Anchorsong, The Storytelling E.P.

“Live electronica. Boring, isn’t it? Usually a couple of gangly blokes with computer screen tans, dubious facial hair and bobble hats, ducking about behind a bank of equipment, twiddling some knobs while the audience stroke their chins. There’s the odd exception - Orbital with their spectacle-mounted torches, The Prodigy with Mad Keith et al, and maybe The Chemical Brothers - still, it’s never going to be as much fun as going to a full-on rawwwk show with guitars and stuff, is it?”

A common sentiment and one I’d usually be inclined to agree with - I listen to a lot of electronica but I rarely feel any desire to go and see the artists perform live. Perhaps this kind of reaction was what Masaaki Yoshida had in mind when he gave his first solo performance as Anchorsong in September 2004. Since then, thanks partly to around 40,000 views on YouTube, his live shows have become something of a phenomenon. Armed with an Akai MPC2000XL and a Korg Triton he builds up the songs from scratch, a process which has been likened to “a painter drawing on a white canvas.” It’s fascinating to watch and it sounds amazing. As a result, he finds himself in an unusual position for an electronic artist - he’s proved himself as a live act but can he recreate that buzz on record? His debut release, The Storytelling E.P, definitely points in the right direction.

Unlike a lot of instrumental/electronic releases, the five songs here are relatively short - ‘Breathe Breathe Me’ is the longest despite clocking in at a relatively measly six minutes. Anchorsong generally makes use of the same thundering drums and bass that characterised a lot of DJ Shadow’s early work, but with more pace (although it’s hardly Happy Hardcore). If you’ve seen Anchorsong on YouTube then you’re bound to be familiar with ‘Calling (Never Stop)’. It’s the first track on the E.P and sets out his signature sound, but over the remainder of the record Yoshida proves he’s no one-trick pony - piano breaks, muted strings and, what sounds like the doom-laden bells of the Marie Celeste (towards the end of ‘In His Left Pocket’) all have a place here.

The E.P alone is well worth the ¥1500 price, but what makes it the best buy of the year so far is the six-track DVD that’s included. The first three tracks are taken from a live performance with String Quartet and are achingly beautiful - ‘Breathe Breathe Me’ is probably the weakest song on the E.P, but performed live here it takes on a whole new energy. The final three songs are the clips that have been doing the rounds on-line, but with the crispness and clarity that YouTube and other websites generally lack.

The Storytelling E.P is a strong record and a stand out in a world of similar sounding bands flogging themselves on MySpace. At the moment Cornelius is Japan’s best-known producer/electronic magpie, but the paucity of his last album is in stark contrast to the sheer verve of this E.P. Name value and recognition are no substitute for good music, and anyone who was disappointed with Sensuous would do well to look out for Anchorsong.

lickerish 4tet and the warm

As I have bitched elsewhere, I'm not a huge fan of MySpace. As far as keeping in touch with people, Facebook is a hell of a lot better and less hassle to use. However, despite its faults MySpace is still a good source of music, and I should probably spend more time there than I do.

Two Tokyo-based bands worth looking out for are lickerish 4tet (no, don't ask me) and the warm. The former have only been together for two or three months, have a guitarist and keyboardist "obsessed with obscure 60's and 70's erotic/horror movies" and chuck together a blend of "psychedelic, Doorsy, sleazy, bluesy elements". They are playing live in Koenji Green Apple, next Sunday (July 15th) from 8.00pm.

the warm are a "boy/girl 3 piece" who "make use of two swirling Roland synths, a drum kit and some yelping here and there to make a sort of epic awkward take on electro-pop". Their MySpace blurb goes on to list early 80s reference points like Human League and Ultravox. If you're still not convinced, there are a few songs available for download on their British label's website.

Anchorsong - Calling (never stop)

Bought the EP yesterday, expect a review in the next few days.

過激派 闘争

Interesting footage of Japanese student riots in the 70s.

bloodthirsty butchers - yeah #1

Got a stinking bloody cold, have only slept for about three hours and I feel like shit. However, I did buy this album yesterday and it's cheering me up.

Fuji Fabric at Tokyo Zepp

Went to the Tuesday show - first time to see a Japanese band at Tokyo Zepp and the first time to see a Japanese band play to a large number of people. I was covering the concert for purple Sky magazine, so for a full review I'm afraid that's where you're going to have to go. Not sure which issue it'll be in (either summer or autumn) but will post more info once I know.

AFTER BEAT COVERS - sugarfields (JapanFiles download)

Covers albums are a risky proposition. The line between inspired reinterpretation and insipid regurgitation is a thin one, and too often, these projects dance across the line with all the co-ordination and subtlety of a herd of pissed-up wildebeest. Science tells us that every action must have an opposite and equal reaction, so for every Johnny Cash American album there has to be something like Duran Duran's Thank You (if you ever want to get someone out of your life, send them the execrable cover of Grandmaster Flash's ‘White Lines', then stand back and watch your friendship crumble).

This whole area is clearly a minefield, and those who undertake such an album are either very brave, very foolish, or simply don't give a fuck. I've never met him, but I'm guessing that one-man music maker Hara Tomonobu falls into the latter category. Not only does he do the whole covers album gig by himself, he takes on songs by sacred cows of Western music such as Nirvana, James Brown, The Doors and The Stone Roses. The results are so good that the only downside to AFTER BEAT COVERS is wondering what monstrosity it will spawn as its equal and opposite reaction.

AFTER BEAT COVERS reflects Hara's eclecticism as it takes in lo-fi indie, skanking acoustic pop and anything else that catches his magpie ear. There are covers of some old J-Pop songs (as far as I can tell), but not knowing what the originals sound like I can't say very much about them. The same can't be said for ‘Sally Cinnamon', ‘All Apologies', ‘People Are Strange' and ‘Sex Machine' (yes, that one). Hama's versions tend to sound vastly different to the originals, but there's never any doubt as to what the song is. His pronunciation is defiantly Japanese and will probably bug some purists, but that's their problem, not his.

‘Sally Cinnamon' was probably The Stone Roses' shiniest pop moment. Someone deciding to cover it might think about dramatically different ways to redo it - how about a sub-Throbbing Gristle industrial clang-fest, or an out and out heavy metal version? Hara eschews any such option and instead gets his kazoo out (at least that's what I think it is), and buffs up the song until it's a blinding pop gem. ‘All Apologies' gets a more dramatic makeover, as Hara takes Kurt Cobain's tortured torch song into blissful territory that in the Nineties would probably have been called ‘trip-hop'.

This album is good, and not because of any novelty value derived from a Japanese take on some well-known Western songs - Rocket K's uninspired attempt at ‘Video Killed The Radio Star (in which the pronunciation is basically the only thing that distinguishes it from the original) is ample proof that such an approach doesn't work. AFTER BEAT COVERS is an example of this genre at its best. After listening to the album and being amazed you'll want go back to the originals and find things in them that you'd never noticed before, or in the case of the J-Pop songs here (especially ‘Tokyo') you'll find yourself seeking out the originals to see how they measure up to these versions.

Buy it on shiny CD here, or ephemeral download here.

Surfer KIng - Fuji Fabric

Fantstic song and an entertaining video (if only the variety shows in Japan did have guests who fired lasers at each other). Fuji Fabric are playing Tokyo Zepp on Tuesday and Wednesday and I'll hopefully be going to the Tuesday show.

throbbing gristle - discipline

Makes Trent Reznor look a bit tame really.

I steal things from the Guardian

Interesting article in today's Guardian in which a bunch of musicians talk about canonical albums that they hate/don't like/don't rate. In lieu of any original ideas of my own, I thought I might as appropriate this and spraff for a bit.

As I may have mentioned elsewhere, I can't fucking stand Dark Side of the Moon - it plods along like a flat-footed policeman and the lyrics are embarrassingly bad. I'm sure Roger Waters (or was it the other one, I can never remember) thought he was musing profoundly on the vagaries of human existence, but I'm sure there are hormone ridden sixteen year olds out there who have scored out better writing. The cover and the title suck too.

Not sure if it's counted as canonical, but I'm in a particularly vile mood today and I don't care, so next up is anything by Blind Melon. One hit, a novelty video and a dead lead singer is hardly groundbreaking.

I'm going to go before this post disintegrates into random abuse for bands and musicians I don't like. Maybe I should have posted this at James Blunt Must Die. Maybe I will.

ok city ok, great eh?

