[2015.06.29] Hina Fest'15 - The Girls Festival

[JPope]

[quote="Myst"]
I don't see why people are focusing on their singing ability to be truthful. Yes, they used to have stronger vocalists within H!P as a whole (there was also a wider range of ages with older and younger girls) but not much has changed from old H!P to new H!P. They just have less girls on a whole. They pick girls who have potential to shine or grow. Some do more than others, but some fall flat. The girls that can't sing are usually made leads. Look how long some of the girls were there and didn't improve. 
[/quote]
 
I focus on it because the music is the reason I'm into MM. I get that it's not like that for everyone else, but there is a baseline that each person has at which it becomes an issue, and I think they've descended to a point where it's below that baseline for more people than ever.
 
I completely disagree that there is not much change from old HP to new HP, and the difference is that while they used to have a few girls who were raw on talent, it was only a few. Now it's like half of the company, if not more, and they are not so cute or entertaining to make up for the talent deficit. 

[JPope]

[quote="WonderBuono"]
I really want to participate in this conversation about vocals, as I've been bothered the continuous decline in good voices not only in H!P, but for idols in general.

 
[/quote]
 
I think the Japanese wota have killed idol groups, tbh. The Japanese have always had an understanding that idols were not expected to be serious singers, and those that were were simply the exception to the rule, but the rise of the creepy wota has taken that to another level. It's not uncommon to see Japanese wota make comments disparaging overseas fans for caring about singing talent, seemingly to the point of promoting bad singing as a good thing in idols. 

[WonderBuono]

Problem solved -- downloaded the dailymotion app and it loaded just fine. :)


I really have two things to say:


1. For some reason I've always seen Maria as someone who has room to improve and become a decent singer if given the proper training/experience. I'm not sure why, I guess it's just something about the sound of her voice... but sadly it was too early for her to do a solo and it was off-key for the most part.


2. Good lord, I swear Haga is tone-deaf. I knew that before she joined Momusu, but I kinda hate being reminded.

[Anderei]

I don't see Maria ever really improving a lot. I think she's there just to be a pretty girl a la Sayumi and I think they won't focusing on making her a better vocalist because of that. And she was already a trainee for two years with minimal progress.

[Hotaru]

To be honest I found Akane to be ok at singing for her age and experience. I think if she tries/they give the training, she'll be pretty good.
 
Not so long ago I found Meimi to be obnoxious and only alright of a singer. All of a sudden after Lilium I've been like "Wow holy shit Meimi is actually good at this," lol. 

[Purin-chama]

[quote="JPope"]
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Myst" data-cid="186672" data-time="1427568267">
<div>
I don't see why people are focusing on their singing ability to be truthful. Yes, they used to have stronger vocalists within H!P as a whole (there was also a wider range of ages with older and younger girls) but not much has changed from old H!P to new H!P. They just have less girls on a whole. They pick girls who have potential to shine or grow. Some do more than others, but some fall flat. The girls that can't sing are usually made leads. Look how long some of the girls were there and didn't improve. 
[/quote]
 
I focus on it because the music is the reason I'm into MM. I get that it's not like that for everyone else, but there is a baseline that each person has at which it becomes an issue, and I think they've descended to a point where it's below that baseline for more people than ever.
 
I completely disagree that there is not much change from old HP to new HP, and the difference is that while they used to have a few girls who were raw on talent, it was only a few. Now it's like half of the company, if not more, and they are not so cute or entertaining to make up for the talent deficit. 
 
</div>
</blockquote>
What I meant was how they select the girls now isn't any different than before.
 
To me, you just can't expect a bunch of young girls to be that great of singers until they start getting older and have a little more vocal training. Overall, the average age is a lot younger than it was before, and kids really aren't that great of singers (see Berryz debut). You had some rare cases (Kago, Asuka, Airi, Ayaya) that were great when they started, though. The oldest member is Maimi, and she's 23, which is younger than the age of Yuuko when she started in MM. I get that the stability of vocals isn't as great as it used to be, but I feel that's directly linked with the ages of all the groups and girls. 

