J!-ENT Special Feature and Interview with TRF

Transcription

TRF
A SPECIAL J!-ENT
15TH ANNIVERSARY TRIBUTE
B Y D E N N I S A . A M I T H & H I R O S H I TA G A W A
I M A G E S ( a n d B E A T F R E A K I M A G E S ) C O U R T E S Y O F A V E X E N T E R TA I N M E N T I N C .
TRF OFFICIAL WEBSITE:
h t t p : / / w w w. a v e x n e t . o r. j p / t r f /
J!-ENT
foreword
I can easily remember my fondest memories of TRF. It started back in 1993.
Japanese music at the time was dominated by rock music and groups such as B’z, ZARD, Lindberg, the Southern
All Stars, Mr. Children, Kome Kome Club and artists such as Fukuyama Masaharu, Fuji Fumiya, Nakayama Miho and
Ohguro Maki and they literally owned the charts that year.
Each time I would watch an episode of TV Asahi’s “Music Station” or TBS “Count Down TV”, of the many rock
bands that they would feature on the top 10 or top 20, there would be a dance group called TRF that would catch
my attention.
Because rock was so dominant in Japan at that time, the group’s music stood out from everyone else.
One thing different back then was that TRF was known with a lowercase “trf” and the group seemed to be much
larger than the five members that we know right now.
And boy, can I remember... the first song that I heard from “TRF” was their second CD single “EZ DO DANCE”.
I remember seeing the few seconds clip from their music video and I admit, watching the lead vocalist YU-KI in
2 J!-ENT
daisy duke short shorts dancing and singing was enough to sell me on their music and make a purchase of their first
album “EZ DO DANCE” and their first remix album “ trf hyper techno mix”.
I can remember having my brother who was driving up to a rave hundreds of miles away making a stop into Kinokuniya in San Francisco jut to pick the album for me.
Overtime, for him, he was mesmerized by the dancing of SAM, ETSU and CHIHARU and by the time I made my first
purchase of “WORLD GROOVE”, he was trying to learn the dance moves of SAM from their music videos.
In 1993, I created J!-ENT and one of the main features on the J!-ENT BBS at the time was TRF.
I had converted so many of my friends to their music that we attended an early anime convention called “ANIME
AMERICA” and we could not stand the music playing on the dance floor that we had the DJ play one of my “hyper
techno mix” CD’s and pretty much jam to “survival dAnce ~no no cry more~” and “Boy Meets Girl”.
I have so many pleasant memories of TRF music and could possibly have a story of what I was doing throughout my
life with each CD single release because I am so passionate about TRF’s music.
So, flash forward 14 years later and here I am to write this special 15th Anniversary article and to have an opportunity to interview with TRF. Now that is a dream come true.
— DENNIS A. AMITH, J!-ENT
J!-ENT 3
TRF
I
the J!-ENT interview
PHOTO: TRF performing at “LEGEND OF RAVE X’MAS LIVE” at VELFARRE on Christmas day 2006. Photo by T. Hasegawa.
n 2007, the group TRF which
consists of lead vocalist YU-KI,
DJ KOO, SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU will be celebrating their 15th
Year Anniversary.
For dance music in Japan, many people
look at the avex trax record label as a
company known for their dance music and
popular artists.
But back in the early 90’s, avex trax was
primarily known for music compilations
and a label bringing international artists to
the Japanese market.
But it was a group known as TRF
which put avex on the buzz radar for music
listeners with a countless string of chart
topping hits.
But the early success of TRF was primarily on the shoulders of avex president
Matsuura Max and musician and producer
Komuro Tetsuya who had been successful
with another electronic music group TMN.
In 1992, Komuro created a techno rave
unit called “TRF” (Tetsuya Komuro’s Rave
4 J!-ENT
Factory).
Komuro wanted to take the popularity
of the nightclub scene and make a music
group featuring a vocalist, DJ and dancers.
TRF made their debut at the Bayside
Club (Live & Disco) event in which the
group performed in front of 6,300 people
from Dec. 25, 1992 through Jan. 23, 1993.
The group released their first album
“THIS IS THE TRUTH” (Feb. 25, 1993)
and before they became TRF known today,
the group was known by the lowercase
— trf.
The group released their third CD
single “GOING 2 DANCE” and released
their first remix album “HYPER TECHNO MIX” in May 1993.
But the song that captured the attention
of music listeners was the group’s second
CD single “EZ DO DANCE” ( June
1993) which debuted at #16 on the Oricon
Charts.
From that point on, TRF would be
chart toppers with each single and album
release.
Their second album “EZ DO DANCE”
( July 1993) would reach #4 on the Oricon
Charts and in 1994 the group would reach
#1 with their third album “World Groove”
(Feb. 1994).
From this point on, TRF would dominate the charts with each album, CD single
and remix album debuting at #1 or on the
top 5 of the Oricon charts.
Since 1993, TRF has released 16 albums
(regular, remix, concert and best albums),
34 CD single releases, 9 DVD’s and several
solo projects with releases by YU-KI and
works by DJ KOO.
With the group celebrating their 15th
Year Anniversary, J!-ENT recently interviewed the members of TRF.
J!-ENT: Myself and many Americans
grew up with TRF since their debut.
Were you ever aware of your American fans or fans outside of Japan
that were big fans of your music?
“First, I thought music in a music
program on TV and music at a
disco club were totally different.
So, I couldn’t imagine our music
getting popular. ” - DJ KOO
J!-ENT 5
DJ KOO: I get a lot of e-mails from
fans in other countries every day.
These e-mails always encourage me a
lot.
SAM: To be honest, I didn’t know that
we have many fans in other countries.
J!-ENT: Have you ever been interested in performing in the United
States or in Europe?
YU-KI: Yes. Of course. I am interested
in performing in foreign countries.
CHIHARU: I don’t know how many
fans we have in foreign countries since
I don’t have a chance to perform in
foreign countries. But I’m very happy
to hear that there are so many fans
of our music and I’m very interested
in performing in the USA and Europe
and so on.
ETSU: We have done a live concert
in Shanghai before. Everyone enjoyed
singing together. So, I’m interested in
performing in the USA and Europe.
DJ KOO: I hope that we can play
in other countries and I want more
people in other countries to see TRF.
J!-ENT: How did the five of you
come together to form TRF? Did
you know each other before TRF
was created?
YU-KI: Komuro Tetsuya wanted to
make a dance unit and TRF was born.
In my case, I was picked while dancing
by him.
CHIHARU: Etsu, SAM and me were
members of dance team called MegaMix. So, we know each other before
TRF was created.
DJ KOO: I knew SAM since I was 18
years old, because SAM won the 1st
prize at disco championship in Shinjuku. Also, I knew Chiharu and Etsu from
long time ago.
J!-ENT: When you debuted, your
group name was spelled “trf” and
when you released your 14th CD
single “Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen”
the group began to spell their name
as “TRF”. I always wondered why
the spelling of the name changed
from that point on?
DJ KOO: Komuro decided to change
the name but there is no special reason for the change.
6 J!-ENT
PHOTO: TRF performing at “LEGEND OF RAVE X’MAS LIVE” at VELFARRE on Christmas day 2006.
Photo by T. Hasegawa.
J!-ENT: When you were younger,
what moment in your life did you
feel that you wanted to be involved
in music?
YU-KI: I didn’t imagine that I would
be a singer. But I liked to practice
playing the piano when I was a child,
so I liked music very much.
CHIHARU: I wanted to be a ballerina.
ETSU: I liked dancing when I was a
child. So, I wanted to do a job which is
something about dancing.
DJ KOO: When I was 12 years old, I
started to play the electric guitar. And
I can’t think any other job but music.
In 1985, I bought a very expensive machine to make MIDI, computer sound.
SAM: I never imagined being a member of a music group. I wanted to be a
doctor.
J!-ENT: If we were to look into your
CD or MP3 player, what artists or
songs would you be listening to?
YU-KI: Various music from classical to
punk music.
CHIHARU: I don’t listen to music very
often.
ETSU: I listen to all kinds of music
such as Utada Hikaru, Madonna,
STING etc.
DJ KOO: Comic monologue, ELECTRO, PINK FLOYD, BLACK SABBATH
SAM: Almost HOUSE such as Jazzanova and Jazztronik.
J!-ENT: On Christmas day, TRF
performed at velfarre one last time.
What emotions ran through your
mind about the whole velfarre experience?
YU-KI: We performed there when it
first opened and we performed at the
final LIVE of velfarre. I just want to say
“Thank you very much, Velfarre!”
J!-ENT: What are your favorite
memories of performing at velfarre?
DJ KOO: My favorite memory was
the “LEGEND OF RAVE - X’MAS
LIVE” last year. I felt fulfilled at that
live performance.
SAM: One of the year end count
down LIVE because all members of
the TK family came together.
nese people would accept TRF. But all
I could do was do my best.
CHIHARU: I had no confidence that
we would be popular.
ETSU: I couldn’t afford to pay attention about how people felt about TRF
but I was concentrating only how I
would perform.
DJ KOO: First, I thought music in a
music program on TV and music at a
disco club were totally different. So,
I couldn’t imagine our music getting
popular or used even for karaoke!
SAM: I didn’t think TRF would be so
big, but when I listened to “EZ DO
DANCE”, I thought this song would
be a big hit.
J!-ENT: Let’s talk about the beginning of TRF. Back in 1993, a lot of
popular music in Japan at the time
was dominated by rock music and
idol pop music. TRF’s music was so
different from what was popular in
Japan, did you feel that your music
would gain any popularity in Japan
at the time?
YU-KI: Many lyrics of our songs were
in English. So I was wondering if Japa-
J!-ENT: My first memory of TRF
was ‘Going 2 Dance”. Many of us
in America were introduced to TRF
through “HYPER TECHNO MIX” and
loved it because it was so different
from any Japanese music that we
have heard. But your music video
for “Going 2 Dance” was amazing!
Can you tell us about that promotional concert. How was that experience?
ETSU: We performed every year at
the year end LIVE there, so I feel very
sad about the club closing.
YU-KI: I was very nervous because
I’ve never sung a song in front of
audience before.
J!-ENT: You released “EZ DO
DANCE” and it was an amazing
song. Both the song and also the
music video was awesome and definitely introduced something fresh
in Japan. Looking back at that song
today, what is your impression of
that song?
YU-KI: I’m very glad there are many
people listening to this song now. I
enjoy performing this song too.
CHIHARU: When I see excited fans
at a live performance, I can feel this
song is awesome again.
ETSU: I don’t feel it’s old even now.
That was a wonderful song everyone
accepts.
J!-ENT: One thing that I have always been curious about. “EZ DO
DANCE” was the first album to
feature the main members and the
background dancers on the cover of
the album which I’ve never seen before. Was TRF a larger group when
J!-ENT 7
it first started?
SAM: Background dancers were all
members of Mega-Mix. There were
a total of eight dancers, one vocalist
and 1 DJ consisted TRF.
J!-ENT: In 1994, “survival dAnce~no
no cry more~ was the first TRF song
to debut at No. 1 on the Oricon
charts. Having your first no. 1 CD
single, what went through your mind
at the time?
YU-KI: I was very surprised and cried
when I thought many people were
listening to “survival dAnce”.
CHIHARU: I’m just a dancer not a
singer. But it was exciting to see that
many people enjoyed the song.
DJ KOO: I didn’t understand how it
was great. But many people around
me like parents, my friends were very
happy about it. That made me very
happy.
J!-ENT: For your upcoming music
videos, the videos were filmed in
Mexico and Australia for “survival
8 J!-ENT
dAnce~no no cry more~” and “Overnight Sensation”. I was very amazed
of the behind-the-scenes of the making of the video on “History of TRF
II”. What is your favorite memory of
shooting those videos in Mexico and
Australia?
YU-KI: My favorite place is Mexico
because in my point of view, it is very
different from Japan.
CHIHARU: In Mexico, the weather
was nice and I enjoyed it a lot. On the
other hand, in Australia, our schedule
was very difficult and I remember I
was just busy over there.
DJ KOO: At night in Cabo San Lucas
in Mexico, the moon over Cortes sea
was the most beautiful view in my life.
J!-ENT: You had a string of No. 1
hits with “masquerade”, “Overnight
Sensation”, “Brand New Tomorrow”
and your album “dAnce to positive”
debuted at #1 and 1995 became a
golden year for TRF. Did you feel
a lot of pressure trying to keep the
trend of No. 1 hits continuous? Or
did you just create the music that
you feel you wanted to do?
YU-KI: I didn’t feel a lot of pressure.
I just tried to my best and didn’t think
of anything else.
CHIHARU: In those days, I didn’t understand how difficult it was to get a
No. 1 song on the Oricon Chart. I was
busy working every day.
ETSU: I didn’t feel any pressure. I was
just surprised at Komuro’s music.
DJ KOO: Very nice staff were always
around us. And it wasn’t just us, them
and our fans is what made TRF what it
is. I really appreciate them. I was just
concentrating on doing my best on
each song.
J!-ENT: Let’s go ahead and break off
from the career questions for now
and go into our FAN QUESTIONS.
We have selected the following
three questions from your fans in the
United States:
a. Hi everyone! I want to congratulate you on your 15th Anniversary.
