Have you ever listened to Japanese music? I’m guessing that you might not have unless you are Japanese or Asian. But I think there is a lot of great music in Japan, which you will take a fancy to even if you are not Japanese. In this article, as someone who comes from Japan, I’m gonna introduce my favorite music to you all. I’ll be really happy if you take a liking to Japanese music! So, let’s  hit it!

Language? Feeling?

It must be conceded that words play a significant role in music. People are moved when there is something in the lyrics to which they can relate. But, I think, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy music if you can’t understand the lyrics sung in the song. I’m gonna explain why I think so just in case someone doubts what I want to argue by introducing my own experience.

When I was a high school student, Queen, which I believe to be one of the greatest bands ever, appeared on my horizon. In those days I couldn’t understand English at all, but their music was off the hook. They simply swept me off my feet, and I got fascinated with their music instantly. Even though I could catch almost nothing of the main vocals sung in their songs, their music was great enough to make me an addicted to them.

So I don’t want you to hesitate and listen to music in languages, of which you might not be able to understand a word!

Japanese Traditional Music

First of all, I’m gonna introduce some music called “Douyou” in Japanese. Actually I don’t know how we should define Douyou. It might not be so difficult to research what it means by browsing through the Internet, but I don’t want to do that. Because  I presume that  telling you what I think about them is much more important than giving a definition, which  I think most Japanese people don’t know. So, I’d like to make an apology beforehand, as what I am gonna write might be a little different from the precise definition.

I think Douyou is something which represents Japanese people’s mind and what Japanese people have cherished. It’s not too strong to say Douyou must be  the last music to go away in Japanese music scene. I’m guessing listening to the music actually is the best way to know what the music is like. This is a song called “Furusato” which means “hometown” in Japanese. I want you to listen to the music and imagine what kind of topics are sung about in the song.

How was it? This is a typical song called ”Douyou” I’m guessing you might be able to know what these lyrics mean by browsing through the Internet. So, I am not gonna talk about it. But, one thing I can say for sure is this song reminds me of my days living with my friends and parents. I just realized something with which I can feel the Japanese mentality is really precious for me.

Japanese Popular Music

Next, I’m gonna talk about my favorite popular music. Have you ever thought about what Rock and roll means? Personally, this word has always represented something which turns you on. So, when it comes to music, the word ”rock”  could be an adjective which means hard-core and awesome. When I felt some music isn’t so exciting, I would say “This is not rock and roll.”  As I said, I was an addict to Queen. When I was a high school student rock meant Queen, and Japanese popular music was definitely something which didn’t deserve listening to and was by no means “rock”. I was strongly biased, or I wasn’t broad-minded regarding music.

But, I’ve changed my mind now. I’ve just reached the conclusion which might seem to be obvious for you. It goes like this ; What the most important thing about music is, is not whether it is  hard enough and can be called “rock” or not, but whether the music makes you uplifted or not.

You might want to ask why I have changed my mind. If I was asked, I would say because I bumped into my favorite band “Spitz”. This band is really famous for its three most popular songs in Japan, respectively called “Cherry”, ”Sora Mo Toberuhazu”, and”Robinson”. I think most Japanese people will imagine these three songs if they are asked about Spitz.

My prejudice against Spitz

When I learned about Spitz, I was still a biased person who did think whether music was rock or not was really important. And according to that criterion, Spitz was definitely bad. Kusano Masamune, who is the lead vocalist of the band, sings much more softly than Freddie Mercury.

The same goes for songs he composed. As they were really famous in those days, I knew who he was and some of their songs, but I was by no means an ardent supporter of him. Reason?

Because their music didn’t seem to be rock.

A song which I took a shine to

But the situation had completely changed in the end, when I bumped into the song called “Shirokuma” which means a white bear in English. When I learned about the song, I was a civil servant who had been bound up in my work. I didn’t have much time for myself or to hang out with my friends. In other words, I was exhausted. And this song deals with a white bear who has been working too hard and is exhausted. So I showed empathy towards the bear.

Here is a lucky thing I want to share with happily. The band, Spitz, has an official channel on the Internet. That means I can introduce some of their songs to you legally! So please listen to the song which resonated with me.

This is the song which launched me into their world. This music, of course, doesn’t sound like a rock band. But, does it matter? No way! This song gave me the power to live to see another day, and this is everything I can say about this song, and which I think is  important.

The reason I like their songs

I think I am a little twisted, and I never say I am an outgoing person who likes going to parties every night. And, the same goes for their songs. I mean. their songs let me think I don’t have to be a perfect man. I guess what the band wants to convey to us the most is “Enjoy being yourself”.

This is what I want to live up to. I think they have never put on airs.  I do love the way they think.

Let me introduce some of their songs!

Here is a song called “Kimi Ha Taiyou” which means “You are my sunshine”

Here is a song called “Nagisa” which means “a boundary between the sea and the land” in English.

Here is a song called “Aoi Kuruma” which means “a blue car” in English.

These are the songs I like. As I am an avid fan of them, I don’t want to introduce their songs illegally. So I couldn’t introduce my favorite songs which are not on the Internet and made available to you. But I can assure you that there are loads of songs composed by him which you should like. If you are interested, you can ask me about Spitz anytime you want!

The definition of Rock

As I said, I don’t think the definition is so important. But, now I have an idea like this: whether music we listen to is rock or not isn’t so important. But, personally, rock is just an adjective which means excellent.

I love Spitz very much, and I’m going to listen to their songs till the day I meet my mark!

Kosuke, Advanced Class