SEBASTIAN X - Wonderful World

1.　ツアー・スターピープル
2.　新世界によろしく
3.　ワンダフルワールド
4.　世界のガッシャーン
5.　ASO
6.　エイリアンズ
7.　若き日々よ
8.　食卓の賛歌

I was surprised to see SEBASTIAN X's name on the elbo.ws Hot Tracks list today. Apparently there's this thing called Music Alliance Pact which is this project of blogs which share tracks from bands from all over the world. For the November edition SEBASTIAN X's "Tour Star People" from their new album "Wonderful World" was elected as the Japanese contribution.

To be perfectly honest though, I think "Tour Star People" is probably my least favorite song on the album. It's just way too frantic and all over the place for my liking. Still, I like this band a lot. I don't have the record though, so I shouldn't be writing about it, but what the hell. I've heard the tracks on their myspace site. For some reason, "Wonderful World" is entitled as "their first mini album", but I'd say that the brilliant "Life vs Life" which was released last year is their debut? Anyways, I love their quirky indiepop which also has some rough, punk-ish moments. The lack of guitar which is substituted by playful piano works great. Manatsu Nagahara's vocal's might be a bit much to handle at times though, especially in the high-pitched parts. A more mellow tone would better suit the down-beat songs. Her intense voice works great on the more punky songs though.
SEBASTIAN X seems like a band with a really playful imagination and this creativeness which has no restrictions. Sometimes it would've been nice if they had toned down a notch, but at the same time it's that intensity which makes them the band they are.

The new album includes studio versions of long time live favorites "Aliens" and "shokutaku no sanka" which I've been impatiently waiting to hear the studio version of. Especially the last one is truly an amazing song (I posted the video in my previous post about SEBASTIAN X). The new album also features a new recording of "wakaki hibi yo", although I think the original version is perfectly fine. It is my favorite from their first album, so I can see why they would want to put it on this album too.

SEBASTIAN X - tour star people

from Life vs Life:
SEBASTIAN X - LIFE PLEATS
SEBASTIAN X - wakaki hibi yo
SBEASTIAN X - yuigon

www.myspace.com/sebastianx2008

Wonderful World:


tour star people:

sleepy.ab - メロウ

New music video for the track "mellow" from sleepy.ab's upcoming album "paratroop". The album will be released November 25th, and it's the band's major debut. Personally I don't think this song is as exciting as the previously released song "Aquarium", but it's still fairly good.

【MyX 09.11】sleepy.ab / メロウ

MyX | MySpace Video

http://www.myspace.com/sleepyab

The band has also been selected as MyX's band of the month for november. An interview and a live clip will be added to the site later this month.
http://www.myspace.com/myxjp

sokabe keiichi band - present

New single from sokabe keiichi band. I tell you, Keiichi Sokabe is one productive man. The band released their second album earlier this year, before that the single "hoshi", then the EP "minna no uta" then a live dvd. Plus various releases and remixes as a solo artist, playing solo, playing festivals with the Rendevouz Band, long touring with the band, reuniting with Sunny Day Service and doing some live shows with them, releasing a book (although only containing previously released song lyrics). He also runs a café in Shimokitazawa called City Country City, and the label Rose records etc etc. Plus he has a wife and at least 3 kids. I have to wonder how he finds the time to do it all?

Anyways, enough of my babble (rant continues below), here's the video for "present". The single was also released on a limited edition 7" vinyl. 500 copies personally decorated by Sokabe himself.


It's a cute and catchy song, but not unlike the latest album "happiness!" I'm starting to think that the songs have become a bit too soft. They don't make as much of a strong impression on me as the earlier songs have. I think it might be because it's become a bit too sunny and rosy red in the sokabe universe. By all means should the man be allowed his happiness, but I'm just saying... Not saying that the self-proclaimed "king of mellow rock" should be miserable, I love that feel good-atmosphere that sokabe keiichi band has, but if you compare to the first album of theirs "kira kira!" it simply has better songs, like the title track, "umi to autobai" or my favourite track "yume miru youni nemuritai". There's a stronger nerve in these songs, I think. Either that, or the problem is that I'm miserable.

"hoshi" got my hopes up for the second album, but it did not turn out to be representative of the rest of the album. "Pure & True" and "nagai yoru" are quite good though. I read in an interview that Sokabe wanted to focus more on the live aspect of the music for the second album, so that could definitely have something to do with the outcome. Their live shows are always incredibly fun. Also, he might be saving up some songs for the Sunny Day Service comeback. Who knows. At his rate there'll probably be at least 50 more albums released before he retires.

Speaking of releases, the cover album "Sokabe Sings" that was previously only available for sale at his solo tour around new years will be released on Dec. 4th, containing covers of the Beatles, the Pixies, the Velvet Underground and Madonna(!) among others.

