Wouter Hamel

Dutch jazz singer-songwriter

Feb 1 - 2

Billboard Live Osaka, Osaka

Fresh-faced Dutch jazz/pop musician and vocalist Wouter Hamel didn't release his first album until he was 30 years old (an age at which many striving musicians would have thrown in the towel at the prospect of a professional career).

After winning a jazz vocal competition in his native Holland in 2005 Hamel began to receive a large amount of interest from the media, which soon led to a recording contract. While distinctly his own person, Hamel has often been compared to Jamie Cullum. He released one album, simply called Hamel and penned all 12 tracks himself. The single ‘Breezy' was released solely in Japan and reached number 36 in the Tokio Hot 100 chart.

Although very much of the jazz genre Hamel states "as a teenager I listened to PJ Harvey, Smashing Pumpkins and was a huge fan of Jeff Buckley". His music demonstrates openness to many musical styles making it easily listenable and a refreshing experience.

Special guest to Hamel at Billboard Live is Dutch pop/funk artist Benny Sings.

Time: 6:30pm/9:30pm • Entry: ¥4,500/¥6,500
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • Jazz

The Arcade Fire

Canadian indie rock

Feb 7

Namba Hatch, Osaka

Canadian indie rock band The Arcade Fire became one of the most critically acclaimed bands of 2004 when they released their first album Funeral.

Last year they brought out their second album Neon Blue and this caused just as much of a stir.

Although a rock outfit, the touring band includes horn and violin bringing an unexpected and deeper angle to the sound.

In a rock and roll fairy tale, the band got their big break when they were discovered by David Bowie who saw them playing live. Since then they have appeared on the cover of Time Magazine as the band that put Canadian indie on the map.

Time: 7pm • Entry: ¥6,500
Tel: 06-6233-8888 • Indie Rock

Yosuke Onuma/Steve Ferrone/Steve Goines

International jazz super group

Feb 7

Billboard Live Osaka, Osaka

Three musicians from very different back- grounds but united by an excess of talent come together to create a jazz super group: Yosuke Onuma, Steve Ferrone and Steve Goines.

Yosuke Onuma: Thirty-four year old Yosuke Onuma has now been playing the guitar for twenty years. Starting out in teenage rock bands he was later to be introduced to the likes of Grant Green and George Benson by a friend. From then on Onuma dedicated himself to jazz guitar (it has been said that there are guitar players and there are jazz guitar players). In this musical style he took third place representing Japan in The Heritage Jazz Guitar Competition and in 1999 he won the Gibson Jazz Guitar Contest.

Onuma's debut jazz album nu jazz was released in 2001 and he has since become probably the most prominent young jazz guitarist in Japan. Fans of J-pop and Japanese hip-hop groups will at some stage have heard his licks as it he gets many invitations to collaborate from other Japanese artists.

Steve Ferrone: Eric Clapton, Duran Duran, Tom Petty & The Heart- breakers, Fleetwood Mac - the list of legends that Steve Ferrone has worked with over the years goes on and on.

Born in England and educated in France, Ferrone comes from a musical family and it was in fact his piano playing grandmother that encouraged him to turn to music. He began playing in bands at the tender age of 12 (sharing a stage with a then not yet famous The Who).

Of Steve Ferrone Tom Petty says ‘He never plays anything that doesn't feel great … I am still in awe of him'.

Steve Goines: Californian born Steve Goines is an electric and upright acoustic bassist with a strong latin-jazz background. He's been a recording artist for over 35 years and is also the bass driving force behind guitarist Mike Stern's jazz quartet.

At school Goines studied the piano and trumpet before switching to guitar and electric bass when he was about 16 years old. Recently asked in an interview "if he were to be exiled for the rest of his life on an island, what music would he take along?" Goines replied "JS Bach, Stravinsky, Jimi Hendrix, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, The Weather Report and The Beatles". That's quite a mix.

Time: 6:30pm/9:30pm • Entry: ¥4,800/¥6,800
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • Jazz

Jack Penate

British singer-songwriter newcomer

Feb 11

Club Quattro, Osaka

This is another young British singer-songwriter who has joined the recent and seemingly fashionable genre of singing with an accent (Lily Allen, Kate Nash).

Jack Penate (pronounced Pen-yaa-tee) was born in Blackheath, London in 1984 and is signed to XL Record- ings. He released his debut single as a limited 1000 pressing in 2006, this was followed by the EP ‘Spit at Stars' in early 2007. It wasn't until the latter part of last year that his debut album Matinee was available after a number of delays. Penate explains that he chose the title Matinee because he believes that that is where he is in his career right now "The matinee is the children's perfor- mance" he states.

