Tokyo Gigs July 2026

JUL 1 STEREOLAB Kanda Square Hall ¥9,800

JUL 1 JOYCE MORENO Blue Note Tokyo, Minami-Aoyama ¥9,500

JUL 1 M/LUE. (BAND SET), SAHO TERAO Haremame, Daikanyama ¥4,500

JUL 1 TŌ YŌ, ONI NO MIGIUDE Wall&Wall, Omotesando ¥4,000

JUL 2 TENKO/SATOKO FUJII/TOSHIMARU NAKAMURA Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥2,000 (afternoon)

JUL 2 STEREOLAB EX Theater Roppongi ¥9,800/¥12,000

JUL 2 JOYCE MORENO Cotton Club, Marunouchi ¥9,500-¥11,500

JUL 2 TIM HODGKINSON/ATSUKO KAMURA/OTOMO YOSHIHIDE/&c. Club Goodman, Akihabara ¥4,500

JUL 2 HOLANDÊS, ALCOÓLICO, DJ YAHMAN, &c. R Lounge, Shibuya ¥2,000

JUL 3 NHK SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: MUSIC TOMORROW 2026 Tokyo Opera City, Hatsudai ¥2,000-¥4,000

JUL 3 MONO Spotify O-East, Shibuya ¥8,000

JUL 3 SPOILMAN, HIKARI BUNKAI, TOTSUZEN DANBALL, &c. Spread, Shimokitazawa ¥2,800

JUL 3 KEI MATSUMARU, ARA YUHEI, YAGIHIROMI Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥3,000

JUL 3 ZENKER BROTHERS, CRAZY NEO, BUN SAITO, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 4 SOUL CAMP 2026: ERYKAH BADU, THE PHARCYDE, &c. SGC Hall Ariake ¥17,000/¥25,000

JUL 4 MAYA ONGAKU Liquidroom, Ebisu ¥5,000

JUL 4 SHONEN KNIFE, REGURGITATOR Fever, Shindaita ¥5,000

JUL 4 DONALD MCLEAN/DAVID MCLEAN, TETUZI AKIYAMA Otooto, Higashi-kitazawa ¥2,500

JUL 4 UNCHAINED/LEO TAKAMI Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥3,500

JUL 4 KEN ISHII, JUN, MISA, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 4 ALEX SAVAGE, WADA YOSUKE, TORAO, &c. Mitsuki, Shibuya ¥2,500

JUL 5 REGURGITATOR, OSAKA RAMONES Club Goodman, Akihabara ¥5,000

JUL 5 QUANTUM ARIA (CARL STONE/AKAIHIRUME) Gekkasha, Jimbocho ¥3,000

JUL 5 GEVABOW, EL NUDO, DUSTPAN, MARVELOUS, &c. Shelter, Shimokitazawa ¥1,400

JUL 6 ERYKAH BADU Billboard Live, Roppongi ¥19,900-¥30,000

JUL 7 TAKASHI UENO, VQ, MUNIYEM BABA & CHUN X HINA Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥2,800

JUL 7 KUNIKAZU TANAKA/YUJI ISHIHARA Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 8 TAEKO KURITA/KEIGO IWAMI/AKIRA SOTOYAMA Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥2,000 (afternoon)

JUL 8 DIIV Kanda Square Hall ¥8,800

JUL 8 PARANNOUL, SAY SUE ME, BONGJEINGAN, MONO NO AWARE WWW X, Shibuya ¥5,000

JUL 8 STATESIDE, SEE YOU SMILE, HOLLOW SUNS Spread, Shimokitazawa 5,500

JUL 9 THE MUSIC OF JÕRG WIDMANN Tokyo Opera City, Hatsudai ¥4,000

JUL 9 GRIMM GRIMM, SATOMIMAGAE Haremame, Daikanyama ¥3,500

JUL 10 YOSHIHITO ETO/SHOJI HANO/SHINPEI RUIKE Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥2,000 (afternoon)

JUL 10 DEATHGRAVE, BLACK GANION, COFFINS, BAPHOMETY Earthdom, Shin-Okubo ¥4,500

JUL 10 TOKUTARO HOSOI/TOSHIMARU NAKAMURA Otooto, Higashi-kitazawa ¥3,000

JUL 10 JACKSON KAKI (LIVE), BO YIN, SHIYU, YOLABMI, &c. Spread, Shimokitazawa ¥2,500 (night)

