luv’s major label debut song “Fuwa Fuwa,” released in July, has been performing well on the viral charts in Taiwan. It entered the Top 50 on August 26, one month after its release. Coincidentally, the members went to Taiwan that week to shoot a music video and conducted a media campaign, which led it to the Top 3 on September 13, and it continued to chart for another month. on September 11 the music video for the new song “好人紀行” filmed in Taiwan was released, further increasing the number of Taiwanese listeners, and many comments from Taiwan have been received on YouTube and social networking sites.
Formed in June 2023, luv is a group of five members, all born in 2003 and living in Kansai, Japan: Hiyn (vocals and guitar), Zum (bass), Sho (drums), Rosa (keyboards), and Ofeen (DJ), who met through childhood friends and university jazz clubs. The four members of the band are currently university students. Hiyn, who is the face of the band and the core of the songwriting, grew up listening to black music from a young age under the influence of her father, and became a fan of acid jazz and neo-soul of the 1990s via Tom Misch. The inclusion of DJs among the members is a clear indication of their admiration for that era.
All members share Hiyn’s taste, and while utilizing their own backgrounds, luv’s stylish and groovy performances are all songs that will naturally make your body sway. They are also from a generation that naturally absorbed bands such as Suchmos, Yogee New Waves, and never young beach when they were in their teens, and they have a sense of “recreating the atmosphere of that time in their generation”. The lyrics are a mixture of Japanese and English, but the sound-oriented, aural word choice is also a major feature of the song, which is sung rhythmically by Hiyn in her sweet voice, ensuring the song’s broadness as a pop song.
Prior to “Fuwa Fuwa,” the group had released eight songs, including some on compilations, and their four-song EP “Garage,” released in February of this year, is a condensed version of their individuality. Following the self-introduction song “Lee Un Vile,” in which the members’ names are sprinkled throughout the lyrics and they sing <we’re luv> and <I hope you groovin’ more>, “Stevlay” is a song that shows their playful side. The title of the song is by Steve Lacy, the sampling source is Bob Marley, and the lyrics include references to Erykah Badu and D’Angelo, which shows their love of music regardless of age.
The piano instrumental “Rovel” was composed by Rosa, the only one of the band members with classical roots, who is a key player alongside Hiyn in terms of songwriting, having arranged the strings for “Jamlady” released in May. The fourth track, “Cooen,” is the quintessential mellow neo-soul number. The last part of the song contains the announcement, “a new path begins, but you can always return to the garage. The title of the EP, “Garage,” refers to a live bar in Kobe called “Garage Paradise,” to which they have close ties.
Their major label debut song “Fuwa Fuwa” was the first song to be written based on a session in a recording studio, which was a new experience for them, but it packaged the band’s raw groove even more than before, and the lightness of the acid jazz that is their specialty was impressive. The lyrics are almost entirely in Japanese. The fact that the lyrics are almost entirely in Japanese is also fresh for the band, and it can be said that they are more conscious than ever of the breadth of their pop music. Starting with “Ai de saree ni yara kimi ni nagimasu mama,” followed by “Fuwa Fuwa ni ikou, ai ni natta kono mama,” this song is definitely an important song for them, including the fact that they sing about “love” in reference to the band’s name.
If one were to look for reasons other than the quality of the song, one could say that the Japanese band scene of the 2010s, which is one of luv’s points of reference, has already taken root in Taiwan and other Asian countries. Taiwan has always had a strong J-POP culture, and recently, the music of Sayuri, a young girl who recently passed away, has been topping the viral charts. In 2019, Suchmos’ guest appearance at the [Golden Sound Creative Awards -Golden Indie Music Awards-], which picks up new generation artists in Taiwan, became a major topic of conversation. In addition, never young beach is also known for their friendship with Sunset Rollercoaster, which has become a leading band not only in Taiwan but also in Asia, and Taiwanese listeners who have listened to Suchmos and never young beach have high expectations for luv as a new generation. This situation may be more advanced than in Japan.
Regarding the interesting aspect of luv, I would like to mention that Hiyn is working as a solo artist named “Miyake Weapon”. Under this name, he released the album “Dai Gross” last November, but he has already had some success in providing songs, and “Knees Ginza,” which he provided to WEST. has even created a buzz on TikTok. When listening to “Dai Gross,” Hiyn, who has a multi-faceted creative mind and writer’s brain typical of a solo artist in the 2020s, has chosen a band as a place to output what he wants to do in the most honest way possible. It is very important that Hiyn, who has a multi-creative mind and writer’s brain like a solo artist of the 2020s, has chosen a band as the most honest place to output what she wants to do.
The band’s profile reads, “The band name ‘luv’ is slang for ‘love,’ a word that is more casual than ‘love’ and more formal than ‘like. This “casualness” is certainly apparent in the band’s music and visuals, which are stylish but not overdone and overdressed. And it is not a rehash, but a reflection of the band’s “Japanese or foreign? Foreign? Band? Solo? I feel that this is the best proof that they are not a rehash, but are artists of the 2020’s who are free and lighthearted in their activities, free from dichotomies such as “Japan or abroad? Currently, the number of people attending their live performances is rapidly increasing, and their first independent project “luv presents ‘yet’” to be held on October 20 at ADRIFT in Shimokitazawa, inviting DURDN as a guest, received more than double the number of ticket applications than the capacity of the venue. How far can they go from here, drifting in the air?