The Rock Issue: The Rookies of 2020

Running down some of the great 2020 singles from newcomers such as Stereogirl, Culenasm, Laura Day Romance and many more

Hi! Welcome to a special issue of This Side of Japan dedicated to up-and-coming rock bands of Japan! You can check out back issues of the main newsletter here.

More than a specific sound or style, what excites me about most of these bands is how they translate the energy of youth into the music. Loud guitar music, whether it’d be a blast of pop punk or a mix inspired by tender dream pop, serves as a well-fitting vehicle for raw adolescent emotions. The all-consuming noise not only reflects that tunnel-vision perspective of one’s teenage years focused on the moment and nothing much else, but it also channels that feeling of invincibility reserved for an age where there are so many years ahead in the future. If nothing else, these bands pump some fresh blood to the scene to prove rock music is still very much alive.

You can check out these songs as well as some more that didn’t make the cut in this Spotify playlist. Hope you find something new. Happy listening!

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“TV” by Chie [Back9 / 3P3B]

The live-wire indie-rock of Chie may not seem like the kind that lends itself to drive a song about sleep, but the way the band suddenly kicks the music in full gear about a minute in fully captures the wave of self-loathing thoughts that comes rushing in during a fight with insomnia. “The worst night begins to fall,” Kaito Yamada sings, “these white walls and ceiling begins to melt into my thoughts.” While he fails to shush his mind when he needs it to in “TV,” Yamata seems relieved to see the morning light peek into his bedroom.

Ordinary Hours EP is out now. Listen to it on Spotify.

“Drown” by Collapse [Only Feedback]

“Drown” is deeply submerged in torrential feedback, and the stormy guitars slowly weep as if it’s struggling to move its body due to the song’s incredible sonic density. But the all-consuming noise can’t completely obscure the ethereal voice of the shoegaze act’s singer Shoko, whose melodic sighs you can make out even through the shoegaze band’s huge wash of sound.

Listen to the single on Bandcamp/Spotify

“Epilogue Made” by Culenasm [MMM / Red]

The wistful shoegaze rock of Culenasm suits stories of ambiguous longing and ennui, and the two anonymous partners of “Epilogue Made” head down a sullen path. While the band’s pretty music sets a friction-less atmosphere between the relationship, the dam breaks come the soaring chorus. Melodramatic as it sounds, vocalist Moe sings the chorus as though she can finally see the world with much clarity. “Probably the days heading towards the end of this story is the reason for your happiness,” she sings, the lyrics ringing bittersweet but clear as a bell.

Listen to the song on Spotify.

“Cream Soda” by Inner Journey [TrumiRiver]

Inner Journey have better things to occupy their minds with than what’s happening in the world at large. “In this small room full of junk/ I’m thinking about cream sodas,” Sara Kamoshita begins the easy-going track, and the guitar’s slight homely twang provides the song a suburban comfort. She relaxes in peace, but soon, her innocent daydreams naturally trail back to an old crush who just won’t stay out of her head.

Listen to the song on Spotify.

“Korede Iinda” by KALMA [JVCKENWOOD]

If the title of KALMA’s major-label debut Teen Teen Teen didn’t make the member’s age clear enough, the music video for “Korede Iinda” from the album highlights it with scenes of the three involved in some adorable wintertime hijinks. Their gutsy pop-punk channels an adrenaline-shot innocence much like the boys in the video, absorbed in their own world. “The days we cried/ The days we laughed/ Even the days that turned out messy/ I’ll embrace everything,” they sing while gearing up for tomorrow with an enviable sense of optimism.

Teen Teen Teen is out now. Listen to the album on Spotify.

“Ima Wo Tsumekonde” by Kaneyorimasaru [D.T.O. 30]

The bold, straightforward riffs of Kaneyorimasaru are a great vehicle as any to get their fuzzy feelings across, but “Ima Wo Tsumekonde” doesn’t exactly unfold as an urgent call for attention. Mina Chitose remains unhurried to find out whether or not the feeling is mutual despite the world being wholly colored by the thoughts of her crush. “Even if the same season comes back around, I can’t stay the same/ even if those old feelings comes back, it won’t be like old times,” she sings before the chorus that bears her heart. She seems at peace knowing if they miss their chance, it’s their bad.

Koi Wa Sentakki No Naka is out August 26.

“Rendez-vous” by Laura Day Romance [|for|]

If Laura Day Romance wrote their debut full-length, Farewell Your Town, as a loose concept album with each song unfolding as a story, then “Rendez-vous” might be the charming first-kiss scene. Frontwoman Kazuki Inoue ascends to cloud nine thinking about a newfound crush while the countryside guitars give the song a starry shine. The constant one-two back beat keeps the music on the up and up. She holds her head, wondering what that kiss might really mean, but she’s too taken over by the highs of love to dwell on uncertainty.

