Single Sakurazaka46 6th Single [Start over!] (2023/06/28)

...is it a coincidence that these are my 3rd gen oshi?

For me, the "Renaissance" of the group was expected: the way they introduced the 3rd gens, the hype, the short intro docus for each new member, the documentary and the omotenashikai was at a different level from what SnF has shown so far. Of course this would not suffice if the girls were not so determined to succeed, so fired-up to be worthy successors of the Keyaki/Sakura tradition. In a way, this gen revived (as a matter of fact, saved) the group in a similar manner with what 2nd gen Hiraganas did for the group and had a catalytic role for its transformation into Hinatazaka.

I see 3rd gen as a kind of "grafting", the means to transform a tree into a different but similar one (e.g. like the way they graft a pergamon tree to make an orange tree). The first fruit of this grafting is "Start over" and all their coupling songs. Natsu no Chikamichi simply acted as a gauge to check compatibility and acceptance from the fan-base. The old girls inevitably had to get the message and become more competitive. This is the way it works everywhere: bring a strong new team to an old one, have them join-in the right way and see the whole group move forward renewed. Sakurazaka IS different now and is better.

Although I'm not as knowlegdeable as other people here are, but for me there is no Aki-P involvement in this transformation, the sole ingredient was the 3rd gen. I think that Aki-P as a lyricist, as well as the other "creators" (composers, choreographers, stylists) are simply reacting now and adapt themselves to what they have in-hand to work at (create). It's the group's momentum that drives everyone forward, the one that creates this new content.

 

Spoiler: Mini live spoiler

The centers of this single based on the mini live
Start Over/ Isshun no Uma: Karin
Konbinato: Kira
Drone senkaichuu: Hono
Kaze no Oto: Koike
Anthem Time: Yuzuki
Seijaku no bouryoku: Shizuki
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Also having watched the mini live and some things that stood out:

Drone choreo is really cute and wholesome, and towel dancing
Anthem Time has grown more on me based on this perfomance, Yuzuki was well picked, the song is still quite long tho.
Konbinato has fully grown on me, seeing Kira as the center made it click for me.
Seijaku: this perfomance made me very emotional, the choreo looks intense and the members really seemed absorbed in the song.

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6th single is definetly a very good single, even the songs I like less aren't necerarilly bad songs and have grown on me cause of this live.

 

Spoiler: thoughts about mini-live

1. Drone senkaichuu
Hono centre, 1-2 gens.
Happy idol music, with some nice rhythm/melody.
Each member relates to fans and seems individual.
Features every member, introduces them.

-- long 12sec blank screen between songs –

2. Isshun no Uma
Karin centre, 1-2 gens.
Karin graceful and expressive.
Uemuu and Fuu-chan have nice parts.
Flowing melody and dance. Mild, nothing extravagant. Karin walking.

3. It’s Anthem Time
Yuzu centre, 3gens.
3gens group dance already at fairly high level
Each member featured: attractive, skilled.
Yuzu is a lovely figure: good feeling, good skill. Important member.

4. Combinaato
Masumoto centre, 2gens.
Kira is always herself.
Dance even smoother than 3gens, choreo more complex.
Pleasant song.

5. Kaze no Oto
Koike centre, 1 gens.
Five members: Fuu, Habu, Mii, Uemuu, Yuipon.
Skilled dance, individually and in combination.

6. Seijaku no Bouryoku
3gens, Yamashita Shizuka centre.
Shii-chan supremely talented.
3gens doing a complex choreo extremely well.
Miu-chan dance/expression intensity, Yuu-chan dance, Itoha expression.

7. Start Over
1-2 gens, Karin centre.
Strong dance, by Karin and whole group.
Karin’s loose limbs extend movements to extreme extent, but under smooth control.
Meaningful positive lyrics.

