Could PC Music help introduce the British public to J-Pop?

It's been kind of difficult to ignore the talk around 'PC Music' recently - from an entire Radio 1 show devoted to it, to a flashy piece in the Guardian. The next 'New Rave'-esque flash-in-the-pan, or a tantalising glimpse of the future sound of pop? Only time will tell, of course, but one of the things I've come to admire most about the movement is both its open admiration of J-Pop, and the potential the movement has for potentially introducing it to the mainstream.

That said - I think without some subtle tweaks, PC Music - as a label or a wider 'genre' will struggle to achieve true mainstream crossover. While musically it falls neatly in line with some of the material the likes of Charli XCX are putting out, the childlike vocals present the same issue as to why I think a Hatsune Miku hit in the UK anytime soon is unlikely too. The problem: to the casual music listener, it sounds like a gimmick. A Crazy Frog-esque bit of computer wizardry cooked up in a Hoxton bedroom between trips to Pret.

There's scope though - I think - for the sound to at least on some level infiltrate into the mainstream. Whether that be through the more commercial-sounding acts like Kero Kero Bonito (who are often tagged as part of the movement, but take a far more straight-up pop approach), or a collaboration/sample by an already well-established EDM artist, it feels like a track could hit it big, if - and isn't this always the way - it was lucky enough to be picked up by daytime Radio 1.

Part of me wonders - considering the groundswell around movements like this is often largely subsumed by the music blogging community, that following this early handful of pieces, more and more will natural snowball and follow. Just as with the dreaded triumvate of hipsterdom: pulled pork, craft beers and street food in general, it seems only a matter of time between reading something on an achingly hip indie blog and it popping up in Time Out, Shortlist and the likes. It's a 'concept' that thrives on its own perceived freshness - until everyone moves on to the next thing, that is.

That said, if even one person listened to a PC Music track, or read about Charli XCX praising Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and then went on to listen to some actual J-Pop, I'd count that as a victory.

If you're interested in sampling a little PC Music first hand, the newly released compilation disc from the label itself is well worth checking out. Or you could just listen to Kero Kero Bonito, because she's awesome.