I wasn’t able to get to Cradle to Grave last weekend, but I’m definitely going to be at Tokyo Hardcore Construction on the 11th. Here’s another great THC video, a semi-review of November’s event/preview of this month’s. Look out for the amazing decor being set up at the start of the video, and also the great backing tune – produced by Lunch once again.
Just time for some good news before I go to bed – Zio is holding one final event at the end of this month after all. Appropriately titled ‘Last Dance’, this might be Zio’s last event for quite some time, as he’s announced that he wants to take a break from DJing. That’s a real loss to the Hard NRG scene, and also for the hardstyle fans in Tokyo, as he’s just about the only person I know pushing that sound at the moment.
Anyway, I’m honoured to be on the lineup for this one, and although all the DJs haven’t been announced yet, so far we have Zio, Munetica, Minagi and myself. No doubt there’ll be more news coming before too long (or at least I hope so, I don’t know any more than this at the moment either), so watch this space.
Before I forget, here’s my Top Ten for December (and December only, mind, not the whole of 2008). The photo of Guld, Android Lime and myself was taken at NRGetic Romancer last weekend – I really like this one, three guys who would never have met each other if it wasn’t for Hard NRG. Android’s on his way back to South Africa now, I think – but we managed to meet up a few times in the end, and he’s a top man. Wonder when/where the next time will be..?
Also, I was listening to the low-quality version of Voices of Babylon again last night (after saying it was my tune of last year), and I was sitting here literally shaking my head with admiration/disbelief – it’s an absolutely incredible tune. I’m almost literally praying for a release before too long…
Anyway, the Top Ten:
- Trevor Jones – Last of the Mohicans Title (Alek Szahala remix)
- DJ B.R.K – I Kissed a Girl
- A+D+A+M Lab 4 – Psychopath (Proteus remix)
- Epyx & Cyrez – Distant Illusions
- Android Lime – Robot Noize (DJ X Lab 4 remix)
- Betwixt & Between – Matter of Fact
- Alabaster – Headless
- Betwixt & Between – Tankobu Hesotarou no Hourou
- Alabaster – Power Conduit
- Grimsoul – After Quality
Long-term readers might remember that I semi-tried to do something similar last year, but this time I’ve made a bit more of an effort – here is a year in Hard NRG/Hardcore from some of the main guys (and girl) in the Japanese scene. Nothing too in-depth, but I’ve asked everyone for their Top 3 tunes from 2008, their favourite artist, and favourite DJ (or Live PA). Big big thanks to everyone who replied, but Betwixt & Between is being his usual thoughtful self and still considering his answers – I’ll add him to this post when he gets back to me.
It turned out to be a lot more interesting than I was expecting – there are some really varied answers with a lot of tunes/artists I hadn’t heard of. If the world hasn’t imploded by the end of 2009, I might try asking a few of the guys from slightly different genres too (Lunch, Chucky etc)…
One more thing – I’d genuinely be interested to hear your own Top 3 tunes of the year, best artist, and best DJ/Live PA. I noticed during the past year that there are people checking TYFTH from all over the place, so feel free to write your own answers in the comments box!
Click for the answers so far: Continue Reading
I had a pretty quiet New Year’s Eve, and so instead of spectacular sunrises I present here a photo of a Neon Genesis Evangelion Angel, which I bumped into while shopping for shoes in Shibuya a week or so back.
Anyway, I hope everyone had a good one – and thanks a million to everyone who’s been checking my humble blog during the last year. It’s been really great to hear from NRG fans/DJs/producers from pretty much every corner of the world, so thanks especially to the folk who’ve been leaving comments/getting in touch via MySpace etc. Really appreciated.
As for me, my plan to get NRG Monogatari 3 finished soon has been stalled again…because (whisper it quietly) there might be a Hell’s-Gate-but-not-exactly event on the 31st of this month. If there is, I’ll try to record my set and upload it ASAP while I get on with the ‘real’ version. 2008 was a pretty amazing year for me, music-wise, but I’ll be going all guns blazing to be more productive on the mix front in ’09.
I got back from NRGetic Romancer this morning, and after a sleep my feet are still killing me. I definitely overdid the ‘dancing’, but it was a great event. I’ll write up a bit of a report once some pictures/video show up, but Android Lime did really well, suffice to say for now.
