Archives for the ‘Rock’ Category
Cliff finds good things about the tracks on this single, but it doesn’t match up to the band’s best offerings.
Ray • May 9th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Shay profiles this relatively new band from Sapporo and their debut album, noting the wife range of styles covered in their sound.
Ray • May 9th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Zac turns his attention to the bass player and singer of Supercar, now pursuing a solo career. I appreciate the candor about her weak vocals live, as well as the observation that she’s trying out new things and not just following the Supercar formula in her work.
Ray • May 8th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Review - Alone again, wonderful world - Plastic Tree
Sho accidentally discovers this rock band through Radiohead, and indeed they have a huge Radiohead influence in their sound. He goes on to review this recent release, which he finds very solid despite a minor flaw or two.
Ray • May 8th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Special Others - Quest [J-rock]
Our own Wu-san reviews the latest album from Special Others, finding the group working in a tighter fashion but staying true to their rock / jazz approach to music. He finds the first half’s pop-friendly songs are where the best tracks are, and there’s a sudden JunJun Fantasy Eruption that really really makes me wanna hear the title track, making this a fun read overall.
Ray • May 8th, 2008
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Zac does a nice write-up of this band, which is described as “equal parts hardcore noise and chirpy pop”, and shares some very fun clips with them. The first clip is particularly great, with the Japanese surfing footage.
That said, one of the ways I know I’m ancient is whenever I see the phrase “hardcore noise” I think of Sonic Death-era Sonic Youth or Pussy Galore or Borbetomagus or the Dustdevils. Anything less dissonant, atonal, and majestic-sounding just doesn’t match up for me.
Ray • May 8th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Review - MERRY GO WORLD - 12012
Sho enjoys this single, asking that those who initially set aside the title track give it another chance and liking the continuity from song-to-song throughout.
Ray • May 8th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
REVIEW: SCANDAL “Space Ranger”, “Koi Moyo” and “Kagerou” singles
If you still haven’t gotten a chance to get acquainted with the all-girl rock quartet of awesomeness better known as SCANDAL, now is definitely a good time to do so as CJ does both an excellent job at unveiling their history thus far and also solid and to-the-point reviews of all their three singles. I can’t help but feel excited for these girls and like CJ, I can hardly wait for their first full-length release. Recommended reading.
And hey, I just noticed this now while browsing their MySpace: SCANDAL will be featured on tomorrow’s episode of Music Japan, performing their debut single. This is pretty big news as I believe it to be SCANDAL’s first ever TV appearance (do correct me if I’m wrong), so be sure not to miss it!
Henkka • May 7th, 2008
Blogs, Recommended, Rock • 3 Comments
Ambitious!野心的でいいじゃん” -interlude-
Our own Jim Haku shares some random thoughts on the Morning Musume single “Ambitious” and shares a really neat clip of some guy playing the guitar solo and somehow this leads to Heavy Metal San himself, Marty Friedman. I actually like “Ambitious”, too - it’s not one of my top ten Morning Musume singles, but it’s in the top half of all singles for me. And I love Marty! But then again, who doesn’t?
Ray • May 7th, 2008
Blogs, Hello! Project, Rock • 1 Comment
Live Report 5/1/08, Urawa Narciss: LAVERITE, Ren, MICA-TYPE, Rubic
Highly recommended reading. Elec is back with another report of a live show he did with his Visual Kei band Laverite. He provides interesting notes about various things, such as how they choose the order in which the bands play, nervousness and what he does pre-concert, how he handles himself on-stage and how he has apparently gained multiple fangirls all for himself now. He then does write-ups on the other bands who played that night and also shares a fun story of how he met two of his students who were a little surprised to see their ex-teacher playing in a band! As always, these reports are great fun to read and you can’t help but cheer for him.
Laverite has a handful of shows already planned for the near future and I can only hope Elec keeps writing these reports of the upcoming shows! I wish the best of luck to Elec and his band.
