 Mitski by Justin Ashby © A-To-J Connections, 2016 The crowd outside the Echoplex was getting antsy as 8:30 rolled around. Some people had been waiting in line upwards of an hour just to get their spot at the foot of the stage. Entering the venue, everybody scrambled to get as close to the front as physically possible. With the omission of the usual photographer's pit, I was stuck behind somebody far too tall to be allowed in the front, who leaned casually on the stage as we awaited the openers.
 Everyone's favorite mannequins are back, as FEMM recently dropped two new singles (technically one double A-side single, but you know what I mean) and took the world by surprise. Far East Mention Mannequins, better known as FEMM, have been absolutely wrecking the pop market for a few years with explosive pop hits like "Fxxk Boyz Get Money" and "PoW!". These two new videos, "Neon Twilight" and "Countdown", mark a noticeable shift in tone for the electro-pop duo.
Her Ghost Friend, a duo made up of vocalist Shinobu Ono and producer DJ Obake, are set to release the album "I Like The World You're In" on the 27th of July. If I'm not mistaken, this might be their first full-length album, but information on this group is hard to come by! Her Ghost Friend's particular style of indie pop is sweet, dreamy, and adorable. The lead single from this album appears to be "Matataki", an ethereal piece of music which can be heard below along with a suitably dreamy video.
 On Tuesday night, beloved indie rockers Kinoko Teikoku dropped a surprise digital single on iTunes, "Cry Baby". It's one song without a b-side, physical release, or even any context. I imagine it will be included on the band's next full-length album, whenever that might be. The release of "Cry Baby" follows the news that Kinoko Teikoku will be composing and performing "The Future of Love" as the theme song to the upcoming film "Burning Love Enough to Boil Water".
 Suiyoubi no Campanella (better known to Western fans as Wednesday Campanella) has the distinction of being the very first group I've ever reviewed which I've heard on the radio. Doing some late-night shopping at Daiso, the group's single "Chupacabra" came on to set the perfect mood. In fact, the entirety of 'UMA', the group's latest release, serves to set the perfect mood. It goes down smooth like the soundtrack to a midnight stroll down a busy city street.
Check out this list of Japanese artists coming to the USA in July! Maybe you’ll find your favorite artist on the list! July sees BABYMETAL, Tomoyasu Hotei, and lots more visiting the states, some for the very first time! Full list under the cut.
 Loneliness, self-hatred, depression and lost love are just a small selection of the emotional themes found on Mitski Miyawaki's latest album 'Puberty 2'. With the opening track "Happy", Mitski pleads to happiness itself "when you go, take this heart / I'll make no more use of it when there's no more you". The rapid thumping percussion of the intro is almost like a wild heartbeat, pounding away at the arrival of the long-awaited happiness. Happiness isn't there to stay, as it "comes inside" of Mitski and leaves when she isn't looking. Musically, the song builds layer upon layer, climaxing with a downright cheerful horn section which contrasts heavily with the lyrical themes. It's almost like happiness is mocking Mitski here, as she begged it to either stay or to take out her heart itself to prevent her from having to experience life devoid of happiness. Instead happiness uses her to get off and discard her when it's done, leaving her to clean up the mess. Her cynicism implies this isn't the first time. Speaking very openly, Mitski herself described this song with the simple line "happiness fucks you".
Last month, heavy metal band BORIS announced a reissue of their seminal LP 'Pink', along with an album's worth of unreleased tracks ('Forbidden Songs') from the 'Pink' sessions, and a US tour to top it all off. With the announcement, BORIS also dropped the previously-unreleased "Are You Ready?". Now, a month later, BORIS have graced the internet with another cut off of 'Forbidden Songs', titled "SOFUN". Listen to it here, or embedded below:
 Popular J-pop/rock band Sekai no Owari have announced that they will be making their North American live debut this August, with shows in Los Angeles and New York. It's not QUITE a tour, but it's a good start! Last year the band sold out the massive Nissan Stadium in Japan to over 70,000 guests, so playing in clubs like The Roxy and the Bowery Ballroom will probably be a big shift for them. Let's make sure they get the love and support they deserve, and maybe they can even plan a full US tour in the future! Mr.Heartache Music VideoSekai no Owari are known for extremely varied and unique musical performances, and can't possibly be lumped into a genre. It's easiest to call them a "pop" group, but every release of theirs is different! From the electro dance-pop of "Mr.Heartache" (above, a collaboration with the US artist OWLCITY), to the chilled-out hip-hop of ANTI-HERO (which was used as the theme song to the Attack On Titan live action adaptation), you never know what to expect from Sekai no Owari. Now they're ready to take their incredible talents to an international artist, so we at A-To-J will be doing everything in our power to ensure they're welcomed in the US with open arms! -Justin ANTI-HERO Music VideoSekai no Owari US Dates:August 17 - Los Angeles, CA - THE ROXY [Tickets] August 23 - New York, NY - THE BOWERY BALLROOM [Tickets] Sekai no Owari is...Nakajin (Leader, Producer, Guitarist) Fukase (Vocalist) Saori (Pianist) DJ LOVE (DJ)  Dragon Night Music Video
There is literally no information available online for Western readers looking into Youth Dream in the Room. From what I gather, they're a Japanese emo band who have been playing shows for a few years, and "After the fire" is their debut release. That's all I got! With that said, I guess the music is just gonna have to stand on its own here.
"After the fire" opens with the track "Sorekara", rife with thick power chords and strained, emotional vocals. It's a little bit messy, but there's a lot of passion and energy to be found here. "Rattoman" have a little bit of a mellow pop punk vibe, but the vocals remind me more of The Pillows in their earlier days.
The third track, "Umbrella", opens up with a somber beat and crooning vocals. The longest song on the EP, "Umbrella" twists between gentler verses and heavy choruses. There's a hint of Number Girl in this one, which actually permeates the entire release to be honest. The sense of melody, passion, and energy all overtake the messy production and technical skill. Youth Dream in the Room sound like a true garage band, and in all honesty they probably are.
"Thursday" is probably the cleanest song on the record. It also has my favorite hook on the tracklist, so that's a plus. If the last song reminded me of Number Girl just a bit, this song SCREAMS Number Girl, or even a very early ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION demo??? It's really strong overall, I do wish the production was cleaner but I bet this song kills in a live environment. By the time the bridge comes along, we get an INCREDIBLY Dinosaur Jr.-esque solo. This band wears their influences on their sleeve quite proudly.
The closer is "Green Gay Boruso", which is pretty similar to the opener in terms of composition and tone. It's not particularly memorable for me, but I have to admit that it's probably the production. I can imagine it being great live, though, and it does have a lot of energy. I would love to hear more from Youth Dream in the Room! There's not much to go by here, and I'm honestly confused as to whether or not they're even an active band right now (while this release was put on Bandcamp just this weekend, the band's official Twitter has no posts after 2014). Here's hoping they keep it up and bring something even stronger to the table next time! -Justin Listen/Purchase |
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