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August 05, 2026
 

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CULTURE

Music

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This year, Fuji Rock rediscovered its nerve
CULTURE / Music
This year, Fuji Rock rediscovered its nerve
From cult favorites to future stars, Fuji Rock rewarded listeners willing to wander beyond the biggest names.
CULTURE / Music
Japan¡¯s 100-year-old symphonic orchestra celebrates its milestone
The NHK Symphony Orchestra is celebrating its 100-year anniversary with an unwavering commitment to classical music, as well as new programs such as Pokemon concerts.
CULTURE / Music
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Fuji Rock Festival has long been known for its international headliners, but Kaze Fujii is poised to make a big splash on the Green Stage.
Black Boboi was formed in 2018 when solo artists Julia Shortreed, Utena Kobayashi and Ermhoi came together under Kobayashi¡¯s newly founded label, Bindividual.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 23, 2026
The sci-fi sensibilities of electronic trio Black Boboi
By Patrick St. Michel
The members discuss artistic trust, existential questions and the creative process behind their immersive third album, ¡°Sepia.¡±
The members of Maya Ongaku ¡ª (from left) Tsutomu Sonoda, Shoei Ikeda and Ryota Takano ¡ª grew up on the Shonan Coast south of Tokyo and have been friends since their school days.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 18, 2026
Maya Ongaku¡¯s DIY dream is getting bigger
By James Hadfield
Ahead of its second album release and a show at Fuji Rock, the psychedelic rock trio from the Shonan Coast is looking back and paying it forward.
Sonau Okamoto poses inside the Beatles Art & Culture Museum he founded in Ako, Hyogo Prefecture, after spending decades collecting memorabilia and promoting the band's legacy in Japan.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 17, 2026
It was 60 years ago today: Japan¡¯s top Beatles fan keeps the Budokan flame burning
By Tim Hornyak
A lifelong collector turned one unforgettable concert into a museum celebrating the Fab Four¡¯s enduring impact in Japan.
Veteran improvisers Kazuo Imai and Atsuhiro Ito brought some unruly energy to NU Festival, a three-day multimedia event held at the Takanawa Gateway City complex. ?
CULTURE / Music
Jul 4, 2026
NU Festival tests Takanawa Gateway City complex¡¯s culture cred
By James Hadfield
JR East has been positioning the sprawling new Takanawa Gateway City as a cultural hub since before it even opened. The music, art and tech NU Festival put that claim to the test.
Tujiko Noriko¡¯s album ¡°PON¡± is dedicated to Ponpon, her late cat, and includes field recordings of her family life in France.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 3, 2026
Tujiko Noriko¡¯s new album is a feline tour de force
By James Hadfield
On tour in Japan this month, the France-based artist talks about channeling her ¡°crazy cat woman¡± energy into musical creation and finding harmony in dissonance.
Anime thumbnails adorn the sonic creations on YouTube channel Norinori Core, like this one from the Norinori Remix of Iruka's 1976 track "Nagoriyuki."
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Jul 2, 2026
Japan¡¯s first great AI music trend is gloriously wrong
By Patrick St. Michel
Norinori Core turns old J-pop into dopamine-fueled divisive dance music.
The quintet from Nagoya ¡ª comprising (from left) Sangen Ron, Junsei Iwai, Musashi, Hayato Komiya and Kion Umemura ¡ª released their debut album ¡°Tomogachi Ga Imashita¡± on June 17.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 27, 2026
Trooper Salute marches to its own beat on dazzling debut album
By Patrick St. Michel
The quintet¡¯s debut album ¡°Tomogachi Ga Imashita,¡± released on June 17, features an impressive array of styles drawn from the band members¡¯ wide-ranging influences.

Current permanent residency applications to be judged using new income criteria
Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Beast of Reincarnation shows Game Freak has more to learn
Releasing on Aug. 4, Beast of Reincarnation is set in a far-future version of Japan ruined by a mysterious apocalypse.
U.S. to close consulates in Canada, Japan and Indonesia, sources say
The U.S. State Department said in a notice ?sent to some congressional committees last week that it plans to close ?its posts ?in St. George's, Grenada; Nagoya, Japan; Medan, Indonesia; Douala, Cameroon; and Winnipeg, Canada. ?
Japan to add five-year stay period for Type 2 foreign workers
Holders of the Type 2 specified skilled foreign worker status are currently granted periods of stay for six months, one year, two years or three years.
Three lions die at Tokyo¡¯s Tama Zoo amid heat wave
Mugi, a female lion at Tama Zoo in Tokyo, has died following a heat wave in July.
Current permanent residency applications to be judged using new income criteria
Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Disinformation abounds online in aftermath of Kumamoto quake
Television screens in Tokyo show news coverage of a powerful earthquake hitting Kumamoto Prefecture on July 28. Some social media accounts have claimed that shaky footage of the quake was fake.
Japan defense report says China challenge must be met with ¡®overall national strength¡¯
Ground Self-Defense Force soldiers walk in front of a Type 88 surface-to-ship missile launcher, during the Balikatan annual joint military exercises at Culili Point Sand Dunes, in Paoay, Philippines, on May 6.
A pressing question on the front lines in Kumamoto: Who cares for the caregivers?
Tomoko Sato, the chief of emergency medicine at Saiseikai Kumamoto Hospital, brought her two children to the hospital so she could continue treating patients following the Kumamoto earthquake.
For Japan¡¯s aging homeless population, brutal summers are dangerously inescapable
A homeless person near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. Authorities have warned the public to avoid unnecessary outings and advised people to stay in air-conditioned spaces, but for people who are homeless this is often not an option.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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