A lot of these posts to celebrate my 10th anniversary cover genres, themes and other overarching threads that have been present on my blog for the past 10 years. But tonight’s post is just one song, one that’s really important to me.

Gekirin
Fish Story
Fish Story (Silence 1975 Version)
No movie has ever moved me as much as Fish Story. I think I’ve seen it over 10 times now, and each time a scene near the beginning of the film nearly brings me to tears.

The world is doomed. A comet is due to smash into Earth in mere hours, destroying all life on the planet. Tokyo is deserted save for three souls inside a record store. One man is a fatalist who is eagerly awaiting the planet’s demise. Another is a customer still in denial. But the clerk is still convinced that earth will be spared because, “Music will save the world.”

I get goosebumps just thinking about it.

It’s hard to stay optimistic these days, isn’t it? Seems like in the 10 years since I started this blog the world’s been nothing but bad news peppered with false hopes and dashed expectations. We stand on the verge of America’s most terrifying general election to date, and the world is still on the cusp of utter destruction, as serial killers disguised as CEOs pump millions of dollars into misinformation campaigns to delay action on climate change.

Sometimes it’s hard to keep your head in the light. Things get dark. Things got so dark for me a couple years back that my anxiety went into overdrive and fear of the unknown nearly crippled me into a soul-crushing depression on the eve of my move to Japan. I managed to get myself out of that funk (thanks to Yes) but I still sometimes come dangerously close to sliding back into it. I read the news, I think about the future, and I just want to crawl into a hole and bury myself inside.

But then I remember, music will save the world.

How?

Yeah, so that’s the thing. I don’t know. But I believe it with every fiber of my being. Music has the power not to just change the world, but to literally save the fucking planet. It has the power to save the environment, stop terrorism, cure cancer, eradicate crime and make puppies even cuter. You name it. Music is life. Music can save the planet and music can save you.

“Fish Story,” and now I’m talking about the song, not the actual movie, is in Japanese. But the lyrics honestly don’t matter. As the movie explains, they’re pretty much gibberish. But the song saves the world. And when I listen to the song, I reminded how it saves the world, and that gives me hope for my world. No matter how silly that sounds.

Fish Story will save the world.

If you want to watch Fish Story, I highly recommend skipping the horrendous Region 1 DVD and instead grabbing a UK copy. The Region 1 edition by Pathfinder Pictures is not anamorphic (meaning there are vertical and horizontal black bars on the screen at all times) and the subtitles are burned in, making them hard to read. Additionally, from what I’ve read they’re also occasionally inaccurate and omit some key details during the film’s amazing conclusion.

If you can’t get that, then look for a torrent or check Netflix, it occasionally pops up there. Just don’t give Pathfinder Pictures your money, they’re idiots who bought the film off a Korean distributor instead of going the right (aka more expensive) route and getting their hands on a proper master.

I believe that music will save the world from most disasters currently facing us, but sometimes theft and public shaming are the only ways to save the world from bad media distribution.

And for more songs from Fish Story and more information on the song and its composer, check out this post.

And don’t forget, Fish Story will save the world.

I’m as big a movie geek as I am a music geek, so great movies about music usually move me in ways that few other films can.

However, there are very few great films about music. Almost Famous. High Fidelity. Purple Rain (yeah, Purple fucking Rain, you got a problem with that?) are all excellent movies about music because they show the connections that people make with the music they love and create. Those films show the power of music: the power that it has to move people so much that it can actually change their lives for the better.

When a movie can do that it’s a beautiful thing. However, Fish Story, a 2009 Japanese film, manages to go above and beyond those films. It shows music can save the fucking world.

The film starts in the year 2012. In just a matter of hours, a comet will smash into Earth, destroying all life. Tokyo is deserted, except for one small record store. Inside, the clerk tells his sole customer (and a cranky old man eager for the end of the world) about “Fish Story.” It’s the first punk rock song, recorded by a Japanese band called Gekirin a year before the Sex Pistols formed. It didn’t sell, so no one has heard of it. The song is important though, the clerk says, because it’s going to save the world.

From there the movie jumps to 1982, where some college students discuss the mysterious song and a strange urban legend that’s associated with it. Then the movie shifts to 2009, where a cruise ship is taken hostage by a group of doomsday cultists. After that, the movie changes time periods again, this time going to 1975, where we are treated to the story of Gekirn and how Fish Story came to be.

Oh, and then the song saves the world.

I don’t feel like that’s a spoiler – as another review I read of Fish Story pointed out, no one is going to make a movie about how a song doesn’t save the world. The joy in Fish Story comes not from finding out if the song saves the world, but from finding out how the song saves the world. No, the record doesn’t magically transform into a Gundam robot and smash the comet into the sun (although that would be awesome), it’s a little more complex than that. But that’s all I’m going to say. The less you know about Fish Story the better. Its initial charm comes in how unexpected it is. But it still holds up on repeated viewings just by being so damn fun.

Although the idea of Fish Story is more than a little silly, its conceit is not. At its heart, Fish Story is about how music can connect with people and change their lives in unexpected and amazing ways. It shows how music can give us courage and hope, and challenge us to make ourselves and those around us better. It shows how a song, a stupid little song that almost no one in the world knows about, can drastically affect and change for the better the lives of people who have never even heard it. And when you think of it like that, it’s not hard to imagine that a song could, somehow, actually save the world someday.

It’s a brilliant, hilarious, heart-warming and intelligent movie. So, of course, it’s not available in America. But it was released in the UK, so if you live there you should run out and buy it right now. If you’re American (or in any other county for that matter) and have an all-region DVD player I enthusiastically recommend that you pick up that version. You can find it on Amazon and on Yes Asia. And if you’re looking for a cheap all-region DVD player, I recommend this one.

And if you’re wondering what a song that saves the world sounds like then hey, lookie here!

Gekirin
FISH STORY
FISH STORY (Silence 1975 Version)
Nothing
Nothing (Producer’s Version)
Kazuyoshi Saito
FISH STORY (Alternate Version)
Summer Days
When you make a movie about a song that saves the world, that song in question is damn good. Thankfully, “Fish Story” is a great track,  mimicking the sound of mid-70s punk rock while still sounding a little fresh and original at the same time. A composer/musician by the name of Kazuyoshi Saito wrote the track, although the fictional band Gekirin performs it in the movie. The version by Gekirin and a version by Saito are are included on the soundtrack, as is a version that has a minute of dead silence instead of a guitar solo. Why is there a minute of silence in the middle of the song? Watch the movie to find out.

“Nothing” is another song that Gekirin performs in the movie, and while it doesn’t save the world, it’s still a quality tune. The “Producer’s Version” is a joke, a version of the song slowed down for mainstream appeal, complete with organ overdubs. I have to admit that I find its cheesiness endearing for some odd reason.

“Summer Days” is a mellow acoustic rock song that plays over the end credits. It’s a chill track, but still good. I don’t think it will ever save the world, but who knows?

Finally,don’t forget that Japan is still struggling to recover from the devasting effects of the earthquake and tsunami. While you’re enjoying this amazing collection of Japanese rock from a Japanese movie, why don’t you head over to the Red Cross’ donation page and help them out?

Want something in return for your troubles? The Songs For Japan compilation is a good collection of pop music for 10 bucks, all of which goes to to help Japanese relief efforts.

Like “chiptune” electronic music and want to help? Check out Chip In: Japan!

Finally, do you like drum and bass and want to help, but are kind of broke? Then go to Pendulum’s website and buy “Ransom” for a British pound, all profits go to the relief efforts.

Whatever you do, give! You don’t need an awesome punk rock song to save the world.

Although sometimes it helps.