You have released many awesome
songs but my question for all of you
is what TRF song is your favorite
and why? – Brandon, Atlanta, Georgia
YU-KI: “Overnight Sensation” and
“engaged”
CHIHARU: “World Groove”
ETSU: “BOY MEETS GIRL”
DJ KOO: My favorite song changes
every day. Today, my favorite one is
“Frame.”
b. Hi YU-KI, DJ KOO, Sam, Chiharu,
Etsu! I have been a big fan of your
music and my first song that made
me a fan was your song “Ai ga mou
sukoshi hoshii yo”. My question is
for Sam, Chiharu and Etsu. I have
appreciated your dance choreography for many years and I would
watch your music videos over and
over to learn your dance moves. I
always wondered with you creating
the choreography for TRF and other
artists, with so many dance moves,
Have you ever gotten confused with
certain routines?. Charles, San Francisco, California
ETSU: Yes, there are so many dance
moves but I’ve never gotten confused.
It’s difficult to come up with new
dance moves, but I am always trying
to watch many movies and look at
pictures and trying to feel something
new for my dance.
c. I want to wish everyone on TRF
congratulations on your 15th Anniversary! I have always felt that
TRF were innovators for dance music
and even choreography in Japan. I
always wondered who inspired you
as a music artist? Jessica, Honolulu,
Hawaii
YU-KI: Komuro Tetsuya, Chaka Khan
and Patti La Belle.
CHIHARU: I never imagined that I
would become a member of a big
music group when I was young. But I
always love dancing for a long time.
So I was practicing dancing all the
time. As a result, I am what I am now.
DJ KOO: I started working as a DJ at
a disco at the age of 18. And I made
many remix and played at a disco. A
record company offered me to release
my music.
PHOTO: The cover of TRF’s 33rd CD single “Where to Begin” (Jan. 2006, AVCD-30087)
J!-ENT: Going to 1996, you the
song “LOVE & PEACE FOREVER”.
It was such a big change from the
style of music that you released before. How did that come about?
YU-KI: Komuro wanted to do a dance
classic and we wanted to expand the
TRF world. So, we made “Love and
Peace Forever”.
J!-ENT: Moving ten years later, in
2006, you released the album “Lif-eMotions”. An album which featured
a tribute of artists such as Hamasaki
Ayumi, BoA, AAA, every little thing
and many others singing your songs.
How did that feel to have these artists celebrate your career by singing
your popular songs?
YU-KI: I am very happy that they
sung TRF songs using their perspective and style. I am also glad to collaborate with them.
DJ KOO: I appreciate that they have
their own sense of TRF. Also I am very
happy they were willing to join this
project.
J!-ENT: Let’s talk about your latest
release “TRF 15th Anniversary BEST
MEMORIES”. Looking back at your
career from when you first debuted
to now, what has been the biggest
learning experience that each of you
have experienced as a member of
TRF?
YU-KI: Spirit and concentration. Love.
Consciousness as a Komuro Family.
Appreciation. reflection and having a
positive attitude.
CHIHARU: To never forget appreciation.
DJ KOO: Making music while thinking
of the listeners heart.
J!-ENT: Not many groups have had
lasted as long as TRF, what’s the
secret to your chemistry of staying
together as a group for 15 years?
YU-KI: To believe in each other and
good teamwork.
ETSU: Our family, fans, and staffs
helped TRF a lot and we are one.
DJ KOO: Do without gain or loss.
Ambition.
J!-ENT: On the DVD, the “HISTORY
J!-ENT 9
OF TRF II”, was a chance for your
fans to see you up close and personal. I felt that including this on
the anniversary release was awesome. To have your fans watch
these personal moments, how did
you feel about it?
YU-KI: This was a good chance to
show our personal and natural side.
CHIHARU: I was a little worried that
fans might feel let down. (laughing)
ETSU: I like to see my favorite artists’ personal video. So, I wanted
TRF fans to feel closer to us by
showing our personal videos.
J!-ENT: After watching all of your
music videos, I enjoyed your music
videos back then but watching
your recent videos such as “Life
signs again”, “Silence Whispers” to
name a few, I really like the creativity of those videos. Do you all
have creative input in the making
of your music videos?
DJ KOO: Dance is inevitable for a TRF
music video. So Chiharu, Etsu and I
always check our dancing. And we coworked with director to make creative
and high quality video
J!-ENT: Let’s get to know more
about the each of you individually.
If you have one word to describe
yourself, what word would that be
and why?
YU-KI: “Only one”. Because I wish and
want to have confidence in myself.
CHIHARU: “DANCE BAKA”. Because
I can only dance.
ETSU: “Muscle”. Because I am a
muscle moll.
DJ KOO: Human.
J!-ENT: A question for YU-KI. You
have released your latest solo single
“Shiroi Tsuki” in November and also
been involved with acting. This past
January you and La’Cryma Christi’s
Taka were in a play for “LOVE”.
How was that experience?
YU-KI: It was very difficult to play part
where the exchanges of 50 years of
letter writing of a lady who is only sitting and without any movement. But
I could express it with only my voice
and facial expressions. After I acted
in the role for “LOVE LETTERS”, I
thought I wanted to make lyrics more
important when I sing.
J!-ENT: A question for DJ KOO.
Back in 2004, you worked on a project for WILL PROJECT. Can you tell
us more about that and if there are
other projects that you are working
on?
DJ KOO: I have spent the last two
years on starting up WILL PROJECT.
Now I am working on several songs to
make them better quality and planning to release it in the summer or
J!-ENT 11
early fall this year. A few big artists
may join me. Please look forward to
listening to WILL PROJECT.
J!-ENT: For SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU – I know that the three of you
have been active in dance auditions,
producing dance events and choreography. Can you tell us what future
projects your are currently working
on?
CHIHARU: Dancer auditions for a-nation coming up this summer will be the
one major project that I have to work
on now. I want to find a dancer with
future potential.
J!-ENT: In every interview, we have
a word play where I give you five
words, you give me your definition
for those words:
a. LOVE
YU-KI: Forever
12 J!-ENT
DJ KOO: The most important thing
b. SUCCESS
YU-KI: Get myself
DJ KOO: The place to start for the
next goal
c. HAPPINESS
DJ KOO: Family and smile
YU-KI: Fellow and smile
d. WORLD GROOVE
DJ KOO: Strong commitment
YU-KI: Needed in the world
e. KOMURO TETSUYA
YU-KI: Former teacher and great
musician
DJ KOO: Former teacher
J!-ENT: What final words would
you love to leave with your fans all
over the world?
YU-KI: Thank you for cheering for
TRF every time. I want to work hard
to let everyone have a fun with our
songs. I want to make more songs
and have more performances where
you won’t need to understand Japanese. See you some day!
DJ KOO: There are many people that
I met through the Internet but we
haven’t met each other yet. I would
like to meet them some day at one of
our live performances. We can’t make
the best stage without you. I believe
we can make it if our wish goes to the
same direction. Let’s have fun when it
comes true.
DENNIS A. AMITH is the founder/owner of
J!-ENT and is an entertainment-writer-at-large.
HIROSHI TAGAWA is J!-ENT Chief of
Operations, Japan
For more information on TRF, please visit their official website at: www.avexnet.or.jp/trf/
TRF CD SINGLE REVIEW
“GOING 2 DANCE”/”OPEN YOUR
MIND”
1ST CD SINGLE
Rel. February 25, 1993
AVDD-20036/AVCD-31098
1. GOING 2 DANCE
2. OPEN YOUR MIND
3. GOING 2 DANCE (English Version)
A new group emerged from mega
producer Komuro Tetsuya (TK) on Feb.
25, 1993.
The group known as TRF would come
out with their first album “THIS IS THE
TRUTH” (which would debut at #14 on
the Oricon charts) and the groups first
CD single “GOING 2 DANCE” would
enjoy a simultaneous debut.
The music would showcase dance
music which would feature a direction
towards synth pop with integration of
scratching and mixing from DJ KOO.
The CD single would include an English version in the attempt to bring TRF’s
music into dance clubs worldwide and
give a taste of TK’s rave music.
I remember struggling whether or
not to buy this CD single when it first
came out and I decided in the end to
wait until the group released their next
CD single.
I will say that the English remix versions of “GOING 2 DANCE” and “OPEN
YOUR MIND” will find a more energetic
and exciting version featured on the
groups “HYPER TECHNO MIX” released
in May of 1993.
“EZ DO DANCE”
2ND CD SINGLE
Rel. June 21, 1993
AVDD-20042/AVCD-31099
1. EZ DO DANCE (7” MIX)
2. EZ DO DANCE (INSTRUMENTAL MIX)
3. DO WHAT YOU WANT
Many would consider “EZ DO
DANCE” the song that would define
TRF for all time.
Over a decade since this CD single
was released, it continues to be a fan
favorite and listening to the song today,
you couldn’t tell that it was released
nearly 15 years ago.
The song would feature the TRF
sound that made the group so popular
in the early to mid 90’s and demonstrated the pure energy of their music.
The song was coupled with “DO
WHAT YOU WANT” which was a slowpaced English song that was not sung by
YU-KI but IZUMI, SUZI KIM with CHIHARU and ETSU.
The CD single debuted at #16 on the
Oricon charts and was used for a “Sea
Breeze” commercial.
One of the big factors that led
people to check TRF out was the music
video for “EZ DO DANCE” which would
feature choreographed dancing and
YU-KI, CHIHARU and ETSU sporting tiny,
white shorts.
It was a sexy and energetic video that
demanded a second take and definitely
was what led me to purchase the CD
single.
“Ai ga Mou Sukoshi Hoshii yo * Xmas
dance wiz U”
3RD CD SINGLE
Rel. November 21, 1993
AVDD-20060/AVCD-31100
1. Ai ga Mou Sukoshi Hoshii yo
2. Xmas dance wiz U
3. Ai ga Mou Sukoshi Hoshii yo (INSTRUMENTAL)
4. Xmas dance wiz U (INSTRUMENTAL)
TRF would have its first two CD
single simultaneous release on Nov. 21,
1993 with “Ai ga Mou Sukoshi Hoshii
yo” and “Silver and Gold dance”.
The song would be a smooth, slowerpaced but beautiful song that unlike the
previous CD single feature ten people
(including their background dancers
- Mega-Mix) but focus on the fab five.
The CD single would debut at #29 on
the Oricon Charts.
At this point in time of Japanese music, the music scene was dominated by
rock music in the early 90’s and rarely
would we see dance groups in the top
10 or let alone the top 20.
The coupling song “Xmas dance wiz
U” would be used as a CM theme song
for “World Pool Yokohama”.
Over a decade later, this song continues to be one of my top 5 favorite TRF
songs to date.
J!-ENT 13
“Silver and Gold dance”
4TH CD SINGLE
AVDD-20061/AVCD-31101
“Samui Yoru Dakara”
5th CD SINGLE
Rel. December 16, 1993
AVDD-20062/AVCD-31102
“survival dAnce ~no no cry more~”
6TH CD SINGLE
Rel. May 25, 1994
AVDD-20070/AVCD-31103
1. Silver and Gold dance (DANCE MIX)
2. Winter Grooves
3. Silver and Gold dance (INSTRUMENTAL)
4. Winter Grooves (INSTRUMENTAL)
1. Samui Yoru Dakara
2. Samui Yoru Dakara (INSTRUMENTAL)
3. Samui Yoru Dakara (ALTERNATIVE
MIX)
1. survival dAnce
2. survival dAnce (ORIGINAL 12” MIX)
3. survival dAnce (CXTV 17”S MIX)
4. survival dAnce (ORIGINAL SINGLE
CHART KARAOKE MIX)
“Silver and Gold dance” was TRF’s
4th CD single which received a simultaneous release with their 3rd CD single
“Ai ga Mou Sukoshi Hoshii yo”.
This CD single fared better at #25
on the Oricon charts and was the song
that was prominently promote on music
television at the time.
If “EZ DO DANCE” is the TRF theme
song, “Silver and Gold dance” was the
song that showed that this group can
combine together and makeup one hell
of a musical, dance group.
With YU-KI on vocals, DJ KOO rapping and SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU
demonstrating awesome choreography
in their live performances, I truly felt
that this song was what put them on the
music viewers radar because the music
scene was dominated by rock and TRF
stood out.
“Silver and Gold dance” is just an
awesome dance song from TRF and the
music video showed how awesome the
dynamics are between the group members.
Coupling song “Winter Grooves” was
used as a CM for JAL SKI `94.
14 J!-ENT
I suppose that “Samui Yoru Dakara”
could be looked as the group’s first
slow jam despite being a mid-tempo CD
single.
Where the group was seen a major
dance group, this song would show
viewers on television that YU-KI was a
competent vocalist and that her voice
could venture into different musical
areas.
The song became the first CD single
to break the top 10 on the Oricon
Charts debuting at #8.
Interesting fact is that this song
continued to stay on the Oricon top 100
over a year later (#84 on Oct. 25, 1995).
The song would also have several
versions with an English (Euro-House)
version featured on Hyper Mix III album
and a Winter Version.
The song would also feature TRF
singing a reggae style version titled
“HOT SUMMER NIGHT” from their
album “BRAND NEW TOMORROW”.