JUL 10 JAKOJAKO, CHHABB, MITAYO, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 10 AST MIDORI, 1093, DJ WOAH, &c. WWW β, Shibuya ¥2,300 (night)

JUL 10 DJ STINGRAY 313, KABUTO, MAYUDEPTH B2B AKEY, &c. Spotify O-East, Shibuya ¥3,500 (night)

JUL 11 HARIYAMA SHISHIODORI, ITAZAWA SHISHIODORI, KOM_I, &c. WWW X, Shibuya ¥4,500

JUL 11 JOY ORBISON, THE SABRES OF PARADISE, LORAINE JAMES, &c. MoN Takanawa ¥12,000

JUL 11 ALFONSO CABRAL FEAT. PEDRO BRANCO, ERMHOI + TAKIMEN Wall&Wall, Omotesando ¥5,600

JUL 11 SACHIKO M (INSTALLATION/PERFORMANCE) Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 11 JONATHAN KUSUMA, MANAHA, YOSHIHAARAA, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 11 TSUZING, MINNA-NO-KIMOCHI, FELINE, GRRRDEN, &c. WWW X, Shibuya ¥4,300 (night)

JUL 12 TORU TAKEMITSU COMPETITION AWARD 2026 FINAL Tokyo Opera City, Hatsudai ¥1,000

JUL 12 KNOWER (BAND SET), KASSA OVERALL, HAKUSHI HASEGAWA, &c. MoN Takanawa ¥12,000

JUL 12 YASUMUNE MORISHIGE, SUZUERI, VELTZ, &c. Soup, Ochiai ¥2,500

JUL 12 YUZUHA, OSOROSHIA KAKUMEI, YUKA NAGASE, BLUME POPO, &c. WWW/WWW X, Shibuya ¥3,500

JUL 12 NAOKI ZUSHI/AYAL SENIOR, JEFF FUCCILLO/JASON FUNK Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥3,000

JUL 12 NAOTO YAMAGISHI/TAKASHI SEO/RIUICHI DAIJO Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 12 DJ SHUFFLEMASTER, MITAKA SOUND, KAIKOHNOHI, &c. R Lounge, Shibuya ¥2,500

JUL 13 KAZUYA MATSUMOTO/TETSU NAGASAWA Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 14 ERINA UOZUMI, HARUKO TAJIMA, HANAZONO DISTANCE Spread, Shimokitazawa ¥3,000

JUL 14 LEO OKAGAWA/RISA TAKEDA Shichoshitsu, Jimbocho ¥3,000

JUL 14 DAVID MCLEAN/NAOTO YAMAGISHI/RIUICHI DAIJO Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 14 TATSU AOKI/OTOMO YOSHIHIDE Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥3,500

JUL 15 COMPUMA, DJ SHIBATA, J@SCO (LIVE), &c. Wall&Wall, Omotesando ¥3,000

JUL 15 THOMAS FLORIN/SHINPEI RUIKE/REONA Shichoshitsu, Jimbocho ¥3,300

JUL 15 AYAL SENIOR, AYAMI SUZUKI, TAKASHI MASUBUCHI Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥3,000

JUL 15 SETAGAYA TRIO/OTOMO YOSHIHIDE/HIMI Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,000

JUL 15 DAVID MCLEAN/RICO KOBAYASHI/RIUICHI DAIJO Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥2,500

JUL 16 TUJIKO NORIKO, TAKAKO MINEKAWA, AOKI TAKAMASA (DJ) WWW, Shibuya ¥4,500

JUL 16 SHINTARO SAKAMOTO Liquidroom, Ebisu ¥4,800

JUL 16 DAVID MCLEAN/MASATAKE ABE/NAOKI NOMOTO/&c. Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 17 THOMAS FLORIN/SHINPEI RUIKE/YASUHIRO YOSHIGAKI/&c. Velvet Sun, Ogikubo ¥3,000

JUL 17 YUKO ARAKI/GOVERNMENT ALPHA, THE OBEY UNIT, FUTARI, &c. Spread, Shimokitazawa ¥3,300