[JPope]

[quote="Myst"]
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="JPope" data-cid="186685" data-time="1427594880">
<div>
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Myst" data-cid="186672" data-time="1427568267">
<div>
I don't see why people are focusing on their singing ability to be truthful. Yes, they used to have stronger vocalists within H!P as a whole (there was also a wider range of ages with older and younger girls) but not much has changed from old H!P to new H!P. They just have less girls on a whole. They pick girls who have potential to shine or grow. Some do more than others, but some fall flat. The girls that can't sing are usually made leads. Look how long some of the girls were there and didn't improve. 
[/quote]
 
I focus on it because the music is the reason I'm into MM. I get that it's not like that for everyone else, but there is a baseline that each person has at which it becomes an issue, and I think they've descended to a point where it's below that baseline for more people than ever.
 
I completely disagree that there is not much change from old HP to new HP, and the difference is that while they used to have a few girls who were raw on talent, it was only a few. Now it's like half of the company, if not more, and they are not so cute or entertaining to make up for the talent deficit. 
 
</div>
</blockquote>
What I meant was how they select the girls now isn't any different than before.
 
To me, you just can't expect a bunch of young girls to be that great of singers until they start getting older and have a little more vocal training. Overall, the average age is a lot younger than it was before, and kids really aren't that great of singers (see Berryz debut). You had some rare cases (Kago, Asuka, Airi, Ayaya) that were great when they started, though. The oldest member is Maimi, and she's 23, which is younger than the age of Yuuko when she started in MM. I get that the stability of vocals isn't as great as it used to be, but I feel that's directly linked with the ages of all the groups and girls. 
 
</div>
</blockquote>
 
The 12th gen joined at pretty much the same average age as the 4th gen, and are a little older than the 5th and 6th gens, so while I agree with you that it would be easier to spot real talent if they chose older girls -- something I've advocated for since the 5th gen -- they were more successful at spotting talent and potential in younger girls back in the day. I really don't see a Takahashi, Tanaka, or even a Kago or Kamei among any of the girls of the 9th - 12th generations. I'd be happy if more of them were as good as Yoshizawa, to be honest. Even Rika Ishikawa -- as bad as she was -- had character as a singer. 
[quote="Anderei"]
I don't see Maria ever really improving a lot. I think she's there just to be a pretty girl a la Sayumi and I think they won't focusing on making her a better vocalist because of that. And she was already a trainee for two years with minimal progress.
[/quote]
 
You might be right, which is sad, because she clearly has the most potential of the 12th gen from what I've seen.

[Purin-chama]

[quote="JPope"]
...they were more successful at spotting talent and potential in younger girls back in the day. I really don't see a Takahashi, Tanaka, or even a Kago or Kamei among any of the girls of the 9th - 12th generations. I'd be happy if more of them were as good as Yoshizawa, to be honest. Even Rika Ishikawa -- as bad as she was -- had character as a singer. 
[/quote]
I definitely agree with this (except Yoshizawa being good). The other H!P groups have better consistency and more vocal growth than MM has in previous years.

[JPope]

I see Yossie as sort of a baseline. She definitely had moments where she sounded pretty good, but she also had some where she was pretty bad. Overall, though, she was a solid singer for an idol, and she obviously had tons of charisma and personality. MM could use a few more with her skill set.

[momoirosaya]

I actually think that 12th gen singing abilities go like this Miki<Maria<Akane<Ogata.
 
Miki definitely has the most potential and is the best singer of 12th gen so far. If she works hard, she could get really good. And Ogata is so pitchy, like the really bad kind where her voice cracks mid-song.
 
I really like Sakura's singing voice, and personally I think she's really good. Plus she's only 15. You guys are comparing her to girls who were 20+ in their prime. I have no doubt that she'll continue to improve, especially since she likes to sing, she's the type that would work at it.

[TicTacAnyone]

Altogether, it felt pretty lackluster lol.... (And I'm agreeing with those who have noticed a slide in vocal abilities, just don't want to write a huge rant when you all pretty much covered it)

[Shoujo Q]

Morning Hina'Fest setlist for day 2 was added to the first page.
 
I could tell your stories of my idol adventures, but not in this thread. It's already a bit derailed as it is. xD And I'm total H!P bias so it wouldn't probably be very informative. Let's just say, you'll never see me complain about the state of H!P's vocals. 

[Derby]

[quote="Saya"]
And Ogata is so pitchy, like the really bad kind where her voice cracks mid-song.
[/quote]
 
Ogata's voice cracked during her line in Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari... seriously whose voice could crack with that song? that song is almost talking

[TicTacAnyone]

7.Hajimete no Happy Birthday!'15 - Country Girls
 
AND
 
19.Ajisai Ai Ai Monogatari (Biyuden) - Patisserie (Haruna, Uemura, Uta) ?!?!
 
