Videos of the Week 9/6/09

Omodaka and 6%DokiDoki Shop Girls


Starting off this week, here's a look at what you may have seen at the recent Japan Girls Live event on the west coast. Omodaka took the stage along with some of the girls from 6%DokiDoiki. This isn't from that exact event, this is from something previous to that. But still, it's pretty cool!

If you want to see something from the US show, hit the jump for more!


Omodaka and 6%DokiDoki Shop Girls


OK, now this is the intro to the show on August 17th in LA. Seeing this makes me pretty bummed that I missed out on it. Anyone reading this who managed to get out and see the show?

School Food Punishment "Futuristic Imagination"


Over on Twitter, @kurogane made a request to see this one from School Food Punishment this week, so here it is! SFP seem to be rockin' a little harder with each single they put out. I kind of like their softer stuff more, but this is certainly a catchy song and a prefect anime track!

Jemapur "Maledict Car"


Here's a slightly older one from Jemapur. It really reminds me of the stuff they showed on the old MTV series called Amp. Lots of old-school experimental techno and early glitch stuff. This one feels like a cross between Coldcut and Autechre. Kind of makes me want to dig out all of my old records and dust them off.

Kanye West vs Utada Hikaru "Love Lockdown (Passion Remix)"


This is one I posted over on Japanator a few days back. This is a mashup featuring both the audio and video from Kanye West and Utada Hikaru songs. It's done by flipb01tamidles. Pretty cool stuff! Flip has ton of other mashups, so check out the Japanator post for more links.

That's it for this week! See ya next time.

Videos of the Week 7-5-09

First off, sorry for the marked lack of updates this week. A combination of work ramping up at, er, work, and some very nice summer days have made it tough to want to sit around inside. I know it goes against the blogger code or something to want to actually spend time in the sun,. but I think I make up for it during the other nine months that we northern dwellers live under a blanket of snow and darkness.

So anyway, things should be picking up soon. Until then here are some new videos!

Aira Mitsuki "Plastic Doll"


First up is this cool new one from picopico pop sensation Aira Mitsuki. This video is full of eye-candy, and the song it actually pretty hard hitting. This whole Auto-Tune fetish-pop movement has gotten totally out of hand, but every once in a while something listenable comes out of it.

OK, let's get more serious after the jump!



Boom Boom Satellites "Back on My Feet"


Back on My Feet is the new single/EP from BBS, and it's a fantastic little collection. I haven't been too into their recent releases because they are all a bit too happy and party-centric. I like that they seem to be getting back into their more atmospheric and darker side on Back on My Feet. It reminds me of early Hybrid as well, what with all the strings and cut up drums. More like this, please!

Versailles "Ascendead Master"


I don't think I've really understood much of what goes on in Versailles videos, and this one is no exception. Something about a girl that the singer is all hot for? And a TV crew is filming them in a church for some reason? Whatever. I'm sure it's all part of some long-running story that I've been missing out on.

School Food Punishment "Butterfly Swimmer"


Here's the new one from SFP. Definitely more pop and mainstream than their previous releases, but then again it's not like there were ever that far-out to begin with. Still, they are on a major label now, so there you go...It all feels just a little too bland to me.

Puffy "Dareka Ga"


New song from Puffy. I really like their very early music, and this is almost along those lines. Still, it's super pop-rock like way too much of their recent stuff. I think if the music matched the video a little more that it might be a better song!

Gackt "Flower" (Karaoke)"


Here's a TV clip of Gackt laying down some karaoke for his newest single "Flower." Hijinx ensue! It's always nice to see Gackt in a less-than-serious mood. Of course all his serious stuff is actually just as silly. It's all a matter of perspective, I guess.

Jonathon Coulton - Live on local NY TV


And finally, for your non-Japanese pick of the week, here's a clip from a local New York news broadcast featuring Jonathon Coulton. It's pretty short, but at least there's a bit of talk with the man.

That's it for this week. Let me know what you're watching!

School Food Punishment

Formed in late 2004, School Food Punishment is still a rather young band. In fact they only released their first album early in 2007, and their second later that year. At first blush School Food Is Good Food, their first album, promises some interesting sound-scapes and neat electronic tricks, but it quickly abandons the more complex production to focus on Yumi Uchimura's soft, mature vocals and Masayuki Hasuo's piano work. They do manage to inject their overall jazzy, smokey lounge style with a welcome dose of electronic atmosphere and raw drum sounds. Their second album Air Feel, Color Swim follows the same pattern, with the opener "You May Crawl" being a fast paced dance tune ala Base Ball Bear and suitable for a colorful anime opening. From there it again drops to a low-register piano based croon, a bit like Tori Amos, only young and cute.

These drops aren't necessarily a bad thing. Their third release Riff-rain focuses on their softer side with even more blissed out electro landscapes. Here they cultivate their lush electronics into something indeed like the sounds of a rainy day in the city, seen through a fashionable cafe window. This time around the album's louder track, "Killer," jumps into the middle of things with a stompy piano beat that starts to almost bleed into Midori territory. They quickly pull in the reins before things get too crazy though.

If they focused just a bit more on the interesting electronic experimentation (which they seem to be doing with their two PVs so far), School Food Punishment might turn out to be a force to be reckoned with. As they stand now, the few high energy tracks seem out of place amongst all the quiet open spaces. Without the burbling background School Food Punishment is simply just another nice band with a great singer. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

BUY SCHOOL FOOD PUNISHMENT RELEASES HERE!

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You May Crawl


Pool


"Pool" and "You May Crawl" live


Official Site
MySpace

Members
Yumi Uchimura - guitar & vocal
Hideaki Yamasaki - bass
Masayuki Hasuo - keyboards
Osamu Hidai - drums

Major Releases
School Food Is Good Food (4/2007)
Air Feel, Color Swim (11/2007)
Riff-rain (12/2008)