The Watanabes

The Watanabes are a Tokyo based indie pop rock band with members from the UK and Japan.[1]

The Watanabes
The Watanabes performing live in Tokyo, 2011.
Background information
OriginJapan
GenresIndie pop
Years active2005 - present
LabelsBabyboom Records Japan
Associated actsKate Sikora
Websitethewatanabes.com
MembersDuncan Walsh
Selwyn Walsh
Ayumi Sato
Tomoyuki Yamada
Past membersFlavio Jerome
Ashley Davies
Stefan Samuelsson
Tadashi Yoshikawa
Yoko Osawa
Matt Hogan

Musical style

Their jangly alt pop sound[2] has drawn comparisons to melody driven indie acts such as Belle and Sebastian,[3] Teenage Fan Club,[3] Crowded House[4] and 1980's Liverpool band The Pale Fountains,[5] while their lyrics often touch upon their experiences in Japan.[6] Time Out have described them as "Tokyo's answer to The Smiths"[7] although their soft acoustic melodies make an easier comparison to other British bands such as The Beatles or The Kooks.[8]

Members

The band are fronted by British brothers Duncan and Selwyn Walsh on vocals and guitar.[9] New Zealander Ashley Davies and Belgian Flavio Jerome were also founding members and co-songwriters but have since left the group.[10] Since their formation in 2005, a number of musicians have made contributions to the band. Current members include Ayumi Sato on bass, and Tomoyuki Yamada on drums.[6]

History

Formation

The Watanabes formed in the rural prefecture of Ehime in Japan, during the summer of 2005.[11] Watanabe is a common surname in this region of Japan,[12] and the group used the name in order to ingratiate themselves with the locals, whilst also alluding to British band The Smiths.[13] It was initially inspired however by Toru Watanabe, the slightly troubled and over nostalgic protagonist in Haruki Murakami's novel, Norwegian Wood.[14]

In April 2007 they sent off their first demo to the Fuji Rock Festival, and were selected alongside bands such as The Bawdies and Avengers in Sci-Fi in the top 50 nominees for the Rookie a go stage.[15] In August of the same year they moved to Tokyo where they began work on their debut album, Independent Social Power.[16] Recorded at KRH Studios[17] in Harajuku, the album was independently released in association with Manchester based record label BabyBoom Records.[18]

Tokyo Years

After releasing their debut album, the band featured in several of Japan's English speaking publications including The Japan Times,[19] Metropolis,[20] Japanzine[21] and Time Out,[22] catching the attention of Glaswegian music producer David Naughton,[1] who had just moved to Japan to become a producer in his own right after working alongside Steve Power in London.[23] They began work together on The Watanabes' second album, You're Dancing I'm Absorbed, which was released in February 2011. It includes guest appearances from American singer songwriter Kate Sikora and British multi-instrumentalist Nick Duffy of The Lilac Time. In December 2011 two tracks from the album, True Romantics and Concerned With You, were used in a TV advertising campaign for Triumph Motorcycles.[24] An instrumental version of True Romantics was also adopted by Western Union as a theme tune to advertise their services.[25]

Despite performing and recording primarily in Japan, The Watanabes have featured regularly on the BBC Introducing Series in the UK.[26] In October 2017 they performed live from Tokyo as part of BBC Introducing's 10th Anniversary celebrations.[27]

In September 2010, their acoustic green lullaby “Whales Can Sing” was championed by Ric O'Barry,[28] star of the Academy Award winning documentary The Cove, as well as race car driver and environmental activist Leilani Munter.[29] On August 29, 2013, The Watanabes performed live in Tokyo with former Guns N' Roses drummer Matt Sorum at an event organized by Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project.[30] Other foreign artists to have shared the stage with The Watanabes while touring Japan include Die! Die! Die!,[31] Lisa Crawley[32] and former Voxtrot frontman Ramesh Srivastava.[33]

The band have received praise for their fundraising efforts, particularly in aid of Tohoku following the Tohoku earthquake.[34] In 2014 they released a collaborative music video with NPO Playground of Hope.[35]

Spoiled and Nostalgic

In the autumn of 2014 The Watanabes released a 5 track EP entitled Draw What You Like.[36] Three tracks from the record were adopted by CNN International for a documentary on food in Japan.[37] Their fourth record, a four track EP entitled Spoiled and Nostalgic, was released digitally on November 25, 2016.[38] The title was taken from an unflattering review by Japanzine of their first album (Independent Social Power), which described The Watanabes as “spoiled and nostalgic in 21st century Tokyo.”[23] A year later, the band joined forces with Japanese indie label Musipl, combining the two EPs to release a full 9 track album of the same name.[39] In September 2016, BBC Radio Norfolk made 'Hummingbird' Track of the Week,[40] and soon after, another track from the album, 'Tonight', was included in Tom Robinson's BBC Mixtape, aired on BBC Radio 6.[41] The album has also become a favourite of InterFM DJ Guy Perryman (MBE), who invited the band to perform live on his radio show,[42] as well as fellow InterFM DJ and producer Mike Rogers who likens the band to Belle and Sebastian[43] and included 'Over Romantic' in his top 50 songs of 2016.[44]

Christmas Hummingbird

In early 2020 InterFM DJ Guy Perryman (MBE) approached The Watanabes to ask whether they would be willing to rework one of their previously released tracks, 'Hummingbird'.[45] After becoming a fan of the track and playing the song on his Christmas radio show, Guy sensed that with a few simple lyrical adjustments and some musical alterations, the song could be re-released as a festive single.[45] Inspired by Guy's vision and assisted by the additional collaborative efforts of producer David Naughton and Australian composer Nicholas Buc, The Watanabes released 'Christmas Hummingbird' on November 2, 2021.[46]

