VIVA Strange Boutique - Tokyo's Post-Punk, New Wave & Indie Store

VIVA Strange Boutique is a fantastic store located near Okusawa station in the south-west of Tokyo close to Jiyugaoka and its packed with vintage Post-Punk and Indie posters, badges, records, music magazines and memorabilia. The emphasis is very much on U.K. Post-Punk and Indie with prominent displays of the more avant-garde and DIY acts such as Alternative TV, Television Personalities, Throbbing Gristle and Psychic TV. Store owner Minami, who also sings and plays guitar with her own band, She Talks Silence, designs and produces original, officially authorised merchandise for some of her favourite bands and artists such as Felt, A Certain Ratio, The Raincoats, Durutti Column, David J, The Vaselines, Primal Scream, Sparks and the Japanese band Plastics who were a kind of cross between The B-52's, Wall of Voodoo and early Talking Heads. She's had some well known visitors too, DJ Don Letts and Devo's frontman Mark Mothersbaugh have popped in to visit the store. 

 

You can check out the VIVA Strange Boutique online store here for the full list of merchandise, as they also offer shipping worldwide. Of course, you can probably guess from the store's name, that Minami is a huge fan of The Monochrome Set and they recently invited the band over to Tokyo to headline a sold-out gig at the WWWX venue in Shibuya to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the store's opening. 

 

There's also an exhibition space in the basement and luckily we were able to catch an exhibtion of stunning photos by the music photographer Toshi Yajima who also just so happened to be in the store, so we could have a nice chat about this work and career as a UK based correspondent sharing his photos to various publications back in Japan. He took very early photos of the Sex Pistols in their Denmark Street rehearsal room in 1976 and would go on to photograph all the musical greats such as The Clash, The Jam, David Bowie, XTC, Iggy Pop, The Damned, Japan, Morrissey, The B-52's, Devo, Paul Weller, The Specials and Kraftwerk among many others - all are featured in an excellent book entitled "Each & Every One" which was actually published by VIVA Strange Boutique. Hopefully, we will be doing a more in-depth feature on his superb pictures sometime in the future.

With thanks to Minami and Toshi Yajima. For more information on VIVA Strange Boutique please check out their web-site here and Facebook page here, they are also on Instagram.

The Magical World of Papa-san & Friends, The Songs of Michael Head in Japan + Desolation Row Music Bar

Papa-san & Friends "The Kitchen Sessions CD"

Japan is the land of the "otaku", which some people might disparagingly translate as "anorak" or "nerd" but I like to think of it as a knowledgeable and slightly obsessive fan. So, whatever your "thing" is it's thanks to these otaku people that I’m pretty damn sure you’ll find a bar, restaurant, club or store and an enthusiastic owner celebrating it somewhere in Japan. For example, I’ve been to Gothic bars decorated with cobwebs, coffins and plastic bats and a Punk bar covered in vintage posters and memorabilia. We discovered a Mod & Skinhead store with West Ham scarves hanging from the ceiling and I've seen bands play in a Garage Rock venue that was the dead-ringer for London’s Weirdsville. We've stumbled across a tiny Yakitori bar called Ramone and on entrance were confronted by a small counter and walls covered in posters of Ramones, The Who and the Sex Pistols and yes we've even found a bar in a quiet residential suburb of Tokyo dedicated to that very English genius songwriter Michael Head, yes he of Shack, The Pale Fountains and The Strands.

Papa-san & Friends

The bar is intriguingly named "Sheep's Horns and Dragon's Whiskers" (Hitsuji no Tsuno to Ryū No Hige) and it's located in a unassuming back-street not far from Nishi-Magome station in Tokyo. From this bar operates a collective of musicians known as Papa-san & Friends formed initially by DJ and musician Hiro Monstera. Hiro surely must be Mick Head's biggest fan, he first saw The Pale Fountains on their Japanese tour back in the mid-80's and a few years ago enlisted the bar's owner Papa-san and a collection of regulars and friends to start a band with the intention of playing cover versions of songs from throughout Mick's career. However, they are certainly not your average tribute band as the songs are performed on acoustic guitars, ukulele, cajón and concertina. I'd been in touch with Hiro after he saw some of my recent features on Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band gigs and as we were in Tokyo he invited us along to see the band play. On arrival we are greeted by professional looking personalised gig posters that proclaim "Welcome!" The bar’s owner Papa-san is cool in his shades puffing away on a cigarette and later on as he gets surrounded by the girls for a photo opportunity he suddenly reminds me of Tokyo's answer to Serge Gainsbourg.

