Japanese Prog!

Hello fellow progheads.        &n bsp;         &n bsp;         &n bsp;    

 

A good reason to start a thread about Japanese prog is that one can read so few reviews about Japanese bands on this site while this scene is so prolific and fascinating! For me the discovery of it started in the late Eighties when I visited a SI Music Progrock Meeting on a boat in Rotterdam, the famous Dutch harbor city. At the end of the evening a reviewer played two albums by Japanese progrock band Gerard, I was blown away and determined to get this music! A few years later I finally succeeded to purchase their fist two albums, each US $ 30,-, special import prices but I didn’t care at all because my quest for Japanese progrock had started from that moment. In the forthcoming years I ordered Japanese progrock from labels like Made In Japan and Nexus and also noticed that Japan has a vivid progrock scene, many great LP’s from non-Japanese progrock bands (from Argentine Crusis and Dutch Earth &Fire to Spanish Crack) were exclusively released in Japan.

But back to the Japanese progrock, it is a very varied scene featuring very crafted musicians who often play more than one instrument. Many bands are strongly influenced by ELP, King Crimson and UK but the Japanese progrock also delivers classical overtones.But you have to be up to the often high pitched Japanese vocals, these will not be everybody’s cup of tea.  

 

Here are my favorite bands/recommendations:

 

* Gerard-Gerard and Empty Dream: compelling prog with great keyboards and fiery

   electric guitar, akind of harder edged mid-Genesis

* Ars Nova-The Goddess Of Darkness: virtuosic ELP inspired instrumental prog

* Outer Limits-The Scene Of Pale Blue: excellent blend of classic and symphonic with

   echoes from King Crimson, beautiful violin and splendid Mellotron waves

* Providence-And I’ll Recite Of An Old Mythe .. : dynamic and powerful prog featuring

   wonderful Mellotron eruptions in the vein of early King Crimson

* Cosmos Factory-An Old Castle Of Transylvania: lots of Hammond and Mellotron and

   psychedelic climates

* Pageant-La Mosaique De la Reverie: beautiful melodic prog with hints from Genesis,

   Camel and Renaissance, the work on guitar, flute and keyboards is very moving

* Novela-Symphonic World: compilation that contains most of their long compositions

   delivering lots of Mellotron waves

* Keyboards Triangle- a thrilling compilation with tracks from ELP, Trace, Il Balletto Di      

   Bronzo, Banco, Rick Wakeman and PFM, played by Gerard and Ars Nova, you can’t

   beg for more keyboard pyrotechnics!

* Interpose+-Interpose+-stunning new band that plays very dynamic prog with lots of

   shifting moods and great soli on keyboards and guitar. The music alternates between

   symphonic and jazzrock, highly recommended!

 

I am very curious to your opinion about the Japanese progressive rock, which bands you like or what recommendations you have!

 

                  A BIG HAND FOR THE NIPPON PROG  !

 

There are many masterpieces unlisted on Prog Archives. My favorite bands/artists are:

*Yoninbayashi - The most famous band. Usually Japanese choose this band as the most popular progressive rock band. ALBUM: Isshoku Sokuhatsu

*Cosmos Factory - As well as Yoninbayashi, Cosmos Factory is one of the most popular band in Japan. All the four albums are attractive. But if I select one album, I agree with erik neuteboom. ALBUM: Transylvania no Kojo

*Gerard - I prefer Fujimura's vocal era. ALBUM: Irony Of Fate

*Ars Nova - All female trio. Ars Nova is influenced by Il Balletto Di Bronzo and ELP. ALBUM: Android Domina

*Bi Kyo Ran - One of the most King Crimson like band in the world. When I listend first time in early 1980s, I was astonished because Bi Kyo Ran played like Crimson. ALBUM: Parallax

*Far East Family Band - Kitaro joined in this group. But the band leader is Miyash*ta. ALBUM: Parallel World

*Ain Soph - Ain Soph was tremendously suffered by earthquake in Kobe. So they stopped around 10 years after the disaster. ALBUM: A Story OF Mysterious Forest

