Recently a taiyaki shop opened near my house. Given what it sells, I really don’t think the location is the best. I don’t give it more than a year before it closes down. It does give me an excuse to talk about taiyaki though.

Taiyaki is basically made with something similar to waffle batter traditionally containing anko sweet bean paste inside. For some reason it is baked into the shape of a fish (hence the name taiyaki or “baked sea bream”). It is really quite tasty and when I first bought one I don’t think I even knew what anko was so I thought there was some kind of Chocolate in there.

Recently I think taiyaki stalls and shops have been getting more and more creative and been putting thing such as custard, chocolate and the incredibly delicious strawberry cream. The aforementioned local taiyaki shop even sells savoury ones, some simply have a cheese filling but others go the whole hog with bacon, sausage, lettuce and mayonnaise, sometimes they even sell okonomiyaki filled ones. This has unfortunately lead me to have whole takoyaki dinners, the bacon, egg and mayo taiyaki followed by a yummy strawberry cream one for dessert. This combination cannot be good for me!

Taiyaki are very famous in Asian countries and often crop up in the most surprising of places. In fact, a children’s song released in the seventies called Oyogi! Taiyaki-kun (Swim! Taiyaki) is the best selling record ever in Japan. The story of the song is about a taiyaki who escapes the production line to the sea and has a good time but in the end gets caught and eaten by a fisherman. I guess the story resonated with salary men of the time who wished to escape there own dreary existence but in the end they knew that it would be too difficult. The last line of the song goes something along the lines of “I’m just a taiyaki, this is my fate”, I guess the salary men of the seventies felt the same way as they were being stuffed into the train during the morning commute.

Going to gigs in Japan seems to be split into two distinct camps, big concerts and live houses.

Up until fairly recently I only have been to see the big bands, the AC/DCs , X JAPANs, Radioheads and Shiina Ringos of this world. What all these gigs had in common was an insanely large hall, a funky stage and were all seated. When I first arrived at these gigs I was shocked, who wants to sit down to listen to rock music? As it turned out no one did. As soon as the music starts everybody stands up. Some jump up and down a bit, some have a wiggle but everyone basically stays in more or less the same place not really doing too much. The chairs thing really just seems to be there to stop people from moving around.

All the concerts I went to in the big halls I really enjoyed, all had great moments and were worth the (large amount of) money but I felt they were missing something. I just couldn’t put my finger on what it was though.

And then I went to see a few gigs at live houses, with smaller bands such as GO!GO!7188, Oreskaband and Midori. These live houses are basically small stages in little empty halls with not much else in them other than a bar. It’s at these gigs I discovered what the bigger ones were missing, being up close and personal with a band and their fans.

These bands are less well known, the venue is smaller, the fans are generally more hardcore and have invested a lot in the band; the atmosphere is just more electric. The fans really seem to express themselves more. At the large venues people seem to call out things like “I love you” and “You’re amazing” or do the dance moves that are expected of them (The X Jump for example).  While at the small gigs people are moshing, jumping about wildly, crowd surfing, and sweating like hell. So much so that most people carry towels with them, which I find quite cute.

I feel that the bands really get off on this atmosphere too. While the big bands are big bands for a reason and are generally great at what they do, everything is highly polished. With the likes of raising platforms, pyrotechnics and choreographed dancers, you feel everything has been rehearsed and rehearsed, not leaving anything to chance. The smaller bands meanwhile interact with the audience more, they have a chat, give them set list options and you can see them really get a charge from it. Some hang around after the gig and don’t mind people coming up to them to say hello. In the case of Midori, a band whose members I’ve discovered are a bit mental, the lead singer does things like crowd surf, strip to her underwear and push the drummer off his drums only to start playing them really, really badly.

I would have enjoyed that particular carry on a bit more if it wasn’t for the fact I had just lost my watch and been elbowed in the face, twice.

Who am I kidding? I loved it, every last second.

Now, I would try to compare going to see bands in Japan with going to see bands in the UK but honestly, I can’t. I mostly went to festivals while at home and can only remember seeing Metallica and Idelwild at their own gigs. The only thing I even remember about the Idelwild gig is that I enjoyed the support more than them. That point actually brings me to the only comparison I can actually make: I have yet to see anyone play in Japan with a support band, I should stop expecting any to be there.

Anyway, I leave you with some wise words from Mariko Goto, the lead singer of Midori.

Why is it that in the UK music in other languages rarely gets mentioned? A song can be popular the world over but just because it’s in German or something it is doomed to failure in the United Kingdom.

Since I’ve been in Japan, and even beforehand if I’m honest, I have discovered a fair number of great bands and singers and I think it is time to share them with you now.

JUDY AND MARY

Judy and Mary were a pop punk band mostly active in the 90s who had so much energy. The band’s front woman, Yuki has one of those voices, really high and it comes as a bit of a shock after a rocking guitar riff. If you look past that though you soon get used to it and can be treated to some strange and eclectic stuff. Since they disbanded Yuki has gone on to have a very successful solo career, but other then having fabulous videos, I don’t think it has been a patch on her work with JAM.

