Vista

In 2003, Clive Bell (who would later feature with David Sylvian on recordings such as When Loud Weather Buffeted Naoshima and the Twinkle³ project Upon This Fleeting Dream) visited Tokyo for The Wire magazine to investigate a newly-emerged music scene, and to attend one venue in particular – Off Site. Bell’s in-depth report describes the location. ‘As you leave Yoyogi station in Tokyo, the 60-odd storeys of the NTT DoCoMo skyscraper loom high above you…Like the offspring of a thunderous mating between the Empire State Building and Big Ben, the tower features a spire, glowing green lights in recesses, and a colossal clock lit up in white.’ Incongruously, Off Site is just 50 metres away, ‘one of a row of old, highly ordinary houses somehow clinging on in the shadow of Shinjuku’s skyscrapers. These are flimsy constructions of wood and plaster. Inside, Atsuhiro Ito and his wife have converted their house into a spartan gallery and performance space on the ground floor, seating about 50 maximum, and, upstairs, a welcoming cafe which also functions as a book and record shop.’