Hotel New Otani

Being a beautiful spring day, I decided to wander around some parts of Tokyo I hadn't really explored before. I got off the train at Yotsuya and walked past Sophia University until I reached the Hotel New Otani, a huge luxury hotel, built to coincide with the Tokyo Olympics back in 1964. It's also famous for having featured in the James Bond film set in Japan, 'You Only Live Twice'. Sadly, with the salary I'm on I'm never likely to be able to afford to stay there, but wandering around the picturesque gardens is free, and you can easily forgot you're in the centre of a big city.

Cherry Blossoms in Yostuya

Taiko at Lunchtime

I went to one of my regular spots for lunch today ~ Tinun in the Ramla shopping centre next to Iidabashi Station and when I came out there was a taiko performance in progress on the walkway near the entrance. I think it was part of the 'Happy Blossoms' spring campaign. In any case it was quite entertaining to watch, and a relaxing way to spend the rest of my lunch break.

Neo Shocker in Nakano

Just 500 yen to turn your anorka into an invisible cloak. Or alternatively imbibe a potion that will make you think you have super powers. Go, Major Glory! ... or something like that, I guess.

Hand Made Sweets

If you go north from Nakano Station for a few minutes you reach Arai, and in one of the pedestrian shopping streets there you can find Papabubble, a shop that makes hand made boiled sweets of all kinds of flavours, colours and shapes. Fancy some lemon candy? Well, it'll not only be yellow and taste of lemon, it'll also look like a tiny slice of lemon. All the sweets are made on the premises and half of the fun is watching them being made ~ a long, meticulous process similar to the way that sticks of rock candy are made in the UK. On top of that the sweets come in attractive packaging and taste really good too. I opted for 'choco-mint' yesterday, but will try something fruitier next time.

Arai Yakushi in the Spring

Took these snaps on a warm spring afternoon in the grounds of Arai Yakushi temple in Nakano.

Native at 7th Floor, Shibuya

Saturday night I was out in Shibuya to see Native with the official release party for their fourth album titled 'Just Four'. The event was at trendy little spot called 7th Floor, a kind of laid back cafe with a stage. For tonight's set, they were joined by "Mattz" from quasimode on percussion, which further enriched their live sound.

The band's set was divided into two halves with a DJ set in between, and they played tracks from the past as well as from the new album, and the audience were lapping it all up. The crowd became even more animated and lively when a couple of jazz dancers appeared for the new album's title track, 'Just Four', and a couple of others. As ever they closed their set out with 'Diva', an old favourite from the album 'Intentions', and then came back for a two track encore.

The band were on top form tonight and hopefully they can build on their audience from here. After the set I had the chance to chat briefly with sax player, Tomoyoshi Nakamura, who was a really sound guy, and he seemed really happy with the whole evening and the level of appreciation they received.

Books: The Sinner by Petra Hammesfahr

On a day as unremarkable as any other, Cora Bender, a young mother decides to commit suicide at a local park. Somehow she is distracted from her task and instead savagely attacks and kills a young man in full view of her husband and son, as well as dozens of witnesses. She readily confesses to her crime and wants to be punished in a suitable way, but the investigating detective, Rudolf Grovian, is driven to discover why Cora committed this crime. Initially he is led through a maze of lies, but he is determined to get to the bottom of the case, which involves uncovering dark and horrific secrets from the young woman's past.

Not so much a 'whodunnit' as a 'whydunnit', 'The Sinner' is a superb yet disturbing psychological thriller that is hard to put down. Hammesfahr is a big name in crime fiction in her native Germany, and this is the first of her books to be translated into English. If this is anything to go by, there are more treats to come.

Smiling Faces Sometimes

The Moon - Nostalgia 77 & Capstone
Invocation - Naruyoshi Kikuchi Dub Sextet
Quiet Fire - J.A.M
Break In - Skalpel
Witch Jam - The Whitefield Brothers
El Mensaje - El Fabulosos Festivales
Exciters Theme - Exciters
Smiling Faces Sometimes - Bobbi Humphrey
Beloved Gift - Bernie Senensky Trio
Running Away From Jerzy - Franco Micalizzi

What Is It Good For? ... Absolutely Nothing!

Graffiti spotted in Nakano today.

Books: The Music In My Head by Mark Hudson

The Music In My Head is at one both an original novel, but yet at the same time one revisiting familiar themes. It's original in that it may be the only novel to date about the world music phenomenon of the late eighties. The white man out of his depth in darkest Africa is a theme, however, that has been the topic of several novels in the past.