In his short career so far Jack Penate and his fellow musi- cians and friends Jack Porter on bass guitar and Alex Robins on drums have built a strong reputation for energy-fuelled live performances. The band also makes it a frequent feature of gigs to invite members of the audience on stage. Unfortunately for Penate, during one such stage invasion a fan left with Penate's guitar distortion pedal. Not one to harbor a grudge, Penate advised whoever had taken the pedal to "just make sure you play a Telecaster through it and not a Gibson!"

Although to my ears Jack Penate's music is reminiscent of The Jam, reviewers, claim to hear a number of genres that have influenced him so there's a little some- thing for everyone. And if you want to see a slice of the humour of Penate's life on the road then check out his video clips on YouTube.

Time: 6pm • Entry: ¥5,500
Tel: 06-6281-8181 • Indie Rock/Pop Trio

Live Listings February

Wouter Hamel

2/1-2 @ Billboard Live, Osaka
6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥4,500/¥6,500
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • Jazz

Stereophonics

2/6 @ Club Quattro, Osaka
7pm • ¥6,500/¥7,000
Tel: 06-6281-8181 • Rock

Bob Logg III

2/6 @ Fandango, Osaka
7pm • ¥3,000/¥3,500
Tel: 06-6308-1621 • Trash Blues

Bob Logg III

2/7 @ Taku Taku, Kyoto
6pm • ¥3,000/¥3,500
Tel: 075-351-1321 • Trash Blues

The Arcade Fire

2/7 @ Namba Hatch, Osaka
7pm • ¥6,500 Tel: 06-6233-8888
• Indie Rock

Rage Against The Machine

2/7 @ Osaka Jo Hall, Osaka
7pm • ¥9000 Tel: 06-6535-5569 • Rock

Yosuke Onuma/Steve Ferrone/Lincoln Goines

2/7 @ Billboard Live, Osaka
6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥4,800/¥6,800
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • Jazz

En Vogue

2/8-9 @ Billboard Live, Osaka
6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥7,000/¥9,000
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • R&B

Fiction Plane

2/9 @ Shangria-La, Osaka
7pm • ¥5,000
Tel: 03-3498-9999 • Rock

The Police

2/10 @ Kyocera Dome, Osaka
6:30pm • ¥8,500-¥30,000
Tel: 0180-993-717 • Pop/Rock

Boom Boom Satellites

2/10 @ Namba Hatch, Osaka
8pm • ¥4,200
Tel: 06-6535-5569 • J-Rock

The Platters

2/11-12 @ Billboard Live, Osaka
6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥6,500-¥8,500
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • Vocal Group

Jack Penate

2/11 @ Club Quattro, Osaka
6pm • ¥5,500
Tel: 06-6281-8181 • Rock/Pop

Helloween/Gamma Ray

2/11 @ Namba Hatch, Osaka
6pm • ¥8,000
Tel: 06-6357-4400 • Metal

The Nightwatchman

2/12 @ Club Quattro, Osaka
7pm • ¥6,000
Tel: 06-6535-5569 • Rock

Ginger (Wildhearts)

2/14 @ Sunsui, Osaka
8pm • ¥3,900-¥4,400
Tel: 0570-084-005 • Rock

DJ Ozma

2/15 @ Zepp, Osaka
7pm • ¥10,000
Tel: 06-6341-3525 • J-Pop

Chuck Brown

2/20 @ Billboard Live, Osaka
6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥7,000/¥9,000
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • Funk Soul

Abingdon Boys School (TM Revolution)

2/24-25 @ Zepp, Osaka
5pm • ¥5,800
Tel: 06-6233-8888 • J-Pop

Maria Muldaur

2/25 @ Taku Taku, Kyoto
7pm • ¥5,000
Tel: 075-351-1321 • Folk

Bjork

2/25 @ Osaka Jo Hall, Osaka
7pm • ¥9,200/¥10,200
Tel: 06-6535-5569 • Electronic

The Album Leaf

2/26 @ Club Quattro, Osaka
7pm • ¥5,500
Tel: 06-6535-5569 • Rock

Ian Brown

3/4 @ Big Cat, Osaka
7pm • ¥6,500
Tel: 06-6535-5569 • Pop/Rock

KT Tunstall

3/11 @ Big Cat, Osaka
7pm • ¥6,500
Tel: 06-6535-5569 • Singer/Songwriter

Compiled by Phillip Jackson