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Japanese Music (Pop, rock and all 'dat) |OT|

P

Peru

Member
Binging on Tomoko Kawase albums this week and a thought struck me - is Tommy Airline the best synthpop album OF ALL TIME??? I'm leaning towards 'yes'.
 
K

Kurita

Member
Loci said:
Thanks. I skipped through the list and the only thing which really caught my ears was ONE OK ROCK.
Also, what's up with japanese music not being available on spotify or any other common sources.
What does one use to get their j-fix?
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There's some Japanese stuff on Spotify but not a lot.
I often buy Japanese iTunes cards so I can buy stuff on the Japanese store. Some artists do release their stuff on US/European iTunes stores/Amazon MP3 though.
Otherwise I order CDs on HMV/CDJapan. Japanese labels don't really care about the international market so most of the time they don't bother selling discs (physical or digital) outside of their country. I mean Sony even blocks videos of their artists so if you're not Japanese you can't watch them on Youtube.


Speaking of ONE OK ROCK, a new song can be heard in the background here at the 20 seconds mark :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux6FWjx6zMk
Guess they're becoming the "official" band for the Kenshin movies.

You should listen to ONE OK ROCK's album they released in 2013, it was my album of the year. Amazing stuff.

If you want to discover new stuff, here are my top 30 releases of 2013 :
http://lekurita.tumblr.com/post/72102033172/2013-30-japanese-discs-it-was-a-pretty-amazing
 
K

Kurita

Member
And a little bonus : my favorite albums/mini-albums/EPs of 2014 so far. I'm not including singles because it'd be twice as long. Bolded are the ones I recommend the most.

SAKANAMON - INSUROCK
androp - period
Handsome Kenya - Amnesia
BIGNOUN - BIGNOUN
BLUE ENCOUNT - Band of Destination
FOLKS - Newtown
Hello Sleepwalkers - Masked Monkey Awakening
Hitorie - Imaginary Monofiction
OKAMOTO'S - Let it V
Soredemo Sekai Ga Tsuzukunara - Ashita wa kimi ni ai ni ikukara
BUMP OF CHICKEN - RAY
the HIATUS - Keeper of The Flame (my AOTY so far)
The Fin. - Glowing Red On The Shore EP
back number - Love Story
She Her Her Hers - stereochrome
THE BACK HORN - Akatsuki no Fanfare
TAMTAM - For Bored Dancers
ART-SCHOOL - YOU
cinema staff - Drums,Bass,2(to)Guitars
Owarikara - Saihate Songs
Bakudan Johnny - Hajimete no Bakudan Johnny
indigo la End - Ano Machi Record
Gesu no Kiwami Otome - Minna Normal
Yonezu Kenshi - YANKEE
Gotch - Can't Be Forever Young
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K

Kurita

Member
Gesu no Kiwami Otome released a new video, from their mini-album which came out last month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSYe2ZYZdKU
It's really funny, Enon's dance looks so awkward :lol


Bought HaKU's new album, Symbiosis, released this week.
57n1m5k.png
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I absolutely love it. I've been really into this band lately so I was quite hyped. They didn't disappoint. This band has been very consistent ever since their debut and this new album shows that they're indeed among the top young rock bands in Japan. Their energetic songs as well as the slower songs, which have some sort of space-like feel to them, are all excellent... There's also a song where the bassist is the only one singing, and it's actually one of the best songs of the album. So yeah, good stuff, might be their best album so far!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztcl_W_jBOQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2wBEaHMgy4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUyVIU8CEao
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vx6QyoJGv1g
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knHBOnA9E0w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSyfWxjjS4w

May still has some nice releases coming. Next week I'm getting CreepHyp, Soredemo Sekai Ga Tsuzukunara, Good Morning America's new singles as well as Lyu:Lyu's new mini-album.
In two weeks THE NOVEMBERS are releasing their new single.
And finally in three weeks KANA-BOON and The Mirraz release new singles, while KEYTALK's first major album is coming.
 
K

Kansoku

Member
Kurita said:
There's also a song where the bassist is the only one singing, and it's actually one of the best songs of the album. So yeah, good stuff, might be their best album so far!
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Yeah. It was quite the surprise, and it's so good. She should do it more.
 