This post got a bit longer than intended, so if you made it this far here's the video for "nagai yoru".

about tess + LITE

I discovered this band called about tess through mixi. Twin drums, twin bass and twin guitars. Pretty cool.



http://www.myspace.com/abouttess

Kind of reminds me of LITE, although LITE seem to have shifted direction a bit since last time. From their new EP "Turns Red":




http://www.myspace.com/liteband

Psysalia Psysalis Psyche - Titan Arum

Music video from their first album "Matin Brun" which will be released Oct. 21st, but which has already been released on iTunes. The single "midunburi", previously posted here, is also on the album.


View video here: http://psysaliapsysalispsyche.com/
(it might take a while to load)

To be honest, I have no idea what to make of this. That goes for both track and video. Their sound has changed. A lot.
I've listened to the samples of the album tracks on iTunes too, and except for a few tracks it sounds a lot different from their previous EP. In "Take Me Out" they seem to have kept that raw sound from before though. The album also features a new version of "Butch & Sundance Kid". I'm not going to make a judgement on the album based on 30 second samples, but I've become a bit sceptic...

http://www.myspace.com/psysalia

plenty - 「ボクのために歌う吟」

New up and coming band called plenty. Apparently they're quite young (20y) and are just about to release their first album, but they've been invited to play as opening act, along with the Novembers, for Art-School on their "14 Souls Tour". Not bad at all. Art-School are pretty big on the indie scene in Japan. At least among the indie kids. Personally I'm not a big fan, but I think it's safe to say that a lot of people (read: everyone) who likes the Novembers also likes Art-School, and I think plenty will appeal to the same group. Indierock mixed with a good portion of melancholy. I quite like this song (called "boku no tame ni utau gin"). The album 「拝啓。皆さま」(haikei. mina-sama) is released on Oct. 21st.

Ogre You Asshole - Headlight

New music video from OYA's upcoming album "Fog Lamp" which will be released Oct. 7th. Cool song. Very unusual for a single, I think, especially compared to "Pinhole" which was very poppy. This one's pretty catchy too though. Strange and funny video.

Karen - Enemy

Music video for "Enemy" from Karen's 2nd album "Sunday Girl In Silence" which was released at the end of August. I have their first record "Maggot In Tears" and although I have to admit that it's not the most exciting album, I think it has a lot of good tracks. This video promises well for the new album too, although it doesn't seem like they've evolved a whole lot. I like the more experimental instrumentation.

The band includes members from Art-School and downy, but I think the vocalist, Achiko, deserves all the credit. I love her voice. A talented singer and she's really charismatic live.

http://www.myspace.com/KARENofficial



a couple of tracks off the first album:

andymori - s/t

I had some problems getting into this band in the beginning. I mean, can you take a band whose songs are titled "Life Is Party" and "boku ga hakujin dattara" ("if I was a white guy") seriously? The answer is you can. The more I've listened to them the more I've come to like them. I've seen them live twice, but I think they lack that little extra to be a solid live band. Anyways, this album is awesome.

They remind me a lot about British rock a la The Libertines, The Fratellis etc. I used to be a huge fan of British music a couple of years ago. Recently I've haven't been up to date on music coming out of Britain, but I still enjoy a lot of the bands I used to like. andymori seems to be greatly influenced by this scene, and I think they're doing a good job incorporating into their own thing. They have catchy up-tempo tracks like "FOLLOW ME" and "everything is my guitar" with humorous lyrics about everyday life and situations. Slower tracks like "aoi sora" and "happy end" that could easily be written off as shallow attempts to be sensitive, but I must say I like their naivety. I think that's what Andymori wins on. Simpleness. Simple and catchy, but more important they're able to create a good atmosphere throughout the album which makes it perfect for a warm, sunny day.

I also believe they have a good portion of self-irony. They have t-shirts that say: "WE ARE THE GROUPIES". 'nough said.

http://www.myspace.com/andymori

andymori - everything is my guitar
andymori - mongoloid blues
andymori - bengal tora to whiskey
andymori - sugoi hayasa



(notice the video budget rise from the first video to the other...)

The Novembers, 八十八ヶ所巡礼

July 24th, Shimokitazawa Club Que (old post, sorry!)

Club Que were absolutely ridiculous when it came to letting people into the venue. Everyone had to line up in a queue exactly according to ticket numbers, and they made lots of fuzz about it. My number was 159. Fairly late, I thought, but when I was finally allowed to enter the venue there were only two rows of people there AND an available spot at the first row. So much for nothing.

Similar to Basement Bar the vacant spot was at the far right side. Guitarist Kengo is apparently not too popular. It looked like most people were there to see the Novembers and not the other band. This time it was Quip Magazine’s anniversary event. They have an artist column were different people from bands write whatever they like, and Yusuke Kobayashi from the Novembers has this cartoon going on featuring among others an ugly dog and guitarist Kengo. Is it any good? Well there’s a reason why he’s a musician and not a manga artist..

