[Japan] kiiro records presents: FOREVER SHOEGAZE 2

 
With 2014 coming to a close, it’s about that time for music bloggers to start taking a look back at the year and putting together lists and reflective pieces and whatnot. Lookingat the list of shoegaze releases in Japan this year, there have been quite a few from well-established artists and newcomers alike. For those of us in Japan, these new releases have been pretty easily accessible, while for folks abroad they have in some cases been near impossible to obtain. The overall lack of digital releases is a point of frustration for a lot of people who want a gateway in to what has, in the last few years, been a growing Japanese shoegaze scene.

Japan’s kiiro records, a net label established at the beginning of the year, has done its best to provide for an eager overseas audience. With a slogan that roughly translates to “easy listening for everyone”, kiiro offers a diverse catalog featuring any number of genres from pop to alt rock to grunge. In June however, the label got the attention of shoegaze fans with the release of its FOREVER SHOEGAZE compilation album.  Shortly thereafter, a collaboration with The Japan Shoegazer Festival was announced for the summer event, where an exclusive comp CD-R was released – the first and only physical release from the label.

Kiiro records will be getting ready to release its next shoegaze comp, titled FOREVER SHOEGAZE 2, at midnight JST on December 25th (Merry Christmas!), which will be 7am PST for everyone stateside.  Similar to its predecessors, FOREVER SHOEGAZE 2 will feature mostly Japanese bands, with some foreign artists also appearing on the track list.  This time around there are some bands that are well worth keeping an eye on, such as Tokyo’s Float down the Liffey and Magic Love, and some great overseas talent in Australia’s kigo (who also appeared on the first comp), The Bilinda Butchers (USA), and one of my personal favorites, DIV I DED (Czech Republic).  The lineup for the band hasn’t been finalized, but as it stands, in addition to those just mentioned, the following bands will appear on the comp:  Dream Suicides and Ask For Joy (USA), UN PLANETA (Argentina), and POLA, Lunchu, Corsage, Ame no Naka no Uma, and nayutanayuta (all from Japan).

As with all of kiiro records’ releases FOREVER SHOEGAZE2 will be available for free download via the label’s Bandcamp page.  Keep an eye out for a mirror download link in case the album meets its 200 free download limit.  Muso Planet will be providing the recommendation write up for the record upon its release.  There’s just a little over a week left until the comp is released, so in the meantime you can check out the first FOREVER SHOEGAZE album and some of kiiro’s catalog.

Muso Asia Playlist 004

From broadcast #4 of Muso Asia on DKFM which aired on December 3rd in the US/December 4th in Japan.
 
1. The Majestic High – “See Her Fall”
2. Paint in Watercolour – “The Sweetest Sugar”
3. Oeil – “Myrtle”
4. Looprider – “Farewell”
5. TuT – “You Got Me When I Stare At You”
6. Cigarette in your Bed – “Killer Song”
7. Cruyff in the Bedroom – “Loves and Lights”
8. For Tracy Hyde – “Shady Lane Sherbet”
9. Luminous Orange – “Walkblind”
10. Seaside – “Giggle and Blush”
11. Boyz & Girl – “Kiss Me Blind”
12. 溶けない名前 (Tokenai Namae) – “幽霊少女は八月を殺す” (“Yuurei shoujo wa Hachigatsu wo Korosu”)
13. sphere – “Hope”
14. きのこ帝国 (kinoko teikoku) – “Eureka”

[Taiwan] TuT – “You Got Me When I Stare At You”

So I’ve already professed my love for the intimacy of demo tracks despite the general lack of overall sound quality. In particularly I was a big fan of the “Send Me” demo released earlier this year by Taiwan’s TuT (pronounced “tee-you-tee”). This summer the band released a bunch of other demos that they’d recorded live at the studio over the last year, and needless to say I was in the sort of odd heaven that muddy guitars, too much hi-hat, and vocals that sound like they were recorded from the other side of the room can create. I love it.
That being said, I was stoked to see that TuT stealth got the copies of their debut album You Got Me When I Stare At You earlier this week from the pressing factory. While demo tracks offer the sort of nostalgia that takes me back to the vast library of shoddy recordings I’ve made myself, it doesn’t compare to the excitement of being able to hear the instruments at proper levels and get a better feel of what the band is made of (because it’s actually audible). Fortunate to get a copy, I popped on my headphones and got lost in a gorgeous shoegaze record on my train ride home.

The album’s title track, which will premiere on this week’s episode of Muso Asia, is absolutely beautiful. Wrapping textures around a simple guitar melody while showcasing the band’s double barreled male/female vocal harmonies, TuT makes you wait to hear how the improved recording environment would show off Fifi’s sweet, breathy vocals – but only for one track.

There is a lot more balance between the two vocalists on the album, but neither disappoints and the harmonies are stunning, particularly on “Little Child”. From start to finish, You Got Me When I Stare At You, features the loud, grimy guitars that seem so much an integral part of the Taiwanese shoegaze scene when compared to bands from the continent.  It would seem to be an obvious quality of shoegaze music, but the balance between volume and subtlety, grit and elegance that TuT maintains gets the whole “beautiful noise” thing right.

TuT’s demos were great, but their move to a proper studio has yielded some spectacular results.

TuT on Facebook

Muso Asia Playlist 003

Here is the playlist for Muso Asia 003, broadcast on DKFM Shoegaze Radio on 11/19 in the US, 11/20 in Japan.
 
