BEAMS Planets

BEAMS Planets is a shop in Shimokitazawa that started as a pop-up but was turned into a permanent store due to its incredible popularity.

If you’ve been to Japan before or you’re into fashion, you probably already know about BEAMS. For those who aren’t familiar with BEAMS, it’s one of Japan’s most famous fashion and lifestyle brands. Under the BEAMS brand there are numerous sub-brand stores each with their own focus: 

BEAMS (Main) - Casual clothes and lifestyle goods.

BEAMS F - Tailored suits and menswear with an East Coast (USA) vibe.

BEAMS Boy - This deceptively titled shop is for women who like men’s clothes. It offers men’s items that have been made smaller to fit women better.

BEAMS GOLF - I’ll give you one guess what this store carries.

BEAMS+ (Beams plus) - High quality reinterpreted Americana. Think American workwear and military-inspired items, but with Japanese attention to detail and craftsmanship.

BEAMS T - T-shirts. Graphic Ts, art inspired Ts, and collaborations with anime studios, game companies, and artists.

Ray BEAMS - Women’s fashion. Seasonal and timeless items.

That’s just a sampling of the BEAMS lineup. 

In addition to those stores, BEAMS creates Pop-Up stores/events. That’s how BEAMS Planets started.

On their webpage, BEAMS Planets has a quote that sums them up pretty damn well.

“A label that connects people and things around the world, continues to create products full of originality, and carefully delivers their charms along with their stories.”

BEAMS Planets is an incredibly welcoming place and the whole store has a lovely vibe. It’s light and bright with a wide variety of products sourced from all over the world. They also sell drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), and snacks. Plus, the people working there are so friendly, I immediately felt like I was talking with new friends.

I asked one of the staff members for a recommendation for an omiyage (souvenir) and he suggested a bandana that was priced super reasonably, which I thought was kind because this store has plenty of expensive stuff, and he didn’t try to sell me something pricey. I really appreciated it.

They have all manner of cool stuff here including one-of-a-kind jewelry, hand-made items, and unique gifts. When I asked them if they minded if I took photos, they were more than happy to let me. I hope they help give you a sense of the many varied items you can find here.

In addition to being in one of my favorite parts of Tokyo, BEAMS Planets seems to embody the artistic/creative spirit of Shimokitazawa in a way that’s both high-end chic while also being incredibly down to earth and welcoming.

To see more photos, check out their Instagram page, and if you find yourself in Shimokitazawa, go visit BEAMS Planets.

Local Lingo

When learning some of the local language, it’s useful to include highly specific or unusual words and/or expressions. You’ll be surprised how far a few fun and unexpected Japanese phrases can take you in a local izakaya.

While its important to learn how to ask where the toilet is or some other such mundane thing, a timely “Nekojita” will get you a smile and a laugh. Try saying hair of the dog or hangover (in Japanese) and see what happens. Words/phrases like these are powerful ice-breakers even if you can barely speak Japanese.

Break away from textbook words like “totemo” and say “chou” or “mecha” or even “mecha kucha”. These are all ways to say very, but totemo is textbook while the others are casual and more fun. Heck, “sugoi” (amazing), “saikou” (the best), and “yabai” (Crazy!!! Can mean good crazy or bad crazy depending on context) are all excellent words to use. Just focus on timing, tone, and expression. Have fun with it.

Instead of “oishii”, say “umai”. More casual. Perfect for an izakaya. If someone is getting carried away with a possibly far-fetched story, say “majide” (Really?). Or if you’re telling an outlandish story you can act indignant and state “hontou da yo” (It’s true!).

I’ve written about various interesting Japanese words in previous newsletter issues: nekojita, yabai, reading the air (kuuki wo Yomu), gochisousama, shouganai, eigo arerugi, and shouryakugo (shortened words).

Start listening to what Japanese people say in izakayas and you will build your own list of fun words to draw from that have nothing to do with learning boring stuff in textbooks like “this is a pen”, which is sadly one of the first Japanese sentences many people learn.

Yousuke Yukimatsu

Yousuke Yukimatsu’s DJ set at the Boiler Room’s Tokyo outpost is a masterpiece of mixing sounds and ideas that wouldn’t seem to naturally go together. This is so far outside of the kind of music I normally listen to, I was surprised how much I enjoyed it.

Yukimatsu-san’s story is an inspiration.

Born in Osaka in 1979, he was exposed to all kinds of music as his family ran a record store. In his twenties, he worked construction while pursuing DJ-ing part-time. His big turning point came when he developed a brain tumor which required two surgeries to remove. After this, everything changed and he went all in on DJ-ing.

Since then, his unique sound has taken him far beyond Japan, performing at world-renowned festivals and venues like Berlin Atonal, Wonderfruit in Thailand, and Boiler Room events, earning a global reputation for his electrifying sets.

Some quotes from his performance at the Boiler Room in Tokyo:

“This dude might be the only DJ whose safe from Ai because theres no way you can convince me any algorithm would pair these songs together like this.”

“This is how I imagined nightclubs as a kid….”

“This is the closest vibe we will ever get to the nightclub scene in Blade.”

“This set is the closest we've gotten to making a new colour.”

Check out his set for yourself.

For the second issue in a row, the most clicked link from the previous issue was for this Samurai Black T-shirt. It’s also one of the most clicked of all-time. I’m not affiliated with the place that sells these.

The 2nd most clicked link from the previous issue was for this great coffee spot in Oshiage, close to SkyTree and Solamachi Mall.

If you know someone who would enjoy this post, please share.

—And if someone sent you this post, you can subscribe here.

NB: We sometimes use affiliate links.