The Questions-Best Answer

I was first introduced to the Questions through the Mike Rogers Show on WFMU. The Koza, Okinawa, Japan trio started in 2019 and is led by bassist, singer, songwriter and artist Chelio along with Sayako on guitar and Aki on drums. This is their international vinyl debut after a handful of self-released digital singles and a 2023 digital album of the same title and many of the same songs. The rough edges of their sound stands in sharp contrast to their striking and detailed visual look. The punchy “45” is 46 seconds short and dates back to Chelio’s former Tokyo-based band Six and appeared on their Tokyo Boogaloo album. It channels the stripped down, but melodic rush of the late '70s Los Angeles punk sound-namely the Alley Cats, the Eyes and the Dickies. In contrast, “Honey Pye” offers a sweet ska beat somewhere the Deltones (UK) and the Drops (Japan). The catchy “I Want You” includes verses sung in Japanese, chorus in English along with bonus Mandarin Chinese (wǒ ài nǐ) and was previously titled “My Scooter Boy” as heard on their 2023 digital album.

They sound their best on record when they allow their melodies to merge with their momentum as heard on the aforementioned songs. While somewhat comparable to current bands like the Highmarts or many of the bands on the 5 volumes of Girls Sazanami Beat, they offer a distinctive Kyushu-Okinawa difference factor and years of playing experience as Chelio’s former band, Six, began all the way back in 2000. 

The island-based band has recently started to make waves in Tokyo with their undeniable stage presence and highly competent playing that commands attention. Last October, they shared a bill with Jenny Jenny in Tokyo for their record release. On the next night, they played the 2025 Back from the Grave Tokyo Halloween Ball and their entire 14-minute set was recorded and can be viewed here. They definitely made a strong impression with a joyous, fierce and ferocious live show that injected new life into old R&B standards like “Got My Mojo Working.” Excitiment is building for the trio as they left the Shinjuku LOFT stage as conquering heroes. Now the rest of the world can hear what all started in Okinawa. 

 

The Questions 

Favorite Albums of 2025

Here we go halfway through the '20s:
Bolded font will lead to a Turning the Tide review
Non-bolded font will redirect to the album's Bandcamp page

1.Freezing Hands-Ghouls of 22nd Street

2. Ryli-Come and Get Me

3. Prefaces-Acqua Marina

4. Matthew Smith Group

5. Radioactivity-Time Won't Bring Me Down

6. Tony Molina-On This Day

7. The Numbers-Mad Day Out

8. Thee Sinseers-Sinseerly Yours (Instrumentals)

9. Future Children-A disorganized body

10.The Questions-Best Answer  

11. (tie)-Tchotchke-Playin' Dumb

11.(tie)  Danny Ayala-Only Fools Love Again

Best Various/Collections

1.“Cumbia Cumbia Cumbia!!!-Vol. 3

2.Sunny A Go Go Vol.1
A 60's Music Journey To Southeast Asia 1965-1968

Falling Sugar-Self-titled

CD released by Fuzzy Pals Records (Japan)
LP by Bachelor Records (Austria)

Every once in a while you come across an album where everything falls in place. I first encountered Falling Sugar on a graphic for Mike Rogers' Japan Indies 2024 Music Awards and then heard them on the Todd-o-Phonic Todd WFMU radio show when he played “West Coast.” I'm guessing their band name is most likely inspired by the fantastic Beatlesque ‘60s pop Nugget “Falling Sugar” by the Palace Guard. The continued influence of the '60s looms large on their debut album. They even pay homage to that decade by briefly quoting sections of the Troggs’ “Can’t Control Myself,” and “She’s Got Everything” by the Kinks as points of departure into their own songs.

Falling Sugar are the co-headliners for Mike Rogers' final Japanese Indies Music Awards show

Off the Cuff
On their originals, they exude a ramshackle charm with their catchy combination of ‘60s pop and ‘90s indie-pop played with maximum joy. They shape an amalgamated and shambling sound that approaches and lands near the first-rate pop that the Apricots and Dizzy Joghurt whipped up 25 years ago along with Mama Guitar, the Pebbles, Berry, and Tirolean Tape. When they go more into bubblegum mode, they are found somewhere in the same aisle as the Cherry Splits and the Strawberry Zots.

Disk Union display-notice the Each Time by Eiichi Ohtaki promo in 
the southwest corner. 

Listen People Their self-titled album contains the excitement and exuberance expected in a strong debut. Overall, they achieve a rounded-out sound with propulsive percussive momentum, strummy guitar, prominent bass, and buoyant keyboards-in other words the active ingredients of bubblegum music. They strike upon this captivating sound with Mikko’s keyboard playing providing the requisite bounce that pairs up with her gliding voice that is well-suited for this type of music. Monma’s bold and pronounced bass brings in both mod-ish and Motown elements, while Toyozo Toyoshima’s apt (punch & strum) guitar playing and experience plays a major role in the band. When not with Falling Sugar, you can find him somewhere in the world playing in the Fadeaways, Angel Face, Paul Collins Beat-to name just a few of his many involvements. All the original songs are co-compositions by Toyozo and Mikko.

