Sunset Drive and Prague in the News

A few cool articles from the local music press this past week...

My friend and old college classmate Sarah Cortina published an article on Prague this past week in Metropolis. It's in English so check it out here.

Also, my close friends Toshi, Alastair, and Shinta from Sunset Drive got a full page interview in Club Juice, one of the best free music mags in circulation in Tokyo. For those who can read the good ole' Nihongo, click here.

BAD NOISE!: Prague

This past Saturday night marked the third installment of Bad Noise! the Ruby Room's new monthly live series organized by the man behind British Underground, Daniel Robson.

Playing the second slot was a personal favorite of mine, Prague, an awesome Sony band that has been kicking up a lot of dirt this past year with their major debut. Indeed, you've probably heard quite a bit about them from me. Favorite Band + Favorite Space = Recipe for Success. I'm already in heavy anticipation for their next single release scheduled for May 12th.

Bad Noise! is held on the 4th Saturday of every month, always a week after Beer Pong :P

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Bassist Tsugu doing his dance. He's in his early 20's but doesn't look a day over 16.

Yuta on vocals and guitar. Shy in person but quite intense with a guitar in hand.

Vola and the Oriental Machine

This past Friday evening, Ryoko from Bo-Peep took me to see her husband Arie's band, Vola and the Oriental Machine, play at Shibuya's O-Nest. They are signed by Universal, tour all over Japan, and are quite well known in the music world over here.

Vola plays an eclectic mix of hard rock and electronica. The drummer often bangs out uptempo disco rhythms while Arie's bass drives with intense distortion and buzz. The singer switches accompaniment between guitar and keyboards and at key points in the music, the lead guitarist runs his rig through heavy electronic processing.

For brief moments at a time, Vola's plethora of influences would come and go through their busy sonic spectrum. From the West, I heard elements of Smashing Pumpkins inspired guitars and Daft Punk style vocoding. From the East, a few songs were reminiscent of electro groups like Sakanaction and Capsule. But perhaps these were just my own personal musical projections. Vola's sound is unique and goes well beyond comparison.

You can sample a few highlights from their current work on their myspace page here. The song Future Days most directly matches my attempt at description. The unfortunately spelled Oriental Melonchory gives you a taste of  Vola's adrenalin capacity.

If I could describe Prague as electronica via rock as I did last week, then Vola would be rock via electronica. The keyboards and electronic effects take on just as heavy a role as drums and guitars. I think the connection between the two groups might not be so spurious. I was once out to dinner with members from both bands. Arie from Vola and Tsugu from Prague sat in the corner of the restaurant booth and quietly talked about music for over an hour while ignoring the rest of us. Given the decade and a half between the two, the scene was like master and pupil.

After Vola's performance, Mika, Ryoko, and I made our greetings, then we took off to get some Korean BBQ, known as yakiniku in Japan.
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Mika doing what she does best...

Ryoko

Smoky Korean BBQ

Mika goofing off as usual

Prague: Light Infection Tour

I went to see Prague at Shibuya's O-Nest last night. They are on the Tokyo leg of their Light Infection Tour, promoting their eponymous new single. Check a few posts down for the video.

The guys played well as always, and this time held the stage for much longer than usual.

Their music would be difficult to describe unless you are familiar with some of the sounds of contemporary Tokyo. One time when I split a cab home with Tsugu, I asked him about his favorite Japanese groups. Without hesitation, he mentioned the electro-rock band, Sakanaction. After listening to all Sakanaction's albums, I could see the connection. Prague has all the pop and funk of an electro-techno rock band but none of the electronics.

I'm most attracted to the interplay of Yuuta's high singing vocals with his dreamlike electric guitar. The sound is at once introspective, emotional, and aggressive, a perfect match for the dim urban-esque lighting of the typical Tokyo basement venue. Of their current releases, I think Slow Down most clearly represents their vibe.

I'm not the only one in town onto this group. They are signed by Ki/oon Records, a division of Sony that boasts some of the best bands in Japan, if not the world. Asian Kung Fu Generation, Chatmonchy, the Polysics, now Prague. Ki/oon has been pushing Prague's major debut all through the fall. They have posters up in Tower Records and on billboards around Shibuya.

After the show we all grabbed a few drinks and shared some good conversation. Prague is under the same management as Bo-Peep, so I saw quite a few of the usual suspects. The band has a funny dynamic. Bassist Tsugu and drummer Ken are outgoing and will talk about anything, but Singer Yuuta is unbelievably shy. Musically, he commands the band, but between songs and off stage, he doesn't have the 'frontman' personality. I think it adds to their mystery.

Keep an eye out for the debut album scheduled for release next June.

Prague - Light Infection

New Release from Prague! Check it out!

Prague - Slow Down

Prague, formerly known as Sound Coordination, is one of the best young indy bands in Tokyo. I've seen them twice and each time was blown away. I love their sound, totally up my alley. They are also on the same management as Bo-Peep. Check it out and let me know your thoughts.

Prague: video sample

Back in March, I was able to check out two amazing shows by up and coming indy band, Prague. Check out my older posts and photos.

I was looking at their webpage and found a link to a music video snippet. Please take a look. This band is totally killer.

Slow Down

Prague: The Band Formerly Known As Sound Coordination

About two weeks ago, I went to see Sunset Drive play on the same lineup as an up and coming indy group, Sound Coordination, who are currently in the process of changing their name to Prague. It turns out that their manager also owns the company who represents Bo-Peep. He is a cool Japanese guy who has years of experience in the music industry. After the show, we all went out for a few drinks.

Tonight, I went to see Prague at a live house in Shibuya. The other bands were more or less weak, but Prague on the other hand has a totally awesome sound, hard to categorize but something like a Japanese version of Bloc Party. I really dig them and hope to be following them around more often.

After the show, I said hi to the guys in the band. The drummer actually remembered me from before and remembered that I also play drums. I guess being a gaijin comes in handy. Would he have even cared if I was just another member of the crowd?

Being a weeknight, there was no afterparty this time around. But next time who knows...

(This shot is from the first show)