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Hosted by Patricia Petit Liang

Stories by Allison O'Reilly and Patricia Petit Liang

Produced by Patricia Petit Liang

It is the middle of the month of May, and this can only mean one thing for Japanese music nerds in Canada: it’s time for another edition of Next Music from Tokyo (NMFT).

In short, NMFT is a DIY tour organized by Steven Tanaka, funded entirely from his own pocket. It is a passion project driven entirely by the desire to expose Canada to the amazing indie music scene from Japan, and has been running annually (sometimes twice in a year) ever since 2010.

Here is a sampler of the bands that’ll be playing this year, on May 19 and 20 in Toronto, May 22 in Montreal, and May 24 in Vancouver.

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The Taupe

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Like all the other bands in the current lineup, The Taupe’s general sound is a little difficult to describe, in the sense that they do not stick to a single mood or sound. It’s easy to label them post-punk for their effortlessly cool college indie rock tracks, or shoegaze for their insanely loud walls of noise, or psychedelic for their dissonant chord progressions and trippy music videos.

And yet, they’re not any of that. The Taupe is all of that, and probably more—one can only extrapolate so much from low quality footage of live shows and studio recordings that supposedly don’t quite capture the essence of their performances. So really, the only way to find out what they are is to see them perform in person.

Recommended if you like (RIYL): post-punk, shoegaze, psychedelic, loud guitars

Yukueshirezutsurezure

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Yukueshirezutsurezure (abbreviated YSTZ) is an alt-idol group combining pop, hardcore, and even breakcore to make up a distinctive sound that is totally unlike what Canadians would think of when picturing a typical idol group.

For those unfamiliar with Japanese idol culture, they are female popstars, actresses, or even models, who are expected to be prim, proper, and above all, adorable. The interactions between the idols and their audience is also extremely important, both on stage and off stage. Alt-idols don’t like to play by the rules, and subvert their audiences’ expectations of their appearance, their music, or their behaviour with their fans.

YSTZ does that by being as loud and abrasive as possible in their music, and when they can’t be, you should expect some screaming and headbanging right around the corner. This is also reflected in their live performances, something that idol groups excel at.

RIYL: hardcore, pop, getting yelled at by cute girls, all at the same time

Yubisaki Nohaku

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There’s something quite strange about Japanese music—they have a disproportionate amount of all-female rock bands. Yubisaki Nohaku is one of those bands. As far as I know, there isn’t anything quite like the sound of Japanese all-female rock bands elsewhere in the world, with some of them reaching relative indie fame, like tricot.

Like NMFT alumni Akai Koen, Regal Lily, and Hitsuji Bungaku, Yubisaki Nohaku’s music displays a certain level of sophistication backed by distorted guitars and very precise and original songwriting. They’re arguably the “quietest” band of the bunch, but also the most accessible. Their music can be enjoyed at a concert just as well as it can be enjoyed chilling on your bed.

RIYL: Japanese all-female rock bands, great songwriting

Bakyun the Everyday

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Bakyun the Everyday’s music is definitely not the most provocative, nor the most original, but even on their album material, you can hear how this two-member unit—accompanied with their friends on bass and drums—is having a blast when they’re playing.

Considering that NMFT shows last around five hours (!) and are always chock-full of complex compositions, screaming, and mosh pits, that is totally fine. Bakyun the Everyday’s straightforward and energetic songs are sure to appeal to anyone who comes to the show with no knowledge of any of the bands, just looking to have a good time while enjoying a beer.

RIYL: pop punk, good vibes

Hyacca

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Hyacca (pronounced hyakka) comes back to the Canadian tour after their gigs on the 3rd edition of the tour, in 2011. Their albums are quite eclectic, jumping from dreamy shoegaze to Melt-Banana-style absolute mayhem. If The Taupe was hard to describe because they try to have different subgenres on different songs, Hyacca is even harder to describe, because they often don’t stick to a single genre in a one song. If I could describe them, it would be with these three words: precisely controlled chaos.

While YSTZ and The Taupe will rely on on-stage theatrics, aggressive performances, and just general loudness, Hyacca is sure to capture the audience with their sheer unpredictability and skilfully switching from one genre to another without losing any of their masterful playing.

RIYL: math rock, noise rock, shoegaze, mosh pits

Having growing up in a city whose main claim to fame is the promise of a stable career in government, running into old high school friends in Montreal has become quite the common occurrence. This past Wednesday, I once again found myself running into an old pal from my hometown. Like most instances, the encounter took place at a bar. Unlike other occasions, however, I was there to take part in their album launch.

On May 3rd, at Bar Le Ritz PDB, I attended the release of Sara-Danielle’s debut album Live In My Dreams (stream it here). In support were Marianne Poirier and Thanya Iyer, whose contrasting sounds were the ideal introduction to the diverse influences that make up Sara-Danielle’s spin on “indie soul.”

The night began with Marianne Poirier’s introspective folk and her soothing melodies tinged by a hint of sadness. With a sound reminiscent of a more stripped-down Feist, the artist’s melancholic voice was masterfully showcased at the center of each track. From songs featuring a minimalist kick drum beat to more traditionally folksy offerings (complete with a violin bow for the guitarist), Marianne Poirier was able to craft an atmosphere that was as serene in its familiarity as it was captivating in its rawness.