The story is a first person narrative from the point of view of Andrew "Litch" Litchfield, A&R man and music producer, who is a leading authority on African music. Scratch that, he is the self-proclaimed creator of the world music boom, there is no greater authority on this music than the man himself. The boom has now passed though and maybe things aren't going as well as before for Litch. The start of the novel sees him jetting in to N'Galam, capital of Tekrur to meet the king of African music, Sajar Jopp. Veteran of many trips to the African continent, Litch heads off full of bravado and also disdain for other white visitors who seem out of their depth. He soon finds, however, that on this trip things aren't going quite as smoothly as he had hoped and self-doubt and paranoia start to creep in as he visits the heart of his own darkness. I found myself both detesting and sympathising with Litch at various points throughout the book as he stumbles from one crisis to another.

Hudson is at his best when describing the music and the mood of Africa, and, for anyone who is crazy about music, this makes an enjoyable read. And if you followed the world music fad, then you will have fun identifying the real life musicians that served as a (very loose) inspiration for some of the characters.

Night sky ... Tuesday

Bony Coffee in Koenji

Cycling between Koenji and Asagaya I came across this little establishment and decided I had to look inside. An old-style Showa-era Japanese coffee shop that's probably been around for at least 30 years, it's decked out with comfy chairs and yellowing wallpaper, probably neither of which have been changed since it opened. Service is friendly but slow and the coffee is great. A great place to read and let time slip by, though being an old-style shop, there is no smoke-free area, which is a downer.

Great White Wonder in Koenji

This is a great little shop that sells nothing you really need, but it's fun to look around nonetheless. If it's a hairdryer that looks like a gun you're after, or maybe a retro-style wooden toy, or simply a moleskin notebook, then this is the place to visit. Then again, it's just fun to browse too.

Master of the World

Trouble - Beat Konducta
Twinkle - Erykah Badu
Diva - Native
Sahara - Soil & "Pimp" Sessions
Master of the World - J.A.M
She May Be Moody - The Stance Brothers
Exciters Theme - The Exciters
My Back Scratcher - Frank Frost
Land of Love - Sons of Light
It's Gonna Rain - Gentleman June Gardner

Tokyo Mentsu Dan in Shinjuku

On Sunday I went for lunch at Tokyo Mentsu Dan, which is a few minutes away from the west exit of Shinjuku station. It sells sanuki udon, which is a type of noodle from Kagawa prefecture that in recent years has become popular nationwide. If pressed to say how sanuki udon is different from other types, I think I would describe it as being somewhat al dente.
Outside there is a board in Japanese and garbled English explaining how to proceed from the entrance to the till. My favourite is the note at the bottom that says "If you confuse the way of movement and different, it is okay." I'm glad they made that clear!

Anyway, once you've manoeuvred you way from the noodle counter, past the tempura where you 'take the one of taste at saucer of equipment', and you've paid for it all, you can sit down and enjoy a very hearty, inexpensive lunch. Great stuff!

Organ Jazz Bar Numabukuro

Near Numabukuro Station in a basement there is a fairly new venue called the Organ Jazz Bar, which has regular live music. It opened about a year and a half ago, and I've been meaning to go for some time. Tonight I finally got round to it. The small but comfortable bar has a grand piano and a vintage Hammond B3 organ as fixtures, and you are sitting right up close to the music, which adds to the atmosphere.

I didn't know anything about who was playing, but decided that Saturday night was as good a night to go as any night, and a real treat it was. There was a four man session of musicians featuring "Fire" Watanabe on soprano and alto sax, though have to confess to not being able to read the other names as my knowledge of kanji is pretty limited. They played a superb energetic set moving between Hammond jazz funk and contemporary jazz, which was well-received by the crowd of just a dozen or so people.

I'll definitely be coming back here at some point.

Street Art in Nakano

The wall that previously sported the James Brown and then the psychotic looking clown (as show here last year), now sports these images.

Yours truly at Tower Records (for a limited period only)

Well, sort of ...

The new quasimode album, 'Straight To The Land of Freedom' dropped today, so I went along to get my copy at Tower Records in Shibuya. It's a recording of the concert I went to see last November at Liquid Room. On the jazz floor, there is a display for the album, with a promotional clip of part of the concert on a TV screen by the display. I was standing at the front on the left at the gig, and in the clip you can see a head bopping up and down wearing some thick black framed specs. So, fame at last (after a fashion)! But blink and you'll miss it

Wonder what's on sale here

Shop sign in Shiba Koen. It was closed when I walked past this morning, but I'm curious to know what they sell.

Zojo-ji

I took advantage of the nice weather today to take a circuitous route into work and walked around the Shiba Koen area a bit, taking in Zojo-ji ~ a major temple complex in the shadow of Tokyo Tower. The temple has been on this site for almost 500 years, and it was the temple of the Tokugawa family in the Edo　period, though it has been destroyed on more than one occasion in wars and other disasters. The grounds are impressive even today, though it seems that they were more extensive in the past.

