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 Japanese music acts that are definitely worth watching and need some extra focus, with an emphasis on the lesser-known names.
We are now looking back on a selection of videos released in week 19 of 2024. We sincerely hope you enjoy the new discoveries!
Ar syura – Slayly
Ar syura is a two-headed indie unit consisting of bassist and vocalist Aki Kawano and composer, songwriter, trackmaker and guitarist Yohkyu, who are giving expression to their own music with jazz, soul and R&B as their basis. When the duo launched in 2021, they decided to produce music for 12 consecutive months, this was eventually placed on the first album dyed Bordeaux. The aim of their output is to find some relief from conflicting anxieties and depression. This was followed up with several singles in 2023 and 2024, with Slayly being the most recent release. — Recommended by Francisca
食堂ガール (Shokudo Girl) – Moon
The five band members of Shokudo Girl came together because of a commonality; they are all attending the same university in Yokohama. Their band name originates from their rehearsal space located in the university cafeteria basement. All their tracks are recorded in a self-made studio on campus, with each member contributing to mixing, jacket design, and CD assembly. The musical roots of the five band members are rooted in the 1960s and 1990s, resulting in a unique blend of influences that defines the sound of Shokudo Girl. They have been active since 2021 and have several releases to their name, Moon was featured on their album released in 2023, titled Fall in. — Recommended by Francisca
AMИESIA – Nautilus
An extraordinary story that shows how a setback is turned into a new start. AMИESIA’s activities began in 2022 and Nautilus was their first single. Just this week, the visual kei metal band decided to release a new music video of the remixed version of their first single. A few days later, the band announced that their vocalist Isara suddenly quit the band and today it was announced that the visual kei gothic metalcore band is continuing operations under a new name with the remaining members, XELESIAH, with Kou deciding to become the vocalist instead of the guitarist. This all happened in less than a week, which shows how resilient the band members are and genuinely intend to continue making music. — Recommended by Francisca
In My Vanitasss – COME ON
This is the third single by the band In My Vanitasss, a four-piece band centred around vocalist Sora who was first active as a solo artist but decided at the end of 2023 to transform his project into a band project. Around the same time, In My Vanitasss started with releasing music, first a single, followed up with an EP at the start of 2024 and later on two more singles, with NO MORE being the latest. The dark wave musician is strongly influenced by the 90s visual kei scene and aims to produce crossover music with various music genres, the latest single has post punk and industrial music elements. — Recommended by Francisca
In sea hole – baby baby baby
After releasing an EP and a single, the young four-piece indie rock band in sea hole has arrived at their second single titled baby baby baby. A song surrounded by a nostalgic sound that conveys the loss of a past love. The band started activities just a year ago and is influenced by alternative music and shoegaze and the songs they have released to date contain a combination of ear-pleasing melodies with the soft, fragile voice of vocalist Yui Katagata. It will be interesting to see what else the band has in the pipeline. — Recommended by Francisca
Spinning Plums – Shanghai Runway
Spinning Plums are a five-piece dream city pop band based in Tokyo, they started activities in the spring of 2022. Every band member has different musical roots and they follow the indie rock sound from the 2000s and onwards in their music creation. The song Shanghai Runway was released early this year, but the band has not been idle otherwise, as they have released two more singles, Haze and Refrain, these releases were part of a series of releases where the five-member band released a new single in three consecutive months. — Recommended by Francisca
OZIGIRI – GRINDROME
OZIGIRI is the solo project of ZUHO and has been active since October 2008. The sound this band makes is a mishmash of grindcore, death metal, speedcore and breakcore, with a super-fast, violent, atypical sound also known as digital grindcore. Last February, OZIGIRI released their fifth album titled Party People Must Die which, according to the musician, was made for the dancefloor. In April, the seventh volume of the compilation album IMMORTAL HARDCORE!!!! was released which features the track GRINDROME. — 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.
