I was getting ready to write an exciting post for the first day of JGoth.com, but as I was in final preparations to get the site off the ground, I received some sad news from home.

A good person was laid to rest today. She gave so much to so many people and took so little. I believe that the hope she gave and the love she gave helped us all. I feel sad, but also happy to have known someone like that. There are many good people in this world, but few as good as this person. She was a person who actively supported others. The person who took care of those important things that are often neglected in our busy lives. When all seemed dark, she was there. People like this are so rare and they should be treasured for their pure, giving spirit. I wish I could thank her for all that she did during the tumultuous times. I know there are many others around her who feel the same.

I take with me a lot of good memories of this person and all that she did. So, with a slightly heavy heart I introduce to you JGoth.com.

The site is here to introduce the Gothic and alternative music scene in Japan to the global audience. Why? Because there are a lot of good people producing some fantastic sounds deserving of the audience. The mass-produced, oft-touted J-pop has a hold on people’s minds through media saturation, but it is just the meaningless rhythms of a factory machine. The Goths and the alternative rock artists bring their spirits and souls to their music. These people and their craft are deserving of an audience – you.

2005 saw my old site progress from blog to rampant event tabulator. 2006 will take a deeper look at what is going on around the scene and the people who make it work. Many give so much and the direct, obvious rewards are limited. But these artists will create a stronger base and be remembered by those who build on the base for the future.

It was not quite the introduction to the new site I wanted to give, but perhaps fitting. While the J-Pop machine grinds out limited variant on standard themes ringing the tills for profit, there are new groups of people who have come together to touch the heart, mind and soul, and unleash the human within us all.

I hope the bands and their music can reach out to you – I’m sure some will. I hope you get a sense of the emerging diversity in Japan’s post-bubble society – especially from the youth who grew up as the system fell apart. I’m here to take you inside a scene that is often ignored by the stereotype-chasing “big media” and roaming where not many bloggers have been. I give you JGoth.com.

Welcome to my world.

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