Until this blogging lark starts to pay some serious cash (hell, any cash would be a start) I'm afraid I'm going to have to limit live reviews to anything that takes place in Tokyo (although I may be able to stretch to Chiba or Yokohama once in a while). In the meantime, have a look here for a review of ok city ok at the NXNE festival thingy in Canadia - they'll be back on Tokyo turf next month I think and they are well worth seeing live.

Bespa Kumamero London Live - pristy

Insert witty comment here.

BESPA KUMAMERO on JapanFiles

Have a look at the album cover above and the YouTube clip. They are BESPA KUMAMERO and their eponymous debut album is now available on JapanFiles.

Free Swinging Popsicle

No, it's not a campaign for the release of an innocent frozen snack with dubious sexual proclivities, but rather free music. Over the next three days, three different tracks will be available for free download here (it's a MySpace page, not a link to some spammer hawking Viagra and methods of increasing whanger size). The three songs are taken from the band's new album, Go On.

Dok Springs, Jemapur, Hydeout Productions

Yet another uncomfortably hot and humid Japanese summer is almost upon us. Tokyo’s rush hour trains, unpleasant at the best of times, become a sticky, heaving mass of sweating salarymen (don’t get me started on them), knackered looking school kids bent double under the weight of their bags and bemused Northern Europeans wondering what they hell they’re doing living in such a climate. Of course, there are always those enviably cool looking people sitting there, seemingly unaffected by the weather, with barely a bead of sweat on their brows. I want to be like that but I know it’s never going to happen - I was born in Scotland and that’s exactly the kind of weather I was designed for. The best thing I can do is find some music that soothes the soul and cools the boiling blood that makes me want to KILL KILL KILL. Jemapur’s debut album, Dok Springs, is a collection of songs that fits the bill perfectly.

The story goes that 19 year old Shizuoka native Jemapur turned up at the record shop/label in Shibuya owned by Jun Seba (a.k.a Nujabes), armed with a thirty track demo. Impressed with what he heard, Seba cherry-picked the best cuts from the demo and Dok Springs is the result. Perhaps unsurprisingly this album treads a lot of similar ground to Nujabes releases such as Metaphorical Music and Modal Soul, as well as the first Hydeout productions compilation (the imaginatively titled First Compilation. If none of that means anything to you, but you’re a fan of acts like D.J Shadow and his Mo’ Wax label mates, or better known Japanese artists such as Kemuri or D.J Krush, you’d do well to seek out this album.

The majority of the tracks on the album are instrumentals, and they are far more satisfying than the numbers where guest vocalists add their two bits. Vocal tracks such as ‘Light to Light (Remix of Antennae) are by no means bad, but the vocals don’t really add anything to Jemapur’s already atmospheric sound. There’s no moment of jaw-dropping beauty or audacity to equal Nujabes ‘ordinary joe’ from his Modal Soul album, in which Terry Callier reprises his Stax classic over a backing track of 21st century soul that could be straight outta Cafe del Mar. This isn’t a problem however, given the strength and depth of songs like ‘Self Improvisation’, with its blend of skittering jazz beats, unidentifiable wheezes and coughs, and sudden unexpected changes of tempo.

I’m sure this album would also make the perfect backdrop to a few chilled beers out on the porch or in the garden as the sun sets on a summer’s day. Maybe that or later on in the evening when the lights have been dimmed and the conversation is more hushed. Those situations have got more chance of being what Jemapur had in mind when he made the record, rather than it being adopted by a desperate commuter as a way of avoiding deportation. Either way, it’s all good. Let the good times, not the salaryman heads, roll.

A couple more blogs worth checking out

Cover versions can go either way. The very best ones will make you look at a song in a whole new way. Take Johnny Cash’s dramatic reworking of Hurt, for example. What was the once the pinnacle of Trent Reznor’s mardy ouevre became a rumination on life and a man’s impending death. Less dramatic but equally as startling is sugarfields’ cover of Sally Cinnamon (I’ll get round to reviewing the album eventually). Already a classic pop cut, Tomonobu Hara imbues it with his own pop sensibilities, giving us a hint of what The Stone Roses might have sounded like had they grown up in Tokyo rather than Manchester.

On the other hand, cover versions can be the last refuge of a fading star or the first refuge of a newly crowned TV talent show winner. Remember Robson and Jerome? Remember Wet Wet Wet ruining a perfectly good Troggs song (R.E.M. covered it first but even that can’t redeem it). Darius did it, Will Young did it, Gareth Gates did it, and no doubt all future winners of Pop Idol will do it.

Thankfully, the Copy, Right blog goes more for the former rather than the latter. Ever wondered how Guns ‘n Roses Don’t Cry would sound when tackle by Mogwai? Did you think it was impossible to make The Killing Moon anything other than sinister sounding? Check out the Copy, Right for the answers to those questions and more.

Another blog I’ve been frequenting in the last few days is Lost-In-Tyme. Here you can download obscure and hard to find albums in a number of categories including Prog, Krautrock, Funk and New Wave. There’s a shitload of stuff there so it might not be a good idea to visit the website if you’ve got some work or something that needs doing - it can end up being a bit like checking one clip on YouTube. Before you know it the sun’s coming up and that report you were supposed to finish has been long forgotten about.

Ketchup Mania Hits Dallas

Don't ler the title fool you, this isn't one of those "... and finally" stories that round the news off with a wry smile. Rather, Japanese pop-punk band will be making their American debut at A-Kon in Dallas this Friday (June 1st). The band's first three releases are available on JapanFiles and they will also be selling and signing CDs at the show.

Call And Response Event, Koenji 20000V, May 25th

Due to work I won't be there, but there'll be another of the mighty C.A.R events tomorrow night in Koenji. In the best cutting and pasting traditions of Tokyo Music, here's the line up:

Tanz! Tanz! Tanz! - Tokyo Rhythm Punk Disco, featuring: Hyacca (From Fukuoka) / Worst Taste / Usagi Spiral A / Clisms / Natasha Forrest / Kitsch Hitori Gakudan (Opening Act) / DJs: Yoko3 (Mir) / Grant McGaheran (Abikyokan)

It's ¥1800, it starts at 6pm, and the last time I spoke to Ian Martin he mentioned something about cheap wine. What else are you going to do in Tokyo on a Friday night? Sure, you could go to Roppongi but do you want to spend your whole night telling the touts that you're not interested in their clubs and standing elbow to elbow with cunty investment bankers? Or would you rather spend the evening quaffing wine and listening to some of the finest sounds Japanese music has to offer. No fucking contest, is it?

'Slumber', LiN Clover, JapanFiles CD

I have to admit that I had some smart put-downs lined up for this album, something along the lines of "it does exactly what it says on the tin, i.e it makes you slumber." However, it turned out to be one of those growers - another couple of listens and I was hooked. Where at first I saw LiN CLOVER in the same light as Skunk Anansie (a band I never had much time for), I've come to realise that there's much more to them than that.

Slumber is a compilation made up of tracks drawn from the band's first three releases. Opening track "Empty" sets the tone for a lot of the album - Yuri's vocals swooping over a backdrop of crashing drums and guitars that hint at Rival Schools battling it out with Siamese Dream-era Pumpkins. That's not to say LiN CLOVER are a one-trick pony. "It" starts out eerily quiet (perhaps as a nod to Stephen King's scary clown), before battering into a driving chorus that must sound outstanding live. "Misleading shore" starts in a similarly downbeat fashion but eschews the temptation of another crowd-pleasing chorus, instead staying in a lower gear and adding layers of guitar and feedback to create a slow-burning epic.

The album does hit something of a dip and tracks seven to nine seem to blend into one amorphous blob of mush (I think this is where my initial Skunk Anansie parallel came from). However, the album closer "Never" snaps you back to life. It's another one that starts slowly, with Yuri singing wordlessly over the top of some genuinely freaky efffects that could have come straight from the soundtrack of "Ring," "Juon" or some other such trouser-fillingly terrifying Japanese horror film. Even when the singing does become something recognisable as language, the backing never changes (if anything it becomes even more disconcerting) and the overall effect is a song that will do anything but make you sleep.