*After Dinner - RIO avant garde pop. After Dinner was one of the outstanding group in 1980s. ALBUM: Glass Tube

*Wha-ha-ha - Avant gard music and comedy ! If you can speak Japanese, you can laugh this strange world. ALBUM: Getahaitekonakucha

*Marge Litch - Progressive hard rock band. They are still active today. ALBUM: Higeki no Izumi

*Novela - One of the most important progressive hard rock band. Many Japanese bands have been iinfluenced by Novela. ALBUM: Paradise Lost

*Love Live Life - Important band of first generation of Japanese progressive rock movement. Best album is Love Will Make A Better You. This album is released by Love Live Life + One. Because Love Live Life invited a guest singer Fuse Akira and he was added as One.

*Magical Power Mako - The most important avant garde musician. He has been released more than 20 albums since middle of 1970s. ALBUM: Magical Power

*Vienna - Super band by famous progressive rock musicians. ALBUM: Step Into ...

*Outer Limits - Tsukamoto's band. I remember they were acclaimed in France in 1980s. ALBUM: A Boy Playing The Magical Bugle Horn

*Shingetsu - Japanesque Genesis ? Shingetsu was gem of late 1970s' Japanese scene. ALBUM: Shinbetsu

I have to go job !

May continue next post ???

 

Vermillion Sands     Water blue
Ain Soph    Mysterious Forest

Well, Micky, you also should check out Social Tension, perhaps the most ELP inspired band in Japan!

    my favorites are:

1. Ruins
2. Koenjihyakkei
3. Happy family
4. Korekyojin
5. bondage fruit
6. Bi Kyo Ran

I do like some by Ruins (some of it is very hardcore noise, some more in the Zeuhl genre. Check out "Prog rock medley" from "Refusal fossil", where they mix parts of songs by PFM, Magma, Univers Zero, KC, Goblin, Pink Floyd etc. Funny indeed!).

Koenjihyakkei seems very interesting, but IMO maybe too close to Magma, judging from the two songs I've heard.

Acid Mothers Temple (psychedelia) is also very interesting, also the related Zoffy (psychedelic folk, vinyl version of "Zo Zo Zo Zo Zoffy!!!" released on the Norwegian label Synesthetic Recordings. Including cover versions of Space Oddity, Immigrant song, Light my fire and Fireball. Weird...). A lot of live recordings by AMT free to download at www.archive.org.

And I have the self-titled album by Ghost (1990); musically somewhere in between psychedelia, prog and folk. Mellow and beautiful, with some noisy parts and some parts assumed to be Japanese ritualistic stuff. Some references to Amon Düül II (Phallus Dei, in particular), IMO.

I came back from job

Japanese Prog Part 2

*Kenso - Symphonic jazz rock. Famous in USA. ALBUM: Biroudosho Kitan

*Prism - Jazz rock or fusion. Once ex-Yoninbayashi Morizono temporarily played in this group. ALBUM: III

*Pageant - I prefer 2nd album. 2nd is straight symphonic rock in comparison with 1st. ALBUM: Yume no Hoshu.

*Ie Rai Shan - ex-Pageant Nakajima's band in 1990s. Symphonic rock. ALBUM: Ie Rai Shan.

*Sense Of Wonder - One of the big name of Japanese symphonic rock bands. SOW started in early 1980s and still active. Great band !

*Datetenryu - Datetenryu is one of the oldest band which continues until today. I like around 1973-era Datetenryu. I'm attracted with wild performance. ALBUM: 1971

*Vermilion Sands - Sally Oldfield + Renaissance ?? Beautiful voice singer Royama was already dead. ALBUM: Water Blue

*Picaresque Of Bremen - Early Bremen was Jethro Tull type. However late they became progressive pop rock. Probably almost of Prog Archive members haven't heard this band. ALBUM: Chronoclasm

*Heretic - Electronics music virtuoso. However I don't hear this name recently. ALBUM: Escape Sequence

