ZOOM JAPAN No.006 by Ilyfunet Communication

Editorial

T h e Ja p a n e s e y o uth have been a little under th e w e a th e r l a t e l y.

Employment prospects af ter leaving school are n o t v e r y b r i g ht a n d w o r ki n g c o n d i ti o n s

have prog ressively g one down hill A study in 2011 by the Foundation for Political Innovati on , that f o c us e d on y o uth a l l o ver th e world, re vealed that despite this strong feeling of pessimism ( Japan ranked bottom in terms o f op tim i sm) , n o t a l l g i ve up W i th music, many have found a way of expressing their concerns. Using all the means of communication they can lay their hands on, they are well and truly ready to rock the archipelag o. We met up with these new kids on the rock, who are making their voices heard.

THE EDITORIAL TEAM info@zoomjapan info

In its 2012 report on worldwide economic parity, the World Economic Forum places Japan 101st out of 135 nations, although it was previously in 98th position. This fall can be explained by the small number of women in Parliament and on company boards of management.

A DAY IN JAPAN by Eric Rechsteiner

12 October, Roppongi, Tokyo

POLITICS Hashimoto prepares the ground

The leader of new Japanese political party, ishin no kai (Japan Restoration Association) and mayor of Osaka, Hashimoto Toru, has begun an extensive campaign to win over western Japan. His aim is to rally support for the coming elections. In spite of a decrease in popularity, he appears to be a possible candidate for prime minister.

DIPLOMACY A difﬁcult time with Korea

A joint poll by Tokyo’s Mainichi Shimbun and Seoul’s Chosen Ilbo shows that people on both sides of the Tsushima Strait are aware of the deterioration in bilateral relations. 71% of Japanese and 78% of South Koreans share this feeling The main reason is the disagreement relating to the island of Takeshima (Known as Dokdo in Korea).

The 25th Tokyo International Film Festival was held in the capital from 20th to the 28th of October Though the international competition resembles most other events of this kind, TIFF also offers a great selection of Japanese productions in order to promote them to foreign viewers All the ﬁlms are subtitled in English

On front cover : Noko from Shinsei Kamattechan

ECONOMY Laughter and tears

Foreign trade statistics have never been so bad, but there are still some strong pockets of resistance.

On the economic front, news is abundant and e ver chang ing Mora le wa s low when the government announced that the country had re corde d its h ig hest trade deficit e ver over the first six months of the 2012 fisca l year 3,200 billion yen is a very impressive number, but the increase is what is most worr ying , as it has risen by 90% compared to the pre vious year. The main causes for the deficit are the Eurozone crisis and the tense relations with neig hb ouring c ountries On the one hand, the Europeans have started to re duc e their c o n s u m p t i o n because of their own worsening economic situation, and on the other, Chinese calls for a boycott of Japanese products following the recent territorial disagreements have also had an important impact on Japan’s trade balance Only last September, Japan’s trade deficit reache d 559 billion yen. Toyota’s car sales in China dropped by half in September and if this trend continues, the Japanese manu-

facturer might not reach the magic number of 10 million cars it sold in 2012.

Nevertheless, the current situation in Japan has been lucky for some. A few Japanese companies have taken advantag e of a strong yen by g reatly increasing their foreign portfolios, especially in emerging markets This should allow them to resist the weaknesses of the Japanese market that is marke d by the t win problems of deflation and an ageing population In the first nine months of 2012 alone, Japanese companies have spent over 63 billion do l lars buying up foreig n businesses

This figure rose again af ter the announcement on the 15th of October that Sprint, the th ird larg est mobile phone operator in the USA , was b eing ta ken over by Softbank The Japanese investor spent 20 billion dollars buying up 70% of the American company ’ s shares, propelling them into third position in the world in terms of re venue The Japanese e conomy is not doing well, but it is not yet ready to give in Year in, year out, Japanese businesses have trying to encourage growth elsewhere when unable to rely on the local market. This has caused some to cry, but others have found ways to smile GABRIEL BERNARD

Son Masayoshi, manager of Softbank, with Dan Hesse, number one at Sprint, when they announced the American company’s purchase on 15 October in Tokyo

New kids on the rock

They originate from outside the capital and reject the image given to music by Tokyo, proclaiming their origins and engaging with an increasing number of societal issues.

MUSIC They won’t keep their mouths shut

All around the world, dozens of artists and bands fight to defend their right to be different It is no exception in Japan despite its reputation for reticence.

Don ’ t keep quiet Use music to assert yourself an d ma ke y o ur vo i c e h e ard ! Su c h i s th e motto of many modern Japanese artists who wish to make use of their talent to communicate certa in va lues and to procla im their rig ht to be heard. Mo st o f th em are in d ep en d ent an d th e y re f us e to be controlled by Tokyo’s music industry Some of these musicians have succeeded in imposing their alternative outlook on big record companies The latter need to accept that music is chang ing and that Japan’s little world of pop ( J-pop) will never be the same again When some artists, such as RC Succession, tried to ra ise a debate on nuclear p ower in the arch ip ela g o

with their song “Summertime Blues” back in 1988, their record company suspended sales, despite the success of their version of Eddie Cochran’s song In the land of consensus, issues that might upset pe ople cannot be raise d. Ne vertheless, Imawano Kiyoshiro, leader of RC Succession, did not g ive up and pursue d a s o l o care er, during wh i c h h e us e d h i s talent to try and wake up a sleeping society In the same way as Serge Gainsbourg turned the Marseillaise into a reggae tune, Imawano Kiyoshiro covered Kimigayo (the Japanese nationa l anthem) as a rock tune in his album Fuyu no jujika [ Winter's cross] in 1990 This was widely seen as a desecration of the piece that was orig ina lly written in 905 and only playe d on instruments for the first time in 1880 Imawano's death in May 2009 sparked a wave of emotion throug hout the countr y, but his commitment and desire to use music

It isn’t easy raising touchy subjects.

