Tokyo Stand Up!!! Pleez post cool spots!!!

[ScopeCGN]

Yaul,Disco Diamant is hitting Tokyo tomorrow

thanks to Carhartt we be interviewing cool dudes, trade some goods and hopefully spin somewhere... watch www.rugged.tv to get full picture soon.We bring some german goods with us, so if you live in the area of Tokyo,stand up for your block and contact us via pm in threat.Feel free to post your best sushi spots in tokyo as well - all help of the struttin society is well appreciated!!!Thanks in advance,ScopePS: Thanks for all barcelona / Spain hints, photos of our tour are available at http://www.discodiamant.de/hotshots ---> barcelona. go check it out and mail us for any info on barcelona diggin...

---> 80. Stockwerk alert!!!!

 

[maxveritech]

all i can remember was simply walking around shibuya and running into record stores left, right and centre, all with hot stuff at a 100yen a pop. i'm not fluent in japanese so i think it's fair to say they're pretty common place. entire buildings with more stores in them than all of perth put together... just sick....

 

[ScopeCGN]

Sounds good!

What you think, as I pack my luggage right this second, should I bring my portable?

Best & Thanks,

Scoper

 

[maxveritech]

yes, most definitely bring the portable! though having said that, you could just pick one up over there. mine was invaluable and since they're pretty hip over there to the hip hop, crate digging culture, don't mind using it, although since i was mainly sifting through the 100yen bins, i don't think they'd mind too much as the wax i was pulling wasn't entirely mint.

one suggestion though, bring a nice vinyl flightcase if you have one. in the two days i was there, i bought so much wax that I had to buy a padded flight case to take my records on board the plane as i flew onwards onto LA.

and food wise, just wild out and go wherever, even the bento boxes at the 7-11s are good! whole load of sushi and they usually give you some kind of katsu as well. i would have liked to seen more of the country side but since i was only there for two days en route to the US, it was strictly a digging mission.

cheers
max

 

[4YearGraduate]

Hit the Disk Unions, the game has changed int he last few years and in my opinion they are the first (and sometimes last) stop. Bring trade for ease on the pricing though I found everything pretty reasonable on a global scale while there in September. Each location has a specialty, the Disco one was mindblowing, as was the all around great Shibuya location. Have fun and go to the Kill Bill food spot!

 

[ScopeCGN]

Wow - Thanx Max,

I think I will bring my GP-3B (Columbia) back to the land of its origin...

Thanks for all the info good to hear that Shibuya is the place, as we booked a room in a guesthouse there!

Thanks for your help - much appreciated!


Best,

Scoper

 

[maxveritech]

Scope: 'sall good mate - just slide me some Japanese heat when you get back home.. hehe. If I get the chance I'll up some pics here for you to check out, stuff to look out for.

Thes: I didn't cop much heat from Disk Union. Just all these other ill stores that I can't remember, just places I walked into and my jaw just dropped!

As soon as an airline starts flying from Perth to Japan cheap, I'll be on them planes....

 

[maxveritech]

PS how is digging in Cologne? while in europe i got to dig in Leipzig and frankfurt and got some nice pieces. awesome 2LP press of 6 feet deep in leipzig (sugar hill records store i think?) and loads of hardcore techno and old school UK breakbeat stuff in the backroom of this stoner store in Frankfurt... europe has such mad record shopping at nice prices!

 

[Reynaldo]

Good info. I'll be in Japan this summer to do some sight-seeing--I'm looking forward to it.

 

[ScopeCGN]

Max:
Cologne got some decent spots, if you have the time to go around frequently youll be able to find chep heaters. If you be around for sight seeing, you will maybe only find the usual spots and be like: Hmmm - Not special...

You can get euro heat at bargain price levels and US-heat for big numbers here in cologne. I can recommend some cool shops and thrifts here, if you stop by on your next world trip

And Yeah! FFM is known for electronica and tech of all kinds - Leipzig record shows are known for cheap east euro heat!!! I dug up piles of records there. But the Sugarhill owner seems to be a little strange to me, prices were skyrocketing to unreal hights for just common records. Tz Tz Tz...

Gotta hit the plane now, thanks for your help!

Cheerz!

SC

 

[mattB]

Scope, hopefully you'll have a chance to read this before you return but here's a bit more info for you:

Top 3 record areas that have tonnes of stores:
- Nishi (West)-Shinjuku
- Shibuya
- Ochanomizu/Jimbocho

I agree that Disc Union is the bomb. I hit up the soul/blues Disc Unions regularly. Actually, you'll want to get off either the south or east exist of Shinjuku to find the Disc Union's there. All the stores (soul, jazz, rock etc) are around the same area. Once you find one, you should be able to get a map to the rest of them. But definately dont sleep on west shinjuku. The place is loaded.

On the chuo/sobu line from Shinjuku you should get off at Nakano, Koenji and Kichijoji. All three stops have about 5 - 10 record stores each to check out.

You really need to buy the record map book when you find one of these stores (it's about 1500yen). It's all in Japanese but once you ask someone to help you get your bearings you should be ok.