Henkka • May 7th, 2008
Blogs, Concerts, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
Going Five Better Than Stephen King
Our own CJ is inspired by King’s excellent “The Pop of King” column to list the twenty-five songs he plays most often, based on iTunes statistics. It’s about the mix long-time readers would expect, with emphasis on H!P, Puffy, Iggy, and so on.
Ray • May 6th, 2008
Blogs, Hello! Project, Rock • 1 Comment
X Japan announces Taiwan concert
This is the third in the overseas series, following Paris and New York. So now Yoshiki can collapse in Chinese.
Ray • May 6th, 2008
News, Rock • No Comments
Chris recommends the single from this girl band, providing some basic information on them as well as a track-by-track review.
Ray • May 6th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
PV review: aural vampire | “freeze” (2004)
Go does the funny screencapped thing, and this one is particularly amusing given how dopey the video looks.
Ray • May 5th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Koizumi refused X JAPAN Reunion
Recommended reading. Santos looks at a current rumor about the former prime minister and his opinions about the X Japan reunion and finds it highly questionable but serving a specific urban legend-esque function for future generations. And while not strictly about idols, this article about another politician working the otaku crowd is equally insightful and a lot of fun to read.
Ray • May 5th, 2008
Blogs, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
[Classic Review] ain’t afraid to die - Dir en Grey
Sho likens this song’s emotional impact to Guns & Roses’ “November Rain”, explaining the progression of this ballad and how the different versions of it create different effects for the listener.
Ray • May 5th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
SID ready for major label debut
Courtesy of Tokyograph, the increasingly popular rock band has announced their first release on a major label in the Fall, and will hold a concert at the Budokan on November 2.
Ray • May 3rd, 2008
News, Rock • No Comments
Go reprints a New York Times article about the death of the X Japan guitarist - bringing a renewed freshness to the incident - and the comments, as is often the case, is worth a read as well with its thoughtful responses.
Ray • May 3rd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Missing studs Vocalist Shows Up!
Cliff notes the return of Mako with a book and one-song CD and finds himself less than thrilled overall.
Ray • May 3rd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Top 5 most interesting/ambitious/epic H!P compositions
Recommended reading. Our own Henkka returns with a great new post that cuts through several topics but is focused on the five songs Tsunku’s written for H!P which he finds most epic or ambitious. There are some interesting choices involved, and I’m thinking this one could lead to some interesting debates (what about “This Is Unmei”? Or “Jiriri Kiteru”? Or the second-gen Tanpopo singles?). However, his top choice is intriguing, and the reference to metal-faces (completely with example faces!) has made me rethink a single I tend not to like that much.
Ray • May 2nd, 2008
Blogs, Hello! Project, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
Mini-album: vistlip - Revolver
Rockerica finds a great deal of potential from the debut mini-album of this VK band, though the put-down for final track “July VIIth” is quite hilarious.
Ray • May 2nd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
ELLEGARDEN going on indefinite hiatus
Tokyograph has an announcement from punk/rock band ELLEGARDEN, who have decided to suspend their activities for an indefinite period of time (possibly permanently). This is considerably sad news, especially considering the fact that they had an album planned for July of this year that will now never see a release.
pengie • May 2nd, 2008
Blogs, News, Punk, Rock • No Comments
Our own Julia tries out some new Jrock, xTRIPx, and finds it to her liking. She winds up listening to most of their discography and describes the songs that made the greatest impression on her.
Ray • May 1st, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Base Ball Bear - changes (fly to high)
oroitsme finds that this increasingly popular band has the same sound from song to song, but considers that a good thing in this case. There’s also a tangent on the design of the single and how it’s going to factor into the next album.
Ray • Apr 30th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Another group I’ve never heard of, praised in a fulsome and well-described manner. There’s a track listing, a review of album highlights, and a couple of clips, so you can dive in and see if this is your cup of tea.
Ray • Apr 29th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Recommended viewing. Son of Gigan has four pro-shot live videos of the all-girl instrument-wielding quartet SCANDAL as evidence for those that haven’t had a chance to check these four rocking schoolgirls out yet.
