Shibuya-kei
Encyclopedia
is a sub-genre of Japanese pop music
which originated in the Shibuya
district of Tokyo
. It is best described as a mix between jazz
, pop
, and electropop.
, HMV
) early in the 1990s and it spread through Japan rapidly.
The term was applied to bands strongly influenced by French yé-yé
music and its most notable proponent, Serge Gainsbourg
. Typical artists are Flipper's Guitar
, Pizzicato Five
, and Original Love. As the style's popularity increased at end of the 90s, the term began to be applied to many bands whose musical stylings reflected a more mainstream sensibility. Although some artists rejected or resisted being categorized as "Shibuya-kei," the name ultimately stuck, as the style was favoured by local businesses, including Shibuya Center Street's HMV Shibuya, which sold Shibuya-kei records in its traditional Japanese music section. Increasingly, musicians outside of Japan, such as Britain's Momus, France's Dimitri from Paris
, and the US artists Natural Calamity and Phofo
are labelled Shibuya-kei.
J-pop
, an abbreviation for Japanese pop, is a musical genre that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in 1960s music, such as The Beatles, and replaced kayōkyoku in the Japanese music scene...
which originated in the Shibuya
Shibuya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2008, it has an estimated population of 208,371 and a population density of 13,540 persons per km². The total area is 15.11 km²....
district of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. It is best described as a mix between jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
, and electropop.
Overview
Shibuya-kei gained popularity from the Japanese music corner of some foreign-affiliated retail music chains in Shibuya (Tower RecordsTower Records
Tower Records was a retail music chain that was based in Sacramento, California. It currently exists as an international franchise and an online music store....
, HMV
HMV Group
HMV is a British global entertainment retail chain and is the largest of its kind in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company also operates in Hong Kong and Singapore. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE Fledgling Index...
) early in the 1990s and it spread through Japan rapidly.
The term was applied to bands strongly influenced by French yé-yé
Yé-yé
Yé-yé was a style of pop music that emerged from France, Québec and Spain in the early 1960s. The term "yé-yé" derived from "yeah! yeah!" The style expanded worldwide, due to the success of figures such as the French singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg....
music and its most notable proponent, Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
. Typical artists are Flipper's Guitar
Flipper's Guitar
Flipper's Guitar were a Tokyo-based Japanese pop band led and later duo by Keigo Oyamada and Kenji Ozawa. The band were influenced by the chirpy sound of British 80s pop groups like Haircut One Hundred, Exhibit B, The Style Council and Aztec Camera, as well as the fashionably eclectic sounds of...
, Pizzicato Five
Pizzicato Five
Pizzicato Five was a Japanese pop group best known to audiences in the West in their later incarnation as a duo of Maki Nomiya and Yasuharu Konishi...
, and Original Love. As the style's popularity increased at end of the 90s, the term began to be applied to many bands whose musical stylings reflected a more mainstream sensibility. Although some artists rejected or resisted being categorized as "Shibuya-kei," the name ultimately stuck, as the style was favoured by local businesses, including Shibuya Center Street's HMV Shibuya, which sold Shibuya-kei records in its traditional Japanese music section. Increasingly, musicians outside of Japan, such as Britain's Momus, France's Dimitri from Paris
Dimitri from Paris
Dimitri from Paris is a French music producer and DJ of Greek origins. His musical influences are rooted in 1970s funk and disco sounds that spawned contemporary house music, as well as original soundtracks from 50s and 60s cult movies such as Breakfast at Tiffany's, La Dolce Vita and The Party,...
, and the US artists Natural Calamity and Phofo
Phofo
Phofo is a music producer from New York . He is best known for composing 52 episodes of Sushi Pack, a Saturday morning cartoon on CBS , the animated feature film, "Los Campeones de La Lucha Libre" for Fwak! Animation and Shep & Tiffany Watch TV...
are labelled Shibuya-kei.