T

ThreePiMatt

Member
Hey, just throwing out a question here, but are there any good download services to get Japanese music in the States? Preferably not iTunes since I don't have an account or any Apple products.
 
K

Kurita

Member
Aside from Amazon MP3, no.
Personally I buy most of my stuff on the Japanese iTunes store now. The majority of artists I like don't release their music digitally outside of Japan.
EMI Japan artists did for a while but ever since Universal bought EMI they almost all stopped doing so which is stupid as hell.
 
Aizo

Aizo

Banned
Peru said:
Gounn is not one of my favorite singles of theirs, to be honest! I like it, but they've done bigger and better. Don't know what you've heard so..

This one is my fave, Etsuko Yakushimaru joint - doesn't sound like Gounn but is a weird epic in a wonderfully subdued way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-72Lje6nwg0

Their socialist anthem https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDhFNdmVR5U

PUSH http://youtu.be/5degcfbioz4

Some of the album tracks do go for that world music production of Gounn a bit more.
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Part of it is the world music feel, but also that damn sexy bass. I just love interesting/impressive technical instrument playing. I think out of these three, the Socialist Anthem would be my favorite, but I still like Gounn a lot more. The other two are fun, but they don't really interest me. Thank you for the recommendations!
 
I

iavi

Member
Kurita said:
And a little bonus : my favorite albums/mini-albums/EPs of 2014 so far. I'm not including singles because it'd be twice as long. Bolded are the ones I recommend the most.
Click to expand...

That Hello Sleepwalkers is so so so so good. Thanks for putting me on to them.

e: THE NORAGAMI OP WAS THEM!

I had forgotten all about that. Yeah, definitely going to need to spin these guys for a good bit.
 
K

Kurita

Member
^Glad you liked the KANA-BOON song.
I'm so in love with them. Bands like this are the reason why I'll never be tired of following the Japanese rock scene.

Great article by Japan Times about the HIATUS's tour which began today, and a few words about their album, which is my AOTY so far.
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture...ths-on-keeper-of-the-flame-tour/#.U2uT4a1_sVo

New album “Keeper of the Flame” is the Hiatus’ fourth full-length release. Hosomi says the band was influenced by overseas acts when writing it, and he cites Idaho-born musician Trevor Powers (aka Youth Lagoon) and London synth act Factory Floor as some of them. The singer believes it’s important to bring in new elements to his music to keep things interesting.
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“We know we’re good at making huge, epic-sounding rock,” he says. “This time, though, we were looking for a strong beat that was simple and easy to dance to, but that didn’t take away from the Hiatus sound. It didn’t work using the eight- or 16-beat pattern so we rejigged the band’s sound to be based on a four-on-the-floor rhythmic pattern. That meant it was unnecessary to have two distorted-guitar elements.”
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The decrease in guitar on “Keeper of the Flame” is something that will strike Hiatus fans almost instantly, even though the band hasn’t made a complete departure from its rock roots. For example, the track “Broccoli” from previous album “A World of Pandemonium” consisted of two guitar tracks as its lead, each heading off in a different direction, and was accompanied by a simple synthesizer melody in the background. On “Keeper of the Flame,” the Hiatus reverses the situation. Opening track “Thirst” still contains sharp guitar chords, but there’s no question that the synths are trying to hog the spotlight.
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Pretty cool pictures from the first show of the tour.
tumblr_n59ectee5f1r8n81ao2_1280.jpg

tumblr_n59ectee5f1r8n81ao1_1280.jpg

tumblr_n59ectee5f1r8n81ao3_1280.jpg
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K

Kazzy

Member
Hello thread!

I'll spare you a big background, introductory sort of thing - I just wanted to say that I've been meaning to come in here for a while.

Lived in Japan for a year now, and my musical tastes have come to compromise quite a wide range of Japanese material. I'm going to quite a few upcoming things:

Charisma.com (work permitting)
Fuji Rock Festival (Friends actually wanting to attend, permitting!)
Summer Sonic (I might go to both Tokyo and Osaka events!)
Perfume (I simply didn't go to the last tour out of both business, as well as getting a bit befuddled by booking over the phone. Which I guess is really quite embarrassing!)
 