Falling Sugar: Clockwise L-R 
Mikko (Vocals, Organ), Monma (Bass), Toyozo (Guitar, Vocals) Ani-Pon (Drums)

Short, Sweet & Succinct 

“Sugar N Honey” brims with vocals reminiscent of the aforementioned Mama Guitar and a ringing Rickenbacker guitar comparable to the McCharmlys. “West Coast” leans in almost an anorak direction with its brisk melodies that would appeal to both Peach Kelli Pop and Pedal Records listeners. Be sure to catch that "Eight Days A Week" riff on the outro. The band is also stellar when they slow things down and incorporate a charming and chiming xylophone on songs like “Take Around” that recalls the best indie-pop featured by Shredding Radio/Magazine 25 years ago. By the way, “Take Around” seems to be a wonderful combination of “You, You, You” the 6th and “Leave all your Old Loves” by the Liverbirds, (later covered by the Shebrews). “Sigh” is overflowing with Herman’s Hermits/Merseybeat influences that will have SFTRI fans recalling the Stool Pigeons. Their rendition of “After Hours” fittingly closes. This Velvet Underground classic pop song was famously sung by Mo Tucker as Lou Reed said the song was too innocent and pure for him to sing himself.  They ace the cover by adding a dash of Death By Chocolate, which should not come as a surprise.

Bubbling Under

The quartet displays a deeper understanding that the roots of the bubblegum lie in the cubicles of the Brill Building as their record is immediate, catchy, tuneful and made to endure. While most of the late ‘60s American bubblegum groups were uniformly male, it’s refreshing to have females on the forefront, which has long been a major strength and characteristic of mold-breaking Japanese music. Falling Sugar excel with their originals and overall their debut captures the undeniable and vibrant spirit of the Tokyo garage scene, while putting a new spin on the most welcome sound of strummy Japanese bubblegum garage pop.

As a display of their adventurous approach, they have been known to play the Equals’ classic “Police on my Back” as part of their live sets.  I hope they give this song the studio treatment for a future release.

Tetsuko-Curl

For 25 years, Tetsuko have presented a highly original and distinctive sound with seemingly no readily apparent influences. Art rock undercurrents along the lines of Talking Heads, Sparks, Roxy Music and Haruomi Hosono/Yellow Magic Orchestra may be detected, but their overall sound waves are undeniably pop. This makes sense as they started as a Beatles cover band in 1995. In fact, Reiko 渡邊玲子 has been playing with drummer Yasuyo 関安代 since junior high. The current lineup came together in 1999 at a Kyoto college with bassist Yoko 野瀬陽子 joining Reiko and Yasuyo. 

The trio achieves the tricky balance of aligning a churning rhythm section with Reiko’s charging guitar and charming vocals. They demonstrate their dexterity with dashing twists and turns through sparkling pop that most reminds me of Palomar or Kabochack. The band continuously punches above their weight and whips up an enlarged sound that is both enduring and appealing due to care they place in harmonies and arrangements. The last two years have been filled with momentum as they were headlining stars of Mike Rogers’ 2023 Japan Indies Music Awards that took place at the world famous Shibuya Milky Way Showroom in Tokyo. Further, 2024 has brought the worldwide release of Curl, which could be considered their catchiest, thickest sounding and most cohesive release of their long career.

Ladies First

The album opens in a big way with the seemingly detached trio coming together quickly in musical confluence. “Holy Girl, Tetsuko'' sprints out with a verse that echoes “Summer Means Fun” by Bruce and Terry before bursting into a top-of-the-world melody that could be a theme to a Japanese TV show. “15000th Time” is a floor shifting new wave number topped off with a chorus that seems actually inspired by “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper. One of their most daring numbers “Permanent,” is pulled off by their finesse along with the telepathy they have established by playing together for 25 years. It's almost Zappa-esque in its amorphous shape shifting and interludes of wooziness fastened by keyboard lines evocative of "Pop Goes the World" by Men Without Hats. It rates up there with “End of Philosophy” from their 2013 candy guitar ep or Ambassador アンバサダー from 2021's Perfect in terms of the band successfully stretching out. 

At times the atmosphere they create evokes the one found in Yoko Ono’s Approximately Infinite Universe, while their songs adhere to Yoko’s songs on Double Fantasy, which more than hinted Yoko was paying attention to Blondie and the B-52's-who Yoko initially inspired in the first place! Following the delightful and brilliant wackiness, is the straightforward Shonen Knife-ish “BABY, BABY, BABY,” one of their several songs with “Baby” in its title. (The others being “my BABY” from 2019’s I Love You and the epic “BABY” found on 2017’s Eros mini-album.) 

Tetsuko are conceptual artists that deliver exceptional goods. Further, they have always displayed a sense of dynamics in their concise and economical guitar-driven pop songs that efficiently motor along like a Honda Civic. Their latest Curl features a thicker, but not slicker sound along with some extra layers of sonic embellishments. Thankfully, the trio continue on as immediate and radiant as ever, while remaining the one and only Tetsuko.

My Summer Love. V/A My Summer Love: Japanese Girls Compilation

Mike Rogers reminded me of this compilation and my 2002 review when he played a track by Strawberry Mud Pie! on his weekly WFMU show. I also noticed that the Hot Shots' contribution "I'm in Love" was co-written by Deke Dickerson and Yuichiro Matsushita and was later re-recorded as "I'm In Love With You" and appeared on the Hot Shots's 2009 album Teen Street.

It’s always exciting to check out the Japanese music web pages to see what’s going on in a music world one day ahead of the Western world. Yet it’s ultimately frustrating because it’s either a big expensive ordeal to import the music or the language barrier results in a possible e-mail imbroglio.  What does one do when they want to hear the full versions of songs by the Apricots (Mama Guitar side project) on this side of the Pacific?  Well start with Bomp Mailorder who have made this Barn Homes/1+2 collection a readily available compilation at a domestic price.  While there’s nothing as good as Sunnychar, Supersnazz or Mama Guitar, it’s a nice variety pack (largely influenced by the aforementioned groups) of oversea/underground Japanese female-fronted pop circa 2002. Great to play while dreaming of visiting the closet-sized Tokyo record shops some sunny day before heading to one of their early evening shows.

The Apricots