Ian Martin of the Japan Times has a nice article about the contemporary Fukuoka music scene in the paper’s latest issue and it’s a gooder. Fukuoka – “closer to Seoul than it is to Tokyo” – helped cultivate some amazing Japanese artists of yesteryear (toast to Number Girl, Shiina Ringo and a whole bunch more) so Martin checks in on the city’s music today. It’s a great look into a city’s music scene, offering both enough background and bands to pay a cursory MySpace visit to make it a great read for anyone who geeks out at the Japanese music scene. Plus, you learn some people hate the city’s current baseball team because they originally moved from Osaka. Read the article here and also make sure to check out “bands to watch” list, link at the bottom.