New York Anime Festival announces musical guests
NYAF welcomes Unicorn Table, Happyfunsmile, and VoltaireNorwalk, CT, August 9, 2007: The New York Anime Festival (NYAF) today announced musical artists UNICORN TABLE, HAPPYFUNSMILE, and Voltaire will all perform at its inaugural event December 7-9 in New York City. Japanese pop group UNICORN TABLE is renowned on both sides of the Pacific for its energetic alternative rock, and anime fans will know UNICORN TABLE from its debut album, uncountable, available from TenBu Productions as well as "Fly Away," the theme song to ADV's Jinki:Extend, and "Closer," "Distant Love," "Infinity," and "Amai Yume" from FUNimation's School Rumble. HAPPYFUNSMILE is a New York City-based band popular for its pop and rock renditions of traditional Japanese folk songs. Voltaire is America's gothic subculture's most prolific artist, famous for music that uniquely melds the baroque with the macabre.
"I am delighted to be adding music to the broad mix of entertainment that we will be providing at The New York Anime Festival," notes John McGeary, NYAF Show Manager. "UNICORN TABLE, HAPPYFUNSMILE, and Voltaire are terrific acts and I know that our audience will eagerly anticipate all three performances. Anime fans are a very diverse group of people, and so we've brought together three musical acts that I hope will appeal to fans whether they're young-or-old or new-or-otaku."
Samples of UNICORN TABLE, HAPPYFUNSMILE, and Voltaire's music can be heard at the New York Anime Festival's website. Admission to all three concerts is included with admission into NYAF, and tickets can now be purchased online at newyorkanimefestival.com.
UNICORN TABLE is presented by TenBu Productions. Voltaire is sponsored by Demented Dragon.
ABOUT UNICORN TABLE:
Fans in both Japan and the US know UNICORN TABLE has a sound you can't resist. Famous for its energetic layers of electronic instrumentation and moving beats that fuse together into alternative rock rhythms and grooves that anyone can get into, UNICORN TABLE's debut album, uncountable, was an instant hit in Japan and is rapidly becoming a must-have album in America, too. UNICORN TABLE is also known for "Fly Away," the theme song to ADV's Jinki:Extend, and "Closer," "Distant Love," "Infinity," and "Amai Yume" from FUNimation's School Rumble. UNICORN TABLE is comprised of two talented veterans of the Japanese music industry: Salia and shin-go. Salia broke into the J-Pop scene with the themes to Cutie Honey Flash, Vandread, and Gaoranger and was part of the group The Funny Stones before becoming half of UNICORN TABLE. She has a love of jazz, R&B, blues, and rock, all of which she brings into her performances with her partner, shin-go. Shin-go is an experienced producer, composer, and guitar player whose skills can be heard outside UNICORN TABLE in the soundtracks to Casshern, Solty Rei, and Pumpkin Scissors. UNICORN TABLE's debut album is available in the US through TenBu Productions. You can learn more about UNICORN TABLE at unicorntable.com and listen to samples of its work at myspace.com/unicorntablemusic. UNICORN TABLE's appearance at the New York Anime Festival is presented by TenBu Productions.
ABOUT HAPPYFUNSMILE:
Founded by Wynn Yamami in New York City in 2004, HAPPYFUNSMILE performs an eclectic mix of Okinawan pop, ultraminyo (electric folk songs), enka (supersweet ballads), festival rhythms, and obon beats. Utilizing the sounds of the taiko drum, chindon, sanshin, accordion, bass, and keys, HAPPYFUNSMILE extols the virtues of O-Pop and chindon to an ever-growing congregation. Fans can learn the latest about HAPPYFUNSMILE at happyfunsmile.com and listen to samples of HAPPYFUNSMILE's music at myspace.com/happyfunsmile.
