Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Koko, London (8 July 2016)

I have been a fan of Japan's J-Pop megastar Kyary Pamyu Pamyu since early 2014 when I visited Japan on a work trip and asked an associate to recommend me some Japanese pop music. 

Since that fateful day I have been an avid listener, buying her music and enjoying her always weird and wonderful music videos. As soon as she announced her '5ive Years A Monster' tour in support of the just released KPP Best best-of and saw that a date in the UK had been scheduled at Koko in London, I had to buy a ticket. Especially as I dithered over her last appearance in the UK, at the Roundhouse last October, and decided not to go. 

This was the first time I had see Kyary Pamyu Pamyu live and she didn't disappoint. It was a joy from beginning to end; a hyper explosion of music and colour. I wrote about what I thought of her show in what is a part gig review and part appreciation of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu for LeftLion. 

Below (and above) are a few photos in grainy iPhone quality and a short clip that I took...

Setlist
Cosmetic Coaster
5iVE YEARS MONSTER
Kyary An-An
Cherry BONBON
Furisodeshon
Candy Candy
Pon Pon Pon
Ninja Re Bang Bang
do do pi do
Interlude
Fashion Monster
Mottai Night Land
Crazy Party Night
Mondai Girl
Invader Invader
Saigo no Ice Cream
Kira Kira Killer
Sai & Kou

Encore:
Kimi ni 100 PERCENT
Tsukematsukeru 

#kirakirakiller #kyarypamyupamyu #5iveyearsmonster #kpp #kokolondon #livemusic #jpop @kyary_pp

A video posted by Pawl (@heypawl) on Jul 9, 2016 at 12:46am PDT

Record Shopping in Tokyo - Part 3

Records bought on this trip by Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Takeshi Terauchi

This month I was back in Japan on a business trip. I was fortunate enough again to visit both Tokyo and Osaka. As with previous work trips to Japan, I had a little bit of time between appointments to be able to visit a few record stores. 
 
My time in Tokyo was very limited this time meaning I didn't have the opportunity to hunt out any new stores out of the 400-plus record stores that are in Tokyo. I used my time to visit two that I have been too previously, one of which is probably one of the best records that I have ever been to. 

Recofan in Shibuya

I managed to pay a couple of visits to Recofan in Shibuya. The first my time was very limited so after taking the lift up to the 4^th floor of the Shibuya Beam building I immediately shot to the left and made my way where I remembered the Takeshi Terauchi records are. The selection was a bit more diverse than previously and I picked up an interesting looking record of his I hadn’t seen anywhere else before. It had a greying image of a married couple and Terry sitting on the steps below them with his guitar. My initial thought was that it was the elusive Rashomon LP, especially as the colours of the cover are very similar. It turns out the record is from a year later, 1974 and feels very much like it is part of a similar period. It has some seriously heavy jams on it and when I get a minute I will probably write a few words about it.   

As I usual when I visit Tokyo I was staying in Shinjuku. I hadn’t really had much success previously of visiting the many record stores in this area. Either due to time constraints, or due to iffy directions and Google Maps not being 100% accurate with Japanese address conventions, I have instead spent a lot of time walking up and down alleyways craning my neck with my eyes fixed upwards trying to find stores that apparently should have been there but just weren't. I did previously pop in to the Shinjuku branch of Disc Union which was just as impressive and well-stocked as its Shibuya counterpart.

This time I had read (I frustratingly can’t find the link now) that there was a record store on a road I was familiar with as I had stayed on a couple of hotels on it previously. So I marked on my paper map where the store was supposed to be according to the blog and Google Maps and took a stroll out to it. I ended up walking from Shinjuku to Yoyogi Station and back again along the road keeping my eyes out, but I was unable to find it. Tokyo has buildings on top of buildings and it’s easy to miss places especially if they’re small units and not well sign-posted. If you happen to be reading this post and know the store that I am on about, do let me know where it is. 

Disc Union in Shibuya

The following day was a Saturday and I had a couple of hours in the morning to myself after catching up with a few emails and so took the JR to Shibuya. In Shibuya, both Disc Union and Recofan are a couple of minutes’ walk from each other - very handy when time is limited.

I made my way up the stairs in Disc Union to the floor that has the second-hand vinyl. As with all of the record stores that I have visited in Japan they use their space well. Shelves and bins are stacked high and all usable space is utilised. The amount of stock is always impressive if a little overwhelming at times, and the lack of floorspace can make navigating around the shop floors a little cumbersome at times, especially when they are busy, as was this case on this Saturday morning. 

