I have nothing at all against drum machines. That's not to say I've always been into them, but between Anaal Nathrakh and Agoraphobic Nosebleed, I've succumbed to the allure of infinitely fast blast beats that technology makes possible. If you're not a fan of them, though, you might not be into Role. Role plays an epic screamo/hardcore/post-rock hybrid not unlike Heaven in Her Arms with a dash of Nervous Light of Sunday, backed up by well-programmed synthetic drums. You can't really tell except for small parts here and there. Everything together, though, and there is zero cause for complaint. They pull of some great melodies and some emotional moments despite the backing of a computer. Seriously, these guys sound great.
You've got two songs here for free download. Pick them up if you're a fan of Heaven In Her Arms, Envy, To Overflow Evidence, or Nervous Light of Sunday. These guys are definitely a band to watch!
The Last Place are an emotional hardcore band from Saitama. They just dropped a new demo for 2012 on bandcamp and it's pretty dang good. Let me explain what I mean by emotional hardcore though, cause that means a lot of different things to different people. These guys take a line from Endzweck and Nervous Light of Sunday. Maybe melodic metalcore is a better description? Ah, who cares; it's really good. There are two songs here, as well as 3 songs from their 2011 demo. Really good tracks with good melodies. Did I mention the free download?
I could only find one video on youtube, which is pretty unfortunate because it has HORRIBLE live sound. It's drums and vocals and nothing else, and these guys melodies are one of the best things about this music. Just listen to the bandcamp while you watch this video on mute. That might be the best thing.
Here's an odd little compilation that I got from Nitro Mega Prayer when I did a trade with them. It's a weird amalgam of metalcore bands, with Nitro Mega Prayer and Enforce thrown in the mix. At the time, both bands weren't too far from that genre, but still sound different. The Nitro Mega Prayer tracks are sort of between their first split and their first album. The Enforce track is my highlight on here, though. They only released 3 tracks that I know of, on compilations, but they prove themselves as one of the best bands from Japan.
If anybody has any information on Enforce, please let me know!
I originally picked my copy of this up while I was studying in JP during 2002. Like I said in my previous NMP post, I did carry them for awhile in my distro, before selling out. Now, it's probably super hard to find or something. ANYWAYS, I'm rambling because it's Friday and I'm tired.
This is the first release that I know of from Nitro Mega Prayer. They're playing some sort of metallic emotional hardcore. I'm not sure where it fits compared to everything else. It's not bad, but it isn't going to be the NMP you expect (if you haven't heard this). I think the lineup between this and their first album is mostly the same, but they definitely had a different direction on this split.
On the other side is Blue Sky Resemble Sorrow, whose website is still up after a super long time. They are the highlight on this split for me. They play this old style of Japanese emotional hardcore/screamo that is so, so good. I know next to nothing about these guys, but it looks like they broke up shortly after, which is really too bad.
OH MY GOD I JUST FOUND A VIDEO OF BLUE SKY RESEMBLE SORROW ON YOUTUBE FROM 2001:
There's a weird divide in the Japanese underground scene. I guess I can get a little more specific and say "Japanese screamo" scene, at least in the instance I'm talking about. Each band has their group of friends that they play with, and there's usually a network stretching across Japan that enables these bands to play around a lot. Back in the early 2000's, I was most familiar with the scene that Gauge Means Nothing was a part of, which included other bands like Dip Leg, Nitro Mega Prayer, Yarmulke, Tiala, and some others. What's odd, though, is that there were other bands that were not a part of that group. I'm not sure where the disconnect was, or how bands were invited or uninvited to take part in the group, but it has always stuck out to me. I know I'm talking in abstracts, so let me get into an example.
Anchor, who I posted about earlier, has been around for probably around 12 years now. They don't seem to play that often and haven't put out a ton of releases, but they are definitely an important band in the scene. But, even though their styles definitely meld with a lot of the other bands in Japan, they are usually found at the outskirts of that scene. In fact, they kind of have their own scene with bands like Stubborn Father, Anode, and R3-N7. There is some overlap. Satire Records' amazing Light Your Own Way compilation included Stubborn Father and Anchor on it, but that seemed to be the exception instead of the rule. I don't really know if it's a negative thing or not, and I'm not trying to cast judgement. It's just something I've noticed that seems curious to me.