Spoiler: Japanese comments about mini-live

• The senpais’ stage presence was amazing.
• Multiple Sakurazakas.
• It’s truly wonderful that we got Start Over. Thank you, Yasusu {+Akinoto Yasushi}
• The flow from Seijaku no Bouryoku to Start Over was incredible.
• The most satisfied I’ve ever been with performances. Good work.
• So strong, so strong.
• Current Sakurazaka is tremendously strong.
• Final bow: Rika!
• Every song on the 6th release is so strong.
• It was a live to be grateful for.
• The various different performances of Start Over are all worth seeing.
• Truly, congratulations to Kira-chan.
• This is more than a mini-live. I want the disk.
• Wow, this single is a collection of masterpieces.
• Seijaku is so strong.
• Shii-chan live is something else. She produced expressions she did not in the MV.
• Next, I hope they will revive the handshake mini-lives.
• It's true, the live performances give you a different impression. [note: I don’t think we always heard the live voices. Hard to believe the even singing levels would be possible as they danced so vigorously in Seijaku.]
• Overwhelming. There were tears in my eyes from start to finish.
• High marks for Shizu’s expressiveness. It will likely be the same with every song she gets.
• They’ve grown so much since the training camp.
• Better than the MV.
• If I’d seen it live I would’ve been weeping.
• I wept like I did the first time I saw the MV.
• The 3gens were so amazing it was laughable.
• Some good girls have joined.
• Top-notch juniors always join this group.
• It’s quite understandable that Fujiyoshi said she envied the 3gens Seijaku no Bouryoku.
• The fast turn and stop in Seijaku was stunning. [note: I looked at it over and over and couldn’t see any one of the 3gens who did not do a good job of the 360. Improvement since the MV.]
• In any case, Seijaku no Bouryoku brought tears to my eyes. Is this really the 3gens? The expressiveness, the emotion, the movement – all perfect.
• The speed of the 3gens growth is so incredible it shook me.
• Just half a year since they were announced, a year of training in total…and now this? Scary.

 

Remember back after rebranding that we were all hoping for the "big thing" to happen?

As far as I'm concerned, the 6th single is that big thing we were all waiting for... And that mini live is an undeniable proof that all girls in the group have reached top level as all-round performers.

 

They're the first gen that auditioned for "Sakurazaka", while their senpais were auditioned for "Keyakizaka". We can understand by that why they have different vibes, like they were recruited by imagining Sakurazaka, not Keyakizaka.

For me Sakurazaka is just like Keyakizaka without the angst and are image-wise more feminine (also more fashion-oriented), hence why they're going for beauties and smiley member for 3-kisei.

 

In my opinion Sakurazaka's worldview is the same person as Keyakizaka's worldview is... Only Keyakizaka songs had a hopeless vibe to them, the topics for sakurazaka songs are often quite similar, but they all have more hope in them. Keyakizaka's self was on the verge of committing suicide 24/7, meanwhile sakuzaka's self used to be keyakizaka, but has since done some healing.

 

@ukifune I think I read somewhere in the comment section of Start over that 3rd gen brought dark blue color to the group and the person did some analysis of the color. It was based on Shinsekai exhibition where the seniors are also now colored in dark blue.

Some publication reviewed the exhibition:
https://twitter.com/i___MAG/status/1694199030598025676?t=F0-HINqSRNk6yEhYTfZSCw&s=19

It's not just a collection of previous work of Sakurazaka but it tells the past, the presence and the future of the group.

There was some confusion for RIJF 2023 costume. It has green color of Keyakizaka and the style is japanese. I think this costume was partically made for Sakurazuki where the old Sakurazaka would end and peak.

When the exhibition has now removed the classic white and pink shades on buttons and merchandise it is now white and dark blue. When I looked up dark blue I found that in RGB color space does not include green or red and contains 54.5 percent blue. But in CMYK color space contains 100 percent magenta (Sakurazaka's psyllium color), 100 percent cyan, 45 percent black and no yellow.

What does this mean in theory? Keyakizaka's world color was red and the zelkova tree was green which was their official group color. Hinata's official group color is light blue but their world color is yellow like the sun.