to raise a different voice, in contrast to the dull voices of the J-pop singers, spawned many emulators All over the countr y, bands or solo artists have emerg e d, and succeeded in increasing their audiences thanks to concerts, internet promotions and the ab il it y to pro duc e their music more easily with online tools O ver the last fifteen years, Japan has faced a small musical revolution that might just turn the whole market upside down. This does not mean that protest music never existed in Japan before Imawano Kiyoshiro In the nineteen-sixties, when Japanese students where radicalising and protesting against the Japan-American security treaty, artists (most of them folk-musicians) became a conduit for this unease, but at the time they were not as well received as Tha Blue Herb and Takahashi Yû are nowadays. The internet has completely chang ed the way things work Shinsei Kamattechan is a good exam-

Shinsei Kamattechan, the latest sensation on the rock scene

ple of a band that has built its notoriet y with its use of the internet In many of its song s th is band from Chiba raises the issue of bullying at school (ijime), which caused its leader to hide away from society (A phenomenon known as hikikomori) before finding a way of expressing throug h music the difficult y of living in a society in which differences are not accepted and the ugly duckling is always left out Nevertheless, this difference is just what many rising rock bands are making use of Many of them are from outside the capital They make great play of their origins and refuse to adapt to the trends developing in Tokyo They embody a deeprooted movement that is taking over the whole countr y : regionalism. The hip -hop band Tha Blue Herb is a perfect example This group, probably one of the best in Japan, was formed in Hokkaido. Like others beforehand, they fought to maintain their local character, and created a label to promote artists like themselves and ensure that the influence of Tokyo will not put a stop to their progress On the other side of Japan, in Okinawa, Cocco also defends her cultural heritage in her music, proof of which can be found in her latest album Emerald After having spent two years as a beachcomber, in 2003 she organised a concert with only one song : Heaven’s Hell, calling for a chang e in attitude among the population in Okinawa . Her performance had a great impact and she became an icon for the poorest reg ion of Japan However, do not imag ine that Japan has been transformed into a place of constant protest with music as an expression of dissent The music scene is still dominated by middle of the road artists. Although now, there are also musicians all over the countr y, who use their talent to question the state of society, with a rising number of young people fighting against poverty

and injustice Takahashi Yû is one of them In his songs, th is writer- c omp oser tel ls of the g rowing d ifficu lt y his generation encounters in the search for happiness Other artists, such as Taiyozoku from Hokkaido, are not as dark in their approach, but the y a lso demand their share of happiness, and do not appear ready to g ive up their claims and just keep quiet.

ODAIRA NAMIHEI

I NTERVIEW

MORI YOSHITAKA, AN EXPERT’S OPINION

Mori Yoshitaka is a sociologist and a professor at Tokyo University of the Arts He carefully analyses the evolution of the music scene, and has published many articles and books on the subject, including Sutorîto no shiso [The Thought in the Streets: a turn in the 1990s, 2009]

Since the sixties, rock has been associated with counter-culture in the West This is not the case in Japan.

MORI Yoshitaka : It is often said that there are very few countercultural elements in Japanese rock when compared to the West Nevertheless, I disagree with this In his book Japrocksampler: How the Post-war Japanese Blew Their Mind on Rock ‘n’ Roll [pub Bloomsbury] which focuses on Japanese rock, Julian Cope says that there were bands like Joe With Flower Travellin’ Band, produced by Uchida Yûya that played a similar role to their European counterparts During the second half of the seventies, indie bands and rock musicians from Tokyo played quite a large role in punk and new wave subcultures But where they differed from what was going on in Europe is that they never left the underground scene, because they were never able to conquer a wider audience And unlike the West, there was no concession to the drug culture in Japan This drug and rock culture never became rooted in the archipelago It was the same for the psychedelic scene The only exception is Imawano Kiyoshiro, who experienced the golden age of rock in the sixties and succeeded in attracting a very

large audience. He sang in Japanese and was able to reinterpret the anti-establishment approach for Japanese tastes It made a strong impression, even for those who were not that interested in rock

decades?

M Y : Since the late eighties, Japan

bubble, it contributed to better CD

E v e r y y e a r, o v e r t w e n t y a l b u m s each sold over a million copies But at the turn of the century changes in lifestyle, the advent of the internet and its diversity of online tools h a v e a l l h a d n e g a t i v e c o n s equences on record sales In just ten years they have drastically decreas e d , a n d w e a k e n e d a g r e a t n u mber of labels

H a v e t h e d i f f i c u l t i e s s i n c e t h e nineties, related to the economic a n d s o c i a l c r i s e s i n J a p a n , h a d an impact on Japanese rock?

M Y : The strong decrease in CD sales didn’t necessarily have negat i v e c o n s e q u e n c e s i n t h e m u s i c sector Thanks to the internet and the progress of small labels, there a r e m a n y m o r e w a y s o f d i s t r i b ut i n g m u s i c . F o r a r t i s t s w h o f o c u s mainly on concerts, the role of CDs

sively looking away from the market to focus on bands with a message that directly concerns them. The result is greater diversity in the music on offer Quite a few bands f o c u s o n p r o b l e m s o f J a p a n e s e society (the social divide, poverty) This is particularly true for hip hop

M a n y y o u n g b a n d s n o w a d a y s give the impression that they are c o n c e r n e d w i t h p o l i t i c a l a n d environmental subjects, as well as their regional origins. Is that true?

M Y : In the underground scene, young musicians are indeed quite c o n c e r n e d w i t h p o l i t i c a l i s s u e s , a

artists are inspired by their perso-

they express They aren’t concern

way a politician is Shinsei Kamat-

example By introducing the personal, individual experiences of the group, they talk publicly to today’s generation, which demands a poli-

y ’s leaders This is what differentiates them from artists like Bob Dylan or J o h n L e n n o n , w h o s e m e s s a g e s w

isn’t as important as it used to be The music industry has undergone a h u g e c h a n g e R e c o r d e d m u s i c

h a s l o s t i t s p o l e p o s i t i o n t o m e rc h a n d i s i n g a n d p u b l i c p e r f o rmance Young people are progres-

kaido, defends its regional origins Its members created

community c

gives you an idea

How do you think Japanese rock w i l l

years?

develop in two directions On one

that is dependent on television and mass sales strategies On the other hand, there will be small commu-

which charismatic bands will

singly experience international success thanks to their online activity Among them, a few will probably become associated with the

INTERVIEW BY O N

Kiyoshiro Imawano (left)

ORGANISATION Joining forces

A successful launch for Tokyo Boot Up !the first indie scene market.

