Well that was fun

Though it might not seem like it, given that I’ve been able to keep most of the blog’s activities running over the past couple of weeks, I was actually away on vacation for a good portion of the month. If you’ve been following any of the content that I’ve put out, you’d know I went to Japan for the first time (read more about it here if you haven’t yet!). I’m back now though, and just in time for the Monthly Recommendation Roundup!

If however, this happens to be your first time here and you’re not even sure what the “Roundup” is even about ー

At the end of each month, I put together a post featuring Japanese music that I’ve listened to and want to recommend to you all. Keep in mind, these songs don’t necessarily have to be recent releases. Some might be tracks I’ve just discovered, while others could be longtime favorites that I’m excited to share on a whim.

The songs I feature will all come from YouTube links to their respective PVs, which means there are some limitations on what I can include. However, I find that sticking to one platform ensures the most accessibility for everyone (and there are easy workarounds for region restrictions). This also allows me to create a playlist of all the songs featured in each Roundup, which I update and share at the end of every post

For this month’s Roundup, I thought I’d make it a little more special by featuring some of the bands and artists that I encountered in one way or another during my trip 😊

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jabber
by muque
It’s not an exaggeration for me to say that I can listen to muque all day

One of the main highlights of the night I got to watch muque live (as if seeing them in person wasn’t already a highlight in itself), was watching them perform jabber before it got released on streaming platforms, which wouldn’t have been until like a week and a half after the fact. That was a treat and a half, and I was glad to be there for it. That being said, to be completely honest, it almost didn’t seem like it was that long of a wait. Why, you might ask? Well, simply because I could *not* get the song out of my head at all ever since I heard it. Granted, I could just be in a honeymoon phase with it, but as of this moment I do genuinely believe that jabber has to be one of it not the catchiest track they’ve come out with yet. That says a lot I would think, considering that has seemingly been their calling card from when they started is making music with mind-numbing addictive hooks and melodies that you can loop for literal hours on end like the ones here.

fu uh
by Chilli Beans.
The beans were cooking with this one ngl

When I first listened to Chilli Beans.’s much anticipated self-titled first album debut (which some of you might recall as being my album of the year for the J-Music Exchange/Rate when it came out; check out Al’s review of it here if you haven’t yet!) I distinctly remember noting how neat it was that they chose to end it on an acoustic track of all things in the song call my name. The song was interesting enough as it is, given that it’s a kind of sound that the band (at least at the time) very rarely came out with if at all, thus showing fans a side to them that they might not have seen before. However, it was also just a really beautiful song in general with a ton of emotion behind it. fu uh is a lot of the same in that regard, but it again serves as a neat little reminder that Chilli Beans. has tracks like this in their back pocket that they can just randomly pull out whenever they feel like making one. It’s also just nice hearing Moto’s gentler singing voice.

Lovely Lovely
by 浦小雪 (ura koyuki)
Short and sweet

Unlike muque’s jabber from earlier, Ura Koyuki had only just released Lovely Lovely on streaming days prior to holding her first one-man live event. And while I did get to listen to it before I luckily found myself able to attend said event, as you can imagine, the song just hits a little different when you’re watching it be performed live by an artist like Ura Koyuki. I say as much mostly because of her background as a street performer. You can see that she she’s completely a home once she holds her guitar, whether it’s in front of a crowd in Kabukicho or on stage underneath a bar. I mention it in my live report (check it out here if you haven’t yet!), but one of the things that I really wanted to experience during my trip to Tokyo was to happen upon one of her street lives. I still do, of course (and in general I really would like to experience watching my favorite Japanese singer-songwriters busk), but getting to watch Ura Koyuki perform live is obviously the next best if not the best thing too.

心拍数/shinpakusuu
by aioi
“まだ、帰りたくない” was definitely how I was feeling by the end of my trip

I very rarely choose to put on live recordings of songs here on the Roundup (mainly due to sound quality) though I do have to make an exception for aioi’s Shinpakusuu here. Primarily because this is yet another unreleased song that I had the pleasure of getting to hear before most other people, but also because this is a recording from aioi’s actual performance from the night that I got to watch their set at shibuya eggman (like, I’m literally one of the people whose claps you can hear in the video). Watching this takes me back to that same night. I can still vividly place myself in front of that very stage. The emotions that welled up inside me as I listened to Kannan sing this song about parting ways the night before I had to fly back home stir back up again. It’s a nice memory (albeit recent, but still a memory nonetheless) that I’m glad I get to relive here, and I can’t wait for the band to release a proper studio recording of this.

