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November 22, 2024
 

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Patrick St. Michel
Patrick St. Michel is a Tokyo-based writer with a focus on Japanese music. He runs the blog Make Believe Melodies, which has focused on Japanese independent music since 2009. Besides The Japan Times, he also contributes to MTV 81 and The Atlantic.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2017
Hard-core vinyl fans are fueling a revival in obscure Japanese music from the 1980s
Fans of Japanese vinyl have good reason to be happy. HMV recently opened a store in the Kichijoji area dedicated to selling records — the third such establishment in Tokyo — and April 22 is Record Store Day. What started in 2012 as four artists putting out special releases has evolved into a day...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2017
The beginnings of Mariah's sound
When U.S. label Palto Flats reissued Japanese band Mariah's album "Utakata no Hibi" ("Ephemeral Days") in 2015, it wasn't the first time an obscure record from the bubble era had been given new attention. However, the critical praise that followed the release triggered new interest in Japanese artists...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Apr 8, 2017
Steamed cake that looks like an egg: Form over flavor
The simplest way to transform a ho-hum sweet into something that jumps out at customers is to make it look like a different foodstuff altogether. I've lost count of how many bland creampuff-like treats I've eaten during my lifetime simply because a machine shaped them to look vaguely like a strawberry....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Apr 1, 2017
'Oil cut' doughnuts: Most of the taste with half the guilt
Eating desserts — whether as an occasional treat after dinner or for a bi-weekly newspaper column — can lead to complicated feelings. Of course, most of the time it's a delicious experience that leaves you happy and satisfied in the moment. But minutes after, the shame of all those extra calories...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Mar 24, 2017
Pakuchi and Lemonade: Harnessing the thirst-quenching power of coriander
Pakuchi, called coriander in English, has been enjoying its time in the sun as a trendy ingredient in restaurants and recipes across the country as of late.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 19, 2017
Yurufuwa Gang infuses plenty of positivity into its hip-hop sets
Yurufuwa Gang are one of the latest Japanese hip-hop acts to be getting attention from both domestic media and overseas players. As the nation's rap scene experiences something of a modest boom, the pair of Ryugo Ishida and Sophiee seem poised to be part of it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 19, 2017
Zombie-Chang's 'Gang!' reveals an unexpected new side
Chaos breeds a lot of surprises but the biggest shock coming out of genre-blending artist Zombie-Chang's latest album, "Gang!", is the flashes where she sounds like someone capable of being a mainstream pop performer.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Mar 17, 2017
Chouxcream Chouxcri's Cassius Orange: A 'syukurimu' for true connoisseurs
Lovers of dessert, rejoice. The Chouxcream Chouxcri dessert store outfit have opened a second establishment selling syukurimu made from top-line ingredients near Shinjuku Station. The new outpost offers the chain's signature cream puff (¥290), but the highlight is clearly the Shinjuku-only Cassius...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 16, 2017
Radwimps were the perfect choice when it came to soundtracking 'Your Name.'
Yokohama Arena feels special on this chilly Tuesday night in early March. It's here that Radwimps — a rock outfit from Kanagawa Prefecture whose members could bike to this very venue when they were teens — are playing the first of two sold-out shows.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Mar 12, 2017
Militant approach to collecting fees hurts JASRAC's reputation
At the start of 2017, it was hard to imagine a way that the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC) could garner more hate from social media users than its already received. The music copyright management organization has long been one of the most loathed institutions...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Mar 10, 2017
Sakura Kaoru Cheese Souffle Cake: A new twist to an old theme
For the most part, Lawson's new Sakura Kaoru Cheese Souffle Cake looks more intriguing than it actually tastes, though it packs a surprise twist.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Mar 3, 2017
Patisserie Kihachi kick-starts spring with Mont Blanc Sakura sweet
It may not feel like it, but spring is right around the corner, and for the nation's dessert makers that means everything gets a bit pink as they capitalize on the coming of the ever-fleeting cherry blossoms.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Feb 24, 2017
Pocky's vanilla variety pairs well with a particular side
To properly enjoy Pocky's creamy vanilla variety, you're going to need a drink. According to the snack's intricate advertising campaign, it is ideally complimented by a new strawberry-flavored tea, where the two flavors join to resemble strawberry shortcake.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 19, 2017
Could Wednesday Campanella's 'Superman' be the album that saves mainstream J-pop?
Wednesday Campanella "Superman" (Warner Music Japan)
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Feb 17, 2017
Black S'more Pancake: More than the sum of its many parts
Sometimes, simply piling sweet tastes onto a dessert is a winning strategy. As it happens, The J.S. Pancake Cafe chain is offering up a chocolate Black S'more Pancake until the end of February.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Feb 10, 2017
Agepizza: a deep-fried substitute for the real deal to warm your cockles in winter
During the coldest stretch of winter, a warm snack helps to make the low temperatures a bit more tolerable.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Feb 3, 2017
Say it with special pancakes, slathered with chocolate mousse
Pancakes may not be the on-trend meal just now, but the right stack should still wow your date on Valentine's Day. Cafe and bookstore Bibliotheque, with locations in Yurakucho and Jiyugaoka, is rolling out a decadent take on the dish throughout February. The Valentine's Special Pancake (¥1,400) features...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 2, 2017
Justin Miller brings an American touch to one of Japan's richest musical genres: Showa pop
Justin Miller isn't a stranger to Japanese TV. He has been a guest on various morning shows to promote Showa Kayo Night, a party he co-founded in 2011. But the reaction he got after appearing on TV Tokyo's evening program "You wa Nani Shi ni Nippon E?" ("Why Did You Come To Japan?") really surprised...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 29, 2017
Quarta330 rewires his sound on 'Pixelated'
Unlike a lot of kids growing up in the 1990s, Toru Koda didn't have much hands-on experience with video games.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Jan 27, 2017
No big surprises from Sapporo's latest artisanal brew
In order to stand out in the ever-crowded booze corner of convenience stores, Sapporo is playing up the traditional production methods behind its brews. It has released a second installment of the "Beer Surprise" series of drinks — available exclusively at Family Mart convenience stores. The Shifuku...
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

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

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