taffy, PASSEPIED, moumoon and Yosi Horikawa in JAPAN RISING Showcase at The Great Escape 2015

17 April, 2015 by Tom Smith Leave a comment

FB Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1381477455513705/

Four Japanese artists have been confirmed to perform at The Great Escape, held 14-16 May in Brighton, England. taffy, PASSEPIED, moumoon and Yosi Horikawa will appear at the JAPAN RISING showcase on the afternoon of Saturday 16 May at Queens Hotel, accompanied with a buffet of free sushi. They will perform in front of fans from all over Europe, music industry professionals and media outlets. All four artists will also perform separately during the festival with other international bands.

Held annually in Brighton since 2006, The Great Escape is Europe’s fastest-growing music marketplace and consumer festival. This year, 400 selected artists from over the world will perform at 35 clubs around the city.

JAPAN RISING will present the first UK performances from major-label artists PASSEPIED and moumoon; the former being iTunes Japan’s “Breakout Artist of 2013” and the latter bringing a dose of unadulterated J-pop, whose latest single featured as the opening theme to hit new anime series Assassination Classroom. The special showcase will also be opened by Tokyo shoegaze-pop quartet taffy, while experimental DJ Yosi Horikawa, who was recently part of compilation Nihon Kizuna which raised over £20,000 for earthquake and tsunami relief efforts in Northern Japan, will conclude the proceedings.

The showcase is organised by The Foundation for Promotion of Music Industry and Culture (PROMIC), supported by Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) and coordinated by Japan Underground. It is part of a remit to create overseas showcase opportunities for performers at Tokyo International Music Market; further showcases will follow.

Venue / Time:
Queens Hotel, Saturday 16 May (11:30-4pm) – Entry with festival pass only

taffy: 12:00-12:30pm

taffy is a four piece fuzzy guitar pop band with a female vocal Iris. They are often compared to the Britpop and the Grunge bands from the 90s. Their music is described as art-punk (247magazine) , shoegaze (Buzz), 90’s Britpop revival (NME), highly addictive (DiS) and so on. The band has three albums out already, and has done 4 national UK headline tours so far. And the new EP “Darkle” out on May 4th 2015 includes a song “Young Tines” which was remixed by The Brian Jonestown Massacre.

moumoon: 1:00-1:30pm

moumoon is a made-up term with a French word “mou(soft)” and “moon”: soft moon.
Ever since their inception in 2005, they have continuously gained recognition through their radio live-performances on various networks and had their songs featured in commercials and television dramas. They have taken further steps in their career as they performed in large-scale music festivals and went on their biggest tour to date (16 different areas in Japan) in 2014.
Recently, they have been holding live performances overseas, in an attempt to showcase Japan’s high quality pop songs to the rest of the world.
Also playing: 8:30pm Saturday 16 May @ Brighton Museum

PASSEPIED: 2:00-2:30pm

Formed in 2009 by keyboardist, Narita Haneda. Their name, PASSEPIED was taken from a composition by French composer, Claude Debussy. Ever since their formation, PASSEPIED are causing sensation in the Japanese music scene with their unique music style created by Haneda, who has a classical background, and the illustration/artwork and music clip animation created by the band’s own vocalist, Natsuki Ogoda. Their sophomore album “MAKUNOUCHI-ISM” was released on June 18. In October, the band released “MAKUNOUCHI-ISM e.p” which includes 4 tracks from the latest album “MAKUNOUCHI-ISM” re-recorded all in English on iTunes Stores worldwide.
Also playing: 8:00pm Saturday 16 May @ Komedia Studio Bar

Yosi Horikawa: 3:00-3:30pm

t’s clear that Yosi Horikawa is not only obsessed with music, but sound itself. The Japanese producer consistently incorporates field recordings into his tracks to vibrant effect offering an exciting musique concrete version of electro beat.
He released his first EP, « Touch » on Eklektik Records (FR) in 2009 and his LP « Vapor », on First Word Records (UK) in 2013. He recently performed among international festivals (Sonar, Mutek, Glastonbury etc.). 2011 academy grad, a documentary about him « Layered Memories : Searching For Sound With Yosi Horikawa » have been released on 2014 by RBMA
Also playing: 6:45pm Friday 15 May @ Unitarian Church

Filed under Japan Underground, News Tagged with 2015, Bands in Brighton, Brighton, Great Escape, Japan, Japan Brighton, Japan Rising, Japan rock, Japan Underground, japanese, Japanese band, Japanese bands, Japanese bands in Brighton, Japanese Brighton, Japanese indie, Japanese music, Japanese Pop, Japanese rock, May, moumoon, PASSEPIED, PROMIC, Queens Hotel, taffy, THE, The Great Escape, YOSI HORIKAWA

moumoon and PASSEPIED, Two of Japan’s Rising Talents, Announce Special One-off London Show