春に泳ぐ/haru ni oyogu
by 朝４時 (asa yoji)
Still so glad I found out about her

In last month’s Roundup, I talked about how in preparation for Asa Yoji’s first one-man live that I planned on attending I went ahead and got myself familiar with her songs. In doing so, a thought did cross my mind regarding how the eventual set list for her show would look like. Specifically, I started wondering whether or not it was actually going to be a mini live of sorts considering how, at the time I was checking out her discography, Asa Yoji only had five songs to her credit, with one being a cover of a Vocaloid song (granted, Asa Yoji made that cover her own with her rendition, but I digress). To my surprise, she delivered a full length set comprised mostly of, again, unreleased songs. I bring this up here, and Asa Yoji herself jokes about it during the show, because if you took the majority of the songs she has out now you would think that she mainly sings melancholic songs. In actuality, a lot of her songs are more like Haru ni Oyogu here, which are more so cheery and heartwarming.

RAINBOW
by SATOH
We’ll get them back for that one

When SATOH got announced as the surprise opener for LINK music vibes (an event headlined by Chilli Beans., Tele and iri), I was stoked. I thought they were an excellent fit for the existing lineup. It was also a massive step up for the surging duo so I was happy to see them get that kind of shine too on top of that. However, as I mentioned briefly in my report, SATOH’s showing ended up leaving much to be desired. A lot of it was simply the crowd not being familiar with them and their music, thus rendering them unable to engage with the songs. It honestly felt like I was one of about maybe fifty people in an attendance of roughly a thousand people who knew them, which was a shame. But, I didn’t let that get in the way of enjoying seeing SATOH. They were pure adrenaline on stage and hearing them perform RAINBOW live was for sure one of the highlights of that night for me. I have to give a quick shout out to Almy over on YouTube whose video clued me in on SATOH, which tangentially made me equipped to enjoy their performance to the fullest.

月にさよなら/tsuki ni sayonara
by 月刊少年アイロニー (gekkan shounen irony)
Maybe next time, fingers-crossed

I compared my experiences attending shows of bands I didn’t know beforehand to doing a “live” version of the Roundup or the Draft, where I mostly go in blind. As I mentioned in my live report, the show at Rock Joint GB in Kichijoji really stood out to me because the lineup for it featured bands I had never heard of before, and I was excited at the possibility of discovering a new favorite act. However, when deciding which shows to attend and working out my itinerary, I still made a point to check out each band or artist’s music beforehand, just to have an idea of what to expect. In doing so, I became particularly interested in Gekkan Shounen Irony, as their songs (like Tsuki ni Sayonara here) fit the kind of indie “downer” rock I often feature here in the Roundup. Unfortunately, as fate would have it, the band had to pull out of the event last minute due to one of the members falling ill. Still, I have no doubt I would have loved seeing them perform live.

ネオンとサイダー/neon to cider
by シュガーラジオ (sugar radio)
All was, in fact, not lost

Continuing my story about attending Kichijoji Rock Joint GB’s live show, one act that turned out to be a pleasant surprise for me was Sugar Radio. As I watched them perform, I couldn’t help but notice how polished and almost veteran-like they seemed. Whether it was Vo./Gt. Tamate’s voice, which felt far more mature than her years (as you can hear in Neon to Cider here), or her and Dr. Ayu’s confident stage presence, they had an impressive level of poise. It all made sense when they shared during their MC that, during high school, they were in different bands and actually considered each other rivals at the time. I thought that was a neat anecdote, and knowing that they’ve since come together to form a band out of a shared love for music was really cool to witness. They also performed an unreleased song called moonlight which moved me emotionally as I listened to it. I’m really hoping they release it before the end of the year.