From the 3rd to the 5th of S eptemb er 2010, Watanabe Ken wanted to set fire to Tokyo and set up a new event dedicated to the music industr y. “Although Japan’s record industr y is second in the world in terms of sales, there isn’t an event dedicated to it in the archipelago Ever ybody knows MIDEM, but there is nothing like it in Japan. Faced with this Japanese complacenc y, I wante d to ta ke advanta g e of the indie scene ’ s energ y to organise the first Tokyo Boot Up!” says the man who has been working in the music industr y for 35 years Amongst other things, he took part in promoting Dreams come true on the internationa l scene “In the US there is S outh By S outh West (SXSW ). It’s a ver y important business meeting and was launched by managers of independent artists who wanted to promote their protégés In Japan, there was nothing like it. And it’s all the more a shame since Japanese rock is experiencing its golden age The Japanese indie scene is maybe one of the best in the world,

with first ran k ar tists D esp ite th is, Jap anese re c ord pro duc ers do nothing to support them or promote them to their aud ienc e The y seem completely closed to the idea , ” says Watanabe

During the 2012 e vent that took place from the 6th to the 8th of October, over 90 bands performe d , includ ing Motion, Marz and Marble, and it allowed them to demonstrate their talent to an audience who did not know them beforehand Watanabe Ken considers his initiative as an essential step in a band’s career if it wants to move beyond the local scene “It’s a shame that most Japanese artists adopt this state of mind. There’s so much more that

Shinsei Kamattechan shares his secrets I NTERVIEW

Could you tell us about the band ?

Mono : There’s Noko (guitar, vocals), C h i b a g i n ( b a s s g u i t a r ) , M i s a k o (drums) and me (keyboard) I’ve known Noko and Chibagin since kindergarten Misako teamed up with us after we published an ad on the internet We were then discovered in Chiba [a little town situated East of Tokyo] before arriving where we are today

Kamattechan is often presented as an okatu band. Is that true?

M : That is very true Kamattechan’s mentality is very different from most Japanese bands, and we have always been ver y active on the internet Most of our songs are available on the internet And we prefer to stay at home rather than going out in public, so being called okatu is quite appropriate

Was growing up in the suburbs important to you?

M : I don’t think living in Chiba has had an inﬂuence on our songs. I

think they’re closer to a diar y in which we express our feelings and talk about all kinds of experiences that aren’t always positive

Does distributing your music on the internet have something to do with declaring your independence from the system?

M : You can’t count on CD sales anymore A band can’t count on just its music production We started putting our songs online because we saw that other bands were doing so, and it seemed to be a good idea

You also give a lot of importance to public performances…

M : Indeed It’s very important to us because it’s a good way of being in contact with our fans

How do you see the future of Japanese rock?

M. : Unlike what is going on abroad, I have the impression that most Japanese bands have a better sense of melody and are more interested in this aspect That is why I believe they will have trouble pleasing a society that is getting tougher

INTERVIEW BY O. N.

can be done,” he adds Considering the countr y ’ s evolution and the trend of some bands to involve themselves in debates about society, he believes it to be ever more important to support them “I believe that a great number of these artists are concerned about the social d ivide and that the y want to fig ht it But in order for it to be of any use, they need to be heard outside the independent scene. Gaining the confidence of big record producers is not easy nowadays and I believe that most young artists are aware of this. So, they need to proceed differently and invite a wider audience to understand their approach” The founder of Tokyo Boot Up !'s ambition is cr ystal clear : to be come the numb er one ta lent hunter Among st the dozens of bands he saw and heard during the 2010 Event, Watanabe Ken was particularly taken with Owarikara, Sonic Attack s Bla ster, Okamoto’s and Counterpar ts He chose them because they offered more than just their pleasing artistic qualities “The freshness of something new, ” he summarizes. “Nowadays it’s ver y important for listeners, especially the young They don’t wait for traditional media to tell them about this or that band anymore It do esn ’ t mean the y ’ re not intereste d in music anymore, they just want to participate in discovering new talents,” says the founder of Tokyo Boot Up! That is precisely why he developed this festival, to include the audience and g ive more weig ht to his initiative Nevertheless, Tokyo Boot Up! will require a little more time before becoming an unmissible event, such as MIDEM and SXSW, but Watanabe Ken is a believer He is already preparing for the 2013 event Until then, he intends to promote it as much as possible to convince those who still doubt that the music scene ne e ds such an internationa l e vent “Japanese ar tists have wonderf u l qua l ities to exp or t. But it is essential to give them the tools to do so, and make sure they are aware of them,” he adds.

ODAIRA NAMIHEI

From left to right, Mono, Misako, Chibagin and Noko The four members of Shinsei Kamattechan.

Okamoto’s on stage at the Loft, 3 September 2010

I NTERVIEW

You are from Hokkaido. Your regional roots are often said to be ver y important to you Why is that?

Boss : It’s very simple This is where we were born, where we grew up, and where we still live today Before we formed Tha Blue Herb, all hip hop business was concentrated in Tokyo Labels, producers, media, everything took place in the capital If people from outside the capital wanted to break through, they needed to forget about their past and their origins, move to Tokyo and do rap there We would see the MCs (masters of ceremony) come from the capital to perform in Hokkaido and have girls fall for them In some way, it looked like the setting up of a system of submission It was just unbearable If someone didn’t accept you, there was no chance of recording any music. We couldn’t tolerate such a system In Hokkaido, there were all kinds of music we could study We were inspired by a lot of it By making music that could only have come from this area, we were able to turn the situation around, so that not all decisions would be made in Tokyo anymore Since then, a similar trend has been developing in other parts of Japan. There are many lovely places in this country And although we have friends all over the country, we always like to come back to Hokkaido, to Sapporo, this city covered in snow, where I like to write

What are the topics that inspire you?