9 April, 2015 by Tom Smith Leave a comment

Event Name: JAPAN UNDERGROUND presents moumoon x PASSEPIED – JAPAN RISING Warm Up
Facebook Event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/454371931382680/
Date: Wednesday 13 May 2015 (from 7pm)
Location: The Pipeline (basement), 94 Middlesex Street, London E1 7DA [map]
Nearest Tube/Train: London Liverpool Street, Aldgate, Shoreditch High Street
Entry: £5

Schedule:
7-8pm: Japanese music DJ session
8pm: PASSEPIED
9pm: moumoon
10pm-close: Japanese music DJ session

Two of Japan’s hottest rising talents, moumoon and PASSEPIED have already been selected to represent the best in new talents from Japan at The Great Escape Festival in Brighton between 14-16 May 2015, and now they have announce a very special one-off show in London to warm up for the festival appearance, accompanies by DJ sessions from UK-based Japanese music label JPU Records.

PASSEPIED (www.passepied.info)

Named after French composer Claude Debussy, PASSEPIED have became a sensation in the Japanese music scene since forming in 2009. With their unique music style crafted by keyboardist and founder Narita Haneda, who graduated the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music with a degree in classical music, and illustrations, artwork and music clip animation created by the band’s own vocalist, Natsuki Ogoda. This will be PASSEPIED’s very first performance outside of Japan.

moumoon (www.moumoon.com)

moumoon is a Japanese group formed by YUKA (Vo.) and MASAKI (Gt./Composer). They both grow up with classical music with Masaki playing piano and YUKA playing violin. Their present musical style covers various types of music such as pop, alternative rock, electronica, folk and indie rock with YUKA’s lyrics and vocal adding scenery and a story to Masaki’s sensitive but dynamic melodies. After moumoon was formed, their songs were power played on radio and used in many TV commercials earning them name recognition. Their latest single is also currently being used in hit new anime series Assassination Classroom as its closing theme.

moumoon and PASSEPIED are in the UK to take part in the JAPAN RISING showcase at The Great Escape on Saturday 16 May, where they will be joined by Yosi Horikawa. The showcase is supported by The Foundation for Promotion of Music Industry and Culture (PROMIC) and Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ), and coordinated by Japan Underground. It is part of a remit to create overseas showcase opportunities for performers at Tokyo International Music Market; further showcases will follow.

Filed under Japan Underground, News Tagged with Gigs, J-pop, J-rock, Japan, Japan London, Japan Rising, Japan rock, Japan Underground, japanese, Japanese band, Japanese bands, japanese gigs, Japanese indie, Japanese London, Japanese music UK, Japanese Pop, Japanese rock, Jpop, Jpop London, Jrock, London, moumoon, PASSEPIED, PROMIC, The Great Escape

SPYAIR and the GazettE Nominated in the JpopAsia Music Awards 2013

9 January, 2014 by Tom Smith 1 Comment

JpopAsia2013 JPU Records is very happy to hear that two of its artists have been nominated in the JpopAsia Music Awards 2013! This year sees SPYAIR and the GazettE up for awards. Back in the 2012 awards, over one million votes were recorded, resulting in our first and only artist at the time walking away with an impressive six awards, winning 50 per cent of the awards available in the ‘rock’ category. The full details can be found in our article here.

This year’s awards sees our artists split over two categories, Jpop and Jrock. Click either category to see the nominations, and don’t forget to log-in (at the top of the page) to cast your votes. Here are the JPU Records artists and which categories they’re in;

Jpop

Best use of Social Media: AOI (the GazettE), RUKI (the GazettE)
Sexiest Male Singer: RUKI (the GazettE)

Jrock

Favourite Artist/Band: the GazettE
Best Rocking PV 2013: FADELESS – the GazettE
Best Single 2013: Niji [PV] (SPYAIR), FADELESS [PV] (the GazettE)
Best Album 2013: BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY (the GazettE)
Best Rock Act: the GazettE
Best Use of Social Media: AOI (the GazettE), IKE (SPYAIR), RUKI (the GazettE)
Sexiest Rocker: KAI (the GazettE)

The albums the nominations come from are available now on CD and MP3 across Europe courtesy of JPU Records. Click each album cover below to order the CD direct from JPU’s HQ, shipping worldwide!

Filed under News Tagged with AOI, BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY, Best Band Japan, Best in Japan, BEst Japanese Band, Big in Japan, Europe, FADELESS, IKE, J-pop, J-rock, Japan pop, Japan rock, Japanese music, Japanese Pop, Japanese rock, Jpop, JpopAsia, JPU Records, Jrock, MILLION, Music Awards 2013, Niji, Ruki, Sexiest Rocker, SPYAIR, the GazettE

Japan Underground and JPU Records’ Artists Nominated for NEO Awards 2013

9 December, 2013 by Tom Smith Leave a comment

Don’t click these.. it’s just a picture.