Anyway, while I was at NRGetic Romancer I finally received issue 3 of the UK’s Core magazine, via DJ Swoosh in Finland and then Guld. As part of my job with Hybridize I do some writing here and there, and for the FINRG section of Core I was asked to give a quick introduction to the new label, that sort of thing. I was expecting it to be just some background info for the staff on the magazine, who would then go on to write their own article – but my version was printed in full! Not quite what I was expecting, and I’m even given credit for it at the end of the article. If you’re in the UK, it’s worth seeking out a copy – there’s a pretty lengthy interview with Proteus in the same section as my Hybridize blurb.
The headline pretty much says it all – it’s a real bolt from the blue, but tonight Zio has decided to stop Hell’s Gate, as of now. There seem to be a few reasons, but one is that there will be too few DJs from next year. Kana is taking a break from DJing, and Stanfield wasn’t going to be on the lineup for January’s event, leaving Zio, me, and Minagi (plus perhaps MKT/take-de-x).
Rather than bring in other DJs and risk changing the Hell’s sound, Zio has decided to call it a day… I’d hazard a guess that the financial side of things is another reason, as Hell’s has been doing no more than ‘ok’ with regard to attracting punters recently. The scene isn’t really big enough to get more than the couple of hundred that tend to turn out for this and NRGetic Romancer though (especially with both events being held on the ‘wrong side’ of Tokyo in Tamachi), so it’s difficult to see how that would have improved next year.
Of course, I’m really disappointed – the DJs and regular attendees at Hell’s were a brilliant crowd, and the atmosphere was really one of a friendly group of people who really love this kind of music. I’ve only played at two events, but my sets were (if I’m allowed to say so) very well received, and it’s really a shame not to keep developing that ‘relationship’ with the Hell’s crowd. I’ve suggested to Zio that one more ‘final’ event might be a good idea, but we’ll see…there seems to be a small chance.
So – it seems that I’ll be on the lookout for a new event to DJ at….although as there are only 2 or 3 in the whole of Tokyo, it might prove tricky. I have a few contacts in each though, so there’s still hope. In the meantime I’ll have more time to get some mixes out and concentrate on Hybridize projects, which is a good thing. Finally, massive thanks to Zio for giving me the chance to play at Hell’s, and to all the people who came to support/check out my sets this year.
Just added to Trackitdown is the Full Circle DJs remix of one of my favourite new tunes, Invader & Nightforce’s Auferstehung. The Full Circle version is a brilliant remix, with some particularly Buzzmasta-esque goings on in the breakdowns. DJ Yousuke has said tonight that it’ll be played at this week’s NRGetic Romancer, and you can buy the tune here.
A couple of nice events are not far away at all – the first is Cradle to Grave on the 4th January, where the standout artists are Alabaster and a very rare Beserk & Haste set. It’s to be held at Heavy Sick in Nakano, so pretty close to home, and is another Tano*C-style afternoon event.
The following weekend (the 11th) sees the next Tokyo Hardcore Construction at Studio Cube. I’ll definitely be at this one, but there doesn’t seem to be a lineup announced yet.
Alabaster has just announced his newest mix album, and it looks very very good indeed. Future Sight features tunes by Alabaster himself, Umbrella, a surprisingly freeform-ish tune from Minamotoya, and two Betwixt & Between tracks, War Monger and Tankobu Hesotarou no Hourou (The wandering of Hesotarou Tankobu). War Monger is a pretty old tune, but a real classic…incredibly hard, with a brilliant break and vocal sample (“We’re going to die now“, she says). THnoH is brand new (Betwixt completed it on the day of the last Hell’s Gate), and one of his best for a good while. It has a hard trance feel, but is more ‘traditional BTW’ than some of his recent experiments. Really excellent track.
Anyway, all of the other tunes on the mix CD are very nice, and the atmosphere is completely different to UK or Finnish freeform – it seems like Japanese Hard NRG is really starting to build up its own identity. Incidentally, two unmixed tracks are also included, Alabaster’s The Clairvoyance (Distortion Girl) and Ziggurat. The CD will be released on the 29th of this month, at the Comiket (Comic Market) event for doujin (fan-produced) manga and related stuff. I’ll try to find out if it’s available from abroad, as this release looks like a definite must-buy.