Releases

Independent Social Power (2009)
There Are Ghosts Around Here EP (2009)
You're Dancing I'm Absorbed (2011)
Draw What You Like EP (2014)
Spoiled and Nostalgic EP (2016)
Spoiled and Nostalgic (2017)
Christmas Hummingbird (2020)

References
  1. Ryall, Julian (March 2013), "Living the Dream", BCCJ Acumen
  2. "New Music Critiques: The Watanabes". Music Connection: 53. January 2015.
  3. Morel, R (7 March 2011), "CD Reviews: The Watanabes: You're dancing I'm absorbed", Metropolis Magazine
  4. Tiernan, L (February 2012), Live Reviews: The Watanabes (PDF), Music Connection Magazine, p. 53, ISSN 1091-9791
  5. "Reviews and News". Sound & Recording Magazine: 199. March 2011.
  6. Strategy, Johnny (23 January 2017), "Music Monday: The Watanabes", Spoon & Tamago
  7. Wilks, Jon (2 February 2011), "On the Up: The Watanabes", Time Out, archived from the original on 13 February 2011, retrieved 4 February 2011
  8. Terrestrial, Esther (29 October 2014), "Review: Draw What You Like, The Watanabes", Toxic Online
  9. Tiernan, Laurier (December 2014), "Music: The Watanabes: Indie Alt Rockers Release New EP", Metropolis Magazine
  10. "Lomo Amigos: The Watanabes", Lomography Japan Magazine, 5 February 2015
  11. Wilks, Jon (November 2007), "Starving Artist: Duncan Walsh", Japanzine
  12. Sakaki, Mariko (23 August 2011), "東日本大震災：復興支援へ演奏会　ＡＬＴらの「ザ・ワタナベズ」", Mainichi Shimbun, archived from the original on 14 July 2012, retrieved 23 August 2011
  13. Ryall, Julian (March 2013), "Expat bands from all over Britain enjoy firm following in Tokyo", Japan Today
  14. Ostrander, Daniel (20 June 2012), "Bands Of Japan: The Watanabes", Japanzine
  15. Fuji Rock Rookie A Go Go, PIA Corporation, 2007
  16. "Independent Social Power". Tower Records.
  17. "KRH Studios". KRH Studios.
  18. "BabyBoom Records". BabyBoom Records Japan.
  19. Tiernan, Laurier (27 May 2014), "Gaijin band scene welcomes music fans of all kinds", The Japan Times
  20. Grunebaum, Dan (8 October 2009), "The Watanabes", Metropolis Magazine
  21. Davies, Jonti (9 October 2009), "The Watanabes: A Tale of Indie Success in Japan", Japanzine
  22. Music in Tokyo: The Watanabes, TimeOut Tokyo, 2011
  23. Siegel, Taryn (15 November 2017), "How to Build an Indie Band: The Watanabes", Metropolis Magazine
  24. バイク新車カタログ トライアンフ, Triumph Motorcycles, 2011, archived from the original on 2013-02-18, retrieved 2013-01-09
  25. Western Union for your convenience, Western Union, 2015
  26. Standley, Gary (12 November 2008), "Big in Japan with The Watanabes", BBC
  27. BBC Introducing 10th Anniversary Celebrations: The Watanabes perform live, The Watanabes, 10 November 2017
  28. O'Barry, Ric (29 August 2011), "The Road to Taiji: A Night at The Pink Cow for the Dolphins", Earth Island Institute
  29. Münter, Leilani (September 2011), ""Whales Can Sing" Taiji, Japan", carbonfreegirl.com, archived from the original on 2011-09-29, retrieved 2011-08-31
  30. Palmer, Mark J. (30 August 2013), "Matt Sorum Rocks Tokyo", Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project
  31. INTERVIEW Die! Die! Die!, Monchicon, 10 June 2011, retrieved November 16, 2018
  32. Lisa Crawley, Time Out Tokyo, 2017, retrieved November 16, 2018
  33. Ramesh x The Watanabes, Tokyo Weekender, 2017, retrieved November 16, 2018
  34. Building Playgrounds and Making Music Videos, Tokyoite: The Time Out Tokyo Blog, 21 May 2014
  35. Music Fundraiser for Playground of Hope, Tokyo Weekender, May 2014
  36. The Watanabes 'Draw What You Like' album launch, Time Out Tokyo, August 2014
  37. CNNGo in Japan: Wagyu, Ramen, Sake, CNN International, October 8, 2014
  38. This & That Café Vol. 30: 'Spoiled and Nostalgic', Time Out Tokyo, November 2016
  39. Ohshima, Eiji (17 November 2017), "The Watanabes『僕らはサンデーアフタヌーンバンドだよ！』", Musipl
  40. The Watanabes - New Songs, Playlists and Latest News, BBC, 2017
  41. BBC Mixtape: 19 Dec 2016, Fresh on the Net, December 2016
  42. Guy Perryman interviews The Watanabes, The Watanabes, 2017
  43. Rogers, Mike (27 June 2015), top-3-videos-for-june-19-2015-kids-on-a-crime-spree-zella-day-drenge-tokyos-own-watanabes, Robot55, retrieved November 16, 2018
  44. Rogers, Mike (19 December 2016), Mike-in-Tokyo Rogers Top 50 Best Songs, Modern Marketing Japan, retrieved November 16, 2018
  45. Perryman, Guy (26 November 2020), Christmas Hummingbird, Guy Perryman, retrieved January 23, 2021
  46. Perryman, Guy (25 December 2020), Christmas Special Edition, InterFM897, retrieved January 23, 2021
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