For this show there were only two bands on the bill and even better, both bands got to play for an extra long time i.e. an hour as opposed to the regular 30 minutes bands get at regular events. Unfortunately that meant that I also had to endure an entire hour of the first band…

八十八ヶ所巡礼 (hachijuhakkasho junrei)’s vocalist/bassist is officially the skinniest Japanese guy I have ever seen. The Novembers are fairly skinny guys too, but they looked perfectly normal compared to this guy. Seriously, he looked like a stick man that could break any second. In contrast the other guys were a dude in black who looked like he enjoyed 80’s metal (he had his own fan on stage blowing at his hair maiking him look like he was in the cheezy video) and a buff drummer who played without a shirt. An interesting group of people. Ahem, now that I’ve got that out of the way, I was not too impressed by their music (which could explain why I spent most of the time staring at their looks). After a while the vocalist said: "we're not quite done yet. In fact we're only halfway". Oh no...

http://www.myspace.com/katsuyashimizu

The Novembers, again! Let's keep it short. The very end of “mer” moved me to bits. There are always a couple of girls crying under a Novembers concert, but I have never been moved in that way. Not to the point were I'm shedding tears. In Japan I get the impression that everyone cries though, and apparently it doesn’t take more than the Doraemon-movie. Anyways, tonight was special. “philia”, “mer”, and different from the other recent shows, “picnic” were beyond amazing. Also, the fact that this was my last time seeing the Novembers before I left Japan made feel sad, but at the same time incredibly happy that was able to see them so many times, because they are truly a wonderful live band.[/sentimental rant]

The Novembers, おとぎ話, Qomolangma Tomato

July 12th, Saitama Heaven’s Rock

I always thought that Saitama was far, far away from Tokyo, but turns out it’s pretty close, and that Heaven’s Rock is a really good live venue. Heaven’s Rock lies a couple of minutes away from Saitama Super Arena which is as the name implies a huge arena. Today’s concert was a part of Qomolangma Tomato’s “Camouflage” album release tour, and on the bill they had Otogi Banashi and The Novembers. Otogi Banashi with their charming, sweet songs didn’t fit in anywhere musically, and the band themselves were really surprised to be invited to this event, but apparently Qomolangma were big fans.


I was a bit surprised to see that The Novembers were first up. Compared to Basement Bar with it’s cramped space and awful sound Heaven’s Rock was great. Spacious, no problem seeing the stage from far behind and an excellent sound. Crisp and clear sound quality from beginning to end. We were also able to stand further behind and see almost the entire stage without any problems. It could be because Novembers fans are surprisingly short. I'm so not kidding. There's something off when I feel tall.

I like Kengo’s guitar parts in “dnim”. Like calm waves in the background of an otherwise pretty violent song. They actually played all songs off Paraphilia. Another thing I noticed was that they didn’t play anything from their first self-titled EP at all.

www.myspace.com/thenovembers11

Otogi Banashi were super charming as always. I don’t think that many people had showed up to see them there, like I mentioned earlier they didn’t quite fit in. The crazy moshing from their oneman was nowhere to be seen except for a gang of guys during “Parade”. Regardless, Otogi were smiling as always and as always introduced “Neon Boys” as “a theme song we have made especially for YOU!” They played their cover of “hoshi ni negau wo” (the Japanese version of “When You Wish Upon A Star”. Can be found on the compilation album ”Disney Rocks!”), and afterwards they took two requests from the audience. One was the aforementioned “Parade”, the other “Classic” if I remember correctly. I guess I should mention that at concerts in Norway there’s always someone yelling requests during the show, but in Japan no one ever does that. It’s nice to not have to listen to some idiot who won’t take a hint who yell’s between every single song. And it’s even nicer when the bands ask the audience what they want to hear. Before one of the last songs vocalist Arima started playing a bit from the Pixies – “Where Is My Mind?”! Full cover next time, please!

www.myspace.com/otgbanashi



I listened to Qomolangma Tomato on Myspace some time ago, but I didn’t like them very much. Live however they pretty cool. I realize that this happens to me way too often… What I discovered live that I hadn’t realised before was that they have a killer drummer, a fairly cool guitarist and interesting vocals. I’m not sure I’d go as far as to call it rap, more like talking-ish? Not spoken word though (lord no). Let's just call it rap. Their sound is raw and energetic, and they have some good tunes.

Ironically, although this was the “Camouflage” tour their 3rd album, I’ve come to like the first album 「チョモと僕は柵の中」("chomo to boku ha shigarami no naka") a lot more. Especially the two tracks below are cool. On "Camouflage" the songs are more down-tempo and there's more singing. Quite frankly this guy isn't a great singer at all, and his way more awesome when he's energetic and screaming rather than sensible and dull. Obviously.

Towards the end the drummer says "You know, by coming here tonight you've missed out on Gackt who played at Saitama Super Arena tonight." Oh the loss.