With that, I can now introduce Arrastrandose, who is in a similar position. I would almost think that they would play in the same circle as Anchor and Stubborn Father. Their music owes a lot to envy, but has a very unique bend to it. But in truth, Arrastrandose seems to play with more tough-guy hardcore and metalcore bands. They do have some of that in their music, but it would make an odd mix to have them couched in between two bands with gang vocals, for instance.
But that's not to say anything bad about their music, which is pretty exceptional. It's really a testament to the treasures you can find in Japan, because only there would you see this mash-up of post-rock, metalcore, screamo, and a little bit of grind. Arrastrandose can't really be compared to any other bands, but will probably appeal to anyone with an open mind. It's weird to think this album (only 7 songs, but I guess it's an album) was released 8 years ago now, but the band is still going strong. I watched a video of a show from last December, and it seems like they've fallen into the post rock void, leaving behind their old aggression. Here's a video which is more similar to this album (although I can't quite place the song):
First, an explanation. I didn't really want to write a separate post for each one of these, because there's only one song on each bandcamp. However, they're all pretty cool so I did want to write about them. So this is sort of like a grab bag thing with three unrelated bands. Anyways, let's just dive in.
Chikuwashinachikuchikuwa (I'll call them Chiku for short) seems to play shows with all sorts of different bands: Loyal To the Grave, Arbus, even A Soulless Pain (who I will get to shortly). From that, I would expect breakdowns, melodic riffage, and some guy yelling his head off. Instead, they play a long-form of post-metal mixed with post-rock. I guess the easiest description is Pelican mixed with Envy, but there's something else. Their melodies don't immediately remind me of anyone, which is pretty cool. On their bandcamp they've presented the second of two tracks from their demo. I'm really interested to hear the first song, because the second is really unique.
A Soulless Pain is supposed to be on Last Fort Records, at least that's what their bandcamp looks like, but I can't find any releases by them. Anyways, Last Fort is responsible for bands like To Overflow Evidence and Arbus, so their stuff usually straddles the line between metalcore and screamo. Melodic hardcore? Who knows. A Soulless Pain fits perfectly in there, reminding me of Naiad a lot, with those beautiful melodies stuck into metalcore songs. A Soulless Pain does it really well with good melodies and a great song overall. Only one track here, unfortunately, but hopefully they'll put up more later.
Sunday Document is probably my favorite of these three, but also don't really fit with the other two stylistically. Hmm... I'm listening and trying to think of how to describe this band. Maybe a mix between Bluebeard, Atata, and Malegoat? There's another band that this really reminds me of, but I can't remember them for the life of me. They've got equal parts poppy emo rock and really solid guitar rock. God, it just meshes so perfectly. Inspirational emo rock sounds horribly stupid, but that's what this makes me feel like. It's really bright and optimistic. The songs are a perfect length at around 3 minutes and keep it really interesting the whole way through. Unfortunately the two songs here are not downloadable, but they do have an EP of 6 songs that's only 500yen. Now where can I find that?
Time to X up, boys and girls, and get your dancing shoes on. It's moshing time! Today we're listening to Capture the Sky, who have so graciously put a bunch of their music up on bandcamp for us (including free downloads!). I won't pretend to know a ton about this stuff. Usually I only listen to Japanese metalcore, because it sounds different from American or European metalcore. Capture the Sky is definitely more American influenced, but I can hear some of my Japanese favorites as well.
The first point of departure for Capture the Sky's melodic metalcore is definitely Hopesfall. Their melodies are very progressive and even their breakdowns have a strong melodic overtone to them. There's no singing, just lots of gang vocals and growling. It also really reminds me of Naiad, and I actually think that's probably the biggest influence, especially on their Demo EP. So, if either of those bands sound good to you, definitely check these guys out. There are three demo/eps up on bandcamp and two have free downloads. That's a nice chunk!
Here's a pretty rad video of them at Shinjuku Anti-Knock:
I picked this demo up recently, and totally enjoyed the epic, metal-influenced screamo hardcore mashup. It's really hard to describe wombscape in words other than that. At each part of their songs, they're playing a different style than the previous part. It all comes together over the length of their two songs on this demo. It kind of reminds me of this old band Womb, which is, y'know, part of this band's name. Kinda weird.