Popol Vuh record in Shibuya branch of Disc Union

Disc Union had had a little shuffle around of their stock since my last visit, although as they label their sections in English as well as Japanese, it was soon easy enough to get my bearings. I didn’t really have anything in mind that I wanted to buy, I just went for a browse more than anything.

I know Japan is known as a collectors market, but the sheer wealth of stuff they had was ridiculous. Loads of ‘classic rock’ stuff including insane amounts of records by the like of Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Beach Boys, Rolling Stones. In fact, British rock from the 60s, 70s, and even the 80s, seems to be something a lot of the second hand record stores specialise in. As a Krautrock fan it was exciting to see first pressings of stuff by the likes of Can, Neu!, Kraftwerk, Amon Dull II, records that I had only ever seen listed on eBay or Discogs or in limited amounts in second-hand stores. 

If you are looking to pick up some Japanese artists on vinyl Disc Union probably isn’t the place. Or I should say, its selection is much smaller than in other record stores that I have visited. Although they did come good this time and they had all of the just issued Kyary Pamyu Pamyu albums on vinyl. Part of me wanted to pick them all up, but I went for Namba Collection in the end. They also had this interesting looking Moomins record that I now regret not picking up. 

Moomins record in Shibuya branch of Disc Union

After Disc Union I headed up to road to Recofan. The store is more like a warehouse with endless aisles of records and CD’s. I even found their LaserDisc stash this time around. They were all listed at 100 Yen each and even though I don’t have anything to play them on I do kind of regret not picking some up at that price. You never know, I could have used the opportunity to start up a LaserDisc film club in Nottingham. 

LazerDiscs in Recofan

The store is sort of split in to two sections: As you go in, on the left is the Japanese-related stock, Classical, and bargain bins; while the much larger right-hand side houses the new releases, CDs, and various genres such as hip-hop, 60s/70s/80s, pop. And there’s loads with much of it very reasonably priced, and from what I could tell and from previous experience, most is in pretty decent condition too. I spent a bit more time looking around this section on the right hand side than I have done on previous visits and if I was up for a good old crate dig I would have had a field day. As it was, time was limited (as was money and space in my suitcase) so I just had a little stroll among the aisles having a flick through the racks every now and again. 

Recofan in Shibuya

I did end up picking up a couple more Takeshi Terauchi records for my friend back home. I should also add that the store had a sale on and those bargain bins were busy with shoppers studiously going through every record in every bin. That’s dedication.

The staff have always appeared very friendly in Recofan (as well as all the other stores that I’ve visited in Japan I hasten to add) and even with my lack of Japanese and their lack of English I have been able to get by. At the till they always offer if you want to get the record out of the sleeve and take a look before handing over your money. They also always throw in those plastic record sleeve protectors too. I also spied a little section tucked away at the back where they had a couple of turntables set up with brushes attached to the arms instead of needles, and they were using these to clean the records. Impressive. 

Recofan in Shibuya

Although I was able to pick up a few records and hit up a couple of decent stores, I’m still a bit gutted that I didn’t have time to hunt down a couple of record stores in Tokyo that I haven’t had chance to visit yet. 

I went to Osaka after Tokyo on this trip to Japan. I have written a post about visiting a handful of record stores in Osaka here. 

Read my previous posts about Record Store shopping in Japan below: 
Record Shopping in Tokyo - Part 1 
Record Shopping in Tokyo - Part 2

Record Shopping in Tokyo - Part 2

Last October I wrote a post about my experience of record shopping in Tokyo for the first time. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to to visit Japan at the end of March and in between some work appointments I managed to find a little bit of time to visit a couple of stores one afternoon.

I was in Shibuya on the afternoon that I was free and decided to stay in that area. The first store I visited was the large Recofan, a shop that I went to on my previous visit. I cannot stress enough how large this place is. It’s vast. With racks upon racks containing new and used vinyl, CDs and DVDs. The vinyl section probably accounts for a quarter of the store. I could spend all day going through the rows of records, and as appears to be the case in the record stores that I’ve visited before in Japan, it’s all very well organised. Although they don’t sort their records like they do in the West in an obvious A-Z fashion, once you have got your head around how they do it, it’s becomes pretty easy finding the sections you want.

