Ryo Takaiwa of the Throttle

The Throttle’s frontman, Ryo Takaiwa, names “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)” by Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles’s rendition of “Rainy Night in Georgia” and Frank Sinatra’s take on “That’s All” as songs that have especially influenced him as the band’s chief songwriter. “All of us contribute to each composition, but the melody seems to fall on me,” said Takaiwa, pictured here in an area of Shinjuku known for its twisting alleyways and bars. “We compose songs of opposition or satire in response to political oppression or whatever else strikes us as outrageous.” Since forming in 2013 — when democratic, spontaneous performances on street sidewalks and in subways were a regular occurrence in Tokyo — the rock ’n’ roll band has released three albums. Their fourth, “Fox,” due out this month, includes elements of jazz and hip-hop: new territory for the Throttle. “Japanese culture is itself a mix of different outside elements, and that’s something we take pride in,” Takaiwa says.