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July 13, 2009

Careful with Apache

Some well meaning fan of jam band Disco Biscuits has done something that probably seemed like a great idea at the time, but it’s crap. About a year ago this video went viral, so you may have seen it, an al fresco performance of ”Apache” by Danish pop savant Tommy Seebach. ”Apache” was originally recorded by The Shadows in June 1960, but with dancing (Danish) Indian girls in tassled bikinis, a bongo player and a spooky voiceover predating Michael Jackson’s ”Thiller,” Seebach’s video stands on its own both as a funky ass musical capsule and a cheesy ass ’70s freakout.

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Shaking with Flower Power

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Soul Flower Union have a great back story. The band rose out the ashes of two Osaka-based punk groups, Mescaline Drive and Newest Model, back in 1993.

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July 12, 2009

Tents & Bugs & Rock N Roll: 10 Years Of FRF On DVD

At the very beginning of Jon Helmer’s DVD Tents & Bugs and Rock N Roll, we see a dreadlocked Aussie or Kiwi or Brit (damned accents) standing outside the Naeba hotels getting totally blitzed about the fact that, somewhere within the walls of that hotel is Limp fucking Bizkit (profanity added by the present writer to better portray said excitement). This first section having been filmed in 1999, I concluded that either a) this was exactly the sort of time-warp nostalgia experience you look for in a DVD like this, because clearly the memo from on hipster high that the Bizkit suck hadn’t yet been circulated, or quite possibly b) this gentleman just thinks for himself. (For the record, I still think “Break Stuff” is one of the top 5 greatest raging angry songs ever.)

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The Great Fuji Footwear Debate: Kern’s Solution

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As the gender theorists have been telling us for years, simple dichotomies never give the whole picture. (And they are usually instruments of power wielded—knowingly or unknowingly—by those with a vested interest in maintaining the dominant paradigm, but that’s surely a discussion better left to the Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra post). So too with the current debate among FRF staffers as to whether wellies or sandals are the better choice of footwear for a three-day outdoor festival with a good chance of rain.

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July 11, 2009

Burnt rubber rock in the morning

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If you are looking for Japanese rock 'n' roll swagger at Fuji Rock, one of your best bets this year is The Birthday.

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July 10, 2009

Ok ... Really All Full Now

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Based on a message that appeared on the FRF official site last week I posted that the 8th lineup announcement was most likely the final one. Turns out the fine folks at Smash had two more small additions for us.

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July 9, 2009

FRF Staff Picks: Phil

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The pre-festival party on Thursday night is notable for several constants. Ostensibly thrown as a kind of thank-you to the Naeba community, it's gratis--anyone who happens to be there can attend, though the festivities are limited to the two food courts. The locals set up a bon odori platform, around which people dance to traditional music, and the evening is usually climaxed by a brief eruption of fireworks. And then there's the bands at the Red Marquee...

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FRF- Staff Picks: Sean S

Best Thing About Fuji Rock: Being Alone! That’s right, nothing like going to a festival with 30,000 people just so you can get a little solo time! If you are with a bunch of bros or hanging with the wolf pack ala “The Hangover” you might want to break away for some solo beer runs and never come back. Being alone means you’re your inner caveman can come out, and you bum smokes, share a jug of wine, throw a few elbows in the mosh pit, well,…you catch my drift. Anyhoo, catching up with entourage is pretty easy, either meeting at the Heineken tent during the Oasis set or night cap at Palace of Wonder.

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July 8, 2009

In Praise Of Great, Lesser-Known Works: Take Me Back To Your House

This song and video first came to my attention when I got a text from my Serbian friend Sasa that said something like "Basement Jaxx! OMG U gotta hear this!". I'm not as big a fan of dance music as Sasa, but he was right of course, just like he was about Royksopp. So what makes this tune so great?

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July 7, 2009

FRF Staff Picks: Jeff (Part 2): Wellie wanging

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It's an eternal debate: Boxers or briefs? Ginger or Mary Anne? Whisky or whiskey? And for Fuji Rock Festival goers it seems to come down to Wellingtons or sandals. I, for one, am a Wellie man and wholeheartedly endorse the low-tech rubber boot. Here's why...

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