tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5770243458716500712024-03-06T02:19:33.056+09:00Call And Response Recordsdotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.comBlogger236125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-62686149256529202672021-08-29T13:12:00.008+09:002021-09-04T15:28:49.034+09:00Guest Mix 3: The Buildings<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieq-SbfOddUz92QePq02Sw4qUYyxFiYbYP-xif1FNiJ-wj35XiTBYywvuOuqyseLnoQfsix7eRucgjd0tBTougVJ_FU28M07YAp-kdD-44ClZZDgS6n_4Tvgsy7tLW0eeS911mvilgvmK7/s1920/The+Buildings.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieq-SbfOddUz92QePq02Sw4qUYyxFiYbYP-xif1FNiJ-wj35XiTBYywvuOuqyseLnoQfsix7eRucgjd0tBTougVJ_FU28M07YAp-kdD-44ClZZDgS6n_4Tvgsy7tLW0eeS911mvilgvmK7/w320-h172/The+Buildings.png" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><p>Hailing from Manila in the Philippines, The Buildings have released one of this year's most impressive albums in <i>Heaven is a Long Exhale</i>, which sees the band hovering playfully around the border between indiepop and indie rock with its sweet melodies interspersed with distorted guitar textures. <a href="https://call-and-response.bandcamp.com/album/heaven-is-a-long-exhale">The album is available over on our Bandcamp</a>. Meanwhile, to help give some background to the music, drummer Kean, guitar/vocalist Mariah and bassist Dom picked out a playlist of music that influenced or inspired them in the songwriting and in the studio and explain how these diverse songs affected aspects of the album.</p><p>フィリピンのマニラ出身のThe Buildingsは、今年リリースされたアルバムの中でも印象的であった「Heaven is a Long Exhale」をリリースしました。このアルバムは、インディーポップとインディーロックの境界を遊び心たっぷりに行ったり来たりしており、甘いメロディーと歪んだギターのテクスチャーが散りばめられています。また、このアルバムはBandcampで入手できます。</p><p>The Buildingsの音楽がどのようなものであるかが分かるよう、ドラマーのKean、ギター/ボーカルのMariah、ベースのDomが作詞作曲やスタジオレコーディングをする上で影響やインスピレーションを受けた音楽のプレイリストを作りました。これらの多様な曲が彼らのアルバムにどのように影響したかも各曲紹介パートで説明されています。</p></span><p><iframe frameborder="0" height="120" src="https://www.mixcloud.com/widget/iframe/?hide_cover=1&feed=%2FConnectAndReceive%2Fguest-mix-3-the-buildings%2F" width="100%"></iframe><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Kean’s Tracks:</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>1. Foxygen - </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">Follow The Leader</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Jonathan Rado is one of my favorite producers. I love his approach to layering instruments in a track, and he has a video with Reverb breaking down the arrangements in this song. One particular thing that inspired me was having a Rhodes and Wurli hard panned left and right, which can be heard in 'Phantom Limb'. Rado also mentions that he's heavily influenced by Todd Rundgren whose 'I Saw the Light' inspired the arrangement on 'Thorn in Ankle' but I ultimately stripped down for the final mix, so only remnants remain.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ジョナサン・ラド(Jonathan Rado)は私のお気に入りのプロデューサーの一人です。トラックの中で楽器を重ねていく彼のアプローチが大好きで、本人がReverb(楽器を紹介するYoutubeチャンネル)でこの曲のアレンジを解説している動画を観ました。特にインスピレーションを受けたのは、ローズと ウーリッツァーピアノを左右にハードパンする手法で、「Phantom Limb」でも聴くことができます。また、ラドはトッド・ラングレン(Todd Rundgren)の「I Saw the Light」に多大な影響を受けたと述べていますがthe buildingの「Thorn in Ankle」のアレンジのインスピレーションにもなっています。最終的にはミックスの時に削ぎ落とされ、その名残だけが残っています。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>2. Stereolab - </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">Metronomic Underground</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The first time I may have noticed (or even heard) a Farfisa in a song was in 'Metronomic Underground' by Stereolab. It immediately caught my attention, because it wasn't as reed-y as a Vox Continental or as swirly as your typical Hammond and Leslie. This organ was simple yet thick. I looked everywhere for a Farfisa I could afford, which of course came in the form of software. I wanted to put it in all the songs, but I told myself to calm down. It only ended up in a couple of songs on the album - most noticeably 'Caricatures'.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">私が初めてファルフィッサ(Farfisa)ピアノに気付いた(あるいは聞いた)のは、Stereolabの「Metronomic Underground」だったかもしれません。ヴォックス・コンチネンタル(Vox Continental)ほど、リード・オルガンっぽさもなく、典型的なハモンド(Hammond)やレスリー(Leslie)のようなうねりも少なく、すぐに注目しました。このオルガンはシンプルでありながら音の厚みがあります。私は自分が買える範囲でファルフィッサをあちこち探したのですが、最終的にはソフトウェアという形で手に入れることになりました。本当は全部の曲に入れたかったけど、自分に「少し落ち着こう」と言い聞かせました。結局、アルバムの中では2、3曲にしか使われていないけど、「Caricatures」には顕著に使われています。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>3. Faye Webster - </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">Room Temperature</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I tried to recreate the drums here for 'Detour' but in a more heavy hitting setting. Got one of those ride sizzlers and cranked up the compression to get the sustain needed. It also inspired the slide guitars in 'Doghouse'</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">「Detour」でこのドラムの音を再現しようとしたけど、もっとヘビーなサウンドになりました。ライドシズラーを用意して、必要なサスティーンを得るためにコンプレッションを上げました。「Doghouse」のスライド・ギターにも影響を与えていると思います。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>4. Delicate Steve - </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">Wally Wilder</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Ok, if I'm being really honest, this is the song that truly inspired the slide guitars in 'Doghouse'. I just love his tone here! I haven't yet researched what exactly he uses — some kind of overdrive, compression, octaver with some really charming tracking artifacts maybe. I took out the octaver because I didn't want to be just a total rip off. But yeah, I love the wild and free energy of his songs and the way he makes his guitars sing. So groovy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">正直に言うと、この曲が「Doghouse」のスライドギターに最も影響を与えたと思います。ここでの彼のトーンは最高です。彼が何を使っているのかはまだ調べていないんだけど、オーバードライブ、コンプレッション、オクターバー、それに魅力的なトラッキング・アーティファクトがあるんじゃないかな。オクターバーを外したのは、完全なパクリにしたくなかったからです。とにかく、彼の曲のワイルドで自由なエネルギーと、ギターの歌い方が大好きなんだ。とてもグルーブ感があります。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>5. Drugdealer - </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">Honey</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Michael Collins of Drugdealer was talking about good guitar solos, and how, he explains, they usually come from guitar players who want to sing but can't. And Weyes Blood is always going to be my go to inspiration for backing vocals and harmonies.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Drugdealerのマイケル・コリンズが良いギターソロについて話していて、それはたいてい歌いたいけど歌えないギタリストから生まれるものだと説明していました。Weyes Bloodは、私のバッキング・ボーカルやハーモニーのインスピレーション源です。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Mariah's Tracks:</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>6. Television - Marquee Moon</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This album taught me that you didn’t need to swathe guitar in fuzz to make a song that rocked. The way Tom Verlaine uses vibrato to pull the most out of a single note is awe-inducing. He’s one of the many guitarists who influenced my approach to playing guitar on this album in a “less-is-more” kind of way. How can I play something where there’s no wasted note? How can I push the duration of a note without worrying about losing motion? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">このアルバムは、ロックな曲を作るのに、ギターをファズ音で覆い尽くす必要はないということを教えてくれました。トム・ヴァーレインがビブラートを使って単音の魅力を最大限に引き出す手法は、畏敬(いけい)の念を抱くほど素晴らしく感じます。彼は、私がこのアルバムでギターを弾く際に意識した、「より少ないことはより多いことだ(Less-is-More)」アプローチに影響を与えたギタリストの一人です。無駄な音がないように演奏するにはどうしたらいいか?どうすれば、動きを失うことなく、音の長さを伸ばすことができるか?について考えさせれました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>7. Speed Glue & Shinki - Ode to the Bad People</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In between our first album and this one, the great rock legend Pepe Smith passed away. This is his band before his meteoric fame, back when he was stationed in Japan, drumming away on the streets of Shinjuku. I don’t know how popular this band is in Japan; the writings online say they’re legends, while the people I’ve asked have found them in an obscure manner. Still, Filipino and Japanese bands aren’t so far apart, aren’t they?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">私たちのファースト・アルバムとこのアルバムの間に、偉大なロック・レジェンド、ペペ・スミスが亡くなりました。彼が、有名になる前に、日本に住んでいて、新宿の路上でドラムを叩いていみたいです。このバンドが日本でどれほど人気があるのかはわからないけど、ネット上では「伝説的なバンド」と書かれていて、私が尋ねた人たちは、はっきりしない経緯でこのバンドを見つけたと聞きました。フィリピンのバンドと日本のバンドにはそれほど違いが無いのでは?と思いました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>8. 泣き顔ツインテール / Nakigao Twintail - 祈り / Inori</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I LIKE BEING IN A BAND SO, I CAN’T QUIT IT.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">私はバンドが好きだから辞められない。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>9. Charity Work! - Unacceptable</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">One of my favorite Filipino bands from the past five years. When The Buildings started out in 2016, guitar rock was kind of the odd ones out. But I’m glad to know younger bands are still making raucous, fuzzed out pop songs. Charity Work!’s EP brings me back to the thrill of when a band starts out--there’s nothing like it, but lasting for two albums has its own kind of satisfaction too.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">過去5年間で最も好きなフィリピンのバンドの1つです。The Buildingsが2016年に活動を開始したとき、ギターロックは一種の変わり者扱いでした。でも、若いバンドがいまだに騒々しい、ファズの入ったポップソングを作っていることを知ってとても嬉しいです。Charity Work! のEPは、新しいバンドを始めるときのスリルを思い出させてくれるし、あれほど素晴らしい経験はなかなか無いです。でも、2枚のアルバムを出すまでバンドを継続することができたのは、それなりの満足感があります。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>10. Wilco - </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">I’m Always in Love</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Summerteeth is a crazy example of how electronic and acoustic instruments can mix by colliding head-on with each other. Instead of trying to iron the kinks of each out, Wilco embraced having disparate elements that stubbornly work. The arrangements are rich and I still find new things about this even after years of listening to this album, and that’s sort of what I aim for when it comes to a studio recording. I love listening to albums that reward repeated listens; I aim for the same for myself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Summerteethは、電子楽器とアコースティック楽器が正面衝突したら、どのように混ざり合うかを示したクレイジーな例です。ウィルコは、それぞれのねじれを解消しようとするのではなく、頑固に機能する異質な要素を受け入れました。アレンジも豊かで、何年経っても新しい発見があり、私がスタジオ録音で目指していることでもあります。何度も聴きたくなるようなアルバムが好きで、自分もそうありたいと思っています。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Dom's Tracks:</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>11. Serge Gainsbourg - L’anamour</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">When I heard the first draft for “Doghouse”--before all the slide guitars, doo-wop, and ornaments came in--I immediately thought of this song. Since I thought they had a similar chord progression, pace, and feel, I was inclined to hope that “Doghouse” would follow this trajectory--a track littered with funk and orchestral touches, fit for some European film from the ’70s--rather than a folk, country, Neil Young-esque tune.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">「Doghouse」のドラフトを聞いたとき、スライドギターやドゥーワップ、装飾要素が入る前の状態で、すぐにこの曲を思い浮かべました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">コード進行やテンポ、雰囲気が似ていると思ったので、「Doghouse」も、フォークやカントリー、ニール・ヤングのような曲ではなく、70年代のヨーロッパ映画に出てくるような、ファンクやオーケストラの要素が散りばめられた曲にしたいと思っていました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>12. The Double - Idiocy</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I always use this track to show my bandmates one way we could bridge noise and pop together. I like how this band demonstrates that layering feedback on a rigid structure of pop hooks can work--there’s no need to manipulate the amorphous noise and have it conform to the song’s rhythm and melody. We pursued this idea in the intro for “Doghouse”, a song which I thought needed some semi-disruptive element to counteract the sheen.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">私はいつもバンドメンバーにノイズとポップスの架け橋となるサウンドアローチを共有したいときにこの曲を参考として出すようにしています。このバンドは、厳格なポップスのフックという構造の上にフィードバックを重ねることが機能することを実証している点が気に入っています。このアイデアは、「Doghouse」のイントロでも追求しました。曲が持つ光沢感を打ち消す、半破壊的な要素が必要だと考え参考にしました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>13. The Chills - Pink Frost</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This song was the first that came to my mind when Mariah let us hear “Heaven is a Long Exhale”. I thought we could use this song as a reference. At first, I thought we could turn “Heaven is a Long Exhale” into a hypnotic and deceptively upbeat track--jangly but depressing like “Pink Frost”--due to its length.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">マライアが 「Heaven is a Long Exhale」 を聴かせてくれたとき、真っ先に頭に浮かんだのがこの曲でした。この曲を参考にできると思いました。最初は、「Heaven is a Long Exhale」の長さを利用して、「Pink Frost」のような、ガチャガチャだけど憂鬱、催眠術にかかったようなでアップビートな曲にしたいと思いました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>14. Young Marble Giants - Wurlitzer Jukebox</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Detour” was the last track from Heaven is a Long Exhale that I heard. We were almost done with the album when I heard it. It reminded me a lot of Young Marble Giants--sparse and glacial, both eerie and comforting. Since “Detour” is quite different from our other songs, we almost made it a bonus track, which I thought would make it lose its impact. I suggested we put it in the middle, which would give it the function of providing space and time for listeners to breathe before we proceed with our longer and more dense songs. I think the idea that a group like Young Marble Giants was active around the same time as louder, faster, and messier post-punk bands like The Pop Group helped me see how “Detour” could complement our other songs really well.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">「Detour」 は、私が聴いた『Heaven is a Long Exhale』の最後の曲でした。この曲を聴いたとき、私たちはほとんどアルバムを完成させていました。この曲は、ヤング・マーブル・ジャイアンツを彷彿とさせました。「Detour」は、他の曲とはかなり違うので、ボーナストラックにしようとしたのですが、それではインパクトがなくなってしまうと思い、私はこの曲をアルバムの中盤に入れることを提案しました。そうすることで、長くて密度の高い曲に移る前に、リスナーが一息つく時間になると思いました。ヤング・マーブル・ジャイアンツのようなグループが、ポップ・グループのようなラウドでスピーディでごちゃごちゃなポスト・パンク・バンドと同時期に活動していたということは、「Detour」が他の曲の引き立て役として成立するだろうということに気が付かせてくれました。</span></p>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-17339346882709682042020-12-31T23:18:00.042+09:002021-01-05T11:44:25.942+09:00Our favourite releases of 2020<div class="separator"><span style="font-family: arial;">2020 is over, and it was a strange year for us here at Call And Response. We’ve always relied so much on the live music scene as a place to build a community, and while some gigs were able to take place, we were mostly left to distribute and enjoy music from the dull safety of home. With that in mind, we asked some of the artists from the label to send us their personal favourite 2020 releases, together with a short comment.</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I’ve added Bandcamp links where they exist. Where they don’t, you can generally find them on Spotify if that's your thing, or dig out the physical release if it's available near you.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>BIG.O (illMilliliter)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">2020年は総じて意気消沈気味だったので、歌と言葉の強いロックバンドに鼓舞される事が多かったなと言うことで個人的な2選。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In 2020, I was mostly pretty depressed and what inspired me was mostly rock bands with strong songwriting and lyrics, so I made two personal choices.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJomoQGFSEnlcgdZq7fpwsOvE188FJ8gdKDTo6aex-dif9X7uOuSyudnhXrHwcAQaAKxRHUdpzQ27PGzai76G514eyqM2kWv8qnriU4qXG9CBaWTNwRLAnoibpcTEG9Y_y5tHfKQDjaq3k/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJomoQGFSEnlcgdZq7fpwsOvE188FJ8gdKDTo6aex-dif9X7uOuSyudnhXrHwcAQaAKxRHUdpzQ27PGzai76G514eyqM2kWv8qnriU4qXG9CBaWTNwRLAnoibpcTEG9Y_y5tHfKQDjaq3k/w200-h200/00050800.1606808218.0228orig.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: arial;">SuiseiNoboAz - 3020</span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">こんな世の中にあって真っ直ぐに未来を歌っていて、それがこんなに様になるバンドというのも中々いないんじゃないでしょうか。"それから"という曲の「この希望には必ずパート2があるぜ」というフレーズの力強さに随分助けられました。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I don’t think there are many bands in this world that can sing about the future as honestly and purely as this. The power of the phrase "There is always part 2 in this hope" in the song “Sore kara” helped me a lot.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCeFQxsFxMRijR3YU_fbP0RII9i0KFLgTDn0KMDq-E0iWZ14aP-HJIhiC9R4RfjLjugHTQRdl80Vxp9YpJPnDXoKECqVFcFn1lGg1B_ZbI3qPjUAiexuVFh6g-4dO0T4o6aNWeZly-5y8M/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCeFQxsFxMRijR3YU_fbP0RII9i0KFLgTDn0KMDq-E0iWZ14aP-HJIhiC9R4RfjLjugHTQRdl80Vxp9YpJPnDXoKECqVFcFn1lGg1B_ZbI3qPjUAiexuVFh6g-4dO0T4o6aNWeZly-5y8M/w200-h200/a1814560533_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://discharmingman.bandcamp.com/album/pole-aurora">Discharmingman - POLE & AURORA</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">これだけキャリアのある人がこんな衝動剥き出しのアルバム作ってくれたというだけで2020年という年にも意味があったなと思えるくらい。バンドって良いぜ。俺もやるぜ、とそういう気持ちになれました。ありがとうございます。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">One of the few things that gave 2020 some meaning was that someone with such a career made such an album with this sense of raw motivation. Good band. It made me want toi do this too. Thank you very much.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>JON (illMilliliter)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiidDlJAEL-HhBBgrRYgrpFQlxiBiUsNO0TFctWBQ6OgextNiVp7chbip0Z98B5f7L57KVvo4ES_GQVPDZwhE3miMCS65LyXhNJ-gfeEU-F2kZ5e-PF6YLyB9Ej1LIwosOeep68TUvLWUI-/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiidDlJAEL-HhBBgrRYgrpFQlxiBiUsNO0TFctWBQ6OgextNiVp7chbip0Z98B5f7L57KVvo4ES_GQVPDZwhE3miMCS65LyXhNJ-gfeEU-F2kZ5e-PF6YLyB9Ej1LIwosOeep68TUvLWUI-/w200-h200/a2293748652_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href=" It's been 19 years since their last new album, and despite the time, they still have the power to hit me hard. Heart-wrenching. https://shinerkc.bandcamp.com/album/schadenfreude">SHINER - Schadenfreude</a></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">19年振りに新譜って、それだけ長い時間が経過したにも関わらず今も変わらず当時の衝撃を受けることが出来る。心掻き毟られるよう。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>OGNX (illMilliliter)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">サブスクで音楽聴くようになって、国外作品は殆ど古いのしか聴いてないことに気づき反省しています。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">As I started listening to music on subscription services, I realized that I was only listening to foreign music and nearly all old stuff, which I kind of regret.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPxtXS2jQmhAKykAeA_3Ws7DZB6oy70qDA8PyTYrMUWrsefZxVCfZ38I9WWCb3PlJxV2LILHa86UVZcjCgOxhnXvxjTyl0X9lALNxciO3pFDsYuuil8CldExKF9dJvn4LJ_qLAtHEVs5cK/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPxtXS2jQmhAKykAeA_3Ws7DZB6oy70qDA8PyTYrMUWrsefZxVCfZ38I9WWCb3PlJxV2LILHa86UVZcjCgOxhnXvxjTyl0X9lALNxciO3pFDsYuuil8CldExKF9dJvn4LJ_qLAtHEVs5cK/w200-h200/71U9L355ecL._SS500_.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">WONK - Rollin'</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">無機質なトラック上に突然出てくる有機的なギターソロがカッコよくて、これはコピーしたいと久々に思った(してない)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The organic guitar solo suddenly appearing on an inorganic track was cool, and for the first time in years I got the feeling of wanting to do a cover version (I didn’t do it).</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTk0x6ree5r8JmM5E7qwZufxRABsC3bLwrLWc-ivOZkfqu9k5D3b4AALi-WlJzsSLZKnZil9O9s0fuTUly6JrF07F225yYJYKI8jaPBfODUBGziN8XqOQlBzdFSovzodJEVFR2qLecQ0Tp/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTk0x6ree5r8JmM5E7qwZufxRABsC3bLwrLWc-ivOZkfqu9k5D3b4AALi-WlJzsSLZKnZil9O9s0fuTUly6JrF07F225yYJYKI8jaPBfODUBGziN8XqOQlBzdFSovzodJEVFR2qLecQ0Tp/w200-h200/00050800.1591235978.1702orig.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://ototoy.jp/_/default/p/561282">GROUNDCOVER. - ib/ack/tom/ars</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">全編リモートで制作し、そのまま配信のみでリリースされた意欲作。複雑なクロスリズムの本楽曲を必死で再現している様は最近のライブの見どころの一つ。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">An ambitious work that was produced remotely and released as it is. One of the highlights of recent live performances is the frantic reproduction of this complex cross-rhythmical song.</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6V_WVALDNLRN48_jriv7DXFjsyxBk-t-FaQVPYV1614UgdHTWu1OYGMmMM2Q4aZRDqqunzIqMqmT773tx7JZNCBV49Yv2r_DfEhhefr49SjgSPMn8HAJVk6J9o2J9nJXy0OwVziWjAm1t/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; font-family: arial; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6V_WVALDNLRN48_jriv7DXFjsyxBk-t-FaQVPYV1614UgdHTWu1OYGMmMM2Q4aZRDqqunzIqMqmT773tx7JZNCBV49Yv2r_DfEhhefr49SjgSPMn8HAJVk6J9o2J9nJXy0OwVziWjAm1t/w200-h200/00050800.1606808218.0228orig.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><span style="font-family: arial;">SuiseiNoboAz - 3020</span></div><div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">作品の内容にコロナ禍の状況が後追いでマッチした、東京インディーズバンドの鬼滅の刃。1000年単位で歌を歌えるのはハイロウズとボアズだけ。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The Demon Slayer of Tokyo indie bands, in a year when the corona catastrophe caught up with the content of their work. Only the High-Lows and Suiseinoboaz can sing in terms of 1000 years like this.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Oonishi Kazumasa (TG.Atlas)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioid-Chj5is7t3BG-cmVYws7rPKGBKdSYpQdAH3rdpCaQyzpYon0Kl9S-TkhzpWh6w3qQLa1rMCdEB2sFps8ShrcZ1oWPshh-qPsl8N81Mi53puv_uZ64vUFM8ZXQbPfPzZI2L09aGa5KU/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioid-Chj5is7t3BG-cmVYws7rPKGBKdSYpQdAH3rdpCaQyzpYon0Kl9S-TkhzpWh6w3qQLa1rMCdEB2sFps8ShrcZ1oWPshh-qPsl8N81Mi53puv_uZ64vUFM8ZXQbPfPzZI2L09aGa5KU/w200-h200/a2336052892_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://bambara.bandcamp.com/album/stray">BAMBARA - Stray</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">今年は家でこればっかし聞いてました。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">アルバム通して湿度が高くて好き</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I listened to this a lot at home this year. I like the sense of humidity that runs through it. </span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtiOcfX3Ihq7cqvFPEsfUdiFxOiw5ySAnzlvk5GLqy5wGNSnXirTXvp1lXt0d9Fvqyv1wPE7Pzzty34qM4H36fZPxWfuc3OJ5nBgJ9wYzYaW-B7_C9eRcZ4nBYuKSfTsnzvkxVDGLNMw5-/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtiOcfX3Ihq7cqvFPEsfUdiFxOiw5ySAnzlvk5GLqy5wGNSnXirTXvp1lXt0d9Fvqyv1wPE7Pzzty34qM4H36fZPxWfuc3OJ5nBgJ9wYzYaW-B7_C9eRcZ4nBYuKSfTsnzvkxVDGLNMw5-/w200-h200/a3942942090_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">ICEAGE - lockdown blues</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ラストひと展開ゾワゾワする</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">買うと国境なき医師団に寄付されるそうです</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The last movement in this made the hairs on my arm stand on end. If you buy this, they will donate the money to Doctors Without Borders.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Sato Motoi (TG.Atlas)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nprEJyogh-cuMzrrPhroVP93lQ2GnD_C0UpPse10OZqOdP8kF1qFsQsVdi_atiAZMvIHqVU1EQriLzDBlIpU9cR6E2mZkuWa9i527ESQzqkGMB8oJMTm6W0yeHB8zCEkSjoc8EJ-b0El/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="608" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nprEJyogh-cuMzrrPhroVP93lQ2GnD_C0UpPse10OZqOdP8kF1qFsQsVdi_atiAZMvIHqVU1EQriLzDBlIpU9cR6E2mZkuWa9i527ESQzqkGMB8oJMTm6W0yeHB8zCEkSjoc8EJ-b0El/w200-h200/Trash-Talk-Squalor-1592576020-608x608.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Trash Talk - Squalor</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">熱くて格好良くて押しのバランスも最高の8分</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Eight minutes of hot and cool with a fantastic balance of tension.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghzq_OWzjLKJOk0-wTDN0WtTus6t5t8_7b-76hIPF-0YH4xvV9da4nyTZ-0324_rlsKjVYgVDg1d4SMFz0-kfF8NmsAcq8EeFst6PsKN8NroOfFktlyA1v717OX84by3XtPl0mU7uMw4-H/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1161" data-original-width="1200" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghzq_OWzjLKJOk0-wTDN0WtTus6t5t8_7b-76hIPF-0YH4xvV9da4nyTZ-0324_rlsKjVYgVDg1d4SMFz0-kfF8NmsAcq8EeFst6PsKN8NroOfFktlyA1v717OX84by3XtPl0mU7uMw4-H/w200-h194/a2317740652_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://thurstonmoore1.bandcamp.com/album/by-the-fire">Thurston Moore - By the Fire</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">新しいことは何も無い、Sonic Youthのニューアルバム</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There’s nothing new here. It’s a new Sonic Youth album.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioJFk-YkQyTSZC5mdxeFCZVAvQ5y15Hhtm4aOBhwYZSBPjL_k8dyFCfZppbktkGfXfSkVOLpU9k_z8FRLQJloN67SvHfnmbhh76urTiWR10nRA3NJC9fzQMyRsZ7kWSMkKjiLH8HWeuZ3A/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioJFk-YkQyTSZC5mdxeFCZVAvQ5y15Hhtm4aOBhwYZSBPjL_k8dyFCfZppbktkGfXfSkVOLpU9k_z8FRLQJloN67SvHfnmbhh76urTiWR10nRA3NJC9fzQMyRsZ7kWSMkKjiLH8HWeuZ3A/w200-h200/a1721167726_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://metz.bandcamp.com/album/atlas-vending">METZ - Atlas Vending</a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">聞くほど脳に残り、残り始めたらもっと欲しくなるやつ</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The more you listen, the more it sticks in your brain, and once it sticks, you just want more.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Sean (Tropical Death, Sharkk)</b></span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0VGT6GjfjJFCTVfQf4XQQRJhmXIPZXdQxPMxVuVqDZZ14dzdt_9djOymVd536tlF2TvjI5TjCn_dq4hieY2wcpxy2upFP50CE_b6DTaUgRHKQd1YUxFg53nodzQD3Z_9iesUG4uXm773_/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; font-family: arial; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0VGT6GjfjJFCTVfQf4XQQRJhmXIPZXdQxPMxVuVqDZZ14dzdt_9djOymVd536tlF2TvjI5TjCn_dq4hieY2wcpxy2upFP50CE_b6DTaUgRHKQd1YUxFg53nodzQD3Z_9iesUG4uXm773_/w200-h200/Tea+in+China_Boldy+James.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Alchemist, Boldy James - The Price Of Tea In China</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This is not a very good album. This is a very, very good album.