SXSW: The Pillows at Japan Nite

Each Spring, Austin (“The Live Music Capital of the World”) brings in musical talent from all over for its annual four-day music festival known as South-by-Southwest (SXSW). Of the 1400 people performing at dozens of venues throughout the city, some...

Sing Along if You Know the Song

Asian Kung Fu Generation must have some friends in anime production world. Their songs have been used in hit shows like “Bleach”, “Naruto”, and “Full Metal Alchemist”, and I’m sure that didn’t hurt sales of their music....

Slacking: It’s What I Do

I apologize for the delay in putting up a new post. Work, that necessary but evil aspect of life, has kept me quite busy. I am currently working on a review of Austin Book’s manga section as well as a review of local plushie producer nottaTOY. Those reviews...

Updating My J-Pop and J-Rock Collection

If you’re a fan of Japanese music here in the States, you face a more difficult challenge getting your fix than anime and manga fans face. There just isn’t a good, American-based distribution channel (that I’m aware of) for J-Rock or J-Pop....

Gackt Performs “Kalmia” and “Cube” Live

When it comes to talented showmanship and range, I’d say very few performers come close to Gackt. This live performance of “Kalmia” (from his Rebirth album) and “Cube” (from the Kimi no tame ni dekiru koto album) really shows off his...

Gackt: Lust for Blood Live

Have you ever found a song that you could listen to over and over and never get tired of? That song for me is Gackt’s “Lust for Blood,” which is on his “Crescent” album. The song, which is about lost love and the misery of repeating the...