Visit iconic Koenji live music venues that helped define Tokyo’s underground music scene

Browse vinyl record shops specializing in punk, jazz, experimental, and Japanese indie music

Explore independent bookstores focused on politics, art, and alternative culture

Discover Koenji’s famous used clothing and recycle stores, central to its anti-consumerist identity

Walk through backstreets rarely visited by tourists

Visit a local Koenji temple that anchors the neighborhood

Stop at Kishō Jinja, a Shinto shrine dedicated to weather, fate, and resilience

Learn how Koenji became Tokyo’s enduring countercultural hub