The feminine duet YanaKiku have a light, energetic pop style with some good harmonies and a unique stage presence. The unusual outfits they are wearing they call Kimo-Cos by which they mean Kimono Cosplay, which all by itself would make them a perfect band for any Anime Con to invite to their stage. Since they just formed in 2012 they don’t have a huge catalog of music yet, but they are off to a nice start. The first track is called Fujiyama Disco, the second is PakuPaku Kingoyo.
Tango Alpha Tango is an amazing band, and not very long ago they got to present a whole mini-concert over at KEXP-FM. That is a worthwhile endeavor for any group, check out their performance and see what you think.
The band is possibly called Extremity Maiden Guess, and the first track is Killer Ball, an interesting combination of Jazz, Progressive Rock, and Rap, done so the words become another part of the rhythm driving the music. That track was from their second mini-album; the next one is Take Off That Dress from their first EP How To Take Off That Dress, giving you a good grasp on their musical range. The third tune is called Black Parade, and is also from their first EP, which explains why they are using the same outfits, props, and visual themes for the video. This band definitely has an interesting sound and style, I look forward to hearing a lot more from them. One of the many things I like about them is they are not afraid to go somewhere else in mid-song and then pull it back in to the original music, tying it all together nicely.
This week we have the music of Shishamo, a relatively new band who debuted in November of 2013. The first track is from that album, called approximately What she was able to do to me, and the second is I Do Not Want To Go. All three of the band members graduated from the Design And Arts track of their high school, which pretty much explains their video style. They are touring right now, and have another track coming out in July called summer festival with you, the single release for their new album.
Shishido Kavka knows how to rock, and she plays her own drums. Her music covers a wide range of styles, some of it just a bit more syrupy than I would prefer, but a lot of it quite good.
Considering how often she has turned up on the hit Japanese TV show Music Station, I can’t be very surprised about Avril Lavigne’s latest music video Hello Kitty. I was not sure if it was filmed in Japan; that part has now been confirmed. It is kind of refreshing to hear Japanese lyrics in an English language song, rather than the other way around. Unfortunately, I can not embed the video into my page for you, it is only available from her web page, linked here.
NOTE: Since that last comment, it has been released in embeddable form. Enjoy. Watch the third video here carefully, and you will see her being given the Hello Kitty guitar she uses in the Hello Kitty music video, when she appeared on a Japanese talk/variety TV show.