Recofan, Shibuya

As in all of the Japanese record stores that I have been to even though language may be a barrier the staff are always friendly and very helpful. Staff members have gone out their way to try and find a particular record or artist for me, and this time around in Recofan the assistant behind the till even threw in some plastic record sleeve protectors free of charge with my purchases. The stores also ask you if you want to check the condition of the vinyl before you buy, which is a nice little touch. But as with all of the records I’ve bought in Japan the vinyl is always in very good condition if not almost mint if we are going to use record collector lingo. They appear to know how to look after their records. Recofan has quickly become one of my all-time favourite record stores. 

I headed straight to the Takeshi Terauchi section and picked up the following. Note another purchase of Let's Go - Eleki Bushi, which seems to have had about three separate releases. Thanks to my friend Stephen for assisting in translating the following album titles. 

Takeshi Terauchi & The Blue Jeans - The Appeal of Country Guitar (1975)

Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans - Complete Collection of Electric Folk Songs (1969)

Takeshi Terauchi & The Bunnys  - Golden Concert (1968)

Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans - Let's Go Eleki-Bushi (re-release, 1978)

Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans - Live In Moscow (1977)

Disk Union, Shibuya

Just down the road from Recofan in Shibuya is Disk Union. Disk Union is a large chain of record stores in Tokyo, possibly the largest, with various stores specialising in a particular style or genre of music; you get stores specialising in rock and pop, metal, jazz, classic, vinyl and so on.

The store in Shibuya was split over multiple floors with each floor focusing on a different style of music. I headed for the top floor which is where the rock and pop vinyl was stocked. Much like their store in Shinjuku that I visited previously, the selection here was much smaller than in Recofan and the majority of the stock appeared to be made up of Western music, both Japanese and US / European versions, rather than Japanese music, which Recofan had much more of. I didn’t see any new vinyl either, just second hand stuff, but that’s not to say that they don’t do new vinyl, I just didn’t come across any in the section of the store that I was in. Compared to their Shinjuku branch I much preferred this particular store.

After having a good rummage around and not really seeing much that caught my eye, I eventually stumbled across an amazing picture disc of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu’s recent album Pika Pika Fantajin. I’m a big fan of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and have written about her before on this blog. In fact, this visit to Japan was almost exactly a year to the day I visited in March 2014 when I was first introduced to her music. I liked that coincidence and took it as a sign that I should buy the album - even though I previously bought the CD version from Tower Records. I’m not a huge fan of picture discs but I enjoy the grotesque humour in this one and I think the image nicely sums of the oft-overlooked satirical nature in Kyary’s music. 

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Pika Pika Fantajin Picture Disc (2014)

What always surprises me is how cheap the Takeshi Terauchi records are. They all ranged in price between £4 to £10 at the most. The Takeshi Terauchi records that I bought on this visit cost the the same price in total as just that one Kyary Pamyu Pamyu picture disc, roughly £18. It could be that no one knows who he is and there isn’t a demand for his records or perhaps in Japan there is just an abundance of them. The Takeshi Terauchi records that I am interested in buying are his 1960s to mid 70s records - from what I’ve heard the later one’s lack the excitement of those early records and suffer from rather ropey ‘period’ production like horrible synths. Despite there being numerous records of his, Rashomon still remains elusive.

It’s a shame that I didn’t have much time to visit other stores or to spend longer in the two that I did visit, but I am happy with my purchases. Also, if I had more time I probably would’ve bought more and my suitcase would have been dangerously overweight - it’s easy to forget how heavy vinyl records are. 

Tokyo really is a vinyl lovers paradise - the wealth of shops is overwhelming, not to mention the vast amount of records available. I would love to have had more time to really explore the city's multiple record stores.

Bonus Track:

Tower Records, Namba, Osaka
I also visited Osaka for the first time during this particular trip to Japan. I was only there for two very busy days and didn't have any free time at all. There was however a Tower Records very close to my hotel and even though I didn't have any intention of buying any records while in Osaka, I thought that it would have been rude to pass it without at least popping it. I had a wander around, and much like the one in Shibuya, Tokyo, it was huge, spread over multiple floors each dedicated to a particular style of music. Below is a photo I took of their Taylor Swift display on one of the aisles. 

Taylor Swift display in Tower Records Osaka, March 2015

Albums Of The Year: 2014

It's the last day of the year and everywhere I turn people are doing end of year lists, so I thought I would jump on the bandwagon and use this as an opportunity to list my top 10 albums of 2014.