Papa-san ©Retro Man Blog

Papa-san & Friends ©Retro Man Blog

Inside the small unassuming bar is a large communal table and counter and around the walls are hung an impressive collection of Michael Head posters and memorabilia, some of which are rare and many designed by Pascal Blua, who’s excellent work you can see on Michael Head and The Red Elastic Band’s recent releases and posters. I notice that lots of the items have been personally signed by Mick Head too and Hiro is rightly proud as he shows us his collection. On one side of the bar, there's a record and CD player, a rack of CD's and vinyl and there's a very cool Violette Records bag and once we’ve checked all the memorabilia we are invited to sit at the large communal table. We enjoy a great meal cooked by Papa-san and loads of delicious ice cold Japanese beers, followed by sparkling wine which is in turn followed by some fine sake.

Papa-san & Friends Yoshito, Rie & Hiro - Photo ©Retro Man Blog

Personalised Gig Poster outside the Bar

We chat and make friends with some other locals before the music starts. Hiro sings lead vocals on most of the songs and has a very cool looking ukulele. Rie expertly coaxes melodies from her concertina and adds some beautiful harmonies and backing vocals and Yoshito sits on a box like cajón, a Peruvian percussion instrument which he plays wonderfully. We each have a go on the cajón and it’s certainly a lot more difficult to master than it first looks. They proceed to lead us through a superb set of Mick Head songs including The Pale Fountain's "Thank You" and "Jean's Not Happening" with the occasional track by U2, The Smiths and Fairground Attraction thrown in along the way. Papa-san joins in on acoustic guitar for his favourite track Shack’s “Comedy” and then sings two excellent Japanese Blues songs, one of which he is hoping to release as a single.

Some music to go with your beer..?

Hiro & Rie of Papa-san & Friends - Photo ©Retro Man Blog

My friend Kurt, Tokyo resident, musician and Tokyo BGM Blog editor gets persuaded to serenade us with some songs including The Cure’s “In Between Days” and The Replacements "If Only You Were Lonely", everyone joins in and sings along. Kurt and I muddle our way through R.E.M.'s "Driver 8" as best we can but quickly hand back to the experts and enjoy a final singalong before we reluctantly have to leave to catch the last train. We had a thoroughly magical evening with Hiro, Papa-san & Friends, something we will never forget and if you are ever in Tokyo and fancy a great night of music, chat, food and beers then please head along to "The Sheep's Horns & The Dragon's Whiskers". You don't even have to be a Mick Head fan...but it will sure help!

Some of Hiro's Michael Head Memorabilia

"...from Across the Kitchen Table to Desolation Row..."

Desolation Row Bar in Hida-Takayama

In the beautiful historic town of Hida Takayama nestling in the valleys of the Japanese Alps we also discovered “Desolation Row”. You would never know it was there – a tiny sign that's barely visible hangs over a door and that's about it. The name seems somewhat incongruous in such a charming picture perfect location, there’s certainly not much desolation on view in Hida Takayama that’s for sure! Ken, the bar’s genial and very cool owner is a huge Bob Dylan fan, hence taking the title of the “Highway 61 Revisited” album track as the name of his establishment. Inside there’s a counter and a few seats – there’s hardly any room to move and that’s probably because the first thing you notice is that most of the space is taken up by racks of vinyl albums. Ken welcomes you in and invites you to sit at the counter and chat to other visitors.

Desolation Row Bar in Hida-Takayama

Desolation Row Bar in Hida-Takayama

The talk quickly turns to music and Ken has an album on hand to soundtrack any conversation - for talk about the Rolling Stones we get “Exile on Main Street” and for the Sex Pistols we get somewhat surprisingly "Sid Sings". Of course there is Bob Dylan - lots and lots of Bob Dylan - including rare live recordings and bootlegs alongside the more familiar classics. Ken digs out a scrapbook to show us an article with a Japanese newspaper who contacted him to give some expert analysis in the build up to Dylan’s last Japanese tour. We enjoy ourselves so much that we go back again the next night and proceed to get very, very drunk. Desolation Row, 30 Asahimachi, Hida Takayama, Gifu, Japan.

