Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Yoshida Brothers: Shamisen Fusion


The Yoshida Brothers hail not from deep space, but from Hokkaidō, Japan's northern prefecture, and play a wicked shamisen...



The shamisen is a banjo-like instrument with three silk strings and a body covered with...cat skin, real feline flesh!

It originated in the 16th century in Okinawa as the sanshin...

...but soon after was brought to Osaka, on the Japanese mainland, where it was altered slightly to make it longer and louder. It has since entered the cultural lexicon and appears throughout Japan alongside geishas, maikos and in ukiyo-e artwork...

Here are the Bros jamming with the Canadian/Japanese band, Monkey Majik on "Change":

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