Terminology
The word for is combined with the Japanese word which literally means "system" or, in this context, "style", to form Shibuya-kei which roughly translates to "Shibuya style".Notable artists
- Buffalo DaughterBuffalo DaughterBuffalo Daughter is a Japanese rock group formed in 1993. The three main members are suGar Yoshinaga on guitar, Yumiko Ohno on bass, and Moog Yamamoto on turntables and graphic design...
- capsule
- CecilCecil-Places:*Cecil College, a community college*Cecil County, Maryland, United States*Cecil Field, an airport in Jacksonville, Florida, United States*Cecil, Georgia, United States*Cecil, Ohio, United States*Cecil, Oregon, United States...
- Cibo MattoCibo MattoCibo Matto are a New York City-based band formed by two Japanese women, Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori, in 1994...
- ChappieChappie-Nickname or given name:* Charles Coventry , nicknamed Chappie* Chappie Dwyer , Australian cricketer* Chappie Fox , American circus historian and philanthropist...
- ChocolatChocolat (singer)is a Japanese singer from the greater Tokyo area in Japan. Chocolat debuted in 1997 on Epic Records with her first single Chocolat a la mode. Chocolat is a twin, her younger sister heaco is a singer as well. In 1998 Chocolat married musician Akito Katayose from the band GREAT3 in Maui, Hawaii...
- CorneliusCornelius (musician)Cornelius is a Japanese recording artist and producer.-Career:Oyamada's first claim to fame was as a member of the pop duo Flipper's Guitar, one of the key groups of the Tokyo Shibuya-kei scene...
- CymbalsCymbals (band)was a Japanese rock band active from 1997-2003. The trio was composed of vocalist , bassist/guitarist , and drummer . Like other Japanese bands which emerged in the late 1990s , Cymbals were strongly influenced by the British pop-rock sounds of the 1960s...
- DahliaDahliaDahlia is a genus of bushy, tuberous, perennial plants native to Mexico, Central America, and Colombia. There are at least 36 species of dahlia, some like D. imperialis up to 10 metres tall. Dahlia hybrids are commonly grown as garden plants...
- Fantastic Plastic MachineTomoyuki Tanaka (musician)is an electronic music artist/DJ, better known by his stage name of Fantastic Plastic Machine. Tanaka is considered to be part of the Shibuya-kei movement, drawing heavily from bossa nova, lounge music, soft rock, and French pop, but he also incorporates many other types of music...
- Flipper's GuitarFlipper's GuitarFlipper's Guitar were a Tokyo-based Japanese pop band led and later duo by Keigo Oyamada and Kenji Ozawa. The band were influenced by the chirpy sound of British 80s pop groups like Haircut One Hundred, Exhibit B, The Style Council and Aztec Camera, as well as the fashionably eclectic sounds of...
- Kahimi KarieKahimi KarieKahimi sings in English, French, and Japanese with whisper-like vocals.-Albums:* 1997 - Larme de crocodile * July 15, 1998 - K.K.K.K.K. * May 24, 2000 - Tilt...
- Macdonald Duck EclairMacdonald Duck EclairMacdonald Duck Eclair is a Japanese "pico-pico" or picopop band associated with such groups as Micro Mach Machine and Miss Wonda and sounding similar to such groups as DAT politics etc. Based in Tokyo, they have been making music since 1999...
- MarinoMarinoMarino, Mariño or Maryino may refer to:In places:* Marino, Lazio, a town in the province of Rome, Italy* Marino, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide* Marino, County Down in Northern Ireland...
- Nomiya Maki
- Kenji OzawaKenji OzawaKenji Ozawa is a Japanese musician born in 1968 in Sagamihara, Kanagawa. His uncle Seiji Ozawa is a world-famous conductor. Ozawa's first claim to fame was as a member of the pop duo, Flipper's Guitar.He graduated from Tokyo University...
- Paris MatchParis match (band)is a Japanese musical group formed in 1998 by composer/arranger Yosuke Sugiyama and lyricist Tai Furusawa with vocalist Mari Mizuno. They debuted in 2000 with the album volume one...
