Tobacco-Stained Book Launch

Well, we actually did go through it with on Friday, and truth is I'm still recovering as we went right through from 6:00pm to 6:30am.

It was bloody brilliant, too.

Aside from the novel launch per se, we had screenings of The Maltese Falcon and The Third Man interspersed with anime gems like Tokyo Marble Chocolate and Mamoru Oshii's Tachiguish-Retsuden; heck, we even showed The Karate Kid.


And the music - from DJ Wada, Ko Kimura, Jin Hiyama (pictured), Eri Makino, Cut Bit Motorz, Toshiyuki Yasuda, Devin Wine and Paul McQuade - was sublime.

More please... once I recover.

Tobacco-Stained Party, Tokyo 東京 25/3

These are strange times here, for all too obvious reasons - and sometimes it feels like we’re collectively treading water awaiting the next Big Thing to transpire. Meanwhile the reactors still belch scary looking clouds and we get shaken by dozens of aftershocks everyday.

I know this cuts a minor issue in the grand scheme of things, but a high percentage of events and parties have been cancelled here in Tokyo, and attendance is lower than usual at the places that're still open.

A lot of the DJ/producers I know are spending most of their time at home, creating tunes – or putting together worthy benefit compilations, like the ones coming out through Shin Nishimura’s Plus Tokyo label and another called Kibou that’s being put together by Japanophile DJ Hi-Shock through his Elektrax label – which features contributions from a wad of Japan’s finest techno bods.


It’s been mad timing for my new novel to come out; teaches me to write a yarn that’s been described as “post-apocalyptic noir.”

I’m supposed to have the Tokyo book launch this Friday 25th March (in other words tomorrow) at the Pink Cow in Shibuya, but the postal service is all screwed up so there's a big chance I won’t be getting the books themselves in time from the U.S.

Not through lack of trying by Kristopher and Christine @ Another Sky Press, but, as I say, our timing has been a wee bit out-of-whack with nature.

I'm still praying to an empty mead hall of Norse gods that UPS will be able to get the books out of Japanese customs - where they've been since Monday - and here into my lap in time. Hell, if not for the party itself, I just want to hold and stroke the beastie that's taken so much time of my life to complete!

Anyway, after much soul-searching, mood-swings, flip-flopping and so on, we’re doing the launch party, regardless of earthquakes and/or radiation levels.

READ MORE HERE @ TOBACCO-STAINED MOUNTAIN GOAT BLOG.

Japanese Musicians Rule OK! (Part 2)

Two weeks back for my hack Flash in Japan column over at Forces of Geek I did a feature story on a bunch of cool, talented and rather diverse musicians based in this country (Japan), asking for the feedback on a swag of hotch-potch questions.

We ended up with far more material than we could run in one sitting, so we called that Part 1; without much further ado here’s Part 2 - kept nice and relatively simple - with the further feedback from Masaya Kyuhei, aka DJ Q’hey, Tsuyoshi K, alias producer Cut Bit Motorz, Akiko Kiyama, Ko Kimura, Takashi Watanabe (aka DJ Warp), DJ Wada (Shuji Wada from Co-Fusion), Tatsuya Oe (Captain Funk), Jin Hiyama, Toshiyuki Yasuda and Lili Hirakawa.

Luckily none of these people objected to my more obscure, self-indulgent queries—which this time around all related to that most essential of topics: anime and manga.

HEAD ON OVER HERE.

Japanese Musicians Rule OK! (Part 1)

Godzilla has many kaiju enemies and friends, like King Ghidorah, Biollante, Mothra, etc.

I assumed the majority of Japanese musicians, especially ones involved in the techno and electronic music sphere of things, would know all about Godzilla and would have an opinion on same, like a preferred friend/foe.

I was wrong - partially.

Most of these people seem to have vague feelings but nothing solid enough to slap a ribbon on it and call it assertive.

“Sorry, I don't have enough knowledge to select a Godzilla co-star,” quips Toshiyuki Yasuda.

“I don't know much at all about Godzilla,” admits Jin Hiyama, while both DJ Wada and DJ Warp select Mothra as their champion - but for somewhat dubious reasons.

“Because he’s peaceful?” Wada wonders aloud; “Because he can fly and is really cute,” suggests Warp.


“I like King Ghidorah,” Cut Bit Motorz says, “though I’m not well-informed about Godzilla. I think I like Ghidorah because his name and appearance are so striking.”

Lili Hirakawa is more assertive, to a degree.


“I think I like King Ghidorah too - but I have a sad story about this. I accidentally got a tattoo of King Ghidorah on my left arm! I asked for the Japanese eight-headed dragon Yamata no Orochi but the tattooist gave me King Ghidorah, which has only three heads, and unfortunately it also has a foot missing... So it’s a very funny dragon. Anyway, some people talk to me when they see it and they’re like ‘Oh, hey! You like King Ghidorah, huh?’, so I’ve gotta keep saying yes every time. After 10 years, I finally started to like King Ghidorah. To tell the truth I don’t know much about it - I’ve never seen a Godzilla movie yet.”

“I’d definitely support Godzilla,” assesses technopop musician Electron Tee. “He’s much cooler—and, besides, I hate moths!”

Techno DJ/producer Shin Nishimura agrees, aside from the anathema toward common streetlight variety flying insects. “Godzilla would win by jumping and punching with that tail of his,” he pictures.

Ko Kimura, however, sees more in the machine. “Mechagodzilla is best for me because it looks really cool!”


THE REST OF THIS INTERVIEW/DISCUSSION IS NOW ONLINE @ FORCES OF GEEK. PART 2 WILL BE PUBLISHED in 2 WEEKS.

Takashi Miike vs. 13 Assassins

This news has been floating round for a bit but I've been waiting for more concrete info and images: Takashi Miike will this year be releasing his remake of 13 Assassins (Jûsan-nin no shikaku), the one-time 1963 B-movie jidaigeki drama (directed by Eiichi Kudo) which these days has a far better reputation and starred Kô Nishimura - a veteran of several movies by Akira Kurosawa.


The new version is now up on imdb.com but is a little threadbare in the details (the synopsis there says simply "A group of assassins come together for a suicide mission to kill an evil lord"); it looks like the stars are going to be Koji Yakusho, who shone in the original Japanese version of Shall We Dance as well as in Babel, and Yusuke Iseya - who I all-too-briefly met on the set of Jiro Shirasu last year.

Yep, Miike - responsible for some insanely cool, odd, and witheringly gory cinema over the past 15 years - is doing a samurai period film.