Qomolangma Tomato - Through Your Reality
Qomolangma Tomato - Shoutengai

www.myspace.com/qomolangmatomato
http://www.qomolangmatomato.com/

Thai Kick Murph - telekinesis

I've been listening a lot to this song lately.

Thai Kick Murph - telekinesis

Simple and catchy indie pop. I like the vocalists voice a lot, and the chorus gets stuck in my head all the time. They have released an album called "Olympia" and you can hear a digest on their myspace. I saw Thai Kick Murph when they played together with Video among others some time ago. They were so charming and sweet when they were playing, and afterwards during the other bands they were standing at the very front dancing and cheering. They seem like nice people.

www.myspace.com/thaikickmurph

The Novembers, Sister Jet

I decided that I wanted to see The Novembers a couple of extra times before I left Japan which resulted in seeing them four times in a month. If you ask me it was totally worth it.

part 1.

June 30th, Shimokitazawa Basement Bar
Andymori's event. I found it odd that the Novembers had been invited to play at this event as the other band's playing this show were musically completely different. First up was actually a DJ from the club event Getting Better that played mostly brit-rock. That was unusual too as I believe a lot of people who listen to Japanese music don't listen that much to foreign music and vice versa. It was even stranger because the audience were standing completely still, waiting in front of the stage as they usually do before a concert, while loud club music was blasted out of the speakers. The DJ must have noticed, and towards the end of his set he apologized(!) for keeping people waiting: "The concert will start soon. It's not my fault." Poor guy.

First band Sister Jet looked like your average amateur high school band or something. I got the impression that they were inspired by music from the 60's, but they had problems recreating the good, old magic in their own music. In fact they didn't appeal to me whatsoever. Their songs were just ridiculously one-sided, taking the easy way out musically, "dance dance dance baby"-choruses and overall equally stupid lyrics. The funny thing though, they did some sort of cover of The Monkees - "Daydream Believer". I can't say that it was a great cover.

www.myspace.com/sisterjet

Apparently a lot of people had reserved tickets through the bands, but as I knew from previous experiences Basement Bar let reservations in last and tickets in first. I bought my tickets beforehand and got nr 8 and 9 which resulted in a front row spot. Sweet. I can't press enough how much getting a good view during a concert affects my impression of it. Good sound is of course important, but the combination of sound and visual is what keeps me going to gigs. The sound was in fact quite bad this time during The Novembers. We were almost unable to hear the vocals most of the time, although it became a little bit better towards the end. The guitar noise was perfect though. The sound tends to get noisy and grainy in small venues, but it fits the Novembers’ sound.

To me, the Novembers are a perfect live band. I know I’ll most likely sound like an infatuated fangirl, but their appearance on stage is so different from other bands. The atmosphere and the tension when they deliver those songs on stage is incredible. They say very little and although they come off as introverted there's something compelling about that. This is the first time I've been that close to the stage and I was amazed.

Lately the setlist has opened with “para” and ended with “hakuchi”. They also always include “dnim” and “philia”, so there are a lot of tracks from the latest mini album. I don’t mind considering it’s probably my favourite record of theirs. Whenever I hear the intro to “philia” my body starts tingling with excitement. I LOVE that song.

THE NOVEMBERS - philia

The Novembers - she lab luck

www.myspace.com/thenovembers11

After the Novembers we went outside for a while, and only saw about ten minutes of Andymori afterwards. The venue was packed and it was impossible to see anything from behind. Similar to the first time I saw them I wasn't too impressed with their live performance contrary to their CD which isn't half bad at all (I will write a review later on). We heard them play their 大-hit "Everything Is My Guitar", and then we left.

sleepy.ab - Aquarium

Before, I didn't get the thing with this band, but I saw them live a couple of months ago, (they were playing with Karen among others) and I thought they were quite good. Still, I had not listened to them again until I stumbled over this video now. I think it's interesting how music that I did not have any interest in whatsoever before, suddenly sounds really good.

Some of the songs remind me a lot of Radiohead, others have a more post-rock style like Sigur Rós. I like the mellow, tender songs, and the vocalist's voice is beautiful. The songs might sound a bit too similar in the long run though, but I'm going to check them out more. "Aquarium" is their latest single I believe.

Psysalia Psysalis Psyche - Midunbri

New music video from Psysalia Psysalis Psyche for their new single "Midunbri" which will be released on August 5th.

You can also hear samples of the other tracks on the single on myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/psysalia

edit: You can buy "Midunbri" at HearJapan.

I first heard Psysalia when they performed at an all night event in Shibuya. The sound was crap, and I wasn't overly impressed by their live performance, but I liked their energetic kick-ass rock. A pretty hard sound, I guess, but still melodic and cool.

I have theory that the reason they were a bit docile on stage might have something to do with the fact that they were slightly drunk. Japanese bands usually stick to good ol' water when they play, but because it was an all night event and all. They were at least dead drunk afterwards - but hey, all the more fun. The vocalist wrapped himself in Christmas lights and went crazy on the dancefloor.

