― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Monday, 26 June 2006 03:33 (seventeen years ago) link
granted she's not even being distributed by her label in the west, and professionals can't review something more than a few months old, or vote for last year's album. you'd think that they'd have been ready by adult, though. I've zero investment in seeing my tastes reflected, I'm only frustrated without that press intrest, a group of that stature can't afford to tour. And then I see things like Souretsu on youtube and I just want to scream (I honestly did consider flying out to tokyo for that show).
on the other hand, the media isn't needed. look at the number of views of any of her youtube videos. I hope her management is, anyway. the Japanese audience is slimming into a hardcore cult fanbase for her, but I bet you anything the Western audience is ready.
― milton parker (Jon L), Monday, 26 June 2006 06:31 (seventeen years ago) link
If Tokyo Jihen did end up being able to tour the US, they would probably have to scale it down at first. It would be awesome to see them in a small venue, but they'd have to sacrifice the elaborate stage show like the one in that video.
I wonder what it would take to start getting their music distributed over here. I actually did see Adult for sale at Uwajimaya's in Seattle earlier this month (for $35), but I'm guessing that's one of the very few places you'd be able to find it.
― A. Lingbert (A. Lingbert), Monday, 26 June 2006 07:47 (seventeen years ago) link
Sorry to go OT a bit, but it seems better to ask you here, rather than start a "recommend me some rock" thread where I keep saying, "No, that's not what I'm looking for."
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Monday, 3 July 2006 00:15 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 6 July 2006 01:49 (seventeen years ago) link
DOMESTIC! Just Can't Help It tour -- a DVD of the May 26th concert, coming out this September -- just announced on her web site. Sounds very different than the NHK special they aired of the February concerts, which I need to get a copy of because I am sick of loading up YouTube just to watch 'Souretsu'.
― milton parker (Jon L), Thursday, 6 July 2006 05:19 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 6 July 2006 12:56 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Thursday, 13 July 2006 22:44 (seventeen years ago) link
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=51437562
I would never put "Toumei Ningen" as the first track to listen to. OTOH, the whole selection here seems to be intentionally skipping the singles, which are available on youtube anyway. I hope people will check this out, but keep in mind that the album segues really nicely from track to track, so you are missing the larger logic.
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Tuesday, 1 August 2006 13:58 (seventeen years ago) link
'Sounan' is still the track I recommend to people for a first impression.
also, I've been checking out the Zazen Boys (Ringo sings on a few of their tracks). I was surprised at how prog the rhythms on some of their tracks are -- like a pop version of the Ruins -- and they've definitely pinched Ringo & Kameda's run-the-whole-drum-kit-through-12-distortion-plugins production trick. Definitely another example of the 80's/90's Japanese underground slowly seeping over into the mainstream. Their 'Usodarake' is on youtube.
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 1 August 2006 18:56 (seventeen years ago) link
all their things on youtube are way prog, if they've made it big in Japan then this is good news
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 1 August 2006 19:10 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Tuesday, 1 August 2006 19:36 (seventeen years ago) link
(I forgot to check out the Zazen Boys, but will do so.)
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Friday, 4 August 2006 01:30 (seventeen years ago) link
I'm a bit surprised you don't like the track if you love "Blackout." I feel that the two tracks go hand in hand, in terms of mood.
― Patrick South (Patrick South), Friday, 4 August 2006 12:55 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Friday, 4 August 2006 14:24 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Friday, 4 August 2006 14:26 (seventeen years ago) link
http://www.toshiba-emi.co.jp/vmc/issue/issue_75.htm
The third one, "Blackout," is especially great. "Mirrorball" is so so...but it's not technically a Tokyo Jihen song. I guess the guitarist (Ukigumi) wrote it for some older band he was in.
― Patrick South (Patrick South), Thursday, 24 August 2006 13:17 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 01:16 (seventeen years ago) link
― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Wednesday, 27 September 2006 11:33 (seventeen years ago) link
― Patrick South (Patrick South), Wednesday, 27 September 2006 15:42 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Sunday, 22 October 2006 00:30 (seventeen years ago) link
in other news: new solo single in january to be followed by full album. looks like it started life as songs written for a soundtrack, but became its own thing.
I did get the Just Can't Help It DVD. A combination of a live show, completely reshot footage on a soundstage identical to the stage from the live show but with no audience, and the band playing in surreal, scenic location shots, all seamlessly edited together -- very disorienting. For the first half, there is no audience on camera, they're only on the soundtrack. But occasionally it really works in a way that further descriptions would spoil. Does not rock as hard as the first live DVD Dynamite Out, a straight document of them just burning, blowing the album versions away -- this one is more of a j-cabaret show. Great though, totally worth getting.
