Happy Halloween! I figured it may be a few weeks until I finish the actual October edition of This Month in J-Rock so I decided to make a shorter post with music videos only. As always, I try to highlight the smaller bands.
ART-SCHOOL- “Illmatic Baby”
Comments: I try not to use profanity on this blog, but seriously, WTF? The video starts off as a generic band performance with bright colors going off in the background. But then 40 seconds in, it cuts to a red-head girl licking the nipples of a manequin (who will eventually transform into a real asian male). When we finally get to the chorus, “shake hip clap your hands move your body,” we get to see the most hilarious booty dances since Sir Mixalot’s “Baby Got Back.” Seriously, these women are quivering like a bitch in heat. This is ART-SCHOOL’s first experiment in the dance rock/Metro Station genre. I will admit though this song grew on me because of this horrid video.
COMEBACK MY DAUGHTERS- “Hot Chinkee”
Comments: This band really snuck up on me. They are on Pizza of Death Records, just like the band Asparagus and Ken Yokohama. Simlarly, Comeback My Daughters also sing in mostly okay English. “Hot Chinkee” is a great folk-rock rock song with a catchy chorus. They opted for a more “artsy” video for the song that is equally apealing.
http://www.myspace.com/comebackmydaughters
HOLSTEIN- “farewell to our memories”
Comments: HOLSTEIN is an emotional rock band from Japan. “Farewell to our memories” is a fairly aggressive song and reminds me of 9mm Parabellum Bullet. The video consists of security-camera footage of the band’s practice space. It’s a decent song but the video is oddly cut. There’s moments where the singer is playing a trombone and the guitarist is playing the violin. That would be nice but there is no violin or trombone on the song at all, which is disappointing.
http://www.myspace.com/holsteinweb
VOLA & THE ORIENTAL MACHINE- “An imitation’s superstar”
Comments: I really really love the intro to this song. It’s very barbaric, just like “Mexico Pub” from their last album. With the random purple clouds and bright oranges, the video looks like it was produced in 70s. The singer’s awkard head nods and Micheal Jackson pelvic thrusts held my attention for an otherwise standard performance vid with some psychedelic elements.
J-Rock Explosion 