For those not into the usual Japanese holiday traditions of eating Christmas cake, watching the "Kohaku" music show on TV, and quiet nights with the family, luckily Japan's rockers aren't taking time off. December is filled with must-see gigs.
The party starts early with London-based rockers Bo Ningen returning to their homeland to promote a new EP and nationwide tour in 2012. The band will host a "Bo Nenkai" at Shibuya's Echo (Dec. 16; 11 p.m.; ¥1,500), which is a pun on the word bōnenkai, the Japanese word for end-of-the-year party. The four band members will split into two separate duos to perform at the gig. Guest DJs will include Twee Grrrls Club DJ Sumire and members from the band Lillies and Remains. If that all-night affair is too late for you, Bo Ningen will also do an in-store performance at Tower Records (Dec. 17; 7 p.m.), as long as the boys don't have hangovers.
Another show to watch will be Cuz Me Pain's Jesse Ruins show at Shibuya Lush (Dec. 23; 11 p.m.; ¥1,500). The Tokyo-based Jesse Ruins recently signed with U.S. label Captured Tracks, and this will be his band's first live performance. As a bedroom producer who generates his tracks on a computer, it'll be interesting to see how (and if) he performs them on stage. Guest DJs include The Beauty .