It's not all perfect but what smorgasbord is? Just as there's always that dubious looking dish of meat and vegetables that nobody is brave enough to try, there are a couple of songs here that aren't as appetising as the rest. However, the album works well as an introduction to the band and those who like what they hear can go on and investigate further. Finally, in what must be a concession to old gits like me, JapanFiles have released Slumber as a CD rather than their usual download format – the re-evolution starts here.

The CD is available to buy here. If you want to download it, send a whiny email to the people at JapanFiles and see what kind of response you get (mind you, if I was the recipient of that email, I'd probably tell you to fuck off and buy the CD, but I'm sure they're more polite than that).

Two words that scare the shit out of me are...

... 'skate punk'. All I can think of is The Offspring, Pretty Fly For a White Guy, that cunt's whining voice... and then a mist comes down upon me and I sometimes find myself with clothes torn, fingernails ragged, and covered in blood and gore. Anyway, enough of my weekends. My therapist says I'm doing well and I may soon be allowed back into the community. However, a lot of my therapist's hard work was jeopardised yesterday as I received an email with the subject line 'Japanese Skate Punk Pioneers "Rose Rose". I immediately called my therapist and he said it should be safe enough for me to open the mail, but if I started feeling the urge to commit GBH, I should shut down my computer immediately and take a long, cold shower. I did what he said and found that Rose Rose have become the latest additions to the JapanFiles roster. For the good of my own health as well as those around me, I probably won't be downloading any of their stuff, but for those of you who are not afflicted like me, have a look here. Hark, I hear the sound of the guards. Better go.

ok city ok, エディ, アカシカ - Kichijoji Silver Elephant, May 19th

Kichijoji is home to Iseya, probably the greatest yakitori restaurant in all of Tokyo (if not Japan), and it's not right to spend a Friday night in Kichijoji without first going there to fill up on cheap food and cheap beer. Unfortunately this meant that I didn't arrive at the venue on time and missed the first band on the bill. So, apologies to The Boston Liver, I will do my best to see you again sometime.

By the time we did get there, アカシカ (Acacica) were drawing to the end of their set. A four-piece fronted by a preternaturally tiny vocalist called Mayumi, Acacica made me wish I'd foregone the final beer and got my arse to the venue on time. I picked up a copy of the three-track EP they were selling at the show. Check back for a review in which I will try and write something more substantial than this and talk about something else other than the diminutive stature of the singer.


Unlike Acacica, エディ(Eddy) had me scribbling furiously in my notebook. There's a few sentences where I consider if it's possible to drink G&T through a straw and still retain a modicum of dignity. Then there's a fairly long mental meander about the bloke standing just in front of me who looked as if he'd read too much about Jean-Paul Sartre (rather than actually reading anything by Jean -Paul Sartre), and had me placing mental bets as to whether he would ever actually take a drag on the cigarette he was holding do preciously. Finally I was driven to wonder if the reason Eddy took it upon themselves to remind us of who they were after every song was because they knew how forgettable their set was. Eddy seem to have been struck by that affliction which is common among a lot of the bands I've seen here. As individuals they are clearly very able musicians, and as a band they are duck's arse tight, but they are completely lacking in any spark or edge that would make them much more interesting. Not only that, but all their songs seem to clock in at six or seven minutes, which for the kind of music they make (i.e fairly straight ahead indie-rock) is about three minutes too long. Sadly, the most memorable thing about their set was the questionnaire that they handed out to the audience afterwards, in which we had to choose our favourite song from their set and what we thought of the band. I went for the last one because that was the only honest answer I could give, and made some kind of non-committal comments to the other question.


ok city ok had no questionnaires, but their three minute blasts of Pete Townshend-esque guitar jiggery-pokery were a welcome tonic to the lumbering Eddy. Fronted by an exiled American, Kay Grace, ok city ok are an unabashedly old-school indie-rock band that any fan of The Replacements/Paul Westerberg, The Hold Steady et al would do well to seek out. They will be touring in the States and Canada next month - check their MySpace page for more details.

Sugarfields on JapanFiles

The email screamed, "ONE MAN, NINE ALBUMS!" What's this? The Japanese Conor Oberst? Thankfully, no. The one man in question is Hara Tomonobu who goes by the name of sugarfields. Nine albums of his "upbeat, heartfelt melodies" (their words, not mine) are now available on JapanFiles. He also has a MySpace page here, and if you decide you want to buy his music but don't trust the ephemeral nature of the mp3 (i.e if you're over thirty, have a computer that may go into meltdown at any moment and can't understand why you should pay money for music but not have anything physical to show for it), you can buy his CDs here.

I've downloaded all the albums, haven't listened to much yet, but I did like his covers of Sally Cinnamon and All Apologies. More later.

Plutonium E.P., tokyo pinsalocks, JapanFiles download or Maxi Single

When reviewing Pygmy With Bitter Ends I mused about the origins of some Japanese band names. Tokyo Pinsalocks is another one that would probably have got the grey matter wondering off in a similar direction, but thankfully this time I have a definite answer. According to the press release, 'pinsalocks' is a combination of 'pinsalo' (pink salon – a Japanese euphemism for a blowjob bar), and 'rocks' (do you really need an explanation?). To quote the band themselves: “There's a pinsalo in the same building as our rehearsal studio and our university was in the middle of a red light district, we named ourselves Tokyo Pinsalocks."

So, now that we've got the question of the name out the way, how does the music stand up? Pretty well. The five tracks on this unashamedly poppy EP are well worth seeking out. 'Plutonium 07' is shiny 21st century pop as imagined by a 50's sci-fi writer. It's a brutally simple affair, powered by synths that have the unmistakable air of two-fingered plonking. Hell, it worked for New Order and it works for Tokyo Pinsalocks.

'Quiet' is probably the weakest song here. It's darker in tone than 'Plutonium 07' and sounds a bit too similar to Guitar Vadar. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but TP have got a sound of their own and definitely don't need to resort to copying others. It's only a brief dip in form though, as 'so far so fine' kicks the E.P back into shape. It's a blast of futuristic rockabilly thrash that comes and goes in less than two minutes and leaves you feeling like you've just been caught in a summer shower.

Going by the pronunciation of the title during the song, I'm guessing that 'Nioi-Mania' references krautrock pioneers Neu! The song itself doesn't sound particularly krautrocky, rather it's quite a placid number that could have appeared on an album by The Aloof 10 years ago. The calm is shattered in the final minute of the song though when the vocalist Naoko leads the band on a chant of the title.

If the previous song was meant as some kind of homage to Neu! without actually sounding like them, then the instrumental final track, 'SAUCE OF LUNCH' makes up for this (well, a little anyway). Here, the band take the shininess of 'Plutonium 07' and an updated version of krautrock, chuck them in a blender and end up with a song that Orbital would gladly claim as their own.

The name makes sense. The music makes sense. What the hell are you waiting for?

Tokyo Pinsalocks Homepage (Japanese)
Tokyo Pinsalocks on JapanFiles

One small step for Tokyo Music, one giant step for no-one in particular

A Monday night in Roppongi. It may never rank with the greatest nights in the history of humanity's innovation but it's a first for this blog - a live report from a venue. I'm at Stereo, the club I mentioned a few weeks ago. The club has everything - swishness, comfy seats, bogs that were designed for doing whacking big lines of coke in, quality music as provided by Richard Smart, a good friend of mine. Unfortunately, there's no fucker here. Granted, it may be Monday night, but this is Roppongi, this is where people go out. Perhaps the prices are putting the punters off. Entry may be free but the beers are ¥800 a pop and skimpier than the Sports Illustrated swimwear issue. If the owners of the club happen upon this blog, I have only one thing to say - it's Monday night, lower your prices, make all the drinks ¥500 and you might get a few more punters in. In the meantime your comfy seats and cool loop tapes of 50's ads will go un-sat in and unwatched.

Half-arsed? Me?

I've been downloading various odds and sods from the JapanFiles website over the last few months, meaning to review each of them in turn. As is patently obvious to anyone who's read the blog at any time over the aforementioned past few months, that just hasn't happened. The Mizoguchi Ryoko review that I posted the other night was in fact the first review of an album that's appeared here for about three months. Bloody hell. This leaves me in the position of having a shitload of stuff to review and two options: bite the bullet, listen to everything at least two or three times, write screeds of notes which are then used to put together a number of individual reviews; or cobble together some reviews about two or three tenuously connected bands. It's not much of a choice for a committed shirker like myself, is it? Cobblers it is (with profuse apologies to all the musicians mentioned).