Woo ha! We’re very happy to announce that Japan Underground has been nominated for an award in NEO Magazine for the second year in a row! Last year we were lucky enough to walk away with the award for Best Specialist Company 2012 for our efforts promoting Japanese rock, punk and alternative music in the UK. Our sister company JPU Records also had one of their artists, the GazettE, voted Best Music Act of 2012 too.

Now, 12 months on we’re in the finalist list once more! Plus! We’re joined by no more than five of JPU Records’ artists! Yep, the likes of the GazettE, SPYAIR, BOOM BOOM SATELLITES, POLYSICS and the mighty Ling tosite sigure are up for ‘Best Musical Act 2013’ alongside VAMPS, Crossfaith, FACT and more! Who wins is entirely in your hands.

We’ve had an extremely busy year, from organising sold-outs shows in London for FACT and N’SHUKUGAWA BOYS, to releasing some of the biggest Japanese albums of the year through JPU Records. We just want to thank you for reading this, supporting us, and continuing to buy music and attend shows. Cheers everyone!

Voting ends 18:00 GMT on Friday 13 December, and winners will be announced in NEO Magazine #120, out 23 January 2014!

Make your vote count!

Filed under Japan Underground, News Tagged with Awards 2013, Best Band, Best Specialist Company, BOOM BOOM SATELLITES, Japan, Japan Europe, Japan Music, Japan rock, japan UK, Japan Underground, japanese, Japanese music, Japanese rock, JPU, JPU Records, Ling tosite sigure, NEO, NEO Magazine, Polysics, SPYAIR, the GazettE

the GazettE Unleash New Vision with Seventh Album BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY

4 October, 2013 by Tom Smith 8 Comments

Fresh from completing a world tour with sold out dates across Europe, Japan’s ‘visual kei’ veterans the GazettE return with their seventh full length album BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY, due for a worldwide digital release on 23 October, and a physical release in the UK, Europe and Russia from JPU Records.

BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY captures the essence of what it means to be an outsider. Since their inception over a decade ago, the GazettE have found themselves being somewhat of an anomaly – separated from regular bands and musicians. Their singles have continually ranked in the top ten in Japan, but their music is far too aggressive, dark and disturbing to be recognised as pop; their guitarmanship and sea of fans headbanging in unison at live shows is a spectacle to witness, but the band’s androgynous demeanour and attention to art and aesthetics makes them an irregularity in the rock and metal worlds. The album title, combined with its unusual artwork, is a physical representation of a band that never compromise in the way of expression.

The cover art is a further metaphor, envisaging a hybrid beast made from five distinct but very different creatures. “the GazettE’s creativity depends on the individuality of all five member of the band”, explains vocalist RUKI. “Our art is a distilled combination of audio and visual”.

JPU Records’ regular edition of the album will also marry the sound and vision of the GazettE. Its 24-page booklet embodies all 14-tracks with unique artwork depicting each song, while an additional booklet will be included exclusive to the UK, Europe and Russia, containing translations of the lyrics into English.

BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY will be released in 79 countries across the world from 23 October 2013, making it the GazettE’s biggest release so far as their overseas fandom continues to swell. If you haven’t already, it’s time to tune in and celebrate the beauty of deformity.

Pre-order details coming soon.

the GazettE – BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY

BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY Track List:
01. MALFORMED BOX
02. INSIDE BEAST (Teaser Video)
03. UNTIL IT BURNS OUT
04. DEVOURING ONE ANOTHER
05. FADELESS
06. REDO
07. LAST HEAVEN
08. LOSS
09. THE STUPID TINY INSECT
10. IN BLOSSOM
11. KARASU
12. Kuroku Sunda Sorato Zangaito Kataha
13. TO DAZZLING DARKNESS
14. CODA

Pre-order BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY:
JPU Records (Worldwide Shipping), Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.fr, Plastic Head (UK), Season of Mist (France), Metal Mailorder (France), Metal Mailorder (Germany), CDstarts (Germany), Lesen (Germany), Levykauppax (Finland), Supersounds Music (Finland), Record Company X (Finland), Bengans Record Store (Sweden), cdon (Sweden), cdon (Norway), Free Record Shop (Belgium), Sound of Japan (Hungary), Free Record Shop (Netherlands), Music Meter (Netherlands), Kroese Online (Netherlands), SMF Music Hunter (Bulgaria), Supershop (Slovakia), Supershop (Czech Republic), ZOSO Music Shop (Slovenia), imusic (Denmark), ECI (Netherlands), ECI (Belgium), COSMOX (Netherlands), Disc-order (Spain), CD Shop (Greece), (more links coming soon)