Akko vs Akko (pt 1 ft. Akiko Noma)

Chatmonchy was one of the first Japanese bands I fell in love with (and boy do my indie/underground brethren in Japan like to rib me about it). Naturally, I tried to find similar female bands and that's when I came across GO!GO!7188 who have actually been at it for much longer. To tell you the truth, I haven't listened to much of GO!GO!'s voluminous discog. I listened to a few GO!GO! songs and felt they were nowhere near as good as Chatmonchy. To complicate matters I got into a "tongue in cheek" argument with a couple of friends (one80 and fuumin) regarding which band was better so I've always considered the two bands as rivals with me siding vehemently with Chatmonchy.Having a bias against GO!GO! has been to my detriment as they are undeniably a great band (yet unequivocally inferior to Chatmonchy). One day I'll make an effort to listen to more of their albums. And I'll definitely go see them live again if they play at a small-ish venue. I actually saw them in February at Shinjuku LOFT and sat next to Yuu (Gt/Vo) as well as Turkey (Dr) and the members of 385 during the uchiage (after party). The funnest part was when Turkey (the guy's a true 'playa') introduced me to his friends: Red Pepper Girls

I'm no fan of J-idol pop but these Korean ex-pats burn hotter than habaneros soaked in HCl. Wait up... I've digressed beyond recognition. this is supposed to be a post about:

Akiko Noma (née Akiko Hamada)

of

GO!GO!7188

Akiko aka 'Akko' is the most energetic and vibrant member of GO!GO!7188. In stark contrast to Yuu (Gt/Vo) who performs in a more earnest and reserved manner. Coincidentally, this mirrors the dynamic between Akiko Fukuoka (Ba) and Eriko Hashimoto (Gt/Vo) in Chatmonchy. (Akko's the wild bass player and Ecchan's the shy leader). So how are GO!GO! Akko's skills on bass? Damn f^cking good. Embedding was disallowed but check out the BAdaSSery in this amazing clip

Akko also has a solo career. She sings lead and alternates between playing bass (rockier tunes) and acoustic guitar (her inner folk shining through).

No clips of her acoustic stuff. And no argument from me that Akiko is one talented musician.