Ken at Desolation Row, Hida Takayama

Papa-san at Sheep's Horn & Dragon's Whiskers, Nishi-Magome, Tokyo

It’s great to see guys like Ken and Papa-san content and doing something they're passionate about after long and stressful careers as Japanese “salarymen”. Long may they welcome people, encourage friendship, play their music and of course, open another bottle of beer! With sincere thanks to Hiro, Rie, Yoshito, Tacchan the Chameleon King, Chika, Mr & Mrs Matsunaga, the regulars at "Sheep's Horn and Dragon's Whiskers" and of course the one and only Papa-san! You can see lots of videos of their kitchen session gigs at Hiro's YouTube channel here.

Some of Hiro's Michael Head Memorabilia

Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band currently have a new digital jingle “Josephine” out now as a taster for their forthcoming album “Adios Senor Pussycat” which will be released in September on Violette Records. For more information on how to obtain these please check the excellent Violette Records web-site. For up-to-date news and information on upcoming Red Elastic Band live shows please check the Michael Head official site. There's also the superb Shacknet for a wealth of Mick Head related archive material going back to The Pale Fountains.

The Stompin' Riff Raffs at Club Three Shimokitazawa Tokyo

The Stompin' Riff Raffs at Club Three Tokyo

It was great news to see that The Stompin' Riff Raffs were playing a gig in Tokyo while I was there and the chance to see them in a small basement club in Shimokitazawa was too good an opportunity to pass up. After all they do rank up there among the best live acts I've ever seen and any band that can make a theremin sexy has got my vote! I first saw them play at last year's Hipsville Weekender where the enthusiastic organizers Mr A, Alex and Ade can be relied on to scour all corners of the planet to bring us unbelievably good Garage Rock bands. I've been introduced to bands from Mexico such as Los Sustos, the fabulous Autoramas from Brazil, Messer Chups from Russia and The Jackets from Switzerland to name a few. But they really surpassed themselves with The Stompin' Riff Raffs. Getting them over from Japan can't have been easy and the band were hit by technical problems on the day which unfortunately put paid to Miku's keyboards. However the young Tokyo based band continued to put in a stunningly energetic performance, Miku endearing herself to the crowd by still going through the motions of playing her broken keyboard just in case it miraculously burst in life!

Miku of The Stompin' Riff Raffs at Club Three Tokyo

Rie of The Stompin' Riff Raffs at Club Three Tokyo

So, back to the present and I'm down the front at Club Three eagerly awaiting my second experience of The Stompin' Riff Raffs. They burst onto the stage and crash straight into the Surf-Psych instrumental "Parabellum". Three girls and a guy. The girls dressed identically in sparkling 1930's style flapper dresses and Green Hornet face masks. Miku plays her theremin as though it were a guitar, twisting ear-bustingly weird yet wonderful noises from it. Drummer Saori is all smiles behind her kit and super-cool bassist Rie looks great while adding harmonies and backing vocals. Singer and guitarist Nao is a truly charismatic front-man as he throws everything into his performance. The Sonics' "The Witch" gets a good Stompin' and "Surfside Date" sounds amazing. There are elements of Link Wray, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Cramps and the Ramones in their quick-fire no pause for breath approach. One of my highlights of the night is the penultimate killer track "Horror Show", which you can hear in Episode 22 of Retrosonic Podcast here. 

Saori of The Stompin' Riff Raffs at Club Three Tokyo

Nao of The Stompin' Riff Raffs at Club Three Tokyo

The band are all smiles and their enthusiasm is infection as the crowd go wild, there's a real sense of fun and abandonment with The Stompin' Riff Raffs. The set draws to a crazed end with another theremin-led instrumental "Ghost Train" during which all hell breaks loose on stage and everything falls apart in glorious chaos! What a show and what a band! My only complaint was that due to time restraints there was no encore so I didn't get to hear my favourite track "Linda" but I was more than satisfied. Let's hope they come back to the U.K. again very soon. You can check out more 'up close and personal' videos of the band at the Club Three Shimokitazawa and Hipsville 2016 over at our Retro Man Blog YouTube channel here. Here's a little taster...

For more info on The Stompin' Riff Raffs check out their official Facebook page here.

