Hi, welcome to This Side of Japan, a newsletter about Japanese music, new and old. The first issue will arrive on January 8, 2020. New issues will be delivered every other Wednesday.
The title This Side of Japan is supposed to allude to my perspective of Japan, formed secondhand with the help of YouTube, Twitter and other social media. I don’t live in Japan; I’m a Japanese immigrant who grew up in America. So my understanding of the country’s music, culture and icons are mostly shaped through what’s shared through these internet channels for better or worse. For many fans of international music, this experience shouldn’t be anything new.
Here’s what you can expect in every issue:
Album of the Week - A capsule review of a new Japanese record that caught my attention.
Singles Club - Short blurbs on three new Japanese singles worth your time.
This Week in… - A write-up on the week’s number-one single in the Oricon charts from 10, 20 or maybe even 50 years ago.
Hope this can be a fun portal for you to get know more about Japanese music! You can subscribe to the newsletter below.