The CN shuffle band art is stunning but it makes me sad that J-Rock has never won? And Techno-Pop which is also very boppin’ but J-Rock is def my fav along with the hell band so. J-Rock appreciation time!
What I love most about them is like. The potential. I’d say each canon band has something that defines them and ties the members together, and I think out of the shuffle bands J-Rock exhibits this the most clearly. I feel like they’d work really well in an AU. All of the members have some sort of rebel streak/determination to prove themselves or at least value individuality highly: we’ve got Ran whose voice comes across so strongly in her songs, Tomoe’s passion that’s so Much sometimes she has to keep it in check, Rimi’s desire to be her own person instead of a shadow of her sister, Eve and how bushido helps her be the best person she can be even if other people think she’s weird, and of course Sayo with her inferiority complex and burning need to find her own sound. Like. Imagine how great it would be if these different but like-minded girls got together and created something that made them stronger in all the right ways. Ran finding an outlet for all the feelings she keeps bottled up (this is canon but y’know). Tomoe finding a place where she doesn’t need to hold back for the sake of others. Rimi bursting out of her shell and playing music she wouldn’t have dared play before. Eve being her wonderful bubbly bushido self with no agency there to tell her what to do. Sayo being drawn to the rawness of Ran’s singing like Why? and slowly learning to forgive herself for not being perfect
And the interactions. God. Sayo, Tomoe and Rimi bonding over being sisters. Ran and Sayo butting heads over passion vs technique and gaining more of both by the end, with Ran leading creatively and Sayo grilling everyone so they polish up their skills. Eve and Rimi are just absolute rays of sunshine and amazing moral support but damn do they go hard when it matters
Of course there’s the question of whether early Sayo would join a band like this but just imagine she did ok. Imagine she found Ran before she found Yukina and there was something there she couldn’t ignore. Take this AU Sayo who helps push this little indie band to success and discovers that her sound can be whatever she wants it to be
Anyway I started and abandoned a fic about this a while ago but you can have a read if you want