I think Patisserie chose a good song for their voices.... Fingers crossed!

[Meikochi]

[quote="Shoujo Q"]
Angerme Premium (Main)
<div>1.Otome no Gyakushu - Angerme</div>
<div>2.Yume Miru 15sai - Angerme</div>
<div>3.Chikyuu wa kyou mo ai wo hagukumu - Angerme</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Solo, Duo, Trio shuffle corner </div>
<div>18.Daite yo! PLEASE GO ON (Goto Maki) - Makino Maria aka Marian&Hearts;LoveRin (solo)</div>
<div>19.Suki Sugite Baka Mitai (DEF. DIVA) - HagaTamu (Haga Akane, Tamura Meimi) </div>
<div>20.Tanpopo (Tanpopo) - Suzuki Kanon ni Peaberry wo Soete (Suzuki Kanon, Wada Ayaka, Sayashi Riho)</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Juice=Juice premium </div>
<div>24.Romance no Tochuu - Juice=Juice</div>
<div>25.Hadaka no Hadaka no Hadaka no KISS - Juice=Juice</div>
<div>26.Samidare bijo ga samidareru - Juice=Juice</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Angerme Premium</div>
<div>27.Eighteen Emotion - Angerme</div>
<div>28.Uchouten Love - Angerme</div>
<div>29.Taiki Bansei - Angerme</div>
<div>30.Short cut - Hello! Project</div>
<div>
<div> </div>
<div>Solo, Duo, Trio shuffle corner </div>
<div>17.Genkimono de Ikou! (Mano Erina) - Ozeki Mai solo</div>
<div>18.Kokoro no Busu ni wa Naranee! (Otome gumi) - Hamizu (Haruka, Murota Mizuki)</div>
<div>19.Ajisai Ai Ai Monogatari (Biyuden) - Patisserie (Haruna, Uemura, Uta)</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Premium Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>24.Toki wo Koe Sora wo Koe - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>25.Wakuteka Take a chance - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>26.Wagamama Kinomama Ai no Joke - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>27.Brainstorming - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>28.One Two Three (Updated) - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>29.Renai Revolution 21 (Updated) - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>30.Dokkan Capriccio - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div>31.The Matenrou Show - Hello! Project</div>
</div>
[/quote]
 
I really like the setlist for all mains until now (Angerme, JJ and Momusu).
2 members I love and who I really like hearing them sing (HaMizu) chose one of my favorite songs, I can't wait to hear it !
 
As for Day 1 shuffle corner, at least Maria tried, it wasn't good but not horrible in my opinion. HagaTamu chose a great song but apparently too hard for Akane, but I like her tone so I hope she'll improve soon. And Tanpopo was weak compared to the girls' experience now, in my opinion :/.

[Farrah]

[quote="Saya"]
Plus she's only 15. You guys are comparing her to girls who were 20+ in their prime. I have no doubt that she'll continue to improve, especially since she likes to sing, she's the type that would work at it.
[/quote]
I keep seeing people bring this up, and I can't speak for JPope, but I'm not comparing new girls to older generations during their prime.  That would be crazy!  I'm comparing them to earlier generations when they first debuted and these new girls still don't cut the mustard. First and second generation came in sounding decent because they purposely focused on finding passable singers back then, watching baby Maki's audition, Yossie's audition, Aibon's audition, Miki's audition, Aichan's audition, Kamei's audition, Reina's audition... it's not like any of the girls I just linked to sounded amazing or super impressive - but their auditions were still five times better than 90% of girls they're adding to H!P now (including ANGERME, Country Girls and what we've heard of Kobushi Factory).  I'd argue that other than Sayumi, every one of those auditions was better than anyone in 9th gen, 10th gen, or 12th gen other than Mizuki.  Zukki, Sakura and Mizuki are the only girls that were on this level fresh out the gate, and weirdly, some of them haven't even really improved much beyond that level even though it's been years.  
 
I don't expect 13-15 year olds to sound mind blowing - anyone who was on this forum around say, 2007 has heard the horrifying covers I used to post to the karaoke section as a middle schooler but is it so crazy to think they should maybe start adding girls that already show a steady sense of pitch beforehand, instead of hoping they can morph someone who's 70% tonedeaf into 30% tone deaf by the time they're 16?  9th gen have been here almost five years now, do you want to hear what Reina sounded like after four years?  Eririn? I don't think it's insane for me to expect at least some of 9th and 10th gen to sound this solid.  I've yet to see Mizuki deliver a solo this large and sound this consistent.  Funnily, at this point in time, Eri was not considered one of H!P's stronger singers by most fans.

