I hope Halcali keeps OTF. Seriously. Their last single sold beans. I hope they're not going to walk in and say "It aint working mate" and give Ryo-Z & Fumiya the boot. I mean now that the girls are on Epic, it gives the OTF guys (Warner) less access & control over their material. Sure technically the record companies their on make no difference but it could make a small change. They could not want some rival record company's kids making stuff for their own investments. I'll give my honest opinion of Tip Taps Tip - it was nice at first until I realised it was Halcali. For a generic jpop band - okay. But Halcali should not be singing that stuff. They're more charismatic than that.

My random hope is that Ryo-Z could marry one of the girls to cement the future of Halcali & OTF. But I think that's a stretch. And it's not that I think Ryo-Z's really marriage material - just that that sort of theory sounds too fangirl minded for me to swallow.

Now I wanted to take my sweet time in this. And well I had been thinking of it for quite a while. Firstly I have uploaded two Rip Slyme vobs on jpopsuki here, as well a thread that is inviting people who would like me to share more of my Rip Slyme loot. But I wonder if the Halcali girls grew up with the Morning Musume group? Well they could in a way, but only as a childhood memory. Actually, it's more likely that the OTF guys were around then. In fact, Rip Slyme made their major release in 2001 while the Golden Era of Morning Musume started around 2000. It'd be funny to see if Ryo-Z or Fumiya had an interest in the group at all. If that were true I wonder which member they both liked best? Better, they should be in some scandal with them. That would be amusing yet a little sad. All I know is that Ryo-Z wants to give valentines chocolates to Koike Teppei and Fumiya is still keeling over in pain over whatever god forsaken sickness he still has. (it's all an excuse for him to take a long honeymoon - I know it)

Well we all know about the orange jumpsuits, and whatnot. I want to pull out the little things that they had made an effort to imitate. I'll point out some obvious, but that's only because it's a simple given. Plus I had to watch the two PVs like a bitch. I had to stop in the middle of one and go realise that I left one thing out. Nonetheless, as an homage to Rip Slyme's first ever PV - it provides what is an excellent opening for the girls to strut their stuff. In a way Rip Slyme are more comfortable in their PVs and concerts, they don't need routines are dances to dominate what they do. Rather, it'd probably restrict them. In Halcali's Electric Sensei, they show their wacky dances and bounce lines off each other in a certain Halcali style. The Rip Slyme guys have been in the music industry for 6 years at that point. Now it's 12. An amazing effort in my opinion. I would probably love to own one of their indie analogs. Though unlike the recent movie that won the Oscar for their theme song, I doubt they ever had to sleep around to get their gigs. Or I'd be extremely jealous. Really.

#1 A certain animal: Crabs vs Dog
It was two little crabs for Halcali, representing the girls possibly. But I just don't get the dog. Maybe that's Su's dog. I have no flying idea why it's there in the first place. But it seems to be the first point of comparison.

#2 Shuffling feet? Dancing feet?
This is probably the first thing I remember that was similiar. Stepper's Delight - oh now I get it. Stepper's Delight was the first Japanese rap song I ever experience that swore and flew right over my radar. Yes Pes uses that naughty S word. But they - unlike the way some artists wear the gimmick like a shield - do it simple. Plus in a way it's even in context!

#3 Cartoon representations: Who the feck is Runrun? vs Tensai Bakabon!
I admit it - I've never seen Tensai Bakabon, but their "Inspired" artwork appeals to me a lot. Halcali follows it a little in the same simplistic style but their representations are what can I say? Prettier. In a way I love the way Rip Slyme would like to have such dorky looking characters as their mascots. Everyone knows if this were some other artist, they'd get some image like the backdrop manga images they had for Shuji to Akira. And the way they happily place the credits willingly seems like such a great thing nowadays (yes Halcali and their 2nd album cover scandal is something taboo now.).

#4 Yukari vs Ilmari
Okay I really just wanted to write that. But they mirror the shots in the PV. Sure that's obvious. But the way it's done is quite interesting. I mean this one is a dead giveaway. But some that I mention later didn't hit me till the 3rd viewing (yeah I didn't get sick of the songs even then.)

