CD Review Jun 7, 2012

Zoobombs "The Sweet Passion"

by Shawn Despres

Although their 2009 “Nightfriend of Zoobombs” album featured a dozen of Zoobombs’ “greatest hits” completely rearranged and rerecorded, “The Sweet Passion” is the quartet’s first proper studio full-length since 2006′s “B*B*B.” The Tokyo rock stalwarts recorded “The Sweet Passion” in Oakland, California, with producer ...

CD Review Jun 7, 2012

tengal6 "City"

by Patrick ST. Michel

Please show sympathy to all those involved in tengal6. The six-person pop-rap group is “supported” by Tenga, a Japanese adult-toy company (first line of their online concept: “The future of masturbation is here!”). I can just imagine the members of tengal6 dreaming of pop ...

CD Review May 31, 2012

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu "Pamyu Pamyu Revolution"

by Patrick ST. Michel

It’s fitting that the leadup to Kyary Pamyu Pamyu’s debut album has focused heavily on her image. She’s a fashion blogger and model now pursuing music, her clothes grabbing as much attention as her songs. Her savviest move was releasing three bonkers music videos ...

CD Review May 24, 2012

Hideki Kaji "Blue Hearts"

by Patrick ST. Michel

“Prolific” doesn’t even come close to describing Hideki Kaji’s career. Since the mid-90s, the Tokyo artist has been putting out albums and singles of upbeat indie-pop music at a constant clip. None of his releases are amazing, but his entire discography is still consistent. ...

CD Review May 17, 2012

Andymori "Hikari"

by Shawn Despres

Tokyo rock trio Andymori formed in the fall of 2007. The following summer — before the group had released any music — it earned an invite to perform at the Fuji Rock Festival. In 2009, Andymori issued its eponymous debut and appeared at Summer ...

CD Review May 10, 2012

And Vice Versa "E.Tender"

by Laurent Fintoni

Despite the looming threat of police crackdowns on nightclubs in Osaka, the music scene continues to thrive. Some of the most promising sounds are coming from that city’s Innit collective and their imprint Day Tripper Records. Day Tripper’s third release comes from one of ...

CD Review Apr 26, 2012

2NE1 "Collection"

by Ian Martin

With Korean idol groups now saturating the Japanese pop market to the extent that the initial breath of fresh air and rush of slick, electropop energy is passing, it takes a more seasoned kind of fan to differentiate between the legions of immaculately rehearsed ...

CD Review Apr 12, 2012

The Cigavettes "We Rolled Again"

by Shawn Despres

The Cigavettes have opened for the likes of British rock act 22-20s and Asian Kung-Fu Generation’s Masafumi Goto and have appeared at Osaka’s Minami Wheel festival. Originally from Fukuoka, two years ago the quintet decided to make Tokyo their home base. “We Rolled Again” ...

CD Review Apr 12, 2012

mfp "Mindful Beats Vol. 2"

by Patrick ST. Michel

“Mindful Beats Vol. 2″ has one of the most simultaneously accurate and misleading album names of the past year. On a literal level, the title tells no lies — it is a second volume of beats made by Osaka producer Masaki Konagai, who records ...

CD Review Mar 29, 2012

MiChi "Therapy"

by Patrick ST. Michel

It has been a good year for Japanese pop music so far. The Oricon charts still house the likes of AKB48, Arashi and a slew of acts that make me want to bang my head against the wall, but a crop of J-pop artists ...

CD Review Mar 15, 2012

capsule "Stereo Worxxx"

by Ian Martin

While electronic duo capsule’s hit 2011 album “World of Fantasy” was undoubtedly a development of ideas introduced in earlier songs such as “The Music,” it was also a discrete (if frequently indiscreet) work in its own right: a near-concept album linked by a uniform ...