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 Japanese musical acts that are definitely worth watching. We are now looking back on a couple of videos that were released in week 36. Enjoy the new discoveries!
aoi midori – 彗星の夜に (Suisei no yoru ni)
Every first day of the month, the musical unit aoi midori will release a new song digitally. The first song that the pop group published was in August, which means that the unit – consisting of Kanju Tokugawa (production and lyrics), pitago (music and arrangement) and Wakaba (vocalist) – is brand-new. Currently they are working on the music video for October, but we can already enjoy the latest music video with the theme: Believe in talent and destiny. — Recommended by Fran
おはようございます – 需要 (yojou)
The band おはようございます (Ohayou gozaimasu) gets described as a loud rock band, but their sound can also fit easily in the metal genre with their roaring guitar sound and hard-hitting drums. The four-piece has been active since 2015 and until now they haven’t released a full album yet, but released a couple of mini-albums, EP’s and singles. One of the members of the band is known for his work as Vocaloid artist, Utsu-P. The music video is part of a new project where the band members challenge themselves to first make the idea of the video and then create the song. — Recommended by Fran
CUICUI – なんて雄弁な眉毛 (Nante yuuben na mayuge)
For those who are looking for highly infectious songs with here and there some comical topics, you are at the right address with the all-girls band CUICUI. The four-piece, in which 3 of them are also vocalists in addition to playing their own musical instruments, consists of creative people who are also active in other musical projects. The band started out in 2017 and released in 2019 their full album 平成 (HEISEI period), a song of that album was also released on the German compilation release Get Your Genki. Recently they have been releasing digital singles. — Recommended by Fran
水崎うき (Uki Mizusaki) – BLACK DREAM DAY
Uki Mizusaki is an electro-swing singer who has been started the activities in 2017. When she encountered this new music genre, a fusion of sampling and club music such as modern and vintage jazz but also house and EDM, she found something that suited her. She was looking for a way to finance her first album and asked her fans via a crowdfunding, which was successful. Mizusaki says she is currently the only electro-swinging singer working in Japan, while the genre is more well known in Europe and the US. — Recommended by Fran
BALLOND’OR – C.R.E.A.M
BALLOND’OR are a four-piece, started out when vocalist MJM and guitarist NIKE decided to create unique music with a mixture of rock, noise and pop. Based in Tokyo neighbourhood Shimokitazawa, the band have been performing a lot in the venues connected to this area. In 2016, they released their first self-produced album, which was followed up by a split release with the band FINLANDS and two mini-albums in 2018. This spring, the band released another album, titled R.I.P. CREAM with a new band line-up. — Recommended by Fran
Ochunism – SHOUT
Started out in 2019, the Osaka-based band Ochunism gained a lot of attention soon after by performing at the Next Age Music Award 2019 during the biggest student event of Japan, named AGESTOCK2019 and winning this. Described as genre-independent, the band likes to play with genres like rock, funk and R&B. The six-piece released their first album in March, titled Gate of Ochunism. — Recommended by Fran
3markets[ ] – たからくじ (Takarakuji)
The four-piece 3markets[ ] are a rock band that has been active for several years, first under a different name, but since 2014 under the current band name. Since then, they have been releasing quite a few albums, mini-albums and mini-albums. Their latest release, their third mini-album, was released in October 2019. The music video linked below shows a girl who missed her last train and tries to stay awake and safe until the first trains will start running. It eventually shows how she is having a good time. — Recommended by Fran
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.
