Tokyo's Coolest Sound

This new album by Meg, who had escaped to France for a while, is mainly a collection of anime covers previously released on iTunes in France only. Included are tracks produced by Konishi Yasuharu, Nakata Yasutaka (capsule), 2 ANIMEny DJs (clammbon's mito with agraph), Sokabe Keiichi and more. The mastering was done by "Norageki!" anime film is also available on CD for the first time. The visual artwork is done by Fantasista Utamarō.

HMV gives away a collectable card (while supplies last).

Meg will hold her 10th anniversary party at Shibuya AX on June 23. Tickets will go on sale on May 19 (Pia 162-576).

Meg "La japonaise"

1. Discotheque (from "Rosario+Vampire") (produced by Tanaka Yūsuke)
2. Believe (from "One Piece") (produced by The Lowbrows)
3. Tough Boy (from "hokuto no ken"/"Fist of the North Star") (produced by the telephones)
4. wind (from "Naruto") (produced by The Shanghai Restoration Project)
5. Banana no namida (from "High School! kimengumi") (produced by Tanaka Yūsuke)
6. motteke! Sailor fuku (from "Lucky Star") (produced by 2 ANIMEny DJs)
7. Still Love Her (from "City Hunter 2") (produced by Komuro Tetsuya)
8. Volevo un gatto nero (from "norageki!") (produced by Nakata Yasutaka)
9. Rouge no dengon (from "Kiki Delivery Service") (produced by Konishi Yasuharu)
10. Comment te dire adieu (Françoise Hardy cover) (produced by Sokabe Keiichi)

Starchild KICS-1763
Out 4/25, ¥2381 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Play-Asia, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

"Tough Boy"

Two releases of this new series of cover compilations (all new recordings) titled "Girly Graffiti", both of which are have ties with the Orange Records family.

The first one, an album of French-pop covers (though somehow "Da Da Da" made its way on there!) done electro style, is produced by Tanaka Tomonao (aka Tremorela, S-Klapp, ex-novaFASE) and features singer Rossana. The second consists of bossa nova covers of The Beatles by the producer behind Maki Rinka, featuring a singer called Parl.

Various Artists "Girly Graffiti ~a letter from Paris~"

1. Irrésistiblement
2. T'en va pas
3. C'est si bon
4. Tout, tout pour ma chérie
5. I Like Chopin
6. Interlude
7. Take Me Home Country Roads
8. Daydream Believer
9. Da Da Da (Ich lieb dich nicht, du liebst mich nicht)
10. Un homme et une femme

Aether Music AMCDO-1
Out now (4/18), ¥1800 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

Various Artists "Girly Graffiti ~from Liverpool with love~"

1. Hello Goodbye
2. Drive My Car
3. Day Tripper
4. Norwegian Wood
5. All You Need Is Love
6. Till There Was You
7. In My Life
8. And I Love Her
9. Here There And Everywhere
10. The Long And Winding Road

Aether Music AMCDO-2
Out now (4/18), ¥1800 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

Electro duo 80kidz have a 3rd album out now, and it features a line-up of vocalists from the world, including the likes of The Whip, Yes Giantess, Frankmusik and Ghostape. This follows album "Weekend Warrior" that was released 1½ year ago.

Check out the teaser clip below, and also this 35-minute studio live of 8 songs from the album performed in studio band-style!

80kidz "Turbo Town"

1. Lander
2. Autobahn
3. Turbo Town
4. Big Bay
5. Dream City Dream
6. Stack Up
7. Step By Step
8. Lucy
9. Numan
10. Lightwaves
11. Mind the Gap
12. Esquire
13. I Shake
14. Apollo 80

KSR KCCD-481
Out now (4/18), ¥2400 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: Jet Set, CDJapan, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia,
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

Promo clip (song "Apollo 80")

This new Towa Tei album consists of half-and-half new songs and remixes! New songs include "Wordy" (feat. 2-girl rap unit Bakubaku Dokin) and "Wunderland" which were released in advance digitally on Mach Beat. Dorian, Yasuda Toshiyuki and DJ Uppercut take the remix duties.

For the first pressing, 12 small mini-collages handmade by Towa Tei himself are enclosed randomly!

Towa Tei "MACH2012"

1. Wunderland
2. Alpha (Dorian Remix)
3. Wordy
4. Baltic
5. Upload
6. Expo 2012
7. Melancholic Sunshine (DJ Uppercut with Sahteene Holiay Dub)
8. Marvelous (Spring)
9. The Burning Plain (Toshiyuki Yasuda Remix)

Mach Beat MBCD-2012
Out 5/2, ¥1917 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Play-Asia, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

"Wordy" feat. Bakubaku Dokin

"Baltic"

Sampler: "Wordy" / "Wunderland" / "Marvelous (Spring)" / "Upload"

Parco summer campaign commercial
"Wunderland"

Mishima Toyoaki (blog) has been a long-time programmer for Cornelius, and recently started his own unit called mishmash*!