CJ Marsicano • Apr 29th, 2008
Eyecandy, Pop Idols, Punk, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
ketchup mania Monday - 1 hr radio broadcast!
[via KM MySpace, must be logged in for blog]
Don’t know if I can recommend something streaming, but it’s coming up (for me) at 10pm EST. I had given up on Live365 some time ago, but it seems to be working pretty good now, so I recommend this station in general and JapanFiles in general if you are in the file-buying business. (I must have the record! But I find records to buy through them a lot lately.) They have a really great roster, more consistent than most real labels right now.
jimhaku • Apr 28th, 2008
Radio, Rock • 2 Comments
L’Arc Paris concert to be broadcast live in theaters
From Tokyograph: L’Arc en Ciel’s forthcoming concert debut in Paris is apparently a major milestone for the band, so much so that they’re going to give their home country’s fans a chance to witness the event in select movie theatres as well as buy merchandise from the same concert. The only caveat is that, thanks to the time difference between France and Japan, the theatre simulcast will be occurring at the decidedly un-rock-and-roll hour of 10 AM.
CJ Marsicano • Apr 27th, 2008
Concerts, News, Noteworthy, Rock • No Comments
GO!GO!7188’s Yuu does guest voice for “Itazura na Kiss”
Tokyograph has the news that Yuu from GO!GO!7188 will contribute her voice to an episode of Itazura na Kiss.
broomhead • Apr 27th, 2008
News, Rock • No Comments
Rockerica gives a review for Merry’s single Tozasareta Rakuen. The review states simply that the single could be better, but decent enough to grab their attention.
broomhead • Apr 25th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
(Translated Interview) Asian Kung-fu Generation
Another translated interview at Tokyograph, this time from sigelx. The band was interviewed by Oricon and talks about their latest album, World World World, and the early days of AKFG.
broomhead • Apr 25th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
ONE OK ROCK (ワンオクロック) - Naihishinsho / And I Know / Yume Yume
After a mishap with mints - who would’ve thought, eh - Millhouse manages to get around to profiling J-rock outfit ‘ONE OK ROCK’. As with his previous song/band analysis, Millhouses uses a single release or two to help him describe the band’s overall sound, and again, it works out nicely. Millhouse is a blogger whose personal prose actually work for the greater good. I mean, I’ve read my fair share of dumbass posts in my time, and so far, -beats in my head- has only ever been a pleasant experiance.
wu-san • Apr 25th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Gackt attempts to act again, this time in a US movie. Film at 11. (Japanator)
Gackt Goes Western Cinema (4am)
Recommended reading. Some very funny opinions about Gakuto-sama and his acting ability. Of the two, Cliff of 4am sums up the man’s whimsical nature perfectly - “always busy doing something his fans aren’t waiting for” - while Zero-chan of Japanator goes for the bigger laughs and absurdity. (Acting! Genius! Thankew.)
Ray • Apr 24th, 2008
Blogs, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
pv review: dio | “lord’s prayer” PV
The captions this time around aren’t as funny as past Go masterpieces, but the PV itself looks unintentionally hilarious.
Ray • Apr 24th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Recommended reading. The dashing rock superstar will be in his first Hollywood movie, which will star Josh Hartnett and Demi Moore. A part of me really really hopes he gets to shout, “You have no marbles!”
Ray • Apr 24th, 2008
News, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
HY slaps around Perfume, wants their money
Recommended reading. Our own pengie profiles the group that briefly knocked Perfume off the #1 slot in the Oricon daily charts this past week, an Okinawan band with a diverse sound and strong following. I also like how she points out that Perfume sold more copies of GAME on their first day than all copies to date of Morning Musume’s last album.
Ray • Apr 24th, 2008
Blogs, Pop Idols, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
Sneak Peek: Two Releases In Lotsa Versions
Cliff looks at new singles from 12012 and Merry: both are deemed mixed in quality, but 12012 tips towards a more favorable rating while Merry’s general mediocrity sinks them.
