Sea✩A: 100% Moe, 0% Japanese

To quote John Travolta in Face/Off: 'It's like looking in a mirror. Only... not.' At first glance, you might mistake Sea✩A for just another fresh-off-the-production-line Japanese idol group. They've got the sugary songs, the frilly costumes, the cloying odour of cutesiness and the unpronounceable star symbol wedged into their band name. But on closer inspection, you realise something is amiss. No, they aren't an Aimi Eguchi-style CGI creation – they're from Singapore.

Sea✩A started life at Singapore's Anime Festival Asia, where members Beryl, Valerie, Wynnie (who's actually from Malaysia) and Estelle were selected from among the chirpy Japanophiles manning the Moe Moe Kyun ♥ Maid Cafe. Their mission? 'To spread 100% Moe healing power and happiness to everyone around the world!' Okay, we probably should've guessed it would be something like that.

The girls, who range in age from 19 to 22, list such Japanese staples as chawan-mushi, curry rice, unagi and teppanyaki among their favourite foods, and can rattle off a string of favourite anime series at the drop of a hat. As documented in the video below, they've spent the past few months working hard on their dance routines, anime song renditions and Japanese stage patter – as well as realizing their long-held dream of visiting Akihabara.

All in all, they make for a surreal package: a pitch-perfect imitation of frothy, ultra-disposable J-pop, delivered by fans who are probably more obsessed with Japanese pop culture than most Japanese people themselves. Sea✩A have already found a receptive audience in China, where they opened for anime singer May'n on her recent tour, but the real test will come when they release their debut single, 'Dream Shooter', in Japan on August 10.

Sea✩A official website