Out & About Nagoya: January 09

By Emily Millar | Saturday, Dec 27, 2008

Happy New Year, youse beautiful Nagoya peeps! We’ve hit double-oh-nine - I can hardly believe it. My brain has gone into live overdrive at the prospect of seeing some huge acts in the next few months – Beck! Oasis! Coldplay. I don’t think I can handle the deja vu rock nostalgia feelings I’m experiencing. I feel like I’m back in my high-school bedroom surrounded by posters of the Gallagher brothers (pulled from my Dolly magazines), having an intellectual musical argument with my old boyfriend about how retro-cool Beck’s ‘Where It’s At’ sounds, and rocking out on my air guitar to those power chords at the beginning of ‘Yellow’. Yep, the late 90s were where the seeds of my musical growth were first planted. I always forget to water my plants, though. Don’t even mention fertilizer. 

But all that stuff is coming up later in the year, and I’m just trying to compensate for the lack of stuff happening right here, right now, this January. You’ve probably already stocked up on supplies for the yearly business black-out all over the country (I can’t believe I used to live in a city that doesn’t have a single convenience store - the absurdity!), so if you feel the rot of having an entire week off beginning to set in, what better way to kickstart the New Year than exactly the same way you sayonara’d the last one – copious drinking and forgetting where you left your knickers (if anyone happens to find mine, you can drop them off at Japanzine Headquarters – no questions asked, just don’t give them to Dr Crotch). 

Mago kicks off the proceedings early this brand new year with its Mad Alts party on Saturday 3rd. It’s a mix of DJs including Toida, Neutrancer and Uiroh, plus a mix of food and drinks for the perfect shinnenkai, just to make it even, ya know? Wouldn’t want to celebrate the end of the year before without a follow-up New Year party, right? Mad Alts kicks off from 22:00, ¥2000/¥2500. 

And a big welcome back to the Bottom Line. I’ve neglected it of late (probably because bugger-all has registered on my Bleep-O-Meter of late), but this sounds mildly interesting…on Saturday 10th, check out Electronic Loops!!!, an all-night dance affair to celebrate Electronic Shower’s 10th anniversary. I wonder what a shower of electricity would feel like? Electric, no doubt. Anyway, head along and check out Cubic Loop, with Jamie Stevens (Aus) from Infusion, and Japan’s Sola (from Beef Rec and Cubic Loop). Gig starts at a less traditional time of 23:30 – you’re in it for the long haul! – and tickets are ¥3000 pre-sale, ¥4000 at the door. Sounds like harmless doof-doof fun.

Apollo Theater’s been quiet on the live front recently, too, so it’s a good thing we’ve scored yet another ‘who the heck are these guys, and why are they wailing about life?’ emo band to plug the void that’s been gaping in Nagoya of late. Yep, we seriously just don’t get enough nameless emo bands coming through, and luckily Quiet Drive is happy to step up to the plate and emote everywhere. Twist and shout, shake your bloodied wrists about, just make sure your hair is nice and you and your girlfriend’s makeup matches. Being young is just so goddamn hard these days, isn’t it? Saturday 31st from 19:00, ¥3900. Watch out for the cover of ‘Time after Time’, it’s really…something else. Support by Shenky Guns. 

Ever been to Sonset Strip? Me neither, but it’s about time I stepped through the doors of some other venues and broadened my Nagoya musical map. Tuesday 13th sees Black Borders, a duo from Tokyo pushing a raucous garage rock sound on guitar and drums, alongside Reco Hatsu on a one-man tour. It’s all part of Search and Destroy Vol. 2. You can guarantee a crowd of J-kids getting a little caraaazy (pick the right crowd, and you can have some of the best times of your life watching a gig in Japan, believe me). ¥3000 pre-sale, ¥3500 on the night. Doors open at 19:00, start at 19:30.

Diamond Hall sees the most arrogant man in rawk today, Jonny Borrell, fronting Razorlight on Sunday 25th. Arrogant he may be, but if I could get away with being perennially topless while wearing tight white jeans, I’d say whatever the fuck I wanted about whoever the fuck I wanted, too (Nobody's stopping you, Em - Fashion Ed.). "Up yours, popular music press! That twat from the Kooks ain’t got nothin’ on my tighty-whities. And I’m friends with the Mighty Boosh - I gots me real credibility." Oh, and as for Razorlight’s merit as a band? Well, I didn’t mind some of their first album. Gig starts at 18:00, ¥6300 a pop. 