Also the new live versions of the older songs sent me back again to the first album. Which, amazingly, I love now, totally love it -- all the things that were too loud and tasteless now seem fun, all the things that seemed too bombastic & sentimental now work, uh-oh. It was just the surprise of a debauched, sleazy pop record coming after KZK, like someone demanding that you take them to go swing dancing in a dive bar seconds after they've given you the most religiously effective opium you've ever smoked -- fun but seriously complicated
― milton parker (Jon L), Friday, 3 November 2006 22:14 (seventeen years ago) link
jasrac petitioned youtube to remove most of their j-pop content, so the live version of 'hard liquor' mentioned upthread where they seamlessly turn the corner into 'immigrant song' isn't up anymore -- too bad
― milton parker (Jon L), Friday, 3 November 2006 22:23 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Friday, 3 November 2006 22:27 (seventeen years ago) link
― chaki (chaki), Friday, 3 November 2006 22:32 (seventeen years ago) link
the other downside of jasrac pulling j-pop from youtube is that the commercially unavailable Domestic! Virgin Line clips from february are gone. Just Can't Help It is better overall, but the live versions of 'Souretsu' and 'Ideal Days For Ultramarine'... those need to come out somewhere soon.
new album is solo!
― milton parker (Jon L), Friday, 3 November 2006 22:41 (seventeen years ago) link
also, wtf @ the tracklinks to this thread?
― A. Lingbert (A. Lingbert), Saturday, 4 November 2006 03:19 (seventeen years ago) link
tracklinks?
― R_S (RSLaRue), Saturday, 4 November 2006 03:27 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Saturday, 4 November 2006 03:28 (seventeen years ago) link
― A. Lingbert (A. Lingbert), Saturday, 4 November 2006 03:38 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Saturday, 4 November 2006 03:40 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Sunday, 5 November 2006 18:51 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Sunday, 5 November 2006 18:52 (seventeen years ago) link
― xgurggleglgllg (xgurggleglgllg), Monday, 6 November 2006 01:49 (seventeen years ago) link
The descriptions given all over the place indicate that the album is an "iyokusaku", just like "KARUKI ZAAMEN KURI NO HANA", so I think Ringo'll be producing the album again.
― R_S (RSLaRue), Monday, 6 November 2006 01:57 (seventeen years ago) link
saku= harvest or bloom
Maybe it's those two words put together, I guess that'd kinda make sense. Wanting to blossom creatively or something.... beats me.
― xgurggleglgllg (xgurggleglgllg), Monday, 6 November 2006 02:06 (seventeen years ago) link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC-u0c2w7hg
― R_S (RSLaRue), Sunday, 19 November 2006 17:55 (seventeen years ago) link
http://blog.naver.com/delico4u/70010525142
― R_S (RSLaRue), Sunday, 19 November 2006 18:43 (seventeen years ago) link
http://vidsearch.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=747236124
― R_S (RSLaRue), Sunday, 19 November 2006 20:07 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Monday, 20 November 2006 20:29 (seventeen years ago) link
― roc u like a § (ex machina), Monday, 20 November 2006 20:47 (seventeen years ago) link
― milton parker (Jon L), Monday, 20 November 2006 21:40 (seventeen years ago) link
― roc u like a § (ex machina), Monday, 20 November 2006 23:07 (seventeen years ago) link
― milton parker (Jon L), Monday, 20 November 2006 23:51 (seventeen years ago) link
(This thread does not come up in ilx search, incidentally.)
― R_S (RSLaRue), Thursday, 4 January 2007 15:57 (seventeen years ago) link
usually, the happier her music, the more devestating the lyrics are. it's the way in to her relentlessly perky new material -- she's singing about double suicide, betrayal, ghosts, the end of the world, graphically uneasy sex with someone she can't trust, etc.
and this new single is incredible. I'm playing it over and over. once again, after a brief intro in japanese, all in english. the bittersweet harmonies going into the chorus, it's actually as sad as it is happy. it's so good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MR_OzfBeiSU
― milton parker (Jon L), Thursday, 4 January 2007 20:50 (seventeen years ago) link
― milton parker (Jon L), Thursday, 4 January 2007 20:59 (seventeen years ago) link
- sampled on O.lamm's new "Monolith" album.- field recorded on Sarah Peebles' "Walking Through Tokyo At The Turn Of The Century" album
Things I have belatedly noticed on her sleeve art: On Gibusu she is cutting her hand & on Mayonaka wa Junketsu she is a mannequin. I had to see them in person to notice.
― xcixxorx (xcixxorx), Thursday, 4 January 2007 21:27 (seventeen years ago) link
Actually, I found it by searching Google and finding it in someone else's bookmarks, which I now do have bookmarked.
― R_S (RSLaRue), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:33 (seventeen years ago) link
― R_S (RSLaRue), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:43 (seventeen years ago) link