JGoth.com :: Japan Goth and Industrial Music

Twisted Clock/Calmando Qual might have origins in the VK scene, but have Goth creds with numerous Tokyo Dark Castles under their belt. Of course the Europeans know more about this band than me so you probably already have the dates written down somewhere. You probably know a fair amount of Baal too – I sure know them. They blew my headlights out back in 2005 and Mikito is still driving the nails deep with his sound concoctions (he’s also lucky to have U-tarou’s femme-screamo and Chihiro’s beats backing the whole soundscape). Sisen, the hottest cyber-goth DJ from Tokyo, will also be on hand to add some spice – Ah, just seeing Sisen brings a spot of brightness to the dark side of my soul, and the DJing is delicious.

The tour comes in two parts – first the solo attack from Twisted Clock, then a frenzied triple-punch with Baal and Sisen. Sounds good.

Twisted Clock (Calmando Qual)
09 March – UTRECHT Tivoli de Helling (The Netherlands)
10 March – BARCELONA Sala Salamandra (Spain)
11 March – MADRID Sala Chesterfield (Spain)
13 March – STUTTGART Rohre
Live: Twisted Clock – ex. Calmando Qual (info)

Asian Industrial Invasion
16 March – BERLIN K 17 (Germany)
17 March – CHEMNITZ Talschock (Germany)
18 March – KOLN Undergroun (Germany)
Live: Baal (info) and Twisted Clock – ex. Calmando Qual (info).
DJ’s: Sisen/Violet (info)

[DJ Gothing – DRESS CODE IN FORCE] Lurch… The Goths are finally waking up in Osaka-land. This is brought to you by senior Goth Taiki (aka D-grimore), the fiend behind Dark Veil. Remember kids, strict dress code here, no casual, need a mask (it’s a masquerade don’t you know?).

Full details

This is the regular monthly dose of Japanese Goth from JGoth.com.

:: Monthly Blah ::

The shoulders have been acting up again so I cannot type much at all for this scream – sue me.

:: January stuff ::

Last month was pretty good for Tokyo with TDC, Mechanical Slaves, Midnight Mess and other regular events getting their freak on. Nagoya scored well (by Nagoyan standards) and I am detecting more life for old Toyota-land in the months ahead. If you haven’t checked them already I got a few pics from Mechanical Slaves with Morgue here. And here’s a viddy of Morgue. And here’s some pixies from Psydoll

:: Big news ::

:: Aural Vampire and Sins of the Flesh in Germany ::
AV from Tokyo and SOTF from Osaka/UK hit Germany and the Netherlands. Check the event info below for more details.

:: Sins of the Flesh CD release ::
Yes, after 16 years, including several years of hard work in Japan, SOTF are set to release a new CD with the tour.

:: JGoth discounts for Midnight Mess ::
If you forget to book, have a couple of extra friends, or you are one of those folk that don’t book then just tell the front desk that you are on the “JGoth” list and you will get the pre-book discount rate (500 yen discount!).
Midnight Mess homepage.
Mess event info.

:: Morgue invades the Castle ::
When I first saw Morgue I liked them a lot. Morgue is one helluva hard-hitting heavy rock unit that demands your attention. The band can do pretty much any style of power underground event and do it well. And now Morgue is prepping to do TDC. You will be hearing more from this band during 2007.

:: Eventing in February ::

There are over 20 events up so far with a couple more due to be official-like in early February. Tokyo is looking very tasty with lots of Goth or Goth-esque events. Osaka has two, but they are definite must-see events. There are also some good-looking events for Nagoya, Kobe, Kyoto and Fukuoka, plus a couple of bands doing European mini-tours!

:: Tokyo events ::

Sat. 3 February (double hot!)
Tokyo Dark Castle #26 @ Marz Shinjuku
A04, Statik and Maya in THE GATE @ J-Pop Shibuya

Sat. 10 February
Suicide Squad and Mamono @ Chop Ikebukuro

Sun. 11 February
Alamode Night 24 @ Studio Cube 326
— Now with 2 Bullet! —

Mon. 12 February
101A, Rowthe and Calmando Qual @ Chop, Ikebukuro

Fri. 16 February
Utero ZZZAAA and Xenophobia @ Chop, Ikebukuro

Sat. 17 February
Club Walpurgis @ Aoi Heya Shibuya
Gadget. in Orgasm #69 @ Yotsuya Outbreak