JUL 17 SUMMER EYE SOUND SYNDICATE, SHUGO TOKUMARU Spotify O-Nest, Shibuya ¥4,500

JUL 17 IPPEI KATO/NAOYA MURATA/TERUYUKI OSHIMA Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥3,300

JUL 18 HELM, PAINJERK, SOFHESO, TARO AIKO, &c. Soup, Ochiai ¥3,000

JUL 18 FUYUKI YAMAKAWA/MITSUHIHSA SAKAGUCHI/AKITO SENGOKU Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥4,000

JUL 18 NATSUKI KIDO/IPPEI KATO/KEIGO IWAMI/&c. Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,400

JUL 18 KAZUO IMAI (SOLO ELECTRIC GUITAR) Otooto, Higashi-kitazawa ¥2,500

JUL 18 FUMIYA TANAKA, STONES TARO, LOMAX WWW X, Shibuya ¥3,000 (night)

JUL 18 STEVE BUG, SIGNAL, SHOTARO MAEDA, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 19 RUBY NAKAMURA/DARI SUGA/AKITO SENGOKU Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥4,000

JUL 19 YASUMUNE MORISHIGE/AKAIHIRUME Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 19 ARCHEUS, SHOJI HANO/THOMAS FLORIN/CAL LYALL Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥2,500

JUL 20 AYAMI SUZUKI, JESUS WEEKEND, HINA Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥3,000

JUL 20 KENTARO NAKAO/KIRSTEN CAREY/TATSUHISA YAMAMOTO Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥3,000

JUL 21 FRANK GRATKOWSKI/KAZUHISA UCHIHASHI/&c. Shichoshitsu, Jimbocho ¥3,500

JUL 22 LE MAKEUP, DOVE (DJ), &c. WWW, Shibuya ¥3,500

JUL 22 TURNSTILE Club Citta, Kawasaki ¥9,800

JUL 23 SAYAKA BOTANIC/NANAO KOBAYASHI, MAKOTO KAWASHIMA Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥3,500

JUL 23 DAIRO SUGA/RUIKE SHINPEI/MASAYO KOKETSU/&c. Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,400

JUL 24 DOJO (MICHIYO YAGI/TAMAYA HONDA) + AKIRA SAKATA Polaris, Minami-Aoyama ¥4,000

JUL 24 DAIRO SUGA/EIICHI HAYASHI/HIROYUKI ISHIKAWA/&c. Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,400

JUL 24 KUSS, FULUSOMA (LIVE), NITA, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 25 SAUSHA (DJ), MLOSIMS (LIVE), AKO SUZUKI (PERFORMANCE), &c. Spread, Shimokitazawa ¥3,000

JUL 25 CAMPANELLA, 18SCOTT, &c. Solfa, Nakameguro ¥TBA

JUL 25 DAIRO SUGA/TATSUYA NAKAMURA/TAMAYA HONDA/&c. Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,400

JUL 25 NYOINBOW (KOKETSU/USHIODA/MIYASAKA) Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥3,000

JUL 25 CAPTAIN VINYL, DJ KOCO AKA SHIMOKITA, &c. Vent, Omotesando ¥2,500

JUL 26 NICK KLEIN, PUBLIC DISPLAY, SIMON WHETHAM, &c. Soup, Ochiai ¥3,000

JUL 26 YUJI ISHIHARA/RIUICHI DAIJO Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 28 MARTY HOLOUBEK/MAY INOUE/TAMAYA HONDA Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,400

JUL 28 MITSKI Zepp DiverCity, Odaiba ¥13,000/¥18,000

JUL 29 TOMOKO OMURA QUARTET/TOMONAO HARA Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥4,950

JUL 29 BILLIE JEAN & THE DEATH RABBITS, FUGASI Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥3,500

JUL 30 VINCENT HERRING/ERENA TERAKUBO/MAYUKO KATAKURA/&c. Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥8,000

JUL 30 TOSHIMARU NAKAMURA, O'BO, HIROAKI MAKI Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥2,500

JUL 31 BEN VAN GELDER/REINIER BAAS Pit Inn, Shinjuku ¥7,150

JUL 31 MAKOTO KAWASHIMA/SHINJI WADA Permian, Meguro ¥1,000-¥3,000

JUL 31 MABOROSHI-NO MIZUUMI (RISA TAKEDA/TATSUYA NAKAMURA) Nanahari, Hatchobori ¥5,000

All prices are for advance tickets, unless otherwise noted. Schedules are liable to change at short notice.

