Tokyo

[Mikael Hansson]

Yeah, thanks man! Doing my first long summer vacation since I quit as a teacher. Will be in in Asia during July. Initially thought about 4 weeks in Thailand, but since Japan is "quite" close I thought, why not? :-)

Been working too much for a couple of months so it will be a relief.

Jamming in my "analog corner" right now: Analog Four, Analog Rytm, MiniBrute, Evolver. Great fun just jamming along without the computer :-)

/Micke



On 12 jun 2014, at 23:49, Tony Hardie-Bick <tony at entity.net> wrote:

> inspiring post j :)
> 
> t.
> 
> On 12/06/14 20:44, Jay Vaughan wrote:
>>> I know some of you have experience of Tokyo.
>>> If I'm going there with the family for a week, any recommendations regarding what to see and where to stay?
>> 
>> 
>> Its been almost 20 years for me, but I’ve got Japanese friends who regularly confirm the continued existence of the places I enjoyed when I was there.  However, be warned: Tokyo is huge and there is *MUCH* to do there.
>> 
>> For me, I had a blast looking for second hand music gear.  ;)
>> 
>> Akihabara.  Shinjuku.  Shibuya.  Each of these districts have music shops.
>> 
>> In Akihabara, in the SoftMap building on the 3rd or 4th floor (may have moved), is one of the largest collections of second hand synthesizers and audio equipment you’ll ever see.  Literally, rows upon rows upon stacks of rows of equipment, neatly wrapped, sensibly arranged, and .. much variety.  Take day(s) [multiple] to explore Akihabara, and do not be afraid of the back streets and little places.  It helps if you have a Japanese friend with you to go everywhere, alas, but do not be afraid of the weird places.  Into the basement you must go, to discover the wonders of this world.
>> 
>> In Shinjuku you will find, among the back alleys, a few other small electronic music shops too.  Here is more of a ‘mafia’ vibe, in that the pawn shops and second-hand music gear is quite expensive, but its worth poking around out of interest.
>> 
>> Shibuya Music Shop is more of a traditional shop, but also have a second-hand section that might be worth looking into. Remember: the Japanese maintain their equipment better than any other culture in the world, so don’t be afraid to look deep into their second-hand markets.  The Japanese have a stigma about second-hand; us westerners, not so much .. so many deals can be found, if you’re lucky and use the opportunity to dig.
>> 
>> Other than music-gear shopping, definitely check out Roppongi on a Friday night, try to do it drunk as hell if you can. Every time I did it, I got into seriously fun trouble.  Avoid any bar with US Marines in it.  Don’t be afraid of the Soba and Ramen noodle shops, but do understand: first you buy the ticket, then you give the ticket to the man, then the man makes you noodles.  NEVER ask the man to make you noodles before you give him the ticket.  :)
>> 
>> For the heck of it, you could easily take the train to Daiba/Odaiba; this is about as close to a sci-fi utopia, in reality, as you may find.  The entire area is reclaimed from the ocean, and extremely high tech - for example, the street lights turn themselves off and on as you walk past, to conserve electricity.  Also offers amazing views of Tokyo Radio tower and the Tokyo bridge, some great bars in the area too, and generally just interesting for walking around.  The architecture is jaw dropping in places, and you will can find some nice nightlife in the area (actually all of the districts I mention have good nightlife.. but again, it helps if you have a Japanese friend..)
>> 
>> Anyway, just my 2c worth of tips, hope you give us a report on your journey because there is nothing more fun, in my mind, than having the opportunity to explore Tokyo like that.  Its a hell of a place.
>> 
>> j.
>> _______________________________________________
>> music-bar mailing list
>> music-bar at lists.music-bar.org
>> http://lists.music-bar.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/music-bar
>> 
> _______________________________________________
> music-bar mailing list
> music-bar at lists.music-bar.org
> http://lists.music-bar.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/music-bar

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.music-bar.org/pipermail/music-bar/attachments/20140613/8c9211d2/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: analogcorner.jpg
Type: image/jpg
Size: 106876 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://lists.music-bar.org/pipermail/music-bar/attachments/20140613/8c9211d2/attachment-0001.jpg>