Welcome to Rock of Japan!---Updated June 28, 2009
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE:
When I first got on the web
and looked for info on the rock, pop, and underground music coming out of
Japan, there seemed to be very little information available in English. Rock
of Japan was designed to help remedy that situation. I don’t mean
to imply that the only good rock music is coming out of Japan, but lately,
western music seems to get separated into genres, and each genre is a box.
and the boxes don’t get mixed together, and the longer a band stays in
their box, the more they begin to sound like every other band in that box.
In the best Japanese rock music, they see all our separate boxes as one big
stew, and by mixing and matching what they like, they’ve been able to
create some very tasty flavors. In Japanese rock music, I also hear a belief
in the power of rock music, and that belief, long gone over here, gives it
power. On May 17, 1999 this site went up, and I’m pleased that so many
of you have visited, and often are returning regularly. I realize that I am
not able to cover all of the good music that is coming out of Japan, but I
am trying to cover a wide spectrum. I look forward to your comments, suggestions,
and questions. If you enjoy Rock of Japan, buy a T-shirt. That will
help to support the site, and it will help to spread the word!
BACKGROUND INFO:
This site originates from
New York City. Besides the obvious (CD covers, band logos, and group photos),
anything not credited was written or photographed by myself. The opinions
expressed here are my own. The discographies should not be considered complete.
I regularly neglect to obtain EPs, and almost never pick up remixes or vinyl
releases. The discographies and everything else on this site are intended
to provide information which will help you decide what you might want to add
to your own collections. Various people have helped me with the site: Special
thanks to Hitoshi Toyoda, who helped me from the beginning of this project;
Thanks to Keiko Oka (bassist with local band SUPERFORTRESS) for help with
translations; Thanks to Jun Takeshita (guitarist for GELATINE, a fave local
band) for occasional help with translations; Thanks to all those who’ve
offered encouragement; Thanks to the bands, who make it all worthwhile; and
thanks to my good friend Dan Payne who told me I should and could! If you
are interested in advertising on this site, or sending promotional material,
feel free to contact me at the email address above. I’ll be happy to
post reviews of any Japanese CDs received in the first six months of their
Japanese or American release. (The artists must be living and working out
of Japan.)
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& OTHERS (CD reviews) (new releases + #s-L); (M-Z)
including: The 5,6,7,8’s; Thee 50’s Highteens; 54 Nude Honeys; Afrirampo; The Amppez; Asakusa Jinta; Blankey Jet City; Blow One’s Cool; The Brilliant Green; Crawl; Dirtrucks; Ellegarden; The Ends; Esrevnoc; Firestarter; Flamenco A Go Go; Gasoline; The Gimmies; Gito Gito Hustler; Go Bangs; Grapevine; Green Milk From The Planet Orange; Guinny Vamps; Gyogun Rend’s; Hal From Apollo ‘69; Havana Exotica; Hige; Invisibleman’s Deathbed; Jet Boys; Jitterin’ Jinn; Judy And Mary; Lin Clover; Lolita No. 18; Love Pigs; Love Psychedelico; Luminous Orange; Macarthur a Contti; Mad Moisell; Mean Machine; Thee Michelle Gun Elephant; Milk Crown; Missile Girl Scoot; Molice; Mong Hang; Mono; Mummy The Peepshow; Akina Nakamori; Papaya Paranoia; Polysics; The Portugal Japan; Prambath; Puffy (aka Puffy AmiYumi); Rocket Jack Vaders; The Rodeo Carburettor; Ron Ron Clou; Sentimental Bus; Ringo Shiina; Spandecks; Spoozys; Supercar; Supersnazz; Susan; Tama; Teeny Frahoop; Jun Togawa; Tokyo Jihen/Incidents; Tsu Shi Ma Mi Re; Up-Tight; Yen Town Band; and Zoobombs
