author

 
Menu
Search
 
May 17, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access
Shawn Despres

Meta

Twitter

@s_despres

Shawn Despres
Shawn Despres has been contributing to the Japan Times’ music page since 2005, and he has a passion for writing about the independent music scene in East Asia. He spent several years living in Yokohama and currently resides in Seoul.
For Shawn Despres's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
CULTURE / Music
Mar 27, 2009
Asakusa Jinta "Setsuna"
"Setsuna" is the third album proper from Asakusa Jinta, the self-dubbed "Asianican Hard Marching Band." Having performed under the moniker since 2004, the Tokyo sextet first refined their mix of modern Western-inspired sounds and vintage Japanese pop and enka at tiny local live houses and makeshift concerts...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 27, 2009
Springroove 09
Spring has finally arrived. Birds are singing, cherry trees are blooming, the bass is pumping and anthemic chants of "oi" are echoing through the air.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 13, 2009
AA=
While most young acts tend to start off in smaller venues and work their way up, AA= opted to do the opposite. The new solo project from Takeshi Ueda, bassist with apparently now-defunct tech-metal heroes The Mad Capsule Markets, played their first-ever concerts to thousands at the massive Intex Osaka...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 13, 2009
Don Matsuo "New Stone Age"
"New Stone Age" is the second solo effort from Don Matsuo, the frontman for Tokyo rock 'n' roll stalwarts Zoobombs. His 2006 offering, "O-re-ha-si-na-i-yo?" and the bulk of Zoobombs' output have been praised for their experimentation with different styles. Inspired by sounds from the 1960s and '70s,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 6, 2009
Mono "Hymn to the Immortal Wind"
Celebrating their 10th anniversary this year, Mono have improved with age. While the Tokyo instrumental quartet's early work mimicked peers such as Mogwai, more recently they've forged their own sonic path toward top-tier status in the realm of postrock.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 27, 2009
F-cked Up
To promote the release of their sophomore album, last October's blistering "The Chemistry of Common Life," Toronto punks F-cked Up played a free gig in a New York boutique store. So what's the big deal you're wondering? The sextet's performance lasted a punishing 12 hours and saw them collaborating with...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 27, 2009
F-cked Up
To promote the release of their sophomore album, last October's blistering "The Chemistry of Common Life," Toronto punks F-cked Up played a free gig in a New York boutique store. So what's the big deal you're wondering? The sextet's performance lasted a punishing 12 hours and saw them collaborating with...
CULTURE / Music
Feb 13, 2009
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra "Paradise Blue"
Two decades after making their recording debut with an eponymous 12-inch EP, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra have released their 14th full-length studio effort, "Paradise Blue." One of Japan's better-known musical exports, the nine-piece have performed sold-out shows around the globe, including stages at...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 30, 2009
Q-Tip
Widely regarded as one of hip-hop's top MCs, Q-Tip finally released his long-awaited second solo effort, "The Renaissance," late last year as the followup to 1999's "Amplified." The nine-year gap is one the American rapper might rather forget.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 23, 2009
The 50 Kaitenz "50 Kaitenz no Bikkuri!!"
Since their inception in 2004, self-proclaimed "rock-o-medians" The 50 Kaitenz have toured extensively, showcasing their hybrid of vintage rock 'n' roll and slapstick comedy on stages throughout Japan, Australia and the United States. And while I'm not the biggest fan of most of the Osaka trio's "wacky"...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 26, 2008
Ne-Yo
The last quarter of 2008 started off well for American R&B crooner Ne-Yo — and it's only got better.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 5, 2008
Envy
Formed in the early 1990s, Tokyo's Envy have seen their international fan base steadily expand since 2001's "All the Footprints You've Ever Left and the Fear Expecting Ahead." 2008 has proved to be no exception, with the quintet showcasing their intense hybrid of postrock and screamo to enthusiastic...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 7, 2008
Canadian music execs schmooze up to Tokyo
The relatively small 33 million population of Canada, the world's second-largest country in terms of land mass, makes it nearly impossible for its musicians to maintain careers based on domestic support alone.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 17, 2008