Boss : It all depends on the moment I’m obviously very interested in the situation that Japan is in today, and its future. Japan is a quiet country, but it comes at a price, which is having a controlled society It’s a country with some wonderful traditions, but there are also many things that are old fashioned and should not be accepted anymore Then there is our neighbour, to the west, that is slowly waking up with the appetite of a dragon As you can see, we have all we need in terms of inspiration.

Tha Blue Herb, alive and kicking

I imagine you meet many Japanese musicians and you listen to a lot of them as well How do you feel about Imawano Kiyoshiro?

Boss : We perform many concerts It’s always a great opportunity to meet musicians with great talent But I don’t listen to that many of them back home I have piles of CDs that I have bought, but I haven’t listened to all of them (laughs) On the other

were invited?

Boss : Of course! However, you must remember we are rappers Many foreign rappers perform in Japan, and the Japanese audience doesn’t always understand

to per form in France There is the language barrier, which isn’t easy to overcome But if we per form properly, we can get over it The message just isn’t conveyed as instantaneously I know we have some listeners in Great Britain

We have had messages from British people who have told us they like our music and that they listen to our music regularly That’s very cool So all we need

hand, I often listen to Imawano Kiyoshiro I often play his cover of John Lennon's Imagine with my friends after a party, when the sun is about to rise over Hokkaido.

what they are on about But if you do it well, you can still succeed in conveying something That is all that counts That is why I would really like Tha Blue Herb

now is to take an additional step forward It would be great if a skilful French rapper translated our songs

INTERVIEW BY GABRIEL BERNARD.

From left to right, O N O the beat maker, and Boss, the MC (master of ceremony) The two members of Tha Blue Herb

Blue Hearts, Live All

The Sun’s song,

CULTURE

LITERATURE Discovering or rediscovering Black Rain

Five years after the atomic bomb explodes, young Yasuko is living with her uncle and aunt in a village near Hiroshima where they took refuge after the city was destroyed. Graceful, clever, and gentle, Yasuko has yet to ﬁnd a husband. A rumour says she was caught in the shower of black rain that fell over the western side of the city after the monstrous atomic cloud had risen into the sky. The rain was radioactive. Nevertheless, she shows no sign of illness, so in order to ﬁnd her a husband, her uncle decides to prove that it is only a rumour and that

achieve this, he uses the diaries that he and Yasuko kept at the time. These diaries are the backbone of the story The smallest details guide the reader through this horriﬁc event. He is able to imagine all the suffering that was endured

EXHIBITION Moriyama at the Tate Modern

When thinking of Japanese post-war photography, the first name to come to mind is Daido Moriyama. He occupies a status equal to that the American William Klein does in his own home nation.

Deciding to bring both these geniuses of photography together in one exhibition is, of course, a great idea.

Tate Modern presents a beautiful exhibition that offers the opportunity not just to understand their work, but also the influence they both had on one another.

immediately after the explosion, and over the following years. Those who were not killed immediately went on to suffer unimaginable agony. This book is a must-read if you want to ﬁnd out and understand what really happened on that day; or maybe, on the contrary, to refuse to understand, and rather question how mankind could ever have taken the decision to drop such a disproportionate weapon of death on fellow human beings.

Black Rain, Masaji Ibuse, translated by John Bester, Kodansha America, £8 99

With Moriyama, photography becomes lyrical. Until the 20th of Januar y 2013. Bankside, London SE1 9TG - Tel 020 7887 8888 10am-6pm daily, until 10pm Fri £12.70, concessions available

T HIS MONTH’S EVENT

BOOK Bruno’s human experience

“In 2006, a lucky encounter with a salaryman (whitecollar worker) in Kawaguchiko Forest gave me the idea for the existence of a parallel universe in Japanese ﬁrms Soon after, I was walking through the streets of the capital armed with a compact camera and with the intention of discovering – or inventing – a new dimension to the stereotype of the working man The care I took in protecting the identity of my unknowing models, and in describing the feelings of the Japanese through the seasons, tend to reveal mystery and poetry in these workers’ busy days,” explains Bruno Quinquet, who has just published Salaryman Project Business Schedule 2013, a book that is both beautiful and useful. It contains splendid photos taken by this Frenchman, put together in the form of the working agenda of an up-market ofﬁce Bruno Quinquet is not completely unknown in Britain; his work has already been selected for the Street Photography Now project, published by Thames & Hudson As well as being practical and containing lovely pictures, this book is a beautiful essay on contemporary Japan, including pieces on those working in the shadow of others, salarymen, who are ever-present in the country’s landscape Everything about their behaviour contributes to their invisibility Thanks to Bruno Quinqu given status in their daily surroundings, added to a poetic dimension gifted by the photographer’s sensitivity To purchase this multifaceted book, go to : www brunoquinquet com

ODAIRA NAMIHEI

Ominato (Small Colour Portfolio) 1974

DVD Twilight in the country of the rising sun?

Adapted from Fuyumi Ono’s novel, Shi Ki is a high qualit y anime that you can now watch on DVD. Full of suspense, this stor y will send shivers up your spine.

This gothic thriller was adapted from Fuyumi Ono’s novel ( The Twelve Kingdoms) Shi Ki wil l lead you to the outer l im its of horror within an enclose d space, where the dead and the living are playing a macabre game of chess. Shi-ki are cadaveric beings better known as vampires They once only inhabited our ancestral beliefs until they moved to Sobota ! Sobota is a villag e with a population of 1,300 souls, overlooked by an old castle Cut off from the rest of the world, the villagers live an untroubled life without realizing that a terrible curse is menacing them When Sakoto becomes worried about his colleag ue Yuki, who has still not come home since the previous evening , doctor Ozaki does not seem the slightest bit interested in his employee’s disappearance In fact, he is preoccupied with his wife’s dead body that he is secretly hiding in his office Having been dead for a few days after being attacked by a Shi Ki, Ozaki plans to experiment on her in order to find out more about the curse. Disg usted by the doctor's behaviour, Seishin disagrees with his friend Division increasing ly affe cts the villa g ers What price will have to b e p a id to save S o b ota , and how wil l th is monstrous situation end?

