author

 
Menu
Search
 
July 03, 2026
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Twitter

@mbmelodies

Patrick St. Michel
Patrick St. Michel is a Tokyo-based writer with a focus on Japanese music. He runs the blog Make Believe Melodies, which has focused on Japanese independent music since 2009. Besides The Japan Times, he also contributes to MTV 81 and The Atlantic.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Oct 30, 2015
Spooky snacks will soon be vanishing from Seven-Eleven
The chance to stockpile Halloween-themed snacks from your nearby convenience store will soon be over — really, you should run out now if you are serious about spooky snacks.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Oct 23, 2015
Pepsi Japan creates a new ‘mystery flavor’ cola for Halloween
To coincide with Halloween, Pepsi has rolled out the classic “mystery flavor” trick to promote its new limited-edition Pepsi Ghost cola (¥151).
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 18, 2015
Kero Kero Bonito blend English and Japanese rap into bouncy pop tracks
Sarah Midori Perry remembers checking MixB, an online bulletin board for Japanese expats in London, almost every day ... and feeling underwhelmed.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 18, 2015
‘Jack’ event declares: ‘Let there be J-pop!’
Over the past two years, Simon Whybray’s monthly club night and online mix series “Jack” (stylized in all caps) has featured high-energy songs from around the globe, including a healthy dose of J-pop. It’s surprising, then, when he reveals his gateway into Japanese music was a delicate piano number...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 18, 2015
Taquwami takes familar sounds into his own distinct territory
Taquwami
 “Moyas”
 (Self-released)
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Oct 16, 2015
Harajuku is devouring Lola’s Cupcakes
London bakery Lola’s Cupcakes emphasizes freshness, but the sweets on offer at its recently opened Tokyo store are disappearing almost as soon as they come out of the oven.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Oct 9, 2015
An ice cream ‘donut’ with a hole lot of almond chocolate
Doughnuts might remain a strong seller at Japanese convenience stores, but the initial hoopla for them ended months ago. Which is why, at first, it seems that frozen-treats maker Akagi is late to the game with its new Crunch Donut. Thankfully, looks can be deceiving: This snack (¥140) is ultimately...
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Oct 7, 2015
Red flags and exit strategies: advice for English teachers in Japan
It’s important for new instructors in Japan to know when they are being exploited, and, if so, how to improve their lot or extricate themselves from the situation as painlessly as possible.
CULTURE / Music
Oct 2, 2015
Moscow Club brings back some indie greats on ‘Outfit of the Day’
A ride on the subway drastically changed Tokyo band Moscow Club’s fate. After the quartet used crowdfunding site Indiegogo to finance its first full-length album, the members felt it was a good point to end a project that had transformed from a hobby into something taxing.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Oct 2, 2015
Take a bite out of Miffy on her 60th birthday at this Harajuku cafe
Miffy, the rabbit character from a famous children’s book, celebrates her 60th birthday this year. To mark this special occasion, Harajuku’s Nicholas House cafe has produced a series of celebratory treats.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Sep 25, 2015
Fall for seasonal pumpkin, sweet potato chips at convenience stores this autumn
The weather has started getting chilly and, accordingly, konbini (convenience stores) have started packing their shelves with special seasonal items.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 20, 2015
We need to talk about the ‘Rhinoceros’ in the room
Porno Graffitti “Rhinoceros” (SME)
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Sep 18, 2015
Starbucks Japan melted autumn and mixed it with coffee
“Fall melted in a cup” isn’t the most attractive of tag lines, but that’s what Starbucks Japan is using to promote its seasonally limited Roasted Nutty Chestnut line of drinks.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Sep 11, 2015
Grand Kirin’s new IPA is a reminder to put quality before convenience
It was fascinating to watch Japan’s major breweries stumble over themselves as they tried to replicate craft beer — but the amusement is starting to wear off. Now, consumers are left with a lot of big-company brews on convenience-store shelves that are mediocre at best. Kirin has been particularly...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Sep 4, 2015
Lotte’s koala cookies come in a new limited-edition flavor
Lotte’s “Koara no Machi” (“Koala’s March“) brand of cookies has added a not-so-radical new flavor to its roster: cocoa and milk.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Aug 28, 2015
Coco’s American Hot Apple Pie
Bring a friend next time you visit Coco’s, because the family restaurant’s new American Hot Apple Pie might prove overwhelming for one person alone.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 21, 2015
Zedd pleases, D’Angelo scores at this year’s Summer Sonic
An important moment in the life of any music fan comes when they go to a festival they’ve been attending for several years and think — “Man, am I old?”
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 21, 2015
Various artists “Fogpak #13”
Since 2012, the “Fogpak” compilation series has promoted independent electronic acts from Japan (and, lately, abroad). In recent months, Fogpak’s support of fledgling producers has become crucial — the Internet used to be a real alternative to the musical mainstream, but major labels have gotten keen...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Aug 21, 2015
Chip burgers and burger chips hit convenience stores
Fast-food chain Lotteria is currently selling a limited-edition burger containing a handful of Calbee potato chips placed on top of the meat patty. For those not ready to sink their teeth into that crunchy creation, Lotteria and Calbee have also teamed up on a special chip that tastes like Lotteria’s...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Aug 14, 2015
Ice Monster pops its head into Roppongi’s Mercedes-Benz dealership
Ice Monster, a Taiwanese shaved-ice store with a branch in Tokyo’s Harajuku neighborhood, has opened a new pop-up restaurant in the Mercedes-Benz Connection store in Roppongi.
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ¥3,000 from ¥1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
‘My dream is broken’: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
Japanese-language education is at a turning point
The country is gradually transforming Japanese-language education from a volunteer-driven system into a professional, government-supported network to better serve its growing foreign population. 
Six of the best: rikishi of note in each sumo division
Kazuma (right) faces off against future <i>yokozuna</i> Onosato during the All Japan Amateur Sumo Championships at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo in December 2020.
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

New Logistics Consortium baton to accelerate trucking efficiency
New Logistics Consortium baton to accelerate trucking efficiency

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER