Lately I've been reading about a phenomenon known as group sounds, or GS. What is GS, you ask? Well, in the 1960s the Beatles toured that magical land of Japan and left a great impression on the nation's youth. This new interest in western bands like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and The Small Faces led to many young Japanese men starting british-invasionesque rock groups. But since the Japanese have a very difficult time pronouncing "rock and roll", they simply called the bands "group sounds". And thus, bands such as the Tempters, the Spiders, the Carnabeats, and the Human Beinz(above) were born.
I find it interesting that these bands are almost completely forgotten today. Whereas young westerners are very much in tune with rock bands from yesteryear, most of my Japanese friends don't have any interest in what their parents listened to, even though the GS influence can be seen in modern Japanese bands like Kinmokusei and Teenage Lust (although the latter also give props to a certain Detroit garage band). But I suppose that's just the Japanese way; fake vintage is hipper and cheaper than real vintage. But here at the Flying Wheel, we remember the Carnabeats, and their rad name.
No comments:
Post a Comment