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May 04, 2024
 

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Ryotaro Aoki
For Ryotaro Aoki's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 17, 2015
Negoto's 'Vision' sees beyond genres
It's an origin story that sounds like something out of a coming-of-age film: On a whim, four friends decide to enter a battle of the bands-style competition; not necessarily to get signed or to "make it," but to have something fun to do together in their last year of high school. Except they do get signed, and they do make it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 20, 2015
Perseverance wins Ningen Isu an encore
Kimonos and heavy metal. It's a combination that few groups have pulled off convincingly. While the aesthetic may have been used last year to turn (or bang) more than a few heads in the West by heavy metal idol unit Babymetal, the tiny trio certainly wasn't the first to attempt it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 16, 2014
Rock, J-pop and dance: Albums we liked in 2014
The year-end album charts in Japan have a tendency to prop up the same acts year after year: Exile, anything that ends in a "48," and almost every group from the Johnny & Associates stable of boy bands. Writers at The Japan Times, however, spent the year looking past the charts to find a few gems lurking in the underground of the country's music scene. Here are some of their favorite albums from 2014.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 4, 2014
Mono's dual album release shows dark and light sides to the band
On the 2012 album "For My Parents," instrumental rock band Mono went big. Recorded with the 25-piece Wordless Music Orchestra, the album reflected a band that had finally completed a musical journey that it started more than 15 years ago performing grandiose, symphonic instrumental rock.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 9, 2014
Review: X Japan at Yokohama Arena
X Japan performed its first show in Japan in over three years on Sept. 30 at Yokohama Arena.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 16, 2014
Luminous Orange's Rie Takeuchi soars with a little help from her friends
Though often referred to as a "shoegaze band," Luminous Orange's Rie Takeuchi says she is neither of those two things.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 5, 2014
Dragon Ash, Chara impress at Rock in Japan's first weekend
The first thing you're greeted with when walking into the gates of Rock In Japan Festival is a large sign with a list of rules titled, "7 Things Rock In Japan Wants to Tell You."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 29, 2014
Avengers in Sci-Fi talk about Zeppelin and the problem with festivals
You don't usually hear Led Zeppelin and science fiction mentioned in the same breath. But for Taro Kohata, who plays guitar and synthesizer, and sings for rock band Avengers In Sci-Fi, the two go hand in hand.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 8, 2014
Daymare puts its bands through a hardcore filter for Leave Them All Behind event
"There are people who like aggressive music the way they like sports, but I think 'hardcore' is about being self-aware of what you're doing, about how to create your own space," says Tadashi Hamada, manager of independent music label Daymare Recordings. "That's my first requirement for bands. So hardcore can come in all shapes and forms."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 1, 2014
Leftfield J-pop, '70s influenced rock and shadowy R&B: Our favorite albums of 2014 (so far)
In his Strange Boutique column last week, Ian Martin wrote about the need for a canon in Japanese music in order for newcomers to the scene — especially those writing about it — to gain some context into what is being released.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 19, 2014
Luna Sea rockers Sugizo and Inoran talk life at 25
"I don't think of this as a reunion. We didn't break up; we just paused our activities and came back to life," says Sugizo, guitarist and violinist of rock group Luna Sea. Sitting next to bandmate Inoran, he speaks calmly and softly, his eyes looking back at me through tinted sunglasses. "Words like 'reunion,' 'business,' 'plans' . . . those things were never priorities. If we had thought about business first, then we wouldn't be doing things this way."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 19, 2014
Review: Luna Sea at Yoyogi National Gymnasium
Luna Sea celebrated its 25th anniversary by holding a special concert, "Luna Sea 25th Anniversary Live -The Unfinished Moon-," on May 29 at Yoyogi National Gymnasium.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 10, 2014
Boris sums up its sonic spectrum with 'Noise'
Trying to define the sound of Tokyo-based experimental trio Boris is like asking someone their favorite kind of music. It's everything, it's nothing in particular ... it's definitely not country.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 22, 2014
Marty Friedman reminds metalheads he hasn't forgotten his roots on 'Inferno'
Former Cacophony/Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman returns with his first solo album of original material in four years, "Inferno," after releasing a series of Japan-only cover albums in which he deconstructed and amped-up J-pop tunes.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 20, 2014
Singer Mayu Wakisaka takes inspiration from the TV drama boom
Singer-songwriter Mayu Wakisaka harbors dreams of Hollywood, but she's not about to enroll at drama school.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 29, 2014
Indie band The fin. is just getting started
"There's this idea (among Japanese bands) that you have to make something different from the Western music you listen to," says Yuto Uchino, singer for indie rock band The fin. "I was really trying hard to write in Japanese, but it was awkward. The words just didn't fit and I could never really say what I wanted to say. After I switched (to English), the melodies and words I had been looking for came together."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 8, 2014
Oreskaband vocalist iCas talks politics and 10 years in the music game
The first topic that comes up when I sit down with Oreskaband's singer/guitarist Naoko "iCas" Yoshioka isn't music or her band, it's a lunchtime variety show called "Waratte Iitomo!" The finale aired March 31 and she asks me if I saw it, which I hadn't. She insists that I watch it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 27, 2014
Man With A Mission and Buzz The Bears keep punk's spirit alive at Punkspring
It's not every day you get to exchange thoughts on punk rock with a talking wolf.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 11, 2014
Mothercoat sees tour as a step in cultivating a global fanbase
Most bands in Japan come to Tokyo to reach for stardom. Indie rock act Mothercoat did the opposite, however, when its members all relocated to Fukaya, Saitama Prefecture, two years ago.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 4, 2014
Owarikara takes its fans to the edge with 'Saihate Songs'
The band name Owarikara loosely translates into English as "starting from the end." However, singer and guitarist Hyouri Takahashi gives a much more specific interpretation.
Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with rivals China and Russia
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in Syracuse, New York, on April 25.
Yen swings stir talk that Japan is in the FX market once again
An electronic screen in Tokyo displays the yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar and the graph showing its recent swings, on Thursday.
Harajuku strives to reclaim its former glory — and surpass it
Laforet Harajuku, which celebrated its 45th anniversary last year, has been a witness to the district's evolution over the years.
Weak yen fattens tourist wallets in Japan
People visit the Ameya Yokocho market in Tokyo's Ueno district during the Golden Week holiday on Tuesday.
Japan's May 1 intervention may have cost ¥3.66 trillion, BOJ data suggests
An electronic screen displays a graph showing Japanese yen exchange rates surging against the dollar amid signs of intervention by authorities, in Tokyo on Thursday.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

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

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.
Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree
By Alex K.T. Martin

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