T H E S O U N D OF T HE CI T I E S TED KYU VITAL STATISTICS

On Air West, 2 -3 Yamano Music, 4 -5 -6 Ginza, Chuo- Four Acts At The Fore O15 The Tokyo Muaic Scene Maruyama -cho, ku. Shibuya -ku; Tel: 5458- Flagship store in high -priced Ginza BY STEVE McCLURE 4646 district, strong in Japanese pop Capacity: 550 -600 and classical repertoire SPOONPERM DJs based in Tokyo's ultra -cool Azabu explains Suzuki. "Until recently, I used Club Quattro, Quattro Japan, the land that gave the world district, it's only recently that Cosa to think English could express the VENUES by Parco 5F, 32 -13 the cuddly animated character Hello Nostra has been getting anything like 'groove' of emotions or feelings better Udagawa -cho, Hitokuchi -zaka Kitty, is a nation obsessed with Cute. serious attention. The band's lineup than Japanese. But, after listening to Shibuya -ku; Tel: 3477 -8750 Studio, 4 -3 -31 One of Tokyo's best punk bands, now comprises two DJs, one bassist many groove-oriented Japanese songs Capacity: 600-700 Kudan -kita, Spoonperm, deconstructs that obses- and singers Momoko Suzuki and by Original Love, El Malo, Cornelius On Air East, 2 -14 -9 Dogenzaka, Chiyoda -ku; Tel: sion with the song "Panda," in which Reiko Oda. While the better-known and the Escalators, I found I was Shibuya -ku; Tel: 3476 -8686 3263 -1097 lead vocalist Mizuho Honda shows off Pizzicato Five revels in its archly camp wrong." Capacity: 800 Acts that have record- her amazing vocal skills, switching sensibility, Cosa Nostra is more of a "There are many new developments Nisshin Power Station, 6 -28 -1 ed here include from a piercing screech to a guttural straight -ahead pop act, with emphasis on the Tokyo club scene now," says Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku; Tel: 3205- Motoharu Sano, growl in the twinkling of an eye. Oda. "And a lot of people who pre- 5270 Tamio Okuda, Yousui Inoue, Puffy, The band's 1996 debut album, ferred foreign music and didn't pay Capacity: 830 Ulfuls, The Alfee, Dreams Come "Best?" (Miracle Records), is attention to Japanese music are Liquid Room, Hyumax Pavillion 7F, True, Takao Kisugi, Kei Ogura, classic angry punk, with a large changing their minds. I think that's 1 -20 -1 Kabukicho, Shinjuku -ku; Fumiya Fujii, The Boom, Great 3, dose of social satire. Honda because the scene is much improved Tel: 3200 -6831 The Pete Best, Bonnie Pink, used to be on the fast track to and more sophisticated compared to Capacity: 800-1,000 Sakebu Shijin -no Kai and the Japanese media superstardom. what it was 10 years ago." Club Citta, 4 Ogawacho, Kawasaki - Collectors. Signed as a "tarento " -or all - shi, Kawasaki -ku; Tel: 3224 -7888 On Air Azabu Studio, 2 -24 -13 around entertainer-to major BIBIMBAP Capacity: 1,200 Nishi -azabu, Minato -ku; Tel: 3498- agency Yoshimoto Kogyo, she TOKYOCLUB Akasaka Blitz, TBS Square, 5 -3 -6 4646 was slated to be the latest One of the newer groups on the Akasaka, Minato -ku; Tel: 3224- Among the artists who've worked female co -host of popular mid- Tokyo music scene is Tokyo Bibim- 0567 here are Tomoyasu Hotel, Noriyuki day TV show "Waratte litomo," Spoonperm bap Club, a unique collaboration be- Capacity: 1,944 Makihara, Ami Ozaki, Yoshihiro Kai, but a long period of illness put tween veteran Japanese and Nakano Sun Plaza Hall, 4 -1 -1 V6, Minako Yoshida, Hideki Sabo, her career on hold. When Honda Japanese- Korean musicians. Nakano, Nakano -ku; Tel: 3388- Masahiro Motoki and Kazumasa recovered, she found that she'd been Their eponymously titled 1996 1151 Oda Kiyoshiro Imawano. left by the wayside and had to re- debut album on Toratanu Capacity: 2,222 Onkio Haus, 1 -23 -8 Ginza, Chuo- establish her showbiz connections on Records is an obscure classic. Tokyo Kesel Nenkin Kaikan Hall, ku; Tel: 3564 -4181 her own. That just might explain the Singer Pyeon Inja used to be 5 -3 -1 Shinjuku, Shinjuku -ku; Tel: Acts that have recorded here anger in her singing. the vocal teacher for Shang 3356-1111 include Lindberg, Shang Shang Shang Typhoon chanteuse Capacity: 2,406 Typhoon, Elephant Love, Tomoyasu GREAT 3 Satoko Nishikawa, and it's easy Velfarre, 7 -14 -22 Roppongi, Hotei, Naomi Tamura, Tatsuro In a country where record compa- to see why Nishikawa -an Minato -ku; Tel: 3746 -0055 Yamashita and Yukihiro Takahashi. nies, retailers and the media divide amazing singer in her own Capacity: 2,500 Sony Music Shinanomachi music into well -defined categories right -would want to learn from Hibiya Yagal Ongaku -doh, 1 -5 Studio, 6 -8 Minami- Motomachi, with