From the sugar rush of Tokyo's idol subculture to the discordant polyrhythms of its experimental punk and indie scenes, this book by Japan Times music columnist

From the beginning of the American Occupation in 1945 to the post-bubble period of the early 1990s, popular music provided Japanese listeners with a much-needed

Matthew Swanbeck has a classic problem. Back in seventh grade, his dad talked him into playing the trumpet instead of the drums. Now he's a lowly brass player i

Starting at the very basics and working its way up to important language constructions, "An introduction to Japanese" offers beginning students, as well as thos

"Lucid and lyrical…a vivid history of Japan's turbocharged (and painful) modernization." --The Daily Telegraph In A History of Modern Japan, cultural historia