Rock Out - Japanese Style!

MANILA, Philippines - Prepare for some fun punk-pop-rock performances in the 2010 Nihongo Fiesta when all-female Japanese band Shonen Knife rocks with the country’s all-male dunk (dance and punk) band Pedicab in a free J-Rock Concert. Capping this year’s Nihongo Fiesta, presented by the Japan Foundation, Manila (JFM), and SM Supermalls, SM Mall of Asia, the concert will be held on Feb. 27 at MOA’s San Miguel by the Bay from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.

Fresh from their US tour, Shonen Knife makes a stop in Manila to celebrate the Nihongo Fiesta with their uniquely Japanese but universally appealing and exuberant tunes. Their punk-pop hits, which includes Tomato Head, Banana Chips, It’s a New Find, and their distinct versions of Top of the World and Daydream Believer, have given the award-winning band from Osaka, Japan with a worldwide cult following and a career spanning 29 years.

The Japanese trio, influenced by a diverse roster of pop groups from the ’60s and early punk rock acts from the ‘70s-made massive fans out of alternative rock bands such as Sonic Youth and Nirvana. The latter even invited them to go on tour with them in the early ’90s.

Late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain described his experience of watching Shonen Knife live as being “transformed into a hysterical nine-year-old girl at a Beatles concert.”

In line with the festival’s goal of promoting cultural and arts exchange between Japan and the Philippines, a Nihongo speech contest, quiz bee and Japanese and Filipino street fashion exhibit and contest will also be held.

The J-Rock Concert and all 2010 Nihongo Fiesta events are open to the public. For details, call JFM at 811-6155 or e-mail at jfmo.org.ph.

The event is sponsored by the Embassy of Japan, Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), HP, Cebu Pacific, Team Manila Graphic Design, The Japanese Association Manila, the Association of Filipino Nihongo Teachers (AFINITE), SM The Block, SM Megamall, and media partners, Manila Bulletin, NU 107 and ClicktheCity.com.