His first track features Julie Watai (JulieHally, model, photographer) on vocals, and it's now available in both Japanese and English on iTunes worldwide. Check out the cute and catchy video below! (The Japanese version and a clip with studio scenes can be watched at YouTube.)

mishmash* Julie Watai "Roll of Love"

mishmash*
Out now (3/19)
Buy: , Amazon MP3 U.S.

mishmash* Julie Watai "koi no tamashii"
mishmash* Julie Watai 「恋のタマシイ」

mishmash*
Out now (4/15)
Buy: , Amazon MP3 U.S.

"Roll of Love" (short version)

Here's a tribute album to Tom Jobim featuring various young Japanese electronica artists. The whole is produced by Tobeta Bajune who has developed close ties with YMO and friends over the recent years. Sounds like a good way to revisit these long time favorites in a fresh way, and well in time for the coming summer!

Various Artists "The Girl from Ipanema ~Antonio Carlos Jobim Tribute~"
オムニバス 「The Girl From Ipanema ～アントニオ・カルロス・ジョビン・トリビュート～」

1. A Felicidade (feat. Cokiyu) / Bajune Tobeta
2. Berimbau (feat. Yayoi Koizumi) / Graphitec Morphing
3. One Note Samba (Samba de Uma Nota Só) / antennasia
4. Água de Beber (feat. Yayoi Koizumi) / Fugenn & The White Elephants + Shintaro Aoki
5. Desafinado / Ngatari
6. Samba do Avião / Jun Nishimura + lycoriscoris
7. How Insensitive / yuanyuan
8. Wave / lycoriscoris
9. The Girl From Ipanema / rimacona
10. Só Danço Samba / Sokif
11. Meditation (feat. Cokiyu) / Bajune Tobeta

electric sheep ELSP-0012
Out now (4/11), ¥1916 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†,
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

Digest sampler of all tracks

Tokyo Killer is the instrumental surf unit of Kinoco Hotel's super guitarist Keme (aka Isabel Keme-Kamogawa), and here's a first release coming as a 7" EP of 4 songs. 3 of the songs had been sold last year on CD-R at live shows, those have been remixed and remastered and a previously unreleased song was been added to the lot. This was mastered vintage-style in mono by producer Mr.Pan (The Neatbeats).

Check out the live clip below, and also "Misirlou" (theme of Pulp Fiction) on YouTube.

Tokyo Killer "Tokyo Killer" (7")
トーキョーキラー 「TOKYO KILLER」

A1. Surf Party
A2. Test Driver
B1. Penetration
B2. Pipeline

Majestic Sound Records MSEP-039
Out now (4/4), ¥1200 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: Amazon

Live clip of "Test Driver / Pipeline"

Here's a charity compilation consisting of, it seems, all new recordings. Featured are various female vocalists, including DadaD, Toki Asako (ex-Cymbals), Suzuki Momoko (ex-Cosa Nostra) and many more. Monsieur Kamayatsu (Spiders) also appears on 2 tracks. The album's jacket shows many female characters by Tezuka Osamu.

Label Fukushima Records is a long-term project to raise money for Fukushima children.

Various Artists "Vanilla"

(Title / Artist)
1. Vanilla / Happy Island feat. Reika Okina
2. Ban Ban Ban / Honda Maki X Monsieur
3. michi / Suganami Hiromi
4. I Can See Clearly Now / Suzuki Momoko
5. K's Walk / Kurita Keiko
6. How Beautiful / Toki Asako
7. Hey Boy / Rayli X Monsieur
8. Wind Letter / DadaD
9. My Favorite Things / Ryu Miho
10. Whom I love the most / Fujino Miyuki
11. Hello Alone / Kyōko
12. Safe / Zili Misik
13. Ban Ban Ban take 1 (Bonus track)

Fukushima Records FKSR-1003
Out now (4/4), ¥2900 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

Honda Maki X Monsieur "Ban Ban Ban"

Suzuki Momoko "I Can See Clearly Now"

More clips after the jump!

Denki Groove have a brand new single out now! Title track "Shameful" is also being used in a TV commercial for Lotte's new gum Zeus Thunder Spark in which stars the electric duo themselves (watch it below). B-side "Shame" is a completely different track that borrows from old-school rave sound.

Hear more of the new song at the band's site.

The band's new artist photo is also a must-see! Check it out here.

