Need some info on J-Bands of any genre.

[Martialartsnovice]

Im trying to learn more about J-Music of any genre. I want to find songs that are in japanese. Im curious to see what bands are out there.

[lastmagi]

Hey novice, nice seeing some interest.

Just a small preamble sprouting from what I've noticed a lot these days: I've made it a rule for myself to take what people say on j-music forums with a grain of salt when it comes to suggestions, because I think a lot of j-music fans these days gravitate to specific genres of the music as a whole, so you'll see more emphasis on those even though it doesn't always reflect the diversity of the music scene (I have my own biases, of course). I've been trying to explore out of the standard pop and rock genres, but it can be hard with the lack of info.

Okay, let's see...

For some pop metal, try X Japan. I didn't like them at first, but they grow on you, I guess.

For some good mainstream rock with wonderful ranges of styles, try L'arc en Ciel or Gackt. Info on them is pretty easy to find.

Other good rock bands are: Luna Sea or Siam Shade

For some R&B, try Utada Hikaru.

For some dark, hard rock, try Dir en Grey.

For some sexy, sexy jazz, try Paris Match: http://nippop.com/artist/artist_id-78/artist_name-paris_match/

For some Japanese rock music with a Western flavor, but still skillfully written, try FAKE? or Ken Lloyd's former band, Oblivion Dust.

For punk rock, try Kuroyume or SADS (same vocalist)

For some gothic synth pseudo-classical music, try Malice Mizer.

For some adult alternative music, try Spitz.

For some beautifully written music with a huge range of styles and beautiful composition, try Yoko Kanno, either with or without Maaya Sakamoto. Okay, that's not a genre, but Kanno kinda defies genre. http://nippop.com/artist/artist_id-133/artist_name-yoko_kanno/

I've been getting into Yae, whose three albums I heard (Blue Line, Flowing to the Sky, and Aloha Nui), seems to indicate an interest in different cultural-traditional music styles.

Hm... that's all I can think of. Lemme know if you find something of interest, and good luck!

[Kinsao]

There looks like some interesting suggestions there - now I want to find some of those myself!

It's always worth checking out the threads on the first 2 or 3 pages here. The bands with threads here are popular and you can find where people have uploaded some of their songs, if you are lucky. But it does gravitate strongly towards rock music on here I have to admit, with the occasional sprinkling of something different.

[SaKeVi]

I disagree with lastmagi, for REAL PUNK try The Genbaku Onanies, Laughin' Nose or The Stalin, they are 100% punk rock with the spirit of the punk culture.

Want a sick band?? try G.I.S.M. (Guerrilla Incendiary Sabotage Mutineer)
Want a sick artist?? try Hanatarash
Want a funny parody?? try Eva Death, it is a "tribute" to Ozzy Osbourne, where people from Ladies Room, Gargoyle and other bands play covers of Black Sabbath.

I think that's all

[Martialartsnovice]

Thanks Ill scout around Sam Goodie for their albums. Sorry about taking so long to respond, been real busy with school lately.