Ian Martin - The Japan Times

November 21, 2024

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Ian Martin

Ian Martin is a freelance writer covering music and pop culture. He has been active in the Tokyo music scene as an indie event organiser, DJ and label owner since 2004 and has been contributing to The Japan Times music page for almost as long.

CULTURE / Music

Sep 8, 2006

Various Artists "Peace Not War Japan"

Charity music has a rich tradition in Western countries, from 1985's "Live Aid" extravaganza to War Child's benchmark album of indie philanthropy, the 1996 "Help" compilation. Given the size and wealth of Japan's music industry, it might be expected to chip in where poverty and strife raise their ugly...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Music

Aug 25, 2006

In mid-1990s Britain, Graham Coxon was the guitar hero of a generation. His band, Blur, were the epitome of Britpop, and his guitar style, fusing jagged, violent post-punk and melodic, melancholic '60s guitar pop -- along with frontman Damon Albarn's ear for a melody -- kept them ahead of their competitors....

CULTURE / Music

Jul 28, 2006

Peaches "Impeach My Bush"

The title is an eye-catcher, promising all manner of saucy-yet-savvy postfeminist fun, but be warned: Far from the liberal alien sex-prophetess of your dreams, Peaches is actually your embarrassing uncle who visits every Christmas. You chuckle at his "leg or breast" gag while dad's carving the turkey,...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Music

Jul 14, 2006

A little Fukuoka in Akihabara

'It's too easy for bands to play [in Tokyo] really. There are so many places to play, and everything is divided into convenient categories," says Hajime Yoshida of the Japanese punk band Panic Smile. "Bands from outlying cities have a tougher attitude than Tokyo bands."

CULTURE / Music

Jun 2, 2006

The Futureheads "News and Tributes"

The Futureheads made a name for themselves in 2004 with a fierce and spiky self-titled debut album characterized by a strong resemblance to XTC, but tempered by a unique way with four-part vocal harmonies. This sophomore effort cuts down on the spikiness, the harmonies and the fierceness (although not...

CULTURE / Music

May 19, 2006

Nisennenmondai "Rokuon"

Instrumental bands so often have audiences stampeding for the bar, but three-piece female band Nisennenmondai's performances manage to be both uncompromising and accessible. And very, very loud.

CULTURE / Music

May 5, 2006

Squadcar "Squadcar"

The axiom has it that you should "write what you know," or else end up with shallow, superficial art, which is why being an expatriate musician living and playing in Tokyo must be difficult. How to pitch yourself? Play on the gimmick of your foreignness and run the risk of coming across like one of those...

CULTURE / Music

Apr 28, 2006

Music Day Japan 2006

The concept of Music Day Japan was borrowed from Fe^te de la Musique, a vast free music festival held in France on the summer solstice. Founding the festival in 1982, the French cultural ministry has made sure that the wide range of music on offer consistently crosses generational boundaries.

CULTURE / Music

Mar 24, 2006

Asian Kung-Fu Generation "Fanclub"

Asian Kung-Fu Generation are a phenomenon in Japanese alternative rock. With their regular, well-received festival appearances and skyrocketing record sales (2004's "Solfa" shifted over half a million) they are a role model for any indie rock band looking for life beyond the Tokyo "toilet circuit." ...

CULTURE / Music

Mar 17, 2006

Kaela Kimura "Circle"

Columbia Records want you to think that Kaela Kimura is different from other idols, which is why they've manufactured her image out of the most adorably kooky component parts -- take the endearingly under-rehearsed dance routines of Tommy February6, quirky costumes stolen from Yuki's wardrobe, and then...

CULTURE / Music

Mar 10, 2006

Coldcut "Sound Mirrors"

Coldcut have such an illustrious history of pushing music forward -- as a pioneering influence bringing acid house into the mainstream and through their work on the Ninja Tune label -- that any new release comes with great expectations. The fact that "Sound Mirrors" comes so close to realizing them is...

CULTURE / Music

Feb 24, 2006

Everyone has to start somewhere. That's the concept behind Independence-D, a three-day festival with the noble-sounding aim of bringing together the very finest bands from the very best independent labels to give us lucky people a glimpse of the future. Under the ambitious slogan, "From the world to...

CULTURE / Music

Feb 17, 2006

The High-Lows "Flash -- Best"

The High-Lows are one of those bands that you have to at least know about. Formed 10 years ago, the band includes Hiroto Komoto (vocals), Masatoshi Mashima (guitar), and Mikio Shirai (keyboards), all former members of those architects of modern Japanese punk-pop, The Blue Hearts -- who took over the...

CULTURE / Music

Feb 3, 2006

Zazen Boys "Zazen Boys III"

Exploding out of Fukuoka in the late 1990s, Shutoku Mukai's previous band, Number Girl, never compromised their lo-fi sound, but caught the zeitgeist by tapping into feelings of directionless teen angst. As Bob Dylan would probably tell you, though, being the voice of a generation is a tiring job, especially...

CULTURE / Music

Jan 13, 2006

Ai Otsuka "Love Cook"

Good bubblegum pop is a bridge between childhood and teenagerdom. Based in a synthetic, brightly colored pre-teen world of nursery rhymes and cotton candy, it's also a metaphor for its audience's growing sexual maturity. When Ohio Express sang, "Yummy yummy yummy, I've got love in my tummy" we all knew...

CULTURE / Music

Dec 23, 2005

Yebisu 06 New Year's Party

For those of you looking to usher in the new year to a homegrown sound, Yebisu 06 New Year's Party at Ebisu Garden Hall might be your thing. Playing live will be Pe'z, who may or may not explain where their superfluous apostrophe comes from, but who will certainly be rocking some pop-jazz chic embellished...

CULTURE / Music

Dec 2, 2005

Quruli: "Nikki"

Quruli? An indie band? It's just not true. While at their creative peak they made mind-blowing J-pop (2002's "The World Is Mine"), at their worst, they are MOR J-popsters with bad hair.

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.

A boom for business tourism in Japan?

By Kathryn Wortley

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

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