Denki Groove "Shameful"
電気グルーヴ 「SHAMEFUL」

1. Shameful
2. Shame
3. Shameful (Instrumental)
4. Shame (Instrumental)

Ki/oon Music KSCL-2003
Out now (4/18), ¥972 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Play-Asia, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

"Shameful"

Lotte Zeus Thunder Spark TV commercial ("Shameful")

Formed 3 years ago, here's a first full-length album by Recoride, a synth-punk band led by Sasaki Kissa (ex-Gekkan Pro-Bowler) and fronted by a female singer. Check out the new-wave-y video clip below! Includes a PandaBoY remix.

More audio samples on the band's site (player on the left).

Recoride "MP3 no danmatsuma"
レコライド 「MP3の断末魔」

1. TV kyōiku
2. Rock Rock Zombie
3. hoshikuzu no mp3
4. last moments of mp3
5. KUZU-DANCE
6. Sentimental Singer
7. Beauty Mari no Dance Lesson
8. mp3 no danmatsuma
9. TOKIO
10. New Wave Idol
11. Nightmare Shock
12. Good-bye! ZIGZAG Heart
13. Beauty Mari no Dance Lesson (PandaBoY Remix)
14. Electro kuso Pop ō (Bonus Track)

aorizm records/On-do POCS-1052
Out now (4/4), ¥2191 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Play-Asia, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia,
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

"hoshikuzu no mp3"

Ram Rider is back with a new album out just now. It features collaborations with various "stars", including Nomiya Maki, Meg, Bose (Scha Dara Parr), Furukawa Miki (ex-Supercar), Fujioka Minami (Panda 1/2), and more.

Out at the same time is yet another album, "Audio Galaxy - Ram Rider Strikes Back!!! -", though this one is sold only through HMV (and iTunes Japan). This one consists of all songs sung by himself.

This all comes almost 7 years after a "Portable Disco 2" album was briefly announced but then canceled, the artist saying that he wasn't happy with the result according to an interview with music news site Natalie.

Ram Rider "Audio Galaxy - Ram Rider vs Stars!!! -"

1. HELLO starring ORANGE RANGE
2. VOICE -tōku no kimi e- starring Nanba Shiho
3. hijitsuzai Boy starring MEG
4. Fast Love starring Bose (Scha Dara Parr)
5. Memory starring Furukawa Miki
6. Bedroom Disco starring Momoi Haruko
7. Sun Will Shine starring NAO☆ (Addy)
8. RAINBOW -namida no ato de- starring Nakagawa Shōko
9. hōkago★Suspense starring Bakarhythm & Fujioka Minami (PANDA 1/2)
10. yume de aeruyo starring Nomiya Maki

Nippon Crown CRCP-40316
Out now (4/11), ¥2381 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Play-Asia, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia,
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

Ram Rider "Audio Galaxy - Ram Rider Strikes Back!!! -"

1. chapter#1 "launching"
2. GALAXY
3. No Continue
4. GOOD BYE
5. chapter#2"Beautiful Planet"
6. hijitsuzai Girl
7. Identity
8. DREAM
9. chapter#3 "Sweet Star"
10. saimin
11. Memory
12. Magnet
13. END OF THE PARTY
14. chapter#4　"ReturnToTheEarth"
15. kimi o Pinch kara sukuenakatta sai no uta

Asobi System ASBM-0002
Out now (4/11), ¥1905 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: HMV,

"Audio Galaxy - Ram Rider vs Stars!!! -" digest clip

"Audio Galaxy - Ram Rider Strikes Back!!! -" digest clip

Vanilla Beans have a brand new single coming! Title track "Choco Mint Flavor Time" is a catchy pop tune that can be heard in the cute videoclip below, which features more dancing than usual. The jacket even shows Rena and Lisa with Baskin Robbins ice cream cones, the brand that comes to mind to most Japanese when they think "chocolate mint".

The limited edition comes with 2 bonus tracks, one of which is a cover of Ohtaki Eiichi. And also bonus smiles, as you may notice this is their first smiling artwork!

Vanilla Beans "Choco Mint Flavor Time"
バニラビーンズ 「チョコミントフレーバータイム」

1. Choco Mint Flavor Time
2. hitotsu no uta
3. 1969nen no Drag Race
4. toki no kakera -Midnight flavor remix-
5. Choco Mint Flavor Time (Instrumental)
6. hitotsu no uta (Instrumental)

Limited edition (2 bonus tracks)
T-Palette Records TPRC-0013
Out 4/11, ¥1239 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

1. Choco Mint Flavor Time
2. hitotsu no uta
3. Choco Mint Flavor Time (Instrumental)
4. hitotsu no uta (Instrumental)

Regular edition
T-Palette Records TPRC-0014
Out 4/11, ¥953 (excl. 10% tax)
Order: CDJapan, Amazon, HMV, Tower Records (Japan only) ^†, YesAsia
† Tower Records ships directly within Japan only. International orders are available via WorldShopping.

"Choco Mint Flavor Time"