Great Composers – Miami

I first heard of Miami on the Call and Response compilation, 1-2-3-GO! (another CD languishing in the 'to review' pile that is threatening to take over my room). Their manic mix of beats, bleeps, squeaks and refreshingly non-helium female vocals hinted at a band that was worthy of further investigation. The five track E.P Great Composers has since brightened many a dull train journey, even the second track Fancy which wanders dangerously close to Rednex territory before swinging back into respectability.

MANY MANY SWEETS – Macdonald Duck Eclair

Quite what a Macdonald Duck Eclair is I don't know, and I hope I never have the misfortune to find out. This is a band that I read about on the Tokyo Live blog and I remain grateful to Ken for pointing me in their direction. Mixing gabba and Jane Birkin-esque vocals probably shouldn't work but it does. If Miami float your boat, then MDE ought to launch your dinghy too.

ok city ok and the beauty of secondhand music

Last Fm. has been helpful in making me even more geeky about music - all those charts and numbers are like manna from heaven us poor unfortunate obsessives and our stunted emotional growth. However, part of the marketing blurb was something about Last Fm. being a way to widen your musical horizons - by recording everything you listen to they are able to recommend other artists you'd probably like. Unfortunately, this is utter bollocks. Based on the music I've listened to in the last seven days, Last Fm. was able to recommend such unknown artists as The Beatles, Neil Young, Pink Floyd and Queen. I then noticed the sliding scale that allowed me to change the recommendations from 'popular' to 'obscure'. I duly slid the button over and was pointed in the direction of some singer-songwriter called Paul Simon. Gee, thanks, Last Fm. With all these unusual artists you are really spoiling us.

All is not last, thanks to a message I was sent from another Last Fm. user I was pointed in the direction of ok city ok. They've left a trail all over the internet so I'm not going to list all the various links here - do it yourself, they're worth the effort. Fronted by Kay Grace, an exiled American based in Tokyo, ok city ok will appeal to anyone with an ear for a slightly skewed, crunchy pop song. If you like what you hear they're playing at Kichijoji Silver Elephant this Friday (May 18th), before setting off on a tour of the States (more details on their MySpace page).

Finally, I just want to write a brief note of thanks to the goddess of secondhand record shops for deciding to stick so many of the good ones in Tokyo. In the last two days I've spent about ¥5000 and picked up 10 cds of outrageous quality (and a Deacon Blue album because it reminded me of some painful school discos when I were but a nipper). The best ones so far have to be the two compilations of music released on British independent labels in the 80's/early 90's. They make all the wannabes kicking around these days sound even more pathetic than they already do. I tried to find the albums on the internet so I could put a link in here, but no joy - you'll just need to take my word for how good they are.

1, 2 no 3 de - Mizoguchi Ryoko (download from JapanFiles.com)

One of the main reasons a lot of people get into Japanese music is that it often sounds vastly different to what's being made by Western bands (of course, a lot of people also just get into Japanese music because they think it automatically makes them cool, but that's a rant for another day). Unfortunately though, this sometimes leads to bands who end up sounding the same when trying to be different. For example, thanks to Melt-Banana there are numerous bands who have welded frantic guitar noise, apocalyptic sound effects and tortured chipmunk vocals. Some are good, but a lot of them just plain suck. Fortunately, there are also artists like Mizoguchi Ryoko who strike out on their own path rather than choosing between the two roads signposted 'Polysics wannabe' and 'Shonen Knife wannabe.'

Mizoguchi's mini-album 1, 2 no 3 de is short, but then my five foot two inch tall mother always told me that the best things come in small packages, and after listening to this record over and over for the past few days I'm starting to think she may have been right all along. Armed mainly with a piano and a voice pitched somewhere between Kate Bush and Cerys Matthews, Mizoguchi has crafted a collection of songs that burrow themselves deeply within your subconscious, then keep bringing you back to them even when you know you ought to be listening to other things.

Try staying away from the Kate Bush/Ben Folds sound clash and fantastic 80's style soaring chorus of opening track "Suki ni Nachetta" for a couple of days. See if you can expel the sampled cicada chatter and pitter-pattering piano of "Semi no Isshuukan" or the vocal acrobatics during "Furueru Mune", Mizoguchi's very own torch song – it's nigh on impossible. Even if you do manage to do this, I guarantee you that "Ii Deshou" will be with you long after you first listen to this album. It opens with a loosely-strung bass-line, sparsely played guitar and simple tub-thumping drumbeat that wouldn't be out of place on the first Velvet Underground album. After about twenty seconds Mizoguchi's vocals kick in and the song takes on a hypnotic, almost tribal aspect as she chants rather than sings. Another minute or so later the bass strings seem to get even looser and Mizoguchi's voice, now bathed in static, appears to being beamed in from somewhere just past Pluto. None of this prepares you for the bridge of the song though, which sounds like it was recorded in the studio next door to The Beatles during the Revolver sessions, taking its cues from the swirling instrumentation of "Tomorrow Never Knows". The song briefly dips back into the semi-tribal chants of earlier, before closing with Mizoguchi's multitracked voice ululating over a disintegrating rhythm section.

Paradoxically, the quality of "Ii Deshou" is also this record's only real weakness. To me the song is the obvious choice with which to close the album, but it's stuck in here at track five. This ends up making the final three songs sound a lot more ordinary than they actually are. "Kei no Stage e" might have lived up to its dramatic piano if it had made an appearance earlier on, but after "Ii Deshou" it sounds like it's trying a little too hard. "Birthday Song" fares slightly better, throwing together mariachi style trumpets and a keyboard hook that would probably have Ray Manzarek speed-dialling his lawyers if he was ever to stumble upon this album.

"La La La Song" is the track that does close the album and normally I'd say it was more than worthy of this role. Mizoguchi divests her vocals of any discernible language and sets them adrift over an elegiac piano track that Moby could well steal and use in an advertisement for whichever car company offers him the most cash. As good as it is, I was still left thinking that it had usurped "Ii Deshou" from it's rightful place. Thankfully in this age of iTunes and the like you can resolve this by rearranging the album yourself. Then again, Mizoguchi probably meant the album to run in this order, and who am I to argue?

New Band On JapanFiles

Tokyo Pinsalocks, a three-piece 'electronic rock band' (that's what the press release said anyway) now have a five track E.P available for download on JapanFiles. I'll try and get a review up in the next few days, assuming I can resist the wiles of the Mizoguchi record.

Mrs. Tanaka Album and a blog

It's finally going to hit the shops this Sunday, just in time for Mother's Day. Have a listen to the songs on the good lady's MySpace page and tell me you don't want to buy the album.

Tokyo Gig Guide is probably the best source of info for live music in Tokyo, and they now also have a blog containing reviews of said music. It's well worth a look.

Limited Express (has come back?)

It may just be scurrilous rumour but apparently Limted Express (has gone?) may not have gone at all. Nothing to confirm at the moment but who knows, they may be shreking their way around the livehouses of Tokyo once again in the near future.

Shift presents "applechair&bananadesk", Club Goodman, Akihabara, May 1st

Most of the concerts I go to in Tokyo are fairly sparsely attended. If there are five bands on the bill there will usually be around thirty or forty people there. It seems that each band brings five or six friends and family members who have no choice but to go. Add in the small number of people who are there because they want to see the bands, and the obligatory blog writing gaijin and that's pretty much it.

Tuesday night at Club Goodman was the exception to the vague rule that I just made up. Despite this being Shift's event most of the audience were there to see Tokyo luminaries (or 'it bands' if you wanted to be unkind) nhhmbase and Melt-Banana. First up was CLISMS. Like all the bands on tonight's bill apart from Shift, this was the first time I'd seen them. Taking their on-stage moves from The Who (without the instrument annihilation), they played a lean twenty five minute set that any fan of the Nuggets series would appreciate.

nhhmbase were one of the first bands I heard about when I started this blog - various people told me that I had to check them out. I bought their first mini-album and while it certainly wasn't bad, it didn't seem that special. I was then told that I had to see them live, that the CD hadn't really captured them at their best. I've been told this kind of thing before and sometimes it's little more than a way to cover up the fact that a band aren't actually that great. With nhhmbase it IS true though - played live, their songs are have more space in which to meander and expand without ever drifting off into muso-wank-noodling territory. One downside to the band could be the fact that apparently they've been playing much the same set for the last two years - do they have any more songs in there or have they shot their bolt too quickly? Guess we'll have to wait and see.