As for the music video, two versions
were shot. The earliest promotional
video of this song featured the group in
New York.
1994 would become the year that
TRF would dominate the charts and
bring Komuro Tetsuya (TK) and Avex to
prominence.
Rock music would start to give way
to pop bands and artists on the music
charts.
Komuro Tetsuya would unleash a
two-punch barrage with music from TRF
and Shinohara Ryoko that would top the
charts.
The song would become the theme
song for the popular Uchida Yuki drama
“at Seventeen” (and who would later
join the TK family) and would sell over
1.49 million copies.
Also, unlike previous TRF songs, you
could hear TK’s background vocals more
pronounced on this song.
The music video would feature the
group in Mexico and would be more
candid and personal with the group having fun during their trip.
Starting with “survival dAnce”, TRF
would enjoy many more #1 hit CD
singles.
A wonderful song!
“BOY MEETS GIRL”
7TH CD SINGLE
Rel. June 22, 1994
AVDD-20080/AVCD-31104
“CRAZY GONNA CRAZY”
8TH CD SINGLE
Rel. January 1, 1995
AVDD-20082/AVCD-31055
“masquerade”
9TH CD SINGLE
AVDD-20083/AVCD-31106
1. BOY MEETS GIRL
2. BOY MEETS GIRL (DANCE 12” MIX)
3. BOY MEETS GIRL (TRIBAL MIX
“JAPANESE TRADITIONAL”)
4. BOY MEETS GIRL (TWILIGHT MIX
“TRIBUTE TO AYRTON SENNA)
1. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY
2. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY (DISCO MIX)
3. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY (EUROBEAT
MIX)
1. masquerade (original rock simulation
mix)
2. Winter Grooves (VELFARRE snow
club mix)
3. masquerade (INSTRUMENTAL)
On June 22nd, TRF would release
their seventh CD single “BOY MEETS
GIRL” which would be used for a CocaCola CM.
The song would debut at #4 on the
Oricon Chart but would be a major selling CD single with 1.29 million copies
sold.
As for the song, “BOY MEETS GIRL”
was a very fun song and one of the few
songs which I saw people in the US start
to open up to TRF and purchase their
CD single.
My friends especially became big
fans of TRF because of this song and
would become a song that would receive constant play on our Asunaro trips
to SF Japan Town.
Interesting thing about this CD single
was a tribute mix of “BOY MEETS GIRL”
for the Brazilian F1 triple world champion Ayrton Senna who was huge in Japan
and in many countries around the world.
The music video for “BOY MEETS
GIRL” would be the second shot in
Mexico.
With the group having a succesful
concert tour and various album releases,
the next CD single “CRAZY GONNA
CRAZY” from TRF would reach the #1
position on the Oricon Charts (it debuted at #2, but #1 the next week).
The CD single would sell 1.60 million
copies and would be used as a theme
for a Fuji TV drama.
The song was immensely popular and
remains a fan favorite.
This CD single would be the first to
feature SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU taking
on vocal roles instead of being the dancers of the group.
SAM could be heard singing with
YUKI in the beginning of the song. As
well as jamming with DJ KOO during the
rap segments.
CHIHARU and ETSU can be heard
singing with YUKI before the chorus.
The music video also features the
three singing vocals with YUKI on the
song and features the group singing in
front of a live audience.
This song would have a different take
of TRF with more use of guitars and
have a pop/rock feel to it.
The song would be featured as a image song for the Kameria Diamond CM
and debut at #1 on the Oricon Charts.
The CD single would go on to sale
1.43 million copies.
The music video for “masquerade”
featured awesome choreography by
SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU as the three
dance in a factory-like setting. YU-KI
and KOO are seen walking around the
factory, while YU-KI is seen singing.
The music video shows a return of
TRF to a style of music video that is
choreography heavy and reminiscent to
videos such as “EZ DO DANCE” and
“Silver and Gold dance”.
Also, the song “Winter Grooves”
returned as a coupling song but getting
a VELFARRE treatment ala “snow club”
mix.
J!-ENT 15
“Overnight Sensation”
10TH CD SINGLE
Rel. March 8, 1995
AVDD-AVDD-20084/AVCD-31107
“BRAND NEW TOMORROW”
11th CD SINGLE
Rel. October 25, 1995
AVDD-20105/AVCD-31108
“Happening Here”
12TH CD SINGLE
AVDD-20116/AVCD-31109
1. Overnight Sensation
2. Overnight Sensation (Extended MIX)
3. Overnight Sensation (Original Karaoke)
1. BRAND NEW TOMORROW
2. BRAND NEW TOMORROW (J.V.N.
MIX)
3. Brand New Tomorrow (Tv MixBRAND
NEW TOMORROW)
1.
2.
3.
4.
For TRF, 1995 would continue to be a
gold year.
At the same time people would want
to jam with their synth pop music, the
group wanted to try something different
with Komuro Tetsuya leading the charge.
The group would dwelve into an
experimental stage with their music and
for the hit “Overnight Sensation”, the
group would start to incorporate more
of a live house feel with a funky feel and
continue with each member having their
vocal involvement.
The song would be used for a “HONDA Live Dio” CM song and would debut
at #1 on the Oricon Charts.
The CD single would sell 1.19 million
copies and would open up another exciting album “dAnce to positive” (their 4th
album) which would also debut at #1 on
March 27th.
From this point on with TRF’s music,
the group would begin to incorporate
the live house band to their live concert
performances and later CD singles.
The music video for “Overnight Sensation” was shot in Australia.
16 J!-ENT
With the release of “BRAND NEW
TOMORROW”, the 11th CD single from
the group would debut at #1 on the
Oricon Charts.
It was also another song since “survival dAnce” that would feature a song
that you can hear TK sing clearly in the
chorus.
With “Overnight Sensation” utilizing
the funky live house band feel, “BRAND
NEW TOMORROW” would have a twostep type of feel and return the group to
their synth pop dance roots.
The song would still incorporate a bit
of the funkiness found on their previous
CD single, so “BRAND NEW TOMORROW” would seem like a perfect marriage between the music of TRF’s present and past.
But if one would think that TRF was
going to go back to its roots of synth
pop in their next CD single, they would
be wrong because “BRAND NEW TOMORROW” would be the last CD single
to retain the TRF sound that people
knew and love.
The group would venture into new
territory with their next CD single.
Happening Here (More dAnce)
teens
Happening Here (Instrumental)
teens (instrumental)
After a tour through the fall of 1995
and an album release for “BRAND
NEW TOMORROW”, YU-KI’s slow song
“teens” would be featured in a chocolate CM and their new CD single “Happening Here” would debut at #3.
The song would continue the live
house feel but the choreography for
“Happening Here” was excellently demonstrated in music show performances
as TRF brought back the many background dancers (which the group did in
its earlier years) and rocked the house.
The music video for “Happening
Here” would also feature the amazing
choreography for this song.
TRF would end the year as one of the
most successful groups in Japan topping
the sales chart in Japan and being the #1
group in 1995 with the most sales with
their CD single “Overnight Sensation”
and their album “dAnce to positive”.
“Love & Peace Forever”
13TH CD SINGLE
Rel. March 21, 1996
AVDD-20121/AVCD-31110
“Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen”
14TH CD SINGLE
Rel. June 12, 1996
AVDD-20134/AVCD-31111
“BRAVE STORY”
15TH CD SINGLE
Rel. July 24, 1996
AVDD-20130/AVCD-31112
1. Love & Peace Forever
2. Love & Peace Forever (ORIGINAL
MIX)
3. Love & Peace Forever (70’s MIX)
4. Love & Peace Forever (TV MIX)
1. Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen
2. Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen (BUFFALO
MIX)
3. Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen (TV MIX)
1. BRAVE STORY (EDDIE DELENA
CLUB MIX)
2. BRAVE STORY (DIO MIX)
3. BRAVE STORY (DIO MIX INSTRUMENTAL)
With the release of the group’s 13th
CD single, TRF would continue to use
the live house band music incorporated
into their later music but now incorporate a 70’s hippy-pop style, moreso
in the music video for “Love & Peace
Forever” than “BRAND NEW TOMORROW”.
The song was a major departure from
their synth pop/dance club days and the
latest song was very disco in feel and
the move into this new direction was
made by Komuro Tetsuya who wanted
the group to embrace the world with
their music and in this case promote love
and peace.
Despite the change of style, the music still stayed within the realms of the
group’s dance music roots.
Despite using synth and being more
electronic focused, this song utilized
more strings, live house and very discolike in feel.
I was actually quite surprised to see
this change in the music and worried if
this was a permanent change or if it was
temporary for this song only.
For “Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen”, the
group quickly returned to a synth pop
song and no longer using the live house
band.
Unlike past TRF songs that had
unique transitions in its music, “Hey!
Ladies & Gentlemen” was very subdued
and simple compared to their past
singles.
The song was definitely a YU-KI-centric song which spotlighted on mostly
YU-KI’s vocals.
In fact, the music video for “Hey!
Ladies & Gentlemen” featured only YUKI as she is driving her car and taking
photos in another country.
For those wanting the original style
of sound of TRF, the BUFFALO MIX of
“Hey! Ladies and Gentlemen” was definite a nice addition to this CD single.
This CD single is also the first time
that TRF was used instead of the lowercase “trf”.
Personally, as much as I enjoyed the
song earlier on, I really craved the fast
pace music that I was used to hearing
from TRF.
With the release of “BRAVE STORY”,
TRF incorporated a World Groove style
to the music.
The song had another unique feel to
it with the music incorporating rock and
a bit of other types of instruments and
giving it a worldly feel to it.
Although not incoporating the live
house band, the song does use the
background dancers heavily used in their
music since “Overnight Sensation”.
The song that people are used to
hearing is the “DIO MIX” version (track
2 on the CD single) and the version that
was used in the music video but track
one features an Eddie Delena Club Mix
instead of the original version.
The music video was also another
YUKI-centric video as the other four
members were busy pursuing solo
projects.
SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU were
working on dance events such as
“DANCE REPUBLIC” and DJ KOO working on producing “DJ TRAIN ~Dance
Mixture~” that summer.
The group went on a fall tour titled
“TRF ‘96 ARENA TOUR” in Sept.
J!-ENT 17
“SILENT NIGHT”
16TH CD SINGLE
AVDD-20152/AVCD-31113
“LEGEND OF WIND”
17TH CD SINGLE
AVDD-2017/AVCD-31114
“Unite! The Night!”
18TH CD SINGLE
AVDD-20226/AVCD-31115
1. SILENT NIGHT
2. SILENT NIGHT (UP ALL NIGHT MIX)
3. SILENT NIGHT (INSTRUMENTAL)
1. LEGEND OF WIND
2. LEGEND OF WIND (WHISKEY BAR
MIX)
3. LEGEND OF WIND (INSTRUMENTAL)
1.
2.
3.
4.
For TRF, their 16th CD single was a
return to their dance roots.
Although utilizing a bit of electric guitar and brass horns, the group tried to
recapture the “Silver and Gold Dance”
style of feel.
Also, for the music video of “SILENT
NIGHT”, everyone was featured together again despite their busy solo projects.
It’s been awhile since we have seen
SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU on a TRF
music video, so it was great to see
everyone unite and do something similar
to TRF yesteryear.
For the fans who were not feeling the
direction the group went musically with
the release of “Love & Peace Forever”,
I believe that they could embrace the
dance music that TRF is truly known for
with “SILENT NIGHT”.
Also, returning was TRF’s incorporation of English and Japanese lyrics which
is another nod to their past work.
For this song, Komuro Tetsuya produced, composed, written and arranged
the music with a return of EDDIE DELENA for the remix.
19 J!-ENT
With “SILENT NIGHT” spurring
excitement of TRF returning to its dance
roots, with the release of “LEGEND OF
WIND”, the next song from TRF would
be a slow jam.
With the last CD single with everyone
returning for the “SILENT NIGHT” music
video, again... everyone but YU-KI are
not on this music video.
As for the CD single, I found “LEGEND OF WIND” and the music video to
be quite beautiful.
The music video featured a tropical island feel with YU-KI singing in her
hotel room with the palm trees in the
background and singing near the beautiful blue ocean.
“LEGEND OF WIND” would be the
final TK-produced CD single for TRF and
in 1997 would spend the Spring and
Summer on tour and would not return
with another CD single until Feb. 1998.
As for YU-KI, she would release her
first solo CD single “dragon’s dance” in
June 1997.
Unite! The Night!
Realize
Unite! The Night! (INSTRUMENTAL)
Realize (INSTRUMENTAL)
The last TRF CD single was back in
Dec. 1996, so it was great to hear from
TRF again.
Having been busy with their concert
tour in 1997, the group returned with
“Unite! The Night!” and collaborated
with Akio Togashi (aka m.c.A-T) and
what a wonderful collaboration it was.
In true m.c.A-T fashion, it was like
another dose of adrenalin to the music
of TRF.
The group needed a fresh shot of
something new and being a fan of the
music of Akio Togashi, it was definitely a
surprise to get something different.
For years, we have gotten used to
TRF ala TK style but here was a TRF
song done in m.c.A-T style.
The music video also brought everyone together and became another heavily choreographed music video featuring
a lot of dancing.
