This is the first installment of many randomly occurring similarly themed episodes I hope to be able to share with you...there's just too much great stuff to fit into one show, and some of these bands deserve more of a listen than just one song. You shall see.
If you have any comments or suggestions, here's the place to do it...or you can always follow me on the twitter, I'm @yoshiki89 so go for it. Also, please consider following me on Mixlr...if you do, you'll be notified not only when the live broadcast is on, but also when the archive is posted, and whenever I decide to play records on the fly. Thanks for listening!!
Without any further ado...show notes! Timestamps are approximate. PLAY LOUD or SUBMIT TO THE GENOCIDE!! Heavy Metal is the LAW!!
Episode 5 MixCloud (click here to listen to the archive of the broadcast)
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| This is FLATBACKER. Be careful around them. |
Prelude/Intro 0:00:00
Otosan. Tommy Lee Jones. PLATINUM EYEBROW.
LOUDNESS "Crazy Night" 0:02:42
From the 1985 "Thunder in the East" LP. It's practically obligatory to open an hour-long audio dissertation on Japanese metal with LOUDNESS band, because it was their success in Europe (and later, the United States) that kind of helped get Japan beyond just freaked out about metal, and into absolutely totally freaked out about metal. When that happened, we got a lot of these bands in return, so that was awesome.
FLATBACKER "Hard Blow" 0:06:43
From the 1985 "Senzo" LP. Most people don't know that before they were E-Z-O, they were called something else and were one of the heaviest and darkest bands of the early Japanese wave. It was hard to pick just one song for most (if not all) of the bands in tonight's episode, but it was hardest for FLATBACKER.
EARTHSHAKER "Kioku no naka" 0:09:23
From the 1984 "Fugitive" LP. They weren't as heavy as some of their contemporaries, but they were still wildly brilliant...the key to their appeal, I believe, was the way they wore their Y&T influence as if it were a giant badge, the greatest badge in the universe. A lot of people forget about Y&T when they think about metal, maybe you have as well...maybe EARTHSHAKER will remind you, then.
MC 0:12:37
Kyoji Yamamoto > Eddie Van Halen...sorry, but it's true.
...陰陽座 fdsasdf
BOW WOW "You're Mine" 0:15:04
From the 1982 "Warning From Stardust" LP. See my comment above, but know that Kyoji was doing the "guitar hammering" thing before Eddie (but after Franz Zappa, truly inspired by him)...however, Kyoji is a lot more than just the guy who helped make a technique famous. This LP is one of the greatest ever made, and Kyoji's guitar work and seriously intense vocals make it so. I nearly just played the entire LP tonight and left the mic off. I was that close.
WOLF "Running Forever" 0:18:21
From the 1987 Self-titled EP. This act came around towards the end of the "full-on" phase of the Japanese metal wave but when they did, they did it tr00 and hard. They are largely unrecognized for their compact period of greatness worldwide, and there are many other bands called WOLF to prove this. However, in Japan there is only one WOLF that matters, and that's what counts.
X-RAY "Sexual Urge" 0:22:45
From the 1983 "Hard Section" LP. X-RAY were a lot busier than most non-Japanese fans realize, but they were only busy for a few years and now enjoy "reunion fandom" as their reward (as do many of the acts from the 80s). They were good looking lads, and had some interesting album covers as well:
See what I mean?
MC 0:26:53
You shall never return home, HA HA!!
SEIKIMA-II "Roh-ningyou no yakata" 0:28:47
From the 1986 "The End of the Century" LP. Most gaijin see/hear this band for the first time, and think "OK, it's a Japanese version of KISS that sounds more like Iron Maiden" and well, that's like describing a delicious craft-brewed beer as "something made with water." It would take me several hours to fully expose you to the majesty of SEIKIMA-II, and that would kind of still only scratch the surface and leave us all very tired.
ANTHEM "Bound to Break" 0:34:25
From the 1987 "Bound to Break" LP. Eizo Sakamoto is probably the most well-known man in metal as far as the Japanese are concerned. ANTHEM had a long and successful career with and without Sakamoto on vocals, but he always made his work count, no matter what band of project he was lending his talent to.
DEAD END "Phantom Nation"0:38:46
From the 1987 "Ghost of Romance" LP. Another Japanese act that found its "big break" a record release in the U.S., but without the same effect LOUDNESS experienced; that's probably because DEAD END are a rather complicated, and amazing band (along the same lines as GASTUNK). That's not saying that LOUDNESS aren't, but they are great at what they do, and what DEAD END does is very, very different.
MC 0:43:37
If you're still listening...thanks a lot!
ONMYOUZA "Kirameki" 0:45:28
From the 2002 "Kohjin Rasetsu" LP. I said it in the show, and it's true. My favorite metal band was MERCYFUL FATE for many, many years. I heard ONMYOUZA and that was it, they took over and I've never looked back. EVER. The metal fan who has a similar brain as I do gets a little bit of everything here; dual guitar assault, different and exotic flavors, and complementary male and female vocals. It doesn't get any better than ONMYOUZA.
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| 陰陽座 ... they will take over your SOUL |
SEX MACHINEGUNS "BURN ~ai no honoo wo moyase~" 0:49:35
From the 1998 "Sex Machinegun" LP. Joke bands never seem to do well in English-speaking countries, mostly because our sense of humor is too literal and always taken at face value. SEX MACHINEGUNS is a wildly successful band who despite numerous lineup changes, have maintained an aura of outrageous and truly side-splitting humorous approach that never distracts the listener from the wonderful things that are happening in their ears. If you still aren't sure, tell me Anchang isn't one of the best guitarists and metal vocalists you've ever heard, and then you won't get it anyway!!
MC 0:54:06
Final anime holocaust, coming up...
ANIMETAL "Animetal" 0:56:39
From the 1996 "Animetal" Single. More Eizo Sakamoto, and She-ja of VOLCANO, and Syu of GALNERYUS as well, and...you get the picture. A Japanese "super-group," if you will, under Sakamoto's direction, that honor the theme songs of great Sentai/Hero/Super-Robot shows of his youth. This is their first effort, and led the way to their popular "marathon" albums and exciting live performances. In this medley, you will hear the theme songs of Gatchaman, Combattler V, Raideen, Casshern, Mazinger Z, Getter Robo, and Devilman...with Sakamoto's razor voice and totally blistering guitar sound!!
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| It's ANIMETAL, Sakamoto-san is not singing about chili |
Outro 1:02:46
Thanks for listening!!
If you like something on the show, please, go buy it (if it's available). If you own something on the show and don't want me to play it, please let me know.
