Robert checks out Ikebukuro’s Caravan Books, and likes what he finds. I’m tellin’ ya, Ikebukuro is turning into a “destination.” You heard it here first!

And while we’re on the subject of Readymade, today marks the release date of the Pizzicato Five 6 DVD set, THE BAND OF THE 20TH CENTURY (the official “for sale” date is March 31, anniversary of their last show together, but releases are always available the day before in Japan). To mark this event, Patrick, who I first met on the P5ML (Pizzicato Five Mailing List), and another member of the list who happens to be visiting Tokyo this week with his wife, will come over to my place after having bought the box set (I unfortunately can’t afford to get it) for a sukiyaki dinner while we watch some of the DVDs.

Another compilation that’s been getting some fairly heavy playtime on my Mac and iPod is BGM VOL.1 FOR MODERNICA, compiled by Comoesta Yaegashi. Features a bunch of tracks by the likes of Iwamura Manabu, Qypthone, and Comoesta, including a new track by Comoesta’s old unit, 5th Garden. It’s all in keeping with the Readymade esthetics (even though it’s not a Readymade release), and does well to make you feel like you’re a lot more stylin’ that you actually are.

I didn’t know Cornelius (Oyamada Keigo) had a photoblog, and it seems like he’s become the official photographer of the Nakameguro sakura. Link via Patrick.

A huge thanks to those who sent in donations after my spiel about the bandwidth issues. Thank you also for all the recommendations I’ve received in the mail about alternate cheaper hosting services. As I’ve answered, I’m paid up for a year (you got a big discount if you paid in advance like that), but when the time comes to renew, I’ll probably look elsewhere. As for the bandwith issue right now, I think I might be safe this month, but I won’t post any new pics over the next few days (until the end of the month). If things get dangerous again next month, I’ll upgrade my hosting package (and again, thanks for the donations that will let me do that).

Also, I’ve got loads of things in the planning stages right now, which I’ll reveal slowly as I feel the time is right. I’ve got the next two days off, so I hope I can get some work done on some of these things. In the meantime, thanks again for your support, and here’s hoping that the next few months will be productive and exciting.

Jesper’s Next Century Modern front page has a hint of something that I’ll be working on. Should be very cool indeed.

The Museum of Modern Art in Saitama will be hosting a new exhibit from April 6 (until May 5) entitled 45 UNDER 45 – YOUNG ARCHITECTURE. From RT: “I somehow find it difficult to warm to architects. That’s partly because of their forceful, presentation-trained voices, but also the snooty comment from some star architect on the remark that the roof of his construction let water in does its bit: “my architecture is art, so don’t you complain about a little water!” Anyway, this exhibition introduces architects from the CAD generation, which means those born in 1956 and later. On display are creations by Aoki Jun, Sejima Kazuyo, Nishizawa Ryue, Tsukamoto Yoshiharu, Kaijima Momoyo, Mikan and others. Some of them already enjoy celebrity status, and I really wish they don’t become like the maestro mentioned above. “Under 45″, by the way, refers to the architects’ age at the time of selection for this show, which explains why the likes of Ban Shigeru and Dan Norihiko are included.”

When I posted the other day about the recent compilations coming out, I forgot to mention one: WE ARE ESCALATOR RECORDS PART 2, again mixed by Cubismo Grafico. Includes the usual cast of Escalator Records mainstays like Losfeld, Harvard, Miniflex, Neil & Iraiza, Le Hammond Inferno, Yukari Fresh, and of course a few tracks by Cubismo. A nice set of tunes, which also seems to go well with sakura season. I’m surprised that I still haven’t been to their shop in Harajuku, especially since they also seem to have a cafe on the premises (and we all know how much of cafe addict I am). I’ll have to convince Patrick to bring me sometime soon.

I talked about the Plusminuszero brand from toy maker Takara a while back, and today sees the opening of a Plusminuszero shop in Coredo Nihonbashi (you can find a map here). Also, this month’s issue of WALLPAPER features an article on the brand. I was surprised to find out from the article that the designer behind the brand is also the man who designed the AU Infobar phones.

Very nice online DVD shop.

I’m really enjoying the illustrative work of Shinya Chisato. You can read an interview with her in the latest issue of SHIFT. The illustration that you see here is something you can download from her site to then put on your AU C1002S Sony Ericsson phone.

It was a sad thing to see the Aux Bacchanales cafe in Harajuku close last year, and I was totally surprised to find one in Yokohama today, at the location of my new Friday school. I thought this one might be replacing the old Harajuku one, but then finding this site shows that there are actually 3 in Tokyo, one in Yokohama (the one I went to today, at the Center-Kita station of the Yokohama subway line), and another one in Fukuoka. It was nice to have a cafe au lait there, and next week I’ll maybe go have a quiche for lunch.

A longshot of the building in Kamiyacho pictured here.

Shot taken with the A5403CA mobile phone.

Last week saw 3 big releases of DJ mixes, and my favorite of the bunch is Sunaga Tatsuo‘s WORLD STANDARD 03 (I’m not really into the house sounds of the other 2: Towa Tei’s MOTIVATION – DRIVING SWEETS and Ikeda “Mansfield” Masanori’s PLAYROOM). It’s what you’d expect from a follow-up to the 2 previous WORLD STANDARD compilations, and does nicely as a soundtrack to sunny afternoons. Music to drink coffee by. If you’re a fan of Sunaga, you can always catch him a few times every month at Shibuya’s Organ Bar.

My love affair with Tommy february6 is finally at an end. The gimmick has worn off, and I’m just not enjoying the music anymore. I didn’t care at all for the last few singles she released, and now that I’ve listened to her new album, TOMMY AIRLINE, I can say that it’s definitely over. I found this album to be so boring that I was actually skipping through most of the tracks. I still like seeing her videos, but the music isn’t fun for me anymore. I did really like the single she released as Tommy heavenly6 late last year, with its indie rock feel, and I’m hoping she does more forays with that persona (as I was searching for a Tommy heavenly6 link, I found out that she’s releasing a new single May 26, “Hey My Friend”).