Dosh
When you are given the name Martin Luther King Chavez Dosh, it's a safe bet that you're in for a pretty atypical upbringing that likely won't result in punching the clock as a typical 9-to-5er.
CULTURE / Music
Oct 10, 2008
Girl Talk "Feed the Animals"
Unveiled digitally this summer using a Radiohead-style "pay-what-you-like" model, the CD release of mashup artist Gregg Gillis' fourth Girl Talk full-length, "Feed the Animals," has been issued just in time to be rightfully included on critics' end-of-year lists.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 7, 2008
Spicy food, sexy idols and now . . . fashion
SEOUL — In the late 1990s, the Korean Wave — "Hallyu" as it's referred to in its native tongue — began as South Korea's television, film and music industries gained greater international followings, especially among its Asian neighbors.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 25, 2008
Death Set put Japan on the agenda
Nearly every teacher of English as a second language who has worked in Japan longer than a year has wondered at some point, "What the hell am I going to do when I go back home?"
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 4, 2008
Uncut
Recently selected as one of the best independent labels in North America by XLR8R Magazine, Canada's Paper Bag Records is responsible for exposing the world to underground rock faves Broken Social Scene, Stars and Tokyo Police Club. And Toronto's Uncut are the label's latest signee to attract international...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 27, 2008
Joan of Arc
American label Polyvinyl Records is promoting "Boo Human," the latest effort from the Chicago band Joan of Arc,as their "most accessible, cohesive" work since 1998's "How Memory Works."
CULTURE / Music
Jun 13, 2008
Free Kitten "Inherit"
Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon, former-Pussy Galore guitarist Julie Cafritz, and Osaka's own Yoshimi P-We of Vooredoms and OOIOO fame comprise alt-rock "supergroup" Free Kitten. Absent on their third full-length, "Inherit," is ex-Pavement bassist Mark Ibold, but Dinosaur Jr. frontman J. Mascis adds some extra...
Japanese stripper bids to have her porn movies taken off internet
Plaintiff Miyuki Ariga (left) speaks at a news conference along with her lawyer, Yoshitomo Morohashi, after filing a lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court on Monday.
Kishida defends planned rule to revoke foreigners' residency
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a meeting of the Lower House Judicial Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
Human bone-like objects found at Nippon Steel plant’s molten iron pot, with one worker missing
Police believe it’s highly possible that human bones found in a molten iron pot at Nippon Steel's Oita factory belong to a missing male employee.
Was Onosato's defeat of Terunofuji an era-defining bout?
Onosato (right) defeats Terunofuji at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on May 12. While nothing in sumo is guaranteed, it seems almost inevitable that Onosato is destined for the top of the sport's pyramid.
Japan to review romanization system for first time in 70 years
An advisory panel to the education ministry will consider how the Japanese language should be transcribed into the Latin alphabet, including unifying different romanization styles currently in use.
Japanese rap creates its mecca in Pop Yours
Tokyo-based artist Jumadiba says he forgoes the label of simply “rap” for his music because the Japanese rap scene isn’t confined to a particular sound.
Who’s toughest on China? Biden’s tariff tactic ups ante as election looms.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about new actions to protect American workers and businesses from China's "unfair" trade practices, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Tuesday.
Was Onosato's defeat of Terunofuji an era-defining bout?
Onosato (right) defeats Terunofuji at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on May 12. While nothing in sumo is guaranteed, it seems almost inevitable that Onosato is destined for the top of the sport's pyramid.
Ishin struggles to set itself apart from other parties
Nippon Ishin no Kai Secretary-General Fumitake Fujita (right) speaks beside Yui Kanazawa, the party's candidate in the Tokyo 15th district by-election on April 28. Nippon Ishin lost in this by-election as well as another in Nagasaki held on the same day.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan
By Mai Yoshikawa

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Vol. 35: Travel in time — and stay there
Vol. 35: Travel in time — and stay there

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER