ALBUM REVIEW - SHINGO☆西成 - ブレない (Burenai)

Where to begin...SHINGO☆西成 is a rapper from Nishinari, Osaka Japan and is signed to LIBRA RECORDS and SHOWA RECORDS, one for management, the other for distribution purposes. SHINGO☆西成 has made a name for himself as one of the top emcees in the game and the face of Hip Hop in Osaka. Anyway, on to the album!

ALBUM REVIEW - V.A. BLACK SWAN 3 -In the Case of BES from SWANKY SWIPE-

You've probably never heard of BES, unless you've heard him featured on a track or happen to know who SWANKY SWIPE is OR have the 2008 Ultimate MC Battle DVD, otherwise you could have very well missed out on one of the best young MC's in the game today. Now that you have an idea (albeit small) of who BES is, I'd like to introduce you to the label that has made this album come to be. BLACK SWAN INC is an independent record label based out of Tokyo, which was created for the sole purpose of exposing those who people tend to ignore, the "BLACK SWAN's" of the music basically. Since May BLACK SWAN INC have been releasing monthly albums in the form of BLACK SWAN 1/2/3, which typically deal with multipe artists, which makes sense, seeing as their slogan is Music for Multiple Fanatics. BLACK SWAN 3 features just one artist though, with multiple track makers with all lyrics by BES from SWANKY SWIPE.

ALBUM REVIEW - KOWICHI (enmaku) - The Chips

A few days ago I bought KOWICHI (enmaku)'s latest album The Chips off of iTunes. With a glance you can find a lot of Hip Hop from Japan on there. KOWICHI is a member of the group enmaku with fellow rapper d.u.g. from Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan and The Chips is his first solo release. I decided to get this after watching some trailers of the music videos that are to come from the album, which feature some of the best producers around. The trailers can be viewed via Street Official's YouTube channel. Okay, without further ado, lets dig into The Chips!

Album Review - Have You Ever... - Dead Ferret

"Come on, Buckbeak, come and get the nice dead ferret..." If you read that sentence in Emma Watson's voice... you rock. You'll also know where this pop-punk band got their name. Now, as we all know, I'm a bloody Potterhead, and should just go wander around Scotland trying to find Hogwarts. So, when I saw a Potter page doing a promo for promo on a band called Dead Ferret... you can bet your sweet hippogriff mother's bum I clicked on that. And, it turns out, there's an EP out also? Nice. So, here's a nice, fresh review for you guys!!

Album Review: SADS - The Rose God Gave Me

Since we had an artist spotlight on the punk band The Stalin this week, courtesy of R.Y.O, I thought I'd do a review of one of my absolute favorite albums today. Though Sads are technically classified as visual kei, and Kiyoharu is one of the pioneers of the now-iconic 90s Nagoya-kei sound, most people who have heard this album thought it was pure punk from around 1985... Mind, these were some of the vets of the punk scene, not a musically oblivious 8th grader. The Rose God Gave Me is an artistic triumph, and brilliantly put together. From the CD cover to each page, to the themes of the tracks, Sads aim to tell a story with each album, but still to leave you wondering, what story was it that you heard.

ALBUM REVIEW - BLAHRMY - A REPORT OF THE BIRDSTRIKE

Most people outside of Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan have no idea who BLAHRMY are and it's a shame because they are among the new breed of hip hop in Japan. BLAHRMY consists of SHEEF THE THIRD AKA DACOCK MORRAY and MILES WORD AKA BITTER THE TOPPOMAN and are a part of BLACK LIST POSSE. BLAHRMY's first release, an EP called Ducks Moss Village sold out immediately after it was released back in 2010 and are back this year with their first full album A REPORT OF THE BIRDSTRIKE. Is the new album the same calibur of their previous? Read and find out!

Song of the Day - The 6th Degree - Jabberwocky

Today's song of the day choice is a bit different from what I've picked in the past. The 6th Degree are a pretty cool experimental band from Washington DC. I spent a couple of hours listening to their new EP, Svara, and I enjoyed it very much.

Album Review - SHOW-YA - Genuine Diamond

Most people that have been listening to Japanese rock music for a while would know the name SHOW-YA. An all-female band, whose roots come from Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, they formed in 1982. Thirty years later, they are rock n roll legends in their own right. Their newest album, GENUNIE DIAMOND, was released in March of this year.

ALBUM REVIEW - Taika - Ganmen Chakuchi (CD & DVD)

When most people think of beatbox they think of one of those huge boombox's from the 90's that people would carry around, not the growing art of vocal percussion. Beatboxing is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of producing drum beats, rhythm, and musical sounds using one's mouth, lips, tongue, and voice. Vocal percussion in some way has been around since at least 2,000 years ago with Bol in India and Kouji in China. Anyway enough of the history lesson, let's get back to the matter at hand.

ALBUM REVIEW - MC DAG FORCE - DAY & NIGHT 2 (Album)

For those of you that don't know MC DAG FORCE is a rapper and singer from Shibuya in Tokyo, Japan, originally from Gifu and studied at Tama Art University in Tokyo which is a very well known private school for the wealth of knowledge it passes on to it's graduates, some say the top in Tokyo, but everyone has their own opinion. Although MC DAG FORCE is a solo artist he usually performs with a band called DAG FORCE and The LAZY Stones which consists of fellow very famous musicians KenKen (RIZE/KenKen of INVADERS) on bass, Rio on guitar (Currently support guitarist with RIZE) and DUTTCH (UZUMAKI) on drums, but members have been known to mix and match since all of them have their own projects. I purchased his second album DAY & NIGHT 2 on iTunes after it came out. MC DAG FORCE's first album is completely sold out online everywhere and possibly out of print outside of Japan. It sold extremely well basically. Anyway without further ado onto the review!

Album Review - SAND - Tie the Shoelaces, Just Knock Em (Single)

For those of you who don't know, SAND is a Hardcore band hailing from Osaka, Japan. The band consisting of Makoto on lead vocals Ishi on guitar and vocals, Sexim on guitar, King on bass and Ryota on drums has been around since 1999 and has toured all over Japan and in the US. 

REVIEW - THA BLUE HERB - TOTAL (Album)

At first glance TOTAL looks like the beginning of a work of art in a studio or perhaps an obscure piece of art in a museum, either way there is no way to judge it by it's cover.

It's been five years since  THA BLUE HERB last released an album and besides a few singles they've been mostly quiet except for touring extensively and releasing two live/tour documentaries. TOTAL has been five years in the making and BOSS has had a lot of inspiration for his lyrics, but can it match their previous albums?