Sometimes you go to a concert where you only know one or two bands on the bill, but one of the unknown acts turns out to be the best thing you see all night and you spend the next couple of days raving to all your friends about how good they were. Unfortunately ヨルズイノザスカイ (Yolz In The Sky) were away over on the other side of the spectrum. I looked back at my notes under I've underlined the words "utter pish" in the same way a bitter cuckold might highlight his cheating ex-wife's name in the phonebook. Musically, their stew of relentless guitar noise and frantic rhythm works well, but their vocalist fucks the whole thing up. He looks like Bruce Lee and sounds similar too, as he yelps his way through every song like a loop tape of every fight scene in Enter The Dragon. It has me scrambling for the beer machine outside in the hallway for much needed oral and aural respite. One final point before we leave the whole sorry episode behind - to the bloke who stood next to me giving the sign of the beast all the way through their set, this band is not Satanic, just diabolical (before any smart arse goes to write a comment about the meaning of 'diabolical', look here).

According to Wikipedia, Melt-Banana singer Yasuko Onuki's vocal style has been described as "a rabid poodle on speed". After their set (this was the first time I'd actually heard any of their music - am I allowed to write a blog on Japanese music after such a confession?) I was trying to figure out what to say about them when my girlfriend trumped both my half-arsed notes and the anonymous critic cited on Wikipedia - "The music was OK but she sounds like Alvin and The Chipmunks going through teenage angst." 'Nuff said.

Shift were last on and came out to a slightly depleted audience (even if it is your event perhaps playing last after nhhmbase and Melt-Banana isn't the best idea). This was the first time I'd seen them since their show at Shibuya O-nest last year, and they seem to have left behind some of the more melodic parts of their sound. Yuki Funayama's vocals stand out above Alvin and Bruce Lee, but the band's sound wasn't as distinctive as before. Then again, maybe it was just the songs they played that night, or maybe the beer I'd downed deperately during Yolz In The Sky's set was playing havoc with my ears. Either way, Shift remain a band that everyone should see live if they have the chance.

Japanese CDs from JapanFiles

Downloading MP3 files is all well and good in terms of convenience, but personally I'd still rather buy the CD and then bung the tracks onto my PC (I guess I'm showing my age now). For anyone else who feels the same and needs a fix of Japanese music, JapanFiles has just released two new CDs which are available here. One, Fresh Cuts From Japan: Volume 2, is a compilation culled from the JapanFiles archives, including tracks by mothercoat, Budo Grape and my current favourites, advantage Lucy. I guess you could call the other CD a 'Rough Guide to LiN Clover'. Called Slumber, it contains 10 tracks chosen by the band themselves which cover their three Japanese releases. There should be reviews here soon (ah, but you've all heard that before, haven't you?).

Golden Age/Clap Hands

This is just one reason why the DVD/live album I mentioned in my previous post has to be released.

And About Hers Live Event, Shinjuku JAM, April 29th

The title pretty much says it all. Ian Martin (from Call and Response Records) will be one of the DJs, along with Yashiro from Saladabar. And About Hers make the kind of female fronted Japanese indie pop that you either love or loathe - there tends to be no middle ground. The other bands playing are Overleaf (quote - "a fairly straight rock band" - I listened to the songs on their MySpace page and they sounded pretty good), Totos (who also have a MySpace page - they reminded me a little of Pygmy With Bitter Ends) and Pencil Acrobat (who seem to be something of an indie supergroup, with members of Swarm's Arm and Saladabar). Tickets are 1800 yen, doors open at 6.30 and the music starts at 7.

Swinging Popsicle in the States

SWINGING POPSICLE ADDS SHOW IN NYC – JUNE 19

Japanese rock band Swinging Popsicle returns to the USA June 15-17, 2007 for Anime Mid-Atlantic in Richmond, VA.

The trio has just added a special show in New York City on June 19 at The Knitting Factory. The concert is a small, intimate show and is expected to sell out early. This will mark the band's first-ever appearance in New York City.

They will be performing songs from their upcoming CD release "Go On," as well as hits like "I Just Wanna Kiss You" from their best-selling 2004 CD "Transit." They will also be signing autographs for fans after the show.

Show info:

June 19, 2007

Knitting Factory – NYC

74 Leonard St, New York, 10013

Doors 7 PM

$12

All Ages

Tickets for the NYC show are available now at www.myspace.com/swingingpopsicle or at www.knittingfactory.com.

Miaou, Shibuya O-Nest, April 22nd

I've never been to the opera but I occasionally watch the cultural programmes on NHK on a Sunday evening and the music gets me in that place where you can't explain it but the audience inevitably brings me back to Earth and reminds me that I know nothing about this kind of music and that they will take great pleasure in reminding me of this at every possible moment. I love instrumental music - give me Mogwai, Explosions In The Sky, Tortoise et al and I'm a happy man. Unfortunately, these bands seem to attract a similar audience to those cunts who claim they are opera lovers but go there for no other reason than to lord it over anyone who has the misfortune not to be as well versed in the intricate history of the music being played as they are. People like the bint who told my friend to 'shhh' at the show tonight in Shibuya. He's not the quietest of people but it was a fucking concert. It was between songs, not during one - stop being so fucking precious, get over yourself and accept the fact that people may talk to each other at a concert - it's just what they do.

Right, rant over. Miaou were fantastic. Swirls of blissful music made by people who were lost within what they were doing but never lost control and never allowed themselves to slip into the wankery that so often bedevils concerts of this type. Their music sounds and looks like it's great fun to play. They will never be huge but they deserve the kind of cult following that much more undeserving bands earn. If there is any kind if justice in the world people will get over Shonen Knife, see them for the dull shrieky bores that they are, and swoon at the majestic feet of bands like Miaou. It's not going to happen but we are allowed to dream - isn't that what keeps us going?

miaou - tiger note

Just in case you can't be arsed going to YouTube yourself.

Miaou on YouTube

They are playing Shibuya tonight (O-Nest), but if you can't make it they have their own channel on YouTube with some clips of them playing live. This internet thing can actually be quite useful at times.

Stereo Japan

Stereo, a new venue partly owned by Mani from Primal Scream, recently opened in Roppongi. A friend of mine is DJ-ing there tomorrow night from seven to nine - entry is free and apparently the music will be 'tech/house and a little downbeat'. Going by the pictures on the Stereo website it's a bit more plush than the venues I usually frequent, so it'll either be a welcome change of scenery or a complete shock to the system.

Beck, Budokan, April 16th

I have spent almost a week trying intermittently to write a review of this concert. I have two unfinished drafts in which I waffle on about Live at The Budokan and stuff and in neither of them can I get passed the second paragraph. So, here's the short version - Beck at the Budokan will be the greatest live album/DVD if his record company have the good sense to release it. The Rolling Stones labour under the impression that a hugely elaborate stage set is the only way a band can shake up the concert-goer's experience, but Beck pissed on that theory from a great height in coming up with his own way of doing things. Firstly, put together a backing band of multi-instrumentalist who can flit between guitars, bass, drums, maracas, synthesisers, a bank of Macs and tableware with enviable ease. Secondly, perform the best songs from each record you've released thereby creating the perfect live album set-list. Thirdly, do away with the usual big screen and camera set-up for those fans who can't see what's happening on stage. In its place recreate the band's performance live using puppets and film that instead, making sure that each puppet is wearing exactly the same clothes as its human counterpart. Finally, make the inevitable encore infinitely more interesting than usual by using the time when the band are off-stage to show a short film starring the puppets in which Beck puppet dreams that he is 'Beckzilla' rampaging through the streets of Tokyo.

There you have it, the perfect live DVD and album. Unfortunately the Budokan has the sternest looking security guards I've seen at a Japanese venue, so the only photos I have of the show are the one above that was taken outside before the show, and the ones below of the puppets which my friend took from the programme she bought. Just keep your fingers crossed and hope that the DVD comes out - then it'll all make sense.

Two in a day?

Just remembered, a friend of mine has a couple of tickets for Beck's upcoming Tokyo shows, on for April 6th at Ebisu Liquid Room, and one for April 16th at the Budokan. Both are 7500 yen (the face value) - if anyone's interested email me at toyko.music.blog@gmail.com. Off to lie down now.