This year as been a strange one in terms of buying new music. Most of it has been spent saving what money I could for a house move, meaning I had to ban myself from buying as much records as I usually would. It was tough. Even so, I still picked up bits and pieces here and there, just not as much as I would have done previously. Although there are still many records from this year that I still need to check out or spend a bit more time with.

In alphabetical order these are the albums of 2014 that have brought the most joy and comfort to my tired ears:

Alvvays - Alvvays
Strong melodies, twanging, breezy reverb-saturated guitars. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed an indie-rock record as much as this. Just an utter pleasure from start to finish including a couple of stone-cold belters including Archie, Marry Me.

Beck - Morning Phase
I've always preferred the more downbeat, mellow Beck to the funky wannabe-Prince version and this album delivered that by the bucketful. With his Dad providing string arrangements and the Seachange-era band backing him, Beck put together an album that sounded hopeful while still shaded by a nagging sense of melancholy. Beautiful and my go to Sunday morning record. 

Camera - Remember I Was Carbon Dioxide
Their first album has been one of my favourite records of recent years and even though this follow-up is slightly more 'out there' and experimental than that first LP and doesn't quite match their debut, Camera are still one of the better modern-day Kratrock bands, and Remember I Was Carbon Dioxide still had enough going on to warrant repeated listens.

East India Youth - Total Strife Forever
Gentle, home-brewed electronica that mixed both instrumental tracks and songs with vocals and felt like being wrapped up in bed under a warm duvet on a cold winter's morning.

Ex-Easter Island Head - Large Electric Ensemble
The beginning of 2014 went by in a blur due to a lot of work-based travelling that saw me taking long-haul flights to Japan (twice), South Korea and Hong Kong for the first three months of the year. It was exhausting and made me a bit ill and spaced-out, but during that time I had this record on my iPod and it felt like much-needed nourishment for my soul every time I put it on. 

Future Islands - Singles
Yes, it was that Letterman performance that brought them to my attention. I didn't initially feel what this album was about, but after spending sometime with it, most notably on airplanes and in various departure lounges (this year's theme), something about being in those transient situations finally made this record click with me. There's much to explore within the emotional depths that this record reaches.

Hookworms - The Hum
I've seen this band graduate from the UK's underground music scene and start to make a noise on a wider national scale over the past four years, and their second album cemented their reputation as one of the country's greatest guitar bands.

Kogumaza - Kолокол LP
Another great UK guitar band and every time I listen to them I discover something else hidden in their music, a new texture or sound, like their songs are living, evolving organic entities. This album mixed speaker shuddering riffs, atmosphere, and volume to startling effect.

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Pika Pika Fantajin
Not a J-Pop fan really but I was introduced to the strange, twisted world of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu on a work visit earlier in the year and haven't stopped listening to her or watching her gloriously oddball music videos - a place where she thrives. This album is unlike anything else I've heard this year, a full-on assault of pop that's slickly crafted and exists in its own world. 

Mark Kozelek - Sings Christmas Carols
Sun Kil Moon's Benji has been winning the plaudits this year, but this is the Mark Kozelek record that I've enjoyed the most. It shouldn't work, but his straight-faced, stripped back covers of well known Christmas hits and standards is perfect festive listening. Will become a festive go-to album for years to come. 

Neil Young - A Letter Home
Another album that on paper shouldn't work, yet it somehow transcends its basic ingredients. Recorded at Jack White's Third Man Studios direct to vinyl in an antique recording booth, the sound may be shaky and lo-fi, but the well-chosen covers and dedications to his mum make this a sentimental journey that isn't sickly and sweet, but full of romance and charm.

Sleaford Mods - Divide And Exit
An old fashioned tale of a band working hard for year before finally getting the break they deserve. A resolutely DIY outfit, from the record label through to recording and touring, Jason Williamson's barbed, spiked lyrics have clearly hit and nerve with a public desperate for someone to speak up and tell it how it is. Divide and Exit's gritty realism was just that.

Smashing Pumpkins - Monuments To An Elegy
The Smashing Pumpkins reunion has been patchy to say the least and even if it doesn't compare to past glories, Billy Corgan can still write a tune when he buckles down. Monuments To An Elegy is packed full of tunes that it came as a bit of a shock after the proggy, meandering Oceania. For Pumpkins standards, the 9 song MTAE was a concise, short shock of modern alt rock that tipped a hat to new wave of the early 80s. The tunes were back too.