Shi Ki is a suspense anime that h o ver s b e t w e en h o rr o r a n d

REFERENCE

SHI KI PART 1, directed by Tetsu Amino, Manga Ent., £17.99

mysticism, althoug h the main plot is easy to grasp

The characters lack a certain depth because the stor y is not really about them, but rather about the way they behave, about what a human is capable of when under pressure from ang uish and fear ?

The g rap h ics m ig ht not p lea se e ver yone but that does not matter too much. The colours are brig ht and wel l m ixe d The landscap es are p lea sant and representative of a Japanese villag e lost in the midd l e o f th e c o untr y s i d e A l l th e s e d e ta i l s a l l ow us to b e come rapid ly immerse d in the intrig ue The pro du c ti on i s stra i g htf or ward an d e f f i c i ent , an d a l th o u g h th e mu s i c i s n o t o ut s ta n d i n g , i t h e lp s emphasize the atmosphere.

Howe ver, what is most interesting in this adaptation of Shi Ki is the way the stor y unfolds, while foll o w i n g th e p r o g r e s s i ve d e t er i o r ati o n i n th e c har a c t er s ’ at ti t u d e s a f t er e a c h ep i s o d e T h i s

transformation in their behaviour encourag es us to question whether the y are rea lly g o o d or bad. We obser ve the chang es caused by the ever-present fear that is wreaking havoc in the villag e In this reg ard the change in the character of the doctor is the most notable

Ne vertheless, this series is not for e ver yone. S ome scenes are extremely violent, and it is sometimes quite d ifficu lt to suppress ones fe el ing s of d isg ust The doctor plans all sorts of disg usting experiments, in which morality plays no part One of Shi Ki’s most distinctive qualities lies in its demonstration of how human b eing s a lways rej e ct the un known Sh i Ki is a surprising anime. It cle verly combines diverse genres, and has a real depth to it that makes it worthwhile to watch The second and concluding part will be released on December the 31st 2012.

ODARIA NAMIHEI

MUSIC An interview with the GazettE

On the European release of " Visual Kei" band the GazettE's latest album, Division, the band members answered our questions during an exclusive inter view.

Tell us about the time when the band was created. Ruki : Our first show. I want to experience that sensation of tension again

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the GazettE You are now among the most popular Japanese bands outside Japan. How do you explain your success overseas ? When you first started to play, did you have a strateg y to conquer the world?

Ruki : I’ve never imagined myself playing in the same band for 10 years! (laughs) In Japan, it’s not easy to maintain a band for 10 years. I owe my freedom of expression to our fans and all the staff who have supported us throughout the years. The band is a part of our lives. We only think about keeping on moving forward

What has been the most difficult moment for the band in the past ?

Ruki : We’re always taking on difficult tasks, so there’s no one thing that has been particularly challenging

And the happiest moment ?

Ruki : Hmm That’s a difficult question But above all, it’s definitely the feeling of being appreciated as a band! (laughs)

You seem to take a lot of pleasure playing live. Can you explain why ? Your contact with the fans is ver y strong , isn't it ? Which live experience do you think

was the most impressive one for you?

Ruki : I get a real sense of accomplishment when we come to the final show on a tour and get to see everything that we have worked for coming together and taking shape.

The main catalyst of your popularity overseas is your music How would you define your music? What is the difference between the GazettE and other Japanese bands which can't get the same audience overseas?

Ruki : To be honest, I think it would be much more interesting to hear what people overseas have to say on this question than to answer it myself However, for the GazettE, I can say we are thoroug h and meticulous about what we offer directly from ourselves

Let's get back to your new album Division. Can you explain the basic idea of your album? Where did you take your inspiration?

Ruki : We wanted to redefine what ‘MADE IN JAPAN ’ is all about We also wanted to show that

The Visual Kei (VK) genre sank

’s

c charts a long time ago To survive, most of the bands concerned have been condemned for a long time to fulﬁlling the frustrated hopes of a European audience that is also fast disappearing The GazettE is undeniably an exception to this trend Since 2006, every one of the band’s original albums has been ranked in

the world of the GazettE is a whole package, even down to the album cover and other visuals. So we want to expand our appeal to many more countries

I guess that all the songs in this album are important for you, but is there any one that you prefer ?

Ruki : I like all of them, but especially “DRIPPING INSANIT Y ”

The two tracks HEDORO and ATTITUDE are very interesting. I have the feeling you wanted to try something new with these two songs. Am I right ?

Ruki : Basically I like the distorted bass sounds like you see in electro or dub-step. Perhaps that influenced me.

Anything to say to your European fans?

Ruki : We see many people coming from Europe to Japan to see us So we feel that now it’s our turn to visit you. Have your fingers crossed. Thank you always for your support and messages!

INTERVIEW BY ODAIRA NAMIHEI

e and's latest album Division, releaed for the quintet’s 10th anniverary, is no exception Nevertheless, is far from being a good album. ot VK enough for VK fans, too VK or others, the record has a foot in ach camp and fails to perform proerly either one way or the other n the end, it is just a series of run-

messy arrangements

CULTURE

GAKURYU ISHII “I like to highlight the strange, unpredictable side of life”

Gakur yu Ishii talks about life, death, Japanese cinema and his latest movie “Isn’t Anyone Alive ?”.

Fi l m d i r e c t o r S o g o Is h i i i s b a c k w i th a veng eance He now ca l ls h imself Ga kur y u, and af ter being unable to ma ke any feature films for the last ten years, he has decided to start afresh and launch h is own pro duction c omp any, whose name – Drag on Mountain – is the Eng lish translation of his newly adopted name The director was kind enoug h to me et Z o om Japan and ta lk ab out his latest film “Isn’t Anyone Alive ?”.

“ This film was a new challenge for me, ” Ishii says, “ as earlier films didn’t feature so many characters. Also, it was my first experience adapting a work that had been originally written for the theatre I found Shiro Maeda’s play ver y fascinating – all those people who suddenly start dying for no particular reason If you think about it, the act of dying is a ver y common fact of life This stor y, of course, is also about the end of the world , but I d idn’t want to overdo or exa g g erate things. It’s very easy to paint such a story in heavy, dark tones But I decided to treat this huge tragedy matter-of-factly, with a rather light touch”.

