I Can't Even.... Sokoninaru - Tenohira De Odoru - Aussie Producer Reaction/Analysis

[@hiawatha.g]

Love this band. Japan is bursting with extremely technical prog and math rock bands. This is one of the best.

[@jars6230]

And they do pull it off live.

[@stevekane4922]

Yes there is a live fancam video of this and they are as tight as a nut.

[@PrymalChaos]

Awesome.

[@stevekane4922]

They and bandmaid are the treatment for my disease. Their new full time drummer is fantastic and sings bass really well so their soundscape is even better.

[@2abug]

Sokoninaru are definitely in my top Japanese artists with BAND-MAID, Gacharic Spin/DOLL$BOXX, Maximum the Hormone and ZUTOMAYO. "Tenohira De Odoru" is their usual kind of song. I can't wait to see your reaction/analysis to their songs like "Gou ni Moyu", "re-program", “Zettaiteki Sanpunkan” or "kyokugen wa setsuna" for example. They also have some live performances on their official KZbin channel. Juko Suzuki (singer/guitarist) is playing on a Momose Custom JazzMaster guitar and Morgan Amp most of the time. Misaki Fujiwara (singer/bassist) is playing on a Mayones Jabba Classic 4 with Ampeg amp. Finally, Shoto Saito (vocals/drums), who became their first official drummer since last year, (the one on this video is Shiyu, their longtime supporting drummer) is playing on a Tama kit. And of course, both guitarists have a massive pedalboard. Thank you :)

[@PrymalChaos]

Thank you! This is all great info!

[@DragonPhlyy]

Zutomayo😮😮😮😮

[@kevinallen4743]

Zutomayo is unknown to me thank you, in return I offer Paranoid void & Otoboke Beaver - 2 very different bands so you may like one if not both.

[@2abug]

@@kevinallen4743 I already know Otoboke Beaver, I saw them live in Paris two weeks ago. I have just heard a couple of songs by Paranoid Void, so thank you for reminding me about them :)

[@NottCris]

Sokoninaru is actually inspired heavily by a band called ling tosite sigure. I recommend giving them a try if you like them

[@ロベルさん菜園]

Mate! Greetings from Shizuoka just after a horrible typhoon! Sokoninaru/そこに鳴る　means "this is there that we sing" and Tenohira De Odoru/手の平で踊る” means "Dancing with the palm of your hand". They are quite veterans already as they formed in 2011 by the present lead guitarist and bassist when they were still at high school in Osaka. Jyuukou Suzuki, the lead guitar was born in 1991. Misaki Fuiji, the lady playing the bass was born in 1992.] Shuuto Saitou, the kid among them, was born in 1998. I am so glad you finally came to react on them! I'm afraid you opened a new rabbit hole! Superb reaction! Have more fun with them! Best regards, Robert-Gilles

[@val-wx4si]

They perform live just like they do in their music videos.

[@val-wx4si]

ありがとうございます！

[@785boats]

Yeah. They can do all that , & more, live. He does all those chops & effects changes with his foot board. There is a video on their channel that shows his feet gliding over that board. No one ever comments on the power of the actual lyrics. Such a profound message. Take heed.

[@PrymalChaos]

Yeah! I'm excited to hear more!

[@cats-eyes]

I had requested this song a long time ago because I was so impressed with your analytical skills in the Band-Maid reaction video, but I had completely forgotten about it. As expected, it was a great analysis. His guitar is a Jazzmaster made by Momose in Japan for recordings, etc., and he sometimes uses a Fender for live performances. The rugged and rough side of the Jazzmaster and the clean tone of the arpeggios, etc. are the right guitars for their music. Also, in Japan, many children learn to play the piano from an early age, which I believe contributes to their manual dexterity and understanding of music theory.

[@PrymalChaos]

Thanks for recommending this! I didn't know what to expect, but any time a band knocks me off my chair this hard it's a good day!

[@novrinkov0053]

In Japan, we always learn to play the guitar, piano when we are in elementary school.

[@kicorse]

Great to hear you do Sokoninaru! They're among my absolute favourites. The technical western bands you listed around the ten minute mark: I do like a lot of them, but I feel that Sokoninaru achieve a similar level of technicality without losing anything in terms of soulfulness. And I find myself humming the riff or the chorus to Tenohira de Odoru (and other songs of theirs) at random times. Essentially, it feels like the goal is beautiful music, and the compositional craziness is just the method they use to achieve the goal. Lots of great songs to choose from. Gou Ni Moyu seems to be a popular choice, but if you want something a *little* bit more comprehensible, then you could try エメラルドグリーン (Emerald Green) or Indelible Time.

