The Big 2012 Preview

Music

Fleet Foxes
Jan 20 | Studio Coast
Gone are the days when overseas indie acts had to assiduously court Japanese listeners: now they can hold off until they're properly famous and then breeze straight into a sizable venue such as Studio Coast. So it is with Seattle folk-rockers Fleet Foxes, who are finally arriving in Tokyo on the back of two widely lauded albums, 2008's eponymous debut and last year's Hopelessness Blues. Read more

An Evening with Pat Metheny
Jan 20-28 | Blue Note Tokyo
One of the biggest names in contemporary jazz is settling in for an intimate, week-long residency at the Blue Note, accompanied on bass by longtime foil Larry Grenadier. These Tokyo gigs come on the back of a series of dates in the US last autumn, during which the pair unearthed some seldom-heard Metheny pieces while studiously ignoring his recent album of pop covers, What's It All About. Read more

Florence + the Machine
Feb 1 | Akasaka Blitz
Two years after she had to cancel a planned Tokyo show on doctor's orders, Florence Welch is finally making her live debut here, a week after the domestic release of sophomore album Ceremonials. If you can get tickets in time, this promises to be essential – they may only just be getting to Japan, but Florence + the Machine have graduated to festival headliner status elsewhere. Read more

Metal Box in Dub
Feb 3-5 | Shimokitazawa Garden
Public Image Limited's Metal Box is widely recognised as one of the defining statements of the post-punk era, but it's become the subject of a bizarre custody war between its creators. First there was the John Lydon-fronted PiL reunion, now original guitarist Keith Levene and bassist Jah Wobble are offering their own rendition – and, deliciously, they've drafted in the vocalist from a Sex Pistols cover band for the occasion. Read more

Hostess Club Weekender
Feb 18-19 | Yebisu Garden Hall
With a repeat of last year's ATP-curated I'll Be Your Mirror festival looking less and less likely, Japan-based label and promoters Hostess have swooped in with a two-day event of their own. Some of the biggest acts from the company's stable feature, including resurgent space rockers Spiritualized, eternal shape-shifters The Horrors and Atlas Sound, the ever-intriguing side project of Deerhoof's Bradford Cox. Read more

The Naked and Famous
Feb 27 | Club Quattro
One of the most impressive debuts at last year's Fuji Rock was from this fresh-faced quintet, already megastars in their native New Zealand. The Naked and Famous have drawn comparisons with acts like The XX and MGMT, but they're equally apt to recall the more anthemic moments of Depeche Mode or the industrial thump of Nine Inch Nails. Don't expect them to stay on the indie circuit for long, in other words. Read more

The Pogues
Mar 28 | Studio Coast
Fans of this combustible Irish ensemble will have smiled knowingly when their upcoming tour of Japan and Australia was announced – preceded only a few days earlier by news that singer Shane MacGowan had nixed the whole thing. While it looks like their Tokyo gig will be going ahead as planned, the likelihood of MacGowan actually showing up is, well, a little hazier. Read more

SonarSound Tokyo 2012
Apr 21-22 | Ageha/Studio Coast
The 2011 edition of this electronic music fest very nearly didn't happen, but hopefully the organisers won't have to contend with earthquakes or radiation fears this time around. Local faves The Cinema Orchestra are the biggest name announced so far, with Clark, Ryoichi Kurokawa, Mount Kimbie and Dorian Concept also confirmed. Read more