 
I don't expect them to sound amazing, I just wish less of them sounded horrible, and more of them sounded good.  I think that's mostly what JPope and I are expecting - let's just be realistic and admit that the current groups have a lot more dead weight than they used to, and they compensate for it a lot less.
 
Anyhoo, patiently waiting for a recording of the units today. Ajisai should be interesting - Akari has improved a lot in the last year but we all know how the other two usually sound haha.  I think Haruka actually has potential to sound pretty good on Kokoro no Busu ni wa Naranee and she usually makes terrible choices so I'm cautiously excited for that as well.

 

[Shoujo Q]

Evening Concert Setlist is up on the first page.
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote">
 
Evening Concert
<div style="margin:0px;color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:arial, verdana, tahoma, sans-serif;font-size:11.9999990463257px;background-color:rgb(250,252,255);"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:arial, verdana, tahoma, sans-serif;font-size:11.9999990463257px;background-color:rgb(250,252,255);">
<div style="margin:0px;">Premium C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">1.The Middle Management - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">2.Tsugi no Kado wo Magare - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">3.Akogare My STAR - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">4.Ten Made nobore! - Hello Pro Kenshuusei</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">5.Crying - Hello Pro Kenshuusei</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">6.Itooshikutte gomen ne - Country Girls</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">7.Hajimete no happy birthday! - Country Girls</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">8.Wonderful World - Juice=Juice</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">9.Ca va? Ca va? - Juice=Juice</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">10.Otome no Gyakushu - Angerme</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">11.Tachiagirl - Angerme</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">12.Seishun kozou ga naiteiru - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">13.Yuugure wa Ameagari - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">14.Sakura Night Fever (KAN) - Hello! Project</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">15.Konna Watashi de yokattara - Kikkawa You</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">16.Urahara Temptation - Kikkawa You</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">Solo, Duo, Trio shuffle corner </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">17.Sakura Mankai (Sakura gumi) - Fukumura Mizuki solo</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">18.DANCE & CHANCE (Coconuts Musume.) - Date Shimai (Ayumi, Sasaki)</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">19.Kawaii Kare (Melon Kinenbi) - S.Y.S. (Nakajima Saki, Miyazaki Yuka, Takagi Sayuki)</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">20.Koi Doboro - Country Girls</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">21.Ijiwaru Shinaide Dakishimete yo - Juice=Juice</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">22.Taiki Bansei - Angerme</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">23.One Two Three - Morning Musume. '15</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">Premium C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">24.Ooki na Ai de motenashite - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">25.Ai wa itsumo itsumo - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">26.Hitorijime shitakatta dake na no ni - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">27.Midnight Temptation - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">28.Dance de Bakoon - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">29.GamushaLIFE - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;">30.Bokura no Kagayaki - C-ute</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">31.Meguru Koi no kisetsu - Hello! Project</div>
<div style="margin:0px;"> </div>
<div style="margin:0px;">end!</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
 
 
We got some old school Coconuts all up in here. xD


- Speaking of idols in general, with the AMOUNT of idol groups in Japan right now, you'll be lucky to find girls who aren't auditions because they just want to be idols. Back in the early day of Musume, there wasn't this much competition as they have today so it was easier to find girls who could carry a tune. Also, Musume clearly has an agenda where they don't want the perfect girls that don't need to grow or get better at anything. They want the raw, girl next door, not that good, but determined to get better type. Many of them have no plans to be the next Beyonce, they just want to get famous doing whatever it takes and when they find their niche they stick to it. (In most cases that's just musical theater/acting.) Or they leave and we never hear from them again. Or they explode into a fiery ball of fail and we wish they would come back. 

[Anderei]

Honestly, I'm not convinced they're still looking for the diamond in the rough girls, because that implies the potential is there and for a lot of the girls, outside of MM as well, I don't believe it is. I think H!P is looking for the same things as every other idol company.