[@PrymalChaos]

Yeah I can see that. They're technical, but after you get over the shock value of the chaos, they're spectacularly musical.

[@JuanSan66]

Sokoninaru!, wow excellent choice. The tremendously amazing thing about this band is that they nail it live. There aren't many better musicians than these today. By the way, they have already changed the drummer three times and each time they have found a better one. Thanks and good job as always.

[@PrymalChaos]

You can thank the guys on my Discord for nagging me about these guys. I'm glad they did!

[@powbobs]

Amazing band.

[@hakosukar]

Thank you for your reaction to this band, whom I’ve been following for a couple of years. Despite their ample talent, they still drive their rental van from their hometown Osaka to Tokyo, over 500km, to do their gig, have a meal, then drive back the same day to skimp on hotel accommodations. Just hope they become more popular and can hire a couple of roadies sometime soon. I think they deserve it. They are too serious and prudent, it’s ridiculous.

[@KB-hs4go]

Yes Jyuko does recordings and Misaki does KZbin update, they do most of the things by themselves.They deserve more popularity and make money so that they can continue the band.

[@UseathirteeN]

They are out of this world, and as clean in live as in the video

[@aly5066]

This band is so amazing, definitely top 2 for me if not #1. Lament moment and Saitei are two of my favorite songs, they're so freaking talented (OH i forgot re:program!!! That'd be such a good song to react to!)

[@jom8050]

Glad to know you hear Sokoninaru（そこに鳴る). Just a few weeks ago, I saw them at a small venue of maybe 200-300 capacity. Their performance was more than I had expected: Powerful, raw, no gimmick. I was a bit surprised that Juko (the frontman) was relatively shy and small (almost the same as Misaki, the bassist) can't believe how he plays that crazily. Oh, by the way, the pronunciation and meaning: Soko-ni-Naru, maybe sound like "sock of" "knee" "roo" (roo of kangaroo) literal translation would be "sounds/rings out there" but grammatically weird. "Te-no-hira De Odoru", Tenohira is a palm, "de" (pronounce like "debt" muting t-sound) means at/in/on, "odoru" means dance, so the meaning is "dance on a palm", it reminds me the Japanese idiom "tenohira de odora-sareru" (make somebody dancing on a palm) which means "dancing like a puppet on strings" The lyric describes that they know they are manipilated by somebody, losing their identity. Nevertheless, they still try resisting that power though it would never be successful. I think the lyric has a more or less similar taste to "Smells like teen spirit": weird and powerlessness, but still resisting something big like the black hole.

[@PrymalChaos]

Thank you Jo M, I can use all the help I can get when it comes to Japanese pronunciation! 😆😆

[@jom8050]

@@PrymalChaos oops, small correction. the band name is Soko-ni-naru, not soko-ni-ru. "Naru" pronounce like the Japanese anime "Naruto" without "to".

[@KB-hs4go]

Actually, Misaki is a tall ladey as a Japanese, she is 171cm tall and Juko is 174cm, which is a bit taller than the average hight of Japanese men of 171cm.

[@powbobs]

Amazingly they can’t read music. I’m still stunned by that fact. Misaki and Juko met while attending Buddhist College. The lyrics are quite deep. Please do Gou Ni Moyu next.

[@Wirmish]

Best Math Metal out there.

[@andrew11avery]

I love this band and your react is was great and similar to my own when I found them.

[@UberNoodle]

@9:46 I don't mean this in an insulting way at all. But as someone who has been steeped in Japanese music for the last 20 years, particularly because half of that time was living in Japan, I think the difference you're trying to express might be about musical literacy. So many of my favourite bands from Australia, the US, the UK, Sweden etc. all tell a similar story of being fans of particular genre of music and teaching themselves how to play. They might get enough lessons if they do to get started, but then they just go it alone play it by ear (pun intended). They learn how to play by learning their favourite songs and experimenting. And obviously that happens in Japan too, but also there is also so much respect for formal learning and training, and opportunities to engage with and experience it from a young age. And this is deeply ingrained in the education system in Japan, including clubs and societies of which it's typically mandatory to join at least one. Overall this raises the level of musical literacy and genre experience for so many young musicians in their foundational development and mastery. So when you hear a Japanese metal band, for example, inexplicably release a song outside of their explicit genre (or they introduce unexpected genre influences), it sounds organic and authentic. I think this is because quite a lot of those musicians have specifically learnt, trained or had significant experience in those genres because of how they learnt and how the culture and society expect them to learn. But again, this is a huge generalisation. There are tons of musicians in japan just like in every other country who have that other typical story of teaching yourself to play by learning your favourite songs and so on. But look back at how surprising it typically is when a band in a country like Australia start writing music or using influences outside of their explicit genre. Think about how surprising it is when they show professional aptitude at these genres, and your first thought is "Where the heck did that come from?" But in a way that's a strange thing to say. Why wouldn't they have expertise in music genres, styles and techniques more broadly? Mastering your musical instrument and your voice about becoming an expert in a very narrow field, but it can also be about diversifying your expertise.

