Tokyo Disk Union Jazz Guide Sun Audio

Letter from Tokyo (24-1)

Talk Vinyl: Disk Union

Written in Shenzhen

Just spent a week with family in Tokyo, a last minute decision. Although the yen had plummeted tremendously, hotel costs are still considerable (for poor me) during the high season. So we stayed in a residential area off-center, close to the Nishi-Kasai Station on the Tozai Line. The newish Rembrandt Hotel (there are 2 near each other) turned out to be very nice, with good beds, clean rooms and a friendly staff (also Cafeteria, Washing Machines, Ice Dispenser and Microwave). We stayed for a week and it felt like home base. Due to its proximity to some educational institutions and international schools the hotel has a lot of visiting exchange students. I encountered a large Chinese group from Beijing (they seemed much more sophisticated than our SZ Students - I talked to their teacher in the cafeteria a little and they are Japanese Language students). Another even larger Korean group - every guy is toweringly big!!! The area is quiet but just diverse enough to have all kinds of restaurants, including Vietnamese and very good Indian (not just one, but 3, and they were authentic and patronized by Indians)! I asked the friendly Nepalese waiter why so many Indians around, and he said it's because of the IT profession. The metro station complex housed many small but good restaurants. I loved the BBQ restaurant (where we had delicious Kobe beef), which was probably Korean run, and the beef soup and seafood pancake were simply marvelous, better than our NYC Flushing Korean restaurants. The Soba noodle shop (eating standing up, as per tradition) was also particularly wonderful.  Recommended!

The iconic Tokyo Tower. No, no monsters nor heroes around.

I had been in Tokyo twice before, Kyoto/Osaka/Kobe/Nagoya once, and Hokkaido once, but that was all more than 20 years ago! So it was gratifying to see that Narita Airport is much better than before. It took a while to get re-acquainted with the Tokyo Metro. For a seasoned traveler, especially Chinese who can read the Hanji, it's actually not particularly difficult. The real difficulty is to figure out the particular ticket plan suitable for you! There are so many options! Making things more complicated is that there are 2 major metro companies, the Tohei and the Tokyo Metro. We stuck mostly with the one-day ticket of the latter (which has more lines and serves Nishi-Kasai), even if it meant a few extra stops sometimes for changing to the right line. At first I was going to purchase Suica Cards (which conveniently can ride all lines, with no discount, kinda like our HK Octopus Card) but was told they are no longer sold, being phased out due to shortage of chips!!!!! Can that be true???? Casualty of Political War? This was conveyed to me by the metro staff (of very limited English ability and variable patience), sometimes via cellphone translator App.

After having lived in mammoth Shenzhen for so long now, central Tokyo actually felt quite compact this time. Even though we lived near the eastern edge, travelling to the western hotspots like Ikebukuro and Shibuya were quite manageable, even with all the walking and stairs due to various transfers in this ancient maze. There is definite over-tourism. Chinese tourists were everywhere; from their dialects I estimated a third each from China, Taiwan and HK. Western readers may know about Japan's criminal imperialism and atrocities in China, but they likely do not know Taiwan was a former Japanese colony too (indeed the capital Taipei feels quite Japanese in layout, based on the Tang Dynasty blue maps), and that even HK was occupied by Japan too. Despite the huge historical obstacle, there is good reason why the too-forgiving Chinese flock to Japan. Proximity in distance as well as relatable culture and food all play a part. Despite nationalism and political schism, the people, Chinese tourists and Japanese locals, overall are nice to each other. There is everything to admire and emulate in Japanese service attitudes. There is good reason why it's a premier travel destination. Asshole HK administrators should travel more to see why their own city comes up way short. Instead of loudly proclaiming that HK is a world city, these puppet fellows know nothing.

It actually felt great each day to return to the hotel area. Eating even in the local Isakaya felt quite civilized (the experience can be crazily animated in the city center). Sometimes we were really tired and just brought back food from the local supermarket (great choice of ready-to-eat foods) to enjoy in the room. I have always enjoyed eating in Japan. It'd be rare indeed to find a totally negative experience (unlike HK).

Click pics to enlarge. For better resolution maybe, go to the link provided.

As I didn't prepare for it at all, it was a miracle that I chanced upon some of the Disk Union Record Stores:

• Official pdf, on the main stores, from which these maps were culled. I wish I had read this before I went, but that's for you.

