Import Zone
The J-Spot
by Michael McCarthy
The first rule of J-Pop (that’s hip slang for Japanese pop) is, you don’t take J-Pop too seriously. The second rule of J-Pop is, you don’t take J-Pop too seriously. These rules especially apply if you’re an English-speaking bloke like moi who can only understand the choruses. And why can an English-speaking bloke like moi understand the choruses and not the verses? Because, at least in the case of about 85 percent of the songs, the choruses of J-Pop songs are in English. Ditto for most of the actual song titles and artists’ names. Why, I don’t know. Rumor has it that it’s because they’re so in love with McDonald’s and Mickey Mouse in Japan, but I don’t know if that’s even remotely accurate.
A friend of mine who was big on Anime films got me into J-Pop. Many of the top artists record soundtracks (mostly songs, but sometimes even scores) for the big Anime features. In fact, according to my friend, the soundtrack albums are often their most popular releases.
The first group my friend ranted about was Speed, which consists of four young women. So young I doubt they would’ve been offended if I’d called them girls instead of women when their first album (Starting Over– how’s that for irony?) was released. My friend had evidently heard a few of their tunes featured in an anime movie and spent a long time trying to get his sweaty palms on their CDs. Eventually he did and I was subsequently forced to hear them. Although the part of my brain that wouldn’t allow me to listen to the Spice Girls immediately told me to shut it off, the part of me that’s always been a sucker for heavy metal ballads and other things y’all might consider cheese was in love. Some of their songs almost sounded like the ’80s pop that I hated in high school, what with all the synth. But there were guitar solos that sounded like they belonged in rock – or maybe even metal – tunes, and the beats per minute were right up there with Digital Orgasm. Listening to the rapid, furious beats of “All My True Love,” I no longer wondered why a group of cute Japanese gals would call themselves Speed.
Of course, it’s possible that the members of Speed didn’t call themselves Speed. It seems many Japanese pop groups, especially those consisting of young ladies, are manufactured by record companies. The managers and record labels supposedly create the band’s name, image, songs and all that jazz before they even hire the girls. (Probably where the bloke who created the Spice Girls got his idea). But if they’re pretty and they sing, who the hell cares? This is bubble gum pop! I mean, hey, we’d be offended if we found out Tori Amos and Liz Phair were manufactured by their record labels, having long thought of them as credible musicians who write their own stuff and have something to say. But nobody tries to pull the wool over anyone’s eyes with J-Pop acts. In fact, when J-Pop groups break up, it’s announced months ahead of time (can you think of a better way to make sure the farewell tour sells out than to call it the “farewell tour?”).
OK, OK, I know what you’re thinking: how nice of me to tell you about this stuff, bragging about my friggen collection, when you have no idea where to get it. So, I’m gonna tell you. Surprisingly, amazon.com is a great place to start. Cdnow.com and Amazon are both offering an increasingly large number of J-Pop albums and even some singles (this stuff is expensive, so look for those sweet deals where you get 10 bucks off a 15 dollar order, etc.). Whatever you can’t find through them, you will likely find from WMI (World Music Imports) at www.wmimusic.com. A Canadian company, I’m often awe-struck by the number of imports they stock (if you want all the various pressings of a certain favorite album from every country around the globe, they can certainly help you). They have more albums and singles by the artists mentioned in this column, not to mention my previous Import Zone columns, than I’ll probably ever be able to afford. Finally, a great source for J-Pop is Sasuga Japanese Bookstore of Cambridge, Massachusetts (www.sasugabooks.com). While the selection on hand at their 7 Upland Road store isn’t quite what I’d call huge, it’s been getting bigger and they stock most of the new releases. And if it’s not on the shelf, they have piles of huge catalogs of stuff they’re happy to special order.