#5 OTF vs RSM
This didn't hit me till the second viewing. I went "I wonder what RSM stands for..." before I realised "I wonder what Halcali has on their table". An OTF plug but who cares? The word OTF will never really make any sense to any casual fan of Halcali. But OTF are the brains behind Halcali. And though I hold Halcali in the highest regard, they're not making Rip Slyme sales (sure Hot Chocolate sold the worst for Rip Slyme but it hit Oricon Charts). It is practically because of OTF that the girls get a Music Station shot. (Rip Slyme are with Tanabe Agency. Tanabe Agency has Tamori. Though they need to retire that dumbass [sorry.]. And DJ Non is Pes' pal.) Sure they have the Gold Disc to wave but millions of artists have faded in the background with awards too. Besides, OTF doesn't seem to stake any claim like that anymore. Anyhow back to the PV, if anyone is wondering what RSM stands for - it's the catalogue letters they use for their merchandise. Each items is RSMxxx - a deal they have with groovisions (their main and probably only promotion manager). I'd assume RSM is Rip Slyme Merchandise (which would fit with the PV too) but I could be wrong.


#6 The still ball vs the bouncing ball.
I could say it's a reference to the momentum of Halcali then. They were barely starting girls then. Rip Slyme had already developed a small fanbase already. Maybe it's just a random thing. I don't know. Again the OTF & RSM logo. Different lighting too.

#7 The mad dash
I remember during the filming of their Tasogare Surround PV where in order to make the "one take" concept work, the guys had to run like hell. They had to be far enough as to not shadow any of the lighting too. And in a way it was amusing to watch Fumiya, the usually bored looking guy, run in frenzy with his headphones and a rather nice suit. Electric Sensei is pretty much a song about... love in a way. The way the girls approach the PV with such enthusiasm mirror their words in the song. I never noticed at first but in both songs there is a reference to Moonwalking and footwork. And they're both Ryo-Z's words!

#8 Bored Halcali vs Bored Rip Slyme
I like the way it was laid out. Halcali puts their hands on their hips while the RS guys like to do the whole arms folded thing. And it's placed at that bit before the song really kicks off. I guess Electric Sensei's song structure is very much like Stepper's Delight. But I have to say that the Halcali girls are cute. Apart form their dancing and whatnot, they were chosen for their looks.
They're just so compatible.

#9 The leap
The Halcali girls do somewhat of a jump where they wave their arms. It's cute. I mean this is the way Halcali mirrors the PV but still maintains their own spirit in it. It's a play jump, they acknowledge each other and they don't seem serious about it. It's just a small part of mirroring the PV. But it's fun to watch this against the Pes & Su one. Pes is short as hell. He's probably as tall as the Halcali girls - and maybe shorter. So the way he jumps is... cute. He spins with his arm outstretched, almost as he's trying to grab air but not quite. Whereas Su's form seems much more steady. He's good at this stuff duh.

#10 Haruka vs Fumiya
Actually it's the vinyl bat thing I wanted to talk about. That is what's cute as hell. I mean it's so smart and small. I mean DJ - vinyl - omg! I guess this is the ode to Fumiya. It's strange, Halcali manage to talk about Ryo-Z since writes their lyrics... But I don't hear them talk about Fumiya. (By the way I was right about Fumiya being the DJ for SPEED's tour at a young age. He did
it when he was 17. NOT BAD HUH? Though it's probably because of his connections). Fumiya, everywhere is a silent figure. And he draws people in with that. Okay I better shut up before I start writing a poem about his greatness. Nonetheless I remember in the Rip Style book, they give some photos of his (former) apartment. And boy it is a mess. But it looks really nice. Almost like a little sort of messy studio of his. But of course most of the recording stuff is done in studios, but that's his personal workspace. Almost fills you with awe.

#11 How do you girls play Table Tennis?
The shots with the Rip Slyme guys are always fast paced. They're smacking the ping pong balls fast. And they do some interesting things sometimes. Pes accidently throws his bat and Su serves from the ball in his mouth. The Halcali girls do little unpracticed hits, they're not completely sure of what they're doing. And somewhat when Pes sorts of does it, he makes me think of the girls. Unlike Stepper's Delight, there aren't as many table tennis shots like this of the girls - they've got their little catchy dance moves. I swear when I first saw Halcali's R, I had to go try it myself. Yes I'm a dork.

#12 Ow.
When I first saw Pes do it, I had to sort of move my head around and see if he was in any way hurting himself. But in a way when they both execute this, they do it in a similiar style. With their 100% effort. Well if Electric Sensei had one of the Halcali girls shaving their heads... it'd be a very different PV.