The coupling song “Realize” was
written by DJ KOO and featured a mix
by EDDIE DELENA.
“Frame”
19TH CD SINGLE
Rel. March 25, 1998
AVDD-20235/AVCD-31116
“TRY OR CRY”
20TH CD SINGLE
Rel. April 29, 1998
AVDD-20247/AVCD-31117
“BE FREE”
21ST CD SINGLE
Rel. September 23, 1998
AVDD-20262/AVCD-31118
1.
2.
3.
4.
1. TRY OR CRY
2. TRY OR CRY (DEEP SPRING NIGHT
MIX)
3. TRY OR CRY (INSTRUMENTAL)
1. BE FREE
2. It’s MY TIME
3. BE FREE (GET YOUR GROOVE BACK
BACK MIX)
4. BE FREE (INSTRUMENTAL)
Frame
frisky a Go-Go!
Frame (INSTRUMENTAL)
frisky a GO-GO! (INSTRUMENTAL)
The 19th CD single “Frame” by TRF
featured a song composed and arranged
by Kimura Takashi.
I’m assuming that this is the same
T.Kimura of Favorite Blue and m.o.v.e
fame and if that is the case, that would
definitely be another awesome collaboration like their last CD single with
m.c.A-T.
The song was written by Maeda Takahiro and DJ KOO and features another
style of music that is different from what
TRF has done before.
A pop song that has a lot of brass
horns and but with a cool beat that
makes it an all out enjoyable song to
listen to.
The coupling song “frisky a GO-GO!”
had a old school hip-hop feel to it and
is written by YU-KI and composed and
arranged by DJ KOO.
The song is mostly in English and I’m
still trying to find out what the lyrics “E
to the S to the C to the K & Y” is supposed to mean.
The 20th CD single “TRY OR CRY”
was the first CD single not produced by
TK or a famous music producer.
The song had it’s chance to become a
full on slow-jam but with the mid-tempo
bass going on throughout the song, the
song becomes more of a mid-tempo
groove that seemed like another YU-KIcentric song.
Although “Hey! Ladies and Gentlemen” seemed as a major departure for
TRF music-wise, at least the song sounded like a TRF song.
For me “TRY OR CRY” doesn’t.
It’s definitely more adult contemporary and it sounds more like something
that I would hear from Nakamori Akina
not TRF.
Not to say it’s a bad song but it’s so
different from any TRF song that I heard.
It just strays to far from what makes
their music so energetic and beautiful.
Despite it being different, on it’s own,
it’s alright but for a TRF song, it felt out
of place.
After the release of “TRY OR CRY”
which was a CD single that was so unlike
something to be released by TRF, the
group returned with their 21st CD single
“BE FREE”.
The group returns with a synth pop
dance song.
The music video features the group
having fun and dancing with many of the
dancers which always makes a TRF video
fun when they do that.
Something that you will see on this
video for the first time is the use of the
younger dancers which are the dancers
of the future that SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU have been scouting for their future
potential and it’s nice to see them
return to the dance element that made
TRF so popular.
Although not a techno or rave style
of song, nor does it really incorporate
any break beat or two-step type music,
for what its worth, I enjoy TRF so much
more when they are back in the element
of dance music and it was nice to hear
that with “Be Free”.
J!-ENT 20
“embrace/slug and soul”
22ND CD SINGLE
AVDD-20277/AVCD-31119
“JOY”
23RD CD SINGLE
AVDD-20295/AVCD-311120
“WIRED”
24TH CD SINGLE
Rel. April 21, 1999
AVDD-20302/AVCD-31121
1.
2.
3.
4.
1.
2.
3.
4.
1. WIRED (single edit)
2. THE SONG REMAINS THE EARTH
3. WIRED (Instrumental)
4. THE SONG REMAINS THE EARTH
(Instrumental)
embrace
slug and soul
embrace (INSTRUMENTAL)
slug and soul (INSTRUMENTAL)
TRF’s latest CD single “embrace/slug
and soul” is a beautiful mid-tempo song
since “Ai ga Mou Sukoshi Hoshii yo”.
The song is definitely my favorite
post-1997 songs to come from TRF and
I actually felt a bit giddy because it was
such a beautiful and yet strong song vocally by YU-KI.
“embrace” is the third song which
TRF worked with the writer Kudo Jyunko
and this time around, the third time is
definitely a charm.
Some may feel it to be more of a YUKI-centric song rather than a TRF song
but I love it.
It’s a beautiful song that I feel is one
of their best mid-tempo jams.
As for “slug and soul”, the song
takes TRF is that energetic song that I
have been waiting for and boy, does the
group deliver.
“embrace/slug and soul” is definitely
one of the biggest surprises to come
from TRF.
Definitely a TRF CD single worth
checking out!
20 J!-ENT
JOY
Reason of love
JOY (Instrumental)
Reason of love (Instrumental)
TRF’s 23rd CD single “JOY” surprisingly is another consecutive mid-tempo
song that is written by Kudo Junkyo and
YUKI.
“JOY” is actually a unique song to
come from TRF and I actually felt this
song was a nice and fresh song for the
group as it has a gospel feel to it with
the choir vocals but it’s done really well.
The music video for “JOY” is black
and white but shot quite beautifully,
showing a loneliness of a person who
wants to see joy between her and her
lover and not wanting to be alone.
As for the coupling song “Reason of
love”, this song is written and composed
by DJ KOO and is arranged by DJ KOO
and Tashiro Takahiro.
At this point of listening to TRF, with
their past few songs sounding more
adult contemporary with coupling songs
that are more experimental, I wonder
if TRF has become more of a mature
group targeting a different demographic
than what they were after before.
Nevertheless, its starting to grow on
me.
With the last two CD Single from TRF
being more mid-tempo jams, the group
returns with a faster up-beat song titled
“WIRED”.
The song was a surprise and lately,
with each CD single, you never know
what you are going to get with each TRF
CD single release.
As for the music video if “WIRED”,
Artistically (costume-wise), this is the
latest video to feature the group in a
different type of setting.
Whereas “Silver & Gold Dance” (UK
version) featured the group in futuristic outfits and YU-KI sporting red hair,
“WIRED” looks to be in a futuristic
world whereas the women are held in
cages and YU-KI sporting orange hair.
Featuring a lot of dancing and intricate set design, it’s interesting to see
how the music videos for TRF have become much more interesting to watch.
The coupling song “THE SONG REMAINS THE EARTH” is an upbeat song
written and composed by DJ KOO and
the chorus is by YUKI.
“Where to begin”
32ND CD SINGLE
Rel. January 18, 2006
AVCD-30887/AVCD-30886-B (DVD)
“Silence Whispers”
33RD CD SINGLE
Rel. Aug. 30, 2006
AVCD-31003/AVCD-31002/B
“We are all BLOOMIN’”
34TH CD SINGLE
Rel. Nov. 29, 2006
AVCD-31095/AVCD-31094 (DVD)
1. Where to begin
2. TRUTH ‘94 - meets Tomiko Van 3. Where to begin - Back Track-
1. Silence whispers
2. GOING 2 DANCE ‘06
3. Silence whispers - MUZIK-CHANNEL
MIX4. Silence whispers -MIZ TRANCE MIX5. Silence whispers - Back Track6. GOING 2 DANCE ‘06 - Back Track-
1. We are all BLOOMIN’
2. My Revolution
3. We are all BLOOMIN’ - Music Video
Edit 4. We are all BLOOMIN’ - Back Track 5. My Revolution - Back Track -
After the release of TRF’s 25th CD single
“He Lives in You” (note: The only TRF single
we don’t have, so we can’t review) which was
the Japanese theme for “Lion King II” back
in Aug. 1999 (AVCD-30048), TRF would not
release another official CD single for nearly
8 years.
In 2000, there were five more CD singles
from TRF released but they would be “Burst
drive Mix” CD singles and a special SEB presents “BOY MEETS GIRL with TRF” CD single.
Between 2000-2006, the group would
release several “Burst drive Mix” CD singles
and album but YU-KI would work on her solo
career and acting, KOO would work on producing another group and SAM, CHIHARU
and ETSU would go on to be part of dance
auditions, events and choreograph for artists
such as Hamasaki Ayumi..
The 26th CD single “Where to begin”
came out on Jan. 18th of 2006 and was an
awesome return for TRF.
It was a fast-paced, energetic song that
I have not heard from the group in so many
years.
TRF’s early music for me was pure energy and this CD single was definitely pure
energy. I love it!
Featuring an awesome choreographed
DVD with TRF and many of the dancing
entourage with the group performing in
another country in front of the locals. Simply
awesome!
TRF returns with another energetic
song with “Silence whispers” which was
used as a theme for the “Black Jack”
anime series.
I really enjoy TRF’s return back to
electronic, mixed, full energy music
where everyone is contributing.
Especially when you hear DJ KOO
rap with YUKI, so reminiscent of the
early years and I really enjoy that!
The music video is also pure energy
featuring a slick dance video of each
member in their element.
DJ KOO on the turntables, everyone
dancing and yes, there is pole dancing!
Another awesome release from TRF!
The CD single also offers various
remixes of “Silence whispers” and definitely enjoy the remix tribute to “GOING 2 DANCE”.
This was the first CD single that I can
remember that included several mixes
on one CD single and more than 3-4
tracks.
The mixes are awesome! The CD
single is definitely worth checking out!
This is the third consecutive CD single
from TRF that is full of energy and continues the synth dance pop sound that
the group is known for.
So, it’s great to have three straight
dance songs from TRF that are reminiscent of their older, energetic but yet so
freakin’ awesome style that I love.
The coupling song is the 1986 classic “My Revolution” (originally sung by
Watanabe Biri and written by popular
writer Kawamura Masumi).
The song gets the TRF treatment and
it’s a very cool version of the song and
YU-KI does a great job.
The music video features the five acting as dance audition judges, while their
counterparts (the five playing dancers)
are competing with other dancers.
This one definitely shows SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU’s utilization of dancers
from Japan, children, teens and young
adults.
An awesome CD single from TRF that
fans should definitely pick up!
J!-ENT 21
J ! - E N T ’ S D E N N I S A . A M I T H & H I R O S H I TA G AWA I N T E R V I E W S M A X
R E A D T H E S P E C I A L F E AT U R E N O W O N J ! = E N T
SONIC GROOVE
worldgroove
J!-ENT
A J!-ENT MUSIC REVIEW
trf
EZ DO DANCE
Avex Trax
AVCD-11128
Website: trf.avexnet.or.jp
RELEASE DATE: July 21, 1993 | Dur: 40:36
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
EZ DO DANCE
ROCK IT ON!!
ISLAND ON YOUR MIND
ON MY WAY
ONE MORE NIGHT
RAVING ZONE
EZ DO DANCE (UK DANCER VERSION)
ONE MORE NIGHT (UK DANCE VERSION)
Back in 1993, I recall one CD single and its
video clip that would capture my attention and
instantaneously make me a TRF fan.
I remember how excited I was when I
received trf’s (note: In the early 90’s, the group
used a lowercase “trf”) “EZ DO DANCE” album.
During the early 90’s, pop music was
primarily dominated by idol pop.
May it be WINK or Hikaru Genji, the scene
was dominated by rock music.
But I always kept my eyes for groups that
featured great music and great choreography
and there was ZOO (which featured dancer
Higashi Hiroyuki who went on to create and
become leader of the R&B group EXILE) and
there was trf.
The group which stood for “tetsuya komuro’s
rave factory” featured vocalist YU-KI, DJ KOO
and dancers and background vocalists SAM,
CHIHARU and ETSU.
When the group first began, as seen on the
cover of the “EZ DO DANCE”, there were more
members of the group who were dancers and
thus may have been seen as a large R&B/dance
troupe like ZOO.
At the time, avex trax was promoting a lot
of their acts with the Juliana’s Tokyo nightclub
which would bring popular DJ’s from UK and at
the time techno rave was quite popular.
Mega producer and musician Komuro Tetsuya
wanted to bring together the music of the night
club scene together with a music group and trf
was born.
In February 1993, trf released their first CD
single “GOING 2 DANCE, OPEN YOUR MIND”
(AVDD-20036) but their second CD single “EZ
DO DANCE” (AVDD-20042, rel. June 21, 2003)
was the song that would turn many listeners
attention to the new group.
Used as a CM song for “Sea Breeze”, the CD
single broke the Oricon top 20 debuting at #16
and when the album “EZ DO DANCE” came
out, their second album would reach #4 on the
Oricon charts.
What made this album even more special was
that the album continued to sell well two years
later and still on the Oricon Album Charts top
100 (at #62) in Jan. 1995.
I can easily recall the music video for “EZ DO
DANCE” turning heads as the women would
dance wearing daisy duke shorts and the guys
jamming with awesome choreography.
At this time in Japanese music, nothing was
< THE DYNASTY BEGINS...
trf’s second full-length album becomes the spark that will help create the synergy for many years to come.
close to what trf was doing.
The top 20 would be dominated by B’z,
Lindberg, ZARD, DEEN and other rock bands in
1993 but there would be one dance group that
would stick out that I had to discover what this
group was all about.