Taylor Swift - 1989
It's easy to be sniffy about pop music, especially when the charts and radio stations are pumped full of flim-flam, but once in a while an album and artist will come along that transcends genres and becomes part of the cultural furniture. Think Madonna and Michael Jackson at their peak. Taylor Swift became a cultural icon with 1989, an album packed full of super smart songwriting, hooks and beats that even though it was released in 2014 it will be the sound of 2015 and beyond. 

Ty Segal - Manipulator
A double LP of garage rock that struck the right balance between fuzzed-out guitars and melody showing that Ty Segal is a modern day songwriter of some magnitude.

The War On Drugs - Lost In The Dream
I loved Slave Ambient so much that I was scared of listening to this new War On Drugs record in-case it ruined my opinion of the band. Fortunately, it built upon the sound of that last album and took the band even further down the spaced-out Tom Petty vibe road. A faultless mix of shimmering guitars and Americana.

While we are on the subject of end-of-year round ups, I put together this article for LeftLion called Top of the Notts 2014 - a run through 20 favourite Nottingham-related releases of the year.

Record Shopping in Tokyo - Part 1

I am very fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel to Tokyo as part of my job. My recent visit in October 2014 was my third time visiting this year and reading about how Tokyo has around 700 record stores I thought I would try and squeeze in a bit of record buying while I was there.

A friend of mine has recently been posting about his favourite guitarists and one of them is a Japanese musician called Takeshi Terauchi who plays surf guitar and is notable for fronting the bands The Bunnys and The Blue Jeans.

I don’t think his records ever got released in the west, at least I don’t think they got a proper release in the UK, although a recent compilation has been put together choice cuts from the 60s and early 70s, spreading his music to curious new ears who may not have heard about him previously. With this list fresh in my mind I thought that seeing as I would be in Tokyo and planned to do some crate digging I would search out some Takeshi Terauchi records.

Tokyo is loaded with record stores from tiny rooms packed to the rafters with stacks of records to large warehouse type spaces and internationally known chain stores such as HMV and Tower Records. Thanks to a handful of really helpful blog posts I did a bit of research on the stores before I departed for Japan and focused on ones in Shinjuku and Shibuya knowing that I would be predominantly in these areas during my short work trip.

Due to time constraints, fitting in these visits around work appointments, and the vast size of Tokyo, I didn’t get the opportunity to visit all of the ones that I wanted to, which I think my wallet is thankful for. 

As a Western shopper whose understanding of the Japanese language is very limited, there were times where I couldn’t get my heard around how the records were ordered, but when I approached staff in the stores for assistance even though not many spoke any English they were all very helpful and pointed me in the correct section of the store; some would even get the LPs out of the shelves for me to take a look at. Pro tip: I found it useful to write down the name of the artist to show the staff.

In terms of the condition of the used records, I noticed that the Japanese appear to treat their records very well and the grading in the shops was very conservative. All of the records that I bought were in VG+ to almost pushing in to mint condition territory with the sleeves almost spotless too apart from a few signs of ageing.

Everything I bought and saw in the record stores was very reasonably priced too. I didn’t pay over £9 for any of the Takeshi Terauchi records, which is remarkable really. In fact that most expensive music that I bought was a new CD by Kyary Pamyu Pamyu.

Time Records, Takadanobaba

I hadn’t actually planned to go to this store. I was on my way to a meeting when I spotted a sign advertising a store selling second hand records. Once my meeting was over I popped in on my way back to Takadanobaba JR Station. This was a relatively small store compared to the others I visited, but was still well-stocked and superbly organised. After a few minutes of trying to get my head around how the records were organised I asked the man behind the register if they had any Takeshi Terauchi and he wasn’t too sure. So he rang his boss who appeared from somewhere and then proceeded to kindly look through the records until he pulled out a copy of Takeshi Terauchi and the Bunnys Let’s Go Classics as well as a seven inch. I decided to buy the LP and was gobsmacked to find that it was only 900 yen for a record that was in impeccable condition; I couldn’t see a mark on the vinyl and the sleeve looks just as fresh as they day it was originally released in 1967. Great shop and great service.