Tokyo Gigs August 2026

AUG 4 YOUKI NOSEYAMA, NAOAKI MIYAMOTO Soup, Ochiai ¥1,500

AUG 4-8 MARIA SCHNEIDER ORCHESTRA Blue Note Tokyo, Minami-Aoyama ¥14,000

AUG 6 JOY HEIGHTS (TATSUYA NAKAMURA/OTOMO YOSHIHIDE/TATSU/&c.) Fever, Shindaita ¥6,000

AUG 7 DYGL Fever, Shindaita ¥5,000

AUG 8 KEIICHI SOKABE, SLIGHT SLAPPERS, 2MUCH CREW, &c. Spotify O-Nest/7th Floor, Shibuya ¥4,800

AUG 8 A.B.L, STELGRRRUIG, RAWDRAX, KALASVVARA, &c. Soup, Ochiai ¥2,500

AUG 9 SEIICHI YAMAMOTO & THE PLAYGROUND EAST, HONJITSUKYUEN Red Cloth, Shinjuku ¥4,000

AUG 10 CLAUDIO SIMONETTI'S GOBLIN Billboard Live, Roppongi ¥8,900-¥11,600

AUG 13 DAVID BYRNE SGC Hall Ariake ¥15,000-¥22,000

AUG 13 STEVE LACY Toyosu Pit ¥12,000

AUG 13 HOLLY HUMBERSTONE Duo Music Exchange, Shibuya ¥8,000

AUG 28 AZYMUTH & SABRINA MALHEIROS WWW X, Shibuya ¥8,500

AUG 29 CAN IS, MITSURU TABATA/KENTARO NAKAO UFO Club, Higashi-Koenji ¥3,500

AUG 30 DO THANK ANAL, SALADABAR, ELECTRIC EEL SHOCK, &c. Club Goodman, Akihabara ¥3,800

AUG 31 FLO Toyosu Pit ¥12,000

All prices are for advance tickets, unless otherwise noted. Schedules are liable to change at short notice.

Tokyo Gigs September 2026

SEP 2 RACING MOUNT PLEASANT Unit, Daikanyama ¥7,500

SEP 3-4 THE ROOTS Billboard Live, Roppongi ¥17,900-¥22,000

SEP 5 KUNIKO KATO: STEVE REICH PROJECT Persimmon Hall, Meguro ¥4,500

SEP 7 LEBANON HANOVER Shibuya Ongakudo ¥7,900

SEP 8 THEE MARLOES, MINAMI ISHIWATA SOUL INST. SESSION Haremame, Daikanyama ¥8,000

SEP 9 THEE MARLOES, TINY STEP "SOUTHSIDE" TRIO WWW X, Shibuya ¥8,000

SEP 9 ADRIAN SHERWOOD, NIGHTMARES ON WAX, &c. Spotify O-East, Shibuya ¥8,000

SEP 10 ELEPHANT GYM, MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS WWW X, Shibuya ¥5,800

SEP 16 FISHBONE, MAYSON'S PARTY EX Theater Roppongi ¥8,000

SEP 17 ASH Unit, Daikanyama ¥8,500

SEP 17 CARCASS Toyosu Pit ¥9,500

SEP 18 ASH Club Quattro, Shibuya ¥8,500

SEP 18 REMON NAKANISHI & SUZUME NO TEARS WWW, Shibuya ¥5,500

SEP 19 THE DAMNED Toyosu Pit ¥11,000

SEP 21 SEPTETO SANTIAGUERO Club Quattro, Shibuya ¥TBC

SEP 24 BELLE & SEBASTIAN: 'TIGERMILK' Kanadevia Hall, Suidobashi ¥9,800/¥12,000

SEP 25 BELLE & SEBASTIAN: 'IF YOU'RE FEELING SINISTER' Kanadevia Hall, Suidobashi ¥9,800/¥12,000

SEP 29 US Liquidroom, Ebisu ¥6,500

All prices are for advance tickets, unless otherwise noted. Schedules are liable to change at short notice.