Thu. 22 February
Cry for the Moon @ Chop, Ikebukuro

Fri. 23 February
Zombie Lolita & Psydoll @ Head Power, Shinjuku
Cut the Crap “Revenge” @ Addict Ikebukuro

Sat. 24 February
Midnight Mess @ Marz Shinjuku
— Just say you are on the “JGoth list” for pre-book rates!
Twisted Clock (ex. Calmando Qual) @ Live Freak Shinjuku

Sun. 25 February
Club Inferno @ Bar Shifty Shibuya

:: Osaka, Nagoya, Kyoto, Kobe and Fukuoka ::

Fri. 2 February
Sins of the Flesh @ Yaso KYOTO

Sun. 4 February
Sins of the Flesh in Dark Electr-o @ Otoya KOBE

Sun. 11 February
Vampire Garden @ Club Neo OSAKA

Mon. 12 February
Psydoll & Bionic O.P. in Genetic Beast @ Music Farm NAGOYA

Sat. 24 February
Aural Vampire, JPT & Elmina in [sin:kwai] @ Sunhall OSAKA
Harshrealm Veronica.09 event @ Drum Logos FUKUOKA

:: International ::

Fri. Feb. 9 to Sun. Feb 11
Sins of the Flesh and Aural Vampire in Germany & The Netherlands
Aural Vampire solo nights in Germany

My apologies for not getting more scream out this month, but you can find all events listed here

:: Other Stuff ::

:: Unnerbuss 13 Viddy
:: Sins of the Flesh returns :: Album and Tour in Japan & Germany
:: Family members falling apart :: Macabre update…
:: Another torso found… Is this a new trend?
:: Ibaraki torso no longer legless
:: “Rendition” torture victim to receive C$10.5 million compensation

That is all from chaos central.

:: Igor
:: Web slave and everything else…
:: JGoth.com Japan Gothic News & Events
:: http://www.jgoth.com/

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[Cyber-Alt Rock] While Nagoya doesn’t have a regular bevy of Goth-poi events the alternative scene has been growing over the past couple of years. Genetic Beast will deliver with local dance-industrial outfit, Bionic O.P., and Tokyo’s cybernetic unit, Psydoll.

I have not had a chance to scour the Web for information on the other three bands, but Psydoll and Bionic O.P. are hot enough to get you through the night. Remember Nagoyans, the more you go, the more they will show! If you want to book with Psydoll (English is no problem), remember to do so at least a couple of days before as they will need to travel from Tokyo.

More details

A seriously hot weekend awaits night crawling Tokyo folk

SATURDAY :: Suicide Squad and Mamono in 白塗会～池袋大抗亁E@ Chop

[Raucous alt rock and core music] I have seen Mamono and Suicide Squad at Agent Murder nights and they freaking rock. Mamono are kind of like abandoned androids who rip shit up… and have a rabid femme/fan base who MOSH at the more excitable nights. Suicide Squad likewise rip shit up with some hard, speedball rock. Red Cat also looks worth checking out.

More details

SUNDAY :: Alamode Night @ Sudio Cube 326

[Gothic Lolita/Goth Live & DJ] Alamode Night is a popular event that is a kind of fusion of the light and dark side – kinda like a Goth-Loli with a teddy bear in one hand and a battle-axe in the other.

There is lots going on here and I’ll just stick to the ones I know and like:
DJs (A04 and Sisen among others), Shows (Rose de Reficul et Guiggles), Dancers, Live (Blood), Exhibitions, etc., etc.

More details

MONDAY :: 101A, Rowthe and Calmando Qual @ Chop

[Alternative rock, heavy spiritual and Gothy] Three bands worth catching together. BTW – Calmando Qual have changed their name to Twisted Clock.

More details

A big reminder to the Europeans who visit this place… Aural Vampire and Sins of the Flesh are doing a few shows in your neck of the woods. Check out my Return of the Flesh piece about the tour and new album. If you do go… tell everyone IGOR sent you (pretty please…). Dates are below…

Sins of the Flesh (JP), Aural Vampire (JP) and The Pussybats (D):
09 February – UTRECHT Tivoli de Helling (NL) 19:00/19:30
10 February – COLOGNE Underground (D) 19:30/20:00
11 February – NORDHORN Scheune (D)
More Details

Aural Vampire (JP)
14 February – Bremen :: Club Moments
15 February – Berlin :: K 17
16 February – Munster :: Luna Bar
More Details

UPDATE: Statik will be joining the roster so you will be getting Maya, A04 AND Statik!