Their mini album "Psysalism" which came out last year is really cool, and I think they have potential to get even better.

mp3: Psysalia Psysalis Psyche - Subway Killer

homepage: http://psysaliapsysalispsyche.com/

CLISMS - GO!!!!!

I stumbled over this music video by CLISMS. It sounds really different from what I've heard of them before. Kind of post rock-ish? It's an instrumental track that lasts for over 6 minutes. Sort of slowly builds up and breaks out with a "GO!!!!!", then continues on in a very comfortable pace. Makes me want to listen to it over and over. I especially like the piano parts, and the fact that they have twin drums. The music video is nicely shot too.

Ogre You Asshole + nisennenmondai

July 10th, Shibuya O-Nest

The first band out tonight was nisennenmondai. I saw them at Nest Fest in October, but I thought they were pretty bland and boring. Could be because I was tired, and not in the mood for that kind of music or something. This time I actually thought they were really cool.

nisennenmondai can be described as a sort of psychedelic drone rock, maybe? Purely instrumental, hypnotizing waves of sound that builds up and ends in wonderful noise. I had forgotten ear plugs this time though. My ears were ringing afterwards. Especially my left ear seems to be sensitive to noise these days... Anyways, like I said earlier, they made a much bigger impression on me this time. Could be because I was standing in the first row and could see the very energetic drummer during the entire show. She was seriously awesome.

www.myspace.com/nisennenmondai
http://www.nisennenmondai.com/

(pic from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/drwng/3708905026/in/set-72157621253591770/)

setlist:
shiranai aizu shiraseru ko
rail
advantage
katappo
pinhole
coin laundry
J.N
hitorinori
necktie

I've seen Ogre You Asshole a number of times the past year, more precisely about once every month (fangirl alert). I've come to realize that they're not the most amazing live band to watch if you were to compare them to f ex The Novembers' intensity, Otogi Banashi's charm, OWARIKARA's craziness etc. That's not to say that their bad live. Definitely not. They're solid from beginning to end, play really tight and most importantly they make me happy.

Since I reviewed them last time in February I've seen them at the tiny venue in Chiba Look, their "pinhole"-tour oneman final at Quattro and at the Tobu Ongaku Sai. The festival was a really nice experience. Outdoors venue, nice, warm weather and a great atmosphere.

This time it was back to good old O-Nest. One of the first times I saw them was here, and this was the last time in a while. I'm leaving Japan in August, and although I'm certain I'll come back one day, I'm not sure when that will be. So yeah I've been feeling all sentimental at concerts lately.

They played the key tracks from each cd, and then a whole lot from "shiranai aizu" this time. I'd still love to hear a couple of the older songs, but I guess that will only happen at onemans nowadays. I don't think I've heard "Rail" that much live before, so that was nice. "Necktie" with the swirly noisy guitars at the end are really cool.

I think Ogre's strongest point is the fact that they have so damn good songs. Great guitars, catchy melodies, unique vocals and good lyrics. They have a sound unique from all the standard Japanese rock bands, and although they're often compared to American indierock bands I think they sound different from them as well.

Apparently they've been recording new stuff this summer, so that means a new release is on the way. Also, Ogre will be opening for Sunset Rubdown on their Japan tour this fall. Pretty exciting.

www.ogreyouasshole.com
www.myspace.com/ogreyouassholemusic





mp3's:
Ogre You Asshole - Coin Laundry
Ogre You Asshole - Advantage
Ogre You Asshole - shiranai aizu shiraseru ko
Ogre You Asshole - mata ashita
Ogre You Asshole - ni dai

Btw, tonight's gig was part of a series of gigs presented by moools called "moools matsuri" (moools festival). They were headlining, and I like mools, but I ended up only seeing like ten minutes so no review this time.

"嘘が本当になる日" the Day When Lies Come True part 2

june 28th, Shimokitazawa Daisybar

continued from part 1.
(ps. I've added mp3's to part 1)

Far France was the secret opening act at OWARIKARA's event in May. I had never heard them before, but I started to like them as soon as they started playing. Their sound is a bit harder than what I usually listen too, but it's also pretty melodic and they have awesome guitar parts. I don't really see any particular likeness, but in some way they remind me of the Blood Brothers. I think it's the energy and the mix of hardcore and more playful poppy tunes.

Their live performance was just as good this time. They're so full of energy and it's really fun to watch. I've come to notice that there are so many bands here in Japan who really give it all on stage. Obviously when you're a small unknown band you have to try and give the audience something extra to get people's attention, but I also believe that there are a lot of genuinely great bands here. The indie schmindie attitude I see in a lot of western bands aren't here in the same way. I mean, at the very end of Far France's set the vocalist started rolling around on the floor in front of the stage. AND he has moomin characters (hattifnatter!) on his guitar. Kudos.

