Tokyo

One of the largest cities in the world, Tokyo heaves with over 12 million (mostly) well-mannered denizens, among them weary salarymen, enigmatic geishas, Gothic Lolitas, prim office ladies, robust sumo wrestlers, and awkward otaku. The urban landscape is equally diverse, with imposing high-rises, majestic temples, blazing neon billboards, wood-shuttered storefronts, bustling temples, serene parks, closet-sized bars, maid cafés, quaint back alleys, and concrete gardens. Its reputation as a consumer’s paradise, whether for records, toys, fashion, electronics, anime, or socially inappropriate goods, is unrivaled.

There are 23 special wards in Tokyo, but you’ll likely only visit 4 (Shibuya, Shinjuku, Suginami, Setagaya). For a quick primer on this action-packed city, we stopped by Poor Cow in Shimokitazawa and quizzed owner Fifi (of Teengenerate, Firestarter, and assorted other bands), Jackie and Enocky of Jackie & the Cedrics, and Young Parisian’s Tsune Glam Sam and Keiji Ronson about their favorite spots. If you can’t read or speak Japanese, print out the maps and show them to a local. Detailed walking directions for Shimokitazawa spots appear after the list.




Young Parisian: Funtime in Ochanomizu. A small shop with used LPs, CDs.
Jackie and the Cedrics: Barn Homes (7-5-6 Clean Nishi Shinjuku building 1F; look for the big orange arrow on the map) in Shinjuku West. It carries beat, garage, punk LPs and CDs, both new and used; it’s also home to 1+2 Records.
Fifi: Disk Union (Setagaya-ku Kitazawa 1-40-7 Kashiwa 3rd Building) in Shimokitazawa (very cheap). RECOfan (Shibuya Beam 4F, Udagawacho 31-2) in Shibuya, but only the 100 yen vinyl bin. Base Records (4-23-5 ACP Building 3F, Koenji Minami; 5 minutes south of the station on the third floor) in Koenji.



Young Parisian: Poor Cow in Shimokitazawa.
Jackie and the Cedrics: Moon Stomp (Koenji Kita 2-22-6) in Koenji. It’s very small and the owner likes roots and punk, jazz, and Western.
Fifi: Poor Cow. I opened it in July 2008.



Young Parisian: Shelter. We have so many memories, and it has #1 sound. Young Parisian plays there a lot.
Jackie and the Cedrics: Moon Stomp (Koenji Kita 2-22-6) in Koenji.
Fifi: Statto in Musashi-sakai. They have punk or rock’n’roll bands almost every night.



Tsune: Shimokitazawa for records and used clothes.
Keiji: Ochanomizu for lots of guitars and records.
Jackie and the Cedrics: Koenji, Shimokitazawa.
Fifi: I don’t like shopping except for records.



Tsune: Kourakuen Hall at Suidobashi for pro-wrestling.
Keiji: Chiba prefecture, Edogawa—lots of memories from when I was a kid.
Jackie: Imperial Palace because it’s the only place in Tokyo where you get big sky and big space.
Enocky: The Asakusa area for a feel of Old Tokyo.
Fifi: Shimbashi—the town has lots of old people and old bars. It’s a salaryman’s oasis.



Tsune: Be careful when speaking English to the Japanese because they will usually pretend to understand. Also, Japanese TV sucks.
Keiji: Avoid the train during rush hour (7-8am).

Shimokitazawa Walking Tips

Shimokitazawa is a fairly small area but it's chockfull of stuff. There's a large map right outside the south exit of the station, which is where you should get out to head to Poor Cow, Disk Union, and Shelter.

From Shimokitazawa south exit:

Turn left at McDonald’s.

Turn left at Doma Doma (under the arch).

Turn right after Small Change vintage clothing shop. Located in a cylinderesque building just before the Lawson convenience store and Bar Rhythm, is Shelter, located in the basement.

Down the block and across the street is Disk Union.

To go to Poor Cow, head back to Lawson and turn into the alley between Shelter and Lawson. Go past the Dog Café and turn right at the next tiny street. On the left side of the street is Poor Cow Stay Free—look for the Indian Curry & Bar sign with an image of a sultan. Poor Cow is on the fourth floor. Next to the staircase is a restaurant with red lanterns.

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