Jemapur was just another Japanese electronic music producer, posting songs to SoundCloud and popping up at events sometimes. Yet, as more and more young music makers use the Internet as a platform to get their original production out, the field has become very crowded and standing out has become tough. Jemapur has made good stuff…
Kyoto band Hotel Mexico announced on their website tonight that they have officially split up. It means one of Japan’s finest indie bands of the last few years – and one of the first to receive attention from Western blogs and music websites – is calling it a day. Hotel Mexico began in late 2008,…
“Hey! Hey you, over there! With the frown on his face! What’s got you down? You hate the world? You think everything is pointless and the human race is doomed? Reading too much Tumblr? You watched the Emmys, geez why did you do that? Look, I got the thing just for you. Ya ever hear…
Indie-pop in Japan has, without a doubt, reached a bit of a bubble phase at this point. In late 2013, there are just so many outfits leaning towards the twee side of the indie-rock spectrum…and new ones pop up all the time online. The question now is, “what are they aiming for?” There have been…
It’s a simple trick, but one that young music-maker Gloomy pulls off well on “Roller Girl.” It’s the old “upbeat meets crushing” formula, of mashing something sunny against something not so bright. On “Roller Girl,” the sunshine comes courtesy of Gloomy’s vocals which practically skip, even when she starts to adopt a cadence bringing to…