Two in a week?

No, it isn't an April Fool, this is my second post in the space of a couple of days. Not much of an accomplishment really, but given my recent form it's got to count for something. Anyway, a couple of updates from JapanFiles - new downloads available on the website and some tour dates that make me wish that getting into the US on my non-machine readable British passport wasn't akin to getting into the inner sanctum of the Vatican.

First up, a bunch of advantage Lucy songs are now available on the JapanFiles website. Click here for an interview with the band, and here to splurge your hard-earned pennies on the songs. Secondly, LiN Clover have added another show to their debut tour of the States. Showing that they don't give a fuck about Western superstition they will be playing the Claron Lounge, Santa Clara, CA on Friday the 13th of April. For more info have a look at the Shibuya Airwaves MySpace page.

I'd better go and sit down - two posts in three days is too much for this hack.

No excuses, and some updates

I'm not even going to try and make an excuse for the lack of posts recently, so here's some information instead. There is an event tonight in Tokyo, organised by Ian Martin:

2007 3/29 (Thu)
Shibuya O-NEST
「マスビーニューニュー(MUST BE NEW-NEW!）Vol.4」
w/ SKOOTER, ゆやゆよん, ウサギスパイラルアー, SHOOT MY DISCO,UMIBACHI
【DJ】IAN MARTIN（Call And Response）
開場18:30／開演19:00
● 前売￥2,000／当日￥2,300 ●ドリンク別

Someone's a Lot Busier Than Me...

Judging by the number of emailed press releases that are pinging up in my inbox, the JapanFiles staff are readying for a major Tet-like offensive. Firstly, songs by "trippy techno pioneers" Deavid Soul are now available for download on the JapanFiles website, as are the "high energy avante-garde pop stylings of Nagoya based Budo Grape. Finally, for anyone lucky enough to be at the South By Southwest festival this week (and if you are you probably won't be reading this poxy blog), Japanese band Mothercoat are playing at the following times:

Mar. 14

SXSW - Latitude 30

512 San Jacinto St.

Austin, TX

11:45 PM

Mar. 18

Sam's Burger Joint (w/Peelander Z)

www.samsburgerjoint.com

San Antonio, TX

6:00 PM

LiN CLOVER live in the US

For any Stateside readers:

JAPANESE ROCK BAND LiN CLOVER TO PLAY ADDITIONAL USA DATES!

Las Vegas, NV – February 28, 2007 – The powerful, dark Japanese rock band LiN CLOVER will make its USA debut at Sakura-Con 2007 in Seattle, WA, April 6-8, 2007.

Now the band has partnered with California-based promoters Shibuya Airwaves to add shows at Slim's in San Francisco (April 11) with additional venues TBA in Las Vegas, NV (April 10) and San Jose, CA (April 12).

Fans of LiN CLOVER and their founding members Ren & Nao (formerly of GacktJOB) will have their first chance to see this amazing, high-energy performance in America. Live performance video has been added to the band's official MySpace page ( www.myspace.com/linclover).

LiN CLOVER received a nomination for Best Japanese Rock Band in this year's Shojo Beat Music Awards.

LiN CLOVER appears courtesy of JapanFiles.com.

Thanks to Dave at JapanFiles for this. You know it makes sense - download the songs, buy the tickets, brighten up your day.

Still Freaky

"Do you want to go and see J Mascis?" my friend asked me. "It's a solo set and it's 2500 yen." J Mascis. The man who was in the band that were responsible for one of my top three mardy teenage anthems. The man who seemed guitar solos seem like a decent idea. J Mascis. In Tokyo. At a tiny venue. For only two thousand five hundred yen. What do you think?

Fast forward to the night of the show and things have changed a little. The demand for tickets has been overwhelming so the show has been moved downstairs to the Liquid Room's main hall. Goodbye intimate venue. Still, it's J Mascis. Maybe he'll play Freak Scene and all of this won't seem so bad.

The lights dim and the MC comes on stage. I get the main gist of what he says: it's eighteen years since the classic Dinosaur Jr line-up separated. Now they've got back together and have recorded a new album of original material which is called Beyond. Tonight, we are going to be the first people in Japan to hear this new album. Suddenly two and half grand seems like an insanely low price for this show. Not only are we going to hear the first new Dinosaur Jr album in almost twenty years (one guy near me tells his friend that he was only two when the band split), we're going to hear played by J Mascis himself. The lights go all the way down, the audience falss silent... and somewhere off stage a CD player clicks on and everything becomes clear. We are indeed going to hear the new Dinosaur Jr album, but on CD.

The new songs sound fantastic - the perfect fusion of both sides of Dinosaur Jr: the SST days of J, Lou and Murph, and the later era of Start Choppin' and Feel The Pain. I barely give a fuck though. Two thousand five hundred yen for this? Where's J Mascis? Is he going to come on at the end and strum a couple of songs before heading back to his hotel? I'm starting to get the feeling that we've all been had and this is nothing more than a glorified in-store appearance.

I need to do something about this. I want the promoters, the venue owners, Mascis himself, to know that they can't get away with this kind of shite. I have two small plastic cups and a half-full bladder. My options are limited but it's better than mute acceptance.

The album comes to an end. Just under an hour ago this venue was buzzing with expectation, but now the audience shuffles around, not able to muster anything like the same level of enthusiasm. The MC comes back on stage and launches into another spiel. "Wasn't the album great?" "Don't the band sound fantastic?" "Let's have a look at what you could have won." OK, I made that last one up but you get the picture. I decide that drastic measures need to be taken and hand the two plastic cups to my girlfriend. As I fumble about in the semi-darkness the MC says something about J Mascis and the crowd seem to be re-energised. The MC buggers off.

Grey haired and looking how a sane Daniel Johnston might, J Mascis shambles onto the stage and proceeds to play one of the best shows I have ever seen. Clouds part, the cups tumble to the floor and all thoughts of starting a riot disappear from my mind. Mascis seems to be a little confused about the running order of the evening, as he tells that he won't be playing anything from the new album since we're going to hear it all soon anyway. It doesn't matter, it just seems like the kind of thing he would say.

About halfway through what is basically a greatest hits set he plays Freak Scene. I am transported back to my teenage years and beyond, into that realm where a song is much more than just chords, melody and lyrics. Instead, it becomes a force that resonates through to the very core of your being and leads you to write overblown and overlong sentences like these in a vain attempt to convey just how good it is. I don't stop smiling for the rest of the evening and the only place I piss is in the toilet.

Freakscene

J Mascis is playing live in Tokyo next Monday and I'm going - I guess February isn't all bad. I have to admit that I don't know that much about his solo stuff but I'm looking forward to it regardless. The most remarkable thing? A Western artist whose show is only costing 2500 yen (inc one drink) - could this be the start of a trend?

Is there another way to say "Better late than never?"

It's over a week since the event, I arrived midway through the third band's performance, and had to leave before the final band had finished. I probably don't have any right to even write about the show but a blog needs posts like a footballer's wife needs Prada, so here we are.

Mir were the band whose set we rudely gatecrashed. A female guitarist in a bunny hat, blasts of Stereolab-esque pop, and orchestrated dance moves - what could possibly go wrong? Their vocalist. One from the 'screaming loudly shows my pain and commitment to the artistic cause' school of singers, he left me thinking they could have a great future as an instrumental group. Then again, I suppose credit should be given for the fact they had chosen that route instead of taking the easy way out and sticking the bunny girl up front and letting her do the best Laetitia Sadier impersonation she can muster.

For all those who now have a huge Limited Express (has gone?) shaped hole in their lives, help is at hand. Praha Depart have all the right elements: a yelpy vocalist; a sound that careers around the venue, bouncing off the walls and drilling into your brain; and a guitarist who dresses like a mujahideen while playing like he ought to be in Rage Against the Machine. It was difficult to tell whether Praha Depart play groups of separate songs welded together, or epic songs that take in a variety of different styles and time signatures. They're a band that'll grate with some people who may just dismiss them as yet another 'wacky Japanese indie band with a shrieker up front', but it'll be their loss.