[@PrymalChaos]

Well said! I really appreciate your insight on this. It's always baffled me. I think another difference is that musicians in the west who are professionally trained (studied at the conservatory- or whatever) might tend to (and I mean this in an oddly respectful way) become a little snobby. Like if they lean into classical, they will focus on a classical career, many become Jazz snobs, (again I don't mean any disrespect at all - maybe Jazz fixated may be more accurate) and the only time they might step outside of their respective disciplines might be to reference or cover a lowly pop song as kind of a novelty. Many would have no interest in forming a traditional rock band. Could be that it just wouldn't 'challenge' them enough which is fair. I doubt you'd hear about a jazz musician starting a band influenced by AC-DC for example. I would guess from my minimal experience that this is less of a thing in Japan. Would it be accurate to assume that even with a wealth of experience musically, many artists just "like what they like" and will start a band influenced by say AC-DC because they know that they can use their skills to embellish the music and make it more creative?

[@guybrushthreepwood1519]

At last discovered Sokoninaru. ❤‍🔥 Everything they do is awesome, and now (with their new drummer) they even do three-part harmonies whilst playing. There's a couple good live videos, but I think VortEX probably has the best audio. And yes, this is very representative, compared to stuff like 'Lament Moment' or maybe 're:program' it's almost tame... But they do do "simpler" songs as well.

[@dearkazuscorner2549]

Took him a while, didn’t it!! Ive been waiting for this one for a long time! Totally worth it! 😄😄

[@cecilthetermite]

Progressive at its best,

[@dearkazuscorner2549]

"I think I just developed ADHD" is the best description to this song's intro Ive seen on YT! 😄

[@PrymalChaos]

😆😆

[@elevown]

Really like SOKONINARU. Nobody can deny they are fantastic musicians. I love their sound too but I can see why they are too jaring and frenetic for some. But that is purely taste. Anyone who calls them rubbish is a fool.

[@PrymalChaos]

The really do have a great sound. Even if they weren't running a mile a minute, it would still be compelling stuff.

[@dragonvert3633]

I think the turn of phrase 'orderly chaos' is suitable for bands like Unlucky Morpheus. For Sokoninaru, 'chaotic order' would be more suitable IMO

[@PrymalChaos]

Excellent point.

[@jonasw3945]

Their background is that they started as a Ling Tosite Sigure cover band and so they were very influenced by their style and kinda went with it by making covers of LTS and even matched the LTS lineup (being 3 piece with female bassist) and along the way they started making original music and their style evolved to fit their preferences but still very LTS influenced in term of the chaos and fast pace and stops and all that

[@PrymalChaos]

Everyone keeps mentioning the Ling Tosite Sigure connection as if I should know who that is... I feel like I need to look into this further. 🤔😆

[@jonasw3945]

@@PrymalChaos lol Ling Tosite Sigure is a 3 piece band, their genres fall into post-hardcore/math rock/prog rock/post rock, they have quite the unique style and vocals and have pretty unconvential songwriting I guess people just expect people who know Sokoninaru to know LTS too since they are more known and been around longer lol

[@michaelhill4353]

Once you've heard as much of Sokoninaru's music as I have Prymalchaos, you may very well find yourself at some point saying to yourself, will all due respect to Tim Henson and co, Polyphia. Polyphia who? Genius level, top tier musicianship and vocals which is simultaneously chaotic and beautiful. Don't let this be your one and only foray down the Sokoninaru rabbit hole mate as there is more treasure in them thar hills. A few personal favourites of mine, aside from Tenohira De Odoru: piorthythm stabilizer - only your world, Brilliant City and Saitei. Even Ryan Mear, over on his channel, initially wasn't convinced they could pull this off live but, after receiving a copy of one of the band's albums which also came with a live DVD and/or Blu-Ray from one of his Japanese friends/contacts, was he convinced of their abilities as a live band.✌️❤️🤘

[@PrymalChaos]

Thanks Michael. I certainly intend to explore further! 👍

[@greggerypeccary]

