Nuito

Japan's Nuito is to post-rock as Fantomas is to metal. If you find that sentence a little confusing, how about this. Think tiny bits of complicated, tempo jumping musical blasts, all linked together by the thinnest of threads. In the case of Fantomas, they grind out a mountain of furious micro-metal. With Nuito, it's more your typical noodly instrumental post/art/math rock, only done on a tiny scale.

Formed around 2004 in Kyoto, the trio blends generous amount of finger tapping guitars with various effects and stuttering drums to form their odd constructs. They use "kaleidoscopic" as just one of the many possible adjectives to describe their own sound, and it's perhaps the most apt. They create a constantly shifting mosaic of angular guitar rock, with intricate loops and obscure melodies that vanish before your brain can even register their presence.

That's not to say they run forward, head down, 110% at all times. They also have many moments of sublime calm, but it is no less fuzzy and slippery. It's as if the band will explode if they sit in one place for more than ten seconds. Yet at the same time they demand your attention, lest you lose all sense of the song. If you can manage to stay focused and aren't practically concerned with being able to sing along, then Nuito will provide you with a wealth of material to dig into over many repeat listens.

BUY NUITO RELEASES ON CDJAPAN AND ITUNES

"NeKoMaJiN vs (β)"



Official Site
MySpace

Members:
ヒラヰケイイチロウ - Guitar, Samples, Voice
トモフジイヌ - Bass
AWADA R - Drums

Albums:
N^1 - 2006
Anaphylaxis - 2007
Unutella - 2009

Live


Live

The Novembers

At times sounding remarkably like fellow indie/shoegaze band Art-School, other times like a slightly more epic touchy-feely emo version of Asian Kung-Fu Generation, or maybe the rawness of the post-punk Orge You Asshole, The Novembers are obviously a melting pot of rock styles.

The Novembers introduced themselves to the world in 2007, releasing a handful of demos before their first self-titled mini-album was released, suitably, in November of that year on Daizawa Records. Their first full-length album Picnic was released in mid-2008. The band fits quite well alongside label-mates Bacon, Vola & the Oriental Machine, Syrup16g and Base Ball Bear, among others. Their style is rather restrained and "arty," with plenty of softer, guitar driven tracks interspersed with a few faster, louder tracks. Mostly they stick to simple, almost droning, wall-of-sound songs driven by Yusuke Kobayashi's suitably high, geeky voice. He very rarely breaks away from singing to scream a little emotion into his delivery.

Overall, The Novembers tend to fade into the background. They don't have any tricks up their sleeve, simple sticking to a few nice songs that usually don't rock too hard. Perhaps in an extremely loud live setting their songs would relate more intensity, but if so, it's something lost in the recording process. Nevertheless, they are a great alternative to more intense bands like 9mm Parabellum Bullet or Ling Tosite Sigure who tend to actively scare away more timid listeners.

BUY THE NOVEMBERS RELEASES HERE!

She Lab Luck



Official Site
MySpace

Members:
Yusuke Kobayashi - Vocal, Guitar
Kengo Matumoto- Guitar
Hirofumi Takamatu - Bass
Yoshiki Ryosuke - Drums

Releases:
Picnic - 2008-6-4
The Novembers 2007-11-7

白痴

Nico Touches the Walls

Newly formed in 2004, Nico Touches the Walls is still a young group, but they've managed to gain a lot of momentum over a few brief years.

They play a fairly middle-of-the-road brand of rock, not too soft but still a bit too restrained to fit into the new school of indie rock. They combine the positive spirit of Remioromen, the mainstream hooks of The Pillows and (occasionally) the slightly raw edge of Ogre You Asshole. They do manage to shake things up with some aggressive playing from time to time, but don't be fooled, Nico Touches the Walls are first and foremost a rose-tinted rock band. A sheep in wolf's clothing, so to speak. They occasionally dazzle the listener with frantic guitar playing and crazy, fevered singing, but those moments are tempered by a greater number of softer, milder ballads.

They mix up the formula with a bit of a bluesy swagger here and there, or some countrified riffs sprinkled in. They manage to keep things interesting, even if it comes in small chunks. It's a little tough to chart their musical progression since they've released only a smattering of mini-albums and a few singles. Overall it feels as if they're gunning for big-time chart toppers, aiming for a mass-audience and keeping their songs decidedly safe. They certainly know how to write some catchy tracks. They also know how to project an image of a slightly dangerous group, appealing to all those listeners who like to think they're living on the edge while remaining safely tethered to the bedrock.

Most recently they were added to the unending list of bands featured in the Naruto anime series, a step which will undoubtedly get the right people talking. With 2008 seeing only a few singles released form the band so far, and now the Naruto exposure, it's a safe bet that we'll see the first proper full-length album from Nico Touches the Walls in the very near future.

BUY NICO TOUCHES THE WALLS RELEASES HERE!

Yoru no Hate

Official Site

Members:
Tatsuya Mitsumura - Vocals, Guitar
Furumura Daisuke - Guitar
Sakakura Shingo - Bass
Tsushima Shotaro - Drums, Backing Vocals

Major Releases:
How are You 11-2007
Runova X Handover 10-2006
Wall Is Beginning 02-2006

Avocado


Sono TAXI, 160km/h


Broken Youth (Naruto 6th ED Clip)

The Pillows and Noodles Tour America

[I originally posted this on Japanator, but I think it's worth posting here as well.]

The Delicious label is bringing both Noodles and The Pillows to America for a mini tour this year. I've already mentioned that The Pillows will be hitting up Anime Boston this year. Well, it turns out that they will be doing a very quick pass around the American outer rim as well, playing LA, Austin, San Francisco, New York and finally Boston. The Delicious Bump Tour In USA 08 will also include the all girl band Noodles. They have been in America once before as part of the Japan Girls Nite tour produced by Benten last year.