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidAb7CpO1mEfDg2FFQMiH-K0VIjnO_rIw7kJCUUFipVnM5WazQWWisuzTD7daD0W5mXVPZ5EwvXGeuMrgv648wuvA9ZKv9KOZJQ6qis7JbmCbqFtBYOMzHdCqeGlBJLoTrnJMpjLTss8nD/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidAb7CpO1mEfDg2FFQMiH-K0VIjnO_rIw7kJCUUFipVnM5WazQWWisuzTD7daD0W5mXVPZ5EwvXGeuMrgv648wuvA9ZKv9KOZJQ6qis7JbmCbqFtBYOMzHdCqeGlBJLoTrnJMpjLTss8nD/w200-h200/a3622420708_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Killah Priest - Rocket to Nebula</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Pairs well with a bottle of gin and a serviceable couch.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCM_Av2X5SekC0f12ltaQf-mlIcBW3s5uQHKmbEI_9PRarSubL99P99ZcrT22ztFDaL7QpjCX4sK12QDNXJndzRLyymZB3u6kQOLUKp38S_DRDEaQq3dnHij3eAK8aBoqAPM3SlNIMnvUv/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCM_Av2X5SekC0f12ltaQf-mlIcBW3s5uQHKmbEI_9PRarSubL99P99ZcrT22ztFDaL7QpjCX4sK12QDNXJndzRLyymZB3u6kQOLUKp38S_DRDEaQq3dnHij3eAK8aBoqAPM3SlNIMnvUv/w200-h200/a3178848824_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sa-roc.bandcamp.com/album/the-sharecroppers-daughter">Sa-Roc - The Sharecropper’s Daughter</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Every now and then there is an artist that you really enjoy listening to. I enjoy listening to this artist.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Shingo (Tropical Death)</b></span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ppYqdxVCShW3GheHj0DkFk7tX-I1eoTDXlHJCS6HjD1uoMhku26iBESK_JjvMcgC8fkZGDKt2k964bxrybQwuDdFsC-A4WVlyBtryNyCyBp13ZXdvHSpnDDo1qJ_v_i2NMse1asGVqbx/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ppYqdxVCShW3GheHj0DkFk7tX-I1eoTDXlHJCS6HjD1uoMhku26iBESK_JjvMcgC8fkZGDKt2k964bxrybQwuDdFsC-A4WVlyBtryNyCyBp13ZXdvHSpnDDo1qJ_v_i2NMse1asGVqbx/w200-h200/a2307902507_10.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://samgendel.bandcamp.com/album/satin-doll" style="font-family: arial;">Sam Gendel - Satin Doll</a></p><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">高級ホテルのラウンジでコーヒーを飲みながら聴きたいスモーキーでムーディな一枚。今年聴いた中で1番スムーズでジャジーなエレクトロニカアルバムです。近年盛りあがっているニューエイジ、オブスキュア感も程よく含まれていて、室内でリラックスしたい人に超オススメ!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A smoky and moody piece that you want to listen to while drinking coffee in the lounge of a luxury hotel. This is the smoothest, most jazzy electronica album I heard this year. It also has a new age and obscure feeling that has been gaining momentum in recent years — highly recommended for people who want to relax indoors!</span></p><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"></blockquote><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://thiagonassif.bandcamp.com/album/mente"></a></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://thiagonassif.bandcamp.com/album/mente"></a></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA2KugAGNh2Q9cvby-yXFg5oEnk6Md3qyHKZxRrFC3DXBUdeoCHDVifEWUblSOZRH3OdHiQPqFuoAmAfLCTEA3hTls3WrkAPkKdLrCFPoW2Sg-0Na-kKqhAmJ_-_Ato4kM_t8rxqLKIctI/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA2KugAGNh2Q9cvby-yXFg5oEnk6Md3qyHKZxRrFC3DXBUdeoCHDVifEWUblSOZRH3OdHiQPqFuoAmAfLCTEA3hTls3WrkAPkKdLrCFPoW2Sg-0Na-kKqhAmJ_-_Ato4kM_t8rxqLKIctI/w200-h200/a2722710291_10.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Thiago Nassif - Mente</span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">リオデジャネイロ出身の新世代変態ギターリスト・コンポーザーによるボサノバニューウェーブアルバム。アートリンゼイがプロデューサーとして参加との記載があり、気になってジャケ買いしたら大当たりでした!ノーニューヨークのD.N.Aを受け継ぎながら、トロピカリア、ミュータントディスコ感もありブラジルという土地柄の陽気な感じか出ていて最高な一枚!最先端のワールドミュージックをご堪能あれ。</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A bossa nova new wave album by a new generation metamorphosis guitarist composer from Rio de Janeiro. I saw a statement that Arto Lindsay would participate as a producer, which made me curious curious enough to buy it just from the jacket and it was a big hit! While inheriting the DNA of No New York, there is also a feeling of tropicalia and mutant disco, and the cheerful feeling of Brazil is the best piece! Enjoy cutting-edge world music.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzYtpbq4kxue4OUaZFzl1-eQz1uom7CKRs4zowB6_SAx7LoyJfIKQuyKP2MymKSBy7neSdF3Cw4DQYtpVBO5ialHxQDHlawZ8A9d2UvCcuLMWf1fI6a6-YV5U4Efs86YcLu6WsotF8Mm00/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzYtpbq4kxue4OUaZFzl1-eQz1uom7CKRs4zowB6_SAx7LoyJfIKQuyKP2MymKSBy7neSdF3Cw4DQYtpVBO5ialHxQDHlawZ8A9d2UvCcuLMWf1fI6a6-YV5U4Efs86YcLu6WsotF8Mm00/w200-h200/a2752100630_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://bananagun.bandcamp.com/album/the-true-story-of-bananagun">Bananagun - The True Story of Bananagun</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">脱力系オルタナトロピカリアバンド、バナナガンのニューアルバム。1曲目からキラーチューン。ゆるゆるでトリッピーで何度も聴きたくなる。ワウペダルを使うバンドっていつもダサいとずっと思っていたけど、これはあり!こんなバンドやったら楽しそう。シルバーアップルズとかムタンチス等のサイケバンド好きにおすすめ。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The new album by Banana Gun, an easygoing alternative tropicalia band. It’s all killer tunes from the first song. Loose and trippy, I want to listen to it over and over again. I've always thought that bands that use wah pedals suck, but then this comes along! I think it would be really fun to do a band like this. Recommended for lovers of psychedelic bands like Silver Apples and Os Mutantes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Eugene (Tropical Death)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-USZ_dfzt7XuXe6sXU9xEUGH0TYkDDrkeNMMz3DsFS9bWHDorX9kfmTkd8dj_bquNkKwfpPuyJqm3LW1SQ499L91iHfiGm1IaFmwikPf8hM52kd4k3qdzleBYXAalzjx_tJOTPz53tEC/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="512" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-USZ_dfzt7XuXe6sXU9xEUGH0TYkDDrkeNMMz3DsFS9bWHDorX9kfmTkd8dj_bquNkKwfpPuyJqm3LW1SQ499L91iHfiGm1IaFmwikPf8hM52kd4k3qdzleBYXAalzjx_tJOTPz53tEC/w200-h200/unnamed.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters</span><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54agHreqfxCOehuXjovD2B6ZIx8C7ERpESWDGhmgHL460whNjbTSLiPwe1DZueGjcS9a_rC0Um1nhGt36VBG5XmSh1tQ9dSnnvV_S_dDX8cW8cv9XPrKN1Z7ax4forkDKxvBnhMhFCBi9/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg54agHreqfxCOehuXjovD2B6ZIx8C7ERpESWDGhmgHL460whNjbTSLiPwe1DZueGjcS9a_rC0Um1nhGt36VBG5XmSh1tQ9dSnnvV_S_dDX8cW8cv9XPrKN1Z7ax4forkDKxvBnhMhFCBi9/w200-h200/a3341326712_10.jpg" width="200" /></a><p></p><span style="font-family: arial;">Like a Call and Response Quarantine 2020 album, except made by someone with talent. </span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://coriky.bandcamp.com/album/coriky">Coriky - Coriky</a><br /></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I’ve often thought “What is the natural maturation process for aging post-hardcore musicians,” and, as with most genres, the answer is “make it jazzier.” This might not be one of the best albums of the year, but for the last time will you stay off my lawn you fucking kids?</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p><br /><b style="font-family: arial;">Haruka (Looprider)</b></p><div><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgibvMalLj55XvpLI0O2sa_ghfeKiT0bU_xaBJo7kfl4uXa4dumcsQmogiHu_-dRH8n-KfdtreWMIOJXIUrqxMJCukmCYG_39Cqk2cAOtOh9PNR8QWE3VtJ9I7dBMju6UK6rlq1Tofkk4fh/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="870" data-original-width="870" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgibvMalLj55XvpLI0O2sa_ghfeKiT0bU_xaBJo7kfl4uXa4dumcsQmogiHu_-dRH8n-KfdtreWMIOJXIUrqxMJCukmCYG_39Cqk2cAOtOh9PNR8QWE3VtJ9I7dBMju6UK6rlq1Tofkk4fh/w200-h200/20201013215328.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />LINKIN PARK - Hybrid Theory: 20th Anniversary Edition</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">LINKINPARKが好きなので</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Because I like LINKIN PARK.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL0eZSMYm5de6mlG9BfeWp6ZxS6SL3J0rzrcc3u6BYb6JjNR45sZjpAXUF3JjcyxK57ASAv8ILJZtXdzccwlRYbJ1bJw5E7POT42bZAgTsL6rxcChIcHNVdk1MH_0bVI7fbmRuGcez6tPD/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL0eZSMYm5de6mlG9BfeWp6ZxS6SL3J0rzrcc3u6BYb6JjNR45sZjpAXUF3JjcyxK57ASAv8ILJZtXdzccwlRYbJ1bJw5E7POT42bZAgTsL6rxcChIcHNVdk1MH_0bVI7fbmRuGcez6tPD/w200-h200/81EUfTV7rlL._SS500_.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">藤井風 /Fujii Kaze - へでもねーよ / Hedemo Ne-Yo</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">実はほんとについ最近知って聴きはじめたんだけど天才すぎて衝撃だった。アルバムももちろん良かった。多才。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I only just found out about him recently, but I was shocked at how much of a genius he is. His album was great too. Very multi-talented.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrsQGgnO9WrHmznOl8QxCp6kVAxdJOH8IU8UzhD0RXIIJ3JXM45dbqzESqpCXePLlCIw9HQ5Jp4QPAAxiKVxzyewtE2CaUozyDoupQFn8odIKUA_7qAvGlxu5q2AcoKT8huNgafqYcAd8/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrsQGgnO9WrHmznOl8QxCp6kVAxdJOH8IU8UzhD0RXIIJ3JXM45dbqzESqpCXePLlCIw9HQ5Jp4QPAAxiKVxzyewtE2CaUozyDoupQFn8odIKUA_7qAvGlxu5q2AcoKT8huNgafqYcAd8/w200-h200/ohms_deftones.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Deftones - Ohms</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">とにかく聴きまくった。deftonesあんまりハマったことなかったけどこれは聴いた瞬間やられた。ギターのリフもグッとくるのが多いけどとにかくリズムが最高。そしてドラムのサウンドが美しい。下半期こればかり聴いてた。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I listened to this album a lot. I was never really super into Deftones but this drew me in as soon as it started. The riffs are great but the rhythms are amazing. The drum sounds are beautiful. I listened to this all throughout the second half of the year.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Ryo7 (Looprider)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzcmahZvh01C_om5jc8tQfLL9b1ZlwT0Uz2l0XEnrE0i__adxpOEjdrpZye7uE9kzv6QdTajxP_LoAwiAyENGfe_sOX1k19W5lTs3PB3c7MyuHmPuwJ0gJkfe2yxsmXrVQox16oxTdprxX/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzcmahZvh01C_om5jc8tQfLL9b1ZlwT0Uz2l0XEnrE0i__adxpOEjdrpZye7uE9kzv6QdTajxP_LoAwiAyENGfe_sOX1k19W5lTs3PB3c7MyuHmPuwJ0gJkfe2yxsmXrVQox16oxTdprxX/w200-h200/a0744216476_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://invada.bandcamp.com/album/bait-original-score">Mark Jenkin - Bait</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I love it when directors make their own film soundtracks and this drone/ambient album is a damn fine accompaniment to a damn fine film. Serene soundscapes are interrupted with an overwhelming sense of dread - something bad is going to happen; it’s just a question of when.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5O6t4JBy7wCRMvVIHRtB18tU5uHzbMH5AclFUr2-gBCv_Jy5lsvt0SS-rckHj-rPXJhDj4cPLDGY4rwumVyfztLWVkGq0fQe4rMr54b2OH7-1MdoJoXT82Z-yY9mTWhgL90PCLfjbs7j/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5O6t4JBy7wCRMvVIHRtB18tU5uHzbMH5AclFUr2-gBCv_Jy5lsvt0SS-rckHj-rPXJhDj4cPLDGY4rwumVyfztLWVkGq0fQe4rMr54b2OH7-1MdoJoXT82Z-yY9mTWhgL90PCLfjbs7j/w200-h200/Rough+and+Rowdy+Ways_Bob+Dylan.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Yeah, a bit of a cliche to think that every Dylan album is some sort of messianic scribe, but seriously, this period of Dylan’s output will be studied just as much as Johnny Cash’s last few albums were once he’s left us.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfu7TaH9rUUE4qYFAQPedY-Tbw98LE_6hZSIhLpD7d0rEbwDPiXd4oQCWNp-FtBKVmT5I7zQ2ISIupnhIIRyJ3FbwTwiYCQjWAgbdEJBW6FHVkExVicmnOND8FqzCFBFjbxmfNDL67AzS3/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfu7TaH9rUUE4qYFAQPedY-Tbw98LE_6hZSIhLpD7d0rEbwDPiXd4oQCWNp-FtBKVmT5I7zQ2ISIupnhIIRyJ3FbwTwiYCQjWAgbdEJBW6FHVkExVicmnOND8FqzCFBFjbxmfNDL67AzS3/w200-h200/a2422898566_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://thirdmanrecords.bandcamp.com/album/southeast-of-saturn">Third Man Records - Southeast of Saturn</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A compilation?! That can’t be on a top album list, surely? Well, yes it bloody well can be. TMR’s collection of shoegazer/dreampop lost heroes, fronted by one of the best bands who ever walked the planet, Majesty Crush, shines a spotlight on some truly unknown aural pioneers. Fun fact: Majesty Crush once supported Curve and the Verve in their shoegaze days and I cannot think of a better reason to try to build a time machine that to see that gig.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">Ryotaro (Looprider)</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi67E7FLLHPh4bU9S6GnbCP0mMcjMjVIHD-xHLvMlOj_2BC9CzR4vdcRLlL1g_LikMduEkWATdIAq-PP2epLpSuB_X_wmfRmRKd9O_4n5uJJry76cBeOy_iIHS_Mq9IFX0V6i4-GSnmNECL/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi67E7FLLHPh4bU9S6GnbCP0mMcjMjVIHD-xHLvMlOj_2BC9CzR4vdcRLlL1g_LikMduEkWATdIAq-PP2epLpSuB_X_wmfRmRKd9O_4n5uJJry76cBeOy_iIHS_Mq9IFX0V6i4-GSnmNECL/w200-h200/a3179211438_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://annavonhausswolffsl.bandcamp.com/album/all-thoughts-fly">Anna von Hausswolff - All Thoughts Fly</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">For whatever reason, this was the album I kept coming back to in 2020. Entirely instrumental featuring just pipe organ, the sonics and drones on this album are at times lush and beautiful, and then sometimes feel like you are peering into the voids of death itself.</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5vRFxkgkSsfoplv2qbg3QNmbopQr-ewVmQM3THXxd8aTEHtZzZBoRxeK-MK3nk5vLqyxTtmslPqDkaBrMC2dQAJxmUUb8QMP5FLyl3l2F5UxFDDPQBS2LE9GZdQj1aKj5ANwanSICF0Hr/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; font-family: arial; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5vRFxkgkSsfoplv2qbg3QNmbopQr-ewVmQM3THXxd8aTEHtZzZBoRxeK-MK3nk5vLqyxTtmslPqDkaBrMC2dQAJxmUUb8QMP5FLyl3l2F5UxFDDPQBS2LE9GZdQj1aKj5ANwanSICF0Hr/w200-h200/a0454863500_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://ideologicorgan.bandcamp.com/album/the-faintest-hint">Ai Aso - The Faintest Hint</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">An appealing part about Ai Aso’s music is the space she creates. When watching her perform, she never brings that chord or vocal line in exactly when you expect it to. Stripped down to the core but never feeling bare, the lack of sounds is what’s carefully constructed here.</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQtFew35uq6cJaN1YlDnZGqnUmx5ScKkiYRH9mflPxqQn_wsYErDY1pkO-E0zzS2uD-vUQ7fV-WgB0N_GEpqfjOmlEBi7TO7SwLKx71k-m0VQwjp1xOijPlO8r44zAyLPBQAcrwQ79bk5t/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; font-family: arial; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQtFew35uq6cJaN1YlDnZGqnUmx5ScKkiYRH9mflPxqQn_wsYErDY1pkO-E0zzS2uD-vUQ7fV-WgB0N_GEpqfjOmlEBi7TO7SwLKx71k-m0VQwjp1xOijPlO8r44zAyLPBQAcrwQ79bk5t/w200-h200/a3696645020_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://thou.bandcamp.com/album/may-our-chambers-be-full">Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou - May Our Chambers Be Full</a></span></div><div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The combination of the funeral/sludge doom of Thou with the ethereal vocals and melodies of Emma Ruth Rundle is perfect here. The behemoth riffs blanket the haunting but beautiful songwriting in a fuzzy haze that just works.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">Onuki Makoto (Sea Level)</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvUVGGLmTarzSibcP8xbkU7yNzISxvIBMn2TGsnhZmBd1a6_FhqI859W1zXYCES318s6M20DdXJAQlM-QFJ7CvXqv7kTym-nwBl4_TOgzQco5YVjOcgJm4zgqas9jBTbjgATGr9KtsVtsl/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvUVGGLmTarzSibcP8xbkU7yNzISxvIBMn2TGsnhZmBd1a6_FhqI859W1zXYCES318s6M20DdXJAQlM-QFJ7CvXqv7kTym-nwBl4_TOgzQco5YVjOcgJm4zgqas9jBTbjgATGr9KtsVtsl/w200-h200/a0872435061_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://youishihara.bandcamp.com/album/formula-deluxe-edition">石原洋 / Ishihara You - formula </a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ALSO: Oscar Jerome - Breathe Deep | </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blankbanshee.bandcamp.com/album/gaia">Blank Banshee - Gaia</a> | </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://reflectionsonsound.bandcamp.com/album/out">Anthony Moore - out</a> (re-issue) | </span><a href="https://johncarrollkirby.bandcamp.com/album/conflict" style="font-family: arial;">John Carroll Kirby - conflict</a> | <span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://samgendel.bandcamp.com/album/drm">Sam Gendel - DRM</a> | </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://frankiereyes.bandcamp.com/album/originalitos">Frankie Reyes - originalitos</a> (re-issue) | </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://hakunakulala.bandcamp.com/album/headroof">Villaelvin - headroof</a> | </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://intlanthem.bandcamp.com/album/suite-for-max-brown">Jeff Parker - suite for max brown</a> | </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://gismband.bandcamp.com/album/detestation-reissue">G.I.S.M. - detestation</a> (re-issue)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">石原洋がダントツ後は気分的な物でした。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The Ishihara You album was by far the top one, and I picked the rest based on how I was feeling in the moment.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Yamamoto Takeshi (Sea Level)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkzlvBucdAH5mqCHytrYeiUnlC2WJQsZ8mOSELXLSB4_gqIpTK3FGmYSLCLp9dHJOsdFTk4UA-0lGrm_Zf46MYAPVzLSnvN3LOo_-lzsGfy5Ul3aE0n05tG-K5oMCEi2MXC5hD0qWm7dtE/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkzlvBucdAH5mqCHytrYeiUnlC2WJQsZ8mOSELXLSB4_gqIpTK3FGmYSLCLp9dHJOsdFTk4UA-0lGrm_Zf46MYAPVzLSnvN3LOo_-lzsGfy5Ul3aE0n05tG-K5oMCEi2MXC5hD0qWm7dtE/w200-h200/a2706703589_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><div><a href="https://samprekop.bandcamp.com/album/comma">Sam Prekop - Comma</a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi81uHHx-melAt3l7RRHAeOXowUF4HVVpfQAXJsgSDYiE3Tuyrlev8twqJaPQAEoeAq2k7nYQ-bm8-Xo_yhIscQra5s1aSsNMLzeKlw0nMGLxEhn8XAWCQPeIuA08ZUX0opQS_Pgpu7Ez1f/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi81uHHx-melAt3l7RRHAeOXowUF4HVVpfQAXJsgSDYiE3Tuyrlev8twqJaPQAEoeAq2k7nYQ-bm8-Xo_yhIscQra5s1aSsNMLzeKlw0nMGLxEhn8XAWCQPeIuA08ZUX0opQS_Pgpu7Ez1f/w200-h200/a2650808188_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></div></span><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://samgendel.bandcamp.com">Sam Gendel - DRM</a></span></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCEEfXddOYN0vgp_yiZCFQCAUyIHQK6TpIKTi31y5LFLQG1kiiYOCs_cRf6U_TR8oPUa9ZsxXw__NrmYp1PMXwV1JTJZHEzEcJZM8BdCSCnLRpHwi6TBORs5OoupNGEa-ple7UIACopYP/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCEEfXddOYN0vgp_yiZCFQCAUyIHQK6TpIKTi31y5LFLQG1kiiYOCs_cRf6U_TR8oPUa9ZsxXw__NrmYp1PMXwV1JTJZHEzEcJZM8BdCSCnLRpHwi6TBORs5OoupNGEa-ple7UIACopYP/w200-h200/a4272486693_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://samwilkes.bandcamp.com/album/live-on-the-green">Sam Wilkes - Live on The Green</a></span><p></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwvEDSVEUkVNbY6T8zP44i4RUVUyIq_AVYopwRILqwFZGsIYVhQhovIYrkaYysL-E4MgaNI2UtA2I39RLVl-FJ0QqK6LLhUfJotWYeIIKcMmnYjO4DVNWLVcoEjwCspo8DTfe6IJs4CFyS/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwvEDSVEUkVNbY6T8zP44i4RUVUyIq_AVYopwRILqwFZGsIYVhQhovIYrkaYysL-E4MgaNI2UtA2I39RLVl-FJ0QqK6LLhUfJotWYeIIKcMmnYjO4DVNWLVcoEjwCspo8DTfe6IJs4CFyS/w200-h200/a1094975756_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://chiheihatakeyama.bandcamp.com/album/autumn-breeze-3">Chihei Hatakeyama - Autumn Breeze</a></span><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://johncarrollkirby.bandcamp.com/album/conflict"></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ_z43ysfpVf7kW4UgKUBcTep4Z1o9Guas6HHMOVc5DwKHnkCTklpS2ytkGfCo_2xygH10daqNuk12nZuO9X_AWwB8nEGbiIij7eYN3uT_swzlv9T_xFDr3Ax_BwNTEGWYd3E5D4B2FAwJ/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ_z43ysfpVf7kW4UgKUBcTep4Z1o9Guas6HHMOVc5DwKHnkCTklpS2ytkGfCo_2xygH10daqNuk12nZuO9X_AWwB8nEGbiIij7eYN3uT_swzlv9T_xFDr3Ax_BwNTEGWYd3E5D4B2FAwJ/w200-h200/a1980048756_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">John Carroll Kirby - Conflict</span><p></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ニューエイジやアンビエントなどの余白がありイメージを想起させるような音楽がフィットする一年でした!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">It was a year suited to music like new age and ambient, that bring an image of space in the margins!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Soejima Takuma (Sea Level)</b></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCWtUSQ-rT1N58LN_wUwPKOt-d5qpr5ytDXleXAdMsWnN9r4aTGku-Af6K-Vtv_Azlov9XoWG-vxuhfikJQSnpdCGarrevmalSqOwc3mBcfkkvsVo9CxBESmNpj8bPijs752tzuzalQIqp/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCWtUSQ-rT1N58LN_wUwPKOt-d5qpr5ytDXleXAdMsWnN9r4aTGku-Af6K-Vtv_Azlov9XoWG-vxuhfikJQSnpdCGarrevmalSqOwc3mBcfkkvsVo9CxBESmNpj8bPijs752tzuzalQIqp/w200-h200/Amaarae-The-Angel-You-Dont-Know-1605210201.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Amaarae - The Angel You Don’t Know</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ポップでアフリカン。今年一番聞いていて気持ちいいアルバムでした</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Pop and African — this album was the most comfortable liste for me this year.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">anndoe (jailbird Y)</b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieqUGB2QrqD-7ksjaAHwbdSAPz_RUQswWyN31YflzcnKP2cA1Ww-pRupKbjN61AOiSAzQ1DHr_zPWX0jSJKBvlNG2qsohDx69_scFLY6oKlou1SfGSUls5o4p_5LzgvpfbRFBADsJdPoSS/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="914" data-original-width="1200" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieqUGB2QrqD-7ksjaAHwbdSAPz_RUQswWyN31YflzcnKP2cA1Ww-pRupKbjN61AOiSAzQ1DHr_zPWX0jSJKBvlNG2qsohDx69_scFLY6oKlou1SfGSUls5o4p_5LzgvpfbRFBADsJdPoSS/w200-h152/a0206253975_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://instanttunesrecords.bandcamp.com/album/yabatopia">neccc - yabatopia</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ようこそ ヤバトピアへ の一言でぶっ飛ばされる尊さ溢れる一作 ブッとびました</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">2020年ブチギマりで賞 受賞</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ヤバさとPOPさがヤバトピアの扉を開く、、</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">満州候補者ectで活動する mori、yocoscumらによるカラフルな犯罪的音響記録。ゲスト共犯陣もカラフル。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Welcome to Yabatopia, a precious work that will blow you away in one word! This takes the award for most fucked-up high of 2020! “Yaba” (“dangerous”/“super”) and POP open the door of Yabatopia:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Colorful and criminal acoustic recording by Mori, Yocoscum and others who are active in the band Manchurian Candidate ect. — The guest accomplices also make a colourful contribution. It was released on cassette by Soloist Anti Pop Totalization’s Instant Tunes label.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqA4YJrtD-cHcrxS2X593xwsoqN5W3d6gaxFCxEJaX8XfBDa4MCmQ0fgegw_-wxHCw72vLRfzmXjBwAP-r2ZbR8AdV0sOkI_TeJTH3fjao4nasf_pg3RwHzK4MgiQ15dV30x3edRCCDo9b/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqA4YJrtD-cHcrxS2X593xwsoqN5W3d6gaxFCxEJaX8XfBDa4MCmQ0fgegw_-wxHCw72vLRfzmXjBwAP-r2ZbR8AdV0sOkI_TeJTH3fjao4nasf_pg3RwHzK4MgiQ15dV30x3edRCCDo9b/w200-h200/a2957285002_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://anisakis.bandcamp.com/album/oinaru">ANISAKIS - 大いなる</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ユニークなのに刺してくる歌詞と曲の合い方がすごい 世界観が完成されている…</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">めっちゃ素晴らしい作品 泣きそうになる。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">LPもしっかりした作りだし。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">後世に残る作品だなって思いました。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">ライブもめちゃかっこよかったです</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There’s a complete worldview here in how the unique lyrics and the the songs are all tied up together. Very nice work; I almost cried. The LP is also very well made. I thought this is a work that will stand the test of time. They were really cool live too.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUTXB8b8USE1Nlux79kZ854KZJ9rtOEXEM22FPiz6OmqlbIXCAshq-1B64wkSQifPz8NBWyEMyTwjAq6SnxXoSqjhTv3XL_TsLHshmw_VKJJsDflZ3Ud4hZkdudWqkdPJk4-z-qc4yemoF/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUTXB8b8USE1Nlux79kZ854KZJ9rtOEXEM22FPiz6OmqlbIXCAshq-1B64wkSQifPz8NBWyEMyTwjAq6SnxXoSqjhTv3XL_TsLHshmw_VKJJsDflZ3Ud4hZkdudWqkdPJk4-z-qc4yemoF/w200-h200/151482780.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">OOPS - out of pictures</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Voの等身大な歌とオルタナティブなハードコアサウンドがカッコよすぎました。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">ライブもめちゃかっこよかったです 泣きました。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">新譜ももうすぐ出るみたい めちゃくちゃに楽しみ 生き様を感じるバンドだなって思います</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The vocalist’s life-sized songs and alternative hardcore sound were too cool. Their live performance was also really cool - I cried! It feels like they’ll have a new album coming out soon.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYBPT6SSTTQQYHNUDvOzvDSBcGnBRCisVo5ecFx9muXGS3ZDb2OtO68x67EdqoWj2Poph7r8_JFAQF8sYT-yVDwLnxcmQqleKa7QsQTwC3hDdUODpL7HRv5WDHyeGlpLkurtBVp6zC_YWC/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYBPT6SSTTQQYHNUDvOzvDSBcGnBRCisVo5ecFx9muXGS3ZDb2OtO68x67EdqoWj2Poph7r8_JFAQF8sYT-yVDwLnxcmQqleKa7QsQTwC3hDdUODpL7HRv5WDHyeGlpLkurtBVp6zC_YWC/w200-h200/a0626542702_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://tentativefour.bandcamp.com/album/tentative-four-2">tentative four - tentative four</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ドープ…!!!!!!!!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">宇多田のスクリューで幕を開けたかと思いきや冷たい音色のネガティヴポストパンクハードコアサウンズがはじまった時はマジでビビりました すごい世界観 刺しまくりです。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">ロウなトラップやエクスペリメンタルノイズ(?)インダストリアル的(?)なリミックスもおり混ぜてもうやりたい放題で最高!Z世代感じる!!!Voのタキシタ君はBushBashで定期にパーティーオーガナイズをしています!</span><span style="font-family: arial;">広島でライブやりたがってくれているので何とかしたい…!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This is doooope!!!!!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I thought the curtain was rising with a screwed Utada, but when the negative post-punk hardcore sounds with a cold tone kicked in, I was really freaked out. It was an amazing feling of being stabbed with this band’s worldview.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There’s low traps, experimental noise, industrial, remixes, so you can mix them as much as you want! I git a real feeling of Generation Z!!! Vocalist Takishita regularly organizes parties at Koiwa BushBash and he wants to do a live show in Hiroshima, so I want to do something about that!