The group’s music would be entirely synth
based which was no surprise since the songs
were written and composed by Komuro
Tetsuya.
Although not complete techno rave in
the sense of what people in the US and UK
were listening to at the time, the music was
definitely inspired by it.
Playing the album for the first time, the song
would start off with the group’s hit song “EZ
DO DANCE” which was just irresistibly catchy.
Featuring TK’s music, DJ Koo’s rapping and
YU-KI’s agile and warm vocals, the group had
struck a unique balance.
The second track “ROCK IT ON!!” seemed
like a dance-inducing song as the group would
repeat three phrases over and over again but
feature more of Koo’s hipster banter (which
all rap parts were not included in the lyrics
booklet).
The third track “ISLAND ON YOUR MIND”
was simply an innocent pop song featuring
everyone singing the chorus.
I found the song so addicting that even to this
day, I can never get enough of it.
The fourth track “ON MY WAY” would be a
TK song that had a certain sound that would be
recognized in future TK songs.
It’s also a song that would feature YU-KI
and KOO rapping together and hear a lot of
Komuro’s background vocals which was prevalent
throughout this track.
The fifth and sixth track “ONE MORE NIGHT”
(used on Fuji TV’s “RAVE’N ROUGE”) and
“RAVING ZONE” would be the groups English
songs in an effort to help cross-promote a
Japanese rave group in different countries.
The final two tracks “EZ DO DANCE (UK
DANCE VERSION)” and “ONE MORE NIGHT
(UK DANCE VERSION)” would feature YU-KI and
KOO performing in English.
The group’s music (in English) would be
featured in several European techno/rave dance
compilations (sold in Europe and the US) and trf
would be on the sole group from Japan promoted
on this compilations.
“EZ DO DANCE” will continue to be an album
that I can never foresee myself letting go.
This album was my first fore into the music of
trf and what turned me on to the group. This
album is definitely a J-POP classic.
worldgroove
J!-ENT
trf
HYPER TECHNO MIX II
avex trax
AVCD-11122
Duration: 49:24
OFFICIAL WEBSITE: trf.avexnet.or.jp
RELEASE DATE: October 21, 1993
1. EZ DO DANCE (TRANCE DRIVE MIX)
2. ROCK IT ON!! (Hi-BPM MIX)
3. ISLAND ON YOUR MIND (OZ CONTINENTAL MIX)
4. ON MY WAY (HOUSE MIX)
5. ONE MORE NIGHT (POWER MIX)
6. ROCK IT ON!! (HARD-HOUSE MIX)
7. RAVING ZONE (GTE MIX)
8. ON MY WAY (M-II MIX)
9. ROCK IT ON!! (RAVE MIX)
10. EZ DO DANCE (EXTENDED VERSION)
The second of the HYPER TECHNO MIX
albums came out back in October 1993.
During this time, trf was not yet the
powerhouse group that they would later
become.
With two full-albums released and a
remix album, Komuro Tetsuya and KOO
were back working on the next “HYPER
TECHNO MIX” album that would feature
DJ’s MAXIMIZOR, OZ, M-II, IWA, STARR
GAZER, AXISS-SEQUENCE and other DJ’s
that were known during the JULIANA’S
TOKYO years.
The latest HYPER TECHNO MIX album
would remix songs from the album “EZ DO
DANCE with several HTM versions of “EZ
DO DANCE” and “ROCK IT ON!!”.
Why I enjoy this album so much is
because it was so different from any
Japanese music that I was listening to back
in 1993. So, it’s a bit nostalgic for me.
During that time, rock was dominating
the Japanese music charts and with “EZ
DO DANCE” introducing me to TRF, I
picked up this album and because it was
so different to other CD’s in my collection,
it became one of the top CD’s that I would
have in my player for years.
I enjoyed it so much that I wanted
friends to listen to it because I felt it was
that good.
My favorite tracks from the album
were “EZ DO DANCE” (TRANCE DRIVE
MIX), “ROCK IT ON!! (Hi-BPM MIX)”
and “ISLAND ON YOUR MIND (OZ
CONTINENTAL MIX)”.
The album debuted at #62 on the
Oricon Charts but as the group would
released their third album “WORLD
GROOVE”, this is when popularity of trf
would gain amazing synergy and in the
next incarnation of “HYPER MIX” would
reach the #1 position on the Oricon charts.
< trf
GETS HYPER TECHNO MIXED!
Right after the debut of trf’s first album, avex trax releases two hyper techno mix albums
THE FIRST OF THE HYPER
TECHNO MIX ALBUMS
trf
HYPER TECHNO MIX
avex trax
AVCD-11122, Rel. May 21, 1993
Duration: 37:39
Not long after the debut of trf’s first
album “trf ~THIS IS THE TRUTH~”
(AVCD-11102, rel. Feb. 25, 1993), avex
trax released “HYPER TECHNO MIX”.
With JULIANA’S TOKYO receiving its fair share of remix albums from
avex trax, it was obvious that avex trax
wanted to have a Japanese group on
those techno rave albums.
In May 1993, “HYPER TECHNO MIX”
was released and featured six tracks
with the majority of the tracks in English.
One of the reasons for purchasing this album was “GOING 2 DANCE
(STARR GAZER MIX)” which was in my
opinion the best version of “GOING 2
DANCE” ever.
Also, the clips of trf performing this
song at Tokyo Dome was a sight to be
seen as YUKI, KOO and MEGAMIX
(the eight dancers which include SAM, CHIHARU
and ETSU) just gave an awesome performance
(you can see this on the “World Groove” video or
DVD).
In 1994, the track “OPEN YOUR MIND (U.S.
MIX)” would be added on the US compilation album “100% ENERGY” as the sole Japanese band
on the compilation.
All in all, a very cool remix album which was a
bit pricey for only 6 songs at the time.
worldgroove
J!-ENT
trf
WORLD GROOVE
avex trax
AVCD-11183
Duration: 1:03:28
RELEASE DATE: Feb. 9, 2004
1. WORLD GROOVE 1st. chapter
2. Feel the CENTURY
3. Samui Yoru Dakara (SEQ OVER DUB MIX)
4. CAMILLE CLAUDEL
5. WORLD GROOVE 2nd. chapter
6. Waiting Waves (Natsu no Kibun wo Machiwabite)
7. Silver and Gold dance (Remix)
8. Beauty and Beast
9. Ai ga mou sukoshi hoshii yo
10. Winter Grooves
11. WORLD GROOVE 3rd chapter (main message)
12. Watashi ga nozomumono...anata ga Hoshi
mono (Do what you want)
trf’s third album “WORLD GROOVE”
was released in Feb. 9, 2004 and became
the first album to hit #1 on the Oricon
Charts for the emerging pop/dance group.
By October 1995, the album had
reached 1.6 million in sales.
Featuring a string of hits such as
“Samui Yoru Dakara”, “Ai ga mou sukoshi
hoshii yo”, “Silver and Gold dance”, the
album would contain non-release hits
such as “WORLD GROOVE”, “Feel the
CENTURY”, “CAMILLE CLAUDEL” and
“Winter Grooves”, if one wondered how
the group would do for their album after
their last hit album “EZ DO DANCE” no
need to worry.
“WORLD GROOVE” is a fantastic
album featuring catchy, energetic songs
that define TRF and makes you want to
get on the dance floor and dance.
This album for me was trf showing
the world that music is truly global and
whether or not you understand the lyrics
or not, by listening to the music, we have
the same emotion and just wanting to
groove.
“WORLD GROOVE”, the song,
continues to be one of my favorite songs
from trf and over a decade later, this
album still remains one of my favorite.
Just an FYI, after the 12th track is a
hidden track which is more or less an
instrumental by Komuro Tetsuya (who
tend to end an album in the 90’s that he
produced with an instrumental).
All in all, one of trf’s highlight albums
featuring great music that continues to
stand the time.
Absolutely awesome!
< trf Shows Us the Path to World Groove
trf’s third album features multiple hits and the third time is definitely a charm.
Featuring Three Years, Three
Live Albums of trf
trf
THE LIVE
avex trax
AVCD-11408, Rel. February 21, 1996
3 LIVE ALBUMS
With the release of “avex dance
matrix `95” CD which featured avex
and TK family artists performing live,
it was great to see that a trf live album
would be released.
More surprising was the release of
a box set with not one but three live
albums.
Included are “TOUR `94 - BILLIONAIRE - BOY MEETS GIRL” (12
tracks), “dAnce to positive TOUR `95
Overnight Sensation” (13 tracks),
“BRAND NEW TOMORROW in TOKYO DOME -presentation for 1996-”
(10 tracks).
Granted that their are video releases for these three trf concerts but
during the mid-90’s, concert videos
and LD’s were very expensive.
One of the difficulties of live albums are
getting good recordings but with these three
albums, you get great audio quality and a
good balance of clarity between vocals and
the audience.
It was very exciting to hear the audience
really pumped during the performances.
Included with the box set was a photo
booklet with concert photos and autograph by
each member of trf and a keychain.
This is the definitive trf purchase for those
wanting to hear trf perform live.
worldgroove
J!-ENT
trf
BILLIONAIRE BOY MEETS GIRL
avex trax
AVCD-11230
Duration: 42:54
RELEASE DATE: July, 27, 1994
1. Billionaire (Original Summer ‘94 MIX)
2. Le Bleu (Grand Bleu Dance)
3. BOY MEETS GIRL (12” Club Mix)
4. Sexual in Gravure (Jazzy Groove Mix)
5. Truth ‘94 (Unplugged Style Remix)
6. Kool Lovers Sentimental (Meaning of 3 Mix)
7. Survival dAnce (12” Remix)
8. Billionaire (Club Beatmasters Mix)
trf
dAnce to positive
avex trax
AVCD-11288
RELEASE DATE: March 27, 1995
1. Welcome to Funky positive world
2. SEE THE SKY ~1999...Tsukiga Chikyuuni
KISS wo suru~
3. masquerade
4. FUNKY M
6. Destiny to love (Aisuru Unmei)
7. ESCAPE
8. Let it go! (trival dAnce)
9. Never give up on love (interlude)
10. dAnce is my Life Kei
11. ENGAGED
13. OVERNIGHT PIANO DREAM
trf
BRAND NEW TOMORROW
avex trax
AVCD-11354
RELEASE DATE: December 11, 1995
2. ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE
3. Xmas Dance Wiz U [HAPPY NEW MIX]
4. Happening Here
5. Hold The Line
6. Silver And Gold Dance [TK KC]
7. Teens
8. Winter Grooves 96
9. R&r,who?”t”koo-l
10. HOT WINTER NIGHT ~samui yoru dakara~
1. Realize
2. Frisky A Go Go
3. Frame
4. In The Move To Be
5. Darkscape
6. Earl Grey
7. TRY OR CRY
When trf came out with their fourth full-length album
“BILLIONAIRE BOY MEETS GIRL”, it debuted at #2 on the Oricon
charts and the next week at #1.
This album would be the synergy that lit the spark for trf with the
release of their CD single “survival dAnce” and “BOY MEETS GIRL”.
One of the most interesting things about this album is that every
track is somewhat of a remix. Although it is not classified as a remix
album.
Nevertheless, similar to “WORLD GROOVE”, you get a great
does of trf hits that were not released as CD singles such as the
enjoyable “Billionaire”, the slow jam “Truth `94” and the breakbeat,
P5-like track “Sexual in Gravure”.
Despite being only 8 tracks, still a very strong trf album with a
number of cool songs.
Perhaps the most successful
trf album.
“dAnce to positive” debuted
at #1 and topped the album sales
chart in 1995.
On April 3, 1995, the album
sales total was 1.80 million and
by October 1995, “dAnce to
positive” reached 3.36 million in
overall sales.
At this point in trf’s illustrious
career, each CD single released
at this time was debuting at #1
and this album featured a string
of hits such as “masquerade”,
“Overnight Sensation” and
“CRAZY GONNA CRAZY”.
With trf still topping the charts,
their sixth full-length album “BRAND
NEW TOMORROW” would reach #2
on its second week on the charts.
The album would feature the
group’s 11th and 12th CD single
“Happening Here” and “BRAND
NEW TOMORROW” and would mark
the return of previous hits in a new
version such as “Silver and Gold
Dance [TK KC] (Komuro Tetsuya and
Cozy Kubo)”, “Winter Grooves 96”
and a reggae version of “Samui Yoru
Dakara” aka “HOT WINTER NIGHT”.
8. Meltin You
9. Future Shock
10. Friends
11. Its My Time
12. Get Up Stand Up Unity
13. Unite The Night
TRF
LOOP #1999
avex trax
AVCD-11723
RELEASE DATE: May 19,1999
1. slug and soul
2. Be Free
3. Sign Of The Innocence
4. Youre My Soul
5. embrace
6. We Can Do That Sit Everything
7. Dj Big Beat
8. JOY
9. Lookin For The Paradise
10. Stand Up And Dance
11. Close To The End
12. WIRED
13. HE LIVES IN YOU
14. Song Remains The Earth,the
15. BREATH
In May 1999, TRF would release their
eighth full-length album “LOOP #1999”.
The album would contain their 23rd
through 26th CD singles such as “JOY”,
“WIRED”, “embrace/slug and soul” and
“HE LIVES IN YOU” which was used
as the theme song for the Japanese
version of Disney’s “LION KING II”.
