What a difference distribution makes. As any millennial indie band knows, recording and pressing your own CDs is a cinch, but getting them in the stores isn't. The Japan Times' Suzannah Tartan reports that indie labels in Japan have increasingly gained access to all-important domestic distribution. The surprising catalyst? Tower Records:

"Years ago it was difficult to find independently released records outside of a few shops in Shinjuku or Osaka's Americamura," explains Keith Cahoon, former president of Tower Records Asia and now president of music publisher Hotwire. Tower Japan was one of the first chain stores to stock independent labels, following the example of its American parent that had traditionally supported the indie scene.