ABOUT VOLTAIRE:
Voltaire's music can be best described as a collection of murder ballads and tongue-in-cheek exercises in the macabre, with just enough bawdy songs about Star Trek and Star Wars to keep a convention audience rolling in the aisles. Many will know him for his song "Brains!" from the Cartoon Network show The Grim Adventures of Billy And Mandy. Others will recognize him from his books, including Oh My Goth, What Is Goth?, Paint it Black: A Guide To Gothic Homemaking, and most recently DEADY -- which includes collaborations with Clive Barker, James O'Barr, Neil Gaiman, Billy Tucci, David Mack, and many other luminaries from the spooky comics realm. Still more will know Voltaire's line of Pocket Goth plush toys. For more information on Voltaire's music, comics, and toys, visit voltaire.net. For samples of Voltaire's music, visit myspace.com/voltairenyc. Voltaire is sponsored at the New York Anime Festival by Demented Dragon.
ABOUT THE NEW YORK ANIME FESTIVAL:
The New York Anime Festival takes place December 7-9, 2007 at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan and is organized by Reed Exhibitions, the creators of New York Comic Con. The New York Anime Festival will showcase the best of anime pop culture, including the latest anime, manga, Japanese cinema, music, and games, and anime-influenced comics, animation, and films from around the world. The festival will feature exclusive and extensive screenings, a gala cosplay masquerade, sessions with the some of the biggest names in anime from Japan, Asia, and America, and explore the Japanese cultural experience with displays of both traditional and cutting-edge Japanese life.
The New York Anime Festival is sponsored by ADV Films, Anime Insider Magazine, Anime Network, Anime News Network, AnimeNEXT, BookExpo, Diamond Book Distributors, ICv2, New York Comic Con, NEW YORK - TOKYO, Newtype USA Magazine, Publishers Weekly, TOKYOPOP, and Wedge Holdings.
The New York Anime Festival's Guests of Honor include Peter Fernandez, Corinne Orr, Kobun Shizuno, and Aimee Major Steinberger. The New York Anime Festival's musical guests include HAPPYFUNSMILE, unicorn table, and Voltaire.
Further information and tickets can be found at www.newyorkanimefestival.com.
ABOUT TENBU PRODUCTIONS:
TenBu Productions is a professional manga, film, music, production, and distribution company. Founded by artist and anime industry veteran Asu, TenBu Productions was formed to promote Asian entertainment and talents in the US market. TenBu also services many US events and conventions by booking and managing Japanese talents from all over the anime, film, and music areas of the Japanese entertainment field. Popular in-house talents that TenBu Productions represents in the US include UNICORN TABLE, Yasuhiro Koshi, Yunmao Ayakawa, and more. Visit tenbuproductions.com for more information about TenBu Productions.
ABOUT DEMENTED DRAGON:
Demented Dragon is a publishing house based in Alberta, Canada that produces manga and Role Play Games (RPGs). DD publishes for a variety of clients including well-known web manga artist Chris Hazelton and Japanese artists such as Haruka Miyabi. You can preview titles and learn more about Demented Dragon at dementeddragon.com.
ABOUT REED EXHIBITIONS:
The New York Anime Festival is operated by Reed Exhibitions, the world's leading events organizer. In 2006, Reed brought together over six million industry professionals from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today, Reed events are held in 34 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and organized by 37 fully staffed offices.
Reed organizes a wide range of events, including exhibitions, conferences, congresses, and meetings. Its portfolio of over 460 events serves 52 industry sectors, including aerospace and defense, building and construction, design, electronics, energy, oil and gas, entertainment, food and hospitality, gifts, healthcare, IT/telecoms, jewelry, manufacturing, marketing and business services, pharmaceuticals, property, publishing, security, sport and recreation, transport and logistics, and travel.
Working closely with professional bodies, trade associations, and government departments, Reed ensures that each and every event is targeted and relevant to industry needs. As a result, many Reed events are market leaders in their field.
Reed Exhibitions is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a FTSE-100 company and world-leading publisher and information provider. In 2005, Reed Elsevier made adjusted profit before taxation of £1,002 million on turnover of £5,166 million.