Shonen Knife live at Cargo London October 16th

Shonen Knife in action - Photo by Paul Slattery

Yes, it's back to the Cargo for another fix of smiley day-glo catchy pop-punk with Shonen Knife. The recent sell-out gig at the same venue, where they played as their alter-ego tribute band, the Osaka Ramones, was certainly great fun. However, there was a slight down-side in that we were only treated to three of their own Shonen Knife songs as an encore. So there was no contest, immediately after the show I just had to snap up tickets for the return fixture as I was desperate to hear some more of their original classics. There was an expectant crowd building up and suddenly Naoko, Emi and Ritsuko bounded on stage to the strains of their own "Welcome To The Rock Club", took up their positions and then it's bang, straight into the opener, "Konnichiwa".

Ritsuko - Photo by Paul Slattery

I suppose that "Konnichiwa", could almost be the band's mission statement really, encouraging the crowd with a call to arms that promises that we'll all have "a good time tonight". They are not wrong either. Next up is their classic "Riding On The Rocket", the opening track from their 1992 breakthrough album "Let's Knife", it's one of those perfectly crafted songs that the band excel in. Then we are treated to a double hit of foodie songs, the impossibly catchy "Banana Chips", which are delicious fried in coconut oil apparently, and one of the set's highlights, "Flying Jelly Attack", that instigates some wild dancing from some enthusiastic fans beside me. They power through two songs from the latest album, the title track "Pop Tune" and then the brilliant tribute to their home town, "Osaka Rock City". I noticed that Photographer Paul Slattery was finding it difficult to take photos, as bassist Ritsuko was whipping him with her flailing hair as she threw herself around the front of the stage. He soldiered on regardless...

Emi - Photo by Paul Slattery

Naoko introduces the band and hands over lead vocal duties to live-wire drummer, Emi, to sing "Psychedelic Life" from the new album. Naoko explains that the song is about Emi's "Bohemian private life", which causes much whooping and whistling from the crowd. Although, some might have been disappointed as this is Shonen Knife, and the Bohemian life portrayed in the lyrics actually consists of sitting around sipping peppermint tea and burning incense. Then bassist, Ritsuko takes her turn on lead vocals for the slower paced sweet pop of "Sunshine". Next, they elevate that handy everday object, the "Rubber Band", into the subject of a catchy Punky thrash. "BBQ Party" from the album "Super Group", continues with their food obsession and then it's one of the highlights of the last album "Free Time", the Buzzcocks style Pop-Punk of "Do You Happen To Know", in which Naoko tells of time she lost her guitar en-route from Heathrow to Osaka's Kansai International Airport. Then it's the spooky "Jack The Ripper" guitar riff intro to "Devil's House" and the rocking "Bear Up Bison". The band then get into their Osaka Ramones character for a great, well received run through of  "Rock & Roll High School". Actually, Shonen Knife could almost be the cheeky little sisters of Johnny, Joey, Marky and Dee Dee. They have that knack of taking classic music references and making them sound fresh and envigorating. Not only that, but the lyrical twists on mundane every-day objects, food stuffs and cute animals is elevated to near genius, very much like their heroes, the Ramones. 

Naoko - Photo by Paul Slattery

This leads into one of the band's signature tunes, "Twist Barbie" and then "Tomato Head" from their "Rock Animals" album, which is a grungey number that reminds me of L7. Next up is the hardcore thrash of "Cobra vs. Mongoose" and the band close the show, putting down their instruments and holding their Shonen Knife scarves aloft, lapping up the applause and calls for an encore. They return for a "three cat encore"...a trio of feline inspired numbers. "Cat Nip Dream" sung by Ritsuko, "I am a Cat" sung by Emi and then Naoko takes over again for "Giant Kitty". Then all too soon, it's all over and the band leave to cheers, stomping feet and more encore requests. Unfortunately, that's it for tonight, the lights go up and illuminate a crowd of happy smiling faces. But the band do, however, graciously hang about afterwards, chatting, signing merchandise and having their photos taken with extremely satisfied Shonen Knife fans.

Shonen Knife greet their adoring fans - Photo by Steve Worrall

Photo by Paul Slattery

Photo by Steve Worrall

Shonen Knife - Photo by Steve Worrall

Shonen Knife (L/R) Ritsuko, Naoko & Emi - Photo by Paul Slattery

With many thanks to Paul Slattery for contributing his excellent Photos - all Photos Copyright of the credited photographers Paul Slattery 2012 & Steve Worrall Retro Man Blog 2012.