Takeshi Terauchi and The Bunnys - Let's Go Classics

Recofan,Shibuya

Located in the Shibuya Beam building, this is the kind of store that I could have spent hours in going through their extensive selection of records that were displayed in boxes, racks and on shelves. The shop was of warehouse size proportions and as well having lots of used and new vinyl records they also had a massive range of DVDs and CDs for sale too. There were plenty of discounted ‘bargain bins’ dotted around the floor for a spot of rummaging.  Due to the sheer vastness of the place they are able to stock a wide variety of music and from what I noticed had a good mix of both Western and Japanese music that didn’t just focus of rock, I saw hip hop and dance music sections too. As was the case in most of the stores that I visited, the majority of the labeling and signage was in Japanese meaning it took a while to get my head around where particular records could be found and how they were ordered.  When I approached the girl pricing up records about where I could find the Takeshi Terauchi records, she didn’t speak any English, but I showed her his name and she very kindly took me the correct section.  They had the largest amount of Takeshi Terauchi records out of any of the stores I visited and I ended up buying another copy of Let’s Go Classical (that I am going to gift to the friend who turned me on to his music) as well as two copies of Takeshi Terauchi and Blue Jeans Let’s Go Eleki Bushi by mistake – the original 1966 version and a 1971 re-release with gatefold sleeve. Recofan is definitely worth a visit if you plan on going record shopping in Tokyo and if you do go make sure to give yourself a fair bit of time to do so.  Highly recommended.

Takeshi Terauchi and The Blue Jeans - Let's Go Eleki-Bushi (1966)

Takeshi Terauchi and The Blue Jeans - Let's Go Eleki-Bushi (1971)

Tower Records, Shibuya

Apparently (according to Wikipedia that is) Tower Records in Shibuya is one of the biggest music retail spaces in the word. I find it remarkable that living in a country where record stores are almost becoming a thing of a by-gone age, Tokyo is still able to accommodate so many different stores from chains to small independents. It’s pleasing to see Tower Records still going over in Japan and the store in Shibuya is an impressive landmark building. Unlike the other stores that I visited Tower Records sells new releases and has 9 floors rammed with CDs, DVD, Books, Comics and all sorts of merchandise. There’s also a Tower Records Shinjuku, and alongside the at least two HMVs that I saw in Shibuya, it’s pleasing to see that Japan still has a culture and desire to both pay for music and invest in the physical product. The previous two times I have visited Tokyo I have passed this store numerous times on the way to meetings but never had the opportunity to go in, so on this visit I made sure that I remedied that. I didn’t spend too long here and headed straight to the J-Pop floor to buy a copy of the latest Kyary Pamyu Pamyu album Pika Pika Fantajin. It set me back around £13 which is a bit more than what new CDs cost here in the UK and is how much they used to cost in the 90s. I don’t really buy many CDs anymore, especially for new music as I tend to buy the vinyl, but being a fan of her music I thought it made sense to buy it and especially as I don’t think it ever got a physical release over here. It took me a while to actually find her section in the racks due to the confusing way the artists were ordered; it appeared to be that some were ordered by first time while others by last.  

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu display in Tower Records Shibuya

Disc Union,Shinjuku

Disc Union is a large Japanese chain store that predominantly (I think) sells used vinyl and CDs, but I also saw some cassettes when I was there too. What is probably unthinkable for a record store in the UK, they have various stores that specialise in different genres. For example in Shinjuku alone they have individual stores for genres like Heavy Metal, Latin, Jazz, Blues. I headed to the main store in Shinjuku that was spread over 8 floors of music. I didn’t spend too long here and headed for the basement which is where the Japanese related used vinyl and CDs are located. Although a narrow building, pretty much every wall and floor space was utilised for storing and displaying the records making for some very cramped conditions down in that tiny basement room. Again, I couldn’t work out where the records I was looking for were but after asking the man behind the counter he very helpfully went to the section and pulled out the records for me to look for. Their Takeshi Terauchi selection wasn’t that great to be honest and I didn’t end up buying anything, which I felt bad about as the man was really helpful. But the shop was very busy with customers and seemed to be the type of place to go to if you are up for a good rummage to find a bargain or two.