Tokyo Gigs October 2026

OCT 1 CAROLINE, MY NEW BAND BELIEVE Spotify O-East, Shibuya ¥10,000

OCT 1 TOMORA Tokyo Garden Theater, Ariake ¥15,000/¥17,000

OCT 8 TORU TAKEMITSU: BEYOND THE CENTENARY VOL. 1 Tokyo Opera City, Hatsudai ¥5,000

OCT 13 EZRA COLLECTIVE Toyosu Pit ¥9,000

OCT 16 YĪN YĪN Spotify O-East, Shibuya ¥6,500

OCT 22 CA7RIEL & PACO AMOROSO Toyosu Pit ¥9,800/¥12,800

OCT 25 YUTA ORISAKA SGC Hall Ariake ¥8,500

All prices are for advance tickets, unless otherwise noted. Schedules are liable to change at short notice.

Tokyo Gigs November 2026

NOV 4 THE MASTER MUSICIANS OF JOUJOUKA WWW X, Shibuya ¥22,000

NOV 6 TOUCHÉ AMORÉ Unit, Daikanyama ¥7,500

NOV 9 DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE Toyosu Pit ¥11,000

NOV 23 WOLF ALICE Toyosu Pit ¥9,900

NOV 24-25 IRON MAIDEN K Arena, Yokohama ¥15,000-¥30,000

All prices are for advance tickets, unless otherwise noted. Schedules are liable to change at short notice.

Tokyo Gigs December 2026

DEC 8 JAMES BLAKE Zepp Haneda ¥14,000-¥16,000

DEC 14 DIE SPITZ Space Odd, Daikanyama ¥7,500

All prices are for advance tickets, unless otherwise noted. Schedules are liable to change at short notice.

New (and old) music from Japan – 2025 addendum

A few more notable releases from the year gone by

While I didn’t feel much appetite for putting together a 2025 albums of the year list (I already compile a few for different publications and end up feeling dissatisfied with all of them), there were a bunch of releases that kept nagging at me to at least acknowledge their existence in writing. The attention economy means that a lot of music seems to disappear from view almost as soon as it’s been released, a victim of our appetite for newness. So let me just take stock of a few more worthwhile albums (and one single) from 2025, some of which didn’t get nearly the attention they deserved.

New (and old) music from Japan – Winter 2025 edition

Notable releases I’ve finally got around to writing about

We’re deep into Album of the Year review season – The Wire and The Quietus both just dropped theirs – so what better time to publish an article I started working on back in, er, August? No idea why this took so long to come together, though the usual feeble excuses (work, travel, inertia) apply. Over the past week, I’ve found a bunch more releases I want to write about, so there may be more to come before the year is out.

New (and old) music from Japan – Spring 2025 edition

Notable new Japanese releases and reissues

This might be a return to regular programming, but no promises. Things have been quiet on the work front recently, which has given me more time to sift through my Bandcamp pile and ferret out the good stuff. Here are some of the releases and reissues from the first three months of the year (plus one straggler from 2024) that have grabbed me. I should note that some of these snuck up on me gradually, rather than revealing all their charms on first listen. An album as subtle and intelligently crafted as Eiko Ishibashi’s Antigone wasn’t designed for the streaming era, which is all the more reason to cherish it.

Notable Japanese releases from 2024

Good music from a (mostly) bad year

I fell out of the habit of posting album reviews during 2024, partly because I simply wasn’t listening to as much Japanese music as I had done in the previous few years. Still, it felt remiss not to acknowledge a few of the highlights of a year that, by most objective measures, was pretty wretched. I’m grateful to the handful of people who gave me a much-needed nudge to write this, and also to my friend Ian F. Martin for showing how it should be done with his defiantly unpunctual zine, Last Year’s Music. (I’d post a link, but I’m afraid you’ll have to seek out a physical copy.)

From the archives: Ichiko Aoba, 2016 Japan Times interview

“I get most of my energy for creating stories from dreams.”

Ichiko Aoba, 2016. Photo by James Hadfield

Ichiko Aoba takes her seat at an old-fashioned coffee house in Shibuya, and places a sketchpad and a plump pouch of rolling tobacco on the table. During the hour-long conversation that follows, the tobacco goes untouched, but the sketchpad gets a thorough workout. As she talks, the 25-year-old singer-songwriter reflexively scribbles drawings and kanji characters to elucidate what she’s saying, the way a university lecturer might.