Who and Why Dies on STARMARIE’s New Single”Who Killed Circus”?

| Idol | Posted by Ayaya on Dec.22.2014

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STARMARIE, an all-female Japanese pop group originally comprised of two members, officially added three additional members and began to officially promote their new EP album this year on June 25th, 2014. Their debut single, “Who Killed Circus,” was released this year on December 3rd, 2014 and ranked 2nd in the ORICON indies weekly ranking of December 1st to December 7th.
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Among STARMARIE’s ever-growing domestic and international fan base, the song has been hyped as the scariest song in STARMARIE’s musical history. You can watch the performance, with the lyrics included, at the following YouTube link.

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However, rather than being scary, it may be more accurate to characterize the song as being full of drama and suspense. The song opens with chilling organ music, which could evoke scenes from the “Phantom of the Opera.” While the song’s melody repetitively modulates, a shocking and thrilling story is slowly introduced.

From there, the listener is chased by an invisible sense of fear, and we feel desperate to escape it while running for our lives through a dimly lit corridor. Suddenly, a figure comes into view.

One might place this song in the horror genre with its melancholic voices drifting throughout. It’s reflective of STARMARIE’s macabre style as 21 songs of the group’s 37 songs refer to the dead. Perhaps this is why STARMARIE is also known as “Murder idol unit” in Japan. However, current member, Shino Takanori, says that although it is actually their producer, Takatani, who writes the lyrics, the girls bring the colorful and dramatic storytelling to life.

Even though the title of the song is “Who Killed Circus,” both the living and the dead strangely appear together in the lyrics. The song is like a puzzle, in which the relationship between the dead and the living is a mystery that the listeners themselves need to solve. This is one of the main appeals of the song, but also the charm goes beyond the surface. The mysterious allure of this song has created an exciting discussion among fans, who give their own individual interpretations of the song’s lyric. With so many interpretations, the song creates an additional sense of fun. Borrowing the words of one fan, let’s examine his interpretation of the song below:

“Among the people who appear in ‘Who is killed circus ‘, only two people are alive; ‘Mom’ and ‘you.’ The setting is a hotel where the deceased gather. The song’s protagonist, having recently died, wanders lost through the hotel. ‘You’ chase the protagonist around the hotel trying to catch a glimpse, but because you are still alive, you cannot see the
world of the dead even though you live among them. ” Kaede Watanabe.

In addition to “Who Killed Circus,” STARMARIE has released two other singles, including “The Ball of Midnight Rhapsody,” and “The remaining 124 days of Cinderella.” “The Ball of Midnight Rhapsody” is an updated version that originally appeared in the album, “Fantasy World 3,” and was first recorded when the group was known as Starmarie (in lower caps) and included only three members.

On January 2, 2015, STARMARIE is scheduled to perform a solo live show titled “STARMARIE’s single Circus ~ DARK FANTASY WORLD’s beginning” at TSUTAYA O-EAST. Presently, both the total event budget, which includes a continuation of the five-member system, and the planned live show are hints of events to come for STARMARIE in 2015.

The group has already had an active start internationally. In the beginning of 2014, STARMARIE performed live in three U.S. locations: Los Angeles, Texas, and New York. Additionally, the group preformed in both the Philippines and Taiwan, where STARMARIE’s popularity with fans reached soaring new heights. This has a set a new benchmark for the overseas tours scheduled for the upcoming year. STARMARIE plans to perform solo shows again in the Philippines and Taiwan, and of course domestically in various places around Japan. According to current group member, Takanori Shino, STARMARIE will be “transporting their feet” all over the world from the start of the year. They continue to hope for this dream to come true. To that end, could the upcoming solo show at TSUTAYA O-EAST be a sign of STARMARIE moving closer to their goal?
STARMARIE is gradually becoming an internationally recognizable name in the music world.
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Let us end with a quote from current member, Kinoshita, describing the group’s future desires:

“STARMARIE is celebrating its 7th anniversary and will soon be meeting its 8th. Our fans have continued to ask us when our music will go on sale and when we will rise to the top of the charts. Therefore, our goals this year are to sell our music and rise in popularity both in Japan and overseas. This is the year STARMARIE will realize its dreams!”

BUY ITEM

CIRCUS WO KOROSHITANO HA DAREDA / STARMARIE

CIRCUS WO KOROSHITANO HA DAREDA [Limited Edition / Type A]

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CIRCUS WO KOROSHITANOHA DAREDA [Limited Edition / Type B]

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CIRCUS WO KOROSHITANO HA DAREDA [Regular Edition]

Author

Ayaya

Been working in girls’ fashion magazines for a long time and am now the chief editor of Tokyo Girls’ Update. I have more expertise in Japanese teen fashion than anyone else (probably)! I’m a huge fan of the Revolutionary Girl Utena and Bakemonogatari animes.