Tag: ‘Music’

Rare old footage of Flower Travellin’ Band

08 Apr 2008

Flower Travellin' Band --

In 1973, Japanese psychedelic prog rock pioneers Flower Travellin' Band played their last show at Maruyama Park in Kyoto. The show came shortly after the release of their final album "MAKE UP," and after the cancellation of their scheduled Japan tour with the Rolling Stones (immigration officials refused Mick Jagger a visa). Pieces of the wild final performance were captured on 8mm film. The music here is "Satori - Part II" from the legendary Satori album (1971).

A 1969 Chunichi News piece entitled "Rock and Youth" profiled eccentric frontman Joe Yamanaka, who was 22 years old at the time. In the report, Joe -- a former professional boxer and fashion model who says his African-American/Japanese blood flows with the essence of rock 'n' roll -- professes a deeper love for explosive rock than for sentimental enka. The music here is a supercharged version of Muddy Waters' "Louisiana Blues," from Flower Travellin' Band's "Anywhere" album (1970).

Flower Travellin' Band reunited this year -- 35 years after their last show in Kyoto -- and are putting together a new album. They are scheduled to play at Fuji Rock Festival this summer.

[Photo: Joe Yamanaka]

iPhone band plays Denki Groove

21 Mar 2008

This minimalist version of "Smoky Bubbles" by Denki Groove (from the "A" album, 1997) was performed on a jailbroken iPod Touch 1.1.2.

Bass: Pocket Guitar (Electric Bass)
Synthesizer: iPhone Synth
Drums: BeatPhone
Guitar: Pocket Guitar (Acoustic Electric Guitar)
Piano: iAno (now known as "Pianist")

Video: Burning piano performance

19 Mar 2008

Yosuke Yamashita plays burning piano --

On March 8, pianist Yosuke Yamashita donned a fireproof suit and played a burning piano on a beach in Ishikawa prefecture. The improvised jazz performance went for about 10 minutes until the flames rendered the piano silent. This video shows a few excerpts.

Yamashita's performance was a reenactment of a similar one he gave in 1973, which was made into a short film by Japanese director Kiyoshi Awazu. You can see the complete 1973 performance on Awazu's website.

[Source: Sankei]

Video: Space Invaders 2003 – Ken Ishii vs. FLR

14 Mar 2008

Space Invaders 2003 --

The music video for Ken Ishii's "Space Invaders 2003" is a touching, behind-the-scenes look at a Space Invader family torn apart by war.

Video: ILL MACHINE (x ULTRA BRAiN)

07 Jan 2008

Ill Machine (x Ultra Brain) --

The promo video for "ILL MACHINE (x ULTRA BRAiN)," a track off the recently released Nu Riot CD by Wagdug Futuristic Unity (a project involving Kyono of the Mad Capsule Markets), is set in a world 50 years hence (according to Kyono's blog), where heavily armed gas-masked clones battle giant machines that assemble themselves from trash and set out to cleanse the planet by blasting everything to smithereens. Directed by CG artist Satoshi Kuroda.

[Link: ILL MACHINE (x ULTRA BRAiN)]

Video: Subway Lung

27 Dec 2007

Subway Lung --

T-shirt retailer Beams-T is handing out a free art-themed DVD magazine to customers in Japan. The DVD showcases the work of five artists from around the world, including this incredibly loony scrolling video-collage of found GIF animations put together by international man of mystery Subway Lung (a.k.a. Tokyo Windbag).

You can see the other DVD magazine videos on kurandofuruya's YouTube page (the light-based graffiti video by Kieph/Atsushi Sasaki is also recommended).

Video: Kokiriko Bushi

12 Dec 2007

Kokiriko Bushi --

Omodaka's 21st-century disco version of Kokiriko Bushi -- an ancient folk song that Gokayama (Toyama prefecture) villagers used to perform for the local Shinto deities -- combines synthesized vocals with a Stevie Wonder-ish bassline and '80s video game chiptune sounds, and the wonderfully quirky and surreal video (animated by Teppei Maki) features a fragile skeleton dancer that shares the floor with lots of disembodied hands and floating eyeball-headed ladies. [Video]

Incidentally, the kokiriko is a type of percussion instrument made from old bamboo used in the roofs of traditional farmhouses. After being all but forgotten, Kokiriko Bushi was revived in the mid-20th century and has become one of Japan's most well-known folk songs.

