The Rise of The Female Wota
11 Perfume MVs in Celebration of Their Major Label Debut 11th Anniversary!
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September 21, 2016 marks the 11th anniversary since the legendary J-pop trio Perfume made their major label debut. Whether you knew about them from their indies era in the early 2000’s with songs like “Super Jet Shoes” and “Sweet Donuts”, after their big break following “Polyrhythm” in 2007, their continued evolution into global J-pop superstars, or even the recent attention following Pentatonix doing a medley of their songs on YouTube, here are some songs of theirs we feel are obvious when it comes to Perfume. Of course with 22 singles and 5 albums released during their major label era, it would be impossible to go through them all.
Since it’s their 11th anniversary, here are 11. We’re sure your choices will not all be the same.
“Linear Motor Girl” (release date: September 21, 2005)
Perfume’s major label period began on Tokuma Japan Communications with “Linear Motor Girl”. While the visuals look a little dated at times, this was the first chapter in their “Near Future Trilogy” (kinmirai sanpusaku, 近未来三部作) as their concept shifted to the futuristic technopop that they are known for.
“Electro World” (release date: June 28, 2006)
The concluding chapter of their “Near Future Trilogy”, this might be the most cheerful and upbeat song about the end of the world.
“Chocolate Disco” (release date: February 14, 2007)
Released on their 4th major label single “Fan Service [sweet]” on Valentine’s Day 2007, the song gained popularity after being noticed by popular model/singer Kaela Kimura who played it on her radio show.
“Polyrhythm” (release date: September 12, 2007
Perfume’s biggest break came as “Polyrhythm” was used as the song for NHK’s recycling campaign, giving them exposure on a national level. They were invited to their first Summer Sonic music festival and when the single was released months later, it propelled them into the top 10 of the Oricon charts. It was featured in the Pixar film “Cars 2” in 2011, giving Perfume access to even more listers worldwide.
“Dream Fighter” (release date: November 19, 2008)
In addition to winning Best Choreography for SPACE SHOWER Music Video Awards in 2009 and having an encouraging message in the lyrics, “Dream Fighter” was shortly after Perfume stood on the stage of Nippon Budokan, the holy ground for performers, for the first time. They also received their first invite to the NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen, one of the most-watched year-end special programs in Japan, solidifying their arrival in the spotlight.
“One Room Disco” (release date: March 25, 2009)
Perfume kept rising higher as they entered 2009 with the release of “One Room Disco”, a playful and infectious tune accompanied by precision choreography and enhanced by creative visual effects, which shot to the top of the Oricon charts. This was the song they performed during their second appearance on NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen, capping off a year where Perfume moved up another level as they held a 2-day concert at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in May.
“Nee” (release date: November 10, 2010)
Perfume was firmly establishing themselves as marketable fashion icons at this point with “Nee” being picked as a commercial song for NATURAL BEAUTY BASIC. With effects being used to create duplicates of the members, allowing them to dance with themselves, and an inescapably catchy hook, it’s no wonder that it remains one of their highest viewed MVs on their channel.
“Spending all my time” (release date: August 15, 2012)
With its overwhelmingly robotic choreography, mostly English lyrics, and implications that Perfume has psychic abilities, “Spending all my time” is impossible to turn away from. Is it too much to think that their performance may have had some influence on FEMM or the choreography of Nogizaka AKB’s “Mazariau Mono”?
“Pick Me Up” (release date: April 29, 2015)
One of their most epic releases since their move to Perfume Records/Universal J, “Pick Me Up” features a cameo by OK Go in the window of Shinjuku’s iconic Isetan department store before the members are teleported into a mysterious alternate dimension where they must rescue themselves from hordes of mannequins.
“STAR TRAIN” (release date: October 28, 2015)
Not just the theme song for their first documentary film “WE ARE Perfume-WORLD TOUR 3rd DOCUMENT”, the MV for “STAR TRAIN” connects on so many levels no matter if you have been following them since the beginning of their journey or just gotten on board with them. If you can get through all 4:40 of it without getting a little choked up, you might have to have someone check your pulse to see if you’re still alive.
“FLASH” (release date: April 6, 2016)
For “FLASH”, the lead track from their 6th album “COSMIC EXPLORER”, which was released just before their world tour of the same name, Perfume showed no signs of slowing down as they opened up a can of martial arts-inspired choreography. Many were amused at the choice considering that their kouhai BABYMETAL had released the similarly pugilistic MV for “Karate” a few weeks prior.
As mentioned at the beginning of the article, Perfume has released so much incredible music since they made their major label debut in 2015 that it would be an extremely difficult task to attempt to celebrate them all. Since this is just 11 of their best, there are definitely a lot that had to be left out. Let us know which ones you love!
Related Links
Perfume Official site: http://www.perfume-web.jp/
Perfume Official Global site: http://www.perfume-global.com/
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Perfume
Kai Okudara
Writer, researcher, photographer, foodie, KSDD
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