In honor of Kis-My-Ft2’s complete videography being uploaded to YouTube (in edited form, of course…), I can’t resist writing about each single. To put this in context for Bias List readers, Kis-My-Ft2 (or Kisumai, as they’re often known) are my J-pop version of Infinite. That’s how much I love them and their discography.

Yet, I rarely write about them because finding online links to their music was so hard… until now!

Ai No Beat (2012)

Ai No Beat was an interesting experiment. Kisumai released the song in both dance and rock versions. Then, these were combined for a mega-cool mash-up on the album. All three tracks are great, but I’ve always considered the dance version to be the “official” single.

Johnny’s music occasionally dovetails with K-pop trends, and I think Ai No Beat feels quite K-pop in its execution. This caused me dismiss it initially because I already had enough K-pop in my library. I was looking for something new and different. But, that turned out to be a big mistake. Ai No Beat is a fantastic burst of slick dance-pop – the kind we just don’t hear much anymore. I love the nimble melodies during its verses and how they gradually transform into something more anthemic as we reach the chorus. There’s a trance-like energy running through portions of this song, giving it plenty of momentum.

However, my favorite part of Ai No Beat is its dance breakdown. The “naked dance” hook is… interesting. But, just listen to how the production builds during this segment! It’s so exciting.

As for the video, the guys are back on their skates after a brief foray to the dance club. In the second version, they’re doing their glam rock thing atop a mountain of amplifiers. Looks a bit dangerous, to be honest…