Welcome to part 1 of the J-Rock Friday’s salvo to October releases. This was originally meant to cover the first two weeks of the month, but as it turns out, October 7 is an amazing day for Japanese music. So much so that the videos this week is double what I normally post every column. And I couldn’t even find videos for some of the other releases I was interested in. So I put my five favorite videos on top and the rest after the jump.
LITE- “The Sun Sank”
LITE is one of the first bands to pop up when discussing Japanese post-rock, after Mono. In an effort to diversify themselves, LITE decided to discofy their latest single. I actually like this song a lot, the synthesizers are noticeable but pleasant without getting in the way of their post-rock styling. This single is part of their Turns Red EP, the first release on their new record label I Want The Moon. Not many post-rock bands incorporate synthesizer well, lets hope LITE is the first. http://www.myspace.com/liteband
Skybeaver- “For A Long Time”
Skybeaver is a fun power-pop band. This PV includes the band’s humorous portrayal of a fashion metal band. The song is also damn catchy. Their second album is due out October 7. http://www.myspace.com/skybeaver
Supe- “Let Bodies Scream”
Holy Metallica! Did those guys just rock out on a moving trailer bed? That’s so hardcore. Their new mini-album The Black will come out on October 7. http://www.myspace.com/supe
New Strike Zipper- “Promise”
New Strike Zipper is an all-girl punk band that made their debut on a Blink-182 Tribute compilation. “Promise” is taken from their second mini-album All Is Lost due out today. This new song sounds harder than their older material, almost like Bleach 03 without the dead animal screeching. http://www.myspace.com/newstrikezipper
sgt.- “銀河の車窓から (live)”
Sgt.’s new mini-album Capital of Gravity is actually my most anticipated of the month. But due to the lack of an official PV, I had to scoot them to the end of the list. Instead I found a live performance of “銀河の車窓から” from their first mini-album Perception of Causality. The new mini-album will include a remix of this song. http://www.myspace.com/sgtofficial
J-Rock Explosion 