[Farrah]

[quote="Anderei"]
Honestly, I'm not convinced they're still looking for the diamond in the rough girls, because that implies the potential is there and for a lot of the girls, outside of MM as well, I don't believe it is. I think H!P is looking for the same things as every other idol company.
[/quote]
 
Yep, that's the big thing.  I've said multiple times now; I don't expect them to find the Japanese Beyonce or something? They've never found that and they never will - the closest they got was Koda Kumi who they of course didn't take in because her image was more soloist than idol group.  I'm not naive - idol groups are about combining a bunch of cute girls, with one or two that can sing fairly well, one or two that can sing passably, and then some Sayumi and Rika types that are cute and charismatic but couldn't hit a note to save their life.  The line of vocal talent does not abruptly jump from tone deaf to Adele.  There are so many shades in the middle. So, again I say - where are the Yaguchi Mari, Kago Ai, Kamei Eri, Tanaka Reina, Niigaki Risa, Suzuki Airi, Okai Chisato, Sugaya Risako, Tsugunaga Momoko, Natsuyaki Miyabi level singers in 9th gen, 10th gen, 12th gen, Country Girls, 3rd gen S/mileage? Let's stop calling Oda Sakura the new Takahashi when Takahashi *at debut* was a better singer and performer.  Oda Sakura is a Kamei. So we've got one.  Where are the others? They're casting more Rika and Sayumi types than ever before.  Those girls have a place in an idol group but when 1/3 or even 1/2 of the group is girls like that, they start to really blend together.
 
This kind of goes for AKB48 as well - the old front girl line-up had bad singers like Maeda Atsuko and Oshima Yuko, but they also pushed a lot of girls like Kojima Haruna, Takahashi Minami, Minegishi Minami, Oshima Mai, Kashiwagi Yuki, Watanabe Mayu et al who could call sing a little bit (some more than others).  The new AKB48 front girls... Yokoyama Yui? Only one I can think of off the top of my head.  AKB48 has never focused on vocals but it's true that they used to have more strong singers than they've been pushing lately.  JPope may be correct in saying this is some sort of adaptation to modern wota culture / standards.

[Banana]

Haruka actually sang Yuujou ~Kokoro no Busu ni Naranee!~ already at her birthday event, if you want to hear it. The performance with Murota should (hopefully) be better, though.   
 
 

[Farrah]

Thanks for the link!  Haruka really deserves those little solos they keep throwing to Ayumi, in my opinion.  Especially since she's one of the most popular members, consistently is one of the members selling the most merch, etc.  Very odd to me that she hasn't gotten more of a push (although she's not as far in the background now as she was a few singles ago).  I thought she'd be a better singer by now than she is but I think getting to sing more in concert would really help her so it's a shame she doesn't get much.  These are pretty much my exact feelings regarding Zukki as well, haha.

[Haru]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote">19.Kawaii Kare (Melon Kinenbi) - S.Y.S. (Nakajima Saki, Miyazaki Yuka, Takagi Sayuki)</blockquote>
YAS BITCH

[JPope]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Farrah" data-cid="186713" data-time="1427626632">
<div>
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Saya" data-cid="186698" data-time="1427602605">
<div>
Plus she's only 15. You guys are comparing her to girls who were 20+ in their prime. I have no doubt that she'll continue to improve, especially since she likes to sing, she's the type that would work at it.
</div>
</blockquote>
I keep seeing people bring this up, and I can't speak for JPope, but I'm not comparing new girls to older generations during their prime.  That would be crazy!  I'm comparing them to earlier generations when they first debuted and these new girls still don't cut the mustard.
 
</div>
</blockquote>
 
Go ahead and speak for me, you're doing great so far.
 
Let's take a look at the ages which some former Musumes joined the group:
 
<div>Fukuda Asuka - 12</div>
<div>Mari Yaguchi - 15; joined 1st gen Tanpopo same age</div>
<div>Sayaka Ichii - 14</div>
<div>Maki Goto - 13</div>
<div>Ai Kago - 12</div>
<div>Reina Tanaka - 13</div>
<div>Eri Kamei -14</div>
<div>Ai Takahashi -14 (almost 15)</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Also:</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Miki Fujimoto - 17 when she debuted as a soloist</div>
<div>Aya Matsuura -14 when she debuted as a soloist</div>
<div> </div>
<div>All of these girls were at least passable singers from the moment they joined H!P, and a few of them were quite good. The current MM includes eight girls with 3-4 years experience in the group. Compare where they are as singers currently to where the girls I listed above were after 3-4 years and tell me again that we're being too harsh on them. Hell, compare Sakura to that group with two years experience, and you see why some of us think she should be better than she is. And I really like Sakura.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Here's another thing, along with not being able to sing in tune very well, most of the current MM girls haven't an iota soul when they sing, even when they do hit the right notes. I'm not talking about "Soul music," I'm talking about offering something musically and stylistically compelling beyond singing the melody. Riho consistently has the most soul, although many find her style annoying. Sakura comes close and Kudo and Zukki hint at it occasionally, but other than that, nada. I've used Rika before as an example of a girl who was able to give good performances despite her lack of raw talent because she had soul and emotion when she sang. The only thing worse than an out of tune voice is a boring voice, and 3/4 of the current MM have pretty boring voices, IMO. </div>