Far France are a fairly young band ie the same age as me. Makes me wish I too had accomplished more in life than this blog. ahem. They've already released two albums (the first being a pure live album though). The latest one "AHYARANKE", their first studio album, was released earlier this year, and it's pretty cool. I especially like the latter half of the songs with lots of cool guitars, and more experimental stuff going on.

Far France - burebura
Far France - ayamachi
Far France - ame





www.myspace.com/ncnarfraf
home page: www.farfrance.com


Sebastian X were to me this gig's unexpected surprise. Their line-up consisted of keyboard, bass, drums and vocals. The bassist was actually wearing the aforementioned rose patterned jacket, but it actually looked really good on him. Whether that's a good thing or not... The vocalist was this cute girl dressed in a red traditional chinese-inspired top with her hair in two dangos, who was incredibly charming and sweet. Her voice might be a bit annoying in the high parts though. The songs were really sweet, melodious pop songs with bright and playful piano arrangements. It sounded a bit like nursery rhymes at times. I especially loved the last song "shokutaku no sanka" (first video below). I bought their album, but my computer is broken so I can't listen to it...

http://www.myspace.com/sebastianx2008 (their myspace music player refuses to work for me, but they've upped lots of youtube vids on their profile)

"嘘が本当になる日" the Day When Lies Come True part 1

June 28th, Shimokitazawa Daisybar

Yesterday I went to a tiny venue in Shimokitazawa, where I think there were tops 50 people in the audience, or something like that. Apparently it was this guy named Hiroki's special event where he had invited all the bands? I wouldn't mind having my own event like that too. Anyways, I had no idea how Hiroki knew all these bands, but I wanted to see OWARIKARA and Far France again, and they were excellent this time as well.

First up was 神さま (kamisama). Girl on drums, dude on vocals wearing a reflex vest who spent the first couple of songs just yelling in to the mic. Afterwards came their 大hit "SEX". And if I'm not completely wrong, another song had the following lyrics "I AM HITLER/まったく友達できません (I can't make any friends)/I AM HITLER" Sweet. After a while the guy picked up a guitar as well, and during the last song he played on the floor in the middle of the crowd (not that where that many people there). You know you're doing well when you have to ask for applause.

Some of the other songs had a better vibe going on, sort of cute-ish melodies, but honestly, I had no interest in this band whatsoever apart from the bizarre entertainment factor. Before every new song the girl asked the guy "are you sure you know what song we're going to play now??". They were going to play a new song, but had to start over again like 4 times because the guy interrupts and says: "The beat's way too slow! You need to practice more!"
Girl: "No, you need to practice more!"
Guy: "We should practice together."
Yeah, maybe you should. I think that's what most bands too.
If they had been an all girl group and dressed in short school uniforms I'm sure they would have had lots of fans though. But not me.

Before I ask myself who the hell would want to release 神さま's music, I should probably say that ironically they're on Rose Records, sokabe keiichi's label...



http://www.myspace.com/camisama1980

Next up was 太平洋不知火楽団 (taiheiyou shiranui gakudan). Yup that's one long ass name with lots of kanjis. I think they even played a few of Hiroki's (dude mentioned above's) old songs too? The coolest song was the second though "Dancing Hell". Up-beat post-punk song which was pretty catchy and cool. The only problem I had with them was the vocals. The vocalist looked like he was 15 and his voice reminded me of the amateur band event that was arranged at my old junior high school. The bassist though, was something to behold on stage. He had really long hair, which he kept tossing around and headbanging and spinning around. He was wearing a rose patterned jacket, but I didn't think any more about that until later...

www.myspace.com/taiheiyousiranui

OWARIKARA were awesome the last time I saw them. They arranged an event called "one morning I woke up as David Bowie vol.2" in May at Club Goodman in Akihabara. (I was going to write about it in this blog, but...). All the other bands were splendid too; Far France, Mahiruno, YOMOYA etc. During the last song of their set OWARIKARA completely trashed the stage (mostly by throwing themselves everywhere). The vocalist handed his guitar to Far France's vocalist、and then he and the keyboardist was all over the place. Then the bass player decided to stand on his head on the drum set (drummer still playing though). It was hilarious. (more pics at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sato-mi/sets/72157618821026210/)

So one thing's for sure: they're one hell of a live band. So much energy and craziness. This time, vocalist Takahashi entered the stage in this really ugly turquoise top. Apparently OWARIKARA and 太平洋不知火楽団 had exchanged "clothes you're too embarrassed to wear" of which they had to pick one and wear it on stage. Hilarious. Hence the rose jacket that the other bassist was wearing. He didn't look as bad as this guy though (although without a turquoise top he looks pretty damn hot). On top of that Takahashi split his shoe in two during the first song, but the problem was quickly solved: "Does anyone have right shoe they can borrow me?" The guy on the first row took of his shoe faster than you can say "what size?" and handed it over. You know you're awesome when the guitarist from your favourite band has played a show wearing your shoe. At least if you ignore any images of sweaty feet.

