At home on the 12th floor in Yokohama: Sourpuss, The Tiva, as a sketch pad, and BreakthroughMemories at B.B. Street

Yokohama B.B. Street has been on my radar for a while. A venue, on the 12th floor of a building. Many bands I love have passed through. It reminded me of many of my favorite spots in the States – from the back room of Genghis Cohen in LA, to PhilaMOCA, Paper Tiger in San Antonio, to Shea and Market Hotel in Brooklyn. Sadly, it seemed they would suffer the same fate as Shea, but temporarily, they are still in their location, and still putting on great shows.

Arriving at the venue on the 12th floor, I felt like I was home. Maybe we didn’t have the long staircase up to Shea, but the elevator opened to reveal a graffiti covered door, and a welcoming staff, even for some foreigners who had issues reserving tickets…

And the vibes matched, people just chilling, the bands chatting and discussing stuff. Most of the bands on the bill spoke and sang in English. The entirety of Real Estate’s Daniel played between sets. The headliner tonight is Sourpuss, from Australia, but there’s also as a sketch pad, a band with a pair of members originally from overseas, now completely based in Japan. There’s also The Tiva, who despite being Japanese, claim Canada as their home, as many of their influences come from the country, and they also sing in English.

It also echoed the cultural significance of those places, DIY spaces that allow artists to create and perform. A place for people to have a platform. For bands like The Tiva, who have been advocates for Gaza, running a fundraiser show under the name “What We Need”, and selling merchandise also for the cause. as a sketchpad are also loud advocates to stop gentrification in Koenji, a musical and cultural hotspot in Tokyo that’s in danger of redevelopment and a complete stripping of its impact on the Japanese music scene. Sadly, I’ve been too to many “save x” events here in the states to count. And to see the same fight overseas made me relate to them even more, without even hearing a note, yet.

The show opened with Yokohama locals BreakthroughMemories. A great, dense sound with some killer, hard-charging leads. They were a great way to kick-off what was effectively an “Emo night” at B.B. Street.

Connect with BreakthroughMemories: x / website

Up next were as a sketch pad. They’re a band at the central core of Ungulates, an independent label based in Tokyo. Heck, their drummer, Kou Nakagawa is the owner. as a sketchpad also consists of Andy Schueneman, also of Worst Party Ever, Kris Westreich also of Injury Tapes/Birth Reversal, both sharing lead vocal and songwriting duties. And the pairing is a dynamic duo, both with brutally honest lyricism with heft to them. And some really inviting midwest Emo infused guitarwork between the two.

Connect with As A Sketchpad: x / insta / bandcamp

Third was The Tiva, a band that’s difficult to classify, but one that’s been one of my personal favorite bands in Japan ever since I first heard them. They too have a dynamic sound like the other bands on this bill, from quiet moments to louder ones and back again. It’s something present on their records as well, their 2022 release, “On This Planet” has a pretty wild transition between two songs, the folky “Mother Bear” into the weird, spacey, laser-gun-featuring “Alien Loves You!”. And that’s the charm of The Tiva, unpredictable, explosive, and utterly captivating. Maya Akechi’s voice and distorted guitar match up so well with Sachi’s drumming, and amplified even more by supporting bassist Kou Ishimaru (also of Bearwear). They closed their set with the always powerful “Go Back Our Home“, one of the band’s more popular songs, which the band says ” is for Sachi’s grandfather and everyone who lost their loved ones.”

Connect with The Tiva: x / insta

The final band up was Sourpuss from Australia, who were in the middle of a Japanese tour. Honestly, you could not ask for three better bands to set up Sourpuss, the loud, honest, and intense music of the last couple of hours all permeated through Sourpuss’ set as well. Sourpuss is the solo project of Kate, who is also a member of VOIID and also representing Year of the Gay, a queer owned and run clothing brand. Mashing pop-punk, emo, 90’s alt and so much more to her sound, Sourpuss’ set was a whirlwind of a sound that was undeniably, and unapologetically Sourpuss. Hell Yeah.

Connect with Sourpuss: insta