Another thing that attracted Ishii to Maeda’s play was the dialog ue “I ’ ve been teaching at a university for some years now I like to obser ve my students, the way the y sp ea k and express themselves, and I wa s surprised by how faithfully Maeda had reproduced their speech patterns In this respect, the characters’ lines sound exceptionally real, authentic”.

In making this film, Ishii was greatly inspired by Spanish director Luis Bunuel’s “The Exterminator Angel” “I ’ m a big fan of Bunuel, and I believe you can find his influence in a number of my films In both sto-

ries, for example, there is no real explanation for what happens, and they both have an open ending I like it when a film doesn’t answer all the questions it poses. Ultimately each viewer has to come up with his or her own answers ” .

Ishii admits that he does not like a straig htfor ward approach to reality “I ’ m not interested in recording these thing s do cumentar y-st yle. I want to express them in a creative, orig inal way I want to have fun

while making a film, and I want to make it fun I like to hig hlig ht the strang e, unpredictable side of life You could say it’s a way to sublimate reality. So what I really mean when I speak about breaking free from reality is not simple escapism, or finding refuge in a fantasy world, but injecting a sense of wonder into a stor y ”

University campus where Ishii has been teaching for

which has just been released on DVD in Great Britain

the last few years, g oing so far as to cast some of his students This was their first acting experience, but apparently Ishii was so satisfie d that he now plans to use them in f uture proje cts as well. “ The y were ver y fo cuse d and rehearse d a lot in order to del iver their lines naturally. This also allowed them to improvise a little”

Looking for a fresh approach to filmma king , Ishii even brought his 20-year-old son on board. “My son composed the music,” he says “Actually he wrote it before I started working on this film, so it wasn ’ t specifica lly comp ose d with this stor y in mind I happened to listen to it one day, and I really liked it, so I decided to use it. I also liked the fact that most of the people involved in this project were around his age. I enjoyed the energ y all these youngsters brought to the stor y ”

Asked to compare today ’ s youth with the students and rebels he portraye d in his first films, Ishii says the y are the same “ The ma in difference is more a matter of expression. When I was young , we used to be ver y open and assertive, while today’s young sters are more introverted They also appreciate harmony and don’t like to stir things up, while my friends and I were not afra id of c ontrovers y Th is, of c ourse, doesn’t mean that people today are shallower or don’t have an opinion Deep inside they have the same problems, dreams and ambitions”

According to Ishii, his film actually only tells half the stor y “I had budget limitations, and I didn’t want to end up with a four hour long film. But I hope to be able to make the second part someday in the future"

ABOUT THE MOVIE

“ISN’T ANYONE ALIVE?”

Original Title: Ikiteru mono inai no ka, 2011

Running Time: 113 mins

Producer: Hironobu Osaki

Editor: Gakuryu Ishii, Takahiko Takeda

Art Director: Toshihiro Isomi

Production Company: Dragon Mountain

Cinematography: Yoshiyuki Matsumoto

Music: Haru Ishii

“It was my ﬁrst experience adapting a work that had been originally written for the theatre,” says the director about his latest ﬁlm “Isn’t Anyone Alive?”

The budg et for this movie was much cheaper than Ishii’s earlier projects, because this time the director invested his own mone y “ That was the only way I could make it,” he says “Right now nobody is going to shell out mone y for films like this. G oing independent is the only way ” Ishii has a long histor y of problems dealing with production companies, beginning with his ver y first film, “Panic Hig h S chool”, that was remade for Nikkatsu but ended up looking completely different after he was forced to co -direct it with Yukihiro Sawada Yet Ishii thinks that things have gotten even worse. “Probably, it is the same ever ywhere, but in Japan the need to make commercial films that appeal to the masses has become even strong er In the past you could sometimes find sponsors and producers who were interested in original ideas Now it’s nearly impossible. That’s why I did ever ything myself I used mostly unknown actors, shot all

the scenes at my universit y and mana g e d to ma ke it cheaply using digital technolog y. So in a sense you could say I’ve come full circle When I was a student I used to borrow my university’s materials, and now I’m back making indie films. I can work with a small crew, shooting light, cheaply, and having fun in a way that doesn’t hurt my wallet – e ven thoug h I know too well my films are never going to be big hits, especially in Japan”

After many problematic years, Ishii has lately been at peace with himself “In the past, not being able to ma ke the films I wante d to wa s ver y hard ps ychologically In 1989, for example, I made “ The Master of Shiatsu” as a sort of therapy. At last I ’ m resuming my work by us ing n e w te c hn o l o g i ca l an d human resources Now that I ’ m back I plan to make at least one film a year ” .

GIANNI SIMONE

EATING & DRINKING

Dorayaki: Japanese Pancake Journey!!!

Dorayaki is a Japanese pancake which traditionally contains a red bean paste ﬁlling (Anko/Azuki beans).

The traditional "Azuki Dorayaki" has a subtle yet sweet ﬂavour; and although the beans have been crushed, there are still whole beans left which adds another dimension to the texture.

However, apart from "Azuki Dorayaki", other flavours are available including "Green Tea Dorayaki" and "Custard Dorayaki". The green tea dorayaki contains a cream filling which is infused with a tender hint of green tea. The green tea flavouring is strong enough to alert the consumer as to its existence, however, it is not overpowering. The custard dorayaki on the other hand contains not cream, but as the name suggests, custard. The custard is not too sweet and works well together with the dorayaki.

On a final note, these are just two of the many varieties of dorayaki now available on the market. Other flavours include "Strawberries & Cream"; "Cream Cheese Anko"; "Lemon Cheesecake" and "Chocolate". All are incredibly delicious and pleasing to a wide variety of palates. So next time you feel like eating dorayaki, why not try "Custard" or maybe even "Chocolate"?! They are definitely crowd pleasers!

Available at The Japan Centre and various Japanese supermarkets. Mail order at www.wagashi-uk.com

RESTAURANT Shabu Shabu: The Swishing Experience!

