Beat4Battle TV: Japan – Episode 2

We return to the B4B:TV Japan series after a little hiatus, and this time we bring you footage of some of Tokyo’s finest, including Turntable Radio friend and favourite Naoki.

Episode 2 was filmed at the August 2009 Scratch Day event, a freestyle scratch event which Yoshi has been organising in Tokyo over the last couple of years. Following his recent move to Europe he has moved the event from the Vestax PACO shop to what is possibly Tokyo’s most appropriate location: Miyajima’s scratch school in Tachikawa (which is located in the suburbs of the Japanese capital). Regular listeners and visitors will remember Miyajima from our Japan special podcasts, as well as from his appearance at DMC in 08 and in various DVD documentaries about the Japanese scratch scene. It’s fair to say that for many, including some of the country’s best scratch DJs, Miyajima is seen as the best freestyle scratch DJ in Japan, a real purist who approaches scratching with the same rigorous mentality some people approach martial arts. And yet he’s still friendly and approachable and far removed from scratch nerds – he’s just someone who takes what he does seriously. Scratch Day events are now organised everytime Yoshi goes back to Japan. The latest one took place last week and we should see footage from that in the near future. Anyone interested in finding out more about the events or taking part should drop Yoshi a line via the site’s contact page or any of the social networks.

For this episode, Yoshi’s chosen to feature 5 of the DJs who took part on the day: Shintaro, Audace (a French DJ and producer who we’ve also featured on Rhythm Incursions recently), LAN, Naoki and Samu. This time he has gone for a tighter edit highlighting each DJ and their cutting in more detail. The footage also gives a nice view of Miyajima’s school and what the day was like. Definitely reminds me of the couple of live sessions I organised while in Tokyo, with a similar, relaxed vibe.

So that’s it, sit back and enjoy episode 2 and look out for the next one coming this way soon.

This episode is 10 minutes long, and comes in at 109mb. As with all our video podcasts it’s optimised for iPod and iTunes (.m4v file) viewing but can be played with all standard media players as long as you have the latest codecs.

You can preview/stream it above and download it right below. To make sure you don’t miss an episode subscribe to our podcast feed on iTunes or in any feed reader/aggregator/podcatcher.

Download Beat4Battle TV:Japan ep 2 (right click and save as)

Beat4Battle TV: Japan – Episode 2
Featuring: Shintaro, Audace, Samu, Lan and Naoki
Filmed and Edited by Yoshi. Filmed at Miyajima’s school in Tachikawa, Tokyo in August 2009.

Beat4Battle TV: Japan – Episode 1

Ok so we’re still a little late with the long overdue ‘normal’ podcast show and resuming of the Mr Trick Years broadcast, but in the meantime we’re keeping you entertained with the first episode of the new B4B TV from Yoshi, this time shining a light on the Japanese scratch scene.

This first episode acts as a teaser of sorts too, as the series won’t actually start as such until next month. Yoshi’s moving to Europe for the year to study and so with the move and other important things on the line the actual B4B TV:Japan series won’t be broadcast weekly until later in October.

Here’s what Yoshi had to say about this particular episode, which features a rather unknown Tokyo skratch kid by the name of Lunch:

I was introduced to Lunch by a good friend of mine, LAN, who competed with him in a DJ battle called “Scratch Colosseum” that took place in early June this year. It turns out that Lunch is a student of Miyajima, another friend of mine and whom I consider to be one of if not the best scratcher in the world. This video was shot at Lunch’s friend’s house (Lunch said his own place was too messy to be filmed!) in Hon-Atsugi on the 30th July 2009. Please sit back, relax and enjoy the show!

Actually another change to the series, apart from the geographical setting, is the decision to keep episodes down to 10 mins in length. This is taking in feedback from various viewers and others. It also means the podcasts should be a little easier on your desktop/iPod/portable viewer!

This episode is 10 minutes long, and comes in at 106mb. As with all our video podcasts it’s optimised for iPod and iTunes (.m4v file) viewing but can be played with all standard media players as long as you have the latest codecs.

You can preview/stream it above and download it right below. To make sure you don’t miss an episode subscribe to our podcast feed on iTunes or in any feed reader/aggregator/podcatcher.

Download Beat4Battle TV:Japan ep 1 (right click and save as)

Beat4Battle TV: Japan – Episode 1
Featuring: DJ Lunch
Filmed and Edited by Yoshi.