Sakurazaka has been looking for a while now for their world color and when you have a color like white with pink shades it's complex where to go. What we have learned from Sakurazaka they did never leave Keyakizaka's world color. What they did instead was to conform to feminine stereotypes to be an alternate version.

3rd gen joined and got a colorless song according to the director of Natsuno Chikamichi MV, Hidejin, and stylist, Remi Takenouchi. What kind of color will they be colored. When they got Seijaku no bouryoku is when things started to put in place. The song is a different form of depression that was not conveyed in Keyakizaka. It's painful but it is also hopeful. Dark blue meanings can be harsh but not as bad as Keyakizaka's world color.

When I look up dark blue meanings I find these:

Dark blue conveys power, depth and elegance.

Cool Temperature
Intelligence
Loyalty
Masculinity
Night sky
Predictability
Sea
Power and authority
Sadness
Social prominence

I don't have time to explain each of them but the sea and power and authority do I recognize from 3rd gen's marine uniform and the choreography they have now done for hospitality party and 3rd tour.

As for the sea you can use dark blue to symbolize a stormy sea or a deep body of water. Many shades of blue signify water, including blue-green or aqua for tropical waters, dark blue suggests a more mysterious depth or ominous quality.

Sea is very wide because if you touch the psychology of it you get all sudden a good side in addition to bad side.

And sadness is sorrow or despair when you are or feeling deep blue.

 

I don't think they will do another Hiragana to Hinatazaka again. They would need at least double the amount of members that we have now to do that and 3ki has only 11 girls, if it were at least 16, then maybe, but 11 is too few. Also, seeing that S&F clearly struggles to manage 2 idol groups, do we really need another Zaka? I think 3 is enough for now.

I want 3ki to flourish and become the new leaders. There is plenty of space for them to shine in Saku, especially with 1ki leaving. The fact that their meguri sales are great and they keep getting praised by buddies is a proof that there is a space for them in the group.

Unlike Hiragana who were treated as forever unders with little to no media exposure(only the fanbase cared), spent years being kanji shadow and being compared to them, empty halls at handshakes(in the beginning) and even when a member got popular with fans, she still wouldn't get a senbatsu.

 

Just checked recent sales totals from the Stage48 Oricon page:
6. Start Over! (after 6 weeks) 468,704
5. Sakurazuki (25 weeks) 387,782
4. Samidare yo (32 weeks) 438,395
3. Nagaredama (40 weeks) 434,371
2. BAN (70 weeks) 434,822
1. Nobody's Fault ("68 weeks") 501,780

The first single remains the best seller, but Start Over! seems at least to have turned things around. This is an argument for bringing Karin back at centre, but then I would say that, wouldn't I?

With the new single entitled "Need for Approval", it does sound as if they are continuing to head in a Keyaki serious direction. I've read a speculation that odds are shortest on Ten-san.

 

@ukifune Can you check your figures on weeks my friend, Nobofa can't be fewer weeks than BAN. Also the difference in weeks between BAN and Nagaredama is too big and doesn't follow the pattern of +- 8 weeks from one single to the next.

 

I was in a restaurant in Japan and they played Start over! which made me realize I want to meet Karin in person while I'm here but it seems like offline events are not happening right now?

 

They are good...

At first I loled especially with the center, but then I was awed by the fact that these guys and gals are doing it so seriously...

And the center... OMG he does EXACTLY what Karin is doing...

Enjoy:


if the video does not show watch the video here

 

Regardles of the level, it's always good when people choose to dance or make a cover of one of our songs

...and Start Over is such a good song...

 

Oh I can say (and that's a non-expert opinion), that their level is quite high... They stayed so close to the original and they show respect to all details...

 

No, a thing called “real meet & greet” (リアルミーグリ) is being held nowadays. It’s like a hand shake but without the handshake, from what I can tell.

I don’t think you would be able to get in within the time your trip is, unless you are staying there for months or something.

 

10 million views! Congrats to Karin and the gang!

 

Congratulations to Karin and all of Sakurazaka for reaching ten million views! Karin talks about it in her blog, with several pics from the recording. I posted about it in her thread (with one pic).