Me on TV!

This is me being interviewed for the Boicotts blog.  I was an hour late after getting lost, but I still had a great time and ate an Octopus ball (takoyaki) for the first time.

We are playing together at Shibuya Home, １月28日 - it might be the last time I play Applicants songs with my iPod and guitar.
http://www.facebook.com/events/307038322668108/

Next Live - Shibuya Home

28 January 2012
FACEBOOK EVENT

Kamakura

I went to Kamakura with my friend Momoko.  It's still new year here, and I went to have my fortune told.  I was told that I have everything inside me, but it will be up to me if I can get it together.  I remember feeling a little grumpy because it sort of rang true, plus it sounded like too much hard work!  Also this year I should watch my language, and not move out.  

After the reading you should tie up the paper and leave it.  Looking at all the pieces of paper, I couldn't help but think about the smallness of everybody's hopes and dreams, and the hugeness of the blue sky surrounding them.  Our lives are merely strips of paper blowing in the wind.

Facebook Photo Album of Kamakura and Enoshima

Facebook Event - NEXT GIG KOENJI, 2012/1/6

I'm playing at One, Koenji, １月　６日　年２０１２．
IT'S FREE ENTRY!
NO COVER CHARGE!

NEW!
Facebook event page:
http://www.facebook.com/events/346807488679740/

Christmas Pictures

 

   

  

  

Please see the comments to see descriptions, and leave a comment yourself!

6th January 2012

I'm playing at One, Koenji, １月　６日　年２０１２．
Please come!  It will be my last day of training before I have to start teaching in the Junior High Schools!

NEW!
Facebook event page:
http://www.facebook.com/events/346807488679740/

IT'S FREE!!!

Flyers and Gigs

This was my first ever show in Japan.  When I got my plane in September, I had no idea how long I would stay, and I had sort of got a bit tired of playing gigs in London.  So much so, I didn't even think to take my guitar.  However, when I met Ayako and Yoko in Mikorin - I picked up the bar's guitar and played for 3 hours.  Being somewhat inebriated, I'm not sure what the bar thought about it...  but I realised I missed playing.  About a week later, a friend I had met in London asked if I would play this night.  Sometimes things can seem to happen very quickly in Japan.  I bought the cheapest guitar I could, borrowed a overdrive pedal from Manabu from The Boicotts, and got as many backing tracks as I could on my iPod.  

I was surprised by how nervous I was before I played.  I wasn't sure how I would feel, how I was going to communicate, if anybody would come at all...  I decided that I had to just try and sing my heart out and hope for the best.  

I've only played twice so far, and I'm not sure what is going to happen in the future.

PS. That isn't me on the poster, it's Billy Cochraine, I think?

FC Tokyo

I'm watching the TV, and I think my local football team has won the Japanese version of the FA Cup?!

New Year's, um... thing!

It's new year in Japan and everyone has something like this on their door, but I made this!  Yoko (my housemate, pictured right) was an excellent teacher!

Tacobonds

I know very little about this band, except I saw them play in Akihabara at a New Year Countdown party.  I thought they were exceptional.  Japanese bands seem to use myspace a lot more than people do in the UK, (does anyone use their myspace anymore in the UK?!), anyway - here is a link to theirs...

http://www.myspace.com/tacobonds

The Lady Spade

"I'm DJ'ing tonight in Kichijoji tomorrow, do you want to come?"
"OK Ian".

This is what I saw.

    

I really didn't know quite what to make of it, and Dave and I didn't know where to look.  

Two other electro bands played as well.  The first band were two ladies who wore flourescent clothes and mimed.  It was like the air guitar championships.  And lastly were this band...

http://motocompo.com/otocompo/

They played a lot of K-Pop covers.  I have absolutely no idea about Korean Pop.  I wonder if that will stay the case if I stay in Japan for a year?

Tadzio

Tadzio are a noisy two piece.  Leader sings and plays the guitar, Buccho plays the drums.  They were the first band that I saw in Tokyo for myself, so I will always think of them fondly, and remember rushing from my university English job on the Commuter Express to try and see them.  Tadzio sound a little bit like Comanechi, but Tadzio are more noisy and interesting.  


I've seen them maybe 4 times now, the best was when the played in a NHK radio studio.  The concert was being recorded in what looked like a opera house for possible later broadcast.  The audience were a bit strange.  All appeared to be over 50, perhaps they were friends and family of all the other bands playing the show.  The band before all had songs called "I wanna be your Beatles" and were so cute and horrible...  Tadzio came on and made what seemed like a wall of noise that killed 10 people, and gave another two heart attacks.  Everyone was cowering in their seats until Leader announced something like, "this is a rock show, please stand up" - and everyone did.  I felt like I had watched something important, but my Japanese was too bad to explain what I wanted to say.
  
Later, I tried to explain about my time living in Joe Meek's house.  Again, my Japanese failed me, but Leader drew this picture...

PS. Just as I uploaded the picture, we had an earthquake.  I hope it's not some sort of omen!