The Real Japan?

TIMNS with Shinta and his father outside their rice field

The Fuse gig not only marked the halfway point of our tour (4 gigs down, 3 to go), but also the start of a much-needed 4 day break. The next morning, after sleeping in accidentally (who knows why that happened...) we made our way to Shimonoseki for its famous fish market. The market was packed with beautiful platters, tanks filled with fish and eel and free samples of seaweed. The main market itself was long past the early-morning bustle by the time we got there, so we headed for a Sushi restaurant within the complex. With our table cunningly positioned right at the front of the conveyor belt of food winding round the restaurant, we got to try an incredible array of different types of fish (including fugu, the infamous puffer fish which is fatal if you eat the wrong bit). The meal is aptly summed up by the photo of Yuka below, sometime after her 'last' 6th dish:

We then headed to Hiroshima, where we stayed with a man named Shinta, the owner of the Novel Sounds label, and his family. Shinta lives on the outskirts of Hiroshima with his wife and his parents in a traditional house which has been owned by their family for over 100 years. The village, which was outside the area most affected by the A-bomb, is surrounded by tree-covered mountains and a wide clear river. It was in this setting that Shinta and his family set up a BBQ to welcome us, including Kobe beef. Shinta told us that in japan, Kobe beef cuts are classified into 15 levels, and that we were being served number 1 - the finest. To illustrate just how fantastic this was, you need only look up Kobe beef on wikipedia! The perfect accompaniment to this? Home-grown vegetables (including tomatoes, onions, pumpkin and watermelon) and rice.

The following day, Shinta took us on a walk and showed us where he and his family grow some of their crops. We then visited the local Buddhist shrine, which was around 530 years old. Stone steps paved the way to the entrance which was shadowed by two dragons (the east and west dragons) crafted from wood. The shrine was small but spectacular, and the priest was warm and welcoming. All major events of village life are celebrated there: blessing newborn babies, marriages and funerals.

After an impromptu paddle in the river to cool off from the heat of the day, we went to a Okonomiyaki (a large omelette with noodles, meat, onion and cheese inside. Yum!) shop to get take away. Our second major autograph experience came when the shop owners asked us to sign their wall(!) Yuka hesitantly made the first marks, followed by the rest of us:

Our packed day of sightseeing ended with a tour of a sake brewery. The small business is only operational in the winter due to the need to keep the heat low during production, but the massive 7000 litre barrels used in production still smelt strongly of the sake. The brewery utilised a mix of both modern and traditional techniques; some types of sake were predominantly prepared by machine, but some were the craft of the master sake makers, who spend 48 hours at a time preparing the alcohol. The trip ended with a tasting session of the various different types of sake, and the prices were so reasonable that we came away with a good many bottles ourselves!

We'd like to thank Shinta and his family for their incredible hospitality: they gave us ample sleeping space and kept us incredibly well fed, which we are incredibly grateful for (sleepiness and hunger being the two most defining features of TIMNS members according to Fumi). They showed us a way of life in Japan that is incredibly far removed from the bright neon lights and noise of places like Tokyo and Osaka, yet just as obviously and uniquely Japanese.

The following day, we visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial museum. The effect of this place is obviously not something that can be easily blogged about. The museum itself is huge, and covers in an unbiased manner the history of Hiroshima, spanning from its time as an industrial pre-war city, through the wartime period, to information on the current nuclear climate worldwide. We were particularly impressed with Hiroshima's desire not to seem like the victim of a catastrophe but a voice for disarmament: to use the experience of its people to help fight for a safer world.

After this sobering experience, we set off to Yamaguchi for a dinner date with Little Phrase, who we were supporting the following evening. More to come on our Yamaguchi and Kyoto experiences next time!

Bloggingly yours,

Dave, Non & TIMNS

Lighting the Fuse

The rollercoaster that has been TIMNS' first ever tour continued the morning after the Minus Festival. We piled into the van ready to hit Osaka's funky shopping district. Mike turned the key in the ignition and... a loud mechanical sound, then nothing. Once the mechanic arrived, we found out our battery was dodgy and even though we managed to get the engine going it was unlikely to last the day. Changing a battery is not something you have to do every day, particularly with a minimal grasp of the language, but thanks to the help of the (unfortunately named) Heart-on Hotel staff we went off to find a suitable garage to buy and fit a new one.
The garage had the usual Japanese characters adorning various car accessories, including an entire Hello Kitty section, and also had a bizarre advertising campaign involving Leonardo Di Caprio selling the benefits of a new type of eco-tyre.