5th anniversary podcasts – Shibuya Sessions videos pt 1.1

EDIT: I’ve just realised, a few weeks later, that the feed cannot send out two videos at once, something I actually already knew but managed to forget! And so Ken One’s loop routine which I announced in this post was actually never podcast. I’ve now fixed that and the video has gone out under the pt1.2 post. Apologies everyone!

We continue the 5th Anniversary podcast series with a return to the recent live session we recorded in Shibuya with DJ Baku, Exsample and Miyajima. But this time we bring you videos of the session to compliment the audio podcast we broadcast about a month ago.

Over the next 3 weeks we’ll be podcasting 6 videos, 2 at a time, recorded during the session. The audio from these videos was first aired in last month’s podcast, and so this time you get to see as well as hear what the guys were doing. And all the videos come with some very nifty editing and visual tricks from Ed Rooth who has been putting in some work to bring you something that’s as enjoyable to watch as it is to listen.

Our first two videos this week feature Ken One solo, with the new loop routine he premiered for us during the session, and Baku, Miyajima and Ken One together doing a little improvised freestyle with Baku on drums, Ken One on bass and Miyajima on vocal cuts.

Subscribers should already have the files on their computer or on their way shortly. If you aren’t subscribed to our podcast yet than what are you waiting for? You can subscribe via iTunes (find us in the podcast directory), by adding http://feeds.feedburner.com/turntableradio to your podcatcher, by clicking any of the podcatching buttons on the top left hand side of the site, or by visiting the feedburner page itself too (where you can also download the last 15 podcasts on the feed directly).

And don’t forget you can also grab any of our podcasts via the direct download links inside the posts – see below for this week’s ones!

As usual all videos are in .m4v format, optimised for iPod, iTunes and Quicktime viewing, on the go or on your PC. The videos can also be viewed with all standard players including Windows Media Player, VLC, Divx etc…

Ken One’s Loop routine is 67mb, while the Baku, Ken One and Miyajima freestyle is 44mb.

Stay tuned for part 2 next week, as well as some important website announcements coming up soon.

Baku, Ken One, Miyajima freestyle – Direct Download (right click and save as)

5th anniversary podcasts – Turntable Radio live from Shibuya

As announced earlier, we continue our 5th anniversary celebrations with another very special podcast, our second Japan live session.

This time we headed out to Shibuya, for the POPGROUP offices where DJ Baku, Exsample (Ken-One, Naoki and Shige) and Miyajima came together for the occasion. As with the first session, back in September, the idea was simple – ask the guys to come together, put them in a room with lots of gear and just record the outcome. With less space this time round, but still bags of enthusiasm, we took over one of the rooms in the POPGROUP offices and got down to business.

Unfortunately, Miyajima had to leave early as we had some delays in setting up (as always) and so he only appears on one of the tracks. For the rest, what basically happened was that Baku and Exsample jammed together for the best part of 3/4 hours and what you’ll hear on this podcast are edited takes from the jam session. Pretty much everything you’ll hear was done unrehearsed and off the cuff, with the guys chatting in between takes, bouncing ideas and just discussing a rough direction for what they would do.

The session also coincided with the release of Baku’s second album, Dharma Dance (check the recent news item below for more on that), and so Baku, who was using Serato and a Pioneer 909 mixer, primarily used sounds he had made and produced for his album, including drums, guitar melodies and synth lines. For the majority of the tracks you’ll hear in the podcast, Baku provided the backbone for the track with the Exsample guys adding on top, with melodies and vocal cuts. On a couple of tracks the roles were reserved with Naoki and Ken-One taking the lead on drums, and everyone else filling in. So for those who haven’t yet heard the album, this session should give you a pretty good idea of some of the tracks’ moods and influences.

In addition to all this, Ken-One also premiered a new loop routine for us and there is, as I said, a 3 way session between Baku, Ken One and Miyajima, as well as an Exsample freestyle.
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Turntable Radio – ‘Live from Kami-Kitazawa’ podcast

Following from our summer extravaganza of podcasts (check the archives if you missed any of it) we’re very proud to bring you another first for Turntable Radio – a live session recorded last month in Kami-Kitazawa, Tokyo. For the first time we’re broadcasting an hour and a half of audio performed live and recorded exclusively for Turntable Radio.

The long and short of it: a few months ago I hooked up with Ken-One and Naoki, two of the finest and nicest tablists in Tokyo. The plan was to arrange for a session with some of Tokyo’s upcoming talents, record it and broadcast it for everyone to check out. The first time such a session would be arranged with Japanese turntablists to be heard outside of Japan. The session was arranged and happened last month, at the studio of the Human Rhythm crew in Kami-Kitazawa. Massive, massive thanks go to Ken-One and all the guys for making this possible. I wouldn’t have been possible to get much done with my still pretty basic Japanese.