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTYjVZWWRAMGmjo8M8Cwn7CgUT-iQp5nDSdM9HlRYR8jPMd1vKxapFvzUMtLE6fhwvTcGB5y1UYWydI9Tz8orQyWLHUlNlhsQDv-MQi489c2fj5v4Ybzb6U4obugRBQTaWdSP52kJMXsE/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="870" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTYjVZWWRAMGmjo8M8Cwn7CgUT-iQp5nDSdM9HlRYR8jPMd1vKxapFvzUMtLE6fhwvTcGB5y1UYWydI9Tz8orQyWLHUlNlhsQDv-MQi489c2fj5v4Ybzb6U4obugRBQTaWdSP52kJMXsE/w145-h200/a2371153565_10.jpg" width="145" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://instanttunesrecords.bandcamp.com/album/last-months-music">YOCOSCUM - Last Month's Music</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">necccにも参加しているYOCOSCUM君のソロ音源。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">Aaron Dillowayばりのノイズエレクトロニックサウンドを奏でながら自由奔放に己のチャントをシンギングしてて最高だなって思いました!かっこいいです!魂は自由!って思った。</span><span style="font-family: arial;">すごい世界を描いてると思う</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This is a solo release by YOCOSCUM, who’s also in neccc. I love how he sings these chants so freely while playing this Aaron Dilloway-esque noise electronic sound! I thought “The soul is free!” creating an amazing world with sound.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Saeki (jailbird Y)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZdWMlI8Qa-xQBvHi0nuCMAU_KCV5GUweLTZGKx6iNkt-VXkGdTqhbdIGMGHcXmDcEL8hnHn-yuQEQr1CbOL16BkKOSGjBPkFW8ajYcEnVQIiIeNjSmxYxLoek7Wx_JbzflHVSZJscHuq4/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZdWMlI8Qa-xQBvHi0nuCMAU_KCV5GUweLTZGKx6iNkt-VXkGdTqhbdIGMGHcXmDcEL8hnHn-yuQEQr1CbOL16BkKOSGjBPkFW8ajYcEnVQIiIeNjSmxYxLoek7Wx_JbzflHVSZJscHuq4/w200-h200/a1750402195_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://sacoyans.bandcamp.com/album/yomosue">SACOYANS - Yomosue</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">染みます。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This touched me deeply.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Tagesu (jailbird Y)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitpIjftZGic3qdgeAzSLgB7GatQXmNACkd9ODvm45CeGoKdv0VuI63pse-vNwvntFeUXzIgJ9MmcHgL8g9i8cLca6PitT_u7qgUvLetKipNPznPJc-TQ4nDowqx7Y8IgPx4jlVOBG_ip5U/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1183" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitpIjftZGic3qdgeAzSLgB7GatQXmNACkd9ODvm45CeGoKdv0VuI63pse-vNwvntFeUXzIgJ9MmcHgL8g9i8cLca6PitT_u7qgUvLetKipNPznPJc-TQ4nDowqx7Y8IgPx4jlVOBG_ip5U/w198-h200/a1715394194_10.jpg" width="198" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Meridian Brothers - Cumbia Siglo XXI</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Los piranas, Frente Cumbiero 等でも活躍するコロンビアの鬼才ギタリストEblis Javier Alvarezさんのプロジェクト。この人の腰が砕けたみたいな放屁サウンドが大好きです。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A project by Colombian genius guitarist Eblis Javier Alvarez, who is also active in Los Piranas, Frente Cumbiero, etc. I love his sound, like a laid-back guy farting.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Mayumi (P-iPLE / jailbird Y)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijrmwlNyl8mY6LA7RIbn81ITsM-6wfJfEgXBk4IrJNMg1_VKX2tlh591icXiSluST7SrniaY7IPcxPAIvmcvpef35E_jfany3PmfI3Atq5HE1ssSKfiWp-PKQJAlr_ljuyw6P2-1Eh0WEb/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijrmwlNyl8mY6LA7RIbn81ITsM-6wfJfEgXBk4IrJNMg1_VKX2tlh591icXiSluST7SrniaY7IPcxPAIvmcvpef35E_jfany3PmfI3Atq5HE1ssSKfiWp-PKQJAlr_ljuyw6P2-1Eh0WEb/w200-h200/a3156054422_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://erstetheketontraeger.bandcamp.com/album/ett-084-aol-gold-plus-tape">AOL - GOLD PLUS</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">すき</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Like.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Mariah Yonic (The Buildings, ex. The Male Gaze)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6dXBLGJ6IbdNEzj9EUCmCiAFbQ-1LTXcWuRWq_fJN3e-PCylsfURj0P0J2zvtq-YtjB2In3uWpPVX2CW3bcLFTn6ggKMpeRCecsee_P_w5lDaqtwIEXP21GloJYpNgTcajpSmVLbfJHZM/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="512" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6dXBLGJ6IbdNEzj9EUCmCiAFbQ-1LTXcWuRWq_fJN3e-PCylsfURj0P0J2zvtq-YtjB2In3uWpPVX2CW3bcLFTn6ggKMpeRCecsee_P_w5lDaqtwIEXP21GloJYpNgTcajpSmVLbfJHZM/w200-h200/unnamed.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Our lord and savior Fiona is back once again with a brutally transcendental album that reminds me that life is still worth living. </span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUUDyiipCi5n0TIeiI6ezik3fzydFfrvXfvY2f56BCwyrAV7VJ7j_ZPE6LGDM08-m5RQAbJ1Ybguukk35CHD4Mz91Cort1ErT8Kys1ljw5XsB_scRe4PILCSjWuUEsxjWrNRVfqOnhuoJ0/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUUDyiipCi5n0TIeiI6ezik3fzydFfrvXfvY2f56BCwyrAV7VJ7j_ZPE6LGDM08-m5RQAbJ1Ybguukk35CHD4Mz91Cort1ErT8Kys1ljw5XsB_scRe4PILCSjWuUEsxjWrNRVfqOnhuoJ0/w200-h200/Red_Velvet_Irene_%2526_Seulgi_-_Monster.png" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Irene and Seulgi (Red Velvet) - Monster</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This was the year of my Kpop enlightenment. Honestly thought pop music had grown stale over the past few years, but it turns out that the best of it had been happening in South Korea.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Kubo Masaki (former_airline)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaRL7mAKxXzVk89NioekefS-RkzfAbGFa7blEAt3inozWWprfVSo8Oa1mbroKiKx4aG176M9m7OfhfJWPsgPQ1D3QPaDKEHC-mkNymD0lQGT9mDHP7i-HpDPGbFdzebUDnin2dX0PqEyY3/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="355" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaRL7mAKxXzVk89NioekefS-RkzfAbGFa7blEAt3inozWWprfVSo8Oa1mbroKiKx4aG176M9m7OfhfJWPsgPQ1D3QPaDKEHC-mkNymD0lQGT9mDHP7i-HpDPGbFdzebUDnin2dX0PqEyY3/w200-h200/71%252BRnVV2lBL._AC_SY355_.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">山本精一 / Yamamoto Seiichi - CAFÉ BRAIN</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">近づき過ぎず離れ過ぎず。そことここの絶妙な境界でふわり漂い遊ぶ無意識の脳内音楽は、現実の外気から身をそらして繭の中で陶酔するにはすこぶる多機能な音景色であり、誰もが接続可能でひたすら居心地が良い。極めて清らかなコロナ時代のアヴァンBGM。何周もしたしこの先何周でもイケる。</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Don't get too close, don't get too far. The unconscious music in the brain that floats and plays on the precise border between here and there is an incredibly diverse sonic scenery that’s extremely versatile in how it distracts from the real outside air, lets you get euphoric in your cocoon, and anyone can connect and earnestly. It's cosy. Extremely pure Corona-era avant-BGM. I've done many laps with this album and it'll be cool for many laps in the future.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Joe (Velvet Ants)</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigYjn_tf5NLofNxlYqasWmJDE2GcTTQd-TnL-hymn4FdrM_YhffK0RfswRG3Nhmkcl91bnBJ68Ujd01_Gf6UnVCjRMcvwurWFa4_vDx8pWBgzJhWfTJDJbQ-R_sJZzTUB2REvC64Cjtlc6/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigYjn_tf5NLofNxlYqasWmJDE2GcTTQd-TnL-hymn4FdrM_YhffK0RfswRG3Nhmkcl91bnBJ68Ujd01_Gf6UnVCjRMcvwurWFa4_vDx8pWBgzJhWfTJDJbQ-R_sJZzTUB2REvC64Cjtlc6/w200-h200/a3789051601_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://idlesband.bandcamp.com/album/ultra-mono">Idles - Ultra Mono</a></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I hadn’t been aware of the existence of this band from Bristol called Idles who’ve already put out two full lengths, several singles and EPs before this record, full of not only anger and anxiety for the environment we are living in, but also energy and attitude going forward. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Most of all the songs from Ultra Mono will be our anthems for the future. It’s everything.</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJ9VfmhGuPpnAtqA5Ny8ACOwZqG7vvb1g9yJqGJjLTcjPOUzvLrlngRdT94TbCAlXcC0xChs-UOZ5h9rbGToQSuM4T6s__cBK7CnSp8VUhqfs2Kv1ocGDGqHbPH3jV1v3Luu6nwI-gxZB/" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; font-family: arial; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJ9VfmhGuPpnAtqA5Ny8ACOwZqG7vvb1g9yJqGJjLTcjPOUzvLrlngRdT94TbCAlXcC0xChs-UOZ5h9rbGToQSuM4T6s__cBK7CnSp8VUhqfs2Kv1ocGDGqHbPH3jV1v3Luu6nwI-gxZB/w200-h200/atlas+vending_metz.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://metz.bandcamp.com/album/atlas-vending">Metz - Atlas Vending</a></span></p><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Their collaboration with Steve Albini looked like kind of a success, so my expectation was like, "What’s next?" Their aggressively constructed guitar riffs got more constructive. That’s the point. But there’s more notable things there. Their songs sound almost the same because of the style of the singer. I think no one who likes Metz cares about that, but here you go, he sings and the songs have tons of hooks that, with the guitar riffs affect each other, which made me so surprised.</span></div></div><div><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZowuEffph9foGzYnyVKFG3myriNPivWA3Om3wAYBb-eDs142x1UQ67ARtG8_TpYFtt5M3w0p3Lh1OMDqqTDLMtOeu44t9gDmtQw9UevygmEkhKyrcy_gK4xOISFlcdPWOo6MGpkrBXKve/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1501" data-original-width="1501" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZowuEffph9foGzYnyVKFG3myriNPivWA3Om3wAYBb-eDs142x1UQ67ARtG8_TpYFtt5M3w0p3Lh1OMDqqTDLMtOeu44t9gDmtQw9UevygmEkhKyrcy_gK4xOISFlcdPWOo6MGpkrBXKve/w200-h200/Nyckole-Lopez-ram-jams.jpeg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">The Strokes - The New Abnormal</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Who would have been looking forward to this veteran band’s new stuff? Me, never. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">When I was in a car, the lead track from The New Abnormal was aired on the radio and I thought it was interesting but I didn’t dig it at that moment. A few weeks later, I tried to listen to the whole album on Spotify and I was so shocked. The first track titled The Adults Are Talking sounds exactly how they've kept doing, but something is slightly different. I don’t know what it is. Then the second track, titled Selfless, which is my favorite one from this record, is totally awesome. The rest is also great to have a listen. I think they spent 20 years to make this masterpiece. You may think this is not The Strokes but this definitely is. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8PoOwW7cdHxPLzBUfGbrS3Iq1CBXb7nrxI81-hBL5FHBvGSjWt4X8qJiBbgys15OatkpU9zyILV_qRiI1jzBeMjogOigEjLsUdt7c1irKR1L8accZV3wT-Jg1CBiaRT53BJkAcmxjqU61/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8PoOwW7cdHxPLzBUfGbrS3Iq1CBXb7nrxI81-hBL5FHBvGSjWt4X8qJiBbgys15OatkpU9zyILV_qRiI1jzBeMjogOigEjLsUdt7c1irKR1L8accZV3wT-Jg1CBiaRT53BJkAcmxjqU61/w200-h200/a0943653219_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://disq.bandcamp.com/album/collector">Disq - Collector</a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">First I thought from its cover art and the name of the band that Disq was post punk/new wave somehow. It was all wrong I know. Disq is absolutely like something I’ve already known but the additional tone of synthesizer makes it a little bit different than what I know. Although their guitar driven emotional songs easily remind me of Weezer, they are very unique. If I was a teenager, Disq could be my heroes.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBWdIoLJzxfhWPCmIjL83yKKrhoblOm-K8DZVn0ktQyjTU1QD_-h3luNOuQu8s4WaQgrSs7PZuuqp9FO4TyCmnRRj4ln_gFlkVhUox7645wbQACuKUNz1TmzGW-C1cOELnagAawTFinLy2/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBWdIoLJzxfhWPCmIjL83yKKrhoblOm-K8DZVn0ktQyjTU1QD_-h3luNOuQu8s4WaQgrSs7PZuuqp9FO4TyCmnRRj4ln_gFlkVhUox7645wbQACuKUNz1TmzGW-C1cOELnagAawTFinLy2/w200-h200/545.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Kayoko Yoshizawa - Service Area</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">She’s simply my muse. This is her long awaited fourth single.</span></p></div></div></div>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-18947621005535195702019-08-08T14:22:00.000+09:002019-08-09T13:42:28.752+09:00Mariah and I listening to the new David Berman song in my living room, May 2019<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Can I listen to the new David Berman song again?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I first heard the news of David Berman’s death, my mind jumped back in time to May this year. I’m lounging around the living room of my house in Tokyo with my friend Mariah, who’s on tour in Japan at this time with her band The Male Gaze. David Berman has just released the song <i>All My Happiness is Gone</i> from his new project Purple Mountains, and Mariah wants to listen to it over and over again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Sure, if you want, but why do you need to listen to this one song so much?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“I’m trying to decode its lyrics.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mariah, like many people on and around Call And Response Records, is a massive fan of David Berman. When we’re out as a group, little clusters of them geek out in private conversations composed largely of Silver Jews lyrics, used in- or out-of-context, repurposed like memes towards the purposes of the topic at hand. I’m by no means a deep or hardcore fan, and it’s not necessarily an influence that finds its way onto the label’s output in any obvious formal way, but Berman’s music is part of the fabric that binds many of our artists and friends together on a human level. It’s impossible not to feel a share of their sadness at his death, because he is embedded in what makes us us as a group.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Back again in my living room, May 2019.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“What do you mean, ‘decode the lyrics’?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To me, the broad meaning of <i>All My Happiness is Gone</i> is pretty clear. It’s there in the title and repeated over and over again in the chorus. Mariah gives a kind of vague answer, but the underlying meaning is that she and I listen to music — and lyrics in particular — in different ways.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Obviously, there’s more to the song than just the title, and so I start wondering what it is that she is looking for. What it is that she’s trying to decode. To do this, I pull up a transcript of the lyrics and read them, and of course it’s much more richly layered — not obscure, but sometimes opaque, abstract, fragmentary, but all the while shot through with a tangible sense of melancholy, fear and loss.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It makes me think about how I listen to music.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Living in Japan suits my way of listening to music, I think. It’s a place where most lyrics are foreign sounds that I need to make a conscious effort to translate, but which it’s much easier to simply let fall back into the texture of the music. Even with songs sung in a language I understand instinctively and without need for effort or translation, I rarely consciously engage with the lyrics unless they are either exceptionally good or exceptionally bad. That’s not to say I don’t pay attention at all though. Rather, it’s that I let the words find me, often as individual phrases that fade briefly into clarity and then vanish. Music is constantly dragging me away from a place of consciousness and focus and into a liminal space between awareness and dream, so lyrics that demand my attention are often going to be at war with their own music in their fight for control of my mind.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is probably reflected in the kinds of lyricists I most enjoy — Mark E. Smith, Robert Pollard, Graham Lewis, Laetitia Sadier jump most quickly to mind. Their songs rarely insist on a meaning, or even seek explicitly to communicate one. They’re all lyricists whose talent lies in opaque yet evocative imagery, and an instinctive poetic sense of the power of this word over that to express something intangible through language. David Berman has a similarly deft hand with imagery as well, of course: it’s there on <i>All My Happiness is Gone</i> in phrases like <i>“snowcloud-shadowed interstates”</i> and <i>“the icy bike-chain rain of Portland, Oregon”</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The idea of focusing my will on a single song in a granular way and trying to decode feels in a way like an affront to the way I use and consume music. In order to engage with David Berman’s lyrics in anything like the way Mariah is, I needed to see them written down in front of me — that’s the division of labour between listening and reading in my brain (it's also the reason I never listen to radio, podcasts or voicemails).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That’s not to say Mariah is wrong. That sort of intense focus on a song also includes an insistence on experiencing the music and lyrics together as something indivisible. It’s a very pure way of listening, and in a way it’s one I agree with — after all, it’s where my own habit of listening passively and waiting for the words to find me ends up eventually anyway. Lyrics on paper alone are rarely great poetry: they are meant to be heard aloud, and often it is the singer’s ability to sell a line that completes its meaning. The structure, tempo, time signature, arrangement and production of a song can also help fill out or illuminate the words’ meaning — or undermine them, if that sort of tension is what the artist wants.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The mode of listening to a song over and over again, obsessing over its details, is an old fashioned one in a way. It’s the mode of listening to a 7-inch record, attention rapt and hand always ready to move the stylus back to the start. It’s ironic that the archetypally millennial Mariah is listening to the song in this way, while increasingly middle-aged me struggles to consume a song in a way other than the mode of an Extremely Online Twitter nerd, letting information flow through him passively.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While that’s a neat little ironical flourish, it perhaps also obscures what these two ways of extracting meaning from music are really dealing with, and that’s the problem of music and time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Music is fundamentally linear. It can underscore meaning or draw connections between different points in the song by repeating lyrical or musical phrases, but these are just mirrors and echoes: they do not fundamentally alter the inexorable passage of time that a song dances you through. Words on a page flatten time. Written in a linear fashion though they may be, we don’t really read them in that way. Our eyes jump back and forth, making and breaking connections between places all over the text, constructing meanings in a nonlinear fashion. Poetry is, in a sense, hypertextual in that words are not only words in themselves but also links to other places. In this sense, Mariah’s repeat listening of the song and my instinct to leap straight to the text are both recognitions of the deficiencies of time in how we decode meaning in music: she by keeping the text pure and whole and simply looping time over and over, immersing herself in the narrative as a function of time; me by detaching lyrics from the music and flattening out time in order to experience their meaning in a blast of interconnected words and images, then recombining with the music and thus restoring them to time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It feels strange that a line of thought that began with the news of David Berman’s death ended up wrapped up in ideas about the relationship between music and time. A little trite even, like it’s too neat a metaphor. Time is flat, and even if Berman is gone, his music is still here, <i>“hardships like yardsticks”</i> left in the ground. Time is a loop, and the music continues to cycle through, over and over again, accruing new meanings as we experience and share it in new and different contexts. Time is a straight line, and David Berman will never make another album.</span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-442846454135867182019-01-17T12:05:00.000+09:002019-01-17T12:05:24.451+09:00Happy New Year 2019!<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The new year is shaping up to be a hectic one for Call And Response, with a lot of new releases planned, including one to celebrate us reaching the 50-release milestone that in theory will mark the halfway point of the label’s existence. We also have a lot of events and tours lined up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last weekend, Velvet Ants played a fantastic set at Hiroshima Club Quattro alongside DMBQ at an event organised by the fabulous Jailbird Y. It’s rare that a show will bring a tear to my eye, but seeing them at a big venue like that, holding their own on a bill alongside noise-rock big boys like DMBQ was a moving experience. Velvet Ants have a show at Nagoya Bar Ripple on February 9th and they’re visiting Kanazawa for the first time in April.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next up, there’s CD-R Store Day at Koenji AMPcafe (and later at Green Apple) on January 20th. This isn’t strictly a Call And Response event, since it’s strictly DIY with no real involvement from labels. The idea is that a bunch of people make a CD-R featuring new or previously unreleased songs or remixes and gather together at a CD market to sell them for ¥500 a piece. I organised a similar event just over a year ago that went very well. This time round the response has been much less enthusiastic from artists, so this is probably the last time I’ll do it. There’s a lot of fun stuff involved and a diverse and interesting array of live performances though, so it’s going to be a lot of fun regardless. You can see info on the event’s <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/2431934650214171/">Facebook page</a> and on <a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/projects/cd-r-store-day-2019/">our homepage here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After that, the Call And Response Indie Disco is back and punkishly contorting itself with a lineup featuring our very own noise-punk riot grrrls P-iPLE, experimental punk lunatics neccc and fastcore psychos Telepashits. The party will take place on Monday February 4th at Shimokitazawa Three, 7:30pm open/start.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also in February, our avant-pop friends Miu Mau are visiting Tokyo for a slightly more melodic and restrained show at the always lovely Koenji Green Apple on Saturday February 23rd. They’ll be joined by Come To My Party and Kate Sikora, with hopefully one more act to be confirmed fairly soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Especially big news, though, is that stadium-synth-punks-in-waiting Jebiotto have a 7-inch vinyl single, “Get Down” coming out very soon. It’s coming out in the UK on February 8th, with copies starting to filter through to Japan soon after that, and will be a split with excellent Leeds-based postpunk band Treeboy & Arc in collaboration with Leeds-based label Come Play With Me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This release is going to kick off a year of loud, fast, heavy or just plain noisy shit from Call And Response — 2019 is going to be all about taking punk and twisting it into all sorts of fun new shapes as we move into the second half of the label’s planned lifespan as our catalogue numbers count down inexorably towards zero. I’m thinking of a new corporate slogan: “The more of our shit you buy, the faster the label can die.”</span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-76250466609352751662018-12-13T12:57:00.000+09:002018-12-13T12:57:39.240+09:00Tension!<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Call And Response business went on hold for a week over the end of November and beginning of December, as I was away at the fantastic Madeiradig experimental music festival in Madeira, Portugal, which mostly involved drinking beer with Germans, with the addition of a small amount of actual music.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hit the ground running upon my return, though, heading straight from the airport to a meeting with the guys from Tropical Death and a journalist from an inflight magazine who’s writing a feature on the Japanese underground music scene. I’m not sure what the crossover between underground music fans and inflight magazine readers is, but I guess there must be some. Writing about something as diverse and fragmented as Japanese underground music is an impossible task and I don’t envy him, but at least it’s a good excuse to see some cool shows and get drunk with some cool music people (and us).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next day, on December 8th, was the latest Tension! event that I organise with Mayumi from P-iPLE. The ideal balance with an event is always a difficult one to pull off, and I’ll take different approaches with different events.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">An interesting comparison for me is a show I went to couple of weeks previously at Koiwa Bushbash, where another organiser was holding a release party for a compilation cassette that she’d just released. Her event was broken up into two separate shows, the first opening in the morning and finishing in the afternoon, and the second opening around 6pm and finishing about 9:30pm. Each band at this Koiwa show played around 40 minutes, and they all had the chance to do a proper soundcheck, with the result being that a total of seven bands appeared, spread over about 10 hours, including a long break in the middle. I had to miss the evening show due to another engagement, but was able to catch Nagoya’s excellent Free City Noise in the afternoon show. In any case, this approach of seven acts with longer sets and full soundchecks was a very band-friendly scheduling environment (I’m not sure if the audience were expected to pay individually for both the afternoon and evening shows).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At Tension!, we had 14 live acts and three DJs over the course of eight hours. No one really had time to do a proper soundcheck except the first bands on each of the two stages we’d set up, the sets were all 25-30 minutes in length, and the whole event had a much more intense pace to it, with something going on somewhere nearly all the time. It’s obviously a less artist-friendly setup, although I think it also made for a more explosive (maybe a bit overwhelming for some) experience for the audience as a whole, which brings its own benefits for artists who rarely get to play to a packed crowd of such energised fans.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of the ways I sometimes describe Tension! is as a space where music of that postpunk/noise-rock type that I like can have its own scene rather than existing as an adjunct to either the punk, noise, indie or experimental scene — the overlapping area of a Venn diagram covering several different scenes. When I was in Madeira talking to people involved in experimental music in Europe, I also realised that what I was trying to do was promote music that has something experimental about it but treat it (and encourage the audience to treat it) as if it was just regular rock music.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While bands are usually excited to be playing outside their usual scenes, one problem with mixing things up in this way is that audiences don’t always follow, wither by avoiding the event or by sticking rigidly to only the bands they’re familiar with. The old alt-rock/underground crowd from places like Akihabara Club Goodman and Shinjuku Motion mostly steer clear of Tension!, although the event seems to be growing to the extent that increasingly we can ignore them without suffering for it. More serious is when people with different backgrounds fall into conflict. Noise and industrial fans are used to freaking out intensely in their own private and personal space, while hardcore fans treat their music as a more communal and aggressive experience, so throwing both these kinds of people together on the same floor without any established common etiquette can sometimes create friction. As a result, during Jailbird Y’s set there was a bit of aggro on the dance floor that fortunately didn’t flare up into anything too serious.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There was also a brief power outage in the main stage area that interrupted Tropical Death’s set, although the excellent Moonstep staff sorted it out swiftly (despite punters needing to pee in the dark for a while). Melt-Banana brought the event to an ecstatic finale, and once again I can’t emphasise enough what fantastic performers they are and what thoroughly nice people.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All in all, the night was a big success, so thanks to Naoki and the rest of the Moonstep staff, big thanks to Melt-Banana for being such fantastic headliners as always, and special thanks to all the bands who travelled so far to take part -- Adrena Adrena from the UK, Lumi from France, Jailbird Y from Hiroshima and Velvet Ants from Nagoya. Also thanks to Soloist Anti Pop Totalization, who played two shows in one day, as well as the "Yokoscum" event in Kanagawa who kindly co-ordinated the schedules of Soloist and some other musicians who were playing at both shows with us despite our two events being rivals of a sort. That sort of intra-scene support and good will always leaves a warm feeling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Events this packed and intense are difficult to organise and really exhausting, so it’ll be a long time before we do something like this again, but our regular programme of smaller, accessible parties will be back in full swing in the new year. Also, since there aren’t any new Call And Response releases for a while, we’re bringing a few of our friends’ albums into the online store soon, and there are some big discounts planned on CAR releases over the year-end period — more to be announced on that soon.</span><br />