Once equipped with a new battery and fully inflated tyres, as well as fully inflating ourselves with some takoyaki (balls of batter and octopus), we set off for Hiroshima, staying the night there before reaching our destination of Kokura on the island of Kyushu. Kokura is a small, sleepy city whose industrial skyline is contrasted by lush green mountains springing up on its doorstep. For once we arrived early for the gig, which gave us enough time for a decent soundcheck and some hurried flyering of trees (apparently more acceptable than flyering signposts).

The venue, Fuse, was very similar in style and sound to Tight Rope in Nagoya, and the event was definitely a rock event. We were quite worried about numbers for the event, firstly because we only knew one or two people personally, and secondly because this was the furthest point away from Tokyo on our tour. Although the event was nowhere near the magnitude of Osaka, each support band drew fans and many stuck around for our set. We had to try and play in a way that would appeal to a more 'rock' crowd. We've agreed since that the tour in general has taught us to play tighter and adapt to our audience. This is something that we want to work hard on in the future.

Thanks to Fumi for the photo!

It was past 1am by the time we had left the venue due to an overly chatty venue manager. However, two of the bands had stuck around, and we all went to a nearby restaurant for food and beer and sake. Conversation was broken but hilarious - special credit should go to Adam, who was managing to hold his own in Japanese against the joking of the local bands, and also for apparently selling Non ('the most beautiful girl in the world') to one of them for 30,000,000 yen!

After Fuse we are heading back on the return leg of our tour. We have a 4 day rest in which to check out Hiroshima and the surrounding area. Check back soon for more updates and more gig photos!

Much TIMNS lovin',

Dave, Non & TIMNS

The Minus Festival - Osaka

Osaka is a lively, noisy city, with pedestrian-filled one way streets and fearless cyclists. This was a fitting setting for our most energetic gig yet; the Minus Festival at Club Vijon on Sunday 25th July. Hosted by the brilliant Boneville Occident, the festival was composed of post-rock, ambient and electronica-based acts, and given such a focused lineup there was a great camaraderie between the bands.

We arrived at 12:30 for a seamless soundcheck thanks to an incredibly helpful legion of Club Vijon techies, who managed to rustle up a full drum mix for Dave and took meticulous notes in preparation for our set, which was the last of the night. The event started at 3pm with Pastel Blue, a young shoegaze band who did well to start things off. However, things really kicked off with a storming set by Anyo, probably the most straight-up rock band of the event, with gorgeous female vocals and fierce guitar lines.

Anyo rocking out

After this, Kanina gave the audience the chance to drift off into a dreamlike world, with a live version of their 'a short story', a narrative about a little boy who searches for his purpose in life. With childlike, crayon and paint animation accompanying a beautiful soundscape produced by a bafflingly large set of pedals and amps controlled by Kentaro Amano, and keyboards, flute, and drum and orchestral samples utilised by singer and multi-instrumentalist Yukino.

Kanina tell us a story

Next, Boneville Occident cranked the amps to 11 and gave a 3 guitar onslaught punctuated by vicious electronic noise and drum and bass-esque drums.

The chilling monochrome of Boneville Occident's set

This paved the way for Sgt., a veteran post-rock band from Tokyo. Characterised by an incredibly tight rhythm section overlaid with effects-laden electric violin and guitar, Sgt. got an amazing response from the crowd and it was clear that many had come specifically to see them. Such a rhythmically-led post-rock band is quite rare to find, and was illustrated by the fact that the energetic drummer positioned himself right at the front of the stage, with bass and guitar taking a back seat.

One of the mellower moments of Sgt.'s blistering set

Given such a high quality lineup, it was with slight nervous excitement that we took to the stage. The energy from the crowd was tangible and definitely contributed to our playing a livelier set than usual. At the end of our set, much to our surprise, the crowd started cheering 'one more!' in English. By this time, the event had seriously overrun, but we looked up to see the sound guys enthusiastically giving us the thumbs up. We closed the night playing the first song we wrote together as a band - Number 3.

A room with a view... special shout out to 10 Count (our friend with the cap!)

Special mention should also go to the laptop musicians of the evening, who satiated the crowd whilst the bands set up. The final DJ set of the night was more of a performance, as it involved both a DJ and a guitarist, who had never met before that day. It was also the only other act who were from outside Japan as the guitarist was from France. However, in our opinion, the best of the bunch was still our tour mate Fumi. Special credit is also due to her for battling through restricted space (half of her gear was on the floor) and also through unnecessarily loud sound-checks by some of the bands!

