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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 23, 2018

A world of art on display at Tokyo International Art Fair

This year's edition of the Tokyo International Art Fair will feature paintings, sculpture, photographic illustrations, jewelry and a "sumo-size" book, with the work coming courtesy of hundreds of artists from 30 different countries, fair organizer Joelle Dinnage tells The Japan Times.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 12, 2017

'Garage Rockin' Craze': 'It's not about fame, they want 15 minutes of fun'

Mario Cuzic used a video camera to face the question that keeps many expat English teachers up at night: What am I going to do before I head back home? His answer, "Garage Rockin' Craze," is a documentary on the history of Japan's underground garage rock scene that has nurtured internationally renowned...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 12, 2016

Art Fair Tokyo to feature more overseas representation and lower prices at this year's event

Every year, Tokyo becomes a hot spot for art and, every year, newcomers to the scene consider taking the plunge and buying their first piece. Now in its 11th year, Art Fair Tokyo hopes to make things a little easier on first-time buyers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 14, 2014

Getting a glimpse of Tokyo's metal underbelly

Loud Park will go down this weekend at Saitama Super Arena, drawing fans excited to see mainstream metal acts such as Manowar, Dream Theater and veteran Japanese group Loudness, who was the first heavy metal band from this country signed to an American label and is halfway through its third decade of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 7, 2013

From Björk to Kyary, festival season has arrived

Summer means a lot of things in Japan: stifling heat and humidity, fireworks and the Bon holidays, nagashi-sōmen noodles and chilled barley tea. For music fans though, the season brings a different kind of to-do list: booking cheap train tickets in advance, stocking up on essential supplies — and...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 11, 2011

New dance-music label Diskotopia aims to bring Tokyo in step

Glance at the lineups of Tokyo's larger nightclubs on any given weekend and you'd be forgiven for feeling some deja vu. Mainstays such as Takkyu Ishino, Shinichi Osawa or Dexpistols are likely to be headlining, much as they have been doing for the past several years.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / THE SECOND ROOM
Sep 19, 2005

The Gathering 2005 preview -- return to Tsumagoi

Ready or not, here comes the spectacular end of another amazing summer season.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 19, 2003

I am what I play -- live

Internationally acclaimed DJ Karsh Kale has spent the last three months carrying a laptop loaded with ProTools recording and editing software through the chaos and inspiration that is India. Relishing both the miracles of technology and the wonders of the ancient, Kale stopped in Madras, Delhi and Bombay,...
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
May 15, 2023

Japanese skateboarders shine as X Games return to Japan

Skateboarding legend Tony Hawks says Japanese skateboarders are 'the one's to beat now.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 9, 2010

Up from the underground: Womb turns 10

Since opening its doors in April 2000 with a live set from New York house legend Junior Vasquez, Tokyo's club Womb has been credited with doing more than other local venues to bring dance-music culture into the mainstream.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 11, 2019

Music historian Kato David Hopkins and a life spent discovering the obscure in Kansai

Music historian Kato David Hopkins is using his Happy Hour event in Kyoto to educate people about some of the lesser-known bands of the Kansai underground scene of years gone by
JAPAN / History / Defining the Heisei Era
Nov 24, 2018

Defining the Heisei Era: Examining the rise of otaku culture

With the number of children shrinking, popular entertainment naturally began targeting the otaku population that didn't hesitate to open their wallets for material many considered juvenile.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 27, 2014

Finding Japan's hidden punk scenes in their natural environments

Finding music in Japan can be a nightmare, and the live-music scene in particular is notoriously difficult to penetrate. Tucked away in the basements and upper floors of anonymous buildings, often in seedy parts of town, where the neighbors will be less likely to raise complaints against noise and loitering,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: FASHION
Jun 9, 2014

Young designer opportunities, plus new lines for older brands

Designers, get ready to get crazy
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 6, 2010

Hippies and hipsters brave a soggy Fuji Rock

When you're talking about a music festival whose inaugural event was literally wiped out by a typhoon, it can feel a bit petty to complain about the weather. All the same, campers arriving at Fuji Rock Festival in Naeba on Thursday last week might have hoped for a warmer welcome than the torrential downpour...
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 29, 2022

