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We’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million times.  We love us some Pwrfl Power aka Kazutaka Nomura aka Kaz. Do yourself a favor and let this sink in:

PWRFL Power – Gold Leaf from Svetlana legetic on Vimeo.

video: Ryan Wakeman & Justin Rodermond
sound: Rodrigo Salvatierra

Kaz will be performing tonight, quite possibly his last show in DC for a while, along with BYT favs The Laughing Man and Shining Path.

Velvet Lounge
http://www.velvetloungedc.com/
03.03.09
Doors 9pm
Show 9:30pm
$8
18+

BYT: On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being happiest, how happy are you on a regular basis?

Kaz Nomura: when i am full, i am happy. and I am usually pretty full because I always eat some snack. I am usually pretty happy. I am about 7 out 10 full.

BYT: What kind of snack would bump you up to an 8?

KN: Pastries from Essential Bakery, Seattle and more coffee from Stumptown, Portland. I have never felt like I had enough coffee.

photo by Sarah Cass

BYT: How much would you be willing to pay in order to take a 1 hour sightseeing tourist space flight into orbit?

KN: if I can take my girlfriends, I will pay $125. yeah, per person.

BYT: If your house/tee pee/dojo/whatever was on fire, what are the three single items you would save first?

KN: if I was still at my old place and it was on fire, I would take 1)Piano 2) fridge (because it has my food) 3) IKEA queen sized bed… they all seem a bit too heavy to carry,especially in the fire.

BYT: Do you get free esurance? [Kaz, in animated form, appears in a cute esurance commercial]

KN: i wish! I don’t have a car, so I didn’t ask. I got into a minor car accident during my sept tour and my tourmate had Progressive. from the way they handled the accident, I would say, definitely pick Esurance over Progressive.

BYT: Is there any product you wouldn’t lend a song to?

KN: I don’t wanna sing a song for WaWa, a Philly-based supermarket.

BYT: Your album got reviewed pretty poorly (unfairly IMO) on Pitchfork, claiming your quirkiness and broken English was just shtick. Care to respond?

KN: HOLY SHIT. I didn’t know that they reviewed my album!!! 4.9!? I always check their website to get updates from bands. Man, this explains why that girl in Kentucky grabbed my crotch and whispered “hey, i read that your cock is only 4.9 inch long. this is much bigger than that”. Damn it, Pitchfork, correct it to 10.0.

BYT: The first time I saw you live was in a living room with about 25 people. It was pretty magical and intimate. How does the venue where you play affect your performance?

KN: I have played all sorts of places last year from a big festival to a private Microsoft party. I would say my favorite is where you saw me;small living room. or gallery spaces. I just feel healthy playing for 50-100 people crammed in a small space.

BYT: What’s the best or worst show you’ve done?

KN: the worst show is the last show I played and the best show is the one I am playing tonite!

BYT: If you did a covers only album what would the first 3 tracks be?

KN: 3 artists I pick will be Morrissey, Le Ton Mite, and Foot Village because I told all three I will work on their cover and haven’t started working on them!

BYT: Is it true that you’ll be moving back to Japan?

KN: I am coming back after a month, then move back for good in the fall.

BYT: Had enough of the US?

KN: i might have had enough of the US but haven’t had enough Chili from Ben’s Chili Bowl.

BYT: Will you send us some postcards?

KN: Maybe I will try to buy a card from Obama-city in Fukui and send it to you.

BYT: Do you believe in God?

KN: I am not religious but I thought of him when I found $20 on the ground in Portland, OR.

BYT: Do you think that a chimp or gorilla who has learned sign language deserves the same rights as a child?

KN: IS THAT A QUESTION YOU REALLY WANNA ASK TO SOMEONE WHO EATS WHALE MEAT? just kidding.

BYT: You have visited Washington DC often, have the people here treated you well?

KN: YES, people have been very nice. people working at Five Guys are especially nice and friendly.

BYT: Are you working on any new material?

KN: I have been spending lots of time on my blog/label/artist management site Halfyogurt.com. of course I am writing new songs for PP but I tend to space out and start thinking about half yogurt. today I came up with a great idea. remember how I sing “your step dad has millions of debt but that’s okay cuz my dad has some buildings I can have”? there is always a few openings in those buildings. I thought it would be rad if I had a thing called Half Yogurt Residency / Kaz Prize (like Nobel prize) and let an artist of choice live in the room for 3 months for free. during that time, he or she can work on paintings/music/whatever craft they wanna put some effort into. I will have to convince the city of Asahikawa (my hometown) to give me some grant to fly people over here. anyway, I am super excited about Half yogurt.

BYT: What is the music scene like in your hometown? It seems like it is far away from the major cultural centers of Japan.

KN: It’s safe to say there is NO music scene in my hometown like most of other cities in Japan. so, if someone came over and played there enough, the person become the scene pretty much. it’s same everywhere in Japan unless you go to major cities. However, it’s not hard to get out to Tokyo since it’s only an hour flight away. Also, i think it’s nice to breathe deep and focus on your art in a less urban area of Japan like my hometown. it’s still 400000 people size though…

BYT: We’ll miss you.

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