bold almost Barbie looking make-up or a really weird contrasting brown color-so I really wanted to show it as wearable here and with Japanese fashion. Lipsticks can really change up a look and as you see here it really pops out with the dark colors I'm wearing here and also makes this punk look seem a lot more feminine~ 

Here's a Tsubasa inspired look I did with the same lipstick. This time I toned down the color with another lipstick color to make it look a lot less crazy and YES I am wearing brown eye shadow here. There is a reason for that! This look was supposed to be old-era Tsubasa Masuwaka inspired! So neutral looking eyes were key so the eye lashes I was wearing could stand out. I teased my hair majorly here! I had recently acquired blonde streaks in my lower layers so I really wanted to experiment with what all I could do with my hair. It was  a pain... But anyway, as you see this lipstick can be toned down and wearable for gyaru babes! 

Ignore the mess, I threw things around while getting ready. This is the full look! I think Saint Germain really look good with ma*rs wear! It's kind of Barbie looking but in a very unique sexy type of way. The pink and black contrast well and because of that the lip color really stays true to ma*rs trademark color theme! 

What all do you guys think and what other looks and styles do you think would look great with this lipstick color? 

m-flo: Future is Wow Review/First Listen

The well anticipated m-flo album release just hit the internet as of a couple hours ago and I just now happened to take a first listen. I've always been impressed with Verbal and Taku Takahashi's collaborations with not only popular artists but also relatively unknown ones. They've been well know for their 'Loves' era that featured artists such as BoA, Namie Amuro, Chemistry, Clazziquai, and Crystal Kay. 

For awhile they look a very long hiatus and redebuted with the album "Sqaure One" which was a great album. Cream's Minami as not only a vocalist for the song 'All I Want Is You' but the co-writer for a couple of the songs. 2NE1 was also a huge deal in their re-debut. The album was also followed up by Neven which was also a relatively popular album but not as memorable considering that 'All I Want Is You' was just such a hard song to beat.

And then out came the remix albums 'BonEnkai' and 'AsoBonEnkai' which are so great especially if you liked remixed songs and a good variety of random dance songs in the mix. 

Then out came this new album and I have to say I'm quite impressed. There was a lot of electronica themes in this set and I actually liked it. A lot of the songs you could dance to but they're also smooth enough to actually have to play on a long car ride. Another thing I noticed about this album was that were was a lot of 'English' focus. A lot of is was really great and then other bits (partial rapping of verbal's in 'Fly' stands out the most) wasn't as great. Regardless it's a great album to add to your iPod playlist!

 The biggest collaborations in the album hand down were the Ayumi Hamasaki track and

the TaeYang (Big Bang) track. I have to say both were very fun but TaeYang definitely took the caked with 'Go Crazy'. I almost mistook him as Matt Cab in this if I hadn't already known who this was! Ayu's track 'My Way' was little shocking but it was a decent track. Kinda of a w

eird R&B feel for someone who's always been known as a Pop Princess since her early days as an artist. I actually like the song 'Merry Go Round' that featured Verbal on HER 'Feel the Love' single a lot more honestly. Regardless I think Ayu needed a little bit of collaborative back up since she's (in my honest opinion) lost her crown as the Queen of J-Pop to either Kana Nishino or Namie Amuro who I see not only dominate people's playlists but also take over the Japanese fashion magazines. However this is another story for another blog post. 

Other collaborative tracks feature 'matt cab' who has worked with verbal and m-flo before and was previously well known for covering their song 'Let Go' which is pretty flipping popular. I've seen it covered various times by various artists and Flower and verbal also made a sequel to the song called "Let Go Again". Flower/e-girl's Reina is also featured on the track speaking of her! 

Back to Matt Cab's track 'Show You More' wasn't as impressive as his other collaborations so I actually left that one out. however Reina's track 'd.w.m'  I did keep in which has a great club beat and smooth vocals! 

Other artists in this weren't as known. 'Fly' was the track that got the PV and was entirely in English. The vocalist was 'Engrishy' sounding and Verbal's rap lines weren't as flattering but if you look past that you get an almost American sounding song! 

Young and Restless was a really nice song. It for sure had a J-Poppy feel to it that was classic and felt a little bit more familiar. It almost sounded like something Cream would do. I loved how unique the vocals were for this song! The vocalist wasn't cutesy or smooth sounding. Just gruff and mature and I liked that. The song starts up kind of slow and works it's way up! 

Spark was another good track that features another vocalist I knew nothing about. It's a really good introductory song for the album and sounded like a mix between the new m-flo songs and the old classic stuff that they used to come out with. 

'Own the Sky' was a super American sounding track. I almost felt like it was an 'Ellie Golding' song or something. The vocalist was great and the song really was great. The piano and the electronics blended perfectly and built up the song nicely. This I think was my favorite track out of the whole album honestly! Like holy crap... Why didn't this one get the PV? I wouldn't have guessed that this was an m-flo song until Taku DJ's the segment in it and Verbal starts rapping! Just wow... 

Another great thing that I liked about 'Future is Wow' was how Taku had DJng segment. He's such an amazing DJ alone even without Verbal. Even if I feel like Verbal completes him and his music it's like Clazziquai without DJ Clazzi. You start realizing without the DJ there is no group form that they're the signature to the group. 

In all this is a really great album. I'm super happy with it and glad that I have new music to listen to. I was really looking forward to this release and it finally is out for everyone to enjoy!  I highly recommend this album to everyone. Fashion wise I have to say ti does cater to the club scene fashion wise gyaru? This is all up your alley. Lots of dance tracks and lots of pretty voices to listen to. However like I said before, I think anyone can enjoy this. If you're a J-Pop fan or not, this is a jewel. 

Here are some of the songs from the new album

FLY

MY WAY 

GO CRAZY