I think the model setup here is totally ingenious. I've often struggled with a way to get Japanese demos available outside of Japan. Usually bands are selling them for 200-300 yen (around 3 bucks), which is hardly even worth the shipping over here. If I were to try and get them wholesale, the band would essentially have to give them to me for free for me to sell them at a reasonable cost. Web-based distribution, like Bandcamp, for demos makes more sense in order to get your music out to people who aren't able to come to your shows.
With that being said, you can grab this demo for 2 bucks American, which is a steal. One of the songs is listenable on bandcamp, but the other only comes with a purchase. The second song is a lot longer than the first, at around 9 minutes, so you're getting a chunk of music. And actually, the second song is a lot more epic and post rock-ish, with a little later-Deftones-like vocals, which I am 100% behind. Pick this up, it's a nice view of a Japanese band doing something a little different.
There are quite a few metalcore bands in Japan. The success of State Craft and western bands like Converge have made it a staple in the Japanese music diet. The problem is with the quality of these bands. More often than not, they are sad copies of better bands, and are quickly forgotten. I think one of the main reasons is that most focus so much on what could be called crowd participation. I'm talking about a focus on how people will interact with the music, often putting too much of a focus on breakdowns or heavy parts. This might be fun in the moment, but the lasting appeal of that type of band is nonexistent. The best bands balance originality and familiarity to make something that is fun to listen to, but also deep enough to stand the test of time.
I'd like to present NOT II BELIKESOMEONE as such a band, balancing crowd-pleasing rhythmic parts with original riffing and beautiful parts. Their goal from the beginning was always to make something new, which is always a good place to start. This is their first actual EP after a demo in 2003, and they have that perfect balance of originality and familiarity. They build off a base of State Craft and Hopesfall, but add other parts that could come from Envy or Snapcase (I'm reaching here). They really do have their own sound.
You get 4 songs and one instrumental here. If you like this, I do still have copies in my distro, which you can buy. Otherwise, it's sold out everywhere else I looked. Enjoy!
These guys were some of my good friends from Kyoto while I was studying in Japan during 2002. At the time, there was only three (guitar, vocals, drums) but they had two guys from Lasting For Answer helping them out. After I'd returned to the States, they found enough members and changed their name to NOT II BELIKESOMEONE. I helped Masa (or Taf), the singer with his English grammar for the lyrics. He had grown up in England because of his dad's work, so his pronunciation was pretty amazing. They are still together, releasing an EP in 2006 (which I'll be posting tomorrow), a demo in 2003 and another in 2010. Hopefully they're working on more songs.
I always really loved their sound. It is a hybrid of classic Japanese metalcore and other more melodic and diverse bands. They fit kind of firmly between State Craft and Naiad. Hajime, who writes the songs, is really gifted and includes tons of fun and interesting parts. I'm usually not into vocals, but Masa has an impressive range. From guttural, goregrind pig squeals to smooth singing, he does it all.
Do I know a lot about this band? No. Did my scanner do something weird to the colors of this cover because it was printed weird? Yes. Will I continue to write in a question/answer pattern? Maybe.
I really don't know much about Mind Touch. They broke up in 2006. They were around for 6 years, as their blog says, but I think this is there only release. It is pretty well done, a mix of Japanese metalcore with some broader melodies and hardcore influence. They have more variety than the usual Japanese metalcore band and are pretty interesting to listen to. Only two songs here, but they are a good representation of a band that could've done more. Hope you enjoy!
I've already written a bit about the group I hung out with during my study in Japan. My main friends were Kazushi, Masa, and Hajime, but they were all friends with another local hardcore band that I befriended. Their name was Lasting For Answer, and although I only saw them twice, we hung out on other opportunities. I had a going away party and most of the band members came, along with my crew. I remember the singer was telling me something about having the heart of a samurai in modern day Japan. I also remember how red his face was.
I got to see them on two occasions. The first was at Huckle Berry in Shiga, a livehouse I'd never visited. I rode in the drummer for Down2Earth's car, which had doilies as seat protectors. Seeing a bunch of semi-thugged out hardcore Japanese kids in that car was ridiculous. The place had a fair amount of people for a mid-day show. The bands were a total grab bag, some rock, metal, etc. I didn't completely understand the Japanese show mechanics yet, so it was weird to see all of these different types of bands playing. The one other band I saw was Some It Air. I'll write about them more later, but it was my first time seeing them and I totally fell in love at first sight.
