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July 16, 2024
 

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Shawn Despres

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Shawn Despres
Shawn Despres has been contributing to the Japan Times’ music page since 2005, and he has a passion for writing about the independent music scene in East Asia. He spent several years living in Yokohama and currently resides in Seoul.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 9, 2009
Limited Express (has gone?): "LTD"
Formed in Kyoto in 1998, Tokyo-based trio Limited Express (has gone?) issued two full-length discs (the first of which surfaced on American avant-garde composer John Zorn's well-respected Tzadik Records) and gigged overseas in Australia, Europe and North America before breaking up on New Year's Eve in...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 2, 2009
Metric
Sure it is always an honor to be nominated, but at this point Metric have got to be jonesing for a win. One of Canada's top alt-rock acts, the quartet's fourth full-length, "Fantasies," was shortlisted for this year's Polaris Music Prize (Canada's version of the U.K.'s Mercury Prize), but the band left...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 25, 2009
Asagiri Jam
The last major outdoor music festival of the year, Asagiri Jam has been dubbed "the real Fuji Rock Festival" due to its very scenic location at the foot of Mount Fuji in Shizuoka. The two-day concert was established in 2001 and inspired by the spirit of the late 1960s and the communal atmosphere at early...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 18, 2009
Pastels / Tenniscoats "Two Sunsets"
"Two Sunsets" is a collaboration between Tokyo's Tenniscoats and seminal Scottish guitar-pop act Pastels. Recorded over a few years in Glasgow during time off from Tenniscoats' European tours, the album joins the growing list of joint projects by the Japanese avant-pop duo. They teamed up with Swedish...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 11, 2009
Vivian Girls
Issued domestically by Tokyo record imprint Yacca at the beginning of September, "Everything Goes Wrong" is the sophomore effort from Vivian Girls.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 4, 2009
Dälek and DJ Baku
To promote their "DJ Baku Vs Dälek" CD, Tokyo turntablist DJ Baku and American hip-hop group Dälek (pronounced Die-a-leck) are teaming up for some shows.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 28, 2009
the telephones get their disco on
Saitama quartet the telephones are unabashed disco aficionados.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 14, 2009
Eastern Youth "Hohaba to Taiyou"
Formed in Sapporo in 1988, last year marked Tokyo trio Eastern Youth's 20th anniversary. To commemorate the occasion they issued two retrospective discs and performed for the first time on Fuji Rock's Green Stage, the renowned festival's largest performance area. The newly released "Hohaba to Taiyou"...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 10, 2009
Bleach "Bleach Stone"
Citing the old standby, "artistic differences," on June 10, all-girl Okinawa hard-rock trio Bleach (who used the modified moniker Bleach03 overseas) announced they had disbanded. Formed in 1998, they gigged extensively throughout Japan and toured the United States 11 times, establishing a small cult...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 26, 2009
Acid Mothers Temple vs. Kinski Japan Tour 2009
A pub debate between a few rummies and a bartender over analog and digital recording techniques ended with the involved parties forming a band together called Kinski in 1998.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 19, 2009
De De Mouse
Here's some unsolicited advice for De De Mouse — whatever you've done to capture the ears of promoters, keep on doing it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 19, 2009
South Korean festivals suffer a setback
In 2006, South Korean promoters I-Yescom Entertainment and Yellow9 launched the Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival to coincide with the Fuji Rock Festival in the hope of capitalizing on the amount of foreign acts touring Japan every July.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 12, 2009
Kool Keith & 54-71 "Idea of a Master Piece"
There's no harm in asking, right? Tokyo indie rock quartet 54-71 can attest to this. Big fans of seminal New York MC Kool Keith, they e-mailed him to inquire about collaborating. Receiving a somewhat surprising "yes" reply, 54-71 flew to the U.S. in April and the two parties banged out 10 well-rounded...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 22, 2009
A Flood of Circle "Buffalo Soul"
The strength of A Flood of Circle's 2007 debut eponymous EP helped the Tokyo quartet secure a coveted spot on the rookie stage at that summer's Fuji Rock Festival. A clear sign of bigger things to come, with the release of their first full-length recording, "Buffalo Soul," the act have again scored an...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 15, 2009
Deerhunter
Bradford Cox, frontman for Atlanta, Georgia's, self-styled "ambient punks" Deerhunter, tends to attract attention.
CULTURE / Music
May 15, 2009
Qomolangma Tomato "Camouflage"
Qomolangma Tomato came together in Yokohama in 2003 while all four of its members were in their early 20s. Influenced by posthardcore, math rock and punk, their early material earned the band invites to perform on Summer Sonic's Tokyo stages in 2006 and 2007.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 8, 2009
The Bawdies
More than 25 years ago, ZZ Top sang, "They come running just as fast as they can, because every girl's crazy about a sharp-dressed man." Looking quite dapper in matching suits and ties, The Bawdies will see if this still holds true as the Tokyo outfit attempts to pack clubs with hordes of screaming ladies...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 17, 2009
80kidz "This is my Sh-t"
During their two-year existence, Tokyo-based DJ trio 80kidz have shared stages with famed electronic acts Justice and Boys Noize, and have also remixed American underground rockers Black Kids, Brazilian dance punks CSS and J-pop star Ayumi Hamasaki. The unit's rapidly rising status was recently boosted...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 3, 2009
Flogging Molly and Civet
On March 17 every year, millions toast Ireland and its patron saint at St. Patrick's Day festivities around the globe — but few do it with the same ardor as Celtic punk band Flogging Molly.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 3, 2009
Cocobat "Searching for Change"
Compared early in their career by U.K. rock rag Kerrang! with U.S. metal heavyweights Pantera, Tokyo quartet Cocobat attempt to once again ascend the ranks of the local aggressive-music scene with the release of "Searching For Change," their first album in five years.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
China and Russia conduct joint Pacific military patrol
The Russian corvette Gromkiy enters the Chinese port of Zhanjiang as part of a joint China-Russia naval exercise on Saturday.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.
How to tweak your diet when temperatures spike
Most people think of hydration as a strictly liquid-based concept, but eating foods with high water content is an essential part of making it through a Japanese summer unscathed.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

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