What a title. And given how much vintage Pantera I’ve been listening to over the last month, willingly and un, I’m doing this incredible groove riff in my head that’s probably going to be nothing like what the Frupoche band puts together, but that’s fine, it’s Shiori and Mina singing together again, and it’s going to be loud and pretty intense and that makes me want to go punch a kitten in excitement.
Cancel the next installment in the Let’s Remember Some Idols series, because the subject of that installment doesn’t need remembering. Not anymore. No, the Year of Idol Resurrections surges on. They’re going to be live, step-dancing to power metal riffs right in our faces, knocking out dual-titled tunes on some of the best-packaged records in music. They’re (hopefully!) going to grab idol itself by the collar of its lazy knock-off shirt and scream in its face and remind a bunch of people who’s really bad around here.
It’s for an indeterminate number of gigs, and probably indeterminate number of releases, but FRUITPOCHETTE, as both good and loud as it gets with practically zero contrivance, a jolt of power no matter what they do, will be back in August, and with the original duo reunited:
I’ve been excited for this ever since ex-FRUITPOCHETTE pocket idol fury engine Azuma Shiori announced it, and this tweet sent my hype meter way past 13:
Did you know that Bitcoin, which is not actually money but nonetheless something that people have invested in, and which has skyrocketed in value faster than a Dutch tulip over the past couple of months (in particular), is currently continuing to skyrocket in value because it’s open to futures trading for the first time, and capitalism loves wild speculation even more than I do?
I bring this up not because I’m encouraging anybody to put money into cryptocurrencies (I am not!), but because you could use the money that you aren’t throwing into the void to fund some worthwhile idol-associated projects that will leave us, the fans, as the greatest beneficiaries after all.
First up! I mentioned the boans project a couple of weeks ago, and it still needs some cash:
And in Things You’re Not Good Enough For, Maniac, the beating heart of FRUITPOCHETTE (I am referring to a person named Azuma Shiori!) is still beating six month after the greatest lost opportunity I’ve ever seen, and she’s getting back into a singing on a solo career:
I have no idea if she’s going to do this as an idol. Frankly, it doesn’t matter. Shiori’s too damn good a singer, and too dynamic a performer, to not get more out of that while she still can. I’m really looking forward to following this.
See, losing Teratani Mina and not replacing her basically immediately from among the Mad Magazine roster did not fill one with optimism; it didn’t necessarily mean that Fruitpochette was being left for dead, but it wasn’t an encouraging sign, even with new material being teased.
Now, if “they” are going to be at TIF this year … yes, it could be a big-stage farewell, but more likely it’s going to be a real-deal performance. I’d go so far as to peg it as when Fruitpochette 2.0 makes its debut.
Mina is gone and exactly what comes next for Fruitpochette‘s composition is in doubt, but have absolutely no worries that their music will in any way fail to be heavy as hell:
Shiori isn’t taking this lying down; not only does she sound great on this track, she apparently wrote and directed the video, too. Oh, and “闇-Happiness-” sounds like sexy explosions and I like it very much.
As living proof that idol groups just keep on ploughing through, members be damned, Fruitpochette may be losing Teratani Mina, but they might also be releasing at least one new track in the near future. Continue reading →
Because I was an idiot who hadn’t yet gone deep into the bowels of idol metal, I LOL’ed about a Babymetal knockoff (I also am not a big nu-metal fan) and just kind of put it away.
Then:
See: Idiot, above.
Note: Teratani Mina’s personal info as a member has been pre-emptively “formered” on this profile just because I know that I’ll forget. She is currently still a member of Fruitpochette, but is graduating on March 26. See more.
I can’t remember which of these two songs made me give Fruitpochette a real chance, but I do know that “CleverDick” wound up being a regular in my rotation. I was a lot more mature (ha) in my idol appreciation by then, and I had to appreciate the fact that this was basically a jazz song rendered in metalcore tones.
You have to be an asshole to not like that.
I was also happy to learn that Fruitpochette isn’t just another kitsune-chasing flash in the pan; they’ve been at it since 2012, and they have the same competitive advantage as Babymetal in that they’re an agency group, with their sisters nanoCUNE and Himekyun Fruit Can likewise in this site’s wheelhouse.
So what’s Fruitpochette’s deal? Well, if you actually take some time to get through their full-length album (The Crest of Evil, released in 2015), there’s plenty of good in it. Honestly, one of the best things about them is that they’re a straight-up idol metal band, with no frills or pretense; they just kick ass. They also apparently tour constantly (which is kind of a thing in the underground), so there’s a lot of dues-paying there for you tr00 jagoffs.
I’d love to learn more about Fruitpochette, including just what their plans are going forward. Especially now, because Teratani Mina, half of the duo, is retiring from idoling for health reasons, but current indications are that Fruitpochette will continue in some configuration or another with the continued inclusion of Azuma Shiori.
What they sound like
A blend of metal styles sung by a big-voiced women with a top range just slightly lower than Ronnie James Dio’s.
You’ll like them if
Do you like metal? That’s pretty much it. Thrash-y, core-y, sometimes brutal, sometimes event dispensing with easy hooks. Unless you’re one of those weird people who only listen to obscure Eastern European grindcore bands, if you like anything from Sabbath to, I dunno, Behemoth to Mastodon, you’ll find something in Fruitpochette to like.
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