There's no special background... Juko was in an after-school music club and started Sokoninaru as a Ling Tosite Sigure cover band. Misaki was originally a guitarist and they met on social media where they uploaded Ling Tosite Sigure guitar playthrough videos. She started playing bass because Sokoninaru needed a female bassist, to match the Ling Tosite Sigure lineup... No musical education and they can't ever read music. Note also how unlike the various pretentious bands, they have a 4-string bass, 6-string guitar, nothing fancy. Juko's guitar, BTW, is a Momose Jazzmaster. This song is typical of the period when Shiyu was their drummer: kzbin.info/aero/PLJ1yiYbXYM586P4xs4FYt9b1QR1DRnl0r (re:program and Complicated System are even crazier) And here is a live version of this song: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gabUXn9_pr-Hj5I

[@PrymalChaos]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@Wirmish]

Some Japanese bands, old and new. Take your pick: BAND-MAID [All their songs... really!], LOVEBITES [Break the Wall, Raise some Hell, and all the other songs], BABYMETAL [All their songs, because they are all different], MAXIMUM THE HORMONE [Yoshu Fukushu], DEXCORE [Earthworm], CROSSFAITH [Catastrophe], SiM [Killing Me], NINGEN ISU [Heartless Scat], UNLUCKY MORPHEUS [Black Pentagram], YOUSEI TEIKOKU [Astral Dogma, Patriot Anthem (Live)] and their other band: DenKare [Detonator], COLDRAIN [Die Tomorrow], CRYSTAL LAKE [The Circle], GIVEN BY THE FLAMES [Ronove], LONESOME_BLUE [Face the Fear], ANGRY FROG REBIRTH [2Step Syndrome], SILENTLY SHOOTING TRAITORS [Manipulate], ALDIOUS [Dominator], TRiDENT [Ambivalent, Spoopy, ...], BRIDEAR [Light in the Dark], CINQ ELEMENT [Destiny], MARY'S BLOOD [Marionette], GRAUPEL [Bereavement], DOLL$BOXX [Take my Chance], SOKONINARU [Tenohira De Odoru], HELLO SLEEPWALKERS [Flying Saucer], TELECiDE [Tied up Memories], NEKO [Ghost on a Record], MARDELAS [G-Metal], MERGINGMOON [Greyen], ROTTENGRAFFTY [Hallelujah], JILUKA [Mephisto, Overkill], BROKEN BY THE SCREAM [Emotion Cross-Counter], FATE GEAR [Unbreakable Wings], LYNCH [Devil], GACHARIC SPIN [Mindset], DIR EN GREY [Ningen wo Kaburu], X JAPAN [Kurenai], DAZZLE VISION [Second], DEVILOOF [Torture], JUPITER [My Enemy], NOKUTO [Life of Desire], GALNERYUS [Angel of Salvation], SAISEIGA [Ride On], BLOOD STAIN CHILD [Del-Sol], NEMOPHILA [Rise, Hypnosis], DADAROMA [Lucid Dream], JILUKA [Overkill, or Lluvia], HANABIE [We Love Sweets], A CROWD OF REBELLION [Re:Create of the Re:d], PALEDUSK [Area PD], POLKADOT STINGRAY [any song], MUTANT MONSTERS [Abnormal], BLACKLAB [Insanity], ASTERISM [Fiction, Rising Moon, Unravel, or Church], NOISEMAKER [Hunter or Prey], BiSH [The Night When Stars Twinkle], SCANDAL [A.M.D.K.J.], DEEP GIRL [I kill], Mrs. GREEN APPLE [Inferno], BRATS [Doudatte Yokatta], THE ORAL CIGARETTES [Frenzy Hey Kids!!], GIRUGAMESH [Drain], LiLiHoLi [From Darkness to Light], THE DEVIL’S KILLING MERRY-GO-ROUND [Diabolos], OTOBOKE BEAVER [Love is Short], and many many more...

[@PrymalChaos]

This is a great list. If you search my channel you'll find a few of these bands, Gacharic Spin, Band Maid, Baby Metal, DollsBoxx unlucky Morpheus, etc. But this has definitely given me some stuff to work with. ,👍👍

[@pointlesswasteoftime]

@@PrymalChaos came here to mention Jiluka (this is a great list Btw) as they are definitely in the ADHD vein of Sokoninaru but a totally different genre. Incredible musicianship and 50 ideas every 30 seconds. As for musicianship, I believe it's geography. Japan is a very small landmass with a population 5 or 6 times that of Australia. Competition is fierce and you have to be SSS rank to even get a look in. In larger countries you're really up against the state you're in, but in Japan you're up against the entire country. As in a Melbourne musician needs to compete with Melbourne musos, Sydney with Sydney musos as the geography is do broad you get more localised scenes. Japan to my knowledge is mostly Tokyo. And travel is fast, efficient and easy. Unlike here, lol. So yeah, higher bar, higher musicianship, and greater creativity.