<br />dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-51820421694364447422018-11-27T17:59:00.000+09:002018-11-27T18:00:37.129+09:00Season's Beatings<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Christmas and New Year season is a time when a combination of so many other people doing events and a lot of friends going on holiday or visiting their hometowns or home countries makes organising events and releasing new music a bad idea. Even so, the end of every year seems to end up with an overabundance of parties and events despite our best efforts to avoid them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next pay-what-you-want Call And Response Indie Disco at Shimokitazawa Three falls on December 3rd, a day when I’m out of the country on the Portuguese island of Madeira for the fascinating-looking MadeiraDIG experimental music festival. In my absence, Rally/Shingo from Tropical Death and Ralouf/Julien from Lo-shi are taking care of the booking and organising for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Paris Death Hilton are a duo Shingo in particular has been pushing a lot recently, and their intense, instrumental prog-electro-hardcore is a unique and intense experience in Tokyo right now. Emulsion are another band who combine progressive rock, electronic music and a punk sensibility, although they take it to a different place. Meanwhile La Belles Biologie is a project combining the experimental electronic sounds of Biology of the Future and doll-mutilating noise act Les Belles Noiseuses. I trust those two guys not to mess it up, but as a precaution I’m turning off my phone for the weekend prior.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On December 8th, I’ve got the latest instalment of the postpunk/noise-rock event Tension! that I organise occasionally with Mayumi from P-iPLE. This sixth edition of the event has an extensive lineup running all day at <a href="http://wall-moonstep.com/moon/top.html">Nakano Moonstep</a> — a very nice venue near where I live in Koenji. The cool thing about Moonstep is that it has two floors, with the bar on the upper floor, allowing us to set up something more easygoing where people can escape from the relentless barrage of chaos downstairs.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The flipside of that is that it’s difficult for just two people to juggle the competing needs and issues of so many participants, so right up to the time doors open, I suspect Mayumi and I will be dealing with equipment and setting issues, timetable queries and last-minute disruptions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The really good thing about Tension!, though, is how into it so many of the artists we’ve had participate in the past have got, volunteering to help host editions of the event in their own towns and building connections, organising similar events of their own in collaboration with each other. This sort of noise-rock/postpunk music doesn’t quite have a scene of its own in Japan, so it’s great seeing people trying to make one. The support of more well-known bands like Melt-Banana was invaluable in helping us get started back at the beginning of 2016, so we’re very excited to have them back almost three years later for this edition.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tension! will also be a great chance for people in Tokyo to see Nagoya noise-rock champions Velvet Ants, whose mini-album <i>Entomological Souvenirs I</i> came out this autumn from Call And Response. They tore it up at their Nagoya release party in October and we were able to stitch together this rough & ready music video for the track Cicada from live footage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Closer to Christmas, we’re keeping things a bit quieter, and for the first time in a long time, there’s no Call And Response Christmas event. Instead, we’re having a more intimate house party — more a “bonenkai” in the Japanese tradition than a Christmas party exactly — at Call And Response headquarters.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That doesn’t mean there’s nothing going on around the year’s end though. Last summer, Gotal/Eric from Lo-shi moved to Tahiti at the end of a triumphant DIY tour of western Japan, but he’s returning for a handful of shows over Christmas and New Year. More info on dates will appear later, but for now, keep December 24th and January 6th free in your rolodexes or Apple Newtons or whatever you kids use to store information nowadays.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">New Year’s Eve in Tokyo is usually a bit of a bust in the music scene for me, because so many parties mean that my friends and favourite bands are always fragmented and spread around dozens of different parties. To save the inevitable sense of anticlimax, my wife and I are going to spend a few days in Okinawa and then spend the last two nights of 2018 with our friends in Fukuoka, where I’m DJing two nights on at the venue <a href="http://utero.jp/">Utero</a> on December 30th and 31st.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lastly, while there are no more releases lined up for the rest of the year, I’ve noticed recently that Nakigao Twintail’s wonderful 2016 <i>Ichijiku</i> EP is almost sold out now. There are ten copies left in the CAR office, and maybe one or two floating around in CD stores somewhere. The band themselves disintegrated a long time ago, as all great and promising bands are wont to do, so this CD-R is probably the only chance you’ll get to experience this singular group of lunatics. Check out some of the songs below, and <a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/%E6%B3%A3%E3%81%8D%E9%A1%94%E3%83%84%E3%82%A4%E3%83%B3%E3%83%86%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AB-nakigao-twintail-%E3%82%A4%E3%83%81%E3%82%B8%E3%82%AF-ichijiku">you can buy the CD from our online store here</a>.</span>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/273576366&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true" width="100%"></iframe>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-47986595894450732842018-10-31T13:52:00.000+09:002018-10-31T13:52:51.354+09:00Foreign angles<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Growing as a band or as a label in Japan
can be a difficult and often dispiriting experience. Bands rehearse, write
songs and play shows week after week and yet never seem to get a foothold. The
paths to something greater seem few, and distant. However, looking overseas can
be one way of breaking this sense of inertia.</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This brings its own set of difficulties,
since the cost of physically travelling overseas and the short amounts of time
most Japanese musicians can take off work mean that foreign tours are only for
the very wealthy or very dedicated. Embarking on something as logistically challenging
as a tour isn’t the only way to reach out and keep things fresh though, and some
of us here in the CAR family are working on a few different projects at the
moment.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The most immediate one is a tour by US band
Pregnant, starting November 1<sup>st</sup> and which Shingo from Tropical Death
has (among others) been working hard to help set up and support.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pregnant (from USA) Japan Tour:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/1 Tokyo, Shimokitazawa Basement Bar, w/
Tropical Death, Bonstar<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/2 Tokyo, Akihabara Studio Revole, w/
1000s of Cats, Mekare-Kare<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/3 Tokyo, Shinjuku Ninespices, w/
Loolowningen & The Far East Idiots, Windowz<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/4 Tokyo, Kunitachi Chikyuya, w/ Tropical
Death, / Loolowningen & The Far East Idiots, Suppa Micro Pamchopp<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/7 Osaka, Namba Bears, w/ Los Oxxo Sexos,
Tokiyo (And Summer Club), Sou + Kanchenjunga<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/8 Fukuoka, Kokura TBA<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/9 Hiroshima 4.14, w/ Usagi Bunny Boy,
Uma-darake, Le Film, Shyboy<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The other angle we’ve been working is
setting up releases of a couple of split singles/EPs with overseas bands, although
as always with projects like this that have so many moving parts, it’s
difficult to know when is a safe time to announce any details. For now I’ll
just say that one is a vinyl single that we’re producing in collaboration with
a UK-based label, while the other will probably be a CD EP with another Asian
band. In both cases, releases early next year are most likely. As far as tours
supporting the releases go, they’re both under discussion and we’d love to do something
if possible, but let’s just see how that goes, alright?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Other news from CARland is that I’ve given
notice to quit one of my jobs in order to spend more time with writing and the
label – two activities that are becoming increasingly difficult to separate,
with all the problems that entails. Meanwhile, I’m DJing at about a hundred events
over the weekend (well, three), so if you’re not catching the Pregnant tour on
that particular day, by all means drop by.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/3 (evening) @ Koiwa Bushbash – Excellent
noise-rock event featuring Jailbird Y, In The Sun and more great bands.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/3 (night) @ Shibuya Lush – Another event
with a great looking lineup, which I’ll be joining at some insane hour of the
night/morning.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11/4 (evening) @ Roppongi VARIT. – A ‘90s-themed
DJ night featuring a pretty eclectic-looking range of DJs, at which I’ve
threatened to play a set composed entirely of Guided By Voices but probably won’t follow through.</span></span></div>
dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-56192417050341968722018-10-25T12:05:00.000+09:002018-10-25T12:05:40.369+09:00Experimental Cocktails<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To celebrate the release of the Velvet Ants’ debut album <i>Entomological Souvenirs I</i>, I took a trip to Nagoya the other weekend for the release party at Spazio Rita. Rita is a really nice venue — just a simple, open space with no raised area for the stage, so you can move around freely, without feeling cramped in the way you can in a place like the differently lovely Bar Ripple, where Call And Response’s last event in Nagoya was held in 2017.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The lineup Joe from Velvet Ants put together was superb as well, with the Sonic Youth-esque Free City Noise kicking the party off ferociously. Osaka-based experimental electronic duo Nehan were an interesting follow-up, while the always entertaining new wave/postpunk band Compact Club were visiting from Tokyo and the excellent Noiseconcrete x 3chi5 held things up from the Nagoya end.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hiroshima noise-rock maniacs Jailbird Y were also visiting, although they brought most of their band from Tokyo, including guitarist Mayumi from punk/no wave band P-iPLE, playing what I think might have been her first gig since having a baby in the summer. Mayumi is also my main collaborator on the Tension! events that we’ve been running on and off for the past couple of years, and the first thing she said to me after not seeing her in three months was, <i>“Let’s do Tension! in Taiwan!”</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’ve written on here before about how, maybe even more than the music, the thing that determines what artists I work with is whether they’re someone who is going to be a good experience to work with. With 95% of the people I know, when you suggest something to them, the first thing they start thinking of is reasons why they can’t do it, but with people like Mayumi, and Anndoe from Jailbird Y is like this as well, if you suggest something to them, the first thing they start thinking of is ways they can make it happen. I’m probably a bit more cautious than either of them, and I’m certainly very selective in who I choose to be enthusiastic with, but at least with people who are feeding me good energy, I try to respond positively in return. <i>“OK, let’s go to Taiwan!”</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Also joining me on the trip to Nagoya was Julien from Lo-shi, who I coaxed into coming by telling him, “It’s not a gig: it’s an adventure!” The day after the show, we went to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka prefecture to visit Sone Records — a really nice little record shop that’s been supportive of Call And Response in the past. I was pretty hung over and generally feeling icky, but Julien went straight for the chu-hi at the first convenience store we passed in the morning. We arrived in Hamamatsu only to find Sone Records wouldn’t be open for another four hours, and we quickly realised that Japanese cities with populations of less than one million people are wastelands on a Monday afternoon. The only place we could find that was open was Saizeriya, a cheap family restaurant mostly frequented by schoolkids, so we parked ourselves in there for a couple of hours and made experimental cocktails with the drink bar and the disgusting wine they serve.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The record store was a productive experience in the end though, and with the Velvet Ants heading to Hamamatsu the following weekend, it was good to get their CD in stock. Meanwhile, I came away with a trio of releases from excellent local Shizuoka bands Towel, Half Kill and Qujaku.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The other useful thing I was able to take away from this trip was a lot of video footage of the Velvet Ants live, which I’ll soon hopefully be able to cut together into a music video. I’m also working on an music video for Sea Level, whose album came out on CD in July and who have recently made it <a href="https://sealeveljapan.bandcamp.co/">available</a> via various <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/jp/album/dictionary-handwritten/1438972275">online</a> and <a href="https://open.spotify.com/album/0QLH6qCjpUZrNdiaJXTiiM?si=96XYwJNARFqCkOLfnkRDAQ">streaming</a> outlets. While the Velvet Ants video should come together fairly quickly once I start, the Sea Level video is all being done with animation, which is inevitably a slow, tedious process. At the same time, though, there’s something calming about all the mechanical repetition it involves, and it gives me an opportunity to listen to a lot of music in the background, which is something I don’t usually feel like doing when I’m at home.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We’re also working on a couple of new releases, both of which are trapped in a spiral of interminable delays, but which I’ll hopefully be able to talk more about soon. </span><br />
<br />dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-32310914990995976732018-09-28T13:17:00.000+09:002018-09-28T13:17:47.419+09:00People are the weather<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While I tend to describe the range of activities I do with Call And Response collectively as “doing music”, obviously I’m not personally making music most of the time. Most of the work with this label is dealing with people, and the extent to which I’m ever able to get anything done is really down to my ability to coax other people in a foreign language into doing things, usually for no money.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After nearly 15 years of putting on events in Tokyo and around Japan, the process is smoother and better-organised than it used to be, but it’s not always like that. These days, most of the vents I’m involved with run on a more or less regular timetable, with the Fashion Crisis DJ parties in Koenji happening on the first Friday of every odd-numbered month when possible, and the Call And Response Indie Disco nights happening in Shimokitazawa Three on the first Monday of every month. The advantage of a regular schedule is that you always know when you’ve got something coming up and you can fall into a rhythm, but the downside is that it’s a fixed deadline constantly bearing down on you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the things I really appreciate about organising music events in Japan is that when someone says they’ll do something, they nearly always will. I remember trying to book some shows for a Japanese band in the UK and one London venue cancelling the event a few days before simply because someone else had offered more money — that would never happen in Japan. Bands, too, are usually pretty reliable about following through on commitments and if a band cancels, it’s usually because of extreme sickness or a family death.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next Call And Response Indie Disco, which is happening on October 1st at Shimokitazawa Three, wasn’t a smooth process. Partly this is because I got overwhelmed by dealing with new releases and plans for a big event in December. Partly it’s because two of the bands I invited were people I knew would take ages to get back to me with what would probably be a negative answer. Partly it’s because one of the bands I did confirm managed to cancel, then sort of un-cancel, and then cancel again, leaving me desperately floundering around for a replacement with the clock rapidly running out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In situations like these, you have to be zen about the situation. Bands being unreliable or flaky isn’t something you as an organiser can control, so you have to sort of take a deep breath and repeat to yourself, “People are the weather.” You can recognise the signs and dress appropriately, but you can’t prevent it from raining if that’s what it wants to do. Part of the problem I had with this event is that I didn’t dress appropriately and thus got caught in the downpour.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another part of the problem is that musicians will usually give you the most polite excuse (work, schedule conflicts, etc.) and never tell you if the real underlying reason is simply, “We’ve judged that your party isn’t high enough status for where we think we should be at this time,” or just, “We can’t be bothered.” I was talking with another event organiser the other week and I remarked to her that if the same artist turns me down three times in a row, I basically won’t invite them a fourth time (at least not for a very long time) and she responded enthusiastically, “Yes, exactly that. I know exactly how you feel.” Another organiser I spoke to last weekend said something similar. On any given day, there might be very good reasons why someone can’t play your show, and second time might be bad luck, but if it’s three times, an artist probably just isn’t serious about the kind of thing you’re offering. If you’re a musician, you should probably know that this is how a lot of organisers think.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the other hand, if someone is easy and smooth to work with, and treats organisers with respect and without bringing a lot of ego to the table, they’ll get a good reputation that will spread (organisers talk to each other, and we absolutely talk shit on bands who dick us about). After the cancellation for the October 1st show, I was rescued by the fantastic Transkam, who make this kind of groove-centred post-rock with psychedelic layers of delay loops. Joining them will be postpunk duo Demon Altar, who have recently emerged from the ashes of the excellent You Got A Radio, and minimal synth/EBM/industrial artist Soloist Anti Pop Totalization. DJs m87 aka Everywhereman and Yuko Araki from tribal psychedelic trio Kuunatic are joining me spinning tunes, so finally, after all the hassle, it’s shaped up very satisfyingly for me. I’m glad the process isn’t always like this though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiImcgmv0MDBGWVjaClbMTh9QLa8zKo_AFAWAATe263cfYFEaas_BnmZ7nP73PXE_G-dEYnRDxNVQSS5VQP3raBwZp8EQ4lMxmv7_MJ9cInTV9K4B28Ea7GJL5C8LxB6ZGTyw2L3T9TxRXA/s1600/181001.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiImcgmv0MDBGWVjaClbMTh9QLa8zKo_AFAWAATe263cfYFEaas_BnmZ7nP73PXE_G-dEYnRDxNVQSS5VQP3raBwZp8EQ4lMxmv7_MJ9cInTV9K4B28Ea7GJL5C8LxB6ZGTyw2L3T9TxRXA/s320/181001.png" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In other label news, the Velvet Ants album <i>Entomological Souvenirs I</i> is <a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/velvet-ants-entomological-souvenirs-i">now up on the Call And Response online store</a> after a short delay, and we’ll ship it anywhere in the world. The band are playing a release party in Nagoya on October 14th and they’ll be in Tokyo on December 8th for that big show I mentioned earlier, so mark that in your diaries if you’re in the area.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We’ve also got all the tracks in for a very cool new EP that should be out before the end of the year, but I’ll keep that under my hat for a while and make an announcement soon.</span><br />
<br />dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-34673005000622657252018-09-26T14:48:00.000+09:002018-09-26T14:48:22.256+09:00Sound is a weapon<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Tokyo neighbourhood where a lot of the
Call And Response scene live and where we mostly hang out is Koenji, a few stops
to the west of Shinjuku. It’s got a reputation as a cool area with a lot of
interesting stuff going on, but it suffers from the same problem that cool
areas everywhere have in that it’s an attractive area for property developers
and all the destruction they bring.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On a micro level, my wife and I moved house
last year and already the two beautiful, old houses next door to us have been
torn down and replaced with ugly, anonymous flats. On a far larger scale, the
local authorities are using the issue of access for emergency vehicles as an
excuse to rear a gaping wound through the centre of the town’s north side,
destroying many of the local shops and oddball culture that thrives there.