“LOOP #1999” would be the last
album we would get from TRF until
Feb. 2006 with the release of “Life eMotions”.
TRF
UNITE
avex trax
AVCD-11645
RELEASE DATE: May 20, 1998
The seventh full-length album from TRF featuring the
group’s 18th-20th CD singles “Unite! The Night!”, “Frame”
and “TRY OR CRY”.
Their first album in over three years!
worldgroove
J!-ENT
trf
HYPER MIX III
avex trax
AVCD-11200, Duration: 49:22
RELEASE DATE:April 27, 1994
1. Silver and Gold dance (BATTERY MIX)
“133BPM”
2. Feel the CENTURY (HARD CORE
ODESSEY) “139.5BPM”
3. WORLD GROOVE (Esprit da Funk Mini Mix)
“105.5BPM)
4. SAMUI YORU DAKARA (EURO-HOUSE MIX)
“130BPM”
5. Beauty and Beast (TRANCE ACTIVE 40627)
“130BPM”
6. Waiting Waves (NEO-RAGA MIX) “94.58BPM”
7. Time after Time (LAND-MARK) “135BPM”
8. Silver and Gold dance (WAKO’S POWER
MIX) “133BPM”
9. impression of trf (VERSION 3:1:9)
“137.5BPM”
10. WORLD GROOVE (Esprit da Funk Maxi
Mix) “105.5BPM)
As much as I love the first two “HYPER
TECHNO MIX” albums of trf, “HYPER MIX
III” probably stayed on my CD player for the
longest time.
“HYPER MIX III” which topped the charts
on May 16, 1994 at #1 on the Oricon Charts
achieving something that hasn’t been done
in Japan at that time and rarely happens
today.
With the success of trf’s third album
“WORLD GROOVE”, there was definitely a
lot of awesome music for DJ KOO to remix
for the fans.
Without having to do 2-3 remixes of the
same song, fortunately many of the hits on
the “WORLD GROOVE” album get remixed
and the result is fantastic.
The interpretations of the songs this time
are polished and well-planned with “WORLD
GROOVE” receiving a groovy, jazzy remix.
“Feel the CENTURY” gets the true trf
pure energy boost and becomes the better
version over the original.
“SAMUI YORU DAKARA” gets a Eurohouse mix and features YUKI singing the
song in English.
The tropical trf song “Waiting Waves”
gets a reggae style remix.
“Silver and Gold dance” and “WORLD
GROOVE” get two remixes each and that’s
perfectly fine with me as both are definitely
the two super hits from the “WORLD
GROOVE” album.
Unfortunately, trf’s hit “Ai ga Mou Sukoshi
Hoshii yo” is the only track that did not get
the remix treatment.
All in all, a solid remix album and possibly
the best trf hyper mix version of the four
that were released.
< THE FIRST JAPANESE REMIX ALBUM TO REACH #1
trf’s third remix album is a charm as it reaches #1 position on the Oricon Charts
THE FINAL trf HYPER MIX
ALBUM
trf
hyper mix 4
avex trax
AVCD-11313, DURATION: 1:15:24
Rel. June 21, 1996
The fourth and final CD in the trf “HYPER MIX” series would feature hits from
their top albums “BILLIONAIRE BOY
MEETS GIRL” (July 1994) and “dAnce
to positive” (March 1995).
I have to admit that I wasn’t sure how
the songs would get the remix treatment
as trf was heading to more of a live
house direction.
Featured on this album are hits such
as “Overnight Sensation (Energy SHOW
time Mix)”, “BOY MEETS GIRL (Perfect
Sunshine Mix)”, “CRAZY GONNA CRAZY (Local Angel Mix), “Destiny to Love
(Real tonight Mix), “masquerade” (R and
M and PLANT Mix), “survival dAnce (95
TUBE Drive Mix), “Island On Your Mind
(99’s Sea Side Mix), “SAM thing Nite (t.
komuro’s Mix) and “SEE THE SKY (70’s
Flower Mix).
On the past remix albums, DJ KOO
and several well known DJ’s contributed to the
remix album but for “trf hyper mix 4”, this album
would be a Komuro Tetsuya produced album.
Komuro Tetsuya, Mick Guzauski and Dave
Ford would be the main remixers on this album.
The remixes incorporate the live house band
feel with a DJ dance hall club mix feel.
So, unlike previous remix albums which were
very energetic and dance club feel, this album
would be different in style.
All in all, a good album but different from what
I would expect from a “HYPER MIX” album.
worldgroove
J!-ENT
TRF
WORKS - THE BEST OF TRF
avex trax
AVCD-11633
RELEASE DATE: January 1, 1998
DISK 1: (DURATION: 55:33)
2. Silver and Gold Dance
3. EZ DO DANCE
4. GOING 2 DANCE (STARR GAZER MIX)
5. Ladies & Gentlemen
6. Ai ga mousukoshi Hoshii yo
7. BILLIONAIRE
9. Survival dAnce ~no no cry more~
11. Truth ‘94 (Do what you want)
1. BRAVE STORY
2. SILENT NIGHT
3. masquerade
4. Happening Here
5. teens
6. See The Sky
8. BOY MEETS GIRL
10. LEGEND OF WIND
11. WORLD GROOVE
With so many albums and CD single
releases, one would wonder when TRF
was going to release a best album.
On New Year’s Day of 1998, TRF’s first
best album “WORKS - THE BEST OF TRF”
was released right on the heels of the
group’s fifth year anniversary.
The best album would include TRF’s
first 17 CD singles from the first GOING
2 DANCE (and it’s the better and hipper
“STARR GAZER MIX from “HYPER
TECHNO MIX”) up to “LEGEND OF
WIND”.
Also, included are 5-non singles but
were hits for TRF such as “BILLIONAIRE,
“WORLD GROOVE”, “Truth `94”, “teens”
and “See the Sky”.
At this time, this was the best album to
get if you wanted to own a TRF album.
You get all the hit songs and several
more hits that are pretty much the best
songs to come from the group thus far.
Although, 15 years later since TRF’s
debut and if you are wondering if
“WORKS - THE BEST OF TRF” is worth
getting, I highly recommend the 2007
“TRF - 15TH ANNIVERSARY BEST
MEMORIES” release for more bang for
the buck.
Otherwise, if you find a good deal on
this album, you can’t go wrong.
< FINALLY! A TRF BEST ALBUM IS RELEASED!
Celebrating the group’s fifth year anniversary, TRF’s first best album is released.
THE NEXT GENERATION TRF
REMIX ALBUM
TRF
Burst drive MIX -albumavex trax
AVCD-11879, DURATION: 1:15:24
For remix albums, I really like nonstop remix albums and for fans of TRF
remixes, “Burst drive MIX -album-” is
just that.
Featuring 15 tracks of remixes for
songs such as “BOY MEETS GIRL”,
“WIRED”, “masquerade”, “Overnight
Sensation”, “HE LIVES IN YOU” and
much more.
Despite the cover having “non-stop
remixes by DJ KOO”, only a few of them
are.
In fact, songs such as “It’s MY TIME”
and “Unite the Night!” are Soul Solution
Mixes by Bobby Guy and Ernie Lake.
The track “slug and soul” is remixed
by Gomi, “Silver and Gold Dance” is remixed by world reknown Thunderpuss,
“masquerade” is remixed by Jason
Nevins, “Brave Story” is remixed by
Jonathan Peters, “Overnight Sensation”
is remixed by K-Klass and a few others.
So, there are quite a few good names on this
remix album.
DJ KOO’s remixes are actually very well done.
The remixes range from dance club to industrial remixes and the songs largely retain its vocal
content.
So, it’s great to see a DJ KOO remix album
since “HYPER MIX IIII”.
If you need your TRF remix fix or looking for
different interpretations of your favorite TRF
songs, definitely check this album out.
worldgroove
J!-ENT
TRF
Lif-e-Motions
avex trax
AVCD-17858~9/B (with DVD), AVCD-17860 (CD)
RELEASE DATE: February 15, 2006
DISK 1: (DURATION: 1:01:35)
1. Good day, Sunshine
2. Everlastings
3. Where to begin
4. You & me
5. Precious
6. As it is
7. Urbanature
8. Signal Theta
9. Life signs again
10. Be ever wonderful
11. One Nation
12. ENGAGED ‘06
13. DANCE LOOP #4
14. DANCE LOOP #5
15. DANCE LOOP #6
1. EZ DO DANCE -meets KEIKO2. Silver and Gold dance - meets T.M. Revolution
3. survival dAnce ~no no cry more~ -meets BoA4. TRUTH ‘94 - meets Tomiko Van 5. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY - meets AAA6. masquerade - meets Youki Kudoh 7. Overnight Sensation - meets Goro Kishitani &
Yasufumi Terawaki 8. teens - meets AYUMI HAMASAKI 9. BRAVE STORY - meets Every Little Thing 10. JOY - meets Koda Kumi DVD: 99 minutes, Region 2, 4:3
1. History of TRF
2. Music Video Clips (short 10 Videos)
3. TRF & Collabo Artists Special Interview
4. Special Work Shop in DVD Vol. 2 (4ch MultiAngle)
It has been seven long years without a
TRF full-length album.
The last time we have heard from TRF was
back in May 1999 with “LOOP #1999” but
since 2000-2005, all there was available from
TRF was “Burst drive MIX” remix CD singles
and albums.
That all changed in Feb. 2006 with the
release of TRF’s 9th full-length album “Life
e-Motions” and would get TRF fans excited
because not only would it be their longawaited album but the album would feature
a tribute version featuring popular stars and
actors singing TRF songs.
Also, a special DVD that would include
the history of TRF, dance lessons and much
more.
The new album would include the group’s
32nd CD single “Where to Begin” and the
track “Life signs again” which was a track
that was not released as a CD single but a
short film ala music video was created and
< FINALLY!
A NEW TRF ALBUM!
TRF’s long awaited full-length album in seven years features a tribute album and DVD.
would feature an awesome track featuring trf
and rapper HIDE from dt.
The overall album is purely dance in
nature and has the feel of the music they
released back in the “dAnce to positive” and
“BRAND NEW TOMORROW” years.
You also, you get a few instrumental
tracks such as “Signal Theta” (from DJ KOO’s
latest project WILL”).
You also get the “DANCE LOOP” tracks
for the dance training lessons featured on
the DVD.
As for the tribute album, you never
know what you are going to get with them
and the TRF tribute album is definitely an
album where you get something similar and
something very different.
KEIKO (of globe) and Komuro Tetsuya
gives an interesting version of the popular hit
“EZ DO DANCE”.
Mainly an instrumental featuring TK,
KEIKO does her own spin (and lyrics) for the
song.
The most surprising was the rock
version of “Silver and Gold dance” by T.M.
Revolution.
To be truthful, I was not expecting T.M.
Revolution to be involved in this album but
overall, he does the song some justice in
definite Nishikawa unique fashion.
Another big surprise was the slow ballad
version of “TRUTH ‘94” by Tomiko Van
(Do As Infinity) which was included on the
“Where to begin” CD single.
Also, another beautiful rendition was
Hamasaki Ayumi’s version of “teens” and
Koda Kumi’s version of “JOY”.
These three are awesome, relaxing
renditions of the original songs and the three
that are definitely the best tribute songs on
the album.
As for similarities, AAA is like the new,
young generation TRF featuring five men and
three women and they do a great job with
“CRAZY GONNA CRAZY”.
For Overnight Sensation, instead of TK,
KOO and SAM on the vocals, surprisingly
you get YUKI singing with veteran actors
Kishitani Goro and Terawaki Yasufumi.
The DVD includes a 4-minute “HISTORY
OF TRF” video, the 10 short music video
clips of TRF’s songs that fellow avex artists
sung on the tribute album.
Also, an interview with the artists who
performed on the tribute album and as TRF
music videos have been inspirational for
people to pick up really cool dance moves,
the DVD includes a “Special Work Shop in
DVD Vol. 2” featuring SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU teaching dance moves in 4ch Multi
Angle.
All in all, a great release and it’s great to
see TRF back in full force again!
worldgroove
J!-ENT
TRF
15th Anniversary BEST MEMORIES
avex trax
(A) AVCD-23167 (Limited Edition), (B) AVCD23170 (CD + DVD), (C) AVCD-23172 (CD only)
RELEASE DATE: February7, 2007
DISK 1: - LISTENERS SELECT(DURATION: 1:11:59)
1. Where to begin
2. BOY MEETS GIRL
4. LEGEND OF WIND
7. masquerade
8. JOY
9. Unite! The Night!
11. survival dAnce -no no cry more12. EZ DO DANCE
DISK 2: - TRF SELECT (DURATION: 1:12:54)
1. THIS IS THE JOY
2. Silver and Gold dance (BATTERY MIX)
3. ISLAND ON YOUR MIND
4. Winter Grooves
5. Destiny to Love
6. FUNKY M
7. Friends
8. CLOSE TO THE END
9. Frame
10. Sign of the Innocence
11. WIRED (Album Full Version)
12. Silence Whispers
13. BRAVE STORY (DIO MIX)
14. WORLD GROOVE 3rd. chapter (main message)
DISK 3:- REMIX (DURATION: 1:10:26)
1. Overnight Sensation (12” Remix)
2. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY (Damien’s Classic
Mix)
3. BOY MEETS GIRL (Baement Boys 12”
Remix)
4. Destiny to Love (Masters At Work Remix)
5. survival dAnce (Damien’s Classic Mix)
6. Overnight Sensation (S-Man Sensation)
7. Escape (12” American Rap)
8. Funky M (12” Version)
9. OVernight Sensation (Basement Boys 12
Remix)
10. survival dAnce (Damien’s 8:00 Dub)
DVD 1: - TRF Music Video Clips 1 DURATION: 73 minutes, Region 2, 4:3
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
OPEN YOUR MIND
EZ DO DANCE
Ai ga Mousukoshi Hoshii yo
Silver and Gold dance
Samui Yoru Dakara
Feel the CENTURY
WORLD GROOVE
< THE
DEFINITIVE TRF ALBUM!