Once the audience had left, our night continued as Club Vijon held an afterparty for the bands. After a series of 'Kanpai!'s and thank yous for the night and each of the bands, everyone began drinking, trading CDs and autographs, eating the (amazing) Japanese junk food laid out, and practising their English. Non went on a photo-taking rampage which you can see below - as Sgt.'s drummer, Ono, would say... these are 'nice memories'!

TIMNS and Boneville Occident

TIMNS and Kanina

Rock On! - Hiro & Ono from Sgt. with Adam & Dave

Kawaii! (Cute!) - Non with Miki & Ono of Sgt.

'Nice Memory!' - drummers Dave & Ono

The party continues... Hiro from Sgt. & associated randomers

Kanpai!

Check back soon for more news from Kyushu!

Dave, Non & TIMNS

Let's Play Pong

So, Nagoya Castle. Stunning on the outside:

Inside, a lift and lots of lighting/air con. Nagoya Castle was bombed and consequently rebuilt, but is more of a museum inside that an accurate representation of the castle itself. Apparently Kyoto, which we'll be visiting on the return leg of our tour, is a lot better for capturing the feel of Japan's history.

After being energised by the brilliance that is green tea ice cream, we began the 6-hour trek to Osaka. We made it just in time to catch Fumi's mates, D.V.D, play at an underground art gallery. It was nice going to a gig we weren't playing at, and the venue made it feel like an exclusive event.D.V.D are composed of two drummers and a laptop musician/VJ (hence, Drummer Video Drummer). Their set consisted of some crazy visuals triggered by the frenetic drumming, including dancing stick men, games of pong, and paint splodges, and computer-game-esque bleeps and synth stabs.

Hopefully D.V.D will be coming to England sometime in the near future, so watch this space. After the gig we wandered back home, slightly losing our way until we were guided back to the hotel by the familiar sight of the Statue of Liberty:

The Tour Has Begun

Konnichiwa!

The tour has officially begun! On Thursday we played at Three in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo, followed by our gig at Tight Rope in Nagoya last night.

We didn't get off to a good start, arriving late to our sound check at Three. On the journey to the venue, we got flagged down by a policeman on a bike. Eventually we managed to gather that Mike had taken a wrong turn; this warranted the policeman sending for backup. Once his 3 buddies arrived, 20 minutes of license and passport-checking ensued, before we were sent on our way without a fine as 'it was our first time driving in Japan'. Luckily, our tour buddy Fumi (a.k.a. 34423) managed to cover for us and sound check at the venue first.

Fumi is a laptop musician and put on a great show to start the night at three. Think Autechre and other IDM acts, plus some inventive use of various props - a samba drum, a glass of water, and some heart-shaped bells.

The other bands at Three were similarly of high calibre, and a great range of styles. For us, the crowd was as we'd been told - very polite, clapping only when we bowed or said something in between songs, and not speaking at all during the set, so there was none of the usual background chatter in the quiet sections. There were also a surprising amount of people taping the gig. This is the first time we've been bootlegged (unless English fans are more subtle of course)!

After a very tiring trip to Nagoya, we arrived just in time to get to the venue. Tight Rope was very different in feel to Three, being much more like a rock/punk venue, and the support bands were very much in this vein. We arrived to the soundcheck to find a fan waiting for us (and it seemed like she'd been there a while), and she asked for our autographs! After being caught off-guard, we are all now trying to perfect our rockstar signatures. To the fan: if you read this, we hope we gave you a good set! :)

At the gig itself, everything that could break did: Mike and Adam's in-ear mixes, Adam's guitar rig, Yuka's keyboard/laptop, and Dave's sticks (3 of them - a new gig record). We powered through, however, and got a good response from the crowd.

After a hectic two days, we crashed out in our best hostel yet - the Kyoya Ryokan. This was a traditional Japanese hostel, in which we had a room to ourselves equipped with tatami flooring and Japanese-style futons. Dave's iced coffee addiction was also fuelled by the unfortunate presence of a free drinks machine.

Tomorrow we are going to visit Nagoya Castle, which is a short walk away, and then it's onwards to Osaka!

We'll blog again soon.

Dave, Non & and the rest of TIMNS

Cafes in Japan are not the same as cafes in England.

Greetings again from the TIMNS Touring Machine!

