Ever so often, a wonky and downright goofy band will change things up to try to get more major-label attention, usually when the Japanese music industry is enjoying a band boom. Sometimes, it works and other times it results in an interesting group turning into Spitz Jr. Thankfully, Group2 remain just as odd on new…
Tokyo is still thawing out after a big ol’ snowstorm, so a high-energy like this feels fitting on a day where a little heat would work wonders. Capchii falls into that nebulous “kawaii” zone a handful of Japanese electronic artists have crept into, but “Let’s Build A Snowman” matches fluttering synths and shiny chimes with…
The Fogpak series of electronic music compilations has reached 20 releases with its latest — theme, “Adult,” congrats Fogpak you can buy cigarettes from a vending machine — and the newest set offers the same mission as the 19 that came before. It spotlights ten artists — in recent versions, Fogpak became more global, but…
Using just a little echo and some other effects, Tokyo’s Santa Dharma transforms a pleasant bit of bedroom pop into something with blurred edges. The duo utilize a small set of instruments to create a sparse but bouncy little number that then gets wrapped in the aforementioned echo, a few dub touches and a few…
Sampling Sea Compilation gathers ten house tracks from producers across Japan, all featuring a slight faded feel but ultimately forceful dance numbers on their own. While there’s a slight nautical theme running throughout, it never really comes to the surface, which is fine — delicate numbers like AFAMoo’s “Submarine” and Asazuke’s “Midnight Victoria Line” Things…