Fujiya & Miyagi - Pickpocket
Fujiya & Miyagi release their latest single ‘Pickpocket’ this week and also are proud to announce a support slot with Jamie Lidell on the 14th December at Shepherd’s Bush.
‘Pickpocket’ is the latest track to be taken from their highly acclaimed third album ‘Lightbulbs’, released in earlier this year on Full Time Hobby and also includes previously unreleased track ‘Rot’ on the b-side. Built on an itchy hip-hop groove, ‘Pickpocket’ is the perfect example of Fujiya & Miyagi’s minimalist pop, complete with whispered vocals and understated wicka-wacka guitars.
‘Lightbulbs’ saw the band adding a drummer (Lee Adams) to expand the line-up to four. Recorded in a more deliberate “big chunk†than their previous albums, it’s their most cohesive, accomplished collection to date. The name refers to the popular cartoon idiom of good ideas being accompanied by a lightbulb that pings on above the character’s head. “Each song is like a light bulb,†say the band.
Fujiya & Miyagi stay away from lyrical themes that have been done to death (topics covered on ‘Lightbulbs’ involve the chess player Bobby Fischer, eccentric performer Vivian Stanshall and myriad household appliances), and ‘Pickpocket’ is no exception.
Named after a fusion of a Japanese record player and the Karate Kid’s mentor, Fujiya & Miyagi formed in 2000 as a duo consisting of David Best (guitars and vocals) and Steve Lewis (synths, beats, and programming), two like-minded souls who met on the five-a-side pitch. Adding bassist Matt Hainsby in 2004, they broke through with a series of EPs that were collected for 2006 album ‘Transparent Things’. The two years since then have seen Fujiya & Miyagi’s cult grow, even more so over the Atlantic.
Currently on a world tour in support of ‘Lightbulbs’, including sell-out shows in London and Manchester, you can catch Fujiya & Miyagi live on these shores again on the following dates:
3rd December @ Pavilion Theatre, Brighton
14th December @ Shepherd’s Bush, London supporting Jamie Lidell