K

Kansoku

Member
I saw some bits from the stream of the 4th DOME tour, and it was amazing. Their DOME tours seems to be the best ones. One day I'll be there, one day...
 
K

Kazzy

Member
Kansoku said:
I saw some bits from the stream of the 4th DOME tour, and it was amazing. Their DOME tours seems to be the best ones. One day I'll be there, one day...
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You see, it's comments like that, which game me tremendous pangs of guilt - because I've had the opportunity, but just haven't taken it. Rest assured, I'm going to this one!
 
C

chrominance

Member
Thanks to careful stalking of both this thread and a similar thread on Popjustice, I'm suddenly listening to ALL THE JAPANESE. It actually makes me feel guilty that I haven't found the places where they constantly discuss, say, British psychedelic pop (aka the Broadcast fan group) to mirror these.

Someone earlier said someone new to the scene could easily drop, like, $350 on music no problem. I'm not that bad but it's getting up there. Right now I can't stop listening to that last Negoto single, but then before that was that weird Shinsei Kamattechan single with that girl from Morning Musume that woman who sings super fast, and before that Gesu No Kiwami Otome, and before that Passepied, and before that Meg's last album (and this gorgeous fan video for Gladiolus, aka the best song she's ever done), etc., etc. I've even gone insane and bought the Perfume vinyl that's coming out this week. Why? WHO KNOWS. I don't even like vinyl that much.

So, uh, thanks y'all. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to see if this Tricot album agrees with me or not.
 
K

Kansoku

Member
chrominance said:
Thanks to careful stalking of both this thread and a similar thread on Popjustice, I'm suddenly listening to ALL THE JAPANESE. It actually makes me feel guilty that I haven't found the places where they constantly discuss, say, British psychedelic pop (aka the Broadcast fan group) to mirror these.

So, uh, thanks y'all. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to see if this Tricot album agrees with me or not.
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I was thinking about this as well. Here on GAF there's the "Neogaf Rock/Indie/Alt Music Thread (RockGAF?)" topic, but it's not as focused as this one, and it's pretty hard to navigate and discover new things there. It would be great to have more of this, but for other music.

And you're in for a ride. tricot is AWESOME. T H E = AOTY 2013 (don't let anyone say otherwise)
 
K

Kazzy

Member
As someone who begrudgingly admits that LEVEL3 was a disappointing album, I've lately come round to it somewhat.

I still think that the album reworking of 'Magic of Love' and 'Spring of Life' are overproduced, superfluous, plodding messes, though.
 
K

Kansoku

Member
Watanabe Kazuma said:
As someone who begrudgingly admits that LEVEL3was a disappointing album, I've lately come round to it somewhat.

I still think that the album reworking of 'Magic of Love' and 'Spring of Life' are overproduced, superfluous, plodding messes, though.
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I liked the new Magic of Love, but the old Spring of Life is much, much better.
 
K

Kurita

Member
LEVEL3 is my favorite Perfume album. JPN is reaaaaally close though since there's 575 which is my favorite Perfume song.
 
S

Slowdive

Banned
3 tracks from Shiina Ringo's new album are out as they were pre-order bonuses, sounding pretty great. Previews of all of them are up on Japanese itunes.
 
I

Infinite

Member
Slowdive said:
3 tracks from Shiina Ringo's new album are out as they were pre-order bonuses, sounding pretty great. Previews of all of them are up on Japanese itunes.
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Oh? about to dig into that.

I'm legit trying to order that Miki Furukawa album but my limited understanding of Japanese is destroying me.
 
S

Slowdive

Banned
thefro said:
This is from her "self-covers" album, songs she wrote for other people and is now performing herself for the first time. So not really a new original album but pretty cool.
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Yeah, I hope we get a proper new one soon, but this is better than nothing.
 
K

Kansoku

Member
Listening to Shiina Ringo for the first time, and I'm conflicted. There's too much different stuff. 青春の瞬き sounds like a more emotional western-like pop, プライベイト like bubblegum pop, 渦中の男 like some hardcore electronic rock, listened to 丸の内サディスティック and it sounds like jazz, while 熱愛発覚中 sounds like something you'd see from MEG. I like some of these, but hate others, and I don't know what I'll get from the next music.
 
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