Page 116 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide: Japan

114  T OK Y O AREA B Y AREA

Live Music Gambling
There is no shortage of venues Pachinko (see p101) is a form
to hear live music in Tokyo. Many of disguised gambling; it was
big acts, Japanese and foreign, devised in Nagoya just after
appear at Shibuya’s Club Quattro. World War II and is based on the
O-West and O-East are two other American pinball machine. A
good venues in Shibuya for tech- good place to go if you want to
no and J-pop. In Ebisu the Liquid experience pachinko firsthand
Room is a trendy place to see a is Maruhan Pachinko Tower in
mix of bands. The Akasaka Blitz Shibuya. Here, each floor has a
hosts J-pop groups and some dif ferent theme, and there are
foreign acts. Venues for live music special seats for couples.
and experimental performances Winnings from pachinko are
range from the ever-exciting generally exchanged for goods
SuperDeluxe in Nishi-Azabu, to – brand-name goods in upscale
expat-hangout The Pink Cow in areas – or for money, but the
Roppongi. The Mandala Live money exchange has to be
House has mostly Japanese bands. done outside the premises to
For big-name jazz perfor mers remain within the law, through
try the Shinjuku Pit Inn, the A popular karaoke club in a hole in the wall. This is because
Cotton Club in Marunouchi, downtown Tokyo gambling for money is illegal
and the Blue Note Tokyo. Karaoke in Japan, except for certain
Birdland, in Akasaka, is one of approved (and unsurprisingly
Tokyo’s longest-running jazz Karaoke, which translates from highly popular) activities such
clubs. Billboard Live Tokyo the Japanese characters as as horse-racing, powerboat
in Roppongi is a fancy venue “empty orchestra”, dates from racing, bicycle racing, and
that features live music perfor- the 1960s. Today it is not only major lotteries.
mances by top artists. For a a prime pastime for many More often than not, how-
cozier, more intimate setting, Japanese, irrespective of age, ever, a blind eye is turned by
try the Blues Alley Japan, a but a global phenom enon. the Japanese authorities to the
small club featuring blues, Devotees sing favorite songs ways in which people choose to
jazz, rock, world music, and to pre-recorded tapes, CDs, indulge in gambling. Mahjong
other genres. and DVDs in bars, pubs, and is played in private clubs and
The domestic and international even at home. Most popular homes, for example. Some
classical music and opera scene are Western standards, current hostess clubs offer gambling in
in Tokyo is flourishing. Tokyo pop songs, and enka, the addition to their other services,
Opera City Concert Hall Japanese equivalent of as long as it is not for money.
(see p104), Bunkamura (see p100), French chanson.
New National Theater, Suntory It is common for Japanese
Hall, NHK Hall, and the Tokyo companies to build karaoke
International Forum (see p75) complexes consisting of small,
are all popular spots. cozy rooms for couples to
much larger spaces, some
with concert-style lighting,
for groups of friends and
large parties. Food and drinks
can be ordered. It is hard to
escape karaoke – it is every-
where in the city.
Big Echo is the name of
one major karaoke chain that
operates in Tokyo, and the
well known games company
Sega operates another. Family
restaurant chains such as Maruhan Pachinko Tower
Denny’s, Jonathan’s, and Royal in Shibuya
Host are also strong supporters.
Sometimes venues even star Nightclubs
in movies: Karaoke-kan in Tokyo’s clubs are many and
Shibuya’s Center Gai (see p100) varied, and the club scene
is the famed location used in is very fluid; check current
the 2003 movie Lost in Trans­ listings (see p112) for the latest
Roppongi, a focus for music and lation – the rooms used are information. There are several
nightclubs in Tokyo 601 and 602 on the sixth floor. centers for nightclubs; Roppongi

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