After the bare bones guitar and drums used by Praha Depart, Skyfisher seemed to fill the stage with guitars, bass guitars, drums, cowbells, and a machine that went ping. To be honest, at this point the 100 yen wine that was on offer kicked in and the rest of the show is a bit of a haze. I know this is hardly professional, but then again, this is a blog and professionalism doesn't really come into it, does it? I also don't want to just make something up because if I do that it'll more than likely be a tirade (those come to me more easily than anything else) and that just doesn't seem fair on the bands. I recall wondering how the final act, Uhnellys, made the freaky looping sounds that are all I can remember from the ten or fifteen minutes I saw of them, but that's about all I can fairly say about them. The review comes to a juddering halt. If you want something proper to read, try this article about Stereolab.

Be there or be square

Call And Response Records presents:
TANZ TANZ TANZ!
高円寺２００００Ｖ
２月１１日（日）
18.00/18.30 Open/Start
￥1800adv / ￥2000door
バンド：
ウーネリーズ
Skyfisher
プラハデパート
Mir
tacobonds
バイナリー・キッド（Ｏｐｅｎｉｎｇ　Ａｃｔ）
ＤＪｓ：
dotdash (Call And Response)
HanaWaza (akacia)

Special Drink Bar: Wine ￥100!

If the bands don't make it sound attractive then surely it's worth it for the 100 yen wine??

Further behind than the slow kid at the back of the class

Just had a look on the Keikaku forums for the first time in a few days and the first thing that catches my eye is the following thread title from February 1st: Limited Express has really gone. Bugger. February has always been my least favourite month and this year is no exception.

Work sucks (and don't let anyone tell you otherwise)

Didn't make it to the SHIFT show last night. Will I ever go to another show again? By the looks of things, not while I'm in this fucking job, so I'll turn this post into a plea for help. If anyone in Tokyo hears of any jobs that are worth checking out (i.e ones that they'd do themselves but they just haven't got time to) feel free to let me know. Not only will you save my sanity, you may even improve the content of this blog (although I make no claims about the quality of it).

The nearest you're going to get to a review of last night is by reading the comment in the last post. Surely that's a sign of how desperate this situation is.

Is it too late for New Year's Resolutions?

If anyone is still checking back here they will have noticed that I have hardly been setting any records for posting since the start of this year. As I've explained the main reason for this has been job problems, but fuck it, that ain't good enough. This should be a labour of love etc etc. So, here we go again and let's see if I can keep it going this time. The same goes for the other blogs.

Anyway, to make this post much more worthwhile, here's some long-awaited good news (for me at least). SHIFT are playing tomorrow night at Lush in Shibuya (click on the link for a map). They are playing with American band Daughters, Saladbar, The Brixton Academy and デラシネ. Doors open at 6, everything kicks off at 6.30, and tickets are two grand in advance or two and a half on the door. If you don't believe me, it's all on the SHIFT website. I'm hoping to make it along for at least part of the show.

More predictions for 2007

Hell, two posts in one day. Whatever next? Reviews? Live news? All the things that I promised to do when I started this blog? Don't hold your breath. Today's Mystic Meg is the scandalously underrated Andrew Scott, Edinburgh based singer-songwriter and alumnus of bands that should have been big, Ellis and Zerzan. If you're in the Edinburgh area and you see his name in a listings magazine, go and see him, especially if Pete Yorn/Neil Young/Matthew Sweet/Gene Clark type stylings yank your crank - you won't be disappointed. According to Mr Scott we should be looking out for the following:

Indie chancers: The View, The Klaxons, Cold War Kids
Band Who Might Very Well Become Enormous: Arcade Fire (note: aren't they already fairly enormous?)
Bands Who Might Do An R.E.M (note: I'm not sure if this means break out from relative indie obscurity and take over arenas everywhere, or go utterly shite - I'll leave that to your discretion): Interpol, Death Cab For Cutie
Obligatory Plug for A Scottish Artist: Malky Middleton, ex-Arab Strap punter.

No shameless self-promotion for Andrew - not sure if that means there's nowt on the go or if he's just being modest. As I said, keep an eye out for him.

Some blogs that actually have updates

These are a couple of blogs written by contributors to the Keikaku site. Go forth and read (because the chances of me writing a post that isn't ripped off from someone else's work are pretty fucking slim):

This Song Is Good
Reptaro

This probably doesn't even belong here`

This is nothing to do with music but it is about Tokyo and I'm not sure what to make of it. Please read it and comment away:

Japan's mouth-watering way to denude workplace of sexual harrassment

Shukan Post (1/26)

Hot among Tokyo's salarymen at the moment is OL Shabu Shabu Shomuni, a restaurant where waitresses dress as regular "office ladies" who'll strip down and change before customers' eyes, according to Shukan Post (1/26).

The restaurant is a Strip Shabu Shabu, where waitresses start decked out like typical OLs and then remove their garments before dressing in a new outfit.

It's the latest in a long line of gimmicks involved in the serving of shabu shabu, a delicacy where meat strips are dragged through boiling water and dipped in a sauce before being eaten.

Most notable among the shabu shabu trends were the "no-pan shabu shabu," establishments where bottomless waitresses served clients made famous in the late '90s because they were the places corrupt Ministry of Finance bureaucrats liked to be taken by devious bankers looking for underhand breaks.

Now, the no-pan (no-pants) shabu shabu have largely gone, but as the Tokyo restaurant suggests, so have all the clothes, too, even if only momentarily.

OL Shabu Shabu Shomuni's waitresses feed customers by hand. Once diners have received a mouthful, they can then cop an eyeful by requesting the waiting staff slowly change clothes. All the dressing and undressing takes place in front of diners.

Meals cost 5,000 yen for 60 minutes, which entitles the diner to eat and drink as much as they can, as well as request garment changes from any of the waiting staff available. Normally, there are about 10 women (with an average age of 21, the weekly says).

The restaurant also supplies customers with hand mirrors and binoculars for those who'd like a closer look at the waiting staff, even if it means they will leer up dresses.

Waiting staff are apparently more than happy to be on display.

"We'd like salarymen who can't normally be dirty with the OLs in their office to come down and enjoy a meal with us," one of the waitresses tells Shukan Post. (By Ryann Connell)

January 19, 2007

2007 Predictions

It's that time of year where you look ahead and wonder who are going to be the movers and shakers of the next 12 months. Which bands are worth watching out for and which ones should be avoided like lecherous middle-aged English teachers attending the New Year's party at the women's university where they work? It is also the time of year when I've been looking for a new job and haven't really had enough time to do much with the blog, so I emailed a bunch of people more knowledgeable than I and asked for their opinions. First up, Ian Martin from Call and Response records and the Clear and Refreshing website.

From Tokyo:
- Worst Taste
- マヒルノ
- タイカップ
- Pink Group
- ウーネリーズ

From Osaka:
- ヨルズインザスカイ

From Fukuoka:
- Moth
- 百蚊

Not one to be content with merely writing about bands and putting on shows (I believe the next one is on February 11th - more info to follow later), the indomitable Martin-san also mentioned a band of his own, Natasha Forrest. In his own words: "We're mostly influenced by the
1910 Fruitgum Company and Einsturzende Neubauten." What else do you need to know?

Oops

Sorry, slight mistake in my earlier post - Beck is on the 16th, not the 14th. My boss is still a wanker though.

Not Quite the Start I was Looking For

Happy New Year and all that pish. Apologies for the lack of posting but since I came back to Tokyo things haven't been going too well. Firstly, after two weeks of eating in Vietnamese and Cambodian restaurants that were sometimes borderline health hazards it was eventually the so-called 'breakfast' on JAL that banjaxed my stomach, and I spent my first few days back getting to know every single line and mark on my toilet wall. Just as that finally got better a whole lot of shit hit a huge fan at work and it now looks like I'm going to be pimping myself around the job market again (there's a rant on the James Blunt blog if you're interested).

One welcome positive though. A friend emailed me this morning to let me know that Beck will be playing at the Budokan on April 14th. The big question is, will I have a job to finance concert going at that point? If anyone hears of any jobs going in the Tokyo area please let me know. Cheers.

I'm buggering off...

In about four hours time I'll be dragging my weary arse into a taxi and heading off on the marathon journey that is inevitable when going to Narita Airport. Our flight is at 10.30 but we're leaving here at 5.40, so that means I have approximately three hours in which to sleep - do you see how devoted I am to this blog?

Anyway, I'll be back in the new year and although I'll be checking this when I'm on holiday, I doubt I'll be posting anything (but if there are comments here I'll respond to them). To the lonely crofters and their dogs who make up this blog's pitiful audience, I wish you all the best - enjoy celebrating whatever it is you celebrate. Cheers.

