finally...my interest to Arashi is back...
i like To Be Free...it's been a while, the last song that i like from them is One Love

PV & song aren't that bad. it's pretty nice, actually. better than "Everything," me thinks. :)

sales predictions? i think b/c of their fanbase...it should have no problem crossing 300k. but i'm not sure if it will have the same numbers as Troublemaker/Monster.

they'll prove me wrong tho, LOL. it usually happens.

I love To Be Free. :) My favorite Arashi song this year so far.

the PV is such another huge dissapointment for me...
i mean...this group got HUGE HUGE HUGE amount of money...
but the PV is so simple...i'm not against simple PV, but this one is cheap as well...the cloud, leaf video that they use on the backdrop is sooooo cheap...you can buy it online just with $10 for each video...i even use the same video for my work...
for me it's kinda too cheap for Arashi to use some cheap stock video that you can buy it online...
and they just standing there...for entire clip...there is no creativity at all...no new thing...no new effect...no new camera angle..where the creativity goes?

it's weird for me, that i don't see they put some effort on the PV. They can at least make some story line...all of the members have a great acting skill, especially Ohno... i wish they can make short story...or anything...something that much more complex, creative, inovative and higher budget...

they can go somewhere, to make the background, the location more real, more dramatic...not just standing there on studio with green screen...

i believe they can do it..but they just too lazy to think deeply about it, to spending more time on making it, to put more effort on their PV, to spend more money on it...uggghhh..such a turn off for me...i love the song so much, i put it on replay...but the PV is really make me mad..

it's pissed me off when artist that got such a huge amount of money, not give back to fans that spend a lot of money buying their stuff...so where the money goes?

i hope their future releases PV will be better...

Sadly, I have to agree with this. I don't think that their PVs look cheap, but kinda boring.

I really, REALLY wish Arashi's-PVs would be more interesting. I really thought that the Monster-PV will have a great storyline, but - once again - we didn't get any. The PV is nice, but I think they could have made up a really good storyline for it (including the haunted house the guys were dancing in!).

Arashi's PVs are always kinda simple, without any storyline and I got used to it, but it's still sad.
"My Girl" has such an awesome PV, because it HAS a real storyline.

And like you said, the members of Arashi are good actors (Nino and Riida are actually GREAT actors, in my eyes) and I would love to see them act more in PVs WITH storyline.

I completely agree with you!

I have NOTHING against simple pvs but there really needs to be something you can look at, be it a background or an event.

But any blame shouldn't go to Arashi, it should go to Johnny's. Don't think the members have any say in the matter.

Of course, of course!
I don't blame the members. I don't think that they have a lot to say, when it comes to their PVs...sadly.

I think, if they let Nino and Riida (our two artists) create a PV for Arashi, it would look quite different. These two have a lot of creativity, in my eyes.

I don't know I pretty much like all Arashi PVs. :shrug
Maybe I'm just shallow and I just like looking at their pretty faces XD
I especially like their dancing PVs!!

I like the PV, I think it's kind of classy.

But I'm disappointed at no B-side. What's the reason for that? D:

Mhm, maybe because the "Monster"-single, they released just a few weeks earlier, had a B-side ("Spiral") and their new album is coming out soon.

"To Be Free" feels more like a filler...a pretty one, mind you! ;)


But maybe it has another reason and I'm wrong!

Yeah, that'd be interesting. It would be awesome if Johnny's, even if it's just for once, gave their groups complete creative control over one of their releases. Like, the songwriting, lyrics, the covers, the PV. I'd be really interesting in seeing what everyone would create.

I understand it's too much to hope for that to happen for all releases (who knows, they might SUCK at songwriting XD), but it'd be nice for once!

Well, Arashi wrote the lyrics and the music for their Anniversary-song "5x10" and it's an AWESOME song, in my eyes.
Nino is writing the lyrics/music for his solos sometimes (like "Niji" and "Gimmick Game") and Sho is doing the lyrics for his raps all by himself.

I would say, that Arashi has really talented members, so I hope, they would give it a try - even when it's just once - and let them great a PV for one of their songs!!!

first CM for jun's drama:
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTg3Mjk5NTU2.html

love it! :heart

Quoting myself from the KAT-TUN thread

it would be great for arashi to perform in europe one day in the future, but...i'd prefer somewhere in the US. particularly NY or LA :P

I think, if they decide to perform in Europe, the US is the next logical stop. It also works the other way around. When they perform in the US the probably would also perform in Europe. I actually doubt that Arashi would perform in small venues in Europe, because they are the definition of japanese Idols, I just don't think it would make sense for them to perform concerts in Europe or the US.

Visual Kei Bands - yes.
Gackt - obviously happening.
Ayu or Kumi - I can see it.
KAT-TUN - Doubtful.
Arashi - Don't think so....;)

But Tegomass were in Sweden....Jin IS touring the US. So maybe even an Arashi concert might be possible. Never say never.

It would be cool... if anyone would remember about this HUGE country up north here... but alas, for some reason everyone seems to miss it D:
XD

It's so annoying that in the US, they get more of the J-Pop artist, mostly at Animecon and the like. In Europe we almost only get the Visual Kei artist. I don't give a crap about Visual Kei. Give me some normal musicians! XD

This is an interesting list. I don't really see Arashi or KAT-TUN happening though. Koda Kumi ... eh ... Ayumi Hamasaki. Well, not as much as a TOUR as I can imagine her doing one BIG concert in Paris, like L'Arc~en~Ciel did.

i don't think any JE group (well, except SMAP maybe cause they've been around for so long and they could it :shrug) will ever come to north america or any other country other than asia (more specifically korea, taiwan, hong kong). i doubt johnny will ever let it happen :weep i just find it funny how johnny kitagawa was born in america, so it'd make sense if he'd send one of his acts to america, but they'll go anywhere but here :weep

it depresses me, lol.

Well, why is the Johnny's management so restrictive there? I think some people (like me) don't like what they do - they don't usually even allow Johnny's artists to be pictured for the Internet...