Go! Go! 7188

This band is a strange one. Apparently they started as a Judy and Mary cover band back in the day but then branched out and started to write their own songs. The thing I find odd about them is that while they have written some brilliant, brilliant songs the rest are just a bit samey and they stick to the same formula religiously. Another thing worth noting is that I once went up to the bassist (the girl on the left) and told her I loved her. She looked scared.

Midori

It’s hard to define Midori’s style of music. My best attempt would be to say it is Jazz played in the style of a death metal band. They seem to be very proficient at their chosen instruments but sometimes tend to ignore this in favour of just hitting them over and over. Their lead singers voice ranges from sugary sweetness to demon from the pits of despair. Probably the only band I know with songs that have cute duets followed by a girl barking like a dog for the whole chorus. Can be a bit hit and miss sometimes but it is wonderful that they are trying to do something so different.

Also whoever decided to do this photo shoot with them deserves a prize.

Shiina Ringo

Have I ever mentioned I like this lady’s music before? Oh yes! Here, here, here, here and here. Go listen to her, she is incredible.
On another note, in this picture her right and left side look like two completely different people! For a woman who is so obsessed with symmetry I find this slightly ironic.

Tokyo Jihen

Ringo’s band. I once read them described as a multi-headed hydra, all pulling in different directions. In a way I agree, all of it’s members are very talented but together there is no leader and the music lacks cohesion and it dilutes  everything they do. Saying that though it’s still Shiina Ringo singing. I think this band really does shine when it plays live, just search “Dynamite Out” on Youtube for some of the most wonderful live music (and the most wonderful hat ever too).

X Japan

X Japan are pretty legendary, they more or less invented Visual-kei music but in all fairness that is more of a look and less about the music. In reality they are just a great speed metal band all of whose members are very, very talented at what they do. Yoshiki, the band’s main creative force, is both an excellent drummer and excellent pianist. It is sometimes shocking to so a man who plays the drums so hard he needs to wear a neck brace suddenly change instruments and play a beautiful piano piece.

the pillows

The pillows were the first Japanese band I really got into. I discovered them through a quite barmy anime called FLCL. Their music is a lot of fun and for a time in the late 90s to the early 00s they could do no wrong and would pump out great album after great album. They are still active now but for perhaps the last 5 years their albums have seemed a little dull and by the numbers, which is a shame.

So that’s a few bands who have been notable in my Japanese music listening life. There are plenty more good’uns out there that I haven’t mentioned and hopefully that I’ve still to discover. Still I hope after this you give the bands I’ve mentioned a bit of a google, it really is worth it.

Book clubs are popular all over the world, you know the drill, people read a book for a month then gather to discuss it’s merits over coffee. Have you ever wondered why people never do they same with video games? No? Well some people in London did and Sprite Club was born. So, people play a video game for a month then gather (over Skype, this is the 21st century after all) to discuss it’s merits over a pint or two.

As part of that here is my first video game review for the club:

Braid

The first thing you notice when you play Braid is the the way it looks. The backdrops and design are stunning, the backgrounds look like some beautiful watercolour painting from the 17th century. Then you notice the character design, it’s dull and uninspired the main character is a man in a suit. You would have thought they could have thought of something better. The main enemies you encounter are balls of hay with eyes and legs, they actually cross the border to being downright ugly.

None of this matters though, the important thing with 2d platformers is how it plays. The game play in this is truly interesting: You can rewind and fast forward time whenever you want. With this time manipulation function you soon realise that it is not a platformer at all but a puzzle game. Some of the puzzles are mind bending brilliant. Often a puzzle can have you flummoxed for ages but when the penny drops it makes a very loud noise on the floor. The combination of relief and achievement is wonderful.

Saying this though my X Box died and the quickly procured replacement couldn’t load the save files from my hard disk. I couldn’t really feel any compulsion to start again. Which is a damning indictment of any game.

6/10 – Wonderful in flashes but ultimately lacking replay value for me.

A few days ago, while teaching a class, one of the kids kicked her shoe off her foot and said, “Sunny!”. The other kids giggled and I stopped what I was doing and watched her, a little perplexed. She then preceded to put the shoe back on and kick it off again. This time she exclaimed “Cloudy”.

By now I was a little confused but I let it continue because she was actually saying this weather vocabulary in English, any English practise is good. Even if it is bizarre. So, she put the shoe back on again, for yet another kick. This time she said, “Rainy”. At this point I hit her over the head with a flashcard and continued with the lesson.

Upon recounting this story to a friend, I discovered that what she was doing was an old Japanese game played by kids to find out tomorrow’s weather.

Children kick off their shoe and say “Ashita tenki ni nare” (which I think means something along the lines of, what will the weather be tomorrow?). If it lands the correct side up that means the weather is going to be sunny, if it lands the wrong way round it means it will rain and if on it’s side, cloudy. Although traditionally it was done with a Geta, that old Japanese clog sandal thing.

This knowledge lead to an epiphany for me, this sketch, which I had seen years before, suddenly made a little more sense.

I always thought she threw off her shoe because she was a bit mental. Context is a wonderful thing.