Rock 'n' roll will never die. The sound may have mutated with each passing generation to create a variety of strains: alternative, progressive, metal, punk, noise, grunge. But it's the same 4:4 beat that drives them all and syncs our pulse to the rhythm.
Since the late 1960s, Tokyo has spawned rock havens -- little bars where the speakers blast it hard, fast and loud for the delight of its customers. And while one of Tokyo's most notorious rock dives -- Rolling Stone in Shinjuku -- will close next month after 30 years of business, just as with rock's sub-genres, there always seems to be a new generation ready to jump in and lead the way.
Garage Land in Shibuya has not yet been open for a year, but it's already famous -- in a word-of-mouth sort of way -- among Tokyo's committed rock lovers. Not only are all genres represented but also all generations. Skinheads, greasers, long hairs, mop-tops all wander in and settle at the bar on any given night, in spite of the fact that the official theme is punk and '80s rock.