The session lasted well over 6 hours, testament to these guys’ stamina and love for what they do. Basically the format was simple: get them all in one room with a bunch of equipment, let them jam and record it all. The result is an hour and a half of edits from the session. Everything you hear on this podcast is performed live, with little or no rehearsal, totally off the cuff for the most part. The only exception is a Ken-One track at the beginning.

As I mentioned the aim of this session is to showcase some of the talent in Tokyo which is rarely heard outside of Japan (though more and more seen thanks to the likes of youtube). Present on the day were: the Exsample crew (Ken-One, Naoki, Shige), Human Rhythm crew (ru, Satoshi, Tsuyoshi and ???) and Miyajima (current DMC Japan champion, and one of Japan’s best scratcher by a long mile). Together these guys represent some of the freshest talent in Japan right now – taking in influences and ideas from Japan and elsewhere and bringing their own elements to it.

Exsample is probably the most established lot, with Ken-One having been a part of the Tokyo scratch scene for many years. Ken-One has produced for the likes of Kan (MSC), and showcased alongside the likes of Kentaro, D-Styles, Qbert and more. Naoki was the finalist in the 2005 Vestax freestyle final against Enfoe, and will be releasing his debut break record soon. As for Human Rhythm, these guys have been working together for a while using a simple formula of 3 turntables and one MPC. They’re one of the most interesting crews to come out of the new generation of Japanese tablists. Having taken the concept of the turntable band pioneered by US and European artists, these guys have been doing their own thing, bringing in new ideas and sounds. As for Miyajima, he’s also been a fixture of the Japanese tablist scene for a while and he’s widely recognised as one of the country’s finest scratchers. This is a man who’s known for refusing to do anything but cut – focusing solely on scratching in its rawest form. He’s developed his own cuts over the years, documented in the excellent ‘Kaikoo’ DVD and soon to be featured in Q-Bert’s forthcoming scratch encyclopedia DVD as well. Miyajima has also battled in the past (he returned to battles this year and won DMC Japan) and for a while set up his own turntable band too (the name of which escapes me now). Amongst all the scratchers in Japan right now, Miyajima is definitely one of the most interesting, with a unique style as you’ll hear.

Alongside guys like Baku, Kentaro, Hifana, Kireek and others, these guys represent one of the facets of the tablist artform in Japan today – with its own unique and distinct sound and aesthetic. We hope you enjoy what you hear as much as we did putting it together. As I said everything on this podcast is live and wouldn’t have been possible without the kindness of the Human Rhythm crew who were the hosts for the day. Included in this podcast are edits from the many, many freestyles as well as some tracks performed by each crew. These tracks were all performed live, with little rehearsal.

There’s a tracklist below as well as a list of links for you to check if you want to find out more about the artists featured on this session. Look out for their forthcoming releases and if you like what you hear than please support. Also look out for a video of Ken-One live in Tokyo earlier on this year which will be podcast in the coming week to accompany this session.

There were more artists we wanted to feature on this special, including DJ Baku, unfortunately it wasn’t possible. But we’ll be working on doing some more live sessions in the coming months so watch this space for more info soon.

Enjoy!

DJ Ken-One – http://www.myspace.com/djken1
Human Rhythm – http://www.humanrhythm.jp

Turntable Radio – ‘Live from Kami-Kitazawa’ tracklist

Dj Baku – Turntable Radio intro
Exsample – Intro freestyle
Dj Ken-One – In-To-Yo (taken from Kan’s debut album)
Exsample & Human Rhythm – String freestyle
Exsample & Human Rhythm – Drums and cuts freestyle
Exsample, Human Rhythm and Miyajima – Freestyle
Human Rhythm – Intro
Human Rhythm – Track 1
Human Rhythm – Track 2
Human Rhythm – Track 3
Miyajima & Tsuyoshi – Freestyle
Exsample – Track 1
Exsample – Jam session
Exsample & Human Rhythm – Jam session
Tsuyoshi & Naoki – Electro freestyle
Exsample, Human Rhythm & Miyajima – Final freestyle pt 1
Exsample, Human Rhythm & Miyajima – Final freestyle pt 2
Dj Ken-One – Solo freestyle

Direct download link – right click and save as

Turntable Radio podcast: March 06 – Japan special

Finally our next podcast is here – slightly delayed following our change of servers and website.
This time round we take a change to our usual format by bringing you a special edition of the show dedicated to Japan and featuring our first guest mix of the year.