And if you go any further out into the sticks, then hard off can be a go sometimes (but you probably want a car for this).

Food wise, I just recently discovered an awesome yakitori joint in Shibuya. It's a two story place that'll be constantly full of salary men getting wasted after work. It's crowded and not exactly the cleanest place in the world. But the yakitori is outstanding and the beer is ice cold. Plenty of sake to be had too if that's you're thing. It's here http://gmap.jp/shop-1147.html. The link is actually a map to the Hobgoblin (an Irish pub) but this yakitori place is just under the "R" of "The Renga".

 

[karlophone]

Food wise, I just recently discovered an awesome yakitori joint in Shibuya. It's a two story place that'll be constantly full of salary men getting wasted after work. It's crowded and not exactly the cleanest place in the world. But the yakitori is outstanding and the beer is ice cold. Plenty of sake to be had too if that's you're thing. It's here http://gmap.jp/shop-1147.html. The link is actually a map to the Hobgoblin (an Irish pub) but this yakitori place is just under the "R" of "The Renga".

and theres a Mos Burger around the "D" in Dogenzaka!

 

[ScopeCGN]

GR8!! GR8!! GR8!!!

Thanks so much doctafonk, very useful info!!!! Much appreciated! Will U B around in Tokyo the next days?! Maybe we can hook up for a decent pint in the HoboScratchGoblin?! Sake Bukake madness there!!!

Hit me up on skype: scope808

Would be great. Thanks and all the best,

SC

 

[djsheep]

Do not bring a portable. No stores will let you use them, including 2nd hand stores. Cool for listening to finds in the hotel, but that's about it.

Also, if you plan on using the record map to find your stores, forget it. Don't even waste your time hittin' up Shibuya, Shinjuku or the Chuo line. If you really gunna dig, gotta get out at least 1 hour from the city for the real records. Like the cheap joints. If you wanna pay eBay prices, scout around.

Selling records, forget about it. You might be like $20 for those Knef records out there (IF YOU ARE LUCKY!). It's all about the trades, but you gotta have the hookups out there.

Things have change DRAMATICALLY in Japan. I was gunna write more about it when I get back to Australia, I just got back from there 2 days ago (in Taiwan still) with 9 days of bliss. I will post a full report ASAP. Lots of gaijin out there doin' the eBay thing these days and Muro and co have DEFINITLEY got all spots on lock right now (by the way, I picked up his 2 new mix CDs - a stevie wonder cover mix and a mix of all joints sped up to 45, DOPE DOPE!). Pt. 2 of Muro's Japanese mix will be released shortly, it will be CERTIFIED DOPE! I know a couple of joints on that already, AMAZING!

doctafunk, hit me on the MSN.

peace.

 

[yuichi]

Take mad cash, go to Bestsoundrecords, and buy the Sabu Martinez on their wall for like 8G's. As some others have mentioned, Disk Union is fun. I copped African Rhythms OG, Skull Snaps 90s repress, Placebo Sessions for 8bucks, etcx2. Prices are reasonable as well. My only gripe would be that you have to wade through a grip of represses to find the OGs.

DAMN I WANNA GO TO JAPAN AND HIT UP THOSE OTHER CITIES.

by the way, what's that "Knef" record you got in that photo right there?

 

[mattB]

doctafunk, hit me on the MSN.

mate, ive been trying to!

 

[maxveritech]

Do not bring a portable. No stores will let you use them, including 2nd hand stores. Cool for listening to finds in the hotel, but that's about it.

bevan: for real?!? wow, things must have changed. the places i went i pointed to my portable and they were all cool with it... but admittedly yes, this was in 2004 and if you say things have changed, then word is bond!

cheers
max

 

[bloodcell]

hit everything in shibuya, in shimotikazowa hit a place called "spahn ranch"?(sp?)

seriously, you will be walking past buildings that house like 20 stores inside that look like typical office buildings on the outside, inside every floor will be all kinds of different stuff, but there are vinyl stores hidden EVERYWHERE over there.

some cater to just certain kinds of music though.

cosign on even eating the stuff from 7-11. the japanese do not fuck around on quality, even at 7-11 and mcdonalds.

 

[piedpiper]

Also, if you plan on using the record map to find your stores, forget it. Don't even waste your time hittin' up Shibuya, Shinjuku or the Chuo line. If you really gunna dig, gotta get out at least 1 hour from the city for the real records. Like the cheap joints. If you wanna pay eBay prices, scout around.

If you have a couple of days only, Shibuya is the place to go. But if you want to "dig" records check out other stores and areas.
As others have mentioned, the Disk Union stores are a good start. Get their map in one of the stores and try to hit up as many as possible, i.e. in Kichijoji, Machida, Shimo Kitazawa aso. You will usually find a couple of other record stores scattered in the same area. I f you manage to have a Japanese tour guide, you can start to search for the real shit in the suburbs.

 

[jimey]

i would def check the jazzy sports and the kitsune store.


i hope i can do it this year