an almost obsessive zeal, an Tokyo Bibimbap Club Pyeon. Banging a Korean Hibiya -koen, Chiyoda-ku; Tel: Shinjuku-ku; Tel: 3358 -8071 eclectic- with -a- capital -E band like "changoo" drum, cutting an exotic fig- 3591 -6388 Acts that have recorded here Great 3 is a hard sell indeed. Brian ure in her traditional Korean "chima Capacity: 2,664 include Toshinobu Kubota, Herbie Wilson and the High Llamas are the chogori" dress, she sings in rich, pow- NHK Hall, 2 -2 -1 Jinnan, Shibuya -ku; Hancock, Kodo, Puffy and Judy most obvious stylistic reference points erful tones. Pyeon used to share vocal Tel: 3465 -1751 And Mary. for this band, but Hendrix, bluegrass, duties with Japanese -Korean singer/ Capacity: 3,677 Victor Studio, 2 -21 -1 Jingu -mae, soul and Japanese "kayokyoku" pop guitarist Pak Poe, who left TBC in Nippon Budokan, 2 -3 Kitano -maru- Shibuya -ku; Tel: 3263 -0111 are other key influences. The group's 1996 to front his own band. koen, Chiyoda -ku; Tel: 3215 -5100 Acts that have recorded here 1996 album, "Metal Lunchbox," took TBC's Hirofumi "Hachi" Kasuga is Capacity: 14,130 include Southern All Stars, Sheena Japanese pop to new heights of melo- one of Japan's best guitarists-"I'd Tokyo Dome, 1 -3 Koraku, Bunkyo- Md The Rokkets, SMAP, Komi dious sophistication and was one of put him in the same category as ku; Tel: 3811 -2111 Hirose, Ua, Ryuichi Kawamura, the best things to happen on the Clapton," enthuses an American Capacity: 60,000 Cocco and Kenji Morita. Japanese music scene recently. But musician who's a close observer of the because they're hard to pigeonhole, Japanese music scene. Formerly with the band's albums haven't been huge legendary '70s band Carmen Maki HMV, 109 Building, 28- InterFM, Contemporary sellers. Great 3 was formed in 1994, And Oz, Kasuga -like many Japanese 6 Udagawacho, pop aimed at expatri- when guitarist Akito Katayose, bassist rock musicians of his generation - Shibuya -ku. ate community Kiyoshi Takakuwa and drummer eventually grew dissatisfied with the Strong in British/ 9. (broadcasts in Kenichi Shirane, who had been one - music biz and instead of pursuing pop European pop English) half of the band Rotten Hats, left that stardom, started exploring the roots of with music. MUSIC and "Shibuya -kei" J -WAVE (FM Japan), band to form Great 3. Katayose, who on polish over pastiche. And, as Japanese writes most of the band's material, any Shibuya -kei act worth its salt, "I was playing Korean percussion RETAILERS artists. RADIO Adult pop Tower Records, 1 -22- NHK FM, Classical/ addresses heavyweight topics such as there's a heavy retro element to the instruments just for pleasure," ex- 14 Jinnan, Shibuya -ku. pop man's indecisiveness in the face of band's music: phase shifters, Ham- plains Kasuga. "I lived in Korea for a 53,000 -square -foot flagship Tokyo FM, Talk/pop music love and sings with a rare passion. mond organs, electric sitars, backward year to study music. After coming megastore, strong in U.S. catalog guitars and distinctly hippie -esque back to Japan, I wasn't interested in product and Japanese pop COSA NOSTRA lyrics. Cosa Nostra's latest album, Western popular music; I wanted to do (especially indies) Fuji TV Like Great 3, "Shibuya -kei" band "Trip Magic," is heavily indebted to something different. I didn't imagine Virgin, 3 -30 -16 Shinjuku, Shinjuku - NHK (Japan Cosa Nostra challenges those at- various '60s and '70s archetypes. But forming a band like Bibimbap. Ev- ku. Broadcasting tempting to pin it down in terms of this rich sonic palette never over- erything happened spontaneously." Strong in British and European Corp), one general genres: Latin, rock, acid jazz, R &B and whelms the songs' strong melodies The music of TBC is equally rooted in pop and one educational straight pop are just some of the pos- and beautifully produced commercial the Korean "boncha" beat and reggae. Wave, 6 -2 -27 Roppongi, Minato- channel sibilities. Although the band traces its sheen. Suzuki and Oda sing in both Somehow, TBC's eclectic fusion of ku. Nippon Television origins back to the early '90s, when English and Japanese. Korean, Japanese and reggae music Strong in world music, soundtracks Network (NTV) producer Tetsutaro Sakurai began a "I don't feel any difference between works, and the band puts on one of and "healing" music Continued on page 66 project to put together recordings by singing in English and in Japanese," the best live shows in Tokyo.

64 BILLBOARD SPOTLIGHT BILLBOARD OCTOBER 11. 1997 www.americanradiohistory.com