Thanya Iyer’s more experimental performance was a marked shift away from Poirier’s downtempo melodies. Backed by a live band, Iyer—on vocals and the keyboard—instantly commanded the crowd’s attention with a sound so eclectic and textured that one can’t help but liken it to an electronic take on free jazz. The smoothness of the transitions from track to track made the performance seem like an intimate jam session between musicians who’ve known each other for ages. As the performance progressed, you couldn’t help but be pulled into their fantastic universe built around many disparate sound elements coalescing into a harmonious one.

As the main act, Sara-Danielle’s performance truly was quite the celebration—and for good reasons! Backed by a live band and a four-piece vocal support, the singer pulled out all the stops in order to properly bring her debut album to life. As the title Live In My Dreams implies, there is an imaginative and dreamlike quality to her craft—almost like each lyric puts to paper the images from her subconscious. During the show, this element was preserved through the on-stage projection of hand-drawn sketches that whimsically brought the artist’s words—and dreams—to life.

Armed with her four-piece vocal backing, Sara-Danielle articulated the delicate nature of the album’s theme in the most ethereal of ways. The melodies were light and fluttering, yet grounded in reality through nuances in harmony and tempo. With a sound evocative of the indie experimentalism of Dirty Projectors mixed with the jazz-infused electro-soul of Montreal’s own Krystale, Sara-Danielle was able to showcase the eclectic nature of her craft with songs like “Runaway” that got the crowd moving, and pieces like “Killing Me” that got us swaying to her crooning.

Radiating in a packed house filled with friends and family, it was such a pleasure to see someone performing so confidently and comfortably in their element. In order to live in one’s own dream, one has to first bring it to life, and that is exactly what Sara-Danielle did with her performance.

Recently, I have spoken with individuals who, perhaps to my undeserved surprise, have never ventured to the Eastern edge—who have never set foot in Nova Scotia despite enticing tales of slackened lifestyles, dramatic landscapes, majestic sea creatures, and kindly leprechauns. This May, there is a more of a reason than ever to go the distance and explore the mysterious Maritimes firsthand—OBEY Convention X, one of the most forward thinking arts festivals in Canada, is celebrating its tenth year of being.

At the risk of beginning to sound like Saltscapes magazine, let us put the spotlight directly on the deluge of other-worldly music being presented at this mighty Halifax fest. Even just casually observing the line-up announcement sent a tingle up my spine, which then proceeded to caress the loveless neurons in some neglected corner of my brain. Consummately curated, OBEY features some truly unparalleled international performers. Senyawa will bring their ineffable wizardry; a heavy, bewitching, experimental take on Indonesian folk traditions. Moor Mother will confront with her profound Afrofuturist harsh-noise poems. From NYC there is Uniform; agitated industrial punk seething with intensity. Celestial new-age legend Laraaji is a prestigious addition, destined to provide an elevating, mystic ambience. The unnervingly boundless Elysia Crampton offers beauty, terror, and fun, all in one dystopian-club concoction.  The accomplished jazz-folk power duo Xylouris White sound as though commissioned by Zeus for a timeless Bacchanal; potent, graceful, and ludic. Headliners from Montreal include the incendiary party that is Pelada, and the adept electronic composer Kara-Lis Coverdale. To add to the Montreal contingent are The Submissives, whose music I have featured repeatedly on Slax Trax for good reason, and the ethereal Echo Beach; a name which may be particularly familiar to the CJLO community.

Local talent will be in prominent display as well, from the percussive deity Jerry Granelli, to the heat-warped bliss of BUDI’s beats, to rising stars like MAJE and Aquakulture. Haligonians Rabies, Geil, and Fake Buildings number among the “rock” or punk acts, all twisting the form in unique ways. Coming in from rural reclusion will be Chik White, presumably to lay down some future-primitive jaw harp, and Jay Crocker, who will unveil The Bibelot; a light and sound installation of endlessly epic proportions. The aforementioned is hardly an exhaustive list of the fantastic weirdness supplied by this convention—and “weird” in this sense implies not just unusual, but in fact suggests the operation of supernatural influences. Besides taking in these performances, there will be no shortage of other mind-expanding interactivities to indulge your ears and three eyes. The Everyseeker Symposium features free talks and workshops that include a “deep ocean listening session” presented by Dr. David Barclay, a talk on Black Punks by Chris Murdoch, laughter mediation with Laraaji, a deep listening workshop with Anne Bourne, and a communal drone jam.

There is perhaps no better place than OBEY to stretch your mind and recalibrate your weary neural network. The looming ocean and its fresh saline winds will add vigour to the experience—in conjunction with interstellar audiovisuals, they will breathe clarity into bent brains. But this is no sentiment of naïve purity; let the stench of the harbour and the musty stones of this aged port intermingle with the diverse artistic freedom in the air to produce a rich, intoxicating stew. Certainly, this is a presentation of novel expressions, but unlike mainstream modernity—the great eraser, which constantly bombards us with products of “newness”—these performances are a portal to those primeval roots which can serve as launching pad to the future. For the engaged listener, these are the rituals where our experience of time as we know it ceases to exist. OBEY is a convention which challenges conventions. Get yourself to the great gathering of innovators; a vital assembly in these sordid times.

Check out this playlist to acquaint yourselves with these ground-breaking sonic architects.

For more info: http://www.obeyconvention.com