OWARIKARA has released three demos so far, of which I have the two last ones. Really good stuff. Psychedelic rock, but with lots of energy and cool guitars, but most important to me I guess, they have some killer tunes. I love "door-tachi", "yukan naru biihiyanau" and "sunaba". The entire 3rd demo is great. Definitely worth 500yen.

The keyboardist Cameda went pretty crazy as well, and at some point he ran off stage and came back wearing a lovely flowery shirt. I think he was trying to outstage Takahashi. He only got it on one arm though, as the whole thing was way to little, and he had to play a little in between to, you know.

This dude behind me was really enthusiastic all the time during their set and he was even singing out aloud. One of the few times I've heard that in Japan, unless of course everybody sings, like at a Sokaban gig. And when everbody sways from side to side... Sheep anyone? Sheep aren't bad animals though. Not neccessarily...

mp3's:
OWARIKARA - doatachi
OWARIKARA - judaikara hajimeru kakumei koza
OWARIKARA - kaijin-san

http://www.myspace.com/owarikara







To be continued... Far France and Sebastian X!

おとぎ話－青春GALAXY ep + tour

tracklist:
1. GALAXY
2. 青春 (seishun)
3. you
4. 火星 (Mars)

New EP from Otogi Banashi called "seishun GALAXY ep". They truly seem like the nicest people in the world, and they're so adorable in their own nerdy way. Add catchy melodies, cool guitars, lovely lyrics and what more can you ask for? I think Otogi Banashi are a band that you either think are incredibly charming or just they're downright lame though. I'm obviously in the first category.

(photo taken from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/otgbanashi/)

Otogi Banashi played a oneman show at Club Quattro, Shibuya on May 31st. Vocalist Kazuki Arima was wearing glitter on his cheeks. Apparently he had been watching Sigur Rós on YouTube and became inspired. It looked more goofy than cool. Did I mention that they're nerdy? It was a really nice concert though. Great vibe throughout the entire set. I especially enjoyed "new song", "NEON BOYS", "FESTIVAL EXPRESS" and "tobira akeru".





mp3:
おとぎ話 - BOYS DON'T CRY
おとぎ話 - ネオンBOYS
おとぎ話 - 火星 (Mars)

www.otgbanashi.com/
www.myspace.com/otgbanashi

CLISMS - s/t

tracklist:
1. Running Future From Now
2. Love Me True Poor Boy
3. OK OK OK

I know that their name is looks like some kind of nasty disease, but apparently you're supposed to pronounce it kurisumasu (the japanese way of pronouncing "Christmas").

I saw CLISMS in February and I thought they were so-so, but afterwards I listened to them again and I realized that they are kinda cool after all. Their Myspace music-player is messed up though, so I decided to just by the damn cd. It was released last year, but you can only buy it at their gigs or at Disk Union. They don't play that often either, I guess partly because two of the members are pretty busy with Otogi Banashi.

This cd only has three tracks, but two of them are very awesome. 70's inspired rock with twin drums and twin guitars that sound catchy and are lots of fun. As for the lyrics, it's written on the disc: "Hello! My Girlfriends & Boyfriends, This Season For You." and that pretty much says it all, doesn't it?

CLISMS - s/t

Shugo Tokumaru - Rum Hee release tour

May 15th, Kichijoji Star Pine's Cafe

Wen I saw Shugo Tokumaru in 2007 at his "EXIT" tour at Daikanyama Unit I thought the venue was way too big, and I was glad that he chose Star Pine's Café this time around. The venue had room for about 350 people, which was perfect.

Supporting act was OORUTAICHI, the guy who did one of the remixes on "Rum Hee". I'd never heard anything else from him other than that track, so I didn't know what to expect. I found his music to be a bit..strange. Sort of a crazy fusion of folk/psych. Some of it even reminded me of Animal Collective. I think Animal Collective are overrated though. Anyways, OORUTAICHI did some crazy vocal stuff accompanied by dance moves, so it was cool enough.

Shugo Tokumaru played the first track together with a band consisting of drums, keyboard/accordion, percussion etc, and then he did an acoustic set alone followed by another set with the band. When he plays alone you really get to see how skilled he is on the guitar, and also the more quiet songs sounds really beautiful. The new single "Rum Hee", "Green Rain", "Parachute", the songs that have lots of instrumentation serves their right better with the band. And it's more fun to watch.

Before playing "Parachute" Tokumaru asked if anyone had learned the song yet (the tabs are on the "Rum Hee" cd), and if anyone had they could come up on stage and play it. No one had. It might just be because I'm unexperienced with any instrument, but that songs sounds impossible to play. Did I mention yet that Shugo Tokumaru has some serious skills?

As usual Tokumaru was quite talkative. At the bginning the first thing he says is: "Last night I dreamt that I killed somebody and couldn't play tonight. That would have been a bummer."