Needless to say, the form of this development was not decided in cooperation
with residents or local business owners, but builders of luxury condos are
happily eyeing the destruction.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a result, I joined a small crowd of
local weirdos in a protest march on Sunday, beginning with speeches by local activists
and politicians, plus sympathetic voices from similar local protest movements elsewhere
in Japan and throughout Asia and a star appearance from philosopher/critic
Kojin Karatani. The second stage was a march together with live punk and psychedelic
bands on the back of a truck, jostled and shoved by an extraordinary and highly
excessive turnout of cops.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One friend of mine remarked on how the freaky
fashion and style of most of the protestors wasn’t going to change any straight
folk’s minds about the issue being addressed, but I suspect that’s not the
point. The sound trucks that blast right wing music through Tokyo or the trucks
endlessly repeating politicians’ names at election time aren’t trying to
persuade anyone either. Their only function is to say, “We are here and this is
our turf: notice us.” The kind of music the bands on the truck were playing is
usually banished to soundproofed basements, so hearing it blasting out proudly
through the streets was a powerful experience for many of the people involved.
It was our time to come out of the shadows and remind the world of our
existence, and maybe even power. The massing of cops had the same function: it
was to make a statement of power and control over us and let the neighbourhood
know that they had us outnumbered and outgunned. Towards the end of the march,
as we returned to the staging ground in Koenji Central Park (for Haruki
Murakami fans, that’s the park from 1Q84), the cops took to shouting out their
instructions of “Three in a row, move on!” on mass, like a mantra, attempting
to drown out the chants of the protestors and the band. Sound is a weapon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The protest organisers, the Shiroto no Ran
collective, pitched the protest partly as a way of protecting the central appeal
of Koenji to foreign visitors, but there were few foreigners involved in the
protest. That’s probably for the best, since people who are visibly (and
therefore voters) really should be the most visible face of the movement.
Still, some of us started plotting things the foreign community in the area
could contribute by way of propaganda or fundraising. I dropped by a local art
space called TKA4 that recently opened up near my house and where a protest
after-party was happening, where I to the owner and some other jubilant
post-protest revellers, and even if we lose, the connections these protests help
forge can in the long term be their most important benefit.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The protest was also pitched very strongly
as a protest against gentrification, and one of the concerns I’ve had over the
years is that the presence of me and people like me here has been in part a
gentrifying one. It’s hard to put my finger on exactly why, but perhaps in internationalizing
the area we’ve diluted some of its own weird culture. Hopefully, I’ve been able
to mix it in with enough weird culture of my own, and it remains a guiding
principle that I always try to make sure I contribute at least as much as I
gain from my neighbourhood.</span></span></div>
dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-80995666817531670572018-09-25T13:03:00.000+09:002018-09-25T13:11:26.477+09:00A bit of an edge<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last Thursday was a rare day where I was absorbed entirely with music, as I’d been asked to give a series of talks about Japanese music to my friend Matthew’s students at the university where he teaches. My book and some of my articles are used as course texts by his students, and they often engage in interesting ways with the subject. On this occasion, I was talking to three different classes and spent most of the first couple of classes playing videos of old idol music and picking apart things like the costumes, choreography, musical style and fan dynamics to build up a story about how this aspect of pop culture has developed. That said, the first class started at 8AM, so I decided to wake them up by blasting a minute or so (which is to say, basically a full live set) by Osaka noise weirdo Masonna. By the end of the day, I was sick of the idol stuff, so I looped back round to oddball underground and noise material, probably boring the students stupid with my meandering rambling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of the topics that came up was the way idols use indie/alternative musicians to give their garbage music a bit of an edge, with a recent example being former Number Girl guitarist and current Toddle main person Hisako Tabuchi, who is all over some new song by BiSH. I’d come across it a few days before when I found my wife listening to it online, and it's fine but didn’t really do anything for me. I just find the whole way the idol scene uses people like Tabuchi kind of parasitical and gimmicky. I wonder what would happen if someone offered a Call And Response act the chance to work with an idol group, and I guess my own position would be that they’re free to do whatever they want, but it’s not something I’d be comfortable with.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few years ago, it was pretty common for indie organisers and bands to invite idol groups onto the bills of their events, but that seems to happen less often now. One reason for that is that idol groups’ fans don’t really engage with other kinds of music. They’ll come to the show, watch the act they came for, doing their creepy coordinated dancing and chanting, and then go outside to queue up and get photos with the girls. Yeah, the event gets their money, but it’s a relationship that doesn’t leave any positive lasting mark on the indie scene. I can understand why indie musicians collaborate with idols, but I nearly always lose a little bit of respect for them when they do. If you’re going to work with an idol group, just do like Yasutaka Nakata and Perfume, write a great pop song and leave it at that — spare me the bullshit fauxternative trimmings.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After the class, I dashed off to Shindaita to see a terrific trio of bands — DMBQ, Crypt City and Panicsmile. I unexpectedly ran into Kaz from Velvet Ants, who had taken the bus up from Nagoya just for the gig, and since Shinji from DMBQ had recorded <a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/releases/velvet-ants-entomological-souvenirs-i/">the Velvet Ants album</a>, we met up with him afterwards to give him a copy of the CD. Meanwhile, Crypt City bassist Kentaro Nakao (also formerly of Number Girl) was one of the people I interviewed for my book, and this was the first time we’d met since then. Ryotaro from Looprider was there as well, so he, Kentaro and I had a brief chat about the state of the Netflix corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (I’m a snob about idols, but have no shame about comicbook crap — season 2 of <i>Iron Fist</i> was good, so shut up!</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">) I’ve always felt Crypt City are a good example of the kind of thing a band like Looprider could look towards in the sense that they’re doing something vaguely similar in taking metal influences and approaching it with an alt-rock sensibility, and the fact that they’re achieving a certain level of success that usually escapes people in our scene. Just being able to look at someone doing something similar to you, with no obvious creative compromises, and see them escaping the underground ghetto even slightly gives you a bit of hope.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For me, meanwhile, Panicsmile are one of the bands I admire most in Japan. It’s cool, intelligent music with raw, jittery, awkward dynamics. They’ve been around for ages in various incarnations, but they’ve always been interesting and satisfyingly strange, like a postpunk Captain Beefheart. They contributed a song to the <i><a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/releases/various-artists-throw-away-your-cds-go-out-to-a-show/">Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show</a></i> compilation Call And Response released last year (sold out from our online store, but there are still a few copies knocking around record shops and among the bands), as well as the <a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/va-post-flag"><i>Post Flag</i> Wire tribute album</a> we released ten years ago (I keep surprising myself at how long this ridiculous label has been going!) A student attending one of my talks earlier had asked who my favourite Japanese band was and I’d answered, without pause, “Hikashu,” but I could just as easily have said Panicsmile.</span><iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jYjziVpc_pU" width="400"></iframe>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-30959141592449526732018-09-18T17:36:00.000+09:002018-09-18T17:37:43.312+09:00Getting fresh<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last Saturday saw a couple of CAR bands stepping out live on opposite sides of Tokyo, so I headed out east to Akihabara to see synth-punk trio Jebiotto in the afternoon, who were playing a memorial event to the melodramatic, ultra-glam synth-kayokyoku nonsense of Techma, who died suddenly and unexpectedly a couple of summers ago.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I wasn’t particularly close friends with Techma, although we certainly knew each other, and he had played at one of my events many years ago. Tsuchi, the guitarist from Jebiotto, was a big fan though, and you could tell he was affected by it, so it was nice of the organisers to invite Jebiotto to play the event. Most of the lineup was composed of Techma’s old friends going back 20 years, though. When I started going to Goodman regularly around 10-12 years ago, I was a late arriver to a scene where the network of friends and relationships was already established, so the party was very much about people who are now deeply immersed in middle age wrapping themselves up in memories. Obviously, as a memorial to a dead friend, it was entirely appropriate that a powerful sense of nostalgia hung over the event.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I didn’t stay long though, because over on the other side of town, at the new venue Jam in Nishi-Eifuku, Tropical Death had an event, so I dashed over there as soon as Jebiotto departed the stage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, Jam isn’t strictly a new venue, since there was an old Jam in Shinjuku that closed down several months ago. The new venue feels like a completely different place with different staff, a different system, a totally different layout, and much bigger. It really just felt like the owners, rehearsal studio chain Rinky Dink Studios, were just leveraging the brand and reputation of the old venue for a completely unrelated venture.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What Tropical Death seem to have been aiming for with their event, entitled “Fresh off the Boat”, was to try to point a way forward, looking for a way of breaking the sense of stalemate that can pervade the Tokyo music scene. They were joined as co-organisers by Fukuoka post-rock band Macmanaman, whose bassist Takeshi Yamamoto also plays guitar in Sea Level, who put out the excellent album <i><a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/releases/sea-level-dictionary-handwritten/">Dictionary (Handwritten)</a></i> through Call And Response in July. The Sea Level release party and the Macmanaman/Tropical Death show last Saturday had a few things in common, in that they both sought to mix electronic and more conventionally “rock” music (sometimes within the same band, as in Paris Death Hilton's explosive electro squalls), and put varying emphasis on DJs as an important part of the overall mix of the event.</span><br />
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/455332320&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true" width="100%"></iframe> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Of course “freshness” and “youth” aren’t necessarily the same thing, and I think we ought to be wary of conflating them. Young musicians produce some of the most derivative music out there, and it can take a long time for them to really find their own voices. Still, as we get older, we tend to bring a crowd of our contemporaries with us, and breaking through generational boundaries should be part of keeping a scene lively.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Breaking through national boundaries should as well, so having the excellent Escuri from the Philippines playing, both solo and as part of a session including turntable-noise maestro DJ Memai, and members of progressive rock collective Musqis and Kansai-based art-punk band LLRR, was great. That said, I get a lot of emails from foreign bands asking for my help with their Japan tours, and, while I do listen to everything people send me, my main priority is still finding new local bands I can form a long-lasting relationship with. As a result, most of the overseas requests that land in my inbox fall by the wayside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With the release of the first Velvet Ants album, <i><a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/releases/velvet-ants-entomological-souvenirs-i/">Entomological Souvenirs I</a></i>, tomorrow, I’ve naturally been fretting about that a lot too, sending out emails to record stores, media and suchlike. As I’ve mentioned before, getting taken seriously by record stores is a painful and usually futile struggle, but the only way that situation is going to change is if people actually go to stores and buy the stuff we (and other small labels like us) release. You’re helping keep record stores alive, and you’re also helping keep a vital lifeline open for artists and labels to reach outside their immediate circles of friends or the quid-pro-quo circle of purchases that goes on among musicians themselves.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you’re in Nagoya, where the Velvet Ants are from, File-Under Records is a great record store and is I think the only place in town carrying the album. In Tokyo, my distributor tells me Disk Union ordered it although I have no information on which specific branches. Hopefully, there will be a couple more outlets soon.</span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-11934214088186406522018-09-13T17:06:00.001+09:002018-09-13T17:13:47.273+09:00Insects<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After a hectic weekend, it’s been a quiet few days here at Call And Response, with me mostly focusing on writing some articles and making preparations for the new album by Nagoya-based noise-rock band Velvet Ants.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’ve started using the term “noise-rock” more these days because all the other words people use to describe the kinds of music Call And Response deals in are such a jumble of overlapping terms and hardly anyone really knows what any of them mean. How is postpunk different from no wave? How much overlap is there between post-rock, math rock and post-hardcore? We end up piling on new terms to the point where it becomes incomprehensible. Noise-rock, on the other hand, is at least pretty simple in comparison: it recognisably contains some of the features of rock music, but it has a noisier, more dissonant take on them. All I need to do now is get the rest of the world, or at least Japan, to join me in making all our lives a bit easier and less complicated.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anyway, <a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/releases/velvet-ants-entomological-souvenirs-i/">the Velvet Ants album is called Entomological Souvenirs I</a>, named after the series of insect studies by French naturalist Jean Henri Fabre. The band developed the six tracks through a series of jam sessions, but as the album came together decided that each track could be seen as expressing the feeling of a different kind of bug. Perhaps feeding into this is the fact that the band have two guitarists but no bassist, which gives their music a spindly edge, tilted towards treble and mid (although plenty heavy when they want to be). I posted a sample track from it on Soundcloud a couple of weeks ago, initially mis-labelling it Centipede before the band noticed that the track was actually Wasp. It covers a good range of the band’s sound anyway, so I think it’s a pretty solid introduction to them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Since they don’t have a music video yet, I decided to make a short preview or trailer of the album to give people a sense of what’s going on in it and to give the band something to share. Initially, what I thought of doing was downloading clips of the relevant insects and using them to represent the tracks. I did a quick search of “centipede” and just glancing at the first page of results made it pretty clear that anyone even slightly squeamish about terrifying, many-limbed insects, arachnoids and whatevers was going to have a hard time with a fully bug-focused video.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Instead, I decided to take a more oblique approach, digging out clips of machines that to me evoked in some way each track’s patron insect. The final track, Cicada, was the most difficult one for me, because I suspect a lot of people (at least in the UK, where I’m from, don’t really have a clear image of what a cicada looks like. They’re just sort of oval shaped and their main defining feature is the constant, screeching noise they make, so I went with something that looks like it sounds like a cicada, if that makes sense. Anyway, here’s the video:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The current stage of the process with the album is the most depressing one though. With the release next week, I’m currently at the final stage of hassling uninterested record/CD shops to stock my stuff and feeling every unreturned email and rejection as a personal rejection of Call And Response’s whole project. Anyway, that whole process is an ongoing battle and one I don’t have the option of opting out of, being basically the only staff of the label. If I ever quit music, it’ll be record stores who drive me to it though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the positive side, the Velvet Ants release party at Nagoya Spazio Rita looks like being an excellent event. I’m planning on taking an overnight trip there to celebrate with them. The fantastic and brutal Jailbird Y are coming from Hiroshima, spindly new wave oddballs Compact Club are heading over from Tokyo, fantastic local Nagoya bands Free City Noise and Noiseconcrete x 3chi5 are also playing, along with Osaka-based Nehan, who are the only band I don’t know in the lineup and am thus very interested in seeing. Meanwhile, the Tokyo show they’re playing in December is shaping up to be epic.</span><br />
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<br />dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-89457874395187758002018-09-11T12:20:00.000+09:002018-09-11T12:20:37.647+09:00The sweet spot<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next big thing on the Call And Response calendar is the event Tropical Death are organising at the new Jam in Nishi-Eifuku. I met up for some yakitori in Koenji with bassist Shingo and guitar/vocal Eugene last week, along with visiting Filipino sound artist Escuri, who’s staying in Yokohama for a couple of months to do a sort of artist residency.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the things we talked about was the perennial issue that dogs event organisers: what order to put the acts in. There are often unspoken assumptions that certain bands by virtue of seniority get the sweeter spots, and you risk offending them if you drop them below a newer band on the bill. At the same time, though, if you’ve got bands travelling a long way to play, you don’t want to bury them in a quiet slot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s also audience behaviour to consider. If the event’s an all-nighter, it’ll likely climax somewhere around 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning and then fade out towards the end, but if it’s an evening event, it’ll tend to build to a climax right at the end.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then there’s the kinds of bands on the bill. At least chez CAR, we try to avoid putting bands who are too similar on back to back. Especially if a band is doing one thing in a particularly intense way, you’ll often want another band to work as a palette cleanser between them and anything else slightly similar.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, you have to consider all the annoying but inevitable requirements bands themselves will drop on you, insisting that you organise the timetable around their job schedules, or members booking other gigs with different bands on the same day and trying to juggle both shows.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Talking to Tropical Death, the bands at their event seemed pretty cool about what times they played, so it was just a case of shuffling the pieces round like Tetris pieces or a tile game until the picture looked right. However the lineup ends up going, it should be a pretty sweet event anyway, with post-rock lunatics Macmanaman coming down from Fukuoka, local electro-punk-noise duo Paris Death Hilton, progressive rock collective Musqis, as well as the man Escuri. A chaotic-looking agglomeration of artists are going to do a jam session as well, which is usually an absolutely horrible idea, but hey, it might be good this time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Fashion Crisis event on Friday the 7th was weirdly well attended, partly due to our buddy Comicbook Sean (not to be confused with Sean Drums and Indiepop Sean) celebrating his birthday at the same event. It passed through several party stages, including karaoke with a random weird old guy we picked up in a bar, and ended with me and Julien from Lo-shi flaked out on my sofa, listening to Deserters’ Songs by Mercury Rev and making bold, nonsensical pronouncements about the death of music.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Naturally Saturday was a write-off, while on Sunday my wife and I let some fashionable young musicians use our house as a photo studio (we have a cinema screen and projector, so they were able to do funky things with video projections). Listening to these kids and their promoter buddy talking afterwards was educational and a reminder that even the faintest connection to the music industry proper puts you in contact with a very different world to the basement-dwelling underground scene that’s my normal. They’d casually drop the names of popular record labels or bands whose names are jokes to most of my friends because their world seems so inaccessible. One of them asked me what sort of music I’m into and I said something contrarian like, “In an ideal world, all music would sound like a cross between This Heat and Red Transistor.” They just blinked at me and changed the topic.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s a very visible change that happens when music steps into the “music industry” sphere (which includes larger indie labels as well as the majors) and you can see it in the fashion and music videos. You can tell when a band isn’t choosing their own clothes anymore, and often what happens is that suddenly everything in their videos is either in slow motion or shot with all fast cuts with that high-contrast, metallic sheen and maybe a wind machine. It looks like total garbage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the musicians was getting bombarded with offers from record labels and fashion brands but had so far resisted them, preferring to do things themselves, while the other had signed with a large-ish indie. Typically, what musicians who don’t want to fall into the homogenising J-Pop trap aim to do is work with overseas producers and sign with a foreign label — ideally one in the UK or US. It doesn’t always work though, because the bands most enamoured with, for example, British music tend to be the ones who offer the least to a British label that they can’t find from a hundred local bands. Something that conforms to the brightly-coloured, energetic and (sorry) “wacky” Japanese stereotypes that still persist in the west stands a far better chance, as evidenced by how the good but annoying Chai were able to sign with UK label Heavenly recently.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The whole conversation left me a bit dazed though, to be honest. Bands fretting over whether this gig or that gig is the right direction for them, whether such-and-such a band is the right band for them to share a bill with, scheduling out their releases to best manage media interest, planning out their careers like military operations, none of it sounds fun and the deeper involved in the industry an artist gets, the less they look like they’re having fun when you see them play (or if they do, it’s with the glazed smiles of trained salesmen).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All of which sounds quite negative, although these were some cool bands that I’m very fond of. However, as a window into a way of thinking that’s normal for a lot of people, it definitely reminded me of how naive and simplistic the way I and a lot of the artists I work with think is.</span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-16713421341707945442018-09-05T19:22:00.000+09:002018-09-05T19:22:15.300+09:00Strasbourg<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was out on the east side of Tokyo again on Monday, meeting up with Julien “Vieux Ralouf” from ambient/post-rock/electronic duo Lo-shi and doing some meandering urban exploration, fuelled by a couple of beers from the convenience store. It took us through the neighbourhoods of Minowa, Uguisudani, Ueno and then finally Akihabara, where there was a show at Club Goodman that evening.