Ghost were a wonderful Japanese psychedelic band that released a small string of albums from 1990 to 2007. The music is often spacey, dynamic, and rather timeless in my opinion, not sounding like it can be pigeonholed into any one true era, although definitely predicting the awesome post-rock movement of the 2000s.
They japanese elements with western rock, in particular old psychdelic bands. Formed by guitarist Masaki Batoh the group lived a nomadic existence for its first few years, drifting around Tokyo living and playing in ruins of ancient temples or disused subway stations.
I HIGHLY recommend listening to the two opening tracks from their 2004 album Hypnotic Underground, which follows the opening album format of their previous and also awesome album Lama Rabi Rabi: long, ambient opening and groovilicious second song. Japan has a large, vital, thriving psychedelic rock scene and Ghost is one of the reasons why.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYJ76O6e6Qo]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeRWEBCZa1U&feature=relmfu]
