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Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 26, 2010

Vincent Gallo / Tom Verlaine

The end of November brings gray skies and chilly air to Tokyo — and rare performances by two famous New Yorkers.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Nov 26, 2010

Highhanded prosecutors get judicial pat on the back

The arrogance and self-complacence of public prosecutors have been exposed with the acquittal of a high-ranking former welfare ministry official who had been indicted on a charge of forgery, and the subsequent arrest and indictment of two prosecutors accused of hiding evidence of data tampering. The...
CULTURE / Music
Nov 26, 2010

Accordionist brings his Argentine roots to French musette

Sitting in the same room with Argentine accordionist Raul Barboza, you start to notice that even the way he speaks is musical.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 26, 2010

Loosening ties to the kitchen sink

One of the reasons the Germans lost WWII, it has been argued, was because they failed to mobilize their female labor force to the same degree as their enemies. This had much to do with a "Kinder, Kuche, Kirche" (children, kitchen, church) mentality that consigned women to a world of old-fashioned domestic...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / ART BRIEF
Nov 26, 2010

'Catalysis for Life: New Language of Dutch Art and Design'

Museum of Contemporary
JAPAN
Nov 25, 2010

Kan confers with Lee on North threat

Prime Minister Naoto Kan and his Seoul counterpart, Lee Myung Bak, agreed Wednesday their countries and the United States must work closely to confront any provocations by North Korea, which the previous day shelled a South Korean island in the Yellow Sea, causing four confirmed deaths.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 25, 2010

Senator playing politics with nuclear accord

WASHINGTON — Soon after U.S. President Barack Obama came to office, he delivered a speech in Prague in which he said, "I state clearly and with conviction America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons." He said America has a responsibility to act and to lead....
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Nov 25, 2010

Trio must be firm with North

Growing military tension on the Korean Peninsula has posed another major diplomatic challenge for Prime Minister Naoto Kan's Cabinet, and Japan needs to form a firm united front with the United States and South Korea to deal with Pyongyang's provocations, critics said Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 25, 2010

China and India exposed

BERKELEY, Calif. — Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's forthcoming trip to India, following hard on the heels of President Barack Obama's recent visit, will provide another opportunity for the media to gush about the growing global economic clout of China and India. We can be sure that the soft underbellies...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Nov 23, 2010

Performance art's expatriate players push the envelope

Exotic dancing. Nonsensical poetry. Harsh electronic noise. Doughnuts. These are just some of the manifold sights and sounds you'll find on the bill at Paint Your Teeth, a bimonthly performance art event in Tokyo.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Nov 22, 2010

They've got a Twitter bot for that

Japan is clearly in the throes of Twittermania, but bots should be given credit for generating a good chunk of the traffic.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Nov 22, 2010

Japan shouldn't bet farm on China's 'middle class'

Many Japanese corporations are pinning their hopes on what they see as the expanding "middle class" in China, which they think will offer a huge potential market for their products. In reality, that class is a mirage created politically by the Chinese Communist Party and is on the verge of disintegrating....
LIFE / WEEK 3
Nov 21, 2010

Heading for the hills — in style

One sunny Saturday a couple of weeks ago, this writer joined five women and three men who met up at Ikusabata Station on the JR Ome Line in the mountains of western Tokyo.
LIFE / WEEK 3
Nov 21, 2010

'Evacuate' to whole new worlds

In the foyers of theaters in Tokyo's new "happening" hub of Ikebukuro — where the provocative Festival/Tokyo (F/T) drama event is running through November — odd exchanges can often be overheard.
LIFE / Travel
Nov 21, 2010

Sapporo's warm welcome

With its wide roads laid out in a neat grid, an abundance of greenery and its sleek, modern subway system, Sapporo at first feels more like somewhere in America than in Japan.
COMMUNITY
Nov 20, 2010

A modern-day alchemist melds senses of sight, smell

On the back of Maurice Joosten's business card, a silvered phrase floats across the otherwise blank expanse: "Solve et Coagula" ("Dissolve and Unite"). For Joosten, 48, this ancient dictum of alchemy provides a motto linking his work as an artist, aroma designer and yoga instructor.
JAPAN
Nov 19, 2010

Kan says he won't seek Yanagida's head over Diet gaffe

Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Thursday he has no plans to replace Justice Minister Minoru Yanagida over remarks disparaging his Diet duty despite mounting calls from the opposition camp that he step down.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 19, 2010

The man who popularized the Edo pleasure district

The Yoshiwara pleasure district of Edo (old Tokyo) has often been immortalized in word and image for the exquisite carnal pleasures it offered.
CULTURE / Music
Nov 19, 2010

Japanese pianist touts the sounds of Spain

Japanese pianist Shizuka Shimoyama and Slovakian cellist Ludovit Kanta will bring the culture of Spain to Tokyo next week.
CULTURE / Stage
Nov 19, 2010

Joan of Arc takes center stage

Though widely known in the West, St. Joan of Arc is an obscure historical figure for many people in Japan. Maki Horikita, who portrays the 15th-century French war heroine in the upcoming TBS stage production "Jeanne d'Arc," rises to the challenge of making Joan's tragic life story relevant for a Japanese...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 19, 2010

UNESCO artist to hold concert to warn against medicine abuse

Missa Johnouchi, one of UNESCO's Artists for Peace, is helping spread the message of harmony in Japan.
CULTURE / Music / IN THE RECORD
Nov 19, 2010

Carlos Gibbs

DJ and producer Carlos Gibbs, creator of Skinnipants and the Redbox Project, opens up his record bag for The Japan Times.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 19, 2010

Van Gogh: Sanity behind madness

In recent years there has been a sea change in the official cult surrounding the Post-Impressionist Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890). For the masses he is still the archetypal "crazy artist": razor blade in one hand, severed ear in the other, and a lovely picture of sunflowers on the easel...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 19, 2010

Mix and mingle in Fukuoka

Now Lounge, a dance party in Fukuoka, hopes to bring together the area's internationally minded people.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 19, 2010

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs

When it comes to recognizing the latest trends and artists causing a stir abroad, the Japanese club scene sometimes seems to suffer from perennial jet lag.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 19, 2010

'Yukizuri no Machi (Strangers in the City)'

Japanese films targeted at adult men, particularly those made by Toei, often have a dark, heavy, turbulent quality. Japanese has a wonderful, hard-to-translate word for it — dorodoro. Think of slogging across a muddy field at 3 a.m. in the driving rain; or being a middle-aged guy with a troubled past,...
CULTURE / Music
Nov 19, 2010

Envy take 'Recitation' out on the road again

Tokyo-based Envy issued their fifth full-length album, "Recitation," in September. To celebrate its release, the quintet embarked on their first North American tour in four years. On this, their longest international trek, the postrock and hardcore hybrid act played 25 shows in the span of a month. ...
CULTURE / Music
Nov 19, 2010

Ash

Proving they're far from burned out, indie rockers Ash return to Japan next week to promote the release of "A-Z Vol. 2," the culmination of an ambitious project that saw the band releasing a single every fortnight via digital download.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’