[Fetish – S&M – Extravaganza] Midnight Mess’ Maya and Project Elektra’s A04 will be doing some DJ’ing at The Gate in early February. What is The Gate? Well, it is one of the bigger parties on the S and M slash fetishy spectrum. It gets a special mention for the DJ’s Maya and A04. I cannot link to the site because it classes itself as over 18 (due to this site’s Hosting requirements), but you can find them easily enough by Googleing TKSociety.

Note: Strict dress code only. While they do sell fantasy-wear at the door, you will probably find it more economical to prepare beforehand. Dress code covers: fantasy, PVC, leather, cosplay, SM, fetish and the like.

Note: No cameras or videos. They mean it too.

From Charm @ TK Society:

THE GATE is very pleased to be invited to J-POP CAFE in Shibuya BEAM for its Saturday Feb 3, 2007 party! BEAM is one of Shibuya’s well known addresses, famous for its very distinctive exterior, 25th century futuristic design and exotic event space!

Our next THE GATE will feature a special German fetish fashion fair on J-POP’s runways exhibiting Berlin style from fetish fashion labels Dos Santos and Parahell! Their lead designers will be flying all the way from Germany for this event!

With a Bladerunner cyber-tech style interior, a giant glass dome and towering video walls, THE GATE at J-POP will be one of the largest and most memorable fantasy events ever held in the far east!

From New York, DJ Young Richard will be leading the evening along with super Electro DJ A04 and special guest DJ MAYA, visiting us from the well known Japan goth underground event Midnight Mess!

Also returning are THE GATE’s multiple fantasy spaces, special video and art galleries, an expanded interactive area, and a bazaar shopping arcade!

The spaces are amazing, the performances extensive and more. My apologies to Charm for not placing more information online, but remember adventurers… Google is your friend.

Re-inforcement of key points….
* Photo IDs are needed for overnight events;
* No cameras or recording equipment
* NO STREETWEAR – Strict dresscode.

And if you do go… Let Charm know that Igor sent you!

Venue: J-Pop Cafe :: Shibuya TOKYO :: Details
Official page: Google TKSociety (I can’t link directly – host rules – sorry)
Event calendar info

The mutant pink rabbit has been lain waste, the woody boys have been recycled as chopsticks, and now it is just serious-looking gaijin in piffy suits stare at you on the train telling you how great Nova is. However, we are here to talk about what Nova is really about – that being how much stuff can they sell before the year is out.

This comes straight from the merry fellows at Bloomberg (Earnings are here) here are the sell, sell, SELL figures for Nova…

Current year-to-date sales: 42,562 million yen
Last year same time: 48,313 million yen

Full year sales forecast 61,400 million yen
Last year sales: 69,812 million yen

Full year profit forecast: 310 million yen
Full year loss last year: 3,070 million yen

On the sales side, the forecast looks doable – the company is 12% behind the same time last year, but the goal is also around 12% behind the total last year. However, on the profit forecast you need to have faith that the company will come through on the cost-cutting that it states as the reason that profit is attainable. It may be possible as the company used to spend 6 billion yen a year on ads a couple of years ago, but has had little presence this year (thank the dark lord). There are lots of other fun ways to save costs too – closing branches in the middle of nowhere for example.

However, I remember that last year, Nova kept its profit forecast at 250 million yen right up until the week before the official figures were released (that’s the 3 billion yen loss) – so who knows what the final figures will be. Oh, yeah. These forecasts are from the company itself.

For the first six months of this year, Nova achieved sales results of 29 billion yen with the net loss at 3.2 billion yen. This is not necessarily a disaster (sales are bigger in the second half), but just so you know.

I also haven’t seen any mention of the great expansion into East Asia since it was first announced, but that might be me.

Remember, this isn’t investment advice in any way, shape or form – I just have a special place in my heart for this company (right there in the coagulated debris hiding behind the dickey valve). If you come to a Ham-Goth site to get deep investment insight, then you better let mom take care of your pocket money.

Three months before the final figures are in… I’m salivating!