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July 07, 2025
 

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Patrick St. Michel
Patrick St. Michel is a Tokyo-based writer with a focus on Japanese music. He runs the blog Make Believe Melodies, which has focused on Japanese independent music since 2009. Besides The Japan Times, he also contributes to MTV 81 and The Atlantic.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 16, 2018
Summer Sonic's helter-skelter lineup provides a lot of chances for younger Japanese acts
When it comes to music festivals in Japan, Fuji Rock is the pretty one, Rock in Japan is the domestic one and Summer Sonic is the crowd pleaser. Past headliners have included acts as diverse as Metallica, Beyonce, Green Day and Stevie Wonder.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Aug 11, 2018
Social media takes a dim view of the daylight saving proposal for the 2020 Olympics
People in Japan have been complaining about the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics since Japan’s capital was awarded the games. Netizens have railed against everything from the apparent insensitivity of hosting the two-week competition while the Tohoku region continues to recover from the Great Eastern...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Aug 11, 2018
Cebada: Kirin's new 'coffee-like' beverage tastes like dirt
Kirin's attempt to tap into demand for decaf coffee misses the mark.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 9, 2018
Towa Tei goes deep on death and puns
Towa Tei has mortality on his mind.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Aug 4, 2018
There's nothing new about Japan's online backlash against tourists
The internet loves a clapback, so when writer Melissa Martin shared a few snappy responses from a monk named Daniel Kimura to less-than-positive reviews of a temple doubling as lodging on Mount Koya, Twitter embraced it. The tweet garnered more than 17,000 retweets and 38,000 likes, with many digitally...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Aug 4, 2018
Pablo teams up with Mister Donut for a cheesy collaboration
Mister Donut stores across Japan have partnered with the Osaka-based Pablo to create six rare cheese-flavored doughnuts and tarts.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jul 28, 2018
Soaring temperatures force Japan to confront entrenched ideas on handling the heat
A  heat wave has gripped Japan over the past week or so, peaking with the highest temperature ever recorded in the country on Monday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 28, 2018
Tokyo barbecue joints to get summer sizzling
Grabbing your own grill and heading out to your preferred park or public space is the traditional way to approach barbecuing but in recent years, new spaces to barbecue in Tokyo and its surrounding areas have popped up for people of all grilling levels.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Jul 28, 2018
Calbee's edamame and cheese-flavored chips: Hardly unique, but good with a drink
On their own, edamame already make for a solid snack, especially when paired with a glass of beer. But snack manufacturer Calbee sees opportunities to experiment everywhere.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 27, 2018
Sally Amaki's life as an animated idol-pop star
Though she liked anime growing up, Sally Amaki never thought she'd grow up to be an anime character.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jul 21, 2018
Plight of 'Mizuho refugees' stirs debate on banking services in Japan
Imagine wrapping up a tough work week and jumping into a three-day weekend. Maybe you just plan on lounging around at home with the air conditioner on at full blast. Or perhaps you’ll hit the road and head out of the city to get a welcome break from urban life. At some point you’ll probably need...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Jul 21, 2018
Ginza Cozy Corner's sweet take on the 'Summer Holidays'
Ginza Cozy Corner is serving up all the flavors of summer with their adorable nine-piece 'Summer Holidays' cake set.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Jul 18, 2018
Da Pump scores an unexpected summer hit with 'U.S.A.'
The highly coveted song of the summer needs to cut across demographics and unite one nation under a beat. Think Len's "Steal My Sunshine" in 1999, Daft Punk's "Get Lucky" in 2013 or Luis Fonsi's "Despacito" in 2017. Who'd have thought that, in 2018 Japan, the uniting beat would be Eurobeat?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Jul 14, 2018
Don't scoff at vanilla: Seven-Eleven's Waffle Cone Milk Vanilla is simply delicious
Seven-Eleven's Waffle Cone Milk Vanilla ice cream might not be 'offbeat,' but sometimes classic flavors are all you need to survive the summer.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jul 14, 2018
Recent flooding highlights power of social media in a disaster
Online users in Japan followed the storms that lead to devastating floods and landslides in the western part of the country closely as they unfolded last week. The topic remained central to discussion on social media as the days went on and the full extent of the damage became clear.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jul 13, 2018
Oshu: A semi-rural city with a major league star
Oshu, the home of the Los Angeles Angels' two-way baseball star Shohei Ohtani, is dotted with unassuming tributes to this home-grown hero.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 7, 2018
Restaurant chains are taking the smoking ban into their own hands
Although the anti-smoking laws recently passed by Japan's national government have yet to go into effect, several popular restaurant chains have already gone completely smoke-free. But will that be enough to help make Japan a smoke-free country by 2020?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Jul 7, 2018
Grab a cookie (or five) to share at Tokyo Station's Country Ma'am Tea House
At its new pop-up shop, Country Ma'am gives some of its long-running cookies a classy teatime upgrade.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jun 30, 2018
Celebrating the memes the 2018 soccer World Cup has created
Japan’s surprising success at the 2018 World Cup in Russia has dominated headlines and morning shows domestically. News organizations abroad, however, honed in on a very different topic — trash.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Jun 30, 2018
Embrace traditional Japanese flavors with Seven-Eleven's brown sugar kuzukiri
Seven-Eleven's mix-it-yourself brown sugar kuzukiri is a cool, refreshing summer treat.
Japan braces for more quakes as authorities dismiss doomsday hype
Evacuees from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecuture, arrive at Kagoshima Port on Friday.
Heatstroke alert issued for 19 prefectures as Japan enters 'once-in-a-decade' heat wave
Japan will experience a heat wave through mid-July on a “level only seen once in a decade,” the Meteorological Agency said on June 30.
Hidden AI prompts in academic papers spark concern about research integrity
Waseda University is one of 14 institutions in eight countries found to have used hidden prompts in research papers.
Tokyo and Kyoto feature among top ‘noctourism’ destinations
Tokyo ranked second after New York and ahead of Dubai and Singapore in a ranking of the top global cities for nighttime tourism.
Global matcha 'obsession' drinks Japan's tea farms dry
Matcha is added to beverages on offer at Kettl Tea in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles on May 20.
Ainu land rights in crosshairs as Hokkaido communities debate nuclear waste
A street in Suttsu, Hokkaido, with a sign put up by an anti-nuclear organization. The small community is considering hosting a facility that would hold nuclear waste.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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