For starters, I'm not into H!P at all (quickly ducks), but if I was, I would keep it a VERY tight secret.. (I'm really not..I'm just here for the gravure IVs...true!!)
I guess if I was back in Australia, it wouldn't be so embarrassing, but being a grown man in Japan, you just don't want that kind of stigma associated with yourself.
"WTF are you talking about?", you ask. Well, in all honestly, and remember, don't shoot the messenger, any guy who's into H!P in Japan, is considered a freak/total loser. The type of guy that is pointed at on the street and laughed at. And again, in all honestly, I haven't personally met a single person in Japan in the 6years I've been here, who actually likes H!P (or admitted to it), but have seen some grown fans on the streets, and noticed all the giggles from the people around them.
As I wrote on a different forum once, I have no problem hiring out porn from the local video store, but wouldn't be seen dead hiring out an H!P CD.