Why Japan? Well because we feel that there is, and has been, a lot of good stuff happening over there in the last 5 years which has largely gone unnoticed by most people outside of the country – the cultural and linguistic gaps between Japan and the Western world also mean you’re less likely to hear about artists out there. While people like Kentaro have made a name for themselves worldwide, there’s a ton of talent in Japan which hasn’t really been heard from and so we decided to try and shine a light on this talent and hopefully turn you all onto some interesting and different artists. This show follows on from a series of articles I did last year on Spin Science following the discovery of a documentary called ‘Kaikoo’, interviews with DJ Kentaro, meeting a London based collective called Studio Rarekwai and meeting a Japanese DJ and producer living in London called Tatsuki.
Hopefully this show will help give you all a better idea of what’s been happening out there – however this is by no means a definite look at Japanese DJs, tablists and producers – just a snapshot really, so if you like what you hear then be sure to check the links below and go and find out more about the artists and DJs out there, including those we weren’t able to feature (such as Izoh, Miyajima, Ske, Martin, Ken One, Jifrock and more).

As for the format of the show it’s pretty simple – there’s one mix from ourselves, featuring a wide range of tracks from the last 5+ years and covering various artists and styles. After that we’ve got an exclusive mix from Tatsuki, a Japanese DJ and producer who lives in London and works solo as well as with a Danish band called Blue Foundation. Tatsuki has put together a very special mix for this show featuring tracks from his forthcoming solo LP, remixes and collaboration work with a Danish producer called Bichi. In between these two mixes, we’ve got an interview with Tatsuki conducted last month – this covers info on the man and his work (which includes the live turntable band ‘Whakhakha’ with Baku and Klock – a rarely heard of project which is not disimilar to the likes of Ned Hoddings, BNN or the Bastrd Language Tour), his forthcoming solo LP, the Japanese scene, DJ Krush and more.

Thanks must go to the following people for helping make this podcast possible: Sparky T, Hiroki @ Pop Group, Tatsuki, SRK, Kentaro & Kotaro and Laura @ Ninja Tune.

I hope you’ll enjoy this as much as we did putting it together!

Direct download link (right click and save as)

Tracklist for Japan special podcast:
2tall – TTR Intro
DJ Krush – Kemuri – Sony Japan
Laurent – Looking Eastwards mix
DJ Klock – Ensemble for the weak – Sublime
DJ Baku vs Bleeder – Rendom Access Sample – DNA Kalacta
Tatsuki – Haruka Phader – Exclusive
Tatuski – Ricochet Re-edit – Exclusive
DJ Krush ft Tatsuki – Decks-a-Thron – Sony Japan
DJ Krush ft DJ Disk – Duck Chase – Sony Japan
Hifana ft DJ Kentaro – Hitaro – Warners Japan
Hifana – Gakulang – Warners Japan
Hifana – Wamono – 3D
Goth Trad – Back To Chill – Pop Group Recordings
Coldcut – Everything is Under Control (DJ Kentaro remix) – Ninja Tune
DJ Baku ft Tav aka Taboone – Vandalism (DJ Baku remix) – DisDefenceDisc
Laurent – Looking Eastwards mix ends
Tatsuki interview – Conducted in London, Jan 2006
Tatsuki – Saint Seiya mix
Tatsuki – Mode 1200
Tatsuki – Silent Assassin
Tatsuki – Hatchwell
Dale Berning – The Waltz remixed by Tatsuki
Bichi ft Tatsuki – Clouds Are Parcelled Out Across My Vision
Bichi – Coarse And Wild As The Cement Of Your Broken City Crumbles
Tatsuki – Saint Seiya mix ends

You can stream the podcast on this page by clicking on the little player icon at the bottom of this post.
To subscribe you can use the podcatching links on the top right hand side of the site with your own podcatching program, look for us in the iTunes podcast directory or check the feedburner link where you can download the show directly to your computer/portable player.

For more information please check the following sites and links:
DJ Klock – Clockwise Records
DJ Baku
Dis Defence Disc
Pop Group
Kaikoo Documentary
Hifana
Tatsuki’s blog
Blue Foundation
Bichi
Kentaro
Ninja Tune
Goth Trad
DJ Krush
Studio Rarekwai
Eastern Decknology article ft Baku, Tatsuki, Kentaro and more
DJ Baku interview Nov 2005
DJ Kentaro interview Nov 2005
Downloads section at Spin Science where you can find tracks from Tatsuki and Bichi