Obviously this is great news for all of you disappointed by the previously mentioned one-night-only Boston show. Nevertheless, it's still tough for the other 98% of us who live in the rest of the country. If you make it to one of these shows, make sure to tell us all about it!

March 13 (thu) Los Angeles @ El Rey Theatre (Tickets)

March 15 (sat) Austin @ Elysium [The Pillows only] (SXSW)

March 17 (mon) San Francisco @ Slim's (Tickets)

March 21 (fri) New York @ Blender theatre at Gramercy(Tickets)

March 22 (sat) Boston @ Hynes Convention Center [The Pillows only] (Anime Boston)

Check out some of the most recent music from both bands after the jump. 

[Big thanks to Stig-san for the tip!] 

Noodles - Grease

The Pillows - Tokyo Bambi

Nirgilis

The band that would eventually become Nirgilis initially formed in 1993 while founding members Koki Ito and Moyo Satake were still university students. Together they worked through a few dozen auditions over several years before they found a stable five member line-up in 2001. It was only a year later that they were on the Oricon charts as part of a compilation, and only a few months after that with their own single for "Soprano." Their debut album "Tennis" was an indie hit in 2003 and they continued to make the charts with their subsequent singles. Founding member Satake left in 2004, just before the band signed to a major label. It was also during this time that the band took on a more dancy/poppy sound. Eventually Koki Ito would also leave the band, leaving Nirgilis a trio without either of its founding members.

Their early work is a bit rough and stripped down, as one would expect. The production is pretty basic, giving it an overall electro/DIY feel. Their new music is much more dance oriented and obviously melodic. While there is a lot of electronic stuff going on, they are not always as techno fueled and dancy. They have a lot of bit down-tempo, spacey songs, sounding a little like The Brilliant Green at times, with singer Iwata Acchu showing hints of Yuki (of Judy & Mary) and a bit of Chara from time to time. They tend to blend their electronics with more traditional acoustic elements in an organic way much like Supercar does on their Highvision album. Only instead of Supercar's dour melancholy, Nirgilis keeps things nice, twinkling and upbeat.

Nirgilis will be playing alongside Aural Vampire and Bespa Kumamero at Anime Matsuri March 21st through the 23rd.


Buy Nirgilis CDs here!

Brand New Day



Official Site

Members
Moyo Satake (left in 2004)
Koki Ito (also recently left the band)
Iwata Acchu - Vocal, Piano, Keyboards
Minoru Kurihara - Bass, Backing Vocal
Inadera Yuki - Drums, Backing Vocal

Major Releases

Girl (Remix album) - 2007/02/21
Boy - 2006/06/28
New Standard 2004/05
Tennis 2003/04

Snow Kiss


Sakura


24サーチライト


Update


Mayonaka no Schneider


King


Vuna

Nyantora

Nyantora is a side project of former Supercar vocalist and guitarist Koji Nakamura. While Supercar only dabbled in various electronic sounds, Nyantora features pure electro-landscapes. All of the sounds are rather ambient and calming, featuring a pallet full of organic electronic bliss. Nakamura also makes music under the iLL moniker, but of course, none of these side projects come close to the awesomeness that was Supercar (although the song "Back to the Space" comes close.)

Number Girl

During their seven year run, Number Girl were one of the most influential indie rock bands in Japan, with a wide variety of outside influences themselves (most notably Sonic Youth and The Pixies). At first listen you could be forgiven for dismissing the band due to its very noisy, almost chaotic sound, but further and closer listening will reveal the true genius of the band. Full of complex, ever changing rhythms, they often stray into territory far outside that of typical noise/indie rock, such and dub and reggae, being most obvious in the massive amount of reverb often present on the drums and vocals. Regardless of their approach, every song is exploding with energy and movement, due to each member being a master at their craft. After breaking up, guitarist Tabuchi Hisako joined Bloodthirsty Butchers, also forming Toddle, her own slightly more pop oriented band. Singer and guitarist Shutoku Mukai formed the even more insane Zazan Boys with drummer Ahito Inazawa, who then went on to form Vola and the Oriental Machine.

Noodles

The best way to describe Noodles is through their heroes The Breeders. The all girl group plays your basic indie-pop rock. Heavy on the vocal melodies, they focus on somewhat abrasive yet at the same time tranquil and catchy songs. Sometimes straying into dreamy melancholy, at other times all-out rocking. They also sing in English and tour the States from time to time.

Nine Days Wonder

Nine Days Wonder is a post-punk/post-rock band that incorporates a little electro element in with the twinkling guitars and stuttering drums. In fact, some songs like "Neon and Waterfall" are almost completely electronic, while others like "To You, I'm Tuning In" are epic, huge sounding rock monsters. They sing (mostly?) in English, and have also toured in the US and UK.

Nananine

Nananine is a rather light indie rock band. Formed in 1999, they've only released two full length albums and a few mini-albums to-date. Most of their songs feature upbeat, tight guitar riffs and noisy drums. The singer's thin voice also reflects their somewhat fresh and stripped down sound, devoid of any fancy effect or production. Just straight up, no frills rock.

Mika Nakashima

Mika Makashima is your standard singer/idol/actress. Her songs are usually down-tempo jazzy, crooner ballads. She's most famous for her theme songs in various television shows, anime and films, such as Kizudarake no Love Song, Gundam Seed, Blood + and, most notably, the film adaptation of Nana. It was this last song, "Glamorous Sky," that was her first #1 single. It was so popular in fact that she added the Nana name to her own shortly after. She also co-starred in the film as a much more abrasive rocker then she really is, something which no doubt helped her reach a whole new audience.