*Mugen - Classical symphonic rock. 1st and 2nd are great masterpiece in Japanese progressive scene. ALBUM: Sinfonia Della Luna

*Providence - Progressive rock band in Sapporo. There are 2 studio albums. I prefer 2nd album. ALBUM: Choko muro no Ichiya

*Optical*8 - Helmet + King Crimson ? Hoppy Kamiyama, Minato Masafumi, Otomo Yoshihide and reck played in this group. ALBUM: Bug

*Pochakaite Malko - Horizont + Henry Cow ? Avant garde rock. Both 1st and 2nd are excellent. ALBUM: Laya

*Katra Turana - Acoustic avant garde pop rock. No other group is close to them. 12 inch single: The End

*Asturias - Clear sound like Mike Oldfield. Also recent Acoustic Asturias is very good. ALBUM: Cryptogam Illusion

*Keep - Jazz rock. ALBUM: Rock'n Rocked Rock

*Taj Mahal Travellers - Experimental music. They were popular in Japan around 1973 - 74.

*Inoue Keizo - He is known as a jazz saxphone player. But his albums are also progressive rock ones. 1st and 3rd are excellent. ALBUM: Boys, Be Ambitious !

*Teru's Symphonia - ex-Novela Hirayama's symphonic rock band. However this group may stop today. ALBUM: Egg The Universe

*J.A.Caesar - Composer of play party Tenjosajiki. I suggest Tenjosajiki's album. ALBUM: Shintokumaru

*Killing Time - One of the best 80s band. Of course, they are still active. Experimental jazz rock ?! ALBUM: Skip

*Rosalia - All the five members are girls. Symphonic rock. Except Miura, they may not play the music now. ALBUM: Zillion Tears

*Bondage Fruit - They have released 6 albums (exclude compilation). Big name of 1990s and 2000s. ALBUM: Bondage Fruit IV

*Koenjihyakkei - Magma type. ALBUM: Koenjihyakkei

*Sakamoto Ryuichi - He is known as a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra. There are many solo albums. In case of progressive rock, B-2 Unit is important album.

*Maria Kannon - VDGG type (temporarily). Kowata's vocal is aggressive ! ALBUM: Inujini

*Cinorama - Probably obscure band for common Prog Archive members. Tom Newman/Faerie Symphonie type band. ALBUM:Niwa niwa

*Fromage - Symphonic rock like Itoiz, Tai Phong. Fromage is inherited to Cinema. ALBUM: Ondine

*Stomu Yamash'ta - Pianist. He was famous outside of Japan in 1970s. ALBUM: Go Too

UMMMM, it is impossible to write all the bands/artists I know. Too many........

Hi erik neuteboom: Japanese albums are notorious for its expensiveness. I wish many foreign labels would release Japanese albums. There are many masterpieces which haven't been reissued outside of Japan. So many fans must buy expensive Japanese issue.   It obstructs to inform Japanese progressive rock for world wide.

Edited by honganji

I heard a couple of tracks from Fabulis Mirabilius Bombycosi Scriptis by Kenso on Delicious Agony Prog radio last month. Thought it was great!

I thought I'd get the album, but it seems that it's pretty tough to get hold of at a reasonable price.

Honganji - Thanks for all the information. I will definitely listen to some of the stuff you mentioned!

As someone has already said, this recent run of threads concerning music from different countries has been fantastic. Lots of great recommendations to check out. This is what I was hoping for when I signed up to PA!! The downside is that its costing me a bloody fortune in CDs!!

Hello fellow progheads.

Great response, great contributions but Honganji is bad for my self-esteem  ...... !

By the way, during this months it's time to get the annual tax paid back in The Netherlands so maybe this will help with your wishlist/orders ...  ...

Hello Avestin.

It's a bit weird but many Japanese bands have French inspired names. I asked the band Gerard about this when they performed in The Netherlands during their small European tour, they said Gerard is derived from a clothing shop in Tokyo  !

Most Japanese bands sing in their native language because their English is very poor  , I will check out which bands sing in English.