Farewell Your Town is out now. Listen to it on Spotify.

“That Means a Lot” by Mabuta [Never Enough]

“Even if the fever cools down and almost fades away/ we probably won’t even have the time to cry,” shouts Hirotaka Kashiwagi in the lead single of Mabuta’s upcoming mini album, A Sudden Impact. The singer and the rest of the band are too busy feeling the rush of the moment to sweat the heavy stuff, and their bold power chords further propel their momentum. It’s easy to get lost in the sentimental pop-punk music, charged by the electricity of youth.

A Sudden Impact is out June 24. Listen to “That Means a Lot” on Spotify.

“March” by My Lucky Day [self-released]

My Lucky Day’s Bandcamp bio writes out a rather introverted origin story—“making songs for no one and with no intentions to show”—that channels the band’s large shoegaze influence. And yet their self-titled debut EP explodes with energy, starting with lead track “March.” The sun-burst guitar tone recreates the alluring colors of the memories that the band desperately wants to revisit while the fuzzy, scrawled riffs capture the fleeting nature of their precious days.

My Lucky Day EP is out now. Listen to it on Bandcamp.

“Aoi Zanzou” by Namida Ai [Rainy Canvas]

Guitars immediately come rushing in to kick off “Aoi Zanzou,” the top-batter of Namida Ai’s debut full-length, Taiyou Korosu Umbrella. While the singer-songwriter seems to dwell on the metaphorical, she delivers her lyrics as visceral as the tidal riff that guides them. “Under these bigger skies, let’s keep changing shapes/ In the middle of this crowd, I’m going to look for you,” she declares during the tail end of the chorus, where the roaring guitars zoom by with a fleeting velocity.

Taiyou Korosu Umbrella is out now. Listen to it on Spotify.

“Goodbye Train” by Ryukku To Soine Gohan [Rice Recordings/Eggs]

The idea of youth heavily plays into the exuberant rock songs of Ryukku To Soine Gohan, and they turn more poignant knowing the voices responsible for lyrics about the fleeting nature of teenhood are teenagers themselves. “Ah, so everything won’t disappear, I’m going to embrace it all/ and take the fast train to your town,” Yu Matsumoto shouts in the chorus of “Goodbye Train” from the band’s debut album, Seishun Nikki. Despite the clock ticking at a faster speed, the four-piece sounds eager to make the best of the present.

Seishun Nikki is out now. Listen to it on Spotify.

“Slumber” by Stereogirl [Chigakushitsu]

Previously featured in This Side of Japan: Issue #7

Stereogirl can kick a sharp dose of adrenaline through speedy punk riffs, but their more tender cuts, like last year’s “Aiwana,” has had more staying power for me. The indie-rock band stake out a sweet middle between the two poles in “Slumber,” the lead single from their upcoming full-length, Pink Fog. Strictly on paper, frontwoman Anju Mouri sounds antsy to get a move on: “When I’ll learn about love is still ahead of me/ so hurry, hurry, let’s get out of here,” she sings, scoffing about the change of season as some grand metaphor. But the rest of the band approach their usual punk rock at a more casual, comfortable pace, reminding their vocalist that it’s sometimes better to relax and take in the scenery.

Pink Fog is out now. Listen to the album on Spotify.

“Shirankao” by TETORA [Orange Owl]

Tetora are caught adrift in the changing times in the band’s new single, Arekara. While they offer a bittersweet tribute to the end of high school in “Dai Ni Sho,” the three-piece articulate frustration from a dead-end relationship in “Shirankao.” Hayune Ueno sings about a love beyond repair—“but no matter how much I scream at you, I still don’t know what to do,” she shouts in the chorus—while the pop-punk guitars wrestle to search for a peace of mind. Though it channels out all that pent-up angst, the song still leaves behind a slight taste of dissatisfaction.

Arekara is out now.

“Haru No Nakae” by Tip Top Nap [self-released]

Tip Top Nap have awaken from a long slumber with a new single since winter 2018’s Calm Down EP. While they’re still rubbing their eyes in the mellow drift of “Kotoba No Hana,” the band is ready to bask in the warmth of spring in the effervescent C86 rock of “Hana No Nakae.” “Goodbyes, we keep repeating and carrying it on,” Natsumi Yamamoto sings as a brief aside. Her bitter past quickly becomes old news, however, as the guitars start rushing back in to show her the brighter things tomorrow has in store.

Kotoba No Hana/Haru No Nakae is out now. Listen to it on Bandcamp/Spotify.

The next issue of This Side of Japan is out June 24. You can check out previous issues here.