Featuring three albums and three DVD’s. The best TRF release ever!
8. Silver and Gold dance (HYPER MIX III version)
9. srurvival dAnce -no no cry more10. BOY MEETS GIRL
12. masquerade
14. Samui Yoru Dakara... (1994 version)
DVD 2: - TRF Music Video Clips 2 DURATION: 77 minutes, Region 2, 4:3
2. Happening Here
4. Hey! Ladies & Gentlemen
5. SILENT NIGHT
6. LEGEND OF WIND
8. BE FREE
9. JOY
10. WIRED
11. HE LIVES IN YOU
12. Where to begin
13. Life signs again
14. Silence whispers
DVD 3: -15th Anniversary Special DVDDURATION: 88 minutes, Region 2, 4:3
1. History of TRF II
2. TRF TVCM & SPOT Clips
3. 15th Anniversary Message from TRF
It’s hard to believe that the 15th year
anniversary for TRF is here.
I can clearly remember watching “EZ
DO DANCE” and being entranced by the
music video, me and my friends dancing to
“BOY MEETS GIRL”, my brother watching
TRF music videos and to learn SAM’s
dance moves and so many memories made
because of the music of TRF.
So, here we are in 2007 with perhaps
the definitive TRF album ever in three
different releases on launch date.
“TRF 15th Anniversary BEST
MEMORIES” would feature three CD’s
featuring the songs that listeners have
selected (on disc 1), songs that TRF
selected (on disc 2) and remixes (on disc 3).
Album A would feature primarily the
three music CD’s without the DVD’s.
If you purchased album B, you would get
the additional 2-DVD’s that would include
29 music videos.
If you purchased the Limited Edition
(album A), this is where you are in for a
treat as you get an additional DVD that
contains the history of DVD (if you are
a TRF fan, this is an important reason to
purchase the limited edition), TRF TV CM
and SPOT clips and a 15th Anniversary
message from TRF.
The limited edition also comes with a
towel and personalized headphones. So,
you get a lot for what is included in the
Limited Edition version.
Now, going back to 1998, TRF released
“WORKS - BEST OF TRF” to celebrate
their 5th Year Anniversary.
Back then i called it the definitive TRF
album because it had nearly ever CD
single released but this time around, the
“TRF 15th Anniversary BEST MEMORIES”
eclipses the last best album in every way.
Although this version doesn’t include
every CD single that the group has
released, every top hit that TRF has
released is on this album.
There are a few that I wish were on here
such as “Happening Here”, “HE LIVES IN
YOU” “engaged”, “GOING 2 DANCE”,
“BILLIONAIRE” and “Waiting Waves” but
what can you do when the group has so
many CD single and non-CD single release
hits.
As for the DVD’s, as mentioned, 29
music videos which also include non-CD
single releases such as “Samui Yoru Dakara
... (1994 version) and “Life signs again”.
Similar to the CD albums, not all music
videos are on the two DVD’s such as
“BRAVE STORY”, “Frame”, “Silver and
Gold dance (UK Version)” and “GOING
2 DANCE” (Live at Tokyo Dome) but
nevertheless, you get pretty much every
music video released.
Now, the third DVD which is the “15th
Anniversary Special” is just awesome.
I am not sure if “album B” includes the
“15th Anniversary Special” or if it’s only
on the Limited Edition version but the
“History of TRF II” is just the ultimate
video to own if you are a TRF fan.
When we first got the “History of TRF”
on the “Life-e-Motions” CD+DVD, it was
more or less 4-minutes long.
This time, it’s close to an hour and a half
long and it’s not in documentary format.
What you get to see is the personal
videos recorded by staff and members of
TRF.
This includes the 8mm footage from
when the group was filming their music
videos for “BOY MEETS GIRL”, “survival
dAnce”, “Overnight Sensation” in Mexico
and Australia.
You get to see SAM and CHIHARU
always dissing each other but having fun
like brother and sister.
You get to see how big a dog fan that
YU-KI is and how other members of TRF
treat her dogs like family.
What’s very interesting was to see that
YU-KI brings her dogs on shot locations
and studio recordings.
You get to see SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU coming up with dance moves for TRF
and also for Hamasaki Ayumi.
You get to see personal videos of
birthdays of TRF members held by
management and label staff.
In one video, members of TRF visit
CHIHARU’s apartment after she cooks a
spaghetti meal.
Quite a bit of footage of the group
eating and making jokes with each other.
Another segment showed SAM going
near cliff areas and just defying warning
signs and standing on the steep rocks over
looking the ocean.
There is behind-the-scene concert
footage and so much more included that
I have to highly recommend this limited
edition version.
These are rare moments that people
will ever see of TRF and I was pretty much
surprised to see them interact personally
with each other.
So, three CD’s full of hit songs and
three DVD’s full of music videos and extra
footage that this is the definitive TRF
album out there! Highly recommended!
AVA I LA B LE NOW ON J!-ENT
ANNA TSUCHIYA
J! DVD REVIEW
trf - WORLD GROOVE
trf - WORLD GROOVE
avex trax
Catalog #: AVBD-91431/AVVD-90007
Format: DVD, Region 2
DURATION: 60 minutes, Region 2, 4:3
Release date: November 29, 2006
(original: September 26, 1994)
CONTENTS:
01. WORLD GROOVE (Forest Ambient)
02. Feel the CENTURY
03. EZ DO DANCE
04. OPEN YOUR MIND
05. Silver and Gold dance
06. GOING 2 DANCE (Live in Tokyo Dome)
07. RIGHT HERE! RIGHT NOW! (Live in Tokyo Dome)
08. EZ DO DANCE (Live in Tokyo Dome)
09. Ai ga mousukoshi Hoshii yo
11. WORLD GROOVE (main message)
A
s TRF celebrates its 15th Year
Anniversary, 2006 has been a year
of re-releases of nearly all of the
group’s CD singles and videos,
including older re-releases in DVD
format.
The first DVD release of TRF is “WORLD
GROOVE”.
It has been well over a decade since I
watched “World Groove”, so it’s somewhat
of a blast in the past for me to re-review this
DVD.
In many ways, this release still stands
among one of my favorite video releases. It
was also during the time TRF was all in lowercase format and the group was starting to
gain attention with their music, during a time
when Japanese music was mostly dominated
by rock acts and also when a record label
called Avex was still at its infant years.
I enjoyed their music so much because it
was so different from what was coming out
of Japan during that time. Their live performances and their music videos were just full
of energy.
“WORLD GROOVE” is TRF’s first video
clip collection with TRF talking about their
experiences of working on certain music
videos and also live concert clips from their
performance at the Tokyo Dome. The music
videos were all directed by Muto Masashi.
The video starts off with a “Forest Ambient” short intro of “WORLD GROOVE”.
The second video clip and TRF’s first CD
single “Feel the CENTURY” is a music video
definitely spotlighting the dancing of SAM,
CHIHARU and ETSU. Showing why the three
are among Japan’s top choreographers and
how during that time, they raised the bar
for dance acts. It’s also the only video that
does not feature lead singer YUKI.
The third video clip is the group’s anthem “EZ DO DANCE”.
A video clip that was briefly shown on
the music video shows but enough to catch
attention to see a glimpse of lead singer
singing in tight and very short shorts.
Showing that the group is not just an awesome dance group but the lead singer YUKI
is just pure sexy.
The fourth clip “OPEN YOUR MIND” is
a sexy video spotlighting on the dancing
but making the members of the group wear
wild, futuristic and artsy costumes.
The fifth clip “Silver and Gold dance” is
another hit song featuring TRF and another
awesome choreographed music video focusing on SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU.
The sixth clip “GOING 2 DANCE” (Live
in Tokyo Dome) will always stand up in my
best as one of the coolest TRF music videos. The song was featured in the group’s
first “HYPER TECHNO MIX” album but the
video is a live concert performance with a
club appeal.
On stage, TRF and their dancers showcasing their choreography but cut to the
audience (with some just dancing in the
audience as if they were in a night club with
platform girls with boa’s and fans). It was
just a cool video to watch back then and
even now, I still enjoy it.
The seventh and eight clip “RIGHT
HERE! RIGHT NOW!” and “EZ DO DANCE”
(Live in Tokyo dome) continue TRF’s live
performance clips.
The ninth video clip “Ai ga Mou sukoshi
Hoshii Yo” features TRF outdoors together.
No major choreography but the group
together looking cool and walking around
and standing and looking cool.
It seems simple but because it’s so different from their other fast-paced music, I
enjoyed the music video’s simplicity.
The tenth video clip is “Samui Yoru
Dakara” featuring TRF walking around
New York and performing inside a bus
and near the Brooklyn Bridge.
Even today, surprises me how they
manage to capture the shots that they
did.
The final video clip is “WORLD
GROOVE (main message)”, the name of
the group’s second album and first video.
The music video was filmed in Indonesia.
Featuring cool choreography by SAM,
CHIHARU and ETSU.
YUKI sporting the clothing of the
country and young traditional dancers
in the background while she sings in a
temple setting. And at times performing
in a jungle-like setting with trees, waterfalls and all.
With all the TRF music videos I have
watched, this video clip collection ranks
among my highest.
Possibly for nostalgic reasons but
its among the first videos to watch TRF
when they first began.
As for the DVD itself, since it’s an
older video made to DVD, you’re not
going to find special features or sound
selections. Booklet is mainly a foldout
with lyrics.
So, it’s pretty bare bones in that sense.
But in terms of content, if you are looking
for the early TRF video clips, “WORLD
GROOVE” is definitely the video to check
out.
trf - ultimate films 1994-1995
J! DVD REVIEW
trf - ultimate films 1994-1995
avex trax
(original: June 21, 1995)
CONTENTS:
01. Opening
02. Silver and Gold dance (HYPER MIX Version)
03. survival dAnce ~no no cry more~
04. BOY MEETS GIRL
05. Samui Yoru Dakara... (1994 Version)
07. masquerade
I
can’t believe that it’s been over
a decade when I purchased this
video.
“ultimate films 1994-1994”
(VHS) featured a lot of their hit
songs from 1994-1995 and here we
are 12 years later with a re-release
on DVD format.
The first music video featured is
a new version of “Silver and gold
dance” (HYPER MIX Version).
This English version of their hit
song was featured on the “HYPER
MIX III” album and features a cyberpunk style of setting. Definitely
futuristic with YU-KI sporting red
hair waltzing into a club with unusual
patrons.
SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU sport
Middle Eastern clothing and dance
in the club while DJ KOO is on the
turntables.
For the second music video
“Survival dAnce ~no no cry more~”,
the music video was shot in Mexico
and features the five members at the
Beach, hanging out and having fun.
The video was mostly shot with
camcorder and you watch the group
just having fun, dancing, eating, joking with one another and traveling.
For the third music video, TRF
continues with a music video filmed
in Mexico for the filming of “BOY
MEETS GIRL”.
The music video features the
group in a desert-like setting, as
they dance near cliffs, cactuses and
near a missionary.
For the fourth music video
“Samui Yoru Dakara (1994 Version)”, whereas the last music video
of the song featured the group in
New York, the 1994 music video
rendition of their song had a Winter
feel and had a Christmas feel to it
as the group dance in a snow-filled
area.
For the fifth music video, “CRAZY GONNA CRAZY” featured the
group performing in front of a live
audience and the first time you see
SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU more
than just dancers but supporting
vocalists.
For the sixth music video,
“masquerade” featured awesome
choreography by SAM, CHIHARU
and ETSU as the three dance in a
factory-like setting.
YU-KI and KOO are seen walking around the factory, while YU-KI
is seen singing.
The music video shows a return
of TRF to a style of music video
that is choreography heavy and
reminiscent to videos such as
“EZ DO DANCE” and “Silver and
Gold dance”.
For the final music video,
“Overnight Sensation”, the music
video was shot in Australia in another outdoor setting.
The music video utilizes special
color filters for different scenes.
So, you get a orange hue
throughout the music video.
Compared to “WORLD
GROOVE”, “ultimate films 19941995” doesn’t have the personal
interviews and there are no special concert scenes.
Just the seven music videos
plus an intro and outro featuring
the music of TRF founder Komuro
Tetsuya.
If you are looking for a DVD to
reminisce about the past, you’ll
definitely find a lot of their hit
songs on “ultimate films 19941995”.