As shooting continued, officers questioned commander’s decision to wait

Questions have mounted over local police chief Pedro Arredondo, the role of the department and whether any of the 21 lives that were lost could have been saved.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 4, 2020

No lockdown needed? Japan stores are shutting down voluntarily

Japan's restaurant, bar and chain stores are taking matters into their own hands by voluntarily shuttering hundreds of stores to help curb the coronavirus spread.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 12, 2012

When it comes to technique, Ozone says, 'Go West'

In 1956, pianist and band leader Toshiko Akiyoshi made the brave decision to leave Japan and enter the Berklee College of Music in Boston. As a young Asian woman embarking on a career in jazz, she was a novelty back then. She persevered and subsequently spent the majority of her career in the United...
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Jan 8, 2023

After an emotional week, NFL returns to something like normal

The game in Las Vegas between the Raiders and Chiefs proceeded even as players were still processing what they had witnessed Monday night.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 29, 2022

A protest? A vigil? In Beijing, anxious crowds are unsure how far to go.

In a country where protests are swiftly quashed, many who gathered to voice their discontent — under the watchful eye of the police — were uncertain about how far to go.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / 'Terrace House Tokyo 2019-2020' Recaps
Apr 21, 2020

Ep. 40 ‘Never Forgive Luigi’

"Terrace House" is shutting its doors, for now. The big news this week was that, according to the show's official Twitter account, production would be shut down due to the current outbreak of COVID-19. That means this week's episode is the last new one we'll be seeing for a while, so savor each sip of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / 2019 in Review
Dec 26, 2019

2019 served as a reminder of the importance of community in music

As music scenes fragmented, the year showed a renewal in community events for alternative music in Japan, with festivals and gigs taking to new venues and battling the weather
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 29, 2017

Gender equality and the mass media

Mass media in this country remains a male-dominated community and its understanding of gender equality is far too insufficient.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 9, 2016

Linklater swaps tension for jock jokes in 'Everybody Wants Some!!'

With his 1993 major studio debut, "Dazed & Confused," director Richard Linklater tried to go mainstream with the style he'd explored in his Gen-X defining indie hit "Slacker." Set on the last day of school in the summer of 1976, "Dazed" felt like it was happening in real time, with a huge cast of characters...
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN TIMES BLOGROLL
Apr 13, 2009

I Rub Your Brog

While many first-time visitors to Tokyo probably have a fuzzy idea of what to expect, they would do themselves a favor to first check out I Rub Your Brog, a Web blog that randomly documents "life, music and general weirdness in central Tokyo." This is where they'll find slices of technicolor life not...
CULTURE / Music
Jan 27, 2006

A band that plays along with the joke

Test Icicles have been in Japan for less than 24 hours, and nearly a quarter of that has been spent talking to journalists. Rory Atwell, the band's eldest member at the ripe old age of 25, is still somewhat game, but his younger bandmates, both just 20 years old, have a different agenda. Devonte Hynes,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 21, 2005

Rallying round home-grown sounds

It's the final day of this year's Rock in Japan festival, which took place Aug. 5-7. Holding court in the HMV DJ booth is entertainer Yoshiaki Umegaki. He's a late fortysomething transvestite sporting a tall blue wig and playing with his plastic breasts under a fetching blue sequined number while pouring...
CULTURE / Music
Jul 16, 2000

A guide to the music festivals of summer

The recession has reportedly made concert promoters' lives miserable, and yet it doesn't seem to have affected the flood of foreign acts rushing to these shores.
J-pop act Atarashii Gakko! is set to deliver a jubilant performance at Summer Sonic this weekend.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 14, 2024

Summer Sonic bets on a more local lineup

The international music festival seeks to boost attendance figures with more domestic and Asian acts such as Atarashii Gakko!, Number_i and Creepy Nuts.
Chinese police have cracked down on an internet craze that saw thousands of cyclists throng a highway under cover of night to gorge on dumplings in a nearby city.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Nov 12, 2024

China makes a U-turn on night biking, opting to crack down on it

Thousands of cyclists flooded a six-lane highway in China for the chance to "go crazy once.”

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?