Niekerk, Netherlands, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Miami FLA, Boulder and Denver, Colorado, Tokyo, Japan! These two song birds have a love story that goes around the world.
YouTube homie (soundofminder), Thijs and Lovely Victoria are owed a special kind of Tokyo Record Style award for two of the most patiently waiting subjects the project has known. So much time had passed from the time of our initial encounter at Shibuya’s infamous Tower Records and the FIRST time that followed up with them (in hopes they they could help me make sense of my chicken-scratch notes), however if you compare it to the length of time to the second I followed up them after THAT, which pales in comparison to the first delay, all you can really say is that we got as close to “never” as one can gets in the expression: “Better late than __.”
A love of music and a love IN music, these two were brought together in Miami if I recall, equi-distance, perhaps, from Thijs’ home in Holland, and Victoria’s home in Argentina. My fuzzy memory tells me it had something to do with academia, but music was definitely involved, trading artists and playlists back and forth. I collected a long list of their favorites but I’m failing to remember entirely well which artists were recommended by Thijs and which were recommended by Victoria, and I think there was fair amount of overlap with Thijs leaning towards Hard bop, Fusion, and Free Jazz, while Victoria leaned more toward standards, and Jazz vocalists. Some of the artists mentioned in out meeting were John Coltrane, Don Cherry, Bill Evans, Ornette Coleman, John Zorn, on one side of the spectrum, and Melody Gardot, Blossom Dearie, Astrud Gilberto, Billie Holiday, and Chet Baker on the other side. Needless to say, they’re collective record collection, in Denver where they both now reside (after a stint in familiar Boulder) is probably as impressive as their taste in good music.
It wasn’t all Jazz though. Thijs explained that he got into records through becoming a fan of Pearl Jam back in 2001. When he bought their 2002 record Riot Act on CD it came with a 7” promo and he’s been collecting ever since. Victoria mentioned being also into folk punk, bands like AJJ (new to me) and Neutral Milk Hotel (one of my all-time favs). She also mentioned being a big thrift store enthusiast and vintage fashion digger, and it was the records that she’d find in the dollar bins that got her into jazz, folk, and blues. You could really tell Victoria and Thijs were two peas in a pod. She added, “Thijs and I share a love for music and that was a big part of why we got together!“
As for their trip to Tokyo, I’m sure it was filled with romantic, musical, and vintage fun. Thijs, who had reached out to me prior to coming and who, being a member of the “VC” (Vinyl Community on YouTube), I was really happy to meet, and we just barely made it happen before they dashed out of Tokyo, but luckily we had a nice, brief, serendipitous hang.
In a followup after our encounter, Thijs shared with me this: “I think I can safely say that this was our favorite trip together. Loved the people, culture, food, the mix of old and new and of course the record stores. Kyoto, Osaka, and Tokyo all have a lot in common while also clearly having their own identities. And especially Tokyo, we probably only explored less than 10% of what the city has to offer, if that.”
There you go folks, another good one for the books. Take care you too Lovebirds, and stay in touch!
More Tokyo Record Style on the way…
Masahiko Togashi – The Face Of Percussion
Label: Paddle Wheel – K28P-6050
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Japan
Released: 1981
Genre: Jazz
https://www.discogs.com/release/4881848-Masahiko-Togashi-The-Face-Of-Percussion
Air – Air Raid
Label: Whynot – PA-7156, Trio Records – PA-7156
Series: Trio Jazz Mania
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Japan
Released: 1976
Genre: Jazz
Style: Free Jazz
https://www.discogs.com/release/2367354-Air-Air-Raid
Mal Waldron – Blues For Lady Day
Label: Black Lion Records – PA-7052, Black Lion Records – BLP 30142
Series: Trio Jazz Mania
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Japan
Released: 1973
Genre: Jazz
Style: Post Bop
https://www.discogs.com/release/2882302-Mal-Waldron-Blues-For-Lady-Day
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