[showraniy]

I honestly hadn't noticed the lack of vocal ability going on (other than Riho because I always notice the front girls singing poorly or not), but you guys are making some really amazing points that I'm loving to read. This is the type of discussion I love from the BBS.
 
I think, if I'm not being biased at all, Sakura and Suzuki Kanon have had the strongest performances of MM after Takahashi and Reina's departure; however, the mid-level singers now DO have the potential to make up for the poor singers if only they had the lines. I'm not entirely sure since I haven't made a point to pay attention to this, but I wonder if we don't notice the bad singing more now because all the solo lines go to Riho-level singers, and instead of distributing mid-level singing lines to the mid-level singers, they're just replacing all those other solos with chorus lines? Ayumi has had at least one solo I can remember off the top of my head, but anything else I can think of involves Riho solo + two girls sharing a line + chorus. Rinse and repeat but replace Riho with Sakura occasionally, and I think that's the standard MM single.
 
I could be entirely off base because, again, I haven't paid enough attention to this to say if it's actually happening or not, but I'm having trouble remembering MM solos other than Riho's and Sakura's off the top of my head.

[Anderei]

Mizuki gets lines pretty regularly.

[Solarblade]

I also think Masaki can be an amazing singer if she quits trying to be Reina deux.... Her lives really show a totally different picture than her studio voice and I hate that so much!



Though i have to say some of the old MM girls sounded like crap back then too, it just takes time for some to get out of puberty and find their footing....and if not, fall back on personality (which not gonna lie, the current generations is slightly lacking in).


As for the hina performances...i liked Marias presence, but her voice sounded deadpan like she couldnt really emote and lost fire less than halfway


I was surprised at Akanechin's lower voice and it has potential to be really nice but Meimi stole that performance easily

[momoirosaya]

I think a big reason MM doesn't have strong vocalists anymore is also because of the types of songs they sing nowadays with lots of auto-tune and talky parts, with no harmonies.
When they sang Morning Coffee, Riho mentioned it was hard because they had never sung harmonies live before, and apart from her and whoever else took over for Sayu and records it for the tracks, they never work on that. Does anyone know if they even had girls singing lines as only harmonies (instead of adding it in later) when they recorded the older songs for Best Updated??

[Anderei]

Did they have them at all in the updated versions? They don't do them live so I assume they aren't in the studio versions.

[momoirosaya]

Hina Fest Performances
 
Morning Musume '15 Seishun Kozou ga Naiteru http://www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/x2l1zqu_morning-musume-15-seishun-kozo-ga-naiteru-live-at-hinafest-2015_music
Morning Musume '15 Yuugure wa Ameagari http://www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/x2l20mm_morning-musume-15-yuugure-wa-amaegari-live-at-hinafest-2015_music
Country Girls Koi Dorobou http://www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/x2l20ml_country-girls-koi-dorobou-live-at-hinafest-2015_music
Juice=Juice Ca Va Ca Va http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2l1zqt_juice-juice-ca-va-ca-va-live-at-hinafest-2015_music
Juice=Juice Wonderful World http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2l1zqv_juice-juice-wonderful-world-live-at-hinafest-2015_music

[Purin-chama]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="TicTacAnyone" data-cid="186704" data-time="1427608953">
19.Ajisai Ai Ai Monogatari (Biyuden) - Patisserie (Haruna, Uemura, Uta) ?!?!

I think Patisserie chose a good song for their voices.... Fingers crossed!</blockquote>
This turned out really well. Sounds like they did the original break down. Uta is Rika, Akari is Erika, and Haruna is Yui. Uta is gonna be pretty decent in a few years. Akari was the strongest singer of the group. Really wish J=J would use her more. She's improved a ton since their debut.