Lasting For Answer was awesome and hilarious. The music was not exactly what I was expecting, but the guys played with such passion and enthusiasm, I was quickly drawn in. I was so used to my friends in America looking sort of grungy and messed up. These guys were completely thugged-out, with XXL jersies, Kangol hats, and hand-towels around their shoulders. Despite their appearance, they were totally nice guys and very excited to meet me. None of them had great English skills, so we communicated in a hybrid Japanese-English mashup that would've been embarrassing to onlookers.
The second time I saw them was at a show that my friend Kazushi set up, which also featured Gauge Means Nothing, Staple, and Down2Earth. I already wrote about this, but Lasting For Answer's set was a ton of fun. That's where these videos come from that I'm posting. Sadly, they only play 3 songs, like the other bands that day. Still, they're totally fun and I think the energy is pretty contagious.
I have their demo tape which has 2 songs on it. I plan to get a tape player so I can rip all the tapes I have lying around. But who knows when that'll happen. Enjoy the videos!
The year is 2000. You are in a Japanese band releasing it's first full length on a renowned international record label. What do you do? That's right, start your fuckin album off with some final fantasy keyboard shit!
You might say, "that's not final fantasy, it's more like black metal," but the end of that intro track is the straight up opening theme to every final fantasy since the first one, so shut up.
State Craft follows up the rest of the album with the best metal / NYHC cross-over yet seen. The exact science of how they put it all together is fairly unknown, however. Other bands have obviously done the same throughout the world, but State Craft came out the other end with such a unique interpretation that it really created a whole new genre. The intense melodic sensibilities cannot be overstated enough. Most bands running with these influences never stray far from open-E chugging. State Craft does not take the bait and crafts truly powerful melodies that run throughout all their songs. Dual guitars riffing together while the rhythm section rumbles through complicated time structures is just the way they do it.
It feels like there is a lot to write about State Craft, but I either don't have all the knowledge (I'm not too keen on the history of NYHC or metal, so even my description as a crossover of those two is flimsy) or there are simply no words to describe it. State Craft is just amazing. In some ways, they are THE band for people who don't care much for NYHC or metal (like I was a few years ago). There is so much in their music, I think you can find something you like in there.
Here's that debut album from 2000. It actually is still available in CD and vinyl, so pick up a copy if you like it: Goodlife Records
Here's a pretty crazy video. I've never seen that many kids at a Japanese hardcore show.
Staple... oh Staple. This band... this CD... I've listened to this CD so many times, but I still don't know the lyrics! Not that I care, because its one of my favorite things ever. I can still listen to this today and understand why this was on my top 2 CD's during my Japan study and the years after (Bluebeard's only album would be the other). So, I think it's totally great, but you may not, but who cares! It's frickin' emo week, dawg, and it's almost over.
In 2002, I knew people in the music scene in Tokyo, but none in the Kansai region where I was studying. Yuichi (from Gauge Means Nothing) sent me the contact info for one of his friends in the area, Kazushi. Kazushi was sort of shy, spoke a little English, ran a small distro, and set up shows in the area some time. We met at shows, and he introduced me to Masa & Hajime (members of NotIIBelikesomeone). They were sort of my "crew" when I was there. So, Kazushi had a really small distro that he was just starting and one of the things he sold that I didn't have was Staple's "A Peace of the Puzzle." He convinced me to buy it, and I'm so glad I did. Instantly, on the first song, I was hooked. Staple has the ability to just convince you of their greatness as a song goes on. I wouldn't say they have the best beginnings of song, but like a trusty car, once they get going it gets so good (sorry, that was a horrible analogy).
[Edit: I found a picture of Kazushi, so why not throw it up here!]
Kazushi
Kazushi would later setup one of the best shows I attended while in Japan. The lineup was Gauge Means Nothing, Staple, Lasting For Answer, NotIIbelikesomeone and Norde (I feel like I'm missing a band). It was my first time getting to see Gauge Means Nothing (and that's really a whole different story), but I was really stoked to see Staple. After the show, we all went to an izakaya, and I talked to the members in Japanese. The singer got really wasted and was saying all sorts of crazy stuff while the other band members looked awkward. It was hilarious. I seem to remember talking to them about setting up tours in America and other poorly worded and not thought out at all plans. After saying goodbye, I walked around Kyoto until the first trains started running. It was a good night.