• The first one came by accident. We were randomly walking on a narrow street (which I always favor over main streets) in Shinjuku; imagine my joy when I spotted the store! The store I visited was the smaller 2 on the left map (only 4 stories), not knowing that the bigger 8-stories one 1 was so close-by (described in this article)!  I only had half an hour in the Jazz section and got two records.

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• For the second one I did a little homework before going to Shibuya, but failed to find any store. Frustrated after half an hour I wandered down to the Parco Department Store basement (pic below) and was shocked to find a tiny store there 2 . Got a couple too. Yeah, despite the limited stock, which is still more than what you'll find in some Western stores! The store clerk also pointed me to Store 1 finally, and I bought a couple more. 
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• Finally, on the last full day I wanted to visit the Audio Union in Ochanomizu. I did the homework and finding it A was a breeze. Nothing too interesting there however. What really thrilled me was that the Disk Union store is just across the street 3 , and it is a LARGE store, with a HUGE jazz section! I bought quite a few! This is a much quieter area than the others, and highly recommended.

• I only bought Jazz. Why? Because Japanese pressings of Jazz are really bargains. As per current taste, Disk Union caters much more to Jazz and Pop. In the few maps, you shall see that classical is a tiny part of it. Classicals are also not really worth much. Some of the titles I bought just for practical reasons, and I already have some of them in original American form. I can easily sell or give away Side to Side and Back to Back, as an example. I plan to play all of them on my tiny low-end Sound Burger! For old times sake, let's say.

• 20 years ago I'd have bought a LOT more. But this time I just got a few for fun. I resolutely restricted my budget. The cheapest one I got was 480Y, and I stayed mostly below the 1,500Y mark. I think only 3 records cost more than 1,000Y. This is just me. If you are a jazz lover, and are into vinyl, I highly suggest you go on a pilgrimage to Tokyo, enjoy the food and shopping instead of buying costly re-issues (which are plentiful in these stores too). Even if you fly on a cheap airline, make sure you book a 20kg (at least) luggage for the return trip. Yes, IMHO, for those in HK, China and Taiwan (and Asia), it's worth just going to Tokyo for vinyl hunt.

• Japanese vinyls are the best preserved in the world. Very little trouble, and u can visually inspect before paying. There are basically no duds.

• I'd focus on the cheaper Jap pressings. They are of good quality and plentiful (usually quieter but less dynamic than Western originals, but very good nonetheless). There are many titles that u will be hard put to find in the western world. Don't get fixated that u have to have the US Blue Note first pressing, wrong place for that!. The Jap pressings are the bargains; remember there was one long period when US consumers of all genres sought out Japanese vinyls for better surface quality!

• If you hit all these stores, you shall realize that they have tons of each title (popular ones I mean of course), priced variously. Of ourse, Sax giants are favored. There's no hurry, just shop around. They know their prices too. Jap jazz fans are like Chinese ones, more conservative, and albums like Coleman Hawkins are plentiful and cheap, whereas any by Ornette Coleman (my fav) are not cheap and not so plentiful. It's a supply and demand issue, as always. Know what you want! I'd say for the average Asian jazz lover into traditional jazz, it's a paradise.

• If u peruse the Japanese Disk Union website, they actually have many more (smaller) stores scattered around! But, really, even if you visit a couple, it's more than enough (I'm speaking of Jazz, much duplication between stores). I'd say the must-see stores are the Shinjuku Main Store (which I've not visited, LOL)  and the Ochanomizou Store. If u are a serious jazz collector, plan on spending a day there.

• If u are a hip-hop or other genre fan, this guide still points you to many many stores. Just read the fine prints in each map.

Mitsuru san of Sun Audio looks very well! Father is old and stays at home now.

 

Akihabara and Sun Audio Perhaps my memories are faulty, Akihabara certainly looks very different from what I remembered (my woefully outdated guide, which perhaps I should take down). We got out of the Kanda station, and as mentioned, just before crossing the Mansei Bridge, to the right is the street where Sun Audio is located. Without Hino Audio downstairs, I missed the building. I was lucky that there were a couple of young couriers around, and they pointed me to Sun Audio. I just popped in briefly to say hello. After crossing the bridge, somehow I could not find the Radio Kaikan building (I doubt there is much hifi there now). If any reader has been there, let me know. I'd have liked to go to HiFiDo but was not up to it on that day. So nothing much to report on Akihabara.

How about that! A good Vinyl Store in a packed Food Court!

Like many of us, the Royalty liked a drink or two