Oeil – “Owl Moon (Shadow)”
My Dead Girlfriend – “Shadow Where it Doesn’t Disappear”
The Wellington – “Someone Knock on my Door”
THE EARTH EARTH – “calm”
Baby Formula – “Sextant”
//orangenoise – “I Don’t Know”
Ummagma – “Kiev” (Haioka Remix)
Hariguem Zaboy – “Anybody Feels”
the city – “Fall”
The Florist – “Secrets and Lies”
Shelling – “Sensitivity”
sugardrop – “Love Scene”
Supercar – “White Surf Style 5”

Muso Asia Playlist 002

Here is the playlist for Muso Asia episode 2 which aired on 11/5/2014 on DKFM.1. PLASTICZOOMS – “Pale Spectre”
2. Astro Attack – “Twilight”
3. Pastel Blue – “Breeze Breath”
4. skip skip ben ben – “Parking”
5. Paint in Watercolour – “You Are Here”
6. Aysula – “Lay Down Your Feathers”
7. Thud – “Lime”
8. Oeil – “Myrtle”
9. Sharesprings – “Jasmine”
10. Manic Sheep – “You Lie, You Choke the Rules We Trust”
11. Say Sue Me – “One Week”
12. magic love – “Growing Organism”
13. Ether Feels – “Morning Star”
14. G-Ampere – “Teardrop”
15. 水中図鑑 (suichuu zukan) – “飛び込め” (“Tobikome”)

Muso Planet volume 7 Now Available! 第７号配布中！

CDv7try1

After a long wait, Muso Planet volume 7 is now available for download.  You can download it as usual via the website and from Bandcamp as well.  Here is what volume 7 includes!  久しぶりにMuso Planetが配布中！第７号はいつも通りこのサイトでも、Bandcampでもダウンロードができる。以下は今号内容の詳細！

Muso Planet volume 7

Download (ダウンロード |  Bandcamp

Recommended Releases from Russia/ロシアからおすすめのリリース
Hands and Moment
Latino America Shoegaze Presents Guitarists and their Pedals/ラテンアメリカのギターリストのおすすめのエフェクター

With Music From

Magic Love (Japan/日本), Dead Leaf Echo (USA/アメリカ), Divided (Czech Republic/チェコ)

Man in Rug (New Zealand/ニュージーランド), Jaguwar (Germany/ドイツ)

Puna (Peru/ペル), Rev Rev Rev (Italy/イタリア), Chicago Toys (Chile/チリ)

Muso Asia Playlist 001

The first episode of Muso Asia aired on 10/22 on DKFM, and here is the list of what I spun.  Had a ton of fun doing the show and I am looking forward to the second episode which should air in early November.
Burrrn – “Song Without Words”
Dive – “Breaking Over You”
cigarette in your bed – “Darkness”
Magic Love – “Growing Organism”
Forsaken Autumn – “Wallow”
Vidulgi OoyoO – “Siren”
Kinoko Teikoku – “Whirlpool”
THE EARTH EARTH – “Morning Rain”
Supercar – “Lucky”
TuT – “Send Me” (Demo)
me in grasshopper – “himawari”
The Florist – “Middle of Winter”
Juvenile Juvenile – “Forget Me Soon”

Muso Planet volume 7 coming 11/1!

Muso Planet will be out one week from today on Saturday, November 11.  It’s our first issue in a while and as always, will feature some really cool bands from all over the world.  The band list is as follows:

★Dead Leaf Echo (USA)
★magic love (Japan)
★JAGUWAR (Germany)
★Puna (Peru)
★Man in Rug (New Zealand)
★CHICAGO TOYS (Chile)
★Divided (Czech Republic)
★rev rev rev (Italy)

[Glasgow] New Music from The Cherry Wave!

The Cherry Wave have gotten around to giving us that music they’ve been promising.  The wait was somewhat long but in the end it’s been totally worth it.  The Glasgow foursome released the first track, “Whitey”, from its upcoming album, which should (fingers crossed) be out in the near future.  “Whitey” features two and a half minutes of the fuzzed-out droning guitars, howling leads, and powerful rhythm section that we’ve come to love through an EP and some change to date.  There’s a bit more of an edge to this track than the first EP, a direction perhaps signaled in last summer’s single “Under Dull Grey Skies”, which appeared on Lamppost Records’ Under the Wildflowers: volume 1 comp.  Anyway, it’s good to hear some music from the guys and it’s enough to whet your appetite while the finishing touches are put on a highly anticipated new record.  Have a listen, enjoy, and tell your friends.

Skip Skip Ben Ben Japan Tour, Split EP, and Japanese LP Release

Taiwan’s Ben Ben Lin, founding member of Skip Skip Ben Ben has been busy with a number of announcements recently, the first of which was that she will be touring Japan in November.  Her band came to Japan in the spring and this time around she will be performing solo in the tour that will consist of five shows in four cities.  Accompanying her on the tour, aptly called “Two People from Taiwan” will be fellow countryman Hom Shenhao.

The second bit of news came from Tokyo’s fast rising indie label Hands and Moment, who will be releasing Skip Skip Ben Ben’s album Sacrifice Mountain Hills on October 22nd.  The album, which features some brilliant artwork by Chou Yi, was previously released by Maybe Mars is absolutely worth checking out if you haven’t had a chance already.

The most recent news out of Ben Ben’s camp was the release of a limited edition split 7″ featuring SSBB and Hot&Cold.  The limited edition vinyl is available in black and white via Chicago-based Gary Records’ Bandcamp page.