[@dearkazuscorner2549]

I love how, besides band-maid and BabyMetal, you recommend a specific song or songs for almost every band...except for Polkadot Stingray!! They are that good indeed!!! 🤘🤘

[@FerretArmy1]

They are a great band they started as a cover band of Ling Tosite Sigure. You should check out First Death by Ling Tosite Sigure. As for Sokoninaru I would say most of their stuff is in this same vein. I would suggest the song Saitei it shows their new drummer that also does vocals so even more harmonies.

[@PrymalChaos]

Awesome.

[@2abug]

“first death” is not by Ling Tosite Sigure but by their singer’s (Tōru Kitajima aka TK) solo project

[@srhiers29]

Glad to see you react to my favorite band. I described them as "sped up Polyphia" until I found out they predate Polyphia. Now, I just call Polyphia "slowed down Sokoninaru." My favorite of theirs is "Complicated System." If you get a chance, check it out.

[@PrymalChaos]

"Slowed down Polyphia".. that's awesome! 😆😆

[@Phattydumpz]

This feels like giving that kid that is constantly screaming, running around and hurting himself an instrument and insane musical talent.

[@Greg-om2hb]

SOKONINARU (そこに鳴る) are next level. And they can pull off TENOHIRA DE ODORU live - kzbin.info/www/bejne/gabUXn9_pr-Hj5I They also do many, many covers songs. One favorite is"Yoru ni Kakeru" (夜に駆けるlit. "Racing into the Night"), by the duo YOSSOBI. The original song is keyboard based, so sokoninaru’s cover sounds refreshingly different. - kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqSYd5tsm9tld5Y For other SOKONINARU originals, try Kyokugen ha setsuna, and Lament City.

[@UzumakiNaruto73]

if you thought this was it.... their other music videos will blow your mind!!!

[@PrymalChaos]

I need to get back to these guys.

[@stevekane4922]

These guys are the antidote to polyphia. 😂

[@PrymalChaos]

Well said.

[@stevekane4922]

@@PrymalChaos passion in the place of musical rubic cube solving against the clock.

[@val-wx4si]

He loves JM from "momose".

[@val-wx4si]

業に燃ゆ。gouni moyu. I want you to give it a listen.

[@glenkelley6799]

Great reaction, first listen, I wasn't quite sure what I had heard, multiple listens I'm still not sure what they are doing. Ok, here's a live recording - kzbin.info/www/bejne/bZSalp2AnbSap80

[@PrymalChaos]

Oh, nice! Thank you!

[@DragonPhlyy]

This is very typical Sokoninaru, try their song Complicated System next.

[@weldernick3750]

I fricken love this song! I know it’s not but it feels a lot like a free form jazz to me or like a jam session where the song almost came together through organic that way… hard to describe but it just has the best chaos!

[@PrymalChaos]

Yeah I can see that.

[@MaartenT]

I like hem a lot although it took a little to get my head around their sound when I first heard them. After a couple of listens it doesn't really sound that chaotic any more though because you know where everything is going to go. They do this stuff live as well, there is a live version of this track online. Their newest short album is a little less crazy and leans a bit more to the post-rock side on some tracks, although their track 最低 (Saitei) is on that and it has plenty of starts and stops and weirdness, but the majority of the tracks I have heard by them at least have some of this in them. I can't help but to recommend an other math rocky band from Japan called tricot (pronounced toriko in Japanese, so tree-koh). Just because they don't get a lot of reactions to them and while they are not at all as chaotic as this is (they call themselves alternative rock), it has plenty of math rocky type stuff blended with more poppy rock but they are still pretty technical. Sokoninaru actually covered one of their tracks (99.974℃). For a bit more of the newer popier sound, you can go with something like いない , 右脳左脳 or potage (which as a great live version on audiotree but the MV is very good as well), but for some more chaotic stuff I would recommend the audiotree live version of "18,19" and "Ochansensu-Su" because they show how talented they are at their instrument. I would also like to mention a tiny band called "tone spoon" that only have a couple of 100 subs and only have 2 MV's and one live video up, but are really talented and deserve more subs and a push imo. They sound a bit like tricot, a calm sokoninaru, Polkadot Stingray (worth checking out as well) and even some touches of Gacharic Spin (maybe just because they use a keyboard as well).

[@powbobs]

I don’t see the Gacharic Spin influence, but agree with everything else and I love all of those bands other than GS. I consider Sokoninaru to be Math Core.

[@PrymalChaos]

Thanks for these recommendations! I'll check them out.