Pistol Valve: Japanese Girls Just Want to Have Fun

[manekineko]

http://www.myspace.com/pistolvalve

Sugoi ne! Listen to my new favorite band!

I found Pistol Valve while searching Japanese music on Emusic and found their album "Tsunamic Girls from Tokyo". Those wacky Japanese! If only high school band was this fun. Omoshiroi ne! Imagine a girls' brass band playing a little pop, a little rock, a little ska, with a focused wide-eyed cheekiness that makes this group uniquely Japanese.

*On the MySpace link above, scroll halfway down the page to the 2 videos.

Here's what NPR had to say about them:

The Andrews Sisters, the Supremes, the Spice Girls. The girl group is a formula that has withstood the test of time. Today's Global Hit is a girl group. But it may be one of the oddest you've ever heard. Still, The World's Marco Werman just had to tell you about it.

Pistol Valve is composed of ten young Japanese ladies. Their average age is 21. They're cute, they're talented and they rock. And when they take to the stage, you suddenly see how their schtick has made them one of the most popular bands in Japan these days. With the exception of a violinist and a DJ on turntables, the women of Pistol Valve all play brass instruments.

Pistol Valve's lyrics are kind of irrelevant. What do you expect from a song called Fo Fo? This band's just about having fun. It's been that way since the ten women formed the group in 2005. They were in high school together, playing in the orchestra and band. They know each other's habits and chops.

In concert, they occasionally dust off Eddie Cochran's rock and roll classic "Summertime Blues." Although it really doesn't matter what Pistol Valve plays. The band's tune "Flap Up Elephant" for example has an absurd title set to late 70s British ska. But who cares when one of the most surreal marching bands ever is knocking it out?

Listening to the band's music on CD, you can kind of get a sense of the energy Pistol Valve generates. It's even more palpable live. The spectacle of a Pistol Valve show doesn't fully translate to a CD. But there is at least one track that'll get the party started.

Pistol Valve's most recent CD is called "Pistol Whip." And the band's own DJ Lilya takes a whack at remixing the band's most popular song, "The Best House." It doesn't convey the same effect as seeing these ten musicians on stage with their shiny instruments and trademark pork pie hats. But you still get the picture.

You may even start to believe the line in their own press kit: "These girls are here to change the modern music scene with their hip groove and heavy sound!"



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[Bitter Almonds]

<p align="justify">I like, I like, or, as they would say in Japan, "I rike"[8D] Japan is generally at the forefront of music (and the arts in general) over there (actually, if we were to talk about movies, Japan would be at the forefront in the world). Of course, there are the few stand-outs from China, but there's no match, really. Japan's got Pop, Rock, Punk, Techno, Noise, etc. covered (YMO, behby[8D] ). I wonder if Korea is the Canadian equivalent over there. You know it's there, but hardly gets mentioned[?]

Check out Wonderbird's version of Indie Rock:

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ChHCNafMvbQ&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="325" height="268"></embed>


Cherry Filter's knock-off version of alanis:

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ymGOcexG25k&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="325" height="268"></embed>


Delispice is their Wuss Rock (i.e., Radiohead, Travis, clodplay):

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ChL7u1TYTUI&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="325" height="268"></embed>



These are some of my recent personal favourites:

<a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=5v_nS7rJ0sU">"Rainy Day" by Loveholic (Pop Rock)</a>



"Banana Shake" by Humming Urban Stereo (Pop):

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/VAEAEcewUK8&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="325" height="268"></embed>



<a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=1PDIakJO8C4">"Be My Love" by Clazziquai Project (Pop)</a>

[manekineko]

XXX, thanks for your reply and sorry I haven't responded. I've been meaning to watch the videos you referenced. They sound intriguing. I'm always looking for international talent.

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[Bitter Almonds]

<p align="justify">Before I listened to Loveholic and Humming Urban Stereo, the only bands from Asia I knew of were Japanese: The Blue Hearts (from the movie [i]Linda Linda Linda[/i], SharamQ and L'Arc En Ciel (from the anime series [i]DNA^2[/i]), and a coupla more. There wasn't one Japanese band or artist that I listened who isn't related to a movie or teevee show.


"Shinguru Bedo" by SharanQ

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UFERkW7e4Tw&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="268"></embed>


"Blurry Eyes" by L'Arc En Ciel

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/A9xbdXeYiW8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="268"></embed>


"Taiyou Ga Mata Kagayaku Toki" by Takahashi Hiro
<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vz8-hdgRTXU&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="268"></embed>

[SwampThing]

From the anime series "Bleach". More on the pop side, but I like the use of harmonica in this one.
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<font size="1">[b]Favorites of 2008 (so far):[/b]
Beach House - Devotion
British Sea Power - Do You Like Rock Music?
Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
Crystal Stilts - Crystal Stilts
Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid
</font>

[Bitter Almonds]

<p align="justify">I'm thinkin' of taking a risk on a Utada Hikaru album, but I don't know which one. I suppose a blind buy would be just as good as any recommendation since I can't really gauge what kind of sound I'm really looking for. I'm listening to "Colours" and it sounds alright. There's also Fantastic Plastic Machine, which is, from what I hear, an electronic band that plays around with tape loops and samples, warps them to death, and gets a weird sound outta them.