Burgerlog

Daftness for daftness sake can be a great thing. With this in mind, have a look at the Burgerlog blog (and Burgerlog 2 - The Japan version) - if you don't leave these sites with a smile on your face I'm not sure there's much hope for you at all. You're probably the same kind of person that thinks James Blunt is a profound commentator on the vagaries of human existence rather than a talentless, charmless, ex-military goon with all the depth of a Hallmark card. Bitter? Me?

You Ain't No Picasso

Good site anyway, but elevated to god-like status for having a downloadable mp3 of Intervention, a new song by The Arcade Fire. It sounds as if they're going to continue from exactly where they left off - maybe there is a god after all.

The Psycrons

“Kyoto? That's the old capital of Japan, isn't it? The place with all the temples and shrines and Geisha and stuff? Yeah, a friend of mine went there once and said it was OK, but it got a bit boring after the fourth or fifth temple. Bloody school kids and middle-aged women everywhere too, he said.”

“Kyoto? Amazing city. The temples and shrines are beautiful and three days just wasn't long enough to do justice to the place. The city just absolutely oozes culture – it's in the buildings and the air itself. Remarkable.”

“Kyoto? Isn't that where they signed the environmental agreement that no bugger pays any attention to?

All stereotypical but plausible reactions to the question, “What do you know about Kyoto?” However, stereotypes are there to be shattered and The Psycrons ought to be the band that put Kyoto on the map for something other than its history and a toothless environmental protocol. Looking like extras who have strayed from the set of an Austin Powers film, and sounding like the last forty years of music has passed them by completely, The Psycrons are here to save the world. OK, that's just journailistic exaggeration, but The Psycrons are definitely here to brighten up the world.

The Miracle of The Psycrons is the band's second album and is out now. It careers around the touchstones of 60s music like Tigger on speed, nicking bits and bobs from all over the place: the scuzzy guitars of The Sonics, the vocal harmonies of The Byrds and a rhythm section straight out of the Motor City. The whole thing is powered by the meaty beaty big and bouncy energy of The Who and it sounds great. Standout tracks include Jetter of Love, which opens the album with a blast; and Footprints in the Winter which sounds like the mutant Japanese cousin of The Mamas and Papas backed by the MC5.

It would be easy to dismiss them as mere copyists who wish they'd been born a generation or two earlier, but that would be to miss the point. The Psycrons are a different breed to the current swathe of UK bands who are all desperately trying to be Gang of Four: their songs have a verve and energy about them that lifts them far beyond mere pastiche. Like The White Stripes, The Psycrons' seem to create more than just music. They have built up an alternative reality for themselves which they inhabit at all times. The Psycrons make no bones about their historical roots – this is who they are and that's that, and when the music's this good that's all that matters.

They may be sweaty, but...

... they're worth a look. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you... Jimmy Pages Trousers.

UFO and The Sunshine Underground

I went to see The Sunshine Underground do a brief in-store appearance in the Tower Records store in Shibuya tonight. A friend of mine gave me a copy of their album recently and I'd only listened to it once, but the tickets were free so it seemed daft not to go (I'd also had a shite day at work so it was a welcome way to wind it up). If you haven't heard them they sound a bit like a British version of The Rapture, although they're more than just copyists. They played an acoustic set which worked surprisingly well - no doubt a sign of the strength of their songs - and then came back for a brief interview with a local radio DJ. Anyone who has seen Lost in Translation will be able to visualise this interview perfectly - the DJ would chunter away for about thirty seconds and then turn to the interpreter, who would then ask the band something as short and simple as "What do you think of Japan?" or "What's your favourite colour?". The band looked fairly relieved when it was all over.

Onto a vastly different kind of music. I recently got an E.P by a Japanese band called 10 from the JapanFiles website. I was intrigued by the description so I downloaded it late one night and promptly forgot all about it. I was making up a CD for a friend tonight and I noticed the two songs from the E.P at the very top of my iTunes list. "Let's give 'em a bash", I thought and off we went. About thirty five minutes later the music stopped and I felt like I'd just been to the dentist. They're an acquired taste, one I'm not sure I'm going to acquire. I'd like to see them live or as an accompaniment to experimental theatre/dance, but for me, the music just didn't work on its own. I'm sure John Peel would've loved them.

How's that for service

In response to young dotdash's comment I had a look at the website and I have only just recovered my socks that were blown off. It's here, it's good, but it's not an excuse for you to never come back to this blog.

I should be writing...

...but I'm not. On the plus side I'm finding some good sites. Have a look at Hideki's site if you get a chance. There's a variety of stuff here - CD reviews, a diary, some articles (including one about his first trip on a train) which are worth checking out.

Another Japanese music site - J-Music Ignited

This one's a bit more wide-ranging than Keikaku, covering more mainstream Japanese music as well as the indie stuff. It's also got info about bands from other parts of Asia and Europe. There's bound to be something here that to float your boat.

Is it just me...

...or does this look like Genesis P Orridge, frontman of industrialists Throbbing Gristle:


It's from an advert for habanero flavoured crisps on a train in Tokyo. Here's the man himself - surely there's more than just a passing resemblance:

If only all coppers ate here...

Saw this yesterday when I was out wandering. I don't know if it's the doughnuts or what but I'm sure the local constabulary avoid the place like the plague, meaning that it's ripe for a bit of armed robbery (not that I'm planning to do any).

The Psycrons and The Golden Loafers

I heard about these two bands from Michael Solo at Solo Records, and the world is a much better place with them in it. The Psycrons (above) are a fantastic blast of Sonics-like 60's psychedelic garage and also have possibly the coolest MySpace page I've seen. Golden Loafers, who at times seem to be fronted by the Japanese James Brown, are funkier than a lonely student's wanking sock (in the best possible sense) and look as if they'd be outstanding live.

I only got the albums today so I haven't had a chance to do a review but I can safely say that on the first listen they both sound superb. Have a look at the bands' MySpace pages for a taster, and if you're in the States I think they're headed their in the spring, so you know what to do. Check back around the weekend by which time I'll hopefully have something more detailed written about both bands.

I'm not the most computer literate of people...

...so I don't know if there's a better way to do this. I just published a review of Miaou's new E.P but because I started writing it a few days ago and saved it is a draft it's stuck back in November's archives. If anyone knows a way to change its position please let me know. In the meantime, if you want to read the review, it's here. Alternatively you can just scroll down the page.

November Top 10

Actually managed to get out and buy/download/listen to a fair amount of stuff last month so I think for once the Top 10 is actually based on merit rather than filling space. Shit, I've said too much. On with the chart.

1) Water & Me - Miaou
2) We Lost It - Miaou
3) Raiku - Mosquito
4) Ame ni mo Makete - Mothercoat
5) Kung Fu Girl - Limited Express (has gone?)
6) Many Many Sweets - Macdonald Duck Eclair
7) Gold Tears, Silver Tears - Camille of the Raspberry Lemonade
8) GT400 - Thee Michelle Gun Elephant
9) Gaikokujin - Mosquito
10) Air - Mothercoat

A few points. Why do so many of the bands start with 'M'? I have no idea. Why is GT4oo in here when it's donkey's years old? Because I hadn't heard it in ages and the clip from YouTube brought back a lot of memories. Why are Miaou at number one and two? Because over the course of the three years that separates the two releases the band changed quite substantially, and even if they hadn't, they're fucking ace and that's that. Hasn't Raiku been here before? Yup, but it's that good.

I've been wanting to write profiles/posts about some of the bands mentioned above, but I haven't had a chance to. The songs by Mothercoat, Mosquito, Camille of the Raspberry Lemonade, Limited Express, and Macdonald Duck Eclair are all available for download at Japan Files. I'm afraid you're going to have to go the old-fashioned way and order the CDs from the bands' websites.

For more info on Macdonald Duck Eclair, read this piece from the Japan Live blog.

Is this how it's supposed to be done?

While checking the Indigenous Beliefs blog that I mentioned before I followed some of the links from the comments and found another decent blog. Is this how you're supposed to do it? I'm not old but I came late to the internet party and I'm still a little like the bloke who stands in the corner nursing his drink and wondering exactly what this music is that everyone else seems to love. Have a look at this blog if you get the chance, the YouTube clip is good, but the rest of the blog is worth reading too.