Nagoya

By way of a cursory look on Japanese television, you would be forgiven for believing that Japan’s music industry was an endless parade of identikit Johnny’s boy bands or sprawling AKB-48 affiliated girl groups. There is nothing wrong with this homogenous J-Pop, per se, but there has to be more to it than that. And of course, there is, but you tend not to find it on TV or the stadium tour scene. Instead, you can find up-and coming-bands, aspiring independent artists, and veteran acts plying their trade in Japan’s rich and thriving live house scene. In Japanese, the word ライブ [raibu, live] is a noun for what we might call a concert, show or gig – for example, one might say ‘I saw Tame Impala’s live yesterday,’ as opposed to ‘I saw Tame Impala’s live show, yesterday’ – and as such, a live house is similar to the club or gig circuit that artists might play in the US, UK or Australia. Nagoya, in particular, has a thriving live house scene, with some fantastic venues at which to watch local bands, touring national artists, and even a fair few international acts. So, what are you waiting for? Get out there…