We now have our tourbus (tourminivan) and are currently chilling in a hostel before our first gig tonight. The van is far too small, and hence we have to play tetris each time we load it up. This is slightly worrying given that our tour partner, Fumi, hasn't actually joined us yet... but we are sure we can fit her and her gear in as well with a bit of good old fashioned elbow-grease and some rock n' roll attitude. Dave and Mike have also had to adapt to driving an automatic van, as both have previously only driven tiny manuals. Dave is actually missing his suped-down micra. Let this be a lesson to appreciate the small things. As well as English roadsigns and taxi drivers - good grief Japan!

The past few days have been most eventful in Japan's answer to the humble cafe. In the first kind, the maid cafe, you are served by girls who are dressed up as, you guessed it, maids (or in the slightly more seedy ones, schoolgirls, or even schoolgirls in bathing costumes!) You're charged a fee to sit, and can also pay to have a polaroid taken of you with your girl, or to play a game with them (apparently involving a plastic crocodile). We opted for the former (pictures to come) mainly for the novelty factor. On the menu there are such delights as 'love drink', which you imbibe with the power of cute ('moe! moe! cuuuuuuute!') with the help of the girls, and a 'Mr Bear Chocolate Cake' made of oreos lovingly prepared in the style of a bear.

The second type of cafe, the Manga Cafe, is where we stayed last night. It's far cheaper to stay in a manga cafe than a hotel/hostel if you're out late as they charge by the hour. You get a small cubby-hole type area, complete with computer, TV, and if you're lucky, a games console, plus free drinks (iced coffee, various luminescently-coloured juices, etc). Plus of course stacks and stacks of manga comics. Waking up in this environment is a bit like waking up in someone else's house after a houseparty. Except for with a lot of snoring Japanese people and the alarmingly loud hum of computer monitors.

Tonight is our first gig. We managed to have a practice yesterday (we turned up 3 hours late for a 3 hour practice due to picking up the van, but they were cool about it) and for once, no gear seems to be broken. Win.

Pictures no doubt to come soon!

Much love,

Dave & TIMNS

Life in Chiba/Tokyo

TIMNS have landed in Japan!

After miraculously managing to avoid any oversize or overweight baggage charges, and having been sustained on incredibly dubious plane food for a day, the various members of the band met in Tokyo Narita airport and went to Yuka's parents house in Chiba, who we will be staying with.

After quickly checking all the gear survived the flight (it has!) we grabbed some lunch from a nearby supermarket, Adam put in a valiant (but ultimately failed) attempt to win a prize at a WiiFit stall, and we took the train into Tokyo.

We spent the afternoon exploring the Harajuku area, home of the famous Harajuku girls, who supposedly gather there every Sunday. There were no Harajuku girls to be found, however - possibly they were hiding from the heat.

Last night we headed to a little bar/restaurant in Chiba with Hirano and Yuka's mum and some friends, which turned out to have private rooms, with a hole in the floor for your legs! Much food and drink was consumed, and an impromptu Karaoke session finished the night off. It was all you can drink, so it seemed impolite not to oblige.

Our first gig is in a few days at Tokyo's THREE venue. Check out the rest of our tour itinerary at www.myspace.com/normalstateband. Today we are off to a Maid Cafe! I'm not entirely sure what that means...

Dave, Adam & TIMNS

Two weeks till tour!

On July 17th 2010 we're setting off on our Japan tour! Only two weeks to go now and we still have a bit to sort out but we're all very excited! We shall try and update this blog as often as possible with what we've been up to and about each gig as well as upload some photos so make sure you keep checking it!

Once we've arrived we will have four days to get over our jet lag and to sort ourselves out before our first gig. Here are our tour dates:

18th July: Arrive
22nd July: Tokyo @ Three
23rd July: Nagoya @Tight Rope
25th July: Osaka @ Club VIJON
27th July: Fukuoka @ FUSE
1st August: Yamaguchi @ Organs Melody
2nd August: Kyoto @ Whoopies
5th August: Tokyo @ Era
8th August: Depart

Throughout our tour, a Japanese artist from Tokyo named '34423', who creates electronic music, will be touring with us and supporting us at each of our gigs. We're looking forward to meeting her and having her play with us. However, she does not speak much English so we'll all be relying on Yuka to translate for us and trying out our Japanese on her! Each venue has also organised several support acts which we're looking forward to hearing.

We can't wait to explore Japan, especially Tokyo and Kyoto! We will try and sneak in some site-seeing and karaoke when we have the chance as well :).

Hope you are enjoying your summer.

We shall update soon.
Rhiannon (TIMNS)