Shabu-shabu is a Jap anese hot-p ot c onsisting

beef, ser ved tog ether with tofu and an array of veg etables such as Chinese cabbag e, carrots, shitake and

G oma Ponzu is a tar t and citr

sauce but it is

a sesame seed based sauce with a strong nutty aroma

Using chopsticks, one takes one sl ic e of the meat, submerg es it into a nabe full of hot kelp soup

unti l th e i t em i s c o o ke d - th i s is why the dish is calle d "Shabu

S ha b u " a s i t

" Sw i s h"

r ema i n i n g b r o th i s th en c o m -

b i n e d w i t h a s m a l l b o w l o f udon no o d les and c onsume d .

S o , w h e r e c a n o n e e a t s u c h a dish in L ondon? The answer is Mitsukoshi Mitsukoshi is a famous and well known department store i n Ja p a n w i t h a b r a n c h e x i s t i n g i n L o n d o n M i tsu kosh i not on ly consists of a luxur y b outique, but it a lso conta ins a restaurant in the ba sement Once y o u enter, i t i s e vi d ent that th e re staurant i s b e autif u l There are b eautif u l Japanese de corations and the decor is simple but elegant and classy The mood is a calming and soothing one so one is made to feel as thoug h the y can ta ke their time when eating and not feel rushed The lig hting also adds to the mood It i s qu i te d im wh i c h g i ve s i t that a l m o st intimate feel Mitsukoshi is the kind of restaurant where you can g o with not only your family, but also with that sp e cia l some one It is a p lac e where a l l can enj oy !

in Brita

to mention

beautifully cut and laid on a plate ; another larg e p late c onta ins skilf u l l y p r e p a r e d v e g e t a b l e s a n d t o f u ; t

Mitsukoshi ! You will not b e d isapp o inte d !

Destiny Rose

REFERENCE

RESTAURANT MITSUKOSHI LONDON 14-20 Lower Regent Street, London SW1Y 4PH phone 020 7930 0317 www.mitsukoshi-restaurant.co.uk

EATING & DRINKING

DISCOVERY Kawasaki, home of Doraemon

You will enjoy visiting this museum whether or not you are a lover of Fujimoto Hiroshi’s robot cat."

Paying tribute to one of Japan’s most f amous auth or s o f g rap h i c n o ve l s i s th e a im o f th e Fujiko F Fujio museum that op ene d on the 3 rd o f S ep tem b er 2 0 1 1 in K awa s a ki , just s o uth o f the capital The name Fujiko F Fujio does not really r

and o ld Immersing oneself in the world of Fujiko F Fu

familiarizes those not yet acquainted with it Kawa-

Doraemon, busily reading, awaits visitors who enter this room where all of Fujiko F Fujio’s works can be viewed

the mang a ka’s widow, wh ich wil l b e exh ib ite d over t h e y e a r s T h e s p a c i o u s e x h i b i t i o n r o o m s i t u a t e d at the entrance of the museum can hold around 150 drawing s and helps introduce visitors to the creative pro cess of Fujimoto Hiroshi, a lia s Fujiko F Fujio A few short films are also scre ene d demonstrating how the creator of D oraemon worke d The omnipresent blue cat in the museum underlines

his importance in the collective memor y of the Japanese He first appeare d in 1969, in e ducationa l jour-

n a l s p u b l i s h e d b y S h o g a ku k a n , a n d t h e c h a r a c t e r

so on b e came visib le e ver y where Fujimoto Hirosh i and Abiko Motoo’s robot cat became famous because i t app e a l e d to a ver y lar g e au d i en c e B o th c h i l d ren and adu lts fel l for the larg e cat (over 140 k g ) with a w i d e m o u t h , a b e l l a r o un d i t s n e c k , a n d t h e e q u iva lent of a nuclear p owere d eng ine in its chest

Having different plans for the Japanese hero’s future, Fujimoto Hiroshi split with Abiko Moto o in 1987 and be came Fujiko F Fujio Just like the g oose that

l a i d t h e g o l d e n e g g , a s a m a n g a , D o r a e m o n s o l d hun d re d s o f m i l l i o n o f c o p i e s i n th e a rc h i p e l a g o In tota l , 45 volumes were publ ishe d b et we en 1974 a n d 1 9 9 6 , w h e n t h e a u t h o r p a s s e d a w a y, b u t t h e a n i mat e d s eri e s i s w hat re a l l y c o n q u ere d p e o p l e ’ s h e a r ts A s a h i T V ha s b e en s cre en ing D o r a em o n ’ s adventures since 1979 for the enjoyment of his many fans. Many identif y with Nobi Nobita , the little boy whom the blue cat wishes to help avoid building up

to o many d e b ts . C om ing f rom th e f uture , D ora emon ha s ac c ess to many resourc es to g et h is friend out of the d ifficu lt situations c ommon to a l l te enag ers. Nobita has many rivals, such as Goda Takeshi and Honekawa Sune o, who spend their time tr ying to g et him into trouble, but Doraemon and his g adg e t s a l w a y s e n d u p s a v i n g t h e s i t u a t i o n O n t h e second floor of the museum, a screening room boasting 1 0 0 s e ats s h ow s ori g ina l f i l ms s o that vi s i tor s can immerse themselves in Fujiko F Fujio’s stories Many are happy to sit and watch, e ven thoug h the y can reg ularly see Doraemon and his friends on television and at the cinema The films were first scre ene d in 1980 and turne d the ro b ot cat into a nationa l institution, just like Astro b oy, Te zuka Osamu’s little robot. Once a year, in March, during the Spring ho l iday, an an imate d feature film is relea se d in the cinema , and attracts m il l ions of vie wers who ne ver g et tire d of D oraemon and No b ita’s adventures . The museum a lso b o a sts the mang a ka’s work desk on which are scattere d a fe w obje cts he use d a s insp iration for h is stories, b o o k s and j ourna ls There is even a rumour that he died while preparing a new a dventure f o r h i s ma s c o t . W h en y o u g e t c l o s er to t h e d e s k a n d l o o k u p w

metre h ig h a ir duct wh ich houses Fujiko F. Fujio’s librar y It is quite a surprise to discover the author ’ s passion for books and objects of all kinds, especially those relate d to Star Wars, of wh ich he wa s a g reat f an In S eptemb er 1978, a fe w we ek s af ter Ep iso de IV was released in Japan, he wrote a parody in which No b i ta a n d D o r a em o n p l ay e d l e a d ing ro l e s Th i s is what makes the museum so interesting , as it could have b e en just another theme p ark You learn a lot about the author, his passions, and what le d him to create a character loved by children and adults alike. Fu j i ko F Fu j i o f e l t t h a t D o r a e m o n c o u l d m e a n someth ing to e ver yone “Adu lts and ch ildren have dreams that the y wish will come tr ue Even thoug h the y express them in d ifferent ways, the y have lots