He played to new songs. One up-tempo and a quiet one. Personally I liked the last one the best. I like the up-tempo songs too, but I also wish he would do more songs like the one's from his first album. Anyways, almost everything he makes is good, so I'm not complaining.

Towards the end they even did a cover. 「世界大好きな曲をやります」I have now heard "Video Killed the Radio Star" played on banjo and can finally die happy. It was hilarious. Tokumaru should definitely do more covers. Before he has done covers of Pete, Bjørn & John's "Young Folks" and M. Ward's "To Go Home" which can be downloaded from his myspace site.

Shugo Tokumaru is actually doing a tour in Europe in July, and he's even going to play in Norway! Wish I was at home so I could go. That would have been fun. Anyways you should go see him. Check out the dates here:
http://www.shugotokumaru.com/eindex.html
www.myspace.com/shugotokumaru

mp3:
Shugo Tokumaru - Rum Hee

Shugo Tokumaru - Such A Color

group_inou - ESCORT

tracklist:
1. ESCORT
2. CHAIR
3. RIP
4. SOS
5. BOTTLING

New EP from group_inou. Following their brilliant debut album "FAN" from last year comes another cool cd entitled "ESCORT". It took me a while to really get into "FAN", but I've been loving this one since I first listened to it. I really think their mix of electro and hiphop is quite unique. There are both fun danceable tracks and tracks you can sit down and listen too. My favourites are "ESCORT" and "BOTTLING". I suspect that "SOS" is the song with "the worst lyrics in the world" that they were talking about during their oneman before christmas last year. They have a new oneman coming up at the end of the month, but I'm afraid I can't afford to go...

group_inou - ESCORT
group_inou - CHAIR

http://www.myspace.com/groupinou

noble showcase: kashiwa daisuke, kazumasa hashimoto, tenniscoats & secai

April 21st, O-Nest Shibuya

The record label noble is home to artists such as World's End Girlfriend, Tenniscoats, kashiwa daisuke and Midori Hirano. Personally I was most excited to see kashiwa daisuke this time, but I was positively surprised by kazumasa hashimoto as well.


Tenniscoats & Secai
The first time I heard Tenniscoats was live in 2007. They were playing with an american guy (or was he french? He sang in French too, I think), and the songs were sweet indiepop tunes. They also got help from moools and Shugo Tokumaru played guitar, and all was good. The project called Tenniscoats & Secai however, I find a lot harder to grasp. It sounds very experimental, and live I felt that the songs dragged on without giving me much. I simply enjoy their poppier tunes a lot more.

www.myspace.com/tenniscoats
ww.myspace.com/secai


kazumasa hashimoto w/Gutevolk
I've listened to his latest album "euphorism" a couple of times at the record store, but it didn't strike me as anything special. For tonight's set however, I think the sound was more organic and melodious. Hashimoto himself played the piano, and he had help from Gutevolk on vocals and itoken on drums. Gutevolk was a real sweetheart. "Some of the people who left early might be listening to the promo CD right now. If there wasn't enough promo cd's for all of you I'll copy it and give it to you!" (check out the mp3s below)


www.myspace.com/kazumasahashimoto
www.myspace.com/gutevolk

kashiwa daisuke
Kashiwa's second album "program music 1" was in my opinion one of the best albums released in 2007. The album only has two tracks: "Stella" (almost 36 minutes long) and "Write Once, Run Melos" (26 minutes). Both sound amazing, but I especially love the first track. I'm not going to fail at describing it here though. Buy it.

This year he released his third album "5 Dec." which sounds a lot more progressive and violent. I have to admit that the first time I heard the track "Requiem" I was a bit disappointed, but I really like the the album as a whole. Where his previous albums have been leaning more towards post-rock, this time it's more about beats and more noise. I read in an interview that he wanted to make music suited for the dancefloor this time. The tracks definitely have a more upbeat rythm, there's even a hip hop-ish beat in there, but I didn't see too many people dancing at O-Nest. Personally I prefer just to sit down and listen to his music. There are all these interesting details. Lovely arrangements on strings and piano, electronic sounds, samples from real life, progressive beats etc. Kashiwa has really managed to create his own musical universe and it sounds pretty amazing. On stage he had help on guitar from GENTAROW and visuals were displayed on a big screen by Koji Nishida. Kashiwa's actually also going to be touring in Europe now in june. Dates are on his website.

http://kashiwadaisuke.com/
www.myspace.com/kashiwadaisuke

kashiwa daisuke - deepblue (original version)
kashiwa daisuke - April.#07
kashiwa daisuke - Bogus Music


noble showcase promo cd "EN-EI"
tracklist:
1. kashiwa daisuke - Silver Moon (kazumasa hashimoto remix)
2. Tenniscoats & Secai - Tengu (NSDMIX)
3. Tenniscoats & Secai - Flower Little Honey Well (DASMAN REMIX)
4. kazumasa hashimoto - Endless (kashiwa daisuke remix)
http://www.noble-label.net/