PassCode

For pages and posts that relate to PassCode.

10 Years of Homicidols By the Numbers: Top Artists

/ DAEMON

Let’s try this one again:

You may have seen a half-baked version of this article post on Tuesday. I wish that I could say it was all an illusion but, no, it was just another one of my screw ups. I could have sworn that I had calendared it to publish on Thursday but, instead, it went up on Tuesday well before it was ready and I had to scrub it from existence. 

It is one of the enduring mysteries of this site: while there are any number of qualities that contribute to our status of being the longest running English language chika idol blog on the planet, competence is certainly not among them. 

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10 Years of Homicidols: By the Numbers

/ DAEMON

Well, look at us. Almost ten years old. Only a handful of idol groups make it that long and, honestly, we’re just as surprised as you are. What started as a questionable idea (“let’s write about underground idols from half-way around the world who perform in and speak a language that we don’t even understand; how hard can it be?”) somehow mutated into a decade-long obsession that’s eaten up countless weekends, introduced us to innumerable friends from around the world, and exposed us to a legion of idols and oshis and losses that we’ll never emotionally recover from.

In that time, we’ve watched the scene evolve, implode, and reinvent itself more times than we can count and, somehow, our humble corner of the internet has managed to survive right along with it. So, as we hit the big one-oh, we thought we’d take a look back at our journey in cold, hard numbers.

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The Greatest Alt-Idol Drops and Breakdowns of All Time

/ DAEMON / 1 Comment

It has been a a few weeks since we asked members of the Homicidols community to identify their favorite choruses, drops and hooks in the genre of alternative idol. We published the nominations for Best Alt-Idol Choruses a short while ago, and now it’s time for the breakdowns!

For the exercise, we defined the category of drop or breakdown pretty loosely, with the primary requirement being that the element marks a sudden change in the dynamics of the song. The submitted entries essentially fall into two different categories:

The first are examples of the hardcore breakdown, where a tune takes a ruthless drop into harsh vocal or screaming metal territory. In idol terms, these are brutal examples of where the gap is bridged, the kawaii slams into the kakkoii, and the sugar and spice gang up and punch you in face. 

The second category are songs that are completely devoid of harsh vocals or metal elements, but accomplish startling breakdowns via sudden and distinct shifts in tempo, tone, and genre.

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Your Homicidols Weekender #354

/ Papermaiden

It’s been another busy week in Idol, but it’s about to get busier!

This weekender is, once again, put together by trustee procrastinator Papermaiden, because our overlord Daemon is busy doing what he should do, having fun with Tokyo Psychopath this weekend! On that note, if you are at Saboten Con, come meet us (him)! He is giving the Killer Side of Idol panel on Saturday, September 2 at 11:30.
A rare chance to discuss idols in person!

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Homicidols Best of the Year (so far)

/ DAEMON / 1 Comment

We are one third of the way through the Homicidols calendar year (which runs December through November for REASONS) so we thought it was time to make note of the songs, albums and MVs that we’ve had on repeat for the last four months.  When I say “We,” I mean Team Homicidols and the denizens of the Homicidols’ Discord server. We’ve surveyed the entirety of the various elements that make up the Homicidols’ hive mind and come up with the following nominations for best singles, EPs, albums and MVs of the first quadrimester of our 2023.

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Well That Was Easy

/ Homicidol Maniac

It feels like basically yesterday that we were lamenting the departure of our dear Yuna from PassCode. I think everyone who follows them was immediately curious to see who would replace her in the group, right down to some obligatory dream casting. And yet somehow I allowed myself a moment of pleasant surprise when this tweet popped up a little while ago:

Yep, that’s ex-LADYBABY Emily, that is undeniably a very good harsh singer but one of the more oddly utilized ones in her old group. The timing of it all suggests that she was already in the wings before Yuna’s retirement announcement, sure, but frankly you probably could have had her on retainer ever since LADYBABY went under and barely missed a beat — the two singers’ styles aren’t quite the same, but honestly? Natural fit, right timing, easy thing for fans to accept. Emily officially joins in a few weeks at the kickoff of a quick Zepp tour prior to the close of the STRIVE tour pre-Budokan, so good opportunities for those who actually can to properly greet the new girl.

Good job, PassCode, and welcome, Emily!

Yuna :*(

/ Homicidol Maniac / 1 Comment

Got to wake up to very bad news this morning. I’ll thank Papermaiden for messaging it without trying to soften the blow: “Yuna out of PassCode.”

It’s been a few years since Yuna first went on hiatus due to an ovarian cyst, and the way her and management’s statement reads, the pressure of performing eventually just got to be too much. You know she was taking a break from the STRIVE tour over the last several weeks — a break that in retrospect feels more like “take a few weeks off and think about it” than “get your rest” — so I can’t blame her for not feeling like coming back was the way to go. Continue reading →

I Don’t Always Listen to Live Idol Albums, But When I Do, I Prefer PassCode’s

/ Homicidol Maniac

This post is entirely about doing three things:

  1. Posting about PassCode, which we don’t get to do enough
  2. Enjoying a PassCode album, as we haven’t had a new one in a while
  3. Spreading the gospel and hooking in some people who maybe aren’t as familiar

Anyway, let the title describe it for you. I almost always pass on live records from big idol gigs, the exception to date being the OG Red Night/Black Night Babymetal recordings. There’s just only so much time and unfathomable amounts of music to fill it with, and I may love idol but I also love a lot of other things; if I wanted to listen to off-quality recordings of people who for the most part aren’t particularly good singers in the first place, I’d invite my friends over for DIY karaoke again. Continue reading →

PassCode Ignites a Spark Indeed

/ Homicidol Maniac

When everything’s coming up roses … We’ve been waiting with all the patience of a sugar-addled kindergartner for the STRIVE album’s release (just a few more days!), and PassCode first chooses to whet our appetite by announcing that they’re striving for Budokan, which isn’t so much a strive as a done deal but you gotta do the Road To homework I guess, and now after plenty of teasing we finally get to experience the MV for “SPARK IGNITION”:

Don’t watch it here, though; click through so you can take part in the live chat with the members!

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PassCode’s Going to Budokan, Hell Yes

/ Homicidol Maniac / 1 Comment

Well, folks, I’d been licking my lips at the prospect of new PassCode stuff to show off and get excited about since their latest major album is right around the corner, but we simply must pre-empt our own posting for this off-the-charts awesome announcement. PassCode’s on the road to Budokan!

I love everything about this moment. PassCode was on such an ascent, hung in through some challenges, and have just kept building prominence among fans across a pretty significant spectrum of musical interests. This album is, I’m sure, going to be quite good, and yeah there’ll be a hyperventil-y post about it in no time, probably. But the album … who cares about the dang album! PassCode’s doing Budokan, man. That’s just so cool. I hope Yuna screams a literal hole in space-time and nothing ever happens again because reality simply ceases to exist (somewhere right in the middle of “TRACE”, preferably).

Sounds like a good time for the end of the universe to me.