Japan Underground ft. Japanese Michael Jackson Tribute DISCYU – 2 Feb 2013

Click for full size flyer

When: Saturday 2 February 2013 from 7pm.
Where: Namco Fun Scape, County Hall, Westminster Bridge Road, London, SE1 7PB.
Tickets: £6 – available from WeGotTickets and TheTicketSellers. Tickets cannot be purchased on the door.
Event pages:  [facebook] [last.fm]

Schedule:
19:00 - Doors open / DJ set
19:30 - Pussycat Dolls tribute
20:00 - Michael Jackson tribute (BAD tour by BEAT-San)
20:30 - DJ set
21:15 - Michael Jackson tribute (This Is It tour by DISCYU)
22:00 - DJ set
23:30 – Close

Whether you’re a smooth criminal or a dirty Diana, you’re in for a thriller of a night this February. Japan Underground, one of the UK’s leading Japanese music promoters, is flying in five-piece Michael Jackson tribute act DISCYU all the way from Japan for a special one-off evening of entertainment that’s tipped to be dangerous, bad and off the wall.

So, if you wanna be startin’ somethin’, you better be heading down to London’s Namco Fun Scape on Saturday 2 February 2013 to shake your body. Japan Underground will be taking over the venue’s downstairs bar and arcade for a night dedicated to the King of Pop, Japanese style! On top of the dance performance from  DISCYU, there will be DJ sets throughout the night, incorporating cover songs from Japanese artists and pop classics, plus you can beat it on an array of arcade machines, as well as karaoke and bowling being available – plus a fully licensed bar. Shamon!

DISCYU is the latest signing to Japan’s Legend of Rock, an agency specialising in tribute acts to the world’s best loved artists. Other groups under the collective include QUEER as QUEEN – a Queen tribute act that performed in London in 2012 – and Metallica tribute Hattallica, who sold out their first London show in 2011 and are regulars at Japan’s Summer Sonic Festival.

http://www.legendofrock-show.com/


http://www.namcofunscape-londonevents.co.uk/


http://japanunderground.wordpress.com/


https://www.facebook.com/JapanUndergroundClub

Check out the video below for a tour of the venue.

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu Sells Out London’s Islington Academy

In little over a day Harajuku’s ‘Kawaii Ambassador’ Kyary Pamyu Pamyu has managed to sell out London’s 800 capacity O2 Islington Academy. Her UK debut show will take place on Wednesday 13 February as part of her 100%KPP WORLD TOUR 2013. So far two other European dates have been announced; a show in Brussels (Belgium) with Vk* Concerts on 9 February, followed by a date in Paris’ La Cigale on 10 February.

Congratulation, the young star’s creating a Pamyu Pamyu Revolution, and we wonder how long it will be until other Japanese pop acts decide to venture out into Europe seeking similar success.

Related Stories:
Harajuku pop star Kyary Pamyu Pamyu on her Pon Pon Way Pon Way to London! 13 February 2013
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu: Interviewed!

Tokyo’s TOQUIWA Add Additional Headline Date to UK Tour

When: Saturday 24 November 2012 from 8pm.
Where: The Pipeline, 94 Middlesex Street, E1 7DA.
Tickets: £5 adv. (
http://www.wegottickets.com/event/193456
) / £7 door.
Event pages:  [facebook] [last.fm]

Tokyo all girl three-piece TOQUIWA have been tearing up the UK this month with their hi-energy J-punk while on tour supporting The Wedding Present. Now, due to popular demand, the support act have had to extend their time in the country to include one final farewell show – and this time they’re headlining! Taking place on Saturday 24 November, TOQUIWA will storm the stage for one last time at The Pipeline, opposite Liverpool Street Station in London, as part of Japanese rock night Japan Underground. Tickets are on sale now from WeGotTickets.com for £5.

