Category Archive for Nightcrawling
LA CARMINA BLOG ANNIVERSARY COMING UP! DAY 1 OF MEMORIES, BEST OF GOTHIC LOLITA COOL JAPAN BLOG POSTS.
We’re getting old, darklings. On September 12, the La Carmina blog reaches the age of two. It’s unbelievable how I went from being a morose, direction-less, Basil-less law student to… a life of Harajuku madness! I’m currently in the midst of two exciting book launches, and a lot of crazy opportunities have arisen… things I couldn’t IMAGINE to be possible a year or two ago. Life is neat.
Like last year, let’s reflect on the fond times, beginning with September-December 2008. I spent most of this time in Tokyo, working on Theme Restaurants book. Of course, I indulged in plenty of Gothic Lolita Rococo Punk shopping and nightlife on the side. The Marui Fashion Expo was an eye-opening showcase of all the fashion brands you see in Kera. (If you missed it, you can read my review.)
And how could we forget Halloween? I celebrated it not once, not twice, but three times in Tokyo! Tokyo Decadance raged in the cathedral-themed Christon Cafe; The Fashion Ramone sucked us into a Horror Vacui; and Yukiro performed as a bloody nurse at the Tokyo Dark Castle Halloween special.
The tail end of 2008 was equally hectic… I dashed out my Theme Restaurants book (now out) and was flown to LA to cover some Gothic events: Ruin Hollywood, Perversion, M/R/X (my favorite), and Royal/T maid cafe. I’ll be back in Los Angeles soon for a book signing… can’t wait.
What were your favorite posts from last year? I’m already planning my Halloween costume for this year — how about you?
Song of the Day #197: Deathgaze – Dearest. The Visual Kei band’s new album, Continuation, was just released by HearJapan.
SHARE & COMMENT
BAR-HOPPING IN KOENJI, TOKYO: JAPAN OTAKU CAFES, NAKANO ANIME MANGA COSPLAY STORES.
A makeup-free Happy Phantom took La Carmina on an alcohol-fueled romp through Koenji, the Tokyo district where he resides (although he’s now moving in with Dravarious). Nakano is a station away — home to the Broadway mall, or mini-Akihabara, where you’ll find cosplay, anime, toys, manga and (to my delight) kawaii jigsaw puzzles. Koenji is as much of a geek-fest.
First, we stopped for cheap fast food — which, in Japan, means vegetarian tempura and miso soup. I doused my bowl with my beloved shichimi togarashi (7-spice powder).
Koenji has one of the oddest restaurant mish-mashes you’ll encounter: a rockabilly curry house. My 80s-inspired outfit fit in with the hot pink walls and vinyl discs hanging from the ceiling.
If David Lynch and David Cronenberg opened a bar, it would be The Matching Mole (3-45-1, Eiwa building 3F, Koenji-minami). The owner is a glum otaku who surrounds himself with bloody fake fingernail sculptures and disemboweled cat keychains. Not even my friend’s Banana Brothers art could lift the gloom of the disturbing hentai.
Off to Vamp Bar, a retro-cluttered hole manned by a rock chick. She showed us camera-phone photos of her thrash band; we forced her to watch our YouTube videos. (You, too, should subscribe to his and my channel.)
On the way out, we stumbled across a 100 yen ($1) grab box. What do you think Happy Phantom took? The golf club, of course!
The next time you’re in Tokyo, come to Koenji for an unusual and inexpensive bar-hopping experience. If you run into Manabu (the emo kid with the hot Prince Valiant haircut), tell him we say hello!
Song of the Day #189: My cat Basil Farrow loves to listen to classical music… he’s currently dangling from a chair and twitching his ears to this Mozart playlist.
LA CARMINA