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Julien’s co-conspirator in Lo-shi, Eric “Gotal” Fournier moved to Tahiti in July, putting the band in a kind of uncertain place, so ever since then, Julien and I have been recording hours upon hours of synth- and theremin-based “punk-ambient” jams at The Boathouse (my house in Koenji) under the name Citizens Of The Eternal Psychic Strasbourg (just Strasbourg for short). The name is a kind of reflection of the precarious, unmoored state of existence we find ourselves in, firstly as foreigners in a country like Japan, but also more generally as kind of spirits in the immaterial world. Much of what goes on in the Strasbourg sessions is jokes, juxtaposing the pretty-bordering-on-cheesy sonic textures of the music with samples from an eclectic and nonsensical range of sources. At the same time, though, we’ve been watching videos of Iain Sinclair’s discussions of the psychogeography of London and thinking about how that applies to Tokyo — in particular the idea that while each generation has typically left their mark on the fabric of the city, the culture created by the internet age doesn’t carve itself into the physical matter of the city in the same way. Perhaps the two of us, sitting in my living room, making electronic music and stealing samples of old TV shows and adverts off YouTube, are an embodiment of that issue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Strasbourg itself is a strange city, nominally French but also deeply Germanic, and that dual nature is what attracts us to it. A lot of the work I’ve been involved in recently seems to touch on this sense of being in-yet-not-in, in terms of identity. I did a bunch of interviews with musicians on Call And Response early in 2018 with the idea of synthesising them into a semi-fictional documentary script about the relationship between artist and audience. Whether that comes about is anyone’s guess, but when I was writing the script, it became clear that there was a subsidiary theme of making art while dislocated in some way from the culture in which you’re making it. Bands like Looprider and Tropical Death include musicians who are either Japanese people who have been raised for part of their lives abroad or foreign musicians who have moved to Japan. The members of Lo-shi are both French musicians who moved to Tokyo. I’m another immigrant, of course, and throughout the interviews, it became clear that this sense of being in-yet-out influenced the way many of us use music in order to construct a sense of belonging for ourselves, artificial as that might seem.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The show at Goodman was an interesting lineup, featuring a mutual pal of mine and Julien’s, Marc Lowe — another dislocated foreigner, from the USA via Fukuoka, who was delivering his synth-based, industrial-flecked art-rock dramatics to a Tokyo audience for the first time. There were also excellent sets from noise duo Apocalypto, operatic indie songwriter Mamoru from Nhhmbase, postpunk/post-hardcore agitation from bahAMaba, and theatrical noise from Drugondragon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The following night I was DJing at a very nice little venue called Varit. in Roppongi. Now Roppongi is one of those places it’s usually pretty difficult to get my friends to come out to, not because it’s a difficult location exactly (although there’s a pretty good general rule that anywhere inside the Yamanote Line rail loop is kind of uncool) but because Roppongi has such a bad reputation for attracting all the worst kinds of people. As I say though, Varit. is a very nice place and I always have a lot of fun DJing there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was joined this time by Tsuchi, guitarist from synth-punk trio Jebiotto, and my mate Fidel 500. There wasn’t much of a crowd — even the organiser had to pull a sickie, and a lot of people shied clear in fear of the typhoon that had just destroyed Osaka — but we’ve experienced enough of these ill-attended stormy nights that we know how to make our own fun. I forgot the splitter cable that I usually use to DJ off my iPad (I know DJing vinyl is cooler, but when I can bring 600 albums with me in one little slab of plastic, there’s no comparison) but Tsuchi introduced me to his elaborate-looking DJ controller and it was a lot more fun to use than I was expecting. I took a tour through Nick Lowe, Haruomi Hosono, Throbbing Gristle and ELO, which Tsuchi then blasted into oblivion by opening with a one-two whammy of Bon Jovi followed by more Bon Jovi. Fidel’s set was a hyperactive power blast of indie-rock mega-choons interspersed with weird samples. The other DJs there were pretty eclectic as well, but the best thing was just seeing everyone getting interested in what everyone else was playing, seeing people looking around the room and figuring out how to surprise, trip up and delight the other people there. It was another sparsely attended night, but I think we did a lot with a little.</span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-23312208439661516642018-08-31T11:58:00.002+09:002018-08-31T11:58:51.162+09:00Doom<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last night, I met up with Ryotaro from Looprider for Melt-Banana's show with doom monsters Nepenthes at Koiwa Bushbash. It was Ryotaro's first time seeing a show at Bushbash, despite it being possibly Tokyo's most reliably good venue in terms of its booking (and, in a nod to the small but important straight-edge demographic it sometimes caters to, serving really good vegan curry) and he dug it there, adding that it's a shame it's too far away.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is an issue that comes up a lot in Tokyo, where most of the music scene is clustered around the western edge of the city and well-to-do nearby suburbs -- especially Setagaya and Suginami wards. Ryotaro and I both live out west, so going all the way out to the border with Chiba in the east is a long, uncomfortable train ride, and the trip back late at night is worse. Still, I head out to Bushbash pretty often and love the neighbourhood of Koiwa. I have friends out on the east side of town who sneer at west Tokyo as a superficial jewelry box for hipsters -- hey, I'm sorry we have all cool music, but no need to be a Bitter Betty about it! -- but it's true that east Tokyo has a distinctive atmosphere of its own. Places like Koiwa have an atmosphere that reminds me in some ways of Osaka, with a sort of dusty, seedy film over the place.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, I think people from west Tokyo should make the effort to go over to Bushbash more often because it puts on fantastic shows like the one last night. I was there really to see Melt-Banana because I wanted to talk to them about a show I'm planning to put on, but Ryotaro was interested in all of the bands. I arrived a bit late because of work, but he said the first band, Solvent Cobalt, were really good. Nepenthes include members of fellow doomsters Church and noise-rock maniacs Kuruucrew and featured all the usual growling vocals and Sabbath riffs you usually expect from doom.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ryotaro is a major metal guy and we were both pretty impressed with the heavy stuff Nepenthes dropped on us, but he remarked he was starting to feel the limitations of doom and wondered if for the next Looprider album he'd have to pour all the doom tendencies he'd flirted with in the past into it just to purge it from his system and give him a clean slate to move on with the band.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As it stands now, Looprider are coming to terms with their new, slimmed-down lineup as a three-piece after the departure of their bass player. They played at one of Call And Repsonse's bimonthly "Indie Disco" events at Shimokitazawa Three at the beginning of August and rocked hard as a bassless trio. This is maybe becoming a thing at the label at the moment, with our next release being from another bassless trio, <a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/releases/velvet-ants-entomological-souvenirs-i/">Nagoya-based band Velvet Ants</a>, and another bassless trio Jebiotto just having finished recording a song for a split 7-inch with a band from the UK. Maybe that's the gimmick the label needs to really stand out in Tokyo's oversaturated underground music scene.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The two of us are putting music aside today, though, and catching the Tokyo opening night of <i>Ant-Man and the Wasp</i> in Shinjuku. Most people we know range from "too cool to be interested" to "ferociously hostile" to Marvel films and I can't be bothered to defend them, but sometimes you need to drop your indie defences and be completely consumed by some aspect of mainstream culture. The long-term plan for Looprider was always conceived as a sort of parallel with Marvel, with the band putting out a series of albums of apparently different genres, where the themes then assemble, Avengers-style, into one epic album. By this reckoning, <i><a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/looprider-my-electric-fantasy">My Electric Fantasy</a></i> was <i>Iron Man</i>, <i><a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/looprider-ascension-cassette-edition">Ascension</a></i> was <i>The Incredible Hulk</i>, <i><a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/looprider-umi">Umi</a></i> was<i> Captain America</i> and then maybe whatever comes next is <i>Thor</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next Call And Response-related party is next Friday (September 7th) where our old Fashion Crisis DJ party is continuing its revival at its new location of Koenji SUBstore, with house DJs Ian Martin (me) and James Hadfield, plus guests DJ GIF県 (from Hanazono Distance) and Ponta (from hopi, eupholks) and live guest Musuki Aruvavo Lee. Check out <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/256384031650511/">the event's Facebook page here</a>.</span></div>
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dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-29584388343657491542018-08-31T10:58:00.001+09:002018-08-31T10:58:28.328+09:00Making this blog useful<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since I hardly use this blog anymore, using <a href="https://twitter.com/carrecords">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/callandresponsetokyo/">Facebook</a> and the label's <a href="https://callandresponse.jimdo.com/">main website</a> for all release and event announcements, I figured I ought to at least try to make this blog useful for something. As a result, I've decided to use the blog in the old-fashioned way, as a space for mundane chatter about label activities and people involved in them. Obviously no one really reads blogs like that anymore, so I don't know how long it'll last, but for now at least, some people might appreciate a little behind the scenes peek at life inside a basement-level indie label in Tokyo.</span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-29486448424778962562018-01-16T12:13:00.000+09:002018-01-16T12:13:40.940+09:00Call And Response is the Best Record Label in Japan (proof)<div style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Call And Response releases appeared in a lot of different “Best of 2017” lists. This acknowledgment means a lot to us, so thanks to all of those writers, bloggers and vloggers for listening and to everyone at the label for their work and enthusiasm.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://tokyodross.blogspot.jp/2017/12/best-of-2017.html">Tokyo Dross - Best of 2017</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">V/A - “Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show” - unranked list of 16</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://makebelievemelodies.com/?p=15478">Make Believe Melodies - Favourite 2017 Japanese Albums</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">V/A - “Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show” - No.32</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://violetadiscos.com.br/blog/2017-foi-uma-brisa-e-mil-discos-que-amei">Violeta Discos - 2017 Foi Uma Brisa (E Mil Discos Que Amei)</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">V/A - “Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show” - unranked list of 38</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://blog.stereo-records.com/index.php/stereorecords/4103/">Stereo Records - 2017 Best Disc</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">P-iPLE - “Do Do Do A Silly Travel By Bicycle Bicycle” - Anndoe’s top 5</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://beehy.pe/best-of-2017/japan-2/">Beehype - Best Albums of 2017: Japan</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">V/A - “Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show” - No.20</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.frontaalnaakt.nl/archives/the-best-albums-of-2017.html">Frontaal Nacht - The Best Albums of 2017</a><br />
V/A - “Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show” - No.10</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atTFuAql49s&feature=youtu.be">(VIDEO) Zach Reinhardt - Top Japanese EPs of 2017</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Tropical Death - “Modern Maze” - No.7</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">P-iPLE - “Do Do Do A Silly Travel By Bicycle Bicycle” - No.4</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMnlZ5yavlk&feature=youtu.be">(VIDEO) Zach Reinhardt - Top 20 Japanese Albums of 2017 Part 1 (#20-11)</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Looprider - “Umi” - No.12</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eulAnzPRruk&feature=youtu.be">(VIDEO) Zach Reinhardt - Top 20 Japanese Albums of 2017 Part 2 (#10-1)</a><br />
V/A - “Throw Away Your CDs Go Out To A Show” - No.2</span></div>
dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-61265053056196171282017-11-01T14:10:00.003+09:002017-11-01T14:14:06.927+09:00SHARKK "Be That Way" Interview<div class="a" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-pagination: none;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As the
drummer with the bands Tropical Death and Looprider, who are themselves
releasing the <i><a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/tropical-death-modern-maze">Modern Maze</a></i> EP and re-releasing the <i><a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/looprider-ascension-cassette-edition">Ascension</a></i>
mini-album respectively on Cassette Store Day 2017, Sean McGee is probably Call
And Response Records’ loudest cheerleader for
cassettes. However, while he’s an ensemble player in those other
bands, he is the leader, producer and sole full member of Sharkk, whose second
release, the <i>Be That Way</i> EP, joins his other bands on the Cassette Store
Day release roster this year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Inhabiting a
sonic and musical territory that will sound instantly familiar to fans of
mostly U.S. turn-of-the-millennium indie rock and pop-punk, Sharkk is a way for
McGee to filter and process many of the influences that shaped him growing up.
Sharkk’s first, self-titled EP was in many ways about McGee
piecing together a story of how he got to where he is now. Meeting up to talk
with him about this new release, it’s interesting how much the past
continues to inform and shape the way he takes his music forward.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> So I
thought this time, we’d go through the album track by track
and you could tell me about what’s going on with each song. The first
song on the album is <i>Firelight</i>.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=526041319/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 307px; width: 400px;"><a href="http://sharkk.bandcamp.com/album/be-that-way">Be That Way by SHARKK</a></iframe>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>Yeah. So
with <i>Firelight</i><b> </b>I had a simple punk riff and I felt like I wanted
Eugene <i>[Roussin, Tropical Death guitarist/vocalist]</i> to help out. He came
over and was like, “I really want to put synth on it,”
so we
got my wife’s Microkorg out. It was meant to be a simple pop song and
it kind of is – it reminded us of The Get-up Kids. I didn’t have the
lyrics and so he just said, “Let’s do them
now.” My lyrics are usually more personal, but because of the way
we wrote it, there’s more fiction. It reminds me of
things that happened to me, but it’s not real in the same way. It also
has that Eugene, Tropical Death vibe. I’d like to work with him more, maybe
make a new project. Eugene has a very unselfconscious sense of humour and I
think he sometimes likes the idea of, “It's supposed to be stupid,”
but I
can’t always go as far down that road as him. Sometimes I had
to stop him being too funny.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> I think
Eugene likes to write from the point of view of characters, often taking on
positions he doesn’t agree with in order to satirise
them. What’s this song about?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>Basically it’s the story
of a kid who finally gets the girl. His parents are divorcing and he hears them
through the wall. I’m like, “Where does
that come from?” Eugene likes to create stories out of the air, out of his
imagination, but I like to speak more from experience. I tell people my lyrics
are fiction, but actually it’s usually just me talking directly.
That’s the difference between me and him: he likes to take on
someone else’s perspective in order to say what he really wants to say,
but I like to mask my own voice when actually it’s really me
talking. This song adds some color to the album though by coming from a
different perspective. My voice sounds less confident I think, because I had to
think about how to sing it because it’s not my story.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> I sometimes
find that I’ll write something and then can’t sing it
because the words just don’t sound right with my voice or my
delivery.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>That
happened with this song too. I had to change some words because my mouth just
moves in certain ways. I had to change words to a different word with the same
meaning so they flow out of my mouth. I don’t relate to
the lyrics in the same way as with my other songs— my parents
aren’t divorced – but I understand sadness! I
wish I’d sung them sweeter, but I think maybe I sang them too
aggressively because I wanted it to fit in with the rest of the album.
Basically I just got to write a cool little punk track with my friend, which
was nice!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN: </b>OK, so the
next song’s <i>Tonight</i>. The lyrics from this one are where the
title of the EP comes from really, isn’t it? It’s
interesting how the phrase “be that way”
changes
its meaning when used out of context like that. I initially read it like, “OK then, be
that way, I don’t care!” while in the song, the meaning
doesn’t sound so confrontational.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN:</b> Right. I
mean, here it’s more defiant perhaps, saying, “Be your way,
fuck everybody else.” I didn’t realise
till later, but the way I use “be that way”
in
this song, it’s more vague than I originally intended. What I was trying
to express is that, for example you have these kids who have a problem –
maybe
they’re depressed, gay, whatever – and they’re having a
hard time because of it. When I sang, “It ain’t so hard to
be that way,” what I wanted it to mean is people say “Why are you
complaining? Why can’t you just be normal.”
And
their response is “It’s not so
wrong to be that way! Being my way isn’t wrong. Why can’t you
understand?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN: </b>The<i> </i>next
song,<i> Underground</i>, makes me smile a little because of how much time I’ve spent in
what I guess you could call the “underground”. There’s a lot of
mixed emotions that come with that: there’s pride but at the same time being
underground is in some other ways a mark of failure.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN:</b>
Thematically it follows on from the previous track for me. Although beside the
fact that these lyrics suck, there is a bit of a question of why is it called <i>Underground</i>?
Initially it was a demo title that just stuck.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> It feels
like it’s saying something like how because underground is the very
bottom – like, it’s below the lowest point really –
there’s actually a
strange sense of security in that. Like you can’t fall any
further. You’re on solid ground.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN:</b> What it’s about is
that the singer is mad about stuff. There’s this bitterness toward the
resistance you meet trying to do what you want, but there’s some irony
here. You’re not falling down here in the underground –
like,
what are you trying to prove? I wanted it to come across as positive though. I
wanted it to be a fist-pumping song, but when I think about who’s singing
it, which is me, 32 years old and not really amounting to anything, it’s kind of
ironic too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN: </b>Haha, well
we’ll see about that. The next track is <i>Fuse</i>, and it
kind of shifts the tempo down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN:</b> From my
perspective, I hear the voice of someone afraid of growing old and being
irrelevant. This song is a feeling I can only recreate in songs. It’s looking
back on a past<span style="color: #cc9900;"> </span>summer love of sorts. <span style="background: white;">The
only way I can write a nice sappy love song that kids can relate to is if I
remember how I felt back then. </span>This song is saying we’re never
going to be able to be together again, so we have to enjoy it while it lasts.
That’s what I like about songwriting, and I’ve talked
about this with my wife, who’s also a songwriter: it’s a way I
can talk about memories, feed off past memories and have it not become
something destructive or unhealthy – because they’re nice
stories that are good to share.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> Sometimes
it feels to me that the nature of rock, pretty much since the 1970s when it
reached its maturity as a genre, is to look back. It’s the
mainstream popular musical form that deals most powerfully with nostalgia. Some
might suggest that makes rock less relevant than dance music or hip hop, but
having a relationship with the past and being able to link that in with how you’re feeling
or what you’re experiencing now seems like a valuable role for pop
culture to play as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>Yeah, that’s why I like
it! Deathcab For Cutie’s new album is really his divorce
album. It’s looking back nostalgically, but it’s really
about now. He’s only going to be able to write that once. I’d have to
divorce <i>[my wife]</i> Madoka to write that album!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN: </b>Or get
Eugene to write the lyrics.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>It’s also my
limitations as a lyricist that I have to have these experiences I can feed off.
I’m not a
poet, not a storyteller; I just do what I can. Talking about lyrics can be so
lame, like, “Look at these great feelings I have!”
but it’s also fun
just trying to put it down and make sense of it. I was watching a cheesy film
with my wife and the girl was saying, “No more secrets, OK?”
and my
wife asks me “Do you have secrets?” I mean, of course I do! Do you
want me to tell you everything? That’s what lyrics are for!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN: </b>So the last
song on the album is <i>Hanging On</i>, which is another slower paced song but
much heavier.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN:</b> I don’t think I
could write another song like this. It’s very minimal. I thought about
calling it “Cicada” because they’re born,
they sing their hearts out and then they die – “Is this
really all there is? I don’t want to leave yet.”
It’s about
death and directed at a dying person saying, “I know I’m never
going to see you again, but I don’t want to lose you.”
At the
same time, the dying person is the one who taught the narrator that they need
to hang on. It’s kind of simple. It’s also a nice parallel with the first
EP, because the first one ended with <i>Doe</i>, which is saying “We’ll make it
there somehow,” but this is ending with death and the message is “Hang on.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> Are there
some themes like that you find yourself returning to again and again?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>If I could
narrow my songwriting down to three themes, which are on the last EP and this
one and which I’ll continue writing about, I think they’re firstly
these love songs looking back on sweet, naive past romances. Then there’s the
fist-pumping “fuck you” songs, and then there’s death –
the
numbing feeling of “we’re going to
die and this is all we have”. Those are the cheesy things that
really get me going!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b> You always
seem to collaborate with a bunch of other people, despite this really being a
solo project. How did the various contributions pan out on <i>Be That Way</i>?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>Basically I <span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">wrote the songs, but Eugene was a part of the process of </span><i><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Firelight</span></i><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">. He added keys which changed the vibe</span>. Eugene
wrote his synth and guitar parts. <i>Yoyo [Looprider guitarist/vocalist Ryotaro
</i><i>“</i><i>Yoyo</i><i>” </i><i>Aoki]</i> played on
the last track, although I kind of directed him in what to play, then he
improvised the noise section at the end. On <i>Underground</i> my friend
Machida wrote one of the guitar parts, and he and Eugene also helped record
Tonight. Panther Lau was part of the process of Fuse, sending demos of his
ideas for parts back and forth. He played guitar and keys. Machida helped on
Fuse as well. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN:</b>
Production-wise it’s also a bit of a change from the first
EP.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN:</b> The process
was a bit strange, because I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do a DIY album
or a well-recorded pop-punk album. I think it went more the latter way in the
end, and because I was heading in that direction, I listened to a lot of pop-punk,
especially when I was thinking about lyrics and vocal delivery. I was listening
to the song <i>Gone</i> by Pulley a lot when I was trying to make <i>Underground</i>
to try to get some inspiration.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>IAN: </b>How about
the overall texture of the sound – the recording and mixing? I
really like the way the music sounds. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>It was recorded by Graeme Mick, who has also worked on recent Tropical
Death and Looprider releases, and it was mixed by Mike McGovern, who I worked
with before on my split cassette for Cassette Store Day 2016. Carl Saff
mastered it. You
know Epitaph Records? I think their stuff is really nice sounding. I wanted to
be like this. I was talking to Graeme and played him Millencolin’s <i>No
Cigar</i> and he was like, “Yeah, we can totes do this.”
