Steven Langley Guy comments

What a tawdry and unsavoury business is the K-Pop industry!

Time for the world to place a cultural boycott on South Korea until it ceases its disgraceful discrimination against Japan and the Japanese people. Japanese music and culture is still banned from South Korean television and radio.

Let's all boycott K-Pop and other South Korean products.

Well, one thing North Korea doesn't do is bombard with with plastic surgery victims singing K-Pop! They may do lots of rotten things, but at least they spare us from their wretched Pop music!

Smoking is the one downfall of being in Japan. It's all the bloody smokers in bars, restaurants and other public places. I was in Tokyo for a month and no one ever said to me, "Do you mind if I smoke?"

I come from Australia and it is illegal to smoke in all buildings, including bars, restaurants, cafes, hotels, motels and guest houses. It is illegal to smoke at all bus stops and taxi ranks. Smoking in cars is illegal if children are in the car and if you're a smoker some doctors will refuse to treat you. Cigarettes are heavily taxed and a packet will cost you around $40 (3,890¥). Around 15% of the adult Australian population still smokes.

Japan needs to attack the problem of smoking head-on and forcefully. If Japan doesn't, it is going to suffer from a plague of lung cancer in the near future.

How do you guys define the music of Spange call Lilli line, Plus-Tech Squeeze Box, BiS, Ali Project, Iruma Rioka, Kokusyoku Sumire, Asriel, Kaya, Tamurapan, Kiiiiiii and stuff like that?

I am surprised that no one has mentioned the all girl Rock/Metal band Cyntia.

I think there is a third group that isn't mentioned here. I refer to the women and girls who are making their own music with technology and other non-Rock means. This is a growing area of music making in Japan. These artists may be heard in clubs, DJing or their CD recordings may be heard or they may be seen in small venues in Harajuku, Shinjuku, Shibuya and Akihabara. The artists I am talking about include: Nirgilis, The Lady Spade, Julie Watai, Yun*chi, Sawa, Pora Pora, Cutie Honey, Candles, Saori@destiny, Aira Mitsuki, Mizca, MissWonda, pLumsonic!, Tomomi Ukumori, DJ Yummy, Emily Hashimoto and so on.