Although the Fueiho law bans dancing in un-authorized locales, the dance music scene has retained it’s strength over the years. EDM lives on in even places where the law sometimes prevents it.
That is until 2010, when authorities began cracking down on clubs and venues that didn’t meet the standard 66 square meters and 1 A.M. closing times. 
Although dance music began to recede into the shadows, it did not, nor will not, ever truly die. About thirty hip/hop artists, producers and DJ’s recently joined together to form C4, a Club & Club Culture Conference. This group has started lobbying with politicians to get these strict, and unfair laws changed. The first organization of it’s type, this has been a pivotal movement of change in Japanese culture.
With even reports of security on the dance floor stopping any attendees from dancing, United States citizens, and citizens throughout North America, would have a hard time understanding such drastic circumstances. Despite such restrictions, however, some clubs in the “grey area” still have dancing till midnight.
Still, the Olympics are soon approaching and the need for Tokyo to become a global city is becoming apparent to both citizens and politicians alike. Change is surely in the cards for the future of Japan; both as a necessity for continued economic growth and as an attraction for tourists and visitors to a highly discerning and cultured nightlife.
Although a proposal to extend club hours of operation has come up, it lies hand-in-hand with an accordance for brighter lighting to appease the stringent government in the far east. Compromise will hopefully push this agenda forward, and we at Your EDM look towards the future for Japan, and the entire world, in the hopes of a united cultural acceptance of electronic dance music.
Check out the full documentary from Thump below; it’s quite an insight into foreign culture and how people across the globe relate to our impartial passion.
Photo by CYBERJAPAN