Strangelove Records, Shinjuku

I actually only stumbled across this store by accident, although I had read about it on one of the blog posts I have highlighted below. I was in the Nish-Shinjuku area just North West of Shinjuku train station looking for another record store that was in an area made up of a few low-rise older looking buildings set out on a grid type arrangement. Wandering around it seemed that this area was made up of lots of interesting looking independent establishments from cafes, shops and even a recording studio. Although I didn’t actually find the record store that I was looking for I noticed a handful of interesting looking record stores, including one that specialised in dance music and another that stocked reggae and dub, so it’s definitely an area worth investigating for a spot of crate-digging if you have some time on your hands. After giving up and deciding to head back to my hotel I spotted the sign for Strangelove Records and intrigued headed up the stairs to the store. This was a long and narrow store with shelves piled to the ceiling with what seemed to be mainly bootleg CDs and DVDs. I wasn’t looking for bootlegs particularly, so I didn’t pick anything up, but they had an interesting selection and is probably worth popping in if you wanted to buy a live recording by a rock band. Most of the DVD and CDs I pulled out to look at looked to be priced at around 3,000 yen which I thought was quite pricey compared to the price of the used vinyl, but there was a Zwan recording for the bargain price of 800 yen that I now regret not buying. 

Tokyo is a vinyl lovers paradise and if I get the opportunity to go again I will definitely be making time to visit its record stores. 

I found these blog posts and websites very useful for researching which record stores to visit before my trip to Tokyo:

http://blog.cdandlp.com/

http://www.vinylrecordcollector.net/2012/11/tokyo-japan-style-definitions-table.html

http://mostly-retro.com/2013/04/16/the-mostly-retro-guide-to-buying-records-in-japan/ (this site also includes a link to a useful Google Map of Tokyo record stores)

Follow-up post: Record Shopping in Tokyo - Part 2

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Pika Pika Fantajin

Pika Pika Fantajin is the third album from Japan's J-pop megastar Kyary Pamyu Pamyu following 2013's reputation cementing Nanda Collection. Famous for her twisted, satirical take on Japan's Kawaii culture, as well as her visually stunning and elaborate music videos; in my opinion she is also one of the world's most entertaining and interesting pop performers.  

Pika Pika Fantajin (ピカピカふぁんたじん)     

The album's title track and nothing more than a musical intro that acts to build-up anticipation for what is about to come.  

Kira Kira Killer (きらきらキラー)    

Here we have Kyary Pamyu Pamyu the cheerleader, gleefully shouting and chanting her way through this hyperactive opener and well and truly high-kicking the album open. It's another pop banger that is relentless in its energy. The bleepy synths have been pushed in to overdrive, everyone involved sounds like they've overdosed on E-numbers and Red Bull, while Kyary frantically shouts and sings with irresistible enthusiasm.   

        

Yume no Hajima Ring Ring (ゆめのはじまりんりん -album mix-)   

My thoughts on this utterly delightful song can be found elsewhere on this blog. Still very much my favourite Kyary Pamyu Pamyu track and proves that she can perform songs with depth and meaning, a route I would be interested to see her explore more as she matures as a performer. What I do want to say is that this is the album mix and adds more lush synth sounds to the original while also slightly changing the structure. I'm really not sure that it suits the delicate, thoughtful nature of the song to be honest and much prefer the original's more organic sound. I presume this has been re-mixed to be in keeping with the rest of the album's more electronic textures, but every time I listen to it it I think what have they done to this song? If you have both versions of Yume no Hajima Ring Ring I would suggest swapping out the album version for the much more rewarding single version. 

        

Mottai Night Land (もったいないとらんど)    

It feels like this song has been around for ages now; and it has, being originally released back in November of last year. The reasons for this is that, as with many J-pop songs, it was commissioned for an advert; which sounds wrong to many Western music fans because we are used to it being the other way round - adverts using pre-existing songs rather than commissioning artists to write a track specifically for an advert. This is classic Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - irresistibly catchy chorus that you will be unable to shake from your head, twinkling and playful pianos and glockenspiels, an overwhelming sense of hyperactivity as if the song is chasing its own tail, and with a bizarre dream-like quality to it all. An all-round, punch-the-air, great pop song. 

Serious Hitomi (シリアスひとみ)   

Blimey, where did this come from? Seemingly out of nowhere we've got Kyary Pamyu Pamyu channeling the B52s and making them sound like they were from the future. This is a monster of a chiptune powered new-wave pop song. That fuzzed-up guitar riff hits you from the off, it's completely unexpected, and pins you back for what is a rollercoaster of delight that screeches by pumped-up on its own adrenalin. She is dragging that classic 1960s girl group sound, via early 80s new wave, very much in to the 21st century.  Surfy, garage rock guitars, wailing synths, and classic pop melodies all collide to make what is undoubtedly one of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's best songs. It's stretched out to over 5 minutes, but the song just whizzes by it is that frantic; and by the time it's over, all you want to do is give it another spin. You can read an English translation of the lyrics on the Super Happy Awesome blog.

