Tokyo Shuffle
Music of Japan #3
A shuffled selection of artists from Japan’s capital 🌃
Hey everyone!
The selection of songs below are an eclectic mix of new and old, simple and strange, popular and obscure, all from artists who call Tokyo home.
We will be exploring music from a range of genres in this issue, from a new release to a hidden 80s gem to an experimental piece from the early 2000’s.
Dive in, enjoy the music and please leave a comment on my website or drop me a line to let me know what you think.
東京の音楽を聴きましょう! (Let’s listen to some music from Tokyo!)
“らりらりらん”(La-li-la-li-dan) by “never young beach”
🎶 folk, pop 📍tokyo 🗓️ released on 7th june 2023 ⭐️NEW
Combining irresistible pop melodies and folky charm with American indie rock influences, never young beach have become an established figurehead in the Japanese music scene over the past 6 to 7 years.
Widely regarded as the “resurgence” of Haruomi Hosono’s legendary Japanese folk group “Happy End” (well worth a listen), the three-piece consists of Yuma Abe on vocals and guitar, Keigo Tatsumi on bass and Kento Suzuki on drums.
“Rarirariran” is the 2nd single from their 5th album “ありがとう” (Thank You), which was released in full on 21st June 2023. It’s a pleasant tune about shaking off the challenges we face in life with gratitude, perseverance, humour and fundamentally, singing a happy song like this.
The music video captures the mood and perspective of this song with an afternoon of baseball, laughs and memories in abundance. Certainly one of my favourites from this year so far.
The simple melody of this folk-esque song is hard to forget. It will likely stick in your head. You will love me or hate me for this.
To discover more from never young beach, checkout their website here, their Instagram page here and explore their recent releases on YouTube here.
“夕なぎ”(Sunset) by Nav Katze
🎶 dreampop, city pop 📍tokyo 🗓️ released in 1987
Nav Katze (meaning “Nervous Cat” in somewhat fractured German) were a versatile female music duo consisting of Miwako Imaguchi (vocals and bass) and Naoko Iimura (guitar). Formed in 1984, the group enjoyed a long and genre-diverse career throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
Standing aside from their 7 studio albums, “Yunagi” (Sunset) is a single from 1987 that has gained some international recognition after being re-released on streaming platforms in 2021.
The song’s reverberated drums and choral synths are a trademark of the time of its release and capture the essence of シティ・ポップ (City Pop), a loose genre defining Japan’s western-influenced music of the 70s and 80s. The sea of reverb that coats the song also gives it a dreamy feel. The lyrics appear to describe the hopeless feelings and despair of heartbreak.
More details on the group can be found on their website here.
“relive” by toconoma
🎶 jam band, jazz fusion 📍tokyo 🗓️ released on 14th october 2014
Producing the funky wave of instrumental jazz fusion in the cool video above are toconoma, a 4-piece jam band who have been releasing music for about 10 years now. They combine funk and jazz to create free flowing, uplifting and fun jazz fusion symphonies. “relive” is the 2nd track on their 2014 album, “TENT”.
Immediately drawing you into the piece is the excellent funk guitar riff at the start (the band have shared the notation for this for free download on their website if you play guitar!) followed by the beautiful and gradual introduction of rhythm and bass parts to compliment it. Lending the song its rich melody is the vibrant organ and synth leads and the tight, melodic bassline.
If you love what you see and hear above, I would highly recommend giving a few of toconoma’s 5 albums a whirl. Their most recent single “Futurez” is particularly fun with its neon 80’s/synth pop influence. I also love “DeLorean” from their 2020 release, “VISTA”.
Discover toconoma via their website here and their Instagram page here.
“Drop”by Cornelius
🎶 shibuya-kei, experimental pop 📍tokyo 🗓️ released on 24th october 2001
Cornelius (nickname of musician Keigo Oyamada), is a veteran of contemporary Japanese music. He helped to pioneer Tokyo’s kitsch-style “Shibuya-kei” music scene of the the 1990s, co-founding the group “Flipper’s Guitar”, who were an influential Shibuya-kei band.
Since releasing solo music, he’s become kind of a big deal. His debut album (Fantasma, 1997), received overwhelmingly positive praise from American music critics, who labelled him a “modern-day Brian Wilson” and “the Japanese Beck”. Then, in 2007, Rolling Stone Japan named two of his albums on their list of the “100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time”. Cornelius is renowned for his experimental approach to music, using unconventional melodies to make pleasant music. “Drop” is from his universally acclaimed 2001 release, “Point”.
“Drop” uses the simple sounds of water movement to create a unique and relaxing atmosphere for the song (this must be a hit with ASMR enthusiasts). The simple sounds of pool water that fill the intro are complimented by the heavy kick-drum, thick bass and uplifting acoustic guitar strums, all of which act together to create a unique, summery atmosphere. Adding to this are Oyamada’s simple, monosyllabic vocals.
Mid-way through the track, there’s a really creative and intriguing part where the music becomes muffled, fades and then returns with the sound of splashing water and a cough, giving the listener the experience of briefly being underwater and then resurfacing, entirely through sound.
An ideal song to test your new headphones or speakers with, “Drop” is a unique number and transports you to a different place.
Check out Cornelius’ website here and his Instagram page here. He’s also released some great new tracks recently, including “Sparks”.
“Golden Forest” by bohemianvoodoo
🎶 jazz fusion 📍tokyo 🗓️ released 16th july 2016
A pop-influenced and melodic modern jazz quartet, bohemianvoodoo have become mainstays in the Japanese jazz circuit, recognised and praised by an international fan base, fellow artists and iconic jazz label Blue Note alike. Formed in 2008, they have built up their own style of intricate and driving jazz.
“Golden Forest” features on “color & monochrome 2” a 2016 EP released in collaboration with similar and very popular Japanese jazz act “fox capture plan”. It’s a positive and bubbly instrumental driven by a solid brushed jazz beat, a walking bassline and lead by a melodic conversation between clean piano and crisp acoustic guitar lines.
I personally love the freshness of the band’s sound and how their music leaves the visual details of the title (Golden Forest) to be imagined by the listener purely through instrumental music, without lyrics.
You can read more about bohemianvoodoo on their website here and visit pianist Iori Kimura’s Instagram page here.
Thank you for reading! I hope you discovered some music you may have liked in this edition. If you have any thoughts on how I can improve this newsletter and your experience with it, please send me an email at themusicofjapan@gmail.com.