#13 The bat swipe.
Cute! It was more obvious in the Halcali PV since in the Stepper's Delight PV it was less than a second. I guess Haruka could be a certain kind of Ryo-Z in her mature personality with siliness mixed in. But it really made me go "The hell?". I mean Ryo-Z/Haruka just find a bat in their pocket and take a swipe. You just dont do stuff like that anymore.

#14 DJ wha? vs DJ Fumiya
I had noted in my last entry how Fumiya really lacked personality in Stepper's Delight. Hell my favourite Fumiya shot in the Stepper's Delight PV is the one on the Good Job! DVD - and it's not even in the regular PV. How ironic that a weird inflatible thing gets to DJ the girls. Fumiya could've reprised in the PV but that's possibly too overbearing for the girls. I mean he's meant to be the shadow guy. Plushe gets sick easily.

#15 DJ Solo (Like a Drum Solo but cooler)
The Halcali girls play with the DJ equipment. Fumiya doing his thing is somewhat fun to watch though. He does his work so effortlessly you sometimes wonder if for him it's not exciting. I remember in the behind the scenes for Tasogare Surround, Ryo-Z does a Fumiya impersonation on the turntables. DJ Ryo-Z is an entertaining thought. But my favourite one is the Okinawa concert where the guys all decide to sing Rakuen Baby instead randomly change the roles. So instead of Fumiya doing the scratch, Su gave it a shot. And he was almost okay until he somewhat buggered it up.

#16 The full shot.
I love this shot in both PVs, they're almost getting ready for battle in a way. Plus I wonder if any of the guys play table tennis. I used to play it in school - sure I was no good at it but I tried my best. And Table Tennis is quite a sociable sport, unlike Tennis where you have to shout to each other. And well either way you eventually get bored and end up sitting on the side and talking.

#17 Don't drop it! - The bat spin.
Halcali deliberately drops it. I just know it. Ryo-Z (I think it's his hand) spins it expertly. Actually that makes me think of the Teriyaki Boyz Heartbreaker PV where Ryo-Z spins his drumsticks in a slow and sad manner but he just oozes with an uncool coolness. I mean Ryo-Z shimmying in front of a hot white chick = priceless.

#18 Walk to the mic slowly... And turn.
What happens is that they approach the mic in a cautious manner. And the left (Haruka/Su) does a twirl and keeps walking. While Yukari & Pes get it and twirls as well. It's not that obvious in this shot but it sort of does the job. I love that singular mic. I mean it's almost like there's always a camera there and if one member thinks no one's watching, they'll do something really dorky. Those sort of funny home videos stuff. In fact that's how I see Rip Slyme as - the group but with the funny bits only. I mean their PV doesn't get repetitive and you have to keep your eyes open if you want to catch everything. It's the sort of PV I want to download so I know what the group is like. I hate how lazy some PVs are nowadays with the sort of "artsy" angle where they just repeat the artist looking far off for 3 minutes.

#19 They cannot be members of Rip Slyme.
I don't think the girls can ever match Ryo-Z's shot. It's funny and disturbing. Whereas the Halcali members do a little kendo thing. And this is another Rip Slyme reference (I could be wrong but I think I'm onto something.) For the first tour they did in Budokan (Tokyo Classic Tour), the second night they did a little skit. They all came in with kendo equipment on (so you weren't really sure who was what) and they did a mock match. Pes, Su & Fumiya sort of stabbed each other playfully. But the main action was around woith Ryo-Z & Ilmari. Ilmari went "to hell with that" and threw away his sword and started tackling Ryo-Z. Ryo-Z, obviously caught off guard played around. Eventually Ilmari got his sword back and swung down on Ryo-Z (the same way the Halcali girls do) and Ryo-Z catches it in his arms as well. And eventually Ryo-Z gets killed and does a mock death. But the main point is, it could be commemorating their first Budokan live. But Ryo-Z says he hated the way the sound was in Budokan (and I can see why). I mean the sound echoes around and it's not really the same sharp sound you get from their open air lives. Sure they have to turn the volume higher but it definitely sounds better. Nonetheless Rip Slyme issued 50,000 limited edition CDs bearing their OTF logo which was a live recording of their Budokan live. I would kill to have it (or get an mp3 rip of it.)

I was one short of 20 comparisons. But the Love machine reference can be my 20th. B'sides I'm tired already.

And if anyone has the September 2nd 2005 Music performance of Rip Slyme - it'd be awesome. That's the one where they perform Under The Sun for their album.