The Japanese have invented a lot of things but among the most famous, as well as the most widely mispronounced, is Karaoke. Until today I'd never felt the need to sing Karaoke. I had a pretty good idea of what it would be like and didn't really want to join in thankyou very much. However, earlier this evening, four of my classmates dragged me into a Shibuya Karaoke bar and after a fair amount of yelling even persuaded me to sing with them. When in Rome, y'know?
I've always imagined Karaoke to just be several people in a room screaming to a backing track. My preconceptions were almost absolutely correct but differed in two important respects. A) There were maracas B) Several people in a room screaming to a backing track is actually quite fun.
My companions- A Koeran, A Chinese girl and two Thailanders chose a large selection of mostly boring J-Pop to sing to but when things got too dull I just started making interesting rhythms with the maracas or harmonizing in kooky ways on the second mic (something which went down quite well). The highlight was a fantastic rendition of an Avril Lavigne song by the Thailanders which, due to the fact it was in a Language they couldn't speak, was both dreadful and hilarious. They knew this and embraced it.
I've also gained a new respect for Eminem. For a joke I chose 'Lose Yourself' as my second song. By the end I was actually sweating! The song selection was quite impressive and they had plenty of tunes which I knew. I did a pretty darn good rendition of 'Smile' by Lily Allen, but sadly my mock cockney accent was lost on my Asian companions.
Is Karaoke something I'd do again soon? Probably not but I have lost my disrespect for the pastime. Really though, maracas make anything good!
(Amendment: It was actually a Karaoke 'box' and not a bar. This meant my chums and I got a room to ourselves. It also meant the Japanese didn't have to hear me sing 'All around the world', those lucky devils.)
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10 comments:
Hi Dunkers
Glad you've discovered the joys of Karaoke. We had a similar experience during our recent Treowen weekend, when 20 of us old folks uninhibitedly chorused the lyrics to a string of 70s disco hits. It was most liberating.
Hope you haven't caught the 'using the masculine as the universal' disease. Check blog post for worrying symptom.
Love Mum
How should you pronounce "Carry Oh Key" ?
You're assuming that the Thialanders and the Korean are all male Mum. I think it's you who should be checking for worrying symptoms.
And talking about those, how did todays fun trip to the GP go? Did he suss you out? Tell me all!
(Karaoke is said exactly as it's spelt, but with the E pronounced as the Japanese Eh. Japanese is completely phonetic unless you're using Kanji.)
So were the Thais and Koreans all male?
awwww!
my mission when i eventually go to japan : go for one (or some) karaoke sessions!
hahaha, call it media influence or whatever, but i can't wait to sing my arse off in them booths XD
btw, malay and indonesia both say 'karaoke' like the japanese as well, because the way we pronounce our syllables is somewhat similar to the way they pronounce theirs.
heheh, but yeah, saying 'ka-ra-o-ke' (like that) is not just a japanese phenomena. =)
I much prefer going to karaoke boxes than bars with my friends - that way you don't have to embarrass yourself in front of anyone you don't know.
Also, fun thing to try at karaoke: singing the katakana transcriptions of the English lyrics as accurately as possible. Never fails to amuse the Japanese :p
M'ma: How you misjudge me! The Thailanders were both female too. The reason I said "A Chinese girl" is that "A Chinese" just doesn't sound right on it's own. Don't ask me why!
Zaty- I'm glad that the Japanese aren't the only ones who get it right. In England we say Cah-Ri-Oh-Key. It rolls of the tongue more easily I guess! (Also, it's really nice to have someone who I don't know send me a comment. It makes me feel internationally well knows (hah!)
Kiera- It actually was a Karaoke box, I didn't know they had a different name. I'll amend that on the blog.
Didn't have the brevity or the skills to speed read all those Furagana (Furigana?). My silence was probably for the best.
Dunc
I can only apologise for my terrible sexist allegation.
I agree that 'A Chinese' sounds ungrammatical and even a tad rude; whereas 'The Chinese' sounds just fine. Perhaps being ungrammatical and a tad rude about a whole bunch of people is more socially acceptable.
I guess saying you went out with a China doll would only make things worse?
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