My prize for Venue of the Month has got to go to Club Quattro, streaks ahead of the rest with some quality gigs for January. Hard to beat Deerhoof, Mogwai, Mudhoney and Donavon Frankenreiter in just 31 days. Deerhoof are back, armed with a fistful of tunes from their new album (it hasn’t left my iPod for the past week). I’m not just gushing ‘cos I have to. They’re genuinely so much fun, and a very cool bunch of people (just call me Jonny). With guests from Tokyo 54-71 – think Rage Against the Machine if they went minimal in Japan – doors open at 18:00, gig starts at 19:00 (¥4500). 

Mogwai are an entirely different prospect – wordless soundscapes, sometimes beautiful, other times distressing, it’s going to be interesting to see just what they can get out of a venue as soulless as Quattro. They’re supported by Remember Remember, same time, ¥6500. 

Mudhoney’s been at it (‘it’ being making music) since Kurt Cobain was in diapers, and certainly influenced the Nirvana frontman once he got out of them. They’ve still got ‘it’, too. And it’s been ten years since they’ve even been in Japan. Time to pull out your ten-year old flanny shirt and pretend you’ve still got long, blond grunge hair to shake. Thursday 15th, 19:00 start for ¥5500 (plus guests Joyheights). And if you’re all grunged-out, then chill-out with ol’ D. Frankenreiter on Monday 19th (18:00, ¥6500). I dunno, is that surf thing still popular? I seem to recall it having its heyday about 5 years ago. Maybe Donavon’s just too chillaxed to even care. Fellow laid-back surfer dude Matt Grundy supports. 

Another shinnenkai? Radix is the culprit, holding its Dai (big!) Shinnenkai on Friday 9th - Headhunting. Looking at the performers, including Red Spider, Kenty Gross and Bes, it’s basically a catalogue for BAPE, so not really my thing…boys in hoodies galore, shebang, bleep, kapow. Hip-hop and reggae as only the Japanese can do, from 22:00 – ¥2500/¥3000. 

Fancy yourself an 'actor' type? Or maybe you're just a massive show-off looking to add another string to your talent bow. There's no better way to get noticed ('specially in Nagoya, people) than taking part in a Nagoya Players production. They'll soon be holding auditions for their next theatrical venture, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, and they're hoping that you - wonderful, talented citizens of Nagoya - will offer up your talents for Idol-audition style scrutiny. Yup, you gotta be able to sing! So dust down your Dorothy, dig out your college Shakespeare books, and contact the Nagoya Players. Auditions will be held on Saturday 10th and Saturday 17th from 15:00 - 19:00 both days. Prepare yourself a song and a short performance, and break both legs! For more info, please contact the Players via their homepage at www.nagoyaplayers.info, or send them an email at auditions@nagoyaplayers.info.

Fossils of British rock Primal Scream are in Japan, again, still plugging away after all these drug-crazed years, Manny still managing to elicit screams from young impressionable girls, still unable to capture the golden days of their XTRMNR era, and yet still massif in Japan. Zepp Nagoya’s hosting, naturally, so be there from 18:00 to secure a spot safely away from the screaming hordes. Friday 30th, ¥7000. 

Club Upset always delivers on the slightly left-of-center J-bands, so if you feel like opting out of the gaijin gigs this month, you can sample Upset’s wares at Rock the Rock, with reasonably well-known indie pop kids Mars Eurythmics, Gheee and Mark Muffin (haha). Advance sales only, by the looks of it – ¥2500, show starts at 19:00 on Friday 16th. 

Got a couple of hundred words left to squeeze out…clubland time. JBs sees the Reformation Release Party, with renowned Studio Apartment DJ Hideo Kobayashi on decks. Support from Studio bedfellows Satoshi Fumi and Kaoru Inoue. ¥2500 to book/¥3000 on the night of Saturday 24th. 

Chillout on Sunday 4th at Domina for Duro, with DJs Katsu, UK and Ryusuke. Some mad funky house and hard techno. Kicks off at 19:00, ¥1000/¥1500.

And finally, if you feel like folkin' out for the New Year, check out KD Japon on Friday 16th for cosmic psychedelic synthesizer master (their words, not mine) Hiroyuki Azuma, alongside Tokyo duo 20 Guilders and weird folk artist Jugz from Gifu, for wholly unlistenable, but completely enjoyable music that seems like a noise accident rather than a deliberate attempt. 19:30, ¥2000 plus a ¥500 drink order. 

So, got any New Years Resolutions still intact? Mine's to come up with a more original title for Out & About. I'm open to (sensible) suggestions. And to finally accept that Britpop is dead. Bye for now!

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