Staple definitely sits solidly in emo week. Their sound is sort of Jimmy Eat World meets State Craft. They have multi-vocal melodic parts that are followed by screaming metalcore parts. I know how that sounds. I'm actually pretty sad that I described it that way, because it sounds like a million radio screamo bands, but it is not at all. Staple sounds like Staple, and I think their sound makes sense in itself. Describing stuff is so hard and its only made harder when bands do weird things.
Just try it out. Here's the video I took from the show. I didn't think I'd be able to upload it, but I was working on that as soon as I got home so that's why this post is late. Also, I'm drunk now so my words don't make sense.... sorry.
Atlas the Alone was a band the played one of the most amazing shows I saw while I was studying in Japan. It happened at this weird practice studio in Osaka. The above little ticket thing is what I got at the door. I only knew After Forever and R3-N7 coming into the show, but got many surprises. I think I have Atlas the Alone footage somewhere, but I'm not really setup to rip video right now (hopefully soon!). Instead, when I was trying to find more info about the band, I found that someone posted 5 songs on youtube years ago. The audio is pulled from a live show, but isn't the worst thing ever. I've heard worse demos. They play a sort of hybrid between Japanese new school hardcore and envy-style screamo. I thought it was pretty interesting when I saw them, and these songs reaffirmed that decision. Check it out!
A random demo I picked up in 2003. I didn't know what to expect, but Nervous Light of Sunday play some awesome melodic, new school hardcore. They're still around and released an album on Cosmic Note a few years ago. Pretty good stuff on here. Enjoy!
In my memory, which is admittedly shaky these days, this was the first item in my distro. When I found my first sampler CD, I realized it was actually the second. Irregardless, it's always been one of my favorites. I have love, deep in my heart, for good compilations. There are so many bad ones, that good ones stand out like diamonds in a pile of crap. When a compilation is more like a mixtape, then you're in business. While this one (I'm not going to bother typing the full name out, it would end up being about as long as this parenthesis) isn't without its faults, it's really the first appearances from several bands (GMN, After Forever, Enforce, Womb) and seemed to signal a new movement in the Japanese underground that lasted for several years.
Take Gauge Means Nothing, for instance. There were a few demos before this compilation, and they'd formed in 1997, but this was the beginning of their most prolific line-up (on a side note, any recording before this compilation is gone-gone. Maybe Yuichi has them somewhere and wants to share?). After Forever and Enforce showed their first recordings on this compilation as well.
The spiritual followup to this compilation was Satire Records "Light Your Way" compilation, named after the zine that Satire Records edited. It featured some of the same bands (After Forever and Enforce) but expanded the selection to include Nitro Mega Prayer, Dip Leg, End All, Five Kinds Square, 1000travels of Jawaharlal and other notable bands from the scene. That compilation feature bands from all over Japan, whereas this one was only Tokyo bands.
During the heyday of the I've Come For Your Children distro, I was trying pretty hard to up the Japanese stuff I carried. It was always harder to trade with Japanese labels than it was to trade with European distros. They were usually more interested in me paying wholesale, if they even returned my emails. So, despite the genre matching the other screamo stuff I was trying to procure, I jumped at the chance to trade with Jukeboxxx Records out of Nagoya. One of the releases they offered was this, an EP by Black Ganion.
Black Gannion rides the fence between straight up Japanese new school hardcore and a rawer crust punk sound. They are still active to this day (their site) and their sound has progressed into more of a grinding, d-beat power-violence type sound.
The first CD I bought in Japan. I picked this up in Tokyo at around 9am. My new friend, Vanessa, and I had just arrived via overnight bus and had almost no sleep. We stopped in a Tower Records and I found this, which I'd been searching for. Later that night, at the show, I met the singer, Takashi. I can't remember if I had been in contact with him before or not, but I showed him the CD and told him I'd bought it.
Endzweck has become a Japanese hardcore mainstay. They've had several releases outside of Japan (via Goodlife Records & GMC Records). In a lot of ways, they play the same song over and over again, but its such a good song.
This is their second album and first on Out Ta Bomb Records (The now-defunct/turned distro record label that spread the Japanese new-school movement), and truly their best, in my opinion.
Here's a live video of them playing in Korea, once GMC Records (my friend Kyono's label) released their first album there. The video is done by another friend, Chang-Hun, who did SQL Records for a while.
