Looking for recommended music by Japanese artists

[Jeimuzu]

I'm looking at expanding my limited knowledge of music from Japan as it really only consists of what I hear from the Opening/Closing credits of Anime shows like Naruto, Clannad and Angel Beats. Getting hold of music here in London isn't very easy and when I check websites like Play-Asia the pricing for some albums is just plain silly.

So, what type of tunes do you folks listen to?

Here's a quick run-down of my current top 5 tunes.

1.


2.


3.


4.


5.


Ok, I know Song 3 isn't strictly Japanese (being composed and sung by a couple of French artists) but it is from a Studio Ghibli movie so I like to think I can get away with it this once.

[jeisensei]

Lately I have been getting into the Blue Hearts. They are the punk band that made the song "Linda Linda" and "Train train" and other songs that don't repeat things in their title. Utada Hikaru, Superfly, Scandal, Rie Fu, Misono and others are good. I also recommend guilty pleasures by scott murphy (sure he isn't Japanese but the songs he does the covers for are and he does them well).

[himitsu]

I like among others Greeeen, Spitz, L'arc en ciel...

[peet]

We had a music thread here before, but I guess it's way old now.

I'm out of touch lately, but I was recently impressed with this music video by retired K1/MMA figther, Genki Sudo & his group "World Order":

I'm a bit indifferent about the music, but the video is really fun. Filmed in Mexico City; they did another one in NYC before.

[Kanashibari]

I think my musical tastes are pretty much in diametric opposition to most people on this board, as I have a glowing contempt for most things mainstream, but here goes:

Metal:
Corrupted (extemely slow, mournful doom metal, who specialize in single-song albums)
Sigh (avant-garde Tokyo black metal band who've been around since the early 90s)
Arkha Sva (another obscure Satanic black metal band who relocated to Europe)
Rosenfeld (originally one of the bands involved in that "visual kei" nonsense, but musically very raw German-influenced thrash metal)
Anatomia (dark, dirty death metal from Tokyo)

Noise/industrial/experimental/ambient:
Merzbow (one of the pioneers of abstract noise)
Contagious Orgasm (his stuff ranges all over the place, from techno to noise to dark ambient)
Shinkiro (Osaka dark ambient act)
Agnus Dei (more Osaka dark ambient)
Aube (minimalist composer who usually incorporates electronic impulses and transforms them into ambient noise soundscapes)
Akira Yamaoka (composed the soundtrack for the Silent Hill video game)

Goth/darkwave/etc:
Auto-mod (one of the pioneers of positive-punk/gothic rock in Japan)
Madame Edwarda (excellent gothic rock from the 80s)
Jack or Jive (Japanese version of Dead Can Dance)

Contemporary Classical:
Toru Takemitsu (one of Japan's national treasures and most brilliant film score composers)

Folk:
Kazuki Tomokawa (highly depressing acoustic folk artist)

Techno/pop/electro/etc:
Yellow Magic Orchestra (godfathers of the Japanese electronic music scene)

[himitsu]

funny (and kinda pathetic) to see the Japanese being the only ones wearing suits in the whole city...

[jessen100]

have you ever heard of AKB-48?
i hear that they are such good musicians that they even have copy groups in china and other countries!

/wrists


but really...
my two favorite recent japanese bands are

八十八ヶ所巡礼
and
lego big morl


other reccomendation
相対性理論


other reccomendations part 2 (not 100% japanese)

KAT - ぼくらには (japanese is the song title, since without it it could be hard to find.

Sunset Drive

[azuhlLt.]

Just take a shit in your headphones and slap them on...SAME DEAL!

[jeisensei]

相対性理論

A band named after the theory of relativity... I gots to listen to them!

[peet]

Just take a shit in your headphones and slap them on...SAME DEAL!

Or first shit on your headphones, then play AKB48 through them. Maybe this will come out:

[Jeimuzu]

I did have a look to see if there was a music thread already but failed to find it, thanks for linking to it Peet and that World Order video is just filled with all kinds of Awe.

Kanashibari, I like your music selection, seems to be a fair bit there that I can listen too. I like a bit of noise/industrial/goth/techno/trance myself, trance in particular being my favourite genre.

No one shall diss the AKB48, I mean, they aren't as bad as.... The Bieber. Nothing is as bad as........ The Bieber.

Of course, getting hold of your suggestions is going to be the hard part, my main torrent site (Demonid) will probably have the more well known artists and I use a forum called Asianload that has a decent selection but the more obscure stuff could be an issue.

That PonPon video is just bizarre.

[jeisensei]

I always use Tokyo Toshokan for downloading Japanese things. It can be hit or miss though depending on the freshness of the links.

[himitsu]

God, akb... how I have come to hate them... (not as people, just as terrorists)

[Kanashibari]

All modern pop is the same shit to me.

It has nothing to say, it has nothing to really express, it's main purpose is to simply dumb down the status quo to the level of compliance and passive indifference required by the ones in control.

AKB and Bieber were cloned from the same genes.
All these "48" groups tend to sound like the Chipettes(for those who remember Alvin and the Chipmunks), and look a bit like them too......

Actually, one of my students(1st grade) tried out for that NMB group...... didn't recognize her, I think she got a nose job.

I never understood the Asian fascination for the "high nose".
Men have high noses.
Asian girls' noses are fine!!!