Obama Campaign In Japan

One story that amused me today was the news that Obama City is happily promoting Barack Obama in his campaign to be America's first black president after receiving permission to use his image from the man himslef. The small, sleepy fishing port in Fukui prefecture with a population just a bit smaller than my hometown, Dover, is attempting to promote itself in Japan by supporting the presidential bid of its namesake. You can buy special Obama lacquered chopsticks, snacks, T-shirts and other goods which cash in on the US politician's image. I'm almost tempted to visit ...

Blue Skin

On a wall running alongside Nakano Station

All Day Music

Ibadan Sunrise - Wale Oyejide
The Healer - Erykah Badu
Put Your Weight On It (feat. Soup) - Connie Price & The Keystones
Soul Suite - Dave Hamilton
Barrington's Groove - The Baker Brothers
Invocation - Naruyoshi Kikuchi Dub Sextet
The Strings Of Life - Christian Prommer's Drumlesson
Vedenneito - Dalindeo
All Day Music - War
Soul Village - Walter Bishop Jr

Theatre Poster (detail)

Street Art In Kichijoji

Window shoping in Kichijoji

Spent Sunday wandering around Kichijoji looking in the shops but without any intention of buying anything. One shop I quite like is called Board, a tiny little shop with a nice selection of bags, wallets, hats, ornaments and knick-knacks for the home.

Tsukushino Station

Hinamatsuri display

March 3rd is Hinamatsuri, also known as the Dolls' Festival or Girls' Day, and, from mid-February onwards people in Japan put out a traditional display of dolls like this one in a shop space in the Nakano area. I don't know that much about the festival, but as far as I know, the display is supposed to represent the imperial court of centuries gone by, with the Emperor and Empress at the top. I think (though I could well be wrong) that displaying the dolls is supposed to ward off bad luck and bring good health to the girls of a family.

Lilac skies

Late Sunday afternoon. The latest in what, unintentionally, has become a series of sky shots.

J.A.M. at Apple Store, Ginza

Following a bit of fortuitous net-surfing I found what I was going to do with myself on Saturday night, and after work I was out the door and off to Ginza and the bright lights and ultra chic shops. On the third floor of the Apple Store is a theatre space which, judging from the flyers, is normally used for product promotion events and seminars. Last night, however, there was an event of a different kind, as J.A.M. were playing a live set as a promotional event for the "Jazzy Joint" EP that was recently released on iTunes Japan (and ahead of their debut album out in just under two weeks) to a lucky select audience of about 80-100 people.

The lights went down at 7 p.m. and on screen was the promotional video for the lead track 'Jazzy Joint' featuring Jose James on vocals. After that the band came on and played a 50 minute or so set with their usual passion and verve. No matter how many times I see J.A.M. (or Soil & "Pimp" Sessions) they never fail to impress me ~ their musicianship and energy is simply a wonder to watch. And tonight being in a tiny venue there was the added benefit of seeing them very close up as they played.

The set was closed out with a storming version of "Quiet Passion" and the went off to rapturous applause before a mellower track for the encore. A superb way to spend the evening, made even better by the fact that it was an on-the-spot decision.

Just counting down the album release now ...

Quiet Passion

Love - Jose James
The Sour - Peder
Just Four - Native
Marriage Is A State Of Vibes - Dave Hamilton
Carla's Beat - Diesler feat Katie Miller
Let's Straighten It Out - Gwen McCrae
Across The Atlantic - The Budos Band
African Battle - Brownout
Chester's Tongue - The Baker Brothers
Quiet Passion (live version) - J.A.M.

Early Blossoms in Shiba Koen

Books: Into The Wild by John Krakauer

With "Into The Wild", fresh-air fiend John Krakauer recounts the true story of Chris McCandless, a young idealist who, in 1992, set off into the Alaskan wilderness equipped with just a small backpack and a ten-pound bag of rice. Sadly his trip ended tragically and this book invetsigates his last years and tries to explain what led this upper middle class youth to cut all ties with his family and opt for a life on the road going by the name of Alex Supertramp. McCandless had an idealistic outlook inspired by the works of Jack London, Thoreau and Tolstoy, though there are some who suggest he was more of a naive fool than a modern day king of the road. Krakauer, however, paints a very sympathetic portrait of Chris/Alex and seems to feel some kind of kinship with him. The narrative of the main protagonist's last years are interspersed with anecdotes of other similar tragic tales, including a near-fatal adventure undertaken by the author.

I'll be curious to catch Sean Penn's film version of the book when it hits Japanese shores, as I've heard it's had good reviews.

A truly absorbing and moving book for anyone who has a sense of adventure and a love of life.

Moon in the afternoon

The view from my window on Monday afternoon.

Late afternoon sky