Japanese Sunday is a San Diego band who first released a live album recorded at the Casbah in 2004, followed by their debut album “Tap Tap Lights Out” in 2006, which was nominated that year for a San Diego Music Award for Best Local Recording. They started their show at the Casbah with an all instrumental song, followed by a set that was also mostly instrumental. They had a lot of the high-pitched, echo-y, drawn out guitar that is often associated with the emo/progressive/indie rock sound. When they began playing, I could’ve sworn I was at a Band of Horses concert. Others have compared them to Explosions in the Sky and Sunny Day Real Estate, and I would also say they sound like another San Diego band, The Verso. It was reminiscent of the Cure (like most emo bands), however where the Cure is deep and painful, Japanese Sunday is soft and dreamy, with a lot of scales and arpeggios. The vibe was mellow, and the lead singer, Eric, was gracious and nice when he addressed the crowd, and his vocals were good when he did actually sing. They claim that they sound like “What Bill Murray said to Scarlett Johansen at the end of Lost in Translation,” and while I wouldn’t agree with that, the statement is telling of their music. Japanese Sunday recently signed with a Japanese label, and will be touring for two weeks in Japan.