With a large music industry such as Japan has, second largest in the world, it is inevitable that music fans will be inundated with a profusion of good (and also less good) music from this country. It is impossible to keep track of this and write a review about it per video. But to avoid missing out on gems, it is time for a weekly list of new music videos from lesser-known Japanese musical acts that are definitely worth watching. We are now looking back on a couple of videos that were released in week 42 of the year 2020. Enjoy the new discoveries!
遣ノ雨 (Yarazu no ame) – My music life is the end
Pop group Yarazu no ame got formed in 2018 by Anna and yuna who are based in Osaka. Anna writes the lyrics of all the songs and yuna is de guitarist and main composer of the songs. In the summer of 2018, the group released a demo that got followed by another demo in December. Soon after they started hosting their own events. Recently they have been releasing various digital singles and is it waiting for a full album. — Recommended by Francisca
aoie us fear – ガーネット (Garnet)
Fronted by vocalist Nagisa, the alternative emotional rock band aoie us fear released an EP soon after the start of the band in 2018. After that, the band has been busy with performing and making some music videos. With the release of the video for the song Garnet, almost 1 year after their last music video, it seems that the band has been working on a new release. — Recommended by Francisca
chilldspot – 夜の探検 (Yoru no tanken)
The name of the four-piece band chilldspot comes from a combination of several words, such as chill, child, spot and pot. All members are currently around the age of 18 and still in school. At the end of December, they decided to start activities as a quartet, making the band still brand-spanking new. Their first EP, titled the youth night, will be released in November of this year. — Recommended by Francisca
Morbid Sloth – halation
Morbid Sloth are a four-piece melodic emotional rock band hailing from Tokyo. The band has two guitarists who also sing, making it easy to work on complex melody lines and versatile chorus work. After releasing an album in 2013, a couple of singles in 2015, 2017 and 2019, the band is ready to release a mini-album in November this year. — Recommended by Francisca
SHE’ll SLEEP – Home
SHE’ll SLEEP are a three-piece rock band that got formed in March 2018, two years later, the young band joined the Osaka-based indie label THE NINTH APOLLO and released their first album, titled AWAKE, in the summer. The band members are men of few words and let their music do the speaking: rough, fast and melodic. — Recommended by Francisca
Dannie May – 針よ墜とせぬ、暮夜の息 (Hari yo oto senu, boya no iki)
Pop unit Dannie May consists of three members who like to produce a modern version of pop music with an edgy and groovy sound by adding a wide range of sound essences like funk, soul and rock. They attracted the attention when they released their first CD, an EP titled Gluttony. The latest music video, linked below, has been directed by the band members themselves. — Recommended by Francisca
SAICO GIRL – 青の半券 (Ao no hanken)
SAICO GIRL are currently a 3-piece rock band based in Tokyo that started with activities at the end of 2017. The band performs songs about the melancholy of life. At the start of the summer, the band decided to do a crowdfunding for their first mini-album, since it was difficult to perform which is mostly the best way to make music projects more known. It was a success and the band was able to release it in September. — Recommended by Francisca
Next week we will be back for a new list of new music videos to check out. But you can also look back to the earlier editions of this weekly article series.
