Tokyo Times

Photographs from a small group of islands

Music

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Guitar god

Japan already boasts the world’s greatest competitive eater amongst its ranks, with the titanic Takeru “The Tsunami” Kobayashi relentlessly gorging himself to glory; however, the nation now has a new hero to honour, after air guitar artiste Ochi “Dainoji” Yosuke clinched the 2006 World Championship in Finland over the weekend.

Dazzling the crowd on his way to the finals, Yosuke-san was supposedly awarded the title due to his simplistic and classy air ‘guitarring’ — praise that was presumably restricted to his actions and not his tiger emblazoned top.

To see the man in all his arm-swinging sweater-sporting glory, simply sit back and click on the picture below.

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Britney’s bottom ban

The seemingly perpetually pregnant Britney Spears has caused something of a kerfuffle in Japan, a promotional campaign featuring her bare body being censored by Tokyo Metro Co., the capital’s subway operator.

britneys breasts and bum

Whilst Britney’s ballooning breasts and bulging belly were deemed acceptable, her thunderous thighs were not, resulting in the ad campaign designed for Omotesando Subway Station looking like this.

britneys breasts only

HB Japan Inc., the publisher of the magazine being advertised, failed to understand the decision, saying, “The photo expresses her happiness at being pregnant. Covering part of the photo has made its concept unclear.” Tokyo Metro however remained unrepentant, claiming the image of the singer violated advertisement guidelines, which state that they must be appropriate in view of the protection of youths.

However the hypocrisy of the decision will not be lost on HB Japan, especially considering that as of writing, this ‘protection of youths’ hasn’t stretched to removing Ms Spears’ songs from the nation’s airwaves, with the likes of “Oops!…I Did It Again” and “Baby One More Time” still allowed to pervade the minds of impressionable youngsters.

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Never mind the Kubricks

For a brief spell during the 1970s, the Sex Pistols were the scourge of the establishment with their fervour and foul language.

But the passage of time can be a powerful force, as now, 30 years down the line, they have been kindly given the cute treatment; Japanese toy maker Medicom producing a Sex Pistols version of its popular Kubrick line of models.

kubrick

Johnny Rotten’s spiky and brightly coloured hair looking especially adorable.

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Public performances

The close proximity of numerous neighbours means that for the average Tokyoite, there are restrictions on what can and can’t be done at home. Any hugely expensive surround sound stereo system may well be rendered useless by the pathetic volume levels permitted, and a spot of overtly vigorous nocturnal naughtiness could well result in knowing looks or averted gazes at the next neighbourhood watch meeting.

For budding musicians however the situation is arguably even worse, as anything above a tin whistle is more than likely to cause nothing but complaints and consternation. Meaning playing equals paying, with a practice studio offering the only viable place to go and cut loose.

Unless of course knocking out a few tunes at the side of the road isn’t too off-putting.

japanese musician

(click image for extra exhibitionism)

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ifish flap

After the rather surprising success of the idog, Sega has made moves to further cement its position as the leading light in the world of MP3 player compatible plastic animals (and now aquatic vertebrates), by introducing the ifish.

ifish

As well as its much vaunted ‘touch a lot’ attributes, the little white wonder flaps its tail to music — a fishy frug of sorts — and even has the ability to glow different colours; its incredible variety of moves and hue set to have users mesmerised for seconds, even minutes at a time.

sega ifish

Yet not content with merely a flap here and a flash there, the ifish is also capable of composing tunes of its own, although whether these original ditties will match their alleged ‘healing’ properties remains to be seen.

The ifish will set you back a fairly modest 5,229 yen (25 pound), although iPod nano owners may want to hold back a while and see if the much rumoured nano-only iamoeba ever materialises.

ifish

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Taiko titillation

With its primeval pounding and frenzied movements, taiko is a breathtaking spectacle. The ancient art form requiring a tricky combination of both skill and stamina.

taiko

Yet by opting for a slightly unconventional approach, an all-female group has given the medium a novel new twist — naked taiko. The lithe and lively members more than happy to bang the night away, exhibiting barely a care in the world in regards to how much noise they make.

naked taiko

Clicking on the picture above will take you to a video of one of their performances. Which, due to a complete disregard for clothing and wanton jiggling of body parts, is definitely not safe for work.