& OTHERS (live reviews) (#s-A); (B-C); (D-E); (F); (G-J); (K-L); (M-N); (O-R); (S); (T-Z)
including: 2Up; The 5,6,7,8’s; 10 Yen Ana Kinoko; 50 Kaitenz; Thee 50’s High Teens; 54-71; 54 Nude Honeys; Accel 4; Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paradaiso U.F.O.; Acid Mothers Temple SWR; Tomomi Adachi; Afrirampo; Agatsuma; Air; Akaten; Akima & Neos; Asakusa Jinta; Attack Haus; Bakubeni; Balloons; Bathtub Shitter; The Beaches; Big Frog; Blue III; Bonkin’ Clapper; Boredoms; Boris; Bossston Cruising Mania; The Captains; Charisma Pampie; Clammbon; Clione-Index; Condor 44; Core Of Soul; Cornelius; Curlies; Demi Semi Quaver; Déspairs Ray; Dip; DMBQ; Do Thank Anal; Drillchop 9; The Dudoos; Eastern Youth; Ed Woods; Electric Eel Shock; Elekibass; Ellegarden; The Emeralds; Emulsion; Envy; Steve Eto; Falsies On Heat; Fantasy’s Core; Far East Native; Flip; Flower Travellin’ Band; Fushitsusha; Fuzzass; Garorinz; Gasoline; Gaucho; Gevil; Ghost; Gito Gito Hustler; Goggle-A; Gouka; Grapevine; Green Milk From The Planet Orange; Guva; Keiji Haino; Hard Tricks; Head Phones President; Heart Bazaar; Henry Tennis; High Rise; The High-Lows; Hikashu; Himawari; Holidays Of Seventeen; Hypercube; Indian Hi; Invisibleman’s Deathbed; Jackie & The Cedrics; The Jerry Lee Phantom; Jet Boys; Jitterin’ Jinn; Kahimi Karie; Masami Kawaguchi’s New Rock Syndicate; Ai Kawashima; Ketchup Mania; Kiiiiiii; Minami Kizuki; Koenji Hyakkei; Kokeshi Doll; Limited Express (has gone?); Local Sound Style; Lolita No. 18; Love Psychedelico; LSD March; Luminous Orange; Macarthur a Contti; The Mad Capsule Markets; Mainliner; Melt-Banana; Merzbow; Thee Michelle Gun Elephant; Miminokoto; Kosetsu Minami; Takako Minekawa; Yuto Miyazawa; Mong Hang; Mono; Muddy World; Mummy The Peepshow; My Way My Love; Nananine; Natural Calamity; The Neat Beats; Ni-Hao; Noodles; Numb; Number Girl; OK City OK; Omodaka; OOIOO; Oorutaichi; Orange Pekoe; Ovum; Papaya Paranoia; Peck You!!; Perorins; Petit Mit; Petty Booka; Pe´z; Picarince; Pillows; PINE*am; Pistol Valve; Polysics; The Portugal Japan; Prambath; Puffy (aka Puffy AmiYumi); Puppypet; Quaff; Qypthone; Rin’; Rinken Band; Rocket Jack Vaders; The Rodeo Carburettor; Ruins; Ruins Alone; SA; Sabbat; Ryuichi Sakamoto; The Salinger; Scandal; Seikazoku; Shrinp Wark; Space Combine; Sparky Quana; Sparta Locals; Spoozys; Stance Punks; Stone Deaf; Strike Out; Suishou No Fune; The Suzan; Swinging Popsicle; Techma; Teengenerate; Titan Go Kings; Tokyo Pinsalocks; Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra; Tomiya; Tomovsky; Tsu Shi Ma Mi Re; Noriko Tujiko; Understatements; Up-Tight; Vampillia; Veronica’s Violet; Volume Out; We Acediasts; The Young Ones; Yura Yura Teikoku; Zazen Boys; Zoffy; The Zoobombs; ZOoOoOm; and Zubi Zuva X
ARTISTS’S LINKS
Recent Additions:
Segment 4 (of 8) of the Hoppy
Kamiyama interview was added on June 23rd
Added March 4: OORUTAICHI live at Cake Shop
Added March 7: ZAZEN BOYS live at Cake Shop
Added March 9: ZAZEN BOYS live at Pianos
Added March 15: FLOWER TRAVELLIN’ BAND live at The Studio; and a review of TRICERATOPS’ Greatest 1997-2001
Added March 18: OK CITY OK live at Lit Lounge
Added March 24: Japan Nite 2009: DETROIT7; ASAKUSA JINTA; GRAPEVINE; SA; SPARTA LOCALS; OMODAKA; and FLIP live at Bowery Ballroom
Added March 7: ASAKUSA JINTA live at Southpaw
Added March 9: Reviews of GO!GO!7188’s Antenna CD and DVD; BLEACH’s Odoru Kubi CD; and ASAKUSA JINTA’s Asakusa Jinta CD
Added April 18: ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE & THE MELTING PARADAISO U.F.O. live at Mercury Lounge
Added April 27: PERORINS live at Tommy’s Tavern
Added May 3: Ai Kawashima and Minami Kizuki live at Brooklyn Botanical Garden’s Sakura Matsuri
Added May 5: Yuto Miyazawa live at Le Poisson Rouge
Added June 1: ORANGE PEKOE and Ai Kawashima live at Japan Day; Ryuichi Sakamoto live at Bang On A Can Marathon; and a review of MOLICE’s Doctor Ray CD