NOBI NOBITA, THE BOY WHO DORAEMON HAS COME TO HELP

TRAVEL

in common . One can dream for someth ing to happen, one can hope to become strong er, smarter, and l o n g f o r a b e t t e r l i f e In m o s t c a s e s , t h e s e w i s h e s come true in my mang a , ” this is what he use d to say to exp la in the p opu larit y of h is characters What distinguishes Doraemon from many other manga heroes is his extreme kindness and his continual optimism Children are ver y sensitive to this, as they, like their parents, of ten have to dea l with difficult situations in their e ver yday l ives The museum ’ s creators took this on board and have created a place in which visitors feel comfortable Pastel colours, blue especially, g ive the place a feeling of serenit y and encourag e the visitors to take their time wandering around the different rooms Children, who are the blue cat ’ s principal fans, even have a playroom at their disposal, decorated to resemble a cloud and where the y are g re ete d by a sm il ing D oraemon There are repro ductions of the main characters e ver y where in the museum, e ven on the roof where Piisuke, the dinosaur, is prominently displaye d a long with G o da Ta keshi, who a lways ha s a trick up his sleeve to play on Nobita

You b e come increa sing ly familiar with these characters straig ht out of Fujiko F. Fujio’s imag ination after meeting them one after another, and will feel they have always been part of your life, even though you may have only just encountered them They awaken childhood m em ori e s in e ver y on e Th e mang a k a re a l l y su c c e eded in creating a link between the worlds of both children and adults “ You cannot write children’s stories

from an adult’s point of view. You need to create someth ing that y o u wi l l enj oy an d that th e c h i l d ren wi l l understand. In a cer ta in way, I fe el that there is par t of me that is a child that ref uses to g row up I ’ m particularly lucky because they like what I enjoy drawing , ” s a i d D ora em on ’ s cre ator. An o th er o f th e mus e um ’ s strong points is the way it focuses on the author’s work “ This profession is often considered as something wonderf u l , but it’s a ver y unstable j ob When your work doesn’t sell, you earn nothing When it does, you have no time to sp end your mone y And when you earn a lot, taxes take away a large part of it All in all, no mangaka would like his children to have such a job,” Fujiko F Fujio once said Nevertheless, it was his passion and it is well represented in the museum Thanks to digital te chnolog y, you can follow his creative work step by step and hand in hand with his animated characters The visit wil l su it a l l ta stes, a l l a g es and a l l bud g ets . Inde e d , the museum a lso b o a sts a shop in wh ich a l l

kinds of g adg ets can be found to suit all sorts of people There is also a cafeteria where even the food and drinks have a connection with Doraemon, Nobita and the others However you will need to buy your tickets in advance if you want to make sure you can enter this wonderf u l museum, b e cause its creators have l im ited its capacity to 500 people per day in order to g uarantee a comfortable visit. The museum welcomes visitors only four times a day, and then only those who have made a reser vation Be warne d !

GABRIEL BERNARD

GETTING THERE

FUJIKO F. FUJIO MUSEUM 2-8-1 Nagao, Tama-ku, 214-0023 Kawasaki Tel 0570-055-245www fujiko-museum com -

Entrance : 1000 yen, 500 yen for children. Tickets on sale in Lawson convenience stores. Opens at 10 am, 12pm, 2pm and 4pm. 15 minutes away from ShukuGawara station (on the JR Nambu line).

“That’s all folks!” says a virtual Doraemon after a demonstration of Fujiko F Fujio’s work

The entrance to the Fujiko F Fujio museum

LANGUAGE Being introduced is easy peasy

When spoken, Japanese of ten omits quite a lot of difficult grammar. Beginners are in for a treat.

Af ter having finally settle d down and g otten

u s e d t o h ow sma l l th e sp a c e s a ro un d y o u are, and as a Westerner, fe eling the ne e d to q u e s t i o n y o ur r e l a t i o n s h i p t o s p a c e , a f t e r h a v i n g sm e lt that th e a ir i s d i f f erent , that th e l i g ht i s d i fferent, and that e ver y th ing se ems to b e happ en ing at high speed because you don’t want to miss a thing , and after realising that e ver y thing is about to beg in, it is time to b e intro duc e d . Fo l lowing a ver y schol a rl y tr a i n i n g , a n d s ti l l d ep en d a nt o n th e l i n g u i sti c l o g i c o f o n e ’ s m o th er t o n g u e , j u s t l i ke Pi p o , i t is easy to opt for the phrase “ anata no namae wa nan desu ka” to ask the name of the person you have just met. It is because it is ver y close to the Eng lish equiv a l e nt “ W h a t i s y o ur n a m e ? ” Ho w e v e r, t h e r e a r e more natura l and ea sier solutions.

お名前 �� は ?

O namae wa…? You are called?

And to answer, simply reply :

ゆみです。

Yumi desu

Yumi.

What is g o o d ab out Japanese, is that you ne e d not a l w a y s f i n i s h y o ur s e n t e n c e s , a n d n e i t h e r d o y o u ne e d to include a verb Understatements are preferre d . It imp l ies that you are p aying attention to the dialog ue and listening to your interlocutor Japanese

is sometimes like a g ame in which each answer completes the question You stay fo cuse d on what your interlocutor says to take up the thread he is handing y o u T h e q u e s ti o n i s b ut a b e g i nn i n g

sentence, but it announces the form the answer will ta ke

趣味 �� は…？

Shumi wa ?

You like…?

読書

Dokusho desu.

Reading

マンガは…？

Manga wa ?

What about Manga?

大好 �� きです。

Daisuki desu I love it R