Shonen Knife as Osaka Ramones live at Cargo, London Monday October 01st

Photo by Steve Worrall

It's Shonen Knife alright, just not as we usually know them. For tonight, the band took to the stage at Cargo as their alter-ego, the Osaka Ramones. Naoko, Emi and Ritsuko appeared in a cloud of dry ice to the strains of Ennio Morricone's spaghetti western classic "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly", just as the Ramones used to do. The band's usual stage outfits of cute, Mary Quant meets Mondrian dresses, are replaced by jeans, Ramones T-shirts and black leather jackets and after a customary "1-2-3-4" they slam straight into "Blitzkrieg Bop". The crowd went crazy and there was much good natured pushing and shoving. Cargo is a great venue, although the various bar and terrace areas seem to take up more than the gig space itself. This means the audience is crammed in and it can be a struggle to get a decent view, however it certainly makes for an intimate atmosphere. "Psychotherapy" is next and is quickly followed by "Rockaway Beach" and "I Wanna Be Sedated", which didn't make the album. The thumping "KKK Took My Baby Away" leads into the New York Punk anthem "Chinese Rock" and then the brilliant "She's The One", one of my favourite Ramones songs. Actually, I think the choice of cover songs on the album is maybe a little bit predictable. However, to their credit, they do pick out the less well known, CJ Ramone penned "Scattergun", from the Ramones' last ever studio album, "Adios Amigos", and make it their own.

Emi, Ritsuko & Naoko - Photo by Steve Worrall

Next up is the singalong classic "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" which takes the cellar style roof off the Cargo. Strangely enough, a couple of days later I was singing along to another cover of this when I saw The pUKES, the superb 20 strong ukulele wielding Punk Rock orchestra. Although each band is somewhat different in their approach and sound, The pUKES "George Formby plays Punk" style against Shonen Knife's more traditional take, both have a similar effect. That is, you just can't stop smiling, it's infectious! Bassist Ritsuko, with her Dee Dee style low slung bass that's almost touching the floor, grins through her long thrashing hair, and singer and guitarist Naoko responds with a cheery smile throughout the show. The band are having fun and so are we. But it's their fantastic drummer Emi, who seems to be having more fun than all of us put together as she powers round her kit, adding backing vocals and yet more of those Shonen Knife smiles.

Shonen Knife drummer Emi - Photo by Steve Worrall

Things come to a close with "Beat On The Brat", "Rock and Roll High School" and a brilliant version of "Pinhead". Naoko lifts her guitar over her head and as the green lazers cut through the dry ice, multi-coloured confetti showers down on the audience, brilliant!  The band return for a well deserved three song encore of "Pop Tune" and "Osaka Rock City" from the new "Pop Tune" album and "Economic Crisis" from "Free Time", and that was it.  I was hoping for more of their own classic songs, but it did make me rush out and buy tickets for their return show at the Cargo on October 16th, where they promised us a full Shonen Knife set, and I can't wait. Well, it's taken me a week to get this review out but I haven't stopped smiling...

Shonen Knife as Osaka Ramones - Photo by Steve Worrall

Naoko - Photo by Steve Worrall

Ritsuko - Photo by Steve Worrall

Shonen Knife/Osaka Ramones in action - Photo by Steve Worrall

Naoko, guitar hero - Photo by Steve Worrall

Ritsuko points the way - Photo by Steve Worrall

Confetti time - Photo by Steve Worrall

Naoko, Ritsuko & Emi after the show - Photo by Steve Worrall

All photos copyright Steve Worrall 2012. For access to more exclusive photos of the show please visit and "Like" the Retro Man Blog Facebook  page. Here's a video of  "Blitzkreig Bop".

More exclusive videos can be found at the Retro Man Blog YouTube Channel.

There's also a good fan page, The Shonen Knife Nexus, here.

The Complaints Department - "Walking Hand In Hand" Tokyo Power Pop for Earthquake and Tsunami Relief

Tokyo based Power Pop band, The Complaints Department, have just released a new single "Walking Hand In Hand". Proceeds from sales of the single will be donated to help aid the reconstruction work in Tohoku, Northern Japan, following the devastating Tsunami. Of course, just because the tragedy of the Tsunami is now out of the news, there is still so much work to be done in rebuilding, not only the region, but people's lives and livliehoods too. The band have to be applauded for their efforts in doing something positive.

