Antony and the Johnsons (who?, I hear you say) may have won the Mercury Music Prize last Tuesday, but when the far more prestigious Fuzzy Logic awards are announced at the end of this year then the two bands profiled here are going to be in the running to get at least a gong apiece. Falsies on Heat must be hot favorites for Best New Band of 2005, while veterans The Pebbles -- who formed in 1992 -- seem to have taken on a new supercharged lease on life over the last 12 months and could easily take first prize in the Most Improved Band category.
My stomach is swarming with several schools of butterflies and my nether regions squirm with excitement at Shinjuku's Antiknock live house. I feel I should rush to the toilet to throw some cold water over my face, but I'm rooted to the spot.
No, it's not the cute singer -- who resembles a Pink Lady out of "Grease" with her vampish shades and stilettos -- that's got me drooling at the mouth; it's the unbeatable buzz of unearthing a truly great new band from Japan's underground.