Can’t you feel me goin’ crazy?

“Kodou ga acceleration tamaranai attraction
Excited condition mou gaman dekinai”

It’s official: i don’t dig the choreo.

While the PV effectively warmed me up to the song, the live performance failed to make me view the choreo differently. Since only parts of it are featured in the video, i waited till this Music Station appearance before making the final call. If “sexy na Arashi” refers to those jerky hip/open-legs movements, i am downright disappointed. The dance routine (which sent most fangirls spazzing) isn’t that bad yet with all the hoo-ha surrounding it being choreographed by a famous choreographer, the oeuvre does fall short.

As a result, i do enjoy the PV a lot more than the live performance — which defies the norm since Arashi’s PVs are largely pretty vapid to be watched over and over again. The customary box setting and copious amount of close-up shots are still present, but it manages to be very dynamic. I looove the parts where the screen is split into five, featuring a member in motion in each frame, as well as those lingering silent individual scenes shown in black-and-white (Nino looks so young there) which work in contrast to P.A.R.A.D.O.X‘s tension.

Its live execution is much sparkly yet lackluster. Can’t decide whether it’s the camera work, the blinding lighting, or the gaudy outfits that i hate the most. Jun might be the visual or the one who embodies ‘sexiness’ the most, but when he’s at least two steps ahead of the formation and shot at such proximity from the camera, his sparkly shirt and matching pants are distracting in a bad way.

Then i got more than what i bargained for: Nino’s (smexy?) booty sway. I noticed the lyrics read “Gouin da ne koshitsuki de hiki yoseru” (which translates to “How pushy, luring me in with your sways“)… still… totally din’ see that coming. Sorry Nino, that was one awkward act to watch. >,<

That’s not all. As the choreo centers around hip area, we get five of them working theirs, most conspicuously during the chorus. While I did find the moves tacky — what’s with that i-wanna-pee gesture? — they seem harmless enough. IF Jun wasn’t overtly doing it, with such expression, at such intensity. Can’t really blame him for that, can we?

To seal everything off, we have Sho do some rapping so low and deep it comes off more gruff than husky. He doesn’t rap with such low register anymore, the voice/sound he produced in Arashi’s early songs, he struggles to reach those insanely low notes live. Regardless, that complements P.A.R.A.D.O.X‘s appeal well.

Aforementioned, i’ve come to like P.A.R.A.D.O.X as a song. As LOVE‘s dooziest track, i can see why it’s pushed as promotional material for the album. Though the main choreo is not to my liking, that doesn’t make like the song any less. I prefer the PV any day. That said, i still believe Arashi should’ve performed it with fedoras on so that they don’t have to air-grab ’em during the second-chorus and can frisbee them off towards the end; it’s part of the gimmick anyway.