5 of the best JRock songs from January
Every year, January comes upon us like a storm, reminding us why it always feels like the longest month. On the plus side, we get plenty of great JRock to listen to during the month, powering us through the cold, dark winter until we can finally feel the days grow longer and brighter. If you’re on the lookout for a fresh stack of songs to add to your playlist, we’ve got you covered.
Normally, I prefer to hibernate during the winter, but these songs kept me going just enough to power through the most recent cold snaps. Just like always, we’ve got these tracks and many others on our regularly updated Rice Digital Spotify Playlist, so you have no excuse to feel like you’re in a musical rut ever again.
indigo la End – Name is Unrequited
I’m a big romantic at heart, so both the song and the music video for it struck a chord with me this month. I love how upbeat and fun it is, with an almost whimsical sound. That tends to be the trademark for indigo la End, who have been putting out great tracks for more than a decade now. Their sound tends to stick to the melodic and playful, which is exactly what we all need at this time of year. This is a great JRock track to lift your mood a bit this January.
Macaroni Empitsu – Rinjyu Love
This is another great, upbeat track, which has been perfect to help us push through the darkest month of the year. This song, from Kanagawa-based pop-rock quartet Macaroni Empitsu, feels more like summer than anything else we listened to this month. Rinjyu Love is catchy in its original form, but the band also performed the track as part of The First Take YouTube series. Macaroni Empitsu is well worth checking out if you’re in the mood for JRock which is more light-hearted and fun.
04 Limited Sazabys – Honey
Lots of people think that pop punk has gone away, but that isn’t the case. There are plenty of great bands out there keeping the genre alive and well, including the members of 04 Limited Sazabys. This is a great example of the band’s sound, which combines frantic, energetic live performances with a surprisingly melodic vocal delivery. They’ve been touring and recording pretty consistently since 2008, with Honey representing the latest in a long line of singles that deserve to get more attention than they’ve had.
Bridear – Ghoul (Live)
I haven’t stopped talking about Bridear since I got the chance to see them live last year. Turns out, during that tour, they were also recording a live album that is due to come out shortly. At this 2022 London gig, they recorded this fantastic version of their single Ghoul which has long been one of the band’s most popular tracks. You can hear just how impressive the band is in this live track. It isn’t quite as good as seeing them live, but it is pretty close.
Esprit D’Air – Ocean’s Call
Great metal bands know how to wield their dramatic flair to great effect and few do it better than Esprit D’Air. I managed to see them live years ago at Hyper Japan and have tickets to see them perform as part of their current tour next month. This track is a good example of their sound, which takes some inspiration from the visual kei genre to deliver big, belting notes and souring moments in each song. If you’re not familiar with this band and you need something new on your JRock playlist, you should definitely give them a listen.
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