It is very nostalgic to see their
videos once again and remember
two of the amazing years for the
group.
trf - Concert DVD’s 1994-1996
J! DVD REVIEW
trf - TOUR ‘94 BILLIONAIRE BOY MEETS
GIRL
avex trax
(original release: December 16, 1994)
trf - TOUR ‘95 dAnce to positive Overnight
Sensation
avex trax
(original release: November 22, 1995)
trf - BRAND NEW TOMORROW in TOKYO
DOME ~presentation for 1996~
avex trax
(original release: February 21, 1996)
CONTENTS:
01. World Groove 1st. Chpter
02. BOY MEETS GIRL
03. Samui Yoru Dakara...
04. BILLIONAIRE
05. Truth ‘94
06. WORLD GROOVE 2nd. Chptr
07. Sexual in Gravure ~ Feel the Century
08. survival dance ~no no cry more~
09. EZ DO DANCE
10. World Groove 3rd. Chptr
CONTENTS:
01. World Groove 1st. Chpter
02. BOY MEETS GIRL
04. BILLIONAIRE
05. Truth ‘94
06. WORLD GROOVE 2nd. Chptr
07. Sexual in Gravure ~ Feel the Century
08. survival dance ~no no cry more~
09. EZ DO DANCE
10. World Groove 3rd. Chptr
The first concert video for TRF was their
“TOUR `94 BILLIONAIRE –BOY MEETS GIRL-“
which is an hour long concert plus interviews.
The video starts off with interviews with
each of the members and some footage which
looks like it was shot on location in Australia
for their “Survival dAnce ~no no cry more~”
music video.
The stage of the concert featured a several
video screens behind them and the main stage
with two platforms on top.
Where the last concert in Tokyo Dome featured TRF with a multiple number of dancers
and very hyper techno with a club-like vibe,
this concert was somewhat subdued but a very
good turnout.
As for audience participation, the audience
was supportive. No close ups on the audience
or anything for this concert. No interaction
MC with the audience was included.
All in all, “TOUR `94 BILLIONAIRE – BOY
MEET’S GIRL” is a straightforward concert
which goes from song to interview to song.
All in all an average concert which was a bit
short in terms of content but all in all, a pretty
good trf concert.
It is said that only the best groups can perform in Budokon and how fitting was it to see
TRF perform.
The group was dominating the charts during
the mid-90’s and was definitely a great opportunity for people to watch the group perform
these songs during the height of their career.
Performing with a live band and watching
SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU with their other
dancers perform really cool routines which
was pretty exciting to watch. The three are
now becoming more than just dancers but also
providing more involvement in the vocals.
I found the performance of “dAnce is my
Life” with YU-KI and ETSU pretty entertaining.
Two men try to get close to YU-KI while Etsu
questions why they are not flirting with her.
But definitely an interesting performance.
Also, spotlighting choreography of SAM,
CHIHARU and ETSU for “SAM thing Nite” and
DJ Koo performing live with the band (and
introducing them) for “BAND PLAY SESSION”.
If there was one caveat about this concert is
that even though it was packed, the audience
were there to watch than participate. Although supportive audience after each performance, definitely not a loud audience.
CONTENTS:
01. Welcome to Funky positive world
02. SEE THE SKY ~1999~
03. masquerade
04. BILLIONAIRE
05. Destiny to Love
06. FUNKY M
07. dAnce is my Life
08. Let it go! (tribal dAnce)
09. ENGAGED
10. DJ Jungle Solo
11. Robot dAnce
12. SAM thing Nite
13. BAND PLAY SESSION
14. RIGHT HERE! RIGHT NOW!
15. EZ DO DANCE
17. BOY MEETS GIRL
What a difference compared to past concert
performances from TRF.
I’ve read that several songs would be getting a musical type of treatment via stage and
for “BRAND NEW TOMORROW IN TOKYO
DOME”, that is what you get.
The concert starts out with a dark, costumes, masks galore with an exciting musical
style opening and dancers galore.
The concert was very energetic, exciting
and the audience participation was great.
It was the first time I would see a TRF concert become so elaborate, so exciting to watch
because of the stage presence, the choreography and most of all, each member of TRF had a
solo performance.
Of the three concert video releases, this is
the concert I highly recommend for TRF fans.
TRF - Concert DVD’s 1997-1999
TRF - TRF LIVE in YOKOHAMA ARENA
avex trax
Catalog #: AVBD-91436/AVDD-90021
(original release: April 30, 1997)
TRF - TOUR ‘98 Live in Unite!
avex trax
(original release: September 17, 1998)
CONTENTS:
01. OPENING
02. BRAVE STORY
03. ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE
04. HOT WINTER NIGHT ~samuiyorudakara~
05. BOY MEETS GIRL
06. Love & peace Forever
07. STANDING HERE
08. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY ~DO WHAT YOU
WANT
09. Gang Michael~sexual in Gravure
10. masquerade
13. Hey! Ladies & Gentleman
14. SILENT NIGHT
15. LEGEND OF WIND
16. EZ DO DANCE
17. WORLD GROOVE 3rd.chapter
CONTENTS:
01. Opening Movie
02. Future Shock
03. Frame
06. frisky a GO-GO!
07. darkscape
08. In the move to be
09. Meltin’ You
10. Realize
11. EZ DO DANCE
12. Unite! the Night!
13. BOY MEETS GIRL
14. It’s MY TIME
15. TRY OR CRY
16. WORLD GROOVE ~3rd chapter~
Typically with concerts on video, especially
when they are released nearly every year, I
usually want to see more variety and something different and not a rehash or anything to
similar to previous concert on video releases.
“TRF LIVE in YOKOHAMA ARENA” goes
different in that it’s more akin to being almost
like watching a concert documentary.
With many video clips of behind-the-scenes
footage featuring clips such as YU-KI working out at the gym, SAM walking to a cafe, DJ
KOO and YU-KI doing promos, CHIHARU being interviewed, ETSU receiving vocal training
and then the concert itself.
Unlike previous videos which TRF has done
that, this one shows more of a personal side
to TRF that many will not get to see from the
group.
A very good concert video and also an appearance from Komuro Tetsuya (TK).
TRF celebrates their fifth year anniversary
and a new direction for TRF as they go on
without their teacher, Komuro Tetsuya.
In fact, the 34-minute opening movie is like
a chronicle showing the new beginning of TRF
as they prepare for their latest tour and in each
of the 17 venues performed, SAM, CHIHARU
and ETSU will take dancers from each area and
utilize them on their concert tours.
Definitely more challenging than previous
TRF concerts, it sort of explains why on many
of the music videos at the time, why YU-KI was
typically featured by herself.
The challenges that SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU went to find dancers from all over to
perform at this concert was intense.
Unlike previous concerts, not all the songs
are played throughout and also during a few
performance, making of videos are shown.
You do get backstage footage of the dancers as they wait to go on stage.
A very different but yet cool vibe for Tour
98 compared to past concerts on video.
J! DVD REVIEW
TRF - TOUR 1999 EXICOAST TOUR AT
OSAKA 1999-9-14
avex trax
(original release: December 15, 1999)
CONTENTS:
01. Opening
02. WIRED
03. masquerade
04. You’re my soul
05. Frame
07. BILLIONAIRE
08. we can do that sit everything
09. slug and soul
10. CLOSE TO THE END
11. JOY
12. Reason of love
13. survival dAnce
14. EZ DO DANCE
15. The Song Remains the Earth
16. He Lives in You
17. BOY MEETS GIRL
18. WORLD GROOVE
The latest concert video from TRF would
feature a beautiful and elaborate stage design
compared to past concerts.
A very good turnout in Osaka for this TRF
concert and the difference with previous concert videos is that this is pretty much a straight
concert with obviously a nicer budget for stage
and lighting.
Straying away from the documentary or
video then song then video type format used
in previous videos, this video goes back to a
similar format from their earlier concert videos.
Of course, main difference is stage setup,
better lighting, more dancers and definitely
better camera work, angle footage and editing.
The audience has a great vibe throughout
the performance and I like the addition of
more cameras around DJ KOO’s work area and
showing him perform.
TRF - Lif-e-Motions TOUR 2006
TRF - Lif-e-Motions TOUR 2006
avex trax
Catalog #: AAVBD-91408
DURATION: 137 minutes, 16:9, Region 2
Release date: August 30, 2006
CONTENTS:
01. Opening
02. BRAVE STORY
03. Urbanature
04. You & me
06. Happening Here
07. As it is
08. LEGEND OF WIND
09. Signal Theta
10. ENGAGED ‘06
11. One Nation
12. masquerade
I
t has been eight years since the TRF
had released an album, CD single
and the last TRF concert DVD was
“TOUR 1999 EXICOAST TOUR AT
OSAKA” released back in Nov. 1999.
TRF made their long awaited return
with “Lif-e-Motions TOUR 2006”
The concert began on June 4, 2006 at
ZEPP Osaka and concluded on July 1st at
ZEPP Tokyo.
Compared to previous concerts, the
stage setup is similar to past concerts
with a smaller stage setup and it was interesting to see the stage displaying the
words “TK RAVE FACTORY”.
Definitely paying homage as the
group has returned to the energetic,
electronic synth energetic dance music
that is reminiscent to their pre-1995
works.
Audience participation was well-done
and they were into the performances.
One thing that just puts a smile to my
face is to see the audience, parents with
their children because pretty much similar
to myself, I literally grew up with TRF and
to see others grow up, with their children
at a TRF concert is simply golden.
Especially those with children now
grown up, who are dancing at a TRF concert on stage, that is simply awesome!
Camera angles were also different and
very well done on this concert than on
previous concerts.
With many multiple camera angles all
over the concert venue area, it really cap-
tures the excitement of TRF, the dancers
and also the audience.
I also liked how the concert did
include the final goodbye and the group
communicating with the audience.
As for video, this DVD is the first TRF
DVD to be featured in 16:9 letterbox
format.
It’s also their first DVD to feature a
special feature.
The nearly 20-minute feature is a
short film on the making of the “Life-eMotions Tour 2006”.
The special features would show the
planning that went behind-the-scenes
for the concert and similar to “TOUR
‘98 Live in Unite!”, SAM, CHIHARU and
ETSU would continue to utilize dancers
from all over Japan who would perform
with the group at a live concert in each
of the six venues in Osaka, Sendai, Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya and Tokyo.
Also, one thing that you don’t see on
a TRF concert are the interaction segments between TRF and the audience.
It’s great to see some of that shown
on the special feature.
Another thing that you will realize on
this DVD is that TRF continues to foster
the new generation of dancers from all
over Japan but are also including the
very young boy and girl dancers and incorporating them to their performances.
I found the special feature exciting
as it literally details the group’s concert
tour at all six venues.
J! DVD REVIEW
14. CRAZY GONNA CRAZY ~ EZ DO
DANCE
15. Where to begin
16. Precious
Encore
01. Good day, Sunshine
02. BOY MEETS GIRL
04. WORLD GROOVE
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Making of Lif-e-Motions TOUR
It’s definitely great to see TRF
again and 15 years later, the group
are still as exciting as they were back
when I started seeing them on television back in 1993.
As the 15th Anniversary celebration has brought re-releases of the CD
singles and a DVD version of every
TRF video released, as far as concerts
go, each concert has their own feel
and with “Lif-e-Motions”, you can get
the return of the TRF energy that the
group is known for.
Let alone that this is actually the
first DVD from TRF (the others were
previously on VHS video converted to
DVD) and part of the reason why we
are able to get the 16:9 format and
the addition of a special feature.
The DVD also comes with a booklet
featuring photos from the “Life-e-Motions” concert.
All in all, I found this concert so
enjoyable.
TRF treats their staff and dancers
as a full family unit and have always
given their staff and their fans credit.
You see that on this video and it’s
great to see this talented group back.
Full of energy and again, just as
exciting as I saw them back in 1993,
their music is simply timeless.
“Lif-e-Motions” is a very good TRF
concert DVD and I highly recommend
it to TRF music fans.
TRF
YU-KI
DJ KOO
TRF
RF
SAM
CHIHARU
TRF
RF
ETSU
epilogue
For 15 years, TRF has earned the respect from music fans.
From emerging at a time in Japan that was devoid of music dance groups, especially one that has had
its roots tied to the club scene in Tokyo, TRF was doing their own thing. Not really expecting to be the
legendary group that they are today, they did their own music and music fans all over the globe listened
and danced along with them.
The contributions TRF has had in the beginning in catapulting avex trax and generating countless hit after
hit will always be remembered. Especially as many of their songs continue to remain timeless and can be
enjoyed in the future and now, as they continue as a group and also foster the upcoming generation of
dancing talent throughout Japan.
As we celebrate the 15th Anniversary of TRF, we look forward to the future of TRF for many years to come
but most of all, we thank YU-KI, DJ KOO, SAM, CHIHARU and ETSU for entertaining us for 15 years and
showing their appreciation to their fans. Happy Anniversary and we look forward to celebrating with you
for many years to come. - DENNIS A. AMITH, J!-ENT
COMI NG SO ON TO J!-ENT
J!-ENT

J!-ENT Special Feature and Interview with TRF

Transcription

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