I
think that level was a bit out of my reach really, but Modern Baseball and the
album <i>Holy Ghost</i> was maybe more like something I could get close to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(We start
listening to the song <i>Wedding Singer</i>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SEAN: </b>It sounds
organic, like some kids in a room. If you hear overly produced pop-punk, it
sounds terrible, but if you hear well-produced, organic sounding stuff, it
sounds great. I think that’s what I wanted on this album: in a
way to sound like a band, I guess.</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Be That Way is available from SHARKK directly via <a href="https://sharkk.bandcamp.com/">Bandcamp</a> or from the <a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/sharkk-be-that-way">Call And Response online store</a>. For more information about SHARKK, there is a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SHARKKband/">Facebook page here</a>.</i></span></div>
dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-15067795722294988892017-03-27T15:49:00.000+09:002017-03-27T15:49:55.283+09:00Looprider "Umi" Interview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuZqiASlPVQUetGOM5qbQm20J82zi6QfsCQqiJSC_kGGV1djIyb-4KbvQC_4ss33NIROE-YdTcH7chAWgBOaTo9bhM8IPCcz9LulfdIel3pKLdMCpdLVPot29VhQcpDBS3hCMlMiNqfui/s1600/web2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuZqiASlPVQUetGOM5qbQm20J82zi6QfsCQqiJSC_kGGV1djIyb-4KbvQC_4ss33NIROE-YdTcH7chAWgBOaTo9bhM8IPCcz9LulfdIel3pKLdMCpdLVPot29VhQcpDBS3hCMlMiNqfui/s400/web2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With the release of <i>Umi</i>, Looprider’s third album in less than two years, Ian from Call And Response and Ryotaro from Looprider met up for one of their biannual discussions about music and band life. A single, largely instrumental, 25-minute long song, the album sets itself up as a challenge to the listener, but as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfskqeTvfmo&t=704s">some reviewers</a> have <a href="http://musojapan.com/blog/2017/3/14/looprider-umi">already pointed out</a>, it’s <a href="https://mastersaiche.wordpress.com/2017/03/19/looprider-umi/?utm_content=buffer474ee&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer">a rewarding one</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We start out reading the transcript of <a href="http://car-records.blogspot.jp/2017/03/tropical-death-thunder-island-inderview.html">an earlier interview with Ryotaro’s former bandmates Tropical Death</a>, laughing at lame attempts by Ian and Tropical Death guitarist/keytarist/vocalist Eugene Roussin to stoke some kind of fake Blur/Oasis-style rivalry between the bands.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq9XVa7_iL0cfW6hoZbBORsRlBSHXfPn8XJ0RKF-KVF1eDdwmUE60-nzeUPX01UdGY2su-nsR2EapeUWaTc18w3vY7WJ4qTdZRDEJnUxw_ty-qk31lkgFeeUPKWuK_gow92MLkrohCn5L7/s1600/car-62.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq9XVa7_iL0cfW6hoZbBORsRlBSHXfPn8XJ0RKF-KVF1eDdwmUE60-nzeUPX01UdGY2su-nsR2EapeUWaTc18w3vY7WJ4qTdZRDEJnUxw_ty-qk31lkgFeeUPKWuK_gow92MLkrohCn5L7/s320/car-62.png" width="316" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: With these interviews, we often seem to have a few musical reference points that we can use to kick off the discussion. Last time, when Ascension came out, you even brought a stack of CDs for me, so what song should I listen to to understand your album this time round?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: From another band?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Well, obviously. I’ve already heard <i>your</i> band.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Maybe Mono, or Yes, <i>Close to the Edge</i>…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: OK, <i>Close to the Edge</i>. That’ll keep us going for a while. It’s eighteen minutes long, so you beat it by seven.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: There are other songs on that album though! No, but really the reason <i>Umi</i> was 25 minutes is because in Tokyo, bands always play for 25 minutes. That’s a typical live set, and I wanted to make something we could play as one set.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: It’s interesting that even an album that you worked the studio so hard to make is still tied to the format of a live performance. I’ve always thought that’s the reason the mini-album format dominates in Tokyo indie scene.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I think that’s a fair assessment. I mean, the 25-minute thing was only partly because of doing it as a live set. I also just thought it was a cool idea. And another thing was if we ever did a one-man show, the encore could be Umi.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: A 25-minute, one-song encore!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I just thought it would be funny. That’s where most of my ideas start from!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: <i>Close to the Edge</i> has more vocals than <i>Umi</i> as well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Yeah, it has maybe three minutes of vocals or something. I knew I wanted to do this kind of record when I started the band though. It’s a natural place I wanted to go to.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So even at the time of your first album, <i>My Electric Fantasy</i>, you were already thinking this direction?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I had some of it written. Not all the sections in their current form, but I had the concept.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: You’ve also been pitching it as a kind of semi-concept album</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Yeah, about the sea, the ocean.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: And also the origin of life, right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Well the artwork is this long piece, and it starts dark and gets lighter as it goes up, and the album’s the same. It starts chaotic, and then it gets brighter. I described it to the band as like you're rising out of the water, into the sky, and out into space, like the Star Child in <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i>. That was kind of an afterthought though — it just seemed that way to me after it had been put together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So it wasn’t called <i>Umi</i> from start?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: The first demo I think was called <i>Autumn</i>, because I wrote it in autumn. The first part I wrote was the quiet part after the opening section.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: You guys also don’t have as much glitter as Yes. No spangly cape.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: That might be a way to go.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I don’t think you can really go there until you’re already playing stadiums.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: It was a really hard album to make, though.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Why was that?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: We couldn’t learn it as one song, even though it’s supposed to be listened to in that way. It was written in parts and then we learned and practiced it in parts, but it had to seem like one song. Then there was the double drummer thing, plus all these layers of guitars and other instruments we don’t usually use.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Like what?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Well, there were bells, keyboards, synths.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I always thought you didn’t like keyboards.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Oh, it was a, what would you call it, a "knobby synth”! Not a keyboard synth: a modular synth. We worked with <i>[engineer]</i> Graeme a lot. I really have to talk about how important he was to this album. He’s the guy who’ll do whatever the album needs. Not everyone thinks like that. I remember saying, “If we need the throw a piano from the second floor of his house to make the album sound better he’d probably do it.” He was a good foil and he became really invested in the record, as much as I was, and hopefully we both learned a lot about recording and how to put together something like this. And also just hanging out with him, having coffee and biking around, talking about Werner Herzog, the feeling of all that is on the record — I don’t know if anyone else can hear it, but it's there! We did it in the summer and there are cicadas, so he recorded some of them and if you listen really carefully, you can hear it. It brought a kind of character that I don’t think I would have got if I’d just asked a typical studio guy. It would have been more calculated and cold, I think.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Alright, so maybe now’s a good time to listen to <i>Umi</i> then. Usually I like to listen to a few other songs for a while before going into the album we’re talking about, but since we’re talking about the recording process.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: You want to wait?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: No, <i>Close to the Edge</i> is as long as eight normal songs anyway. As long as nine songs on your last album.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Umi <i>comes on the stereo</i>]</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: There are some Eno-ish bits near the beginning that remind me of the instrumental tracks from <i>My Electric Fantasy</i>. On that album, because everything was so disparate, so diverse, it was hard to know where they came from, and that’s partly what made that such an interesting album. But here, hearing this helps makes sense of what was happening then — it contextualises it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Yeah, I wrote some of this album at the same time. The Boredoms were a big influence in this bit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Although you do it with 98 fewer drummers than they did! Was it difficult working the twin-drums thing? When you play parts of <i>Umi </i>live, you do it with Sean on drums and Haruka hitting a floor tom.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: It was designed to work with just Sean, but the other drum is important to add a layer you can’t get with just a floor tom. Visually it’s exciting, seeing two drummers play in sync. I didn’t realise how much of a pain in the ass it would be, but it’s been worth it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So the visual impact is also important. That again seems to reflect the way you see a link between the recording and the live rendition of it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: When I’m writing the music, I like to visualise the band actually playing it, yeah.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: In some ways, I think there’s a disconnect growing between live and recording. They’re consumed so differently, especially with the way so much music is listened to quietly on tinny laptop speakers and crappy Apple earbuds. To make music work like that, musicians and producers seem to have gravitated towards sounds and styles of working that don’t play to the strength of a live environment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Yeah, but at the same time, I’m suspicious of the idea that live is the only authentic version of a band. Live and recording exist in parallel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Sometimes something that’s interesting on a record can also be interesting live, but there’s still a disconnect in how they’re interesting. Like, in some music, especially pop music, so much of the music happens inside a computer that to make it work as a live thing, a whole kind of theatre abstracted from the music needs to grow up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I think rock people tend to be more enamoured with atmosphere, with how it feels, rather than if it’s played well, if it’s catchy or whatever. They enjoy the swagger, that sort of thing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: The attitude, maybe? Although you don’t see so much “attitude” in the Japanese indie scene.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I think people are more neurotic. More “brainiac".</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Also, because of ow small the scene is, if you give it all that rock swagger, people just going to think, “You wanker! You were just down here a minute ago, drinking at the same bar!” With Looprider, you’re obviously very enamoured with “rock” as a thing, but I guess you have to walk a line between acknowledging that you exist in this indie world but not downplaying your ambition to rock.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Yeah. I don’t want it to be arty: I want it to rock. You get what I mean right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I noticed you like rock!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: But some people are so shy about liking rock: they don’t want to admit to liking Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I’m not sure I agree with that. I think I’m the only person I know who actually doesn’t like those bands — certainly in Japan. I wonder if the shyness more in how they don’t let it into their own music.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Looking at the album covers in his iTunes, Ian notices that the Looprider albums don’t show up in chronological order, and this annoys him.]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: iTunes insisting on listing them alphabetically kind of bugs me. I want to see them in the order they came out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Maybe I should make a narrative around it, like in <i>Star Wars</i> where the release order wasn’t the same as the narrative order.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: You often seem to decide the meaning of things you do after having made them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: It’s interesting though. Lots of people think the girl on the album covers is the same girl. I never really thought about it that way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: It’s a more interesting reality if they are all the same girl. Now you bring it up, I’m already starting to imagine a richer world by thinking about how she might be the same. It’s interesting how on this album it feels like you can start to hear everything from the previous ones. You talked before about how the fourth was where everything was supposed to come together, but it seems to be happening here already. They already make a trilogy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><we i="" listening="" nbsp="" start="" to=""><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">[</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ashes in the Snow</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></we></span><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">by Mono comes on]</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I’d never thought of it like that. It helps make the band more cohesive though. I’m very committed to the idea of these four people: our next one will be the first album that’s just the four of us — no guests, no elaborate production, just four people in the room, playing. Hopefully that’ll finally bring it all together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So who was on this album?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: There was me, Haruka, Sean, the bassist was a different guy from Wookie, who plays with us live, and then there was Kazuya, who’s the drummer from Day And Buffalo and Start of the Day, and then Eugene from Tropical Death.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Who was talking shit about you in the interview I did with his band!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: He loves me! So what this album has helped to is that it makes it easier for us as a band to see what we’re going for and helps tie everything together. The idea of a guitar band that mixes shoegaze and metal in a Japanese and American context. There are different things on each album, and with just two, the first might seem like us and the second a detour, but by changing again for the third one, it establishes the second as not just a detour.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: It tells people you’re on a journey.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: And it tells people it wasn’t a joke. Also, putting them out in a short timespan was important.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Yeah, you made three albums in one and a half years. Most bands wait three years between one album and the next.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I think this is one of the ways you and I are similar: We keep having ideas and want to see them to end. I'll get dispirited and think, "Why am I doing this?” but then I'll see film or something and, “Oh, maybe if I do that!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: And the same cycle of disappointment continues!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I’m getting into the habit of putting out stuff quickly. This is more for the band — well, more for me — just to keep it exciting. To me, albums are a record of that time, so why wouldn’t you want to make as many of these records as you can?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: That’s why they call them records.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Touche! But this really is a record of that time, and of the relationships that have been born and evolved as the band has grown into being a real band. Like, our bassist couldn’t play, which had an impact on the shape the album took. And then there was the drummer Kazuya, who I met through Sachiko, who I worked with on <i>Ascension</i>. It’s the first album Haruka’s on. And also working with <i>[engineer]</i> Graeme and being in Fukiage out in Saitama for a long time. When I listen, I can still smell his house and remember biking around Fukiage. It’s a record of time, with everything in flux, so it’s interesting moment in time. It’s going to be interesting to see how it looks later when hopefully we’ll have albums with the four of us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Bands often lose by waiting so long before making their first album. They lose that record of themselves in development — of themselves in flux.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: If someone told me to make this album now, I’d tell them no.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Pretty sure I told you not to in the first place, but you didn’t listen!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Another thing is that I just don’t think a lot of bands don’t really consider what the stuff they’re doing will look like 10 or 20 years down the line.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Maybe they’re more concerned with the immediate problem of, “Is anyone going to actually care enough to buy this now?"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: But when I’m fifty, it’s not going to matter how many records we sold or how many people came to our gig. What’s going to matter is what we made — what we have to show for ourselves. I think that’s what being in a band’s about though.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: What do you mean?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: A band will go through a set of experiences, meet people, go places, and then the band will have an opportunity to preserve that in some form, which is a record usually, and that record will be a catalyst for the next step, which is more experiences, meeting more people. That’s all a band does, so why wouldn’t a band want to keep records as much as they can.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Lots of bands just stop. They get the record and then, “OK, that’s done. What next?” and they split up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Well, that’s their problem.</span></div>
dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-30218287566275379472017-03-27T15:11:00.000+09:002017-03-27T15:31:14.907+09:00Tropical Death "Thunder Island" interview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic6461xJpiE7A_40Nq0YvsEn1FGZAtl20ahjEefBgWeoFcIlVFg-WF8yyhkAnol7BqY5SmHb37CqZl2MZ1fRkfjFG7S2dEO71TISIeVNa6JaeufdKzXL0a5x6Q0_F_L6MPH3iq6hn44uRu/s1600/Tropical+Death_Artist_Photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic6461xJpiE7A_40Nq0YvsEn1FGZAtl20ahjEefBgWeoFcIlVFg-WF8yyhkAnol7BqY5SmHb37CqZl2MZ1fRkfjFG7S2dEO71TISIeVNa6JaeufdKzXL0a5x6Q0_F_L6MPH3iq6hn44uRu/s400/Tropical+Death_Artist_Photo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This interview was carried out on a Sunday evening in October 2016, at Tropical Death Guitarist Eugene Roussin’s apartment in Tokyo. Bassist Shingo Nakagawa, Drummer Sean McGee and guitarist “Tete” are also there, as is Ian from Call And Response Records, who’s doing the interview. The <i>Thunder Island </i>cassette EP had just been released on Cassette Store Day, the band were fresh from a rehearsal and already a few beers ahead of Ian. Barack Obama was still president of the United States of America, and no one seriously believed Donald Trump was going to win the upcoming election for his successor.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[As Ian arrives, Eugene and Shingo are already deep in discussion, trying to agree on an official history of the band]</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Our show at <i>(the event)</i> Hot Freaks was the last one with Yoyo <i>(Ryotaro Aoki, now of Looprider)</i> in it, right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: So when did the band start?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">IAN: You sound like criminals trying to get your story straight before a court appearance.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[All members go outside to smoke. Ten minutes passes.]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[We start listening to Looprider’s forthcoming album </i>Umi<i>]</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So shall we start by talking shit about your ex-guitarist?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: This is cool.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Shut up, Tete!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: This sounds like Luna Sea.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: It was 2014, April, that I met Sean for the first time. Yoyo introduced us and he gave me a card that just said “Sean, Drummer”. Yoyo wanted jam, so that might have been the first time the band started to exist in its earliest stages.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Before that, me and Shingo used to hang out and get wasted and make stupid music. I lived in this party house and we used to just go to the studio and do absolutely nothing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: So we decided to jam and Shingo brought in Eugene. We were just jamming, then at the end of the session, Shingo was like, “When are we rehearsing again?” and we were like, “‘Rehearsing’? So are we a band then?” and we sort of followed along.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: The first time we really became a band was when we wrote the skeleton for <i>Commence</i>, and there’s a bit of audio in recording we made in the studio where Shingo’s saying, “That’s like tropical death metal!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: At that time, I’d been out of The Mornings for a while and I wanted a real band. We started doing it and we all felt it was cool, that it worked.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: The way you talk about it sounds a bit like describing a sexual encounter.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: He just grabbed us by the pussy! I was playing in Human Wife at the time, and our drummer was leaving so I needed a new band. It was pure selfishness.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: And we started writing songs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So how did Tete come into the picture?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Yo, Shingo, tell him how you brought him in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: Well, there’s this convenience store in Kunitachi that I always go in to buy booze, and I started to recognise him. He just looked like he was either on drugs or he was a musician.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: I’ve never seen Shingo come into that convenience store sober.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: He was like, “Are you a guitarist?” and he said “Yeah,” so we recruited him.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: The first time I saw him, I thought he wasn’t a real guitarist. I was still looking for someone who’d be a replacement for Yoyo, but it’s actually worked out better and he suits the band.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: You thought I was shitty at first?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: No, we were just worried!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So he helped you become yourselves as a band?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: It balanced us out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: For me, the first thing was that he had to do Yoyo’s part so we could play the songs for the shows. Then, when we started writing new material with Tete, the new material was different but just as good.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Yoyo has a lot of things he wants to do with a band, and he’s already doing that with Looprider. There was a gulf between that and what we would necessarily be able to write now. <i>You Fucking Changed, Man</i> is a very Yoyo song — I love it, but we couldn’t write that now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Tete’s very creative in a different way though.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: We talked about a lot of 80s bands like Ippu-do, Strawberry Switchblade, Cocteau Twins…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Luna Sea</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: But at the same time he needs to finish post-hardcore University.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: But he’s finished his thesis now. He came up with this killer post-hardcore riff in rehearsal today and Eugene graduated him top of his class.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: But the reason we recorded the EP was because Yoyo was leaving.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: We wanted a document to help us pass on to the next stage.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: There was also a full year where we did fuck all because we couldn’t find a guitarist.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: It set a fire.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: And Tete “kept the fire burning”?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: EXACTLY!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[We start listening to Fugazi </i>Repeater<i>]</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: During that period, Shingo freaked out a bit because he felt the band wasn’t serious enough.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: Looprider was kicking off so Yoyo was really busy, but I wanted a serious band of my own.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: We had to organise ourselves and realise it was worth doing, even if it’s not always fun.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: When Yoyo left, I lost confidence in our ability to get things going and we lost a lot of momentum.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: I was talking about quitting for a while.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: So when did you feel we really had something and it was worth continuing?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: At the start, I was doing my own version of the songs, and at some point I felt I needed to just learn the songs properly.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: For me, it was when we played Shingo’s wedding and I thought, “We can do this!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: For me, it was when we were working on new songs with Tete, and I suddenly thought, “This is great. This kid’s good. We sound different, but we still sound like TD!” Plus we had an EP coming out, and I like it when bands actually do shit and get stuff out. And Eugene’s very sexy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Who has a very small penis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Small hands?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I said penis and I meant penis. But for me, the moment it came together was the second practice with Tete, when he plugged a Strat into a Marshall amp. I’m very small-minded like that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: OK, if we’re being honest, I never lost confidence in the band and felt like I wanted to quit, but I did have one day where we were playing <i>Commence</i> and I didn’t like what Tete was doing with the intro, and I thought, “Well, we’ll probably get another guitarist." Then the second rehearsal he nailed it and I thought, “Oh, we’re good!” When we started doing new songs, I was like, “Yeah, now that’s it!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: With <i>Commence</i> at first I was doing my own thing, but now I’m doing what the original does.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: Now I think we’re in a balance.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Eugene’s girlfriend Anna comes into the room]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Who’s even interested in the minutiae of TD’s history anyway. Even Anna doesn’t care.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ANNA: I already know it!</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Everyone goes outside to smoke. Ten minutes passes.]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I’ve interviewed Yoyo a couple of times now, with the last two Looprider releases, and it seems his way of handling a band is quite different to yours. With him, the vision seemed to come first, and then he got musicians together to help him realise it. With you guys, it feels like the band comes first, and then then the music sort of emerges organically from that combination of people.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Well, the way we make the music is usually that I’ll come up with riffs. I’ll be like, "Here’s basic idea," but I don’t want to finish it myself, so I bring it in, then you guys take it, work with it, filter it through your own thing, and the result is songs that I’d never have been able to come up with myself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Yeah. That’s what I like about TD.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: In my old band, I wrote all the songs myself, and now everything I write myself sounds like that and I hate it. Now, we all work on it and it comes out much better.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: With me, a lot of it is that I just don’t like people telling me what to do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: It’s not just that, it’s the organic process of all of us working together.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: There’s no example I can think of where a solo artist was better than the band. The Beatles? Paul’s solo stuff is good, John’s is good, but none of it’s </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">as</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> good. You could say Neil Young, but I Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Deja Vu</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> is better than anything Neil Young’s done solo.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Long pause]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: Bjork? Cornelius?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Is that a solo project or is that something else entirely?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I’m taking back my Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young comment then, since Neil Young was never the main thing in that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: Namie Amuro? She’s better than Super Monkeys.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Kyosuke Himuro’s better than Boowy! No, just as good. Don’t write he’s better, but he’s just as good.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Morrissey and The Smiths.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Go stand in the corner. Maybe Julian Cope though. His solo career’s longer, deeper and richer than The Teardrop Explodes, and I think that can add up to something better once you take it as a whole.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Anyway, a band should be about collaboration. You’re not session musicians. If you just want guys who play everything you tell them to, you’re not a band.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: That’s why I quit The Mornings. They started making music on a machine and I couldn’t do it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[Blondie, </i>Parallel Lines<i> comes on]</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Can we write a song like this?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: What you’re saying about music needing to be something everyone’s creatively invested in, isn’t that partly a function of the way no one makes any money from playing in a band? Like, why would you do it if you’re not getting some creative satisfaction out of it?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Yeah.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I’m not going to even say that. I’m just not going to play in a band where I’ve told them what to play. Because if I trust them, it’s going to be better than if I do it all myself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Totally.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I’m not saying that way’s right or wrong. It’s just that I don’t have that image in my head. I envy people who have that fully-formed image in their head, but I have 25% of the image in my head and I need people to fill it out with their own thing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Just to be clear, you’re not talking about Ryotaro, right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: We’re not talking about Yoyo! We love Yoyo! I love playing in a band with Yoyo!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: Do not write this up as if we’re slagging off Yoyo! </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Everyone goes outside to smoke. Ten minutes passes.]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[Blondie, </i>Picture This<i> comes on]</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Can we write a song like this?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So, Tete, the EP was already recorded when you joined the band. What was your route into it? What was your impression of it? What did you like, or what did it remind you of?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: The first song I heard was the Mir cover, <i>100nengo (from the compilation album </i>Small Lights - A Tribute to Mir<i>)</i>. There was a lot of things going on and a big difference between, say, <i>New Age</i> and <i>Murder in the Streets</i>. They’re not a hardheaded band: they’re open to a lot of different things.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: Was there anything in your own background that you found could help you get into what they do?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: With <i>Murder</i>, I liked that Eugene wasn’t playing guitar: he was playing keytar. I realised that they’re not a pure guitar band. I didn’t want to be in a band that had a very specific kind of music, who wanted a very specific kind of guitarist. The fact they did all kinds of music made me feel, “Oh, I don’t have to be <i>this</i> kind of guitarist.” I felt that had a freedom to have my own voice, free from too much expectation of how I should be as a musician.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[Blondie, </i>Pretty Baby<i> comes on]</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: Can we write a song like this?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: You’re saying that a lot.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: This is pretty much the ideal band that I would like to be in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: You changed your name from Tropical Death Metal to just Tropical Death.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: So obviously we knew about Eagles of Death Metal at the time, and there was that similarity hanging over us the whole time. Also, all our friends hated it — well you did and Graeme (Graeme Mick, engineer who recorded and mixed <i>Thunder Island) </i>did. It’s not a real band’s name: it sounds like a joke. The catalyst for changing it was the Bataclan attack. The first mail I saw that morning was Graeme who just wrote “Bataclan Death Metal”. Next, there was one from somebody replying to our Craigslist ad for a guitarist saying, “Are you serious?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: And I remember at the time, I thought, “Man, I don’t want to end up having to explain this in an interview…" which is what I’m now doing anyway!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: The crazy thing is the way the news cycle works, no one would even think that anymore. They’re all about Donald Trump. We’re in the same situation now now: I wrote this song <i>Summer of Sin</i> earlier this year that talks Donald Trump sexually molesting girls, and now it turns out it’s actually true and it sounds like we’re trying to get on that bandwagon. I was actually thinking about Brexit and the whole tribalist thing, and because I’m American my mind naturally turned to Trump.