Teppei Maki also directed the animation for DJ Kentaro's Tasogare Highway High...

...and he has worked on videos for Kaskade (Be Still), the Beat Crusaders (Your Song Is Good) and Fuuri (Nana Song), none of which appear to be available online.

Toyota unveils robot violinist (video)

07 Dec 2007

Toyota robot violinist -- On December 6, several months after Toyota's DJ Robot ditched its entertainment career for a job as a receptionist and renamed itself "Robina," the auto giant unveiled a new, musically-inclined Partner Robot that can play violin. A total of 17 computer-controlled joints in its flexible arms and agile fingers allow the robot to hold the violin and correctly press the strings against the fingerboard with its left hand, while gently drawing the bow across the strings with its right hand. In a recital held at a Toyota showroom in Tokyo, the 152-centimeter (5-ft) tall humanoid entertained guests with a slightly robotic but technically adept rendition of "Pomp and Circumstance."

The robot violinist is the latest addition to Toyota's ensemble of musical androids, which can also play trumpet, tuba, trombone, French horn and percussion. In addition to further developing its musical skills, Toyota aims to continue improving the robot's dexterity and coordination so that it can one day perform household chores.

Also unveiled at the demonstration was a new mobility robot -- a motorized chair that balances itself on a pair of self-adjusting Segway-like wheels that can roll smoothly over uneven surfaces and rough terrain. Intended as a personal transport system for the elderly, the mobility robot can run at a maximum speed of 6 kilometers per hour (3.7 mph) for 20 kilometers (12 miles) on a single battery charge, can handle 10-degree slopes, and is outfitted with sensors that allow it to avoid collisions with obstacles. Users can also summon the robot by remote control and use it as a porter to carry luggage.

Toyota plans to begin testing the robots at hospitals next year, with the hope of putting them into practical use by the early part of the next decade.

(Watch a news report about the robots.)

[Sources: Toyota, NHK]

Experimental Japanese music (on Australian TV)

06 Dec 2007

In 2003, Australian public broadcaster SBS aired a 6-part documentary series titled "Subsonics," which profiled experimental musicians from around the world. The show featured a number of artists from Japan, including Otomo Yoshihide, Masonna, Ai Yamamoto, Sachiko M, and others. Here are a few clips...

- Ai Yamamoto: Glimpse -- This segment features the abstract electronic melodies and digital animation of Ai Yamamoto, who says she started making videos to give the audience something to look at during her live performances. (From Subsonics, Episode 2.)

- No Input -- This clip looks at the work of Sachiko M and Toshimaru Nakamura, two prominent figures in the so-called onkyo ("reverberation of sound") movement, whose artists place more emphasis on sound texture than on musical structure. "No Input" is described as a form of music where the musicians play samplers, mixers and other electronic devices without any external audio sources -- the original sounds are created by plugging each device's output back into its own input to create a closed electronic feedback circuit. (From Subsonics, Episode 4.)

- Scanning of Modulations: Condition #4 -- The documentary ran several clips from "Scanning of Modulations," a collection of digital art videos by visual media designer Naohiro Ukawa. This video features the music of Kazunao Nagata. (From Subsonics, Episode 1.)

- Scanning of Modulations: Condition #1 -- More digital animation by Naohiro Ukawa, set to music by Hado-Ho. (From Subsonics, Episode 4.)

- The Many Moods of Otomo Yoshihide -- This clip focuses on Otomo Yoshihide, who, as an experimental musician, turntablist, guitarist and composer, has been one of the most adventurous and prolific artists of the underground Tokyo music scene since the '80s. (From Subsonics, Episode 6.)

- Masonna: God of Noise -- This segment profiles extreme noise musician and performance artist Masonna, whose intense live shows usually last under a minute and often end in injury. (From Subsonics, Episode 1.)

For clips on some of the other artists profiled, including Sun Ra, Sue Harding (who creates music from dot matrix printers), Jon the Dog (a mysterious Japanese singer/organist in a dog suit) and more, see the Subsonics videos uploaded by evilpaul (YouTube).

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