Music & performance
Hold the groove. Make the band sound better.
I play bass in Tokyo live houses, now with Takashi Umemiya & The Comrades and before that The Big Nothing, and I document the scene on Wagwan.News. Music is also how I explain the way I work.
Watch
On bass in Tokyo.
Takashi Umemiya & The Comrades Roots reggae, 2022–present
Fire (Official Music Video)November 2023
Let's Have Some FunGamuso · February 2025
Hold YouWhat the Dickens! · November 2024
AngelAnga · December 2024
What the stage teaches
Lessons from the bandstand that I use in talks, workshops and field notes.
- 01
Lock in with the drummer
Find the one partner whose timing you trust, and build the foundation together before anyone solos.
- 02
Serve the song
The best part is the one the song needs, not the one that shows off. Same with features, hires and offers.
- 03
Play the room
A live house is a real market. You find out in minutes what works, and you adjust on the next tune.
From the Wagwan.News archive
Bands, stages and scenes.
All videos
Every clip in one place, with search: bands, live sets and blues jams from 2008 to today.
Takashi Umemiya & The Comrades
The Tokyo roots reggae band I play bass with: music videos and live clips.
The Big Nothing
My Tokyo indie rock band: the official video and live sets from 2014–2015.
Tokyo live houses
Where local bands play, from Akasaka to Shimokitazawa.
Tokyo bands
Bands and musicians worth hearing, featured on Wagwan.News from 2015 to 2023.
Wagwan.News is now part of this site. Follow along on YouTube and Thom BassLife on Instagram.
In the family
It's all in the game.
Music came before me: my great-uncle Tommy Edwards took "It's All in the Game" to number one in 1958. Tokyo Voices, a Peace Works project, carries the African American vocal tradition onto Tokyo stages today.