citypop

Video game translator, localization expert, and video game music DJ Andrew Klim tells us about his journey from being an English teacher in a rough and tumble junior high school in Yamanashi to working on localizations for massive titles including Final Fantasy, Shenmue, One Piece, Attack on Titan, and... erotic games. Aaron and Parker share awe at Andrew's tales of brawling with chimpira in Koenji, and discuss the evolving Tokyo Olympics corruption case, a Tokyo doctor accused of forging COVID vaccine docs, and a man mistakenly arrested for drunk riding by cops while pushing his motorbike.

The voice of the Tokaido Shinkansen, voice actress, entrepreneur, and improv comedian Donna Burke shares her story of how she became one of Japan's top voices. Aaron and Parker discuss Japan slowly accepting foreign tourists, the Okinawan governor's gaffe, and there's a big surprise at the end!

What is driving a boom in vinyl record sales in the US and Japan? Why is city pop, a genre of Japanese pop music that emerged in the late 1970s and peaked during Japan's golden age of the 1980s bubble economy, seeing a sudden resurgence in popularity? Aaron and Parker discuss the Yen's 20-year low and a Japanese bird researcher's world-first discovery that birds use words and grammar.

On this episode of the Japan Station podcast, we're talking with music journalist Patrick St. Michel. He'll be telling us about Japanese pop music, Perfume, the city pop boom and one of his latest articles which focuses on the rise and fall and rise of eurobeat.

About Patrick St. Michel

Patrick St. Michel is a music journalist who specializes in Japanese pop music. His articles appear regularly in publications such as The Japan Times and Pitchfork.

Topics Discussed

• How it was that Patrick St. Michel got interested in Japanese pop music
• Discovering Perfume while on the JET Programme
• The appeal, image and sound of Perfume
• The influence of Yasutaka Nakata
• The explosion of popularity in K-pop around the world
• Comapring K-pop vs. J-pop
• How J-pop often ignores musical trends from the West
• How "City Pop" exploded in popularity online
• How Mariya Takeuchi's song "Plastic Love" went viral
• Interviewing Miriya Takeuchi
• How the internet has made it possible for niche music to succeed
• What eurobeat is
• How it was that Patrick St. Michel was able to interview DJ Boss in order to do a story about Super Eurobeat
• The resurgence in popularity the eaurobeat genre has seen in recent years
• How eurobeat has become a part of online/meme culture
• About visiting Tokyo's club Ageha
• The influence of Super Eurobeat on contemporary younger musical artists
• Da Pump's "U.S.A."
• How rock continues to be popular in Japan
• DJ Boss's views on Super Eurobeat and its evolution
• How Avex goes about producing songs for the Super Eurobeat series
• Patrick St. Michel's music recommendations: Hikaru Utada (Bad Mode), Soichi Terada (Asakusa Light), Star Kids, 4s4ki
• About the Make Believe Melodies blog and email newsletter
• And much more!

Support on Patreon & Ko-fi

If you enjoy Japan Station and want to ensure that we're able to produce more episodes, then please consider becoming a patron on Patreon.com. For a minimum pledge of $1 a month you'll get early access to all JapanKyo podcasts, bonus content, and more. And for $3 a month, you'll get access to Japanese Plus Alpha, a podcast produced by me (Tony Vega) that focuses on the Japanese language and all of its fascinating quirks. Also, all pledges get a shout-out on the show and my undying gratitude. Thank you in advance!

• • Support Japan Station on Patreon

You can also do a one time donation via Ko-fi.

• • Support us on Ko-fi

Links, Videos, Etc.

Follow Patrick St. Michel on Twitter, subscribe to his newsletter (Make Believe Melodies), and check out the Spotify playlist he mentioned with his music recommendations.

• Patrick St. Michel on Twitter
• Make Believe Melodies Newsletter
• Spotify Playlist

To read the article Patrick wrote about Super Eurobeat based on his interview with DJ Boss, use the link below.

• The Eurobeat boom, boom, boom, boom means the '90s are back

Don't forget to check out the latest episode of Ichimon Japan.

• How do you say trombone in Japanese? (About the World War II Katakana Word “Ban”) | Ichimon Japan 59

Special Thanks

Opening/Closing song: Oedo Controller (大江戸コントローラー) by Yunomi featuring Toriena (Used with permission from Yunomi) To listen to more of Yunomi’s music, check out his Soundcloud page or YouTube channel.

Japan Station cover art: Provided by Erik R.

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Full Show Notes

Get the full version of show notes at https://www.japankyo.com/category/podcasts/japanstation/

city pop/j-disco megamix