The Complaints Department is a 5-piece power-pop band, with an eclectic fusion of punk, pop, rock and anything that comes to mind. The Complaints Department came together in February 2009, and is a Tokyo-based band made up of Canadian and Japanese nationals. Each member comes with different musical interests and influences, producing a unique style of alternative music. The band often uses two vocal parts to produce a more powerful and unique vocal sound. Furious song-writing/re-writing and relentless behind-the-scenes plans are a part of TCD life. Forging ahead, the band filled in the missing lead guitar and bass sounds, and added keyboards. The Complaints Department performs live with other Tokyo-based bands, steadily building a local following. TCD concentrates on writing songs in English and Japanese to appeal to it's entire audience. 

"Walking Hand In Hand" can be bought from Amazon, iTunes and CD Baby, here's the video:

 Composer: Nate Gildart

Arrangementby : The Complaints Department (Nate Gildart, Ken Kishi, Akira Minakawa, Chris Lucier and Matt Rollo)

Cover Art: Stefanie Held 

Mixed and Mastered by Ryo Sugawara & Ken Kishi

Here's another video of a great slice of Power Pop, recorded live in Tokyo, "The Story Of The Year". 

Sunset Drive live at The Ruby Room Tokyo December 10th

Sunset Drive - Photo by Paul Slattery

I saw Sunset Drive at Tokyo's Ruby Room last year and was blown away by their powerful and raw good time rock 'n' roll. I bought their two CD mini-albums "We've Got To Talk" and "It's All You" at the end of the gig and they have been constant companions ever since. It's just a shame that I haven't been back and able to see them this year as I really wanted to feature them on the Blog. So the next best thing, if I can't write about them then get someone local to do it for me...! Step forward Kurt Schussler from Tokyo band The Big Nothing, who very kindly and ably, filed this report on the band's latest live show. As luck would have it, regular contributor to the Blog, photographer Paul Slattery, was in Tokyo at the time and has sent in some excellent shots of the band too.

Sunset Drive live at The Ruby Room Tokyo December 10th by Kurt Schussler

"When I saw the size of this bass amp I got really excited, but this is as loud as it goes!" Alastair shouted from the stage as he slapped the side of the misfiring new piece of equipment like a fuzzy telly. No one expects great gear from the Ruby Room, just great local rock 'n' roll. Sunset Drive blazed through such hits as "Not Alright" and "See Your Face," Alastair's vocals trading licks with Tosh's firey flying V. The bass kept the songs driving, defying the weak amplifier, bolstered by Shin's rapid drum attack.

Sunset Drive - Photo by Paul Slattery

The headlining trio played with the well-oiled authority of a band that has been together for 30 years (though they're about 25 shy of that). The band's overall sound is joyous garage rock, like a dirty Ted Leo or a slightly cleaner Jay Reatard. But they're also capable of the sweet melodies found on "We've Got to Talk" and "On Fire". This Kiwi/Japanese combo's energy does not come at the expense of songwriting. The crowd danced, as they always dance to Sunset Drive, specially prepped on this night by the fantastic grooves of the Golden Katies. Like a modern Black Sabbath, with 50% of the members and 200% of the sound, this hard rocking two-piece stirred the appetite for rock. Among the revellers were the Walsh brothers from The Watanabes, Mike from The Mootekkis and Kinlay's mighty frontman Andy. 

Sunset Drive - Photo by Paul Slattery

Later on, Hiroki of  thatta showed up to hang out for a DJ set. Tokyo bands love to whinge about the city's lack of a cohesive scene due to the "noruma" pay-to-play system of its live houses. For them, a night like this restores hope that DIY music is alive and well in the metropolis, thanks to bands that truly admire each other's work. It also helps to have venues like the Ruby, which doesn't charge the bands and requires punters to pay just 1,000 yen per head to see four or five bands on a weekend night. Get past the clouds of cigarette smoke and dodgy sound system and it feels like you're rocking out in your friend's basement (the one with the awesome record collection and the reliable connection). After Sunset Drive's set, before the DJs revved up the turntables, the Ruby clientele filed out into the street to watch the lunar eclipse. The shadow drawing across the vast white expanse felt more like a beginning than an end.



Tosh, Alastair & Shin from Sunset Drive - Photo by Paul Slattery

Many thanks to Kurt Schussler for the review and Paul Slattery for the photographs.

The underground Rock scene looks very healthy in Tokyo, there seems to be a good spirit and camararadie between the bands that are often mixed with ex-pats and locals. If possible, please take some time to click the highlighted links in the review to check out some of the bands.