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyjKCpY0zixAnmBmU9l6jVF4DNE9mK2lMu9Bz679SFU_vs47rFZ-czuL3UdqUz4rmxwUkyVtio3joYWRul1NqFm77HCJMo_FoZ8BjZyoEP778kBYkXhG2GaDJmMkjdP4bqsRGfOFJoSVm7/s1600/DSC_5276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyjKCpY0zixAnmBmU9l6jVF4DNE9mK2lMu9Bz679SFU_vs47rFZ-czuL3UdqUz4rmxwUkyVtio3joYWRul1NqFm77HCJMo_FoZ8BjZyoEP778kBYkXhG2GaDJmMkjdP4bqsRGfOFJoSVm7/s320/DSC_5276.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: So are we a political band?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: What I like about Black Flag is that they’re also funny though. The lyrics I write aren’t overly political. There are lots of horrible things in the world and I’m not confident that people are going to be able to overcome them. So what do you do when things are depressing? You have fun! But I also want to show the emptiness of that approach to dealing with the world. I don’t want to be overly political — I couldn’t help it with Donald, but there are lots of things in the world — capitalism has become just vultures picking on bones, marketing and the means of manipulating people has become so refined. People don’t give a fuck, they can’t concentrate on anything anymore, and in that context we have all these problems cropping up and being taken advantage of by governments and corporations, and people can’t even comprehend that anymore because of a hundred years of the refinement of this machine. I’m an economics major and I used to think we we could control it, but I think it’s beyond that now. It’s just taking something, using it up and then throwing it away, and that’s all there is now. Even looking at it from a pure economics theory perspective, it’s just opportunism and there’s no externalities built into the model. <i>Tropical Secrets</i> is a jokey song about a bunch of dudes going to Southeast Asia, but at the same time, the point of it is about exploitation of resources in Third World countries, so what’s the most extreme version of that? Selling your people.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: I’d rather lyrics have meaning than just be about nothing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I don’t want to make overtly didactic political statements because I’m not doing anything about it — I can’t change anything. I just feel kind of hopeless about a lot of things and that’s my way of expressing it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: The tape jacket, with a picture of a dude’s crotch with sexy swimming trunks, was that political?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: That was Shinya, the designer, who does this thing called “Tough Guy Attack”. One of the first designs he made was a girl in a bikini, but Anna was like, “Why does it have to be a girl? Why can’t it be a dude?” So that was down to her, and her hyper-feminism.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[The Tropical Death EP comes on, starting with </i>Murder in the Streets<i>]</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: How did we write this?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: We were just jamming.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: I was really into disco-punk at this time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: How did this heavy breakdown happen then?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: That was me. I said, “Make it sound like Envy!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: Well I fucked that up for you then!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: This was round the time Ferguson happened. The lyrics of this song are way over the top though, because I wanted to have a song about a dystopian future that had a keytar in it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[</i>Commence<i> commences]</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I like the way that with this one you guys came up with it and I just came in and added something rather than me taking the lead.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: This song is one where if you listen to the original session, it was all there right from the start, but then later we did the octaves.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: We talked about just being an instrumental band for a while.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: I still think that could be cool.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: That’s a terrible idea.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I think the vocals should be there to add another texture.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TETE: I like the mini-shoegazer part in the middle here.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: It’s a little too fast. We don’t play it this fast when we play live, because I don’t want it to.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: And you’re the drummer so you get to decide how fast everyone plays.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[</i>New Age<i> comes on]</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN (to Eugene): This was your song.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: It’s Yoyo’s favourite.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: I can’t just write a song though, I have to wait for it. I don’t know where it comes from.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SEAN: It sounds really big.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">EUGENE: It has to, because it’s called <i>New Age</i>! It’s a straightforward song.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SHINGO: I hardly do anything in this song. I remember an interview with Kim Deal, where she’s saying about musicians who don’t have the confidence to just play something simple and not make it complicated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I think this is the song where someone listening to this album thinks, “Oh, this band can write a proper song”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>[</i>You Fucking Changed, Man<i> plays]</i></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">[Everyone sits in silence for a while and just listens. Eventually Sean speaks.]</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">SE: This was the problem child, but it turned out right.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfhHWrSyt3fZrVGZCASnAuyTeFSowFOgX1lgQyTvPaivyKnws2FE7mOlQzOF3TNwqA0yKn-QQ1JbLr5mpZRweqArqebXQqBWhWXw2sHFTMp9ctKjFfmtnD5FlKQmHgVVEvk8P3f0Jfwy4x/s1600/DSC_5280.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfhHWrSyt3fZrVGZCASnAuyTeFSowFOgX1lgQyTvPaivyKnws2FE7mOlQzOF3TNwqA0yKn-QQ1JbLr5mpZRweqArqebXQqBWhWXw2sHFTMp9ctKjFfmtnD5FlKQmHgVVEvk8P3f0Jfwy4x/s320/DSC_5280.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-18737100204482808172016-10-19T19:41:00.000+09:002016-10-19T19:42:01.902+09:00Iko Chérie Japan Tour (October 2016)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmmqklQCDk0PtLDk9-U-F3isRJA_1gbbGSsbIq4uAhMNihe3rIyyd2-KZ9_YHR9AXLLPL3MaItmjj20kBJ5T8zvMzA4tlVui60gC2gy5ceOIzITUJWCsnlOoZoVKWwccso4uIXjzZqS2mg/s1600/iko+che%25CC%2581rie+polaroid+zebra+print+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmmqklQCDk0PtLDk9-U-F3isRJA_1gbbGSsbIq4uAhMNihe3rIyyd2-KZ9_YHR9AXLLPL3MaItmjj20kBJ5T8zvMzA4tlVui60gC2gy5ceOIzITUJWCsnlOoZoVKWwccso4uIXjzZqS2mg/s400/iko+che%25CC%2581rie+polaroid+zebra+print+2.jpg" width="323" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">「獣の世界で、ほのかな甘さ」と自身のバンドを例えるI</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ko CherieはLow-keyポラロイドポップミュージ</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">シャンのMarie Merletの直近のプロジェクト。Marieは今まで</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Lisbonne、Zooey、Monade(Ster</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">eolabのLaetitia Sadier もメンバー)で活動してきました。Iko Cherieのデビューアルバム「Dreaming On」は2015年にElefant Recordsからリリースされ、その楽曲は甘酸っぱい</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">1960年代のフレンチポップシネマをなぞったようで、</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">かつdoo-wopインディーポップが気だるくしたよう</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">な作品。このアルバムはMarieの前身バンドMona</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">deのメンバーからも協力を得て、ベルリンのSchne</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ider TMで制作され</span><span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "\22 helvetica\22 " , "\22 arial\22 " , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ました。</span><br />
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<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "\22 helvetica\22 " , "\22 arial\22 " , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Describing themselves as “A little bit of sweetness in a world of brutes”, Iko Cherie is the latest project from low-key polaroid-pop musician Marie Merlet, formerly of the groups Lisbonne, Zooey and Monade (with Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadier). Iko Cherie’s debut album “Dreaming On” came out in 2015 on Elefant Records, drawing on a bittersweet seam of cinematic 1960s French pop and washed out indiepop doo-wop. The album features contributions from Merlet’s former Monade bandmates, and was mixed in Berlin with Schneider TM.</span><br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3717670293/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border-width: 0px; height: 472px; width: 400px;"></iframe><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /><b>TOUR SCHEDULE:</b></span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br />① 10/22(土)<a href="http://asagaya-ten.com/">阿佐ヶ谷天 / Asagaya Ten</a><br />w/Prince Graves、Come To My Party<br />DJs:Nagai (The Sound Of Rain)、wizzjones<br /><br />② 10/23(日)<a href="http://shangrila-sendai.com/">仙台Shangri-la / Sendai Shangri-la</a><br />w/kika、山寝元希(プリマドンナ)、Blue Bird<br />DJs:Somewhere In My Heart DJs<br /><br />③ 10/26(水)<a href="http://diary.sutekki-kyoto.com/?eid=80">京都Sutekki / Kyoto Sutekki</a> (Acoustic live)<br /><br />④10/27(日)<a href="http://hardrain-web.net/">大阪Hard Rain / Osaka Hard Rain</a><br />w/Zweig、cycle annie、伯川修平、awl、AI'MAMIRU<br /><br />⑤ 10/28(日)<a href="http://utero.jp/">福岡Utero / Fukuoka Utero</a><br />w/the perfect me、ALTER EAGO、6 mab<br />DJ:Ian Martin (Call And Response)<br /><br />⑥ 10/30(日)<a href="http://blog-ikebukuro.diskunion.net/Entry/8559/">池袋Disk Union / Ikebukuro Disk Union</a> (Afternoon acoustic live)<br />w/Sumie (Sweden)<br /><br />⑦ 10/30(日)<a href="http://www.mona-records.com/">下北沢Mona Records / Shimokitazawa Mona Records</a><br />w/with me!、SaToA、Boyish<br />DJs:Twee Grrrls Club</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl2nZy71v1Y5tp9A0rb4OcGJEL4edVVYLl9RsYTkO98qdGHLTLW67R-d5i5v-J4pNsV8m0YHtqOtBrvVwx1Gd1oxde06p-qGfuZoyAknNtP14H4qdMC1Mzyem4L20THokhyYeZ-lZTt65K/s1600/IkoCherie_JapanTour2016_FINALCMYK_A4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl2nZy71v1Y5tp9A0rb4OcGJEL4edVVYLl9RsYTkO98qdGHLTLW67R-d5i5v-J4pNsV8m0YHtqOtBrvVwx1Gd1oxde06p-qGfuZoyAknNtP14H4qdMC1Mzyem4L20THokhyYeZ-lZTt65K/s400/IkoCherie_JapanTour2016_FINALCMYK_A4.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-8367185257022103592016-09-15T15:40:00.000+09:002016-09-15T15:40:23.989+09:00Koenji Pop Festival 2016 (October 1st, 2016)<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xX08_4mwohk" width="400"></iframe><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ポップミュージックとは何であるか?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Call And Response Recordsの高円寺ポップフェスティバルでその解が</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">分かる!?</span><br />
<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">あの高円寺ポップフェスティバルが1年ぶりに帰ってくる</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">。</span><br />
<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">広大な音楽スペクトラムを縦横無人に飛び交うカラフルな</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">音楽のエクスプロージョンがこの1日で!!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">さらに、この2016年10月は「二万電圧」5周年記念</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">月間。</span><br />
<span style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ぜひ一緒にこのレジェンドなライブハウスをお祝いしまし</span><wbr style="color: #4b4f56; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></wbr><span class="word_break" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline-block; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ょう!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">What is pop music?</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">After taking a break last year, Call And Response Records’ Koenji Pop Festival is back in 2016, trying to answer that question once more with another all-day explosion of musical colour from all across the musical spectrum.</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /><br />The event also kicks off the celebrations for 20000V/二万電圧’s 5th anniversary in its new Higashi Koenji location, so come along and help us pay tribute to this legendary live spot.<br /><br />Place: <a href="http://den-atsu.com/">東高円寺二万電圧 / Higashi Koenji 20000V</a><br />Date: 10/1 (Sat)<br />Time: 15:30 open/start<br />Cost: ¥2000 adv / ¥2300 door (+ 1 drink)<br /><br />LIVE:<br />- <a href="http://bumbumsinfo.tumblr.com/">BUMBUMS</a><br />- <a href="https://soundcloud.com/luvelessjp">Luveless</a><br />- <a href="http://miumaujapan.bandcamp.com/">Miu Mau</a> (高松/福岡)<br />- <a href="http://www5d.biglobe.ne.jp/~labsick/">中山貴史RemiX</a><br />- <a href="https://mechaniphone.bandcamp.com/">mechaniphone</a> (長崎)<br />- <a href="https://looprider.com/">Looprider</a><br />- <a href="https://twitter.com/nakigaotwintail">泣き顔ツインテール</a><br />- ウー<br />- <a href="http://lo-shi.bandcamp.com/">Lo-shi</a><br />DJs:<br />- wizzjones<br />- James Hadfield</span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #4b4f56; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_oNgVzxfjgN4Bvr9zuNaEwD_xl4hXdt4y-qPvUYYaRvlbC5ZGkwiiMWXTwNzaUYKdhF8-CyDlBzLqonuwexJUrOlochwMITQxSL5ZHdGjjFWWd01WL-m01O_Xe52wGjzsf0u6uWF1UUK/s1600/161001flyer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_oNgVzxfjgN4Bvr9zuNaEwD_xl4hXdt4y-qPvUYYaRvlbC5ZGkwiiMWXTwNzaUYKdhF8-CyDlBzLqonuwexJUrOlochwMITQxSL5ZHdGjjFWWd01WL-m01O_Xe52wGjzsf0u6uWF1UUK/s320/161001flyer.jpg" width="228" /></a></span></div>
dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-56010255026070905142016-08-10T11:20:00.002+09:002016-08-10T11:22:35.254+09:00Call And Response Indie Disco (August 20th, 2016)<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ovj84HD0aMA" width="400"></iframe><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">The Call And Response Indie Disco slinks into its second edition with this postpunk party featuring synth-punk maniacs Jebiotto, the industrial minimalism of Second Apartment and the raucous art-punk poetry of Uruseeyo.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO50iWW5XKAY-5_55oSWn5lpuLUZlMWAAbzj_bNO5EYu8oCqC-UOPSV11H09QrTxHz1NfOnVgM_4BLk_CMPJVOm0d3WugO927xn_cLXlsxviBKWS6CBWdqcJ4K2T9m97VS8iUtAuR0xP36/s1600/160820carid_facebook2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO50iWW5XKAY-5_55oSWn5lpuLUZlMWAAbzj_bNO5EYu8oCqC-UOPSV11H09QrTxHz1NfOnVgM_4BLk_CMPJVOm0d3WugO927xn_cLXlsxviBKWS6CBWdqcJ4K2T9m97VS8iUtAuR0xP36/s400/160820carid_facebook2.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Place: <a href="http://asagaya-ten.com/">阿佐ヶ谷天 / Asagaya Ten</a></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Date: 8/20 (Sat)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Time: 20:00 open/start</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Cost: ¥1000 + 1 drink</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">LIVE:</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">- <a href="https://soloistapartment.bandcamp.com/releases">Second Apartment</a></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">- <a href="http://uruseeyo.web.fc2.com/">うるせぇよ / Uruseeyo</a></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">- <a href="http://jebiotto.blog.fc2.com/">JEBIOTTO</a></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">DJs:</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">- Call And Response Psychic Wave Implosion</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #4b4f56; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/k1Q6tMAWgcA" width="400"></iframe>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-577024345871650071.post-20762302815708183682016-07-15T17:49:00.001+09:002016-07-15T18:00:38.933+09:00Looprider "Ascension" interview<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>With Looprider releasing their second album in less than a year this May, the band's mastermind Ryotaro Aoki and Call And Response Records' Ian Martin got together to talk about this latest phase in Aoki's ongoing musical odyssey. (The interview serves as a follow-up in some ways to <a href="http://car-records.blogspot.jp/2015/08/looprider-interview.html">the one we did last year around the release of debut album </a></i><a href="http://car-records.blogspot.jp/2015/08/looprider-interview.html">My Electric Fantasy</a><i>).</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>You can get the CD from <a href="http://callandresponse.tictail.com/product/looprider-ascension">Call And Response's online store here</a>.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK0SH2Dn1UEGKMYTQIy1OoTPgLKFPH3qXJNPSzuGmfirEC5WF6rRzarRdGiqt3k4SJXK2m9Usi3brcDCr5WicNd2ETkkPUQBe_SuLGaJ_L0uE4q-jHE1xJb6bL2iSJAQKlXcoEu8MnVC-3/s1600/looprider-bandphoto2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK0SH2Dn1UEGKMYTQIy1OoTPgLKFPH3qXJNPSzuGmfirEC5WF6rRzarRdGiqt3k4SJXK2m9Usi3brcDCr5WicNd2ETkkPUQBe_SuLGaJ_L0uE4q-jHE1xJb6bL2iSJAQKlXcoEu8MnVC-3/s320/looprider-bandphoto2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: So, less than a year after making <i>My
Electric Fantasy</i>, which was a mix of metal, shoegaze and pop, you’re followed
it up with a punk record.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Yeah, or hardcore.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: What’s the difference?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Basically it’s just faster. My favourite punk band is The Germs, so
that’s where a lot of it comes from.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: You’re not fan of The Sex Pistols?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: They’re better than The Ramones — The Ramones were too happy. With The
Pistols it all seems like they’re just having a big joke.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: British punk was often like that I think. There’s a lot of cynicism and
irony in it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: What you got with The Germs was really all at face value — there was
nothing tongue-in-cheek about it. It feels more… real isn’t the word.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: It approaches you with more of an open heart maybe.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Anyway, Darby Crash killed himself to make the band famous, but
unfortunately at the same time John Lennon died, so no one gave a fuck. And
they just couldn’t play music.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Isn’t that sort of how punk should be?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Up to a point.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: So when you were making this album, did you feel the need to sort of
unlearn a lot of what you know in terms of technique and songwriting?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: We set lots of rules. We had to write the album and record it at the
same time — don’t think about what you’re doing, and do everything in no more
than three takes. We had to play fast and play loud, and (drummer) Sean
couldn’t play any dancey rhythms.</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">IAN: As soon as you start bringing in dance rhythm, it’s postpunk.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: We recorded it while we were still working on </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">My Electric Fantasy</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">. It was taking so long, and I was getting
frustrated, so I wanted to do something really quick. And of course I then
ended up tweaking it for a year!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">[Looking at The Germs’ album’s track list]</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Lexicon Devil</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> — nice title!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: If you listen to the later version of the song, you can really hear
that this is where Black Flag came from.</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_v18sGDxAOE" width="400"></iframe></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: I can hear a bit of Wire in there too. A bit of <i>12XU</i>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Wire are more sophisticated though.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Yeah, listening to them back to back you can hear the restraint. Wire are
very aware of what they’re doing.</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: So The Germs is much more simple and direct. That’s what we wanted to
do, but we had to sort of reverse-engineer that.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">IAN: You’re doomed to failure then!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Yeah! But at the same time, this music is fundamental part of my
musical roots. When I was first getting into music, the popular music was that
pop-punk stuff and the issue of authenticity was a big conversation, it seemed
to me. Kids with Anarchy patches saying, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“That’s
not punk: this is punk.”</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> Sometimes we talk about how maybe there’s no real
difference between indie and pop these days — indie just as bad. So I started
thinking about authenticity: I wanted to be real, I didn’t want to be called a
poser, because that’s the worst thing you can be called as a punk. Anyway,
there was a kid in my neighbourhood who had these CD books full of loads of Bad
Religion, Dead Kennedys, that sort of thing, and he burned me everything.
That’s how I got into “real punk”.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: I had a phase of being into punk, but I sometimes think you should only be
really into punk for about six months. After that, if you still like it, sure,
that’s OK, but you need to get into something else: you need to take it
somewhere.</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: At the same time though, a lot of the seeds were planted at that time.
This album is a way of recapturing that.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: In a way, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">My Electric Fantasy</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">
was a very meta album: it was almost wilfully inauthentic, adopting different
positions, stances and characters in relation to the music scene. After that,
this feels a bit like a sort of cleansing experience, just focusing in on one
thing and going all-in on that.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: I’m actually worried people will just think I’m taking the piss.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: There’s definitely a precedent for punk not taking itself seriously — that
brings us back to The Sex Pistols again, I guess.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Also since I was starting from a metal-influenced background, there’s
the whole thing of punk and metal not getting on. Although I guess grunge made
that OK.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: We’ve talked before about Bitch Magnet — they combined influences from
punk and metal.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: And they were recorded by Albini, and you can hear that in a lot of
his stuff. Here, let’s listen to Minor Threat.</span><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">[We start listening to Minor Threat]</i><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: This represents what the music scene should be — at least, what people
say it was like. I don’t know if it ever lived up to the legend. The whole DIY
ethos we have going here (in Koenji) is similar I think. People with no real
career ambition, making tapes, sending them to each other, making zines,
organising shows. Ian McKaye made this label, probably sending everything out
by hand. It was a small community, which is what I imagined being in a band
would be like when I was a kid. They were really young, these guys: maybe not
even twenty.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DvmUJGMJcqg" width="400"></iframe>
</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: In Tokyo we kind of have this, but there are so many scenes to choose from
that it’s still capitalist in a way: you select a lifestyle and the market
decides which is attractive. It’s a marketplace of lifestyle images. It feels
like the challenge is more to break down the barriers between scenes.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Yeah totally. It sounds cheesy, but if people collaborated more, it
might change it.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Punk tends to be like that: it can be very introverted. The sense of
community comes in large part from the strict policing of its borders.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Punk’s supposed to be a place for the rejects though, but Tokyo seems
to rejects the rejects.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: So there are all these scenes that catch the rejects from mainstream, but
beneath them there need to be even more scenes to catch the rejects of the
rejects — like catching falling pachinko balls.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: There are bands who’ve been working the live circuit for years, and
you’d think they’d share some space with each other, but they never meet.
They’re just trapped in the same circle of people to gradually diminishing
returns because they never step outside.</span><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">[We start listening to </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Ascension</span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">, and
opening track </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">N.E.C.O.</span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">]</i><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: We’ve been talking about punk, but the first track’s actually noise.
I’d been wanting to do stuff like this for a long time but never wanted to be
in the situation where this was the only thing I do.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: This is what Hell sounds like.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Can I put that on the obi strip? <i>“This is what Hell sounds like…”</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: <i>“…Ian Martin , Call And Response Records”</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Sachiko from Umez is on this track. Doing this and the last album, I
was </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">definitely inspired by Umez a lot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: That’s what was so amazing about Umez really: you had to make two albums
to cover the ground they’d cover in one song. I’m sad they’re gone, because no
one does that combination of elements now. Until your 4th album at least.</span><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">[</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Fantômas</span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> comes on]</i><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/251619837&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe>
</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: What’s this song about, then?</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: None of them are about anything.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: I want to start asking young punk bands this. I think indiepop is losing
its momentum and there seem to be more young people making loud, aggressive
music now, so I want to ask them, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“OK,
what are you angry about?”</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> and see how they answer. That’s typical of me
maybe: finally people are doing what I like and instantly I’m suspicious of
their motives for doing so! </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“This shit
has been uncool for so long: I don’t believe you mean it!”</i><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Considering how little time we took, I’m surprised at how good it sounds.<i><br /></i><br /><iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/273442191&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe> </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: There’s metal in there for sure. It goes back to what we were saying
earlier about how metal and punk converged a bit in the late ‘80s.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: You can hear the metal comes in more with each successive track, and
you can hear how, as the album goes along, we’re thinking more about it. I
noticed it as it was happening and I had to cut it off because we were breaking
the rule: thinking too much.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: So you had to make a conscious decision to stop thinking. That’s ironic!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: You can hear the songs getting longer now. The title track really is
kind of a metal song, eh? I never thought of it like that.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: It’s punk evolving into metal before your eyes over the course of twenty
minutes.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i style="line-height: 115%;">[Closing track </i><span style="line-height: 115%;">667</span><i style="line-height: 115%;"> comes on — seven minutes of harsh noise]</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: And then it turns back into noise again at the end. It’s interesting
the way we had to think about not thinking.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: It’s like I said earlier about unlearning what you know and how that’s
doomed to failure. But even if it’s doomed, the way you fail is what leads you to
where you end up.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: It’s the process — right! You called it “cleansing”, but it’s also an
important part of my music life that I had to get out. None of the bands I was
in before would have let me do </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">My
Electric Fantasy</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> and </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Ascension</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> in
a row like this.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Will this one keep letting you?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: They’re already signed up to do the next one! They’re like movie
stars: I have to sign them up for each new release!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: One day you’ll deliver them an acid skiffle album and they’ll be like, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“No way: you crossed the line Aoki!”</i><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: It was only me, Sean and Sachiko on this album, and only me on </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">667</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Yeah, there’s clearly no Sean here, unless you’re cutting his spine with a
chainsaw.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: I made a noise album when I was eighteen: it was really bad.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: You just heard Merzbow and thought, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“I’ll
do that!”</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: Kind of. It’s a common criticism that <i>“Noise is easy: I could do that!”</i> so I tried and I couldn’t.
Merzbow layers a lot and probably does lots of mixing and mastering too, so
when I was eighteen it was a jokey<i>, “Oh,
I’ll make a noise music thing,”</i> but by the time I’d finished it was like<i>, “Oh, it’s really hard to make it sound…
like Merzbow”</i>. So that’s when I stopped making fun of noise musicians.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">IAN: After your show with Sachiko last night (as a noise improv duo) you said
it was more difficult than you’d expected. Is the challenge different between
recorded and live noise?</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: With recordings, you can tweak and edit until it’s just how want it.
When you’re in the moment, it’s much harder to take it where you want it to go.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Like trying to wrangle uncontrollable beast.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: It took a lot more focus than I thought it would.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: I guess you have to listen in very subtle ways to pick up on the direction
the sound is going.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: And you really have to know what you’re doing, despite fact it might
seem like you’re just making it up as you go along. With </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Ascension</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">, though, I didn’t want to come over po-faced but I was
also worried it wouldn’t be cool enough. I think this is a cool album — maybe
not The Wire cool, but still cool. I wanted to be fun though — I mean, the
first track is a woman screaming </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“Neko”</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">
for five minutes: that’s at least silly.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: Punk should be fun. I mean, it is basically pop music, at least in terms
of the effect it works on the audience.</span><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">[We start listening to Struggle For
Pride’s </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">You Bark We Bite</span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> with its
intro by Kahimi Karie]</i><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: I wishi Kahimi Karie would be on my album.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/b-RDP9hsdiI" width="400"></iframe>
</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">IAN: It can’t be that hard to get a woman to talk like this. I always felt
Struggle for Pride sounds like a fascist band name though. Are they fascists?</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: I don’t think so. There’s nothing about it on their web site!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: So at least if they are fascists, they’re ashamed of it. I guess that’s
something.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: I heard this shortly after entering university. A guy I was friends
with because </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">first time we met he was wearing a Germs t-shirt recommended it to
me. I’d never heard anything like this before.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: I remember seeing them at Daikanyama Unit. You could hear it three floors
up, and by the time you got inside the hall, it was just a wall of sounds all
smooshed together and three hundred people going completely insane in front of
the stage. There’s something very pure about it, but I think that’s partly what
makes me think it feels fascist: that fetishisation of purity is quite a
fascist thing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: For me, the important question is about authenticity. </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Ascension</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> is in a weird place in that it
expresses my roots, but I had to reverse engineer myself into achieving it.
It’s supposed to be a stream of consciousness thing, but can it ever really be
that if you’re forcing yourself to? Punk was a reaction against the excesses of
‘70s rock, but think about it: it’s bands saying, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“We’re not going to play our instruments properly on purpose.”</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> If
it was a conscious reaction to something that already existed, how pure could
it ever have really been?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: So what you’re doing to yourself, reverse-engineering your musical
consciousness, is what the music scene did as a neurotic whole in punk. Like
when The Clash sang, </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">“No Elvis, Beatles
or The Rolling Stones” </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">— it’s a conscious manifesto to make yourself
unlearn music history.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">RYOTARO: So it comes back to this idea of cleansing.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">IAN: Julian Cope writes in his autobiography about how Richard Hell described
his song </span><i style="line-height: 115%;">Blank Generation</i><span style="line-height: 115%;"> as being
about </span><i style="line-height: 115%;">“fill in the blank”</i><span style="line-height: 115%;"> but then
when he named his band The Voidoids, Cope felt he’d sold out to this cult of
meaninglessness. Cope was a postpunk musician and he felt this cleansing
process of wiping the slate clean was in order to build something new. If you
stay punk, you’re being wilfully dumb.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: The title </span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Ascension</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> is kind
of about that. It’s about building to the next level — the album art also based
on that same idea.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">IAN: It’s an interesting image: like a depiction of the human ego dissolving.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">RYOTARO: Yeah, but at the same time, the artist Nasutakeo, she said that’s how
she draws when she doesn’t think and just draws.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JkW4iLMoeXo" width="400"></iframe><!--EndFragment--> </span>dotdashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06270663921267987965noreply@blogger.com0