Flowercreek said:

minee said:

I get a really strong "Stranger Things" vibe from it. Idk if anyone else has seen the show, but that's the first thing that popped into my brain.

Yeah, that was the first thing that popped into my mind as well when I saw the photos of the kids on Momoclo's PR account yesterday. I guess she's some kind of alien, since there's a UFO visible in the top right hand corner of the cover photo for the single. I wonder if that's gonna tie in with the rest of the songs, and if we're getting music videos for them as well.

If that Marvel-clo promo is any indication, they’re gonna try and make a whole universe out of the videos, which is so Momoclo.

Anyone know when the next single for September will be released?

Was that information posted anywhere? It sounds reasonable, but I just haven't seen it anywhere :)

The new song is out today, and is titled Anta Tobashisugi! And so Momoclo enters punk territory. I can see this song dividing the fans, more so than their last few songs.
Teaser video:

To be honest, I have not yet heard anything to annoy or somehow totally can divide the fans. They entered the field where dozens of other idol groups are already (BISH, BiS and so on), but from this passage it seems that they did it rather peculiarly. I'm afraid it's a hit

The preview sounds very well :)

It doesn't seem to be a straight-up cover, because they've changed the lyrics to be about the members. They all get a verse each. Its like a new, punk version of Morifu Dayo. It seems more like a ROCK THE BOAT situation where they've taken the instrumental of a song and made their own lyrics (although this keeps some part of the original lyrics).

The song can be purchased in full here: https://ototoy.jp/find/?q=ももいろクローバーZ &search=検索

Momoclo certainly did change their styles and appearances over the years, the word experimental however I would not associate with them
Ebichu's a bit more experimental, and not speaking of Yurumerumo, BiS(H) and others of course.
So this is a pleasant (and sorely needed) surprise :)

Mattthecat said:

Ebichu's a bit more experimental, and not speaking of Yurumerumo, BiS(H) and others of course.

It's important to note that in the 2010-2012 period, Momoclo made a conscious effort to a. not do some of the things that were the hallmark of every successful Japanese female idol act in the late nineties and 2000s, and b. do some very notable things that other successful idols didn't do. In fact, i would call these things they did and didn't do ESSENTIAL to their success. These are the main reason why we know who they are.

Not only that, but they were the FIRST to become successful by breaking with the many conventions that ruled the idol world. They're the ones who experimented, and everyone else learned from that experiment. Other industry decision-makers saw that you can achieve success by going against the conventions, and, as a result, formed all these other groups you listed. And sure, their groups stand in even greater contrast to conventional idols, while Momoclo pulled back and became more conventional.

But, at their essence, the word I would use to describe these other groups is unconventional, rather than experimental. It was Momoclo who took that first giant leap towards what is today considered the anti-idol movement, not anyone else. They were the experiment, and everyone else is simply applying the many lessons of that experiment, to create a vibrant scene...a scene Momoclo, or even the whole of Stardust, by themselves, couldn't have created, obviously. Once you open the floodgates by showing people that a lot of the rules can be safely ignored, they will create things you couldn't have imagined. So I'm not trying to take away credit from anyone, just giving Momoclo (and kwkm, and everyone else behind the scenes) the credit they are due for being the first to break a whole bunch of these decades old rules.

Mattthecat said:

I don't question Momoclo's achievements towards being unconventional and bringing idoldom towards the world outside the wota culture, but we were talking musically here
And musically Momoclo has always been diversified but not experimental

I don't think any successful idol group is experimental in THAT sense. To create a new genre of music, and be successful with it, takes nothing short of genius. There are very few musicians capable of creating experimental music that actually resonates with a significant audience, and I can't imagine any of them work for a Japanese corporation that puts together idol groups.

But, if we're talking about being experimental musically WITHIN the idol world, then, again: the first idol act to be successful by incorporating a myriad of genres and styles of music that other idol acts wouldn't, is Momoclo. They did metal, all sorts of indie rock, hip hop, electronica, etc., etc., when idols were essentially pop, with the occasional low cost venture into something gimmicky, like "Country Musume" or a silly temporary rap group.

Here's something I'm 99.9% sure no one here heard of before:
You just need to watch the first 30 seconds, to recognize Roudou Sanka. That's how far out there they went, to try and not sound like other idols. They got a dude from Ireland who looks for inspiration from the most obscure rhythms and styles he can find around the globe, to write a hit for them. It takes some serious balls to be trying to be successful as an idol, and think that a good way to do that is to invite a guy who has NO MAINSTREAM SUCCESS to compose your next hit single.

Only reason you would do that is because your main goal is to sound different. You're not trying to re-create someone else's success, you're trying to experiment. And no other idol act was trying to sound drastically different from established idol music, before Momoclo. Now that people found out that it's okay to do that, others have become even less conventional. But Momoclo was the experiment that proved that you can be unconventional musically.