- PerfumePerfume (group)Perfume is a Japanese all-girl trio from Hiroshima, Japan, consisting of Ayano Ōmoto, Yuka Kashino, and Ayaka Nishiwaki. They debuted locally in 2001 and made their transition to a major label in 2005, focusing more on electropop...
- Pizzicato FivePizzicato FivePizzicato Five was a Japanese pop group best known to audiences in the West in their later incarnation as a duo of Maki Nomiya and Yasuharu Konishi...
- Plus-Tech Squeeze BoxPlus-Tech Squeeze BoxPlus-Tech Squeeze Box are a Japanese electronic music band.The frenetic sound of their first album FAKEVOX is an example of the subgenre known as picopop, driven by rudimentary synthesized sounds and heavily-manipulated samples from a variety of sources, including 1950s jazz and big band recordings...
- Round TableRound Table (band)Round Table is a Japanese pop band known mostly for their Anime soundtracks. They are most popularly known in the Anime demographic for their hit single, "Let Me Be With You" - the opening song for the anime Chobits. The band was formed in 1997 with Katsutoshi Kitagawa and Rieko Ito as band...
- Kensuke ShiinaKensuke ShiinaKensuke Shiina is a DJ and musician, an exponent of trip hop, lounge music from Japan. Notable recordings date from the late 1990s.-Music:Kensuke Shiina music has been described variously as downtempo, triphop, Shibuya kei, ambient, and electronic. Known for his Ring of Fire remixes and Insomniac...
- SakanactionSakanactionare a Japanese rock band from Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. Their music is a mix of alternative rock, electronic, pop, and New Wave styles, and is thus difficult to classify under one category...
- Saori@destiny
- Strawberry MachineStrawberry MachineStrawberry Machine is a collaboration between vocalist Akira Okabe and several different producers. The music features Okabe's "whisper" vocals combined with catchy synthesizer lines and video game inspired sound effects....
- Takako MinekawaTakako Minekawais a Japanese musician, composer and writer.-Background:As an accomplished all-around musician, Minekawa's musical skills set her firmly outside of the J-Pop "idol" tradition: she writes and composes most of her material, singing quirky lyrics about subjects such as clouds, cats, and the color...
- Together Robots
- Tatsuya OeCaptain Funkis a Japanese electronic music producer, club DJ and label impresario, known for a flair in alternating between some abstract experimentation and more pop-oriented sounds.- Career :...
(Captain FunkCaptain Funkis a Japanese electronic music producer, club DJ and label impresario, known for a flair in alternating between some abstract experimentation and more pop-oriented sounds.- Career :...
) - Towa TeiTowa Teiis a DJ, artist and record producer in Yokahoma, Japan.Tōwa debuted as a member of Deee-Lite, from the U.S. label Elektra Records in 1990, and shot to fame via their international hit single, "Groove Is In the Heart"...
- Tomosuke FunakiTomosuke Funakiis a Japanese composer who has contributed to the Bemani series of music video games. He has produced songs for Beatmania, Beatmania IIDX, Pop'n Music, Dance Maniax, Guitar Freaks, DrumMania, Mambo a Gogo, and Dance Dance Revolution...
- Yoshinori SunaharaYoshinori SunaharaYoshinori Sunahara is a Japanese DJ and club programmer, particularly prominent in the Shibuya-kei and chillout scene. He was born in Sapporo, Japan, on September 13, 1969. His style consists of a mixture of funk, bossa nova, Shibuya-kei, and 70s music...
- Yukari FreshYukari FreshYukari Fresh , is a Shibuya-kei artist.- Beginnings :Yukari Takasaki was seventeen members of one of Tokyo's Escalator Records' first bands, Snapshot...
- For more artists, see Shibuya-kei musicians
External links
- Keikaku - Independent and little known Japanese Artist profiles, reviews, interviews and articles in English.
- [ allmusic Guide to Shibuya-kei]