Utada Hikaru (宇多田 ヒカル)

Utada Hikaru is possibly the biggest pop idol in Japan today. With an estimated 50 million chart-topping albums sold worldwide, she certainly has the numbers to prove it.

Born in America to Japanese parents who were themselves steeped in music, Utada has a multifaceted appeal. While her American album releases have been a relative flop (Exodus selling only 55,000 albums and This is the One failing to chart well for the first time in 11 years) her Japanese fan base has remained rock solid. She isn't as traditionally Japanese sounding as some other R'n'B and pop acts. Her singing style, while not overly adventurous, has a deeper and more mature diva-like quality than, say, some of the more cutesy, pre-teen idols.

Her music contains much of the usual cardboard-box production heard in the pop world. (Is there really any reason that the biggest artist in Japan has to use fake strings and factory pre-set beats?) While her albums may disregard musical sophistication, they do a good job of focusing almost entirely on her stronger vocal skills. Her early releases have an R'n'B feel to them, but much of that seems to have changed as time went by. Today her production seems to conform to more traditional J-pop standards, leaning toward a darker, almost trip-hop feel at times, countered with dance beats, pretty twinkles and electro flourishes. Utada has occasionally experimented with slightly heavier rock sounds, but they feel a bit lifeless when compared to more experienced pop-rockers like Ayumi Hamasaki or even Mika Nakashima.

Despite struggling for an audience overseas, Utada Hikaru is an undeniable force. Still in her 20s, she has a lifetime to evolve as an artist and she's already well on her way in developing her own voice, both literally and figuratively. Whether or not she chooses to continue following that path, you can be sure she will have a million people in step close behind her.

BUY UTADA HIKARU RELEASES AT AMAZON AND CDJAPAN

"Come Back to Me"



Official Site

Albums:
Precious (1998)
First Love (1999)
Distance (2001)
Deep River (2002)
Exodus (2004)
Ultra Blue (2006)
Heart Station (2008)
This Is the One (2009)

"Easy Breezy"


"You Make Me Want To Be A Man"


"Beautiful World" (Live)


"Traveling" (Live)

Usotsuki Barbie (嘘つきバービー)

Somewhere between the raw edge of Zazen Boys and the upbeat party atmosphere of The Telephones lies Nagasaki's Usotsuki Barbie. Formed in 2002, the three piece band has only released a couple of short EPs, first in 2007 then another in 2008.

Just as jarring as their angular, slightly bluesy yet firmly art-indie sound is their odd appearance. All three members have very long, equally angular hair. At first glance it almost looks like they're wearing wigs, and maybe they are, but a look at their long locks in action certainly makes it look like the real thing. Add to that their loud, thrift-store clothes and clashing patterns and you start to get a hint of their '90s style alternative style. Finishing it off is their eccentric playing. Singer and bassist Yuusuke Iwashita plays his bass right up at his neck and slouches over a mic placed far too low for his lanky body. Guitarist Kazuya Chifu insists on sitting in a chair on stage and flails around as if his skin is crawling with bees.

All of this goes well with their music style. The guitar work is extremely staccato, almost a stuttering pizzicato at times, while the bass walks all over the place and the drums march along. All of their stuff is very peppy and upbeat, and it's obvious that they're all doing their best to project all of their physical energy into the tracks. There aren't really any obvious hooks or simple melodies to be found. Instead they tend to gravitate more toward dissonant new-wave structures and off-kilter tempos.

Their playful sense of fun and general weirdness makes to hard not to be drawn in. While they probably won't be hitting the top of the charts any time soon, they definitely have a lot to offer those listeners with a thick skin and a willingness to decode some of their more obtuse songs.

BUY USOTSUKI BARBIE RELEASES HERE

[Thanks to Scott and Matthew for the name help!]

やわらかヘンリー




Official Site

Members:
Yuusuke Iwashita - Bass & Vocal
Shigeru Toyoda - Drums
Kazuya Chifu (maybe Toshiya Chifu) - Guitar

Releases:
子供の含みぐせ - 2007.03.07
増えた1もグル - 2008.01.17

どろろどっきんぐ

Usk

Usk is a one man chip-tune artist from Fukuoka. Like many other chip-tune musicians, he gained access to a sequencer at an early age and never looked back, churning out track after track of electro bliss.

In early 2000 he started playing live and joined up with other like-minded chip-tune artists. In 2006 he became the very first Japanese artist to release an album on the highly respected 8-Bit Peoples site. He was also a part of VORC's Holy 8-Bit Night live event in 2007.

His style is very clean and straightforward, unlike other 8-bit artist who might try for more experimental works. The songs are all simple and catchy, built around very heavy 4/4 beats and a decidedly club/house/trance atmosphere. Up until 2008, he stuck almost exclusively to Gameboy-esque sounds, much like YMCK. His more recent work abandons the 8-bit sound in favor of more "modern" synths sounds, giving his tracks a much more organic and lush feel. His live shows are full of energy, with Usk himself sometimes being the most frantic person in the room.

As Vivid As Possible



Official Site
MySpace

Releases
Picopicodisco (2006)
Joy and Sorrow (2006)
As Vivid As Your Lips (split with Sulumi - 2007)

Live at Holy 8-Bit Night 2007


Live at the Hat Factory 9-29-2007

Under17

Under17 was the duo where popular singer and voice actress Halko Momi got her start. Featuring Momi's super childish, uber moe vocals and the distorted rock guitar, er, contributions from Masaya Koike, they churned out a huge number of anime and video game them songs. They were only together for two years, but they managed to release three "Best Of" singles collection in that time. Since then Momi has gone on to her own busy solo career recording 8-bit versions of anime songs, as well as being an Avex idol and seiyuu in many anime shows.

Koi no Milky Way



Kujibiki Unbalance

Ulfuls

Ulfuls have been playing their blend of carefree, upbeat and earnest rock for over 15 years. They're a bit like a very goofy, "nice" version of Kishidan (not that Kishidan aren't nice though...) Many of their songs have chant-like positive mottos, like "Guts Daze!," "Banazi - Suki De Yokatta," "Osaka Strut" and my personal favorite "Ashita Ga Arusa". There's not a whole lot to say about such a positive, good natured band other than their music is certain to cheer you up, if you let it.

Ashita Ga Aru Sa