Ray • Apr 23rd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
B’z celebrating 20th anniversary with two best albums
Recommended reading. One of the true giants of Japanese music are celebrating two decades in classic fashion, with a two-disc compilation and a fan-requested songs release. The numbers are staggering, as it’s pointed out the 27 singles on the first release have sold over 25 million copies. Puts everything in perspective for these piddly girl group idols, eh?
Ray • Apr 23rd, 2008
Blogs, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
disc review: hide | “psyence a go go ” (live) (2008)
Go finds a couple of redeeming tracks on this collection… but that’s about it.
Ray • Apr 23rd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Pulse Wriggling to Black -the GazettE Tour 2007-2008 overview-
Recommended reading. A nicely detailed account of the rather long tour the popular rock band took in support of their album Stacked Rubbish. Rockerica breaks it down to different portions of the tour and what was accomplished in each. This one was interesting for me mostly because it helped capture the scope of the tour and how hard GazettE worked to get where they are today.
Ray • Apr 23rd, 2008
Blogs, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
Rockerica finds this third single a departure from the more traditional VK sound of the first two, and considers this a step in the right direction.
Ray • Apr 22nd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Live Report 4/19/08, Urawa Narciss: LAVERITE, WHITEBLACK, OZxBONE, Kanabun, Lerise, Selphy, Sigma
Recommended reading. Elec reports on the most recent show he’s done as a member of La Verite, explaining his lack of popularity among fans in a charmingly self-effacing way and seeing improvement in the band’s performance. I find it particularly interesting that Japanese fans have no problems with a non-Japanese VK musician but foreign fans take issue. Elec is also able to write about the other bands on the show - at least, those he was able to see - though his new perspective may have softened his opinions just a little.
Ray • Apr 22nd, 2008
Blogs, Recommended, Rock • No Comments
[UVERworld] “Just Break The Limit” a song for UVERworldxPocari Sweats CM
orangejuice shares a CM where Uverworld’s song is used.
Ray • Apr 22nd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
[UVERworld] Just Break The Limit-ANOTHER SONG!??
orangejuice finds out about another new song from the group and winds up with a bunch of questions as a result.
Ray • Apr 22nd, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Our very own Pengie takes a look at CHERRYBLOSSOM and their second single ‘Harukaze LOVER SONG’. The tune has a lovely upbeat quality to it, and it’s everything you’d come to expect from light ska/punk music, as explained by Pengie herself. The video to the song is also included for your viewing pleasure.
wu-san • Apr 22nd, 2008
Blogs, Punk, Rock • No Comments
More shows added to Miyavi tour, including Chile, Paris
No new shows for the United States yet, but South American and France benefit.
Ray • Apr 21st, 2008
News, Rock • No Comments
BONNIE PINK - Ring A Bell [Digital Download Single]
A very positive review of the first digital single from the artist, noting that it’s one of her strongest songs.
Ray • Apr 21st, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
63 bands named in first Rock in Japan 2008 lineup announcement
They’ve already got the likes of Seamo, chatmonchy, and sixty-one other acts, with more apparently to come. This certainly looks like a big deal, as the festival enters its fifth year.
Ray • Apr 21st, 2008
News, Rock • No Comments
[Single] Kaeritakunatta yo - Ikimono Gakari
SB does a nice job of reviewing Ikimono Gakari’s 9th single, ‘Kaeritakunatta yo’, and the first song appears to be a ballad whilst the b-side is something a little more upbeat. I like the idea of Iki for sure, and I enjoyed them as an indies, and I liked their major release album in parts. Maybe this single can get me back into them? Iki are certainly capable of hallowing ballads at the very least. Just ask the anime they’ve accompained.
wu-san • Apr 20th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments
Rockerica finds this release mediocre despite the effort placed into it, and recommends it for fans of the band or bands like it.
Ray • Apr 20th, 2008
Blogs, Rock • No Comments