Formed in 1998 under a different guise, the band came third in the 2008 global battle of the bands. Then called The Pinky Piglets, their Trojan horse assault of cute moves and explosive punk rock riffs leave an imprint on all their audiences across the world. The band have already achieved great accolades; they’ve hosted their own radio show on one of Tokyo’s largest stations, toured America, penned a song for a TV theme tune, played SXSW and have shared stages with punk rock legends Bad Religion, Guttermouth, Regurgitator and, of course, The Wedding Present.

“Of all the support bands we’ve ever had, I’ve never seen an audience blown away by the support band quite like TOQUIWA,” David Gedge enthuses when discussing the band – and who can blame him? From the opening dynamite of single ‘Tokyo Merry Go Round’ it’s clear that the band pair the riffs of Dinosaur Jr with the melodies of The B52s and add their own candy-covered sound. The band also pay homage to the label boss with a cover of Kennedy that has all the vitriol of the original but is, dare it be said, twice the fun!

MONKEY Ask International Fans To Help Create MAJIK

The world’s number 1 only Japanese music show in English, J-MELO, is offering you guys a chance to help Sendai-based band MONKEY MAJIK on an upcoming song. All you need to do is click the following link, follow the instructions and send your message and / or images to the unit. What you send is completely up to you! The band leaves the following message:

“Hi everyone! We’re looking forward to writing the next theme song for J-MELO. We’d love to hear from all of you while we’re writing the song. It would be a great inspiration.” MONKEY MAJIK.

The deadline is 9am (GMT) Wednesday 21 November 2012. While you’re at it, why not send them some requests (by clicking here) for IBITSU and DERANGEMENT from the GazettE?

Japan Underground VS NEO Magazine: The Halloween Party ft. Budo Grape, Karaoke and More

When: Saturday 27 October 2012 from 8pm-3am.
Where: Bloomsbury Lanes, Bedford Way, WC1H 9EU. (map)
Nearest Tube Station: Euston and Russell Square Stations.
Tickets: £5 with a flyer or costume. £8 on the door.
Event Pages: [facebook] [last.fm]

It’s going to be one hell of a weekend. We’ll be at the MCM Expo during the day, supplying the UK’s masses, cosplayers – and maybe Dr. Who‘s Matt Smith – with Japanese music CDs by day, and then rocking with you lot and some ace bands from Japan by night! Come join us! There will be two live bands from Japan, karaoke courtesy of OnBoard Karaoke, arcade machines, fun, games and ace music until the wee hours of the morning. Plus, if you come in a decent costume, we’ll let you in for £5!

The bands:

BUDO GRAPE:

This zany bunch of purple-shirt wearers are a catchy, high-energy avant-garde pop band from Nagoya, Japan. According to tour agecy It Came From Japan, Budo Grape is fronted by model and radio personality Quminco on vocals, and has Nagoya music legend Nagai (formerly of The Shockers), the group’s chief songwriter and guitarist. Check out a recent interview with them here.

Formed in 2001, Budo Grape released their first full album KOIBITO WA KOUSHITE TSUKURU in 2005. The album was a hit in the Japanese underground scene, and was followed by a number of other albums. The band’s cred soon spread, and they were invited by overseas fans to play in the United States, performing their debut live tour there in 2008 and releasing a best-of album, JUICE!, via a US label. The band also participated in a tribute album for French singer-songwriter Claude Francois, released in Japan as well as France.

New keyboardist Naho joined the band in 2012, bringing with her an edgy synth sound that has given the band’s sound a boost. They released their sixth album, KARE NO NAMAE WO OMOIDASENAI, the same year.

The band, whose members all have Grape as their last name, claim to come from “Neo-Nagoya”. They continue to tour Japan with their crazy live show and catchy songs, and in October 2012 they will perform their long-awaited debut concerts in the UK.

Ken Kobayashi:

Ken Kobayashi is a singer, songwriter and a producer based in London. Ken was born in London in 1988 between a German father and a Japanese mother. Spending childhood in Tokyo, Berlin and London, Ken was exposed to a wide range of range of music genres and movements. Ken started writing songs when he learnt to play the guitar at the age of 16. In 2009, He released his debut album My Big Foot Over the Sky.