JGoth.com :: Japan Goth and Industrial Music

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!

After the arrest last year of one Nova teacher in Roppongi last year, six others have now been arrested for possession of the drugs. The amount of drugs the police have accused the seven of possessing were 1.5 grams of cocaine and 8.2 grams of cannabis.

Ouch. Story from Mainichi.

Back in the early 1990’s there was a band called Sins of the Flesh. It was an emerging power on the UK underground scene as proved by their seminal debut First Communion and live engagement. However, before moving to greater things the volume was turned down and the band seemed to fade away, becoming a whispered legend among the followers it nabbed the first time around. Who knew that 16 years later SOTF would return as a Japanese-British hybrid ready to unleash its crucifixion-inspiring tunes on the world again.

Being in the unique position of knowing a bit of what has gone on in the past three years of band-resurrection, it is inspiring to see to what extent SOTF has gone to to get to the point of releasing a new double album and nailing in a tour of Germany to boot.

The new line-up for the band mixes in quality performers from Osaka, such as Sadie from Speecies (ex. Jubilee), Ai from Jet Pepper Tower and Canaria formerly of Psychodream (sad I never saw them), along with the UK core of the band, Jude (ex-patted in Osaka and junk-boarding for Despair) and John (still in the UK, formerly of Comsat Angels and Bailey’s Comet).

Soundwise, I cannot really compare SOTF then and now (I stopped listening to new stuff from the late 80s to early 00s – sue me) but I do know enough of what was going on back then to say this plays the sweet spot as a new variant of a fine theme – the psychologically disturbed mix of industrial and electronika redone for today’s tastes. It is something for people that yearn for the past to be played with current-day verve. They have kept the core, re-routed the guts and got the sound to work as retro and new at the same time.

The new release is a double-CD that has been made to the exacting standards of the head man of the band. It has been fully re-tooled so you won’t be left thinking it’s just a bloody rehash – it is how the creator really wanted SOTF to be (after 16 years, you would hope so). For the price of 2,000 yen or 13.95 Euros you will get 28 tracks and 140 minutes of SOTF circa 2006.

The band’s F**K #1 is featured on the current issue of Orkus magazine (Orkus Compilation 26).

The band will be doing its warm-up gigs in Kyoto and Kobe on February 2nd and 4th respectively before launching off for the three-date attack in Germany with the very popular, high-tempo dark-synthpop outfit, Aural Vampire, as well as locals, The Pussybats.

And if you go to any of these events please go right up to the stage and scream “IGOR” at them – just so they know.

Sampling
To listen to samples from SOTF just head to their Web site (you will need pop-ups enabled to see the MP3 sample list):
Sins of the Flesh

Tour info Japan:
02/02 – Yaso KYOTO (JP)
04/02 – Otoya KOBE (JP)

Tour info for Germany with Aural Vampire (info) and The Pussybats (info)
09 February – UTRECHT Tivoli de Helling (NL)
10 February – COLOGNE Underground (D)
11 February – NORDHORN Scheune (D)

Do you know what “rendition” is? Well, it is one of the tools used in the supposed war on terrorism to send those deemed to be terror suspects to third countries allowing interrogations to be ramped up to full-blown torture without the U.S. government actually, directly committing torture. How is that for liberty.

Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen, was one such sufferer of this abominal policy. While in transit at New York’s JFT airport on 2002 Mr. Arar was nabbed, incarcerated for several days before being packed off to Syria for 10 months.

Arar was released and has been fighting to clear his name and rebuild his life, which had been devastated (as you can imagine). It was only in late 2005 after a two-year public inquiry that he was exonerated. It was determined that the RCMP (Canada’s FBI) had incorrectly labeled Mr. Arar as an Islamic fundamentalist and passed on information to the U.S.

Now the Canadian government has taken the step of apology and compensation.

However, Mr. Arar remains on U.S. no-fly lists as they continue to deem him a threat. The only threat that this man, and many of the other victims of rendition, is that of exposing a vicious policy of outsourcing torture. There has been enough suffering inflicted upon the world in the name of this so-called terror war.

Read about the Maher Arar story.
Reuters report
CNN Report

[Uber-Goth] Morgue is in the Castle!! Morgue adds a healthy dose of mind-bollocksing power metal-rock stuff to Tokyo’s main Goth event. Aside from the Morguesters, there will be your regular dose of Goth-rock from Auto-Mod, power industrial from Destruct System and the return of two recently renamed bands, Gothika (formerly Euthanasie) and Twisted Clock (ex. Calmando Qual).

TDC placed a heavy loading on three great bands last year, but 2007 should be very different with a healthy mix of live bands circulating through the events, and the addition of club editions. This means that punters can expect a thoroughly unique experience at every event along with the seal of quality we have come to expect from the Tokyo Dark Castle.

For the details of where, when, who, extra links etc. CLICK HERE.

We think. The naked lower body that seems to match an uncovered torso found earlier this month has just been discovered in a forest in Ibaraki. At this stage the reports are mixed in regards to the providence and sex of the lower bits…

In one report it was so mixed that it said that:
1. The police said the lower part of the body belonged to the torso;
2. Police were investigating to see if the lower part matched the upper part; and
3. Despite being naked it is unclear if the lower body bit was male or female.

What? Yes, no, maybe… Is it an innie or an outie? God help the poor upper torso if it turns out to be female and belonging to the upper bit, but there you go.

I can’t wait to hear the story about this one.

Alternative hard rock with a kick ass Gothy-type on bass.

This is the last part of the opening song of their set with Morgue and others at the end of last year.

JGoth.com MESS OFFER! Discount rate! Details inside the article!!

[Goth – Fetish – Industrial – DJ & Live] Midnight Mess is one of the main regular Goth events in Tokyo taking place on the fourth Saturday of every month. Playing every fourth Saturday of the month, Mess’ general sound-scape is Gothic, fetish, dark, experimental and industrial.

This month features a performance from Sino Re-Build Projects, a hard-hitting power noise, electro-industrial unit – well worth seeing.

JGOTH BONUS! If you forget to book, find out about the party too late to book, have an extra friend or two turn up on the night just tell reception you are on the “JGoth” list to get the discounted rate. Cool! Of course, it goes without saying that pre-booking works better for the organizers. If you already know you are going just contact Maya [at] midnightmess.com with your name, number in your party by 24:00 of Jan. 26th (mentioning Igor sent you would be appreciated).

Full event details here!

Take a look at a short squizzed at Tokyo-based Morgue! Warning, turn the sound down before (I was next to the amps and the mic had a fit!).

Jealous? I hope so.