スロウ/slow
by 路地 (roji)
Yeah, no, Kozue really can just belt out nonchalantly like that

Speaking of fortunate turns of events, stumbling upon Roji’s free mini live at Tower Records Shibuya was easily the luckiest break of my entire trip. Not just because it was free (though, I won’t lie, that was pretty sweet), but because it introduced me to a band with an incredible sound that had somehow slipped under my radar for years. The fact that they’re signed to P-VINE only added to my surprise, as I’ve been subscribed to that label’s YouTube channel for ages now at this point. I initially associated P-VINE with one of my longtime favorites, Spangle call Lilli line, and over the years, I’ve come across other great bands through them, like Mime and TAMTAM. In that context, it makes perfect sense that Roji is also signed with them too—given how their euphoric sound fits right in and alongside those artists. Like, listening to them perform Slow live felt like an (and I kid you not) an out-of-body experience. Granted, I’ve never had one before, but if I had to bet on how one would feel like, I’d argue that that would be pretty close.

Hometown
by ナリタジュンヤ (narita junya)
Take us home Junya

Closing out this month’s Roundup is singer-songwriter Narita Junya, who delivered one of—if not the—best MCs I experienced during my trip. It involved the very shirt he’s wearing in the PV for his latest single, Hometown. If you look closely, the shirt features the English rock band Oasis. During his MC, Junya casually points this out and explains that he’s wearing it simply because he’s a huge Oasis fan. He then asks the audience if we like Oasis too, and adds that he’d love nothing more than for Oasis fans to also enjoy his music. It was such a simple, down-to-earth moment that really stuck with me, which, in a way, reflects the nature of his music as well. As you’ll hear in Hometown here, his songs have a very home-y (pun notwithstanding) and nostalgic feel to them, and they remind me a lot of another artist we featured here on the Roundup a couple of years back in Charlotte is Mine. Definitely looking forward to hearing more of his work in the future as well.

MUST LISTEN:
“jabber” by muque and “RAINBOW” by SATOH
I feel like everyone knows at this point how much I love muque and that I would stop at nothing to gas them up on the Roundup given the opportunity so seeing jabber get the spot here might not seem all that surprising to those regularly tuning in. Taking all that into consideration, I do genuinely and objectively (lol) believe what I said there that jabber might just be their catchiest song to date, and as such is definitely worth a listen. On that note, I can’t stress just how shafted I feel SATOH got during LINK music vibes, especially since their set was actually fire. I want to do right by them though in at the very least giving them their spot with RAINBOW here. I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that this song would’ve popped off if more people knew about it that night, so this is me rectifying that and making sure that never happens again.

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The YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music playlists have ALL now been updated with this month’s featured tracks. Make sure to follow them on your preferred music streaming service if you haven’t yet!

The Roundup EP for September 2024 has now dropped! Because we went with a more themed Roundup this month, there were a ton of banger releases that I didn’t get to talk about which you’ll find here instead 😉

What are your thoughts on this month’s Roundup? Lemme know down in the comments which of the songs I featured you ended up liking the most! While you’re at it, let me know too of some of your own recommendations as well!

If you haven’t yet, check out my live report of all the shows that I attended! Give it a read if you’ve ever been at all curious about going to a live house. I tried my absolute best to put it to paper but it still feels like I could write more about what I experienced while I was out there. The hope though is that it gives you the last push you need to try it out yourself, as I 100% recommend that you do 🙂‍↕️

We went with a special issue of The J-Music Advance Party this month by having it be a mirror to the live report that I wrote here on the blog. Don’t fret though, as the Party is back on come October. Sign up to the newsletter and secure your invite! The next party is scheduled for October 6, 2024. Hope to see you there!

We got around to Week 18 and Week 19 of Season 2 of the Spotify J-Music Playlist Draft this month. Just like last year things do start to get a bit more heated as we wind down towards the end of the year, so now’s an exciting time to get caught up with the series if you’re not already there 😁

A brand new pair of Japanese music album reviews have also come your way this month if you follow the J-Music Exchange/Rate! It was my turn to decide on a theme for us, and for this month I thought we could just sit back and listen to some albums that have an unplugged/acoustic vibe to them. I went ahead and gave Al Are-kun‘s Kokyuu for him to go talk about and review over at the Omunibasu Substack. I on the other hand had the pleasure of listening to THE CHARM PARK‘s Bedroom Revelations. Check out my review here!

And that’s gonna do it for this month’s Roundup! Thank you so much for dropping by whenever you do. I hope it was a fun read, and an even more fun of a listen 😊

Happy Listening!