Trisha Shetty (Editor)

Takenoko zoku

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Takenoko-zoku (竹の子族, lit. "bamboo shoot tribe") describes a type of dance group active from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s in Tokyo, especially in Harajuku. The teenagers, mainly girls but often with one boy leading, were colorfully dressed and danced in a distinctive style on the sidewalk to music from stereos. To an extent, they were precursors to the gyaru groups that would eventually arise in the 90s.

A performance of a takenoko-zoku group can be seen in Chris Marker's film Sans Soleil.

References

Takenoko-zoku Wikipedia