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Sarah Noorbakhsh
For Sarah Noorbakhsh's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 9, 2010
Kreva keeps Japan's hip-hop heart beating
The last thing anyone expects one of the country's leading hip-hop artists to say about the scene he's part of is that it's uninspired. But for Japanese hip-hop veteran Kreva, that's the unfortunate truth. "There's not really anyone I'm excited to listen to right now," explained the artist offhandedly at his office and studio hidden on an unassuming side street in Tokyo.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / A SCORCHING SUMMER SCHEDULE
Jul 2, 2010
OI-SKALL MATES: Festa de Rama
Tokyo-grown punk-ska heavies Oi-Skall Mates make their second, back-to-back appearance at the beachside Festa de Rama, now in its sixth year. The band hasn't released a new album in five years (they insist it'll happen this year), but they toured Hawaii last year and are regular fixtures at live houses and events around the nation. Inspired by Japan's Ska Flames and England's Bad Manners, the 10-member, third-wave ska tribe doesn't disappoint. Adding a bit of sun and sand to their brassy, aggressive sound certainly won't hurt.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Feb 23, 2010
No one-size-fits-all for foreign suffrage
Support has been surprisingly muted for the Hatoyama administration's push toward suffrage for foreign permanent residents, even among the constituencies such a law would enfranchise. The debate is definitely a hot one, sparking a number of protests against the plan around Tokyo, with opposition logic ranging from the rational ("They should nationalize") to xenophobic ("Foreigners who hate Japan will take over the country").
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 6, 2009
Soil creates life with 'death jazz'
"The Lounge Lizards and Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers in a Japanese brothel," is how acclaimed U.K. DJ and record-label owner Gilles Peterson has described funky jazz sextuplet Soil & "Pimp" Sessions.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 2, 2009
Various Artists "Yes We Can! Obama Classics"
"Yes We Can! Obama Classics" is an album that sets excerpts of U.S. President Barak Obama's famous speeches to classical music, simple as that. Conceptually it's an interesting idea — harnessing the emotion of Obama's memorable words and setting them to powerful orchestration. The execution is not a bad effort, though the final product is something like a bizarre cross between a movie soundtrack and political propaganda. Imagine "Evita: The Obama Version" and you've got the idea.

Longform

A statue of "Dragon Ball" character Goku stands outside the offices of Bandai Namco in Tokyo. The figure is now as recognizable as such characters as Mickey Mouse and Spider-Man.
Akira Toriyama's gift to the world