       

do do pi do (Capsule cover)       

A cover of a song by her producer, Capsule. There's a lot going on here, but at the same time there isn't. Pretty one paced, but nevertheless a tight sounding modern dance song. Against a backdrop of 'housey' sounding pianos we hear Kyary gently singing, her vocals flowing in and out of the music, adding texture rather than being pushed up front as they would be on a more straight forward 'pop song'. This sounds like festival time in the robot factory. At first I pegged it as filler, but the more I've listened to it the more it has grown on me, and it's the relative simplicity and subtlety of the repetitive pianos and drifting vocals that make it work and turn it in to one of the best songs on Pika Pika Fantajin. You can listen to original here if you want to compare. 

Family Party (ファミリーパーティー -album mix-)    

Written specifically for a Japanese anime film it has the feeling of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu-by-numbers unfortunately. Although props must go to the epic sounding 8bit intro. She has performed and will go on to perform better songs. Family Party probably works better within the setting of the film, but as a track on an album that is full of well-crafted and intelligent pop songs, it just doesn't stand up.  

   

Ring a Bell    

Following Family Party another blip at the start of the second half of Pika Pika Fantajin. This is Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's first ever song that she's performed entirely in English. And it's a pretty big disappointment. It's evident that her non-Japanese speaking fans don't mind that she doesn't sing in English. They buy her albums, watch her videos and and pack out her shows even though the majority of them can't understand what she is singing. I don't think they are crying out for English language Kyary Pamyu Pamyu songs. But they've been given one anyway, and it's full of simple lyrics about going to the studio and ringing a bell. A pretty pointless exercise that I'm hoping she won't repeat again and uses it as a learning experience.     

   

Tokyo Highway (トーキョーハイウェイ)    

A classic sounding Capsule produced song. Slick electronica that bounces along locked in to a mechanized rhythm, with Kyary's high, wistful vocals cutting through the mix and taking the song skywards. It doesn't do a lot, but does what it needs to do, the song has been left plenty of room to breath and move along organically. Euphoric house that shows that Kyary Pamyu Pamyu is perfectly at home fronting slick, modern dance songs just as she is making frantic schizoid pop. 

      

Koi Koi Koi (こいこいこい)    

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu has a certain style or genre of novelty song that she does every now and again, and this is one of them. Over twinkling, playful, instrumentation, we essentially have her singing the song title over and over again. It has the feeling of a very eerie children's nursery rhyme. Far removed from her banging electro-pop tracks that she can do so well. Even if Koi Koi Koi doesn't exactly work, it's nice to see her putting her hand at something different and attempting to give the album texture and different styles of song. 

    

Sungoi Aura (すんごいオーラ -album mix-)    

Pika Pika Fantajin feels like an album of two halves. Whereas the first 6 songs are among some of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's best songs and really get the album off to a flying start, the second half is very hit-and-miss, feels patchy, and the album loses its momentum because of this. I wonder though if this was a deliberate ploy: top load the album with the grade-A pop material and then leave the second half to the more odd and peculiar songs for those who don't have the attention span to listen to full albums anymore? Anyway, those people who don't pick their way through the second half are going to miss out on wonderful, playful songs like Sungoi Aura. Parping drums, tin whistles, rolling piano, and another hooky melody. It's a classic Capsule and Kyary Pamyu Pamyu combination and one of their more organic sounding songs in a similar vein to Yume no Hajima Ring Ring. This song isn't immediate and doesn't go out of it's way to smash itself in to your ears, but its gradually unfolding charms eventually win you over. 

  

Explorer (エクスプローラー)

The final song ends on a hopeful sounding note. Against a military style backing, all marching band drums and whistles, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu sounds victorious and grateful. I have no idea what she is singing about, but it sounds like a thank you note to those of you who have listened to the album and have supported her career up to this point so far. It's elated, positive and poignant end to an album that will go some way to cementing her reputation as one of the world's finest pop stars. 

Pika Pika Fantajin by Kyary Pamyu Pamyu is available to buy via iTunes. 

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu website