With a large music industry such as Japan has, the 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 7 of the year 2022. Enjoy the new discoveries!
Nuit – Parade
After releasing two mini-albums and joining the compilation album Total Feedback 2020, it is finally time to look forward to the first album by this shoegaze noise pop band Nuit. The title is undecided at the point of writing, but what is known is that the release month will be September. Formed in 2015 by vocalist and lyricist Yasuyuki Ota, the Tokyo-based three-piece focus on combining the sweet and lustrous vocals with noisy shoegaze. — Recommended by Francisca
サブマリンオルカ号 (Submarine Orca-go) – わがままエスケープ (Wagamama Escape)
“Welcome aboard!” The three-piece pop band Submarine Orca-go just released their first EP, titled Wagamama Escape, after releasing a mini-album in 2020 and a song through indie music distribution site Eggs in December. This song rapidly rose in the song ranking and was also used in a TV commercial. In March, they will have their first one-man show at the location where the band got formed, the live venue Rock Country in Iwakuni. — Recommended by Francisca
ザ・マルチーズ (The Maltese) – ミルクティー (Milk Tea)
As a preview of their upcoming album, due out later this year and in collaboration with PLECTRUM’s Taisuke Takata as a guitarist, Tokyo-based pop band The Maltese have simultaneously released two versions of the song Milk Tea, in Japanese and English. The four-piece guitar pop band has been active since 2014 and centred around vocalist Asako, who was previously active in the band DOG HAIR DRESSERS – which is considered a pioneer of Japanese alternative guitar pop bands. — Recommended by Francisca
ピウムジカ (Più musica) – C
The first mini-album by the progressive piano trio Più musica, titled ダイヤモンド (Diamond), has been just released which is directly also their debut release. Più musica – meaning ‘more music’ in Italian – got formed in the summer of 2021, making the band still brand-new. In the music video for C, former professional baseball player G.G. Sato is seen with Yuji from rock band THIS VERY DAY. — Recommended by Francisca
Hue’s – Shangri-la
The Osaka-based rock band Hue’s got formed in 2016 and will release their first album in March, titled Hz-adopt, after releasing several singles, an EP and a mini-album. The album had a total production period of two years, as some songs were given a new version and most probably also due to the pandemic that made it difficult for many to continue with activities. The music of the four-piece is strongly influenced by the (western) alternative scene and consists of tunes filled with melancholy and warmth. — Recommended by Francisca
re:lapse – timeless melody
re:lapse got formed in 2019, consisting of band members that found each other in the dream pop and shoegaze scene. All of them have been or are still active in other bands which makes this solid and fruitful collaboration. Six months after their debut EP, the second EP is on its way, set for release in March. According to the band, the biggest features are the pale and ephemeral male and female vocals and melodies, and the shoegaze guitar that floats comfortably while being distorted to the limit. — Recommended by Francisca
キズ (KIZU) – ミルク (Milk)
KIZU’s activities started in 2017, the visual rock band had immediately attracted attention with its mysterious set-up of promotion. In addition, the band members were well-known musicians from the scene and their visuals can be seen as intriguing combined with a dark and catchy sound. While their latest single was released in December, Milk is a new song on KIZU’s best-of album that was released in April last year. A short clip was shared as part of the promotion of this album at the time, but the music video for this song was finally released in full. — 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 for when you yearn for more musical gems! Want to read more about how this project started or check out the YouTube playlists? Click here for all the information.
