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I can't really say I've noticed any real direction Japanese music in America has been going, as there are a bunch of different sort of sects finding popularity with different people. So obviously I can't really give my opinion on the subject. I'm not really sure what you mean with this.

I've done two panels at cons.
One wasn't mine, but I got to stick in a few words about non vk/lesser-known visual, and promote the Melt Banana show that week. The other consisted of only my friend and me, so we got to take it wherever we wanted. We tried to cover as many aspects of Japanese Rock as we could. Visual was only a small part.

About your question though, I know that what you usually come across on the Internet/at conventions are the same three bands, or the same five indies bands. All visual. Of course, I don't like this.

But there isn't really a big part of me that feels the need to go out and change it. Of course, I'd be very glad if I had a chance to do another panel, and maybe fix it up even more. And I do try to "expand the awareness", as you said, to some extent. Lastly, I even have a fansite for my favorite band, Guruguru Eigakan. ( http://soda.melonchannel.com ) I just don't have the drive/desire to start something big.

Do you have a more concrete project in mind? This could be interesting.

Well, first of all, I forgot to mention, that some "ideas" like this are doomed from the start. For instance, the "jrock convention". Of course, it's a visual kei convention, but they don't mention that, so it only added to the "ew Japanese rock is all about guys in makeup playing s**t music" stereotype. Er, I mean it wasn't exactly successful. So, probably something big like that wouldn't work out as intended.

That said, I think running a panel would be great! No matter how much of a "beginner" you may think you are, you already know tons more than most people who run "jrock panels". I'm serious, most of them are just about pre-2002 visual, and full of misinformation.

One of the best panels I've been to, really gave me what I wanted to hear at the moment - I was interested in how shows were in Japan, and part of the focus of the panel was on live-going in Japan. Getting tickets, all the procedures, etc. It was quite interesting, since there are tons of things different from the way it is here.

Purchasing legal merchandise is also a great thing to talk about. For instance, you have lots of people living in California and NYC who don't even know about BookOff - which is pretty much the greatest resource I know for legally buying cheap Japanese CDs. (It's a used book/CD/manga shop.) Many people complain about CDs costing too much and don't have a clue that a place like BookOff has entire $3 CD sections.

Er, bottom line - most people's idea of a panel these days is showing a bunch of Dir en grey videos, some Malice Mizer, Gackt, and for "variety", maybe Pierrot or Penicillin. And without a doubt, they will say that Japanese rock began with X-Japan.

It's not that hard of a task to look this information up beforehand, and cover actual topics in a panel that may be (and probably are) of interest to people. If you want to do it, all you need is the desire to inform people (or at least, not mis-inform them.) There's only so much you can cover in a panel - and if you're worried about not knowing the essentials, you can ask for help and opinions at places like this guild. (Er, sorry for guild-pimping biggrin )

I would like to know where to actually buy the CD's In america,
My mall has them and there was a big Openeing day, but damn Everyone like bought somthing other then the Cd's (THey dont sell them anymore)
anyway,
I've noticed that people from AMerica, That dont like J-rock and know exactly what it is and like it.They think they need somthing cool and new and hip..from the greatess place in the freakin world,
But they buy somthing from ENgland or Scotland, or what ever.

Hm, well for me personally, I love J-rock, and would like to have more J-rock available to buy here in America [overseas shipping from Japan is a b***h], HOWEVER, I don't want to see J-Rock becoming some kind of stupid trend here in America among mall goths and scene kids.
I'm sure there are those who fit into those categories, enjoy J-Rock, and can support the bands for who they are and not just because 'Japan is cool, anything that comes out of Japan must be trendy and awesome to wear/listen to/do!"
But for the most part, I can't see that as being the majority of people in those groups, and I would hate for J-Rock to turn into the next Hello Kitty trend [ToT; why'd they make her so trendy?] or something.

Take a look at Dir en Grey for example. I don't so much care for them anymore, since they're trying [embarrassingly hard] to sway from the experimental music to something more radio friendly [if you will], and just poppy. But since they started their American tour, Hot Topic has been spitting out Japanese rock magazines left and right, and suddenly everyone and their half sister's brother twice removed, is becoming obsessed with Japan, and 'this amazing new Japanese rock band' Dir en Grey.

I went to see Diru play in Chicago in February and was throughly disappointed, as planned. I had expected them to at least play a few songs from their older albums, but who was I kidding? They're touring America to gain fans and make more money, not try to show off who they used to be.
But as I stood there, I noticed that the place was packed FULL of underage children, most in middle school and high school [maybe around 9-11th grade]. I'm not trying to bash on anyone in the guild who's still in high school and liked their old stuff, blah de blah, whatever. Point being, all these little children probably had NO idea who Dir en Grey used to be, and only decided to listen to them, and even attend the show because Hot Topic supported them with magazines and T-shirts, and because it just became the next trendy and hip [as other people have mentioned] thing.

I would really REALLY hate to see more Japanese rock music become something like this.
There are fortunately, a lot of Americans and Europeans who listen to J-Rock, and can appreciate the music for more than just the visual aspects of it. There are people who either know Japanese and can understand the lyrics that are being sung, or who take the time to find the translations and try to find out what message that band is trying to give to its audience. But unfortunately, there are a s**t load of Americans and Europeans that don't do that, and who only want to listen to something because it's trendy and looks cool.