Kobayashi Yusuke (THE NOVEMBERS) / Riki Kinoshita (art-school) - Asagaya LOFT - 12/23/11

THE NOVEMBERS / Odottebakarinokuni 踊ってばかりの国 - Shibuya Eggman - 12/05/11

THE NOVEMBERS - 「To Two( )melt into holy」 tour final - SHIBUYA-AX

Setlist:

01. 永遠の複製
02. 瓦礫の上で
03. はじまりの教会
04. 小声は此岸に響いて
05. アマレット
06. こわれる
07. ニールの灰に
08. 夢のあと
09. pilica
10. sea's sweep
11. 終わらない境界
12. 日々の剥製
13. dysphoria
14. dnim
15. 彼岸で散る青
16. holy

17. melt
18. 再生の朝

THE NOVEMBERS - 「To Two( )melt into holy」- Nagoya CLUB QUATTRO - 11/20/11

Setlist:

1.永遠の複製
2.瓦礫の上で
3.はじまりの教会
4.小声は此岸に響いて
5.ブルックリン最終出口
6.こわれる
7.ニールの灰に
8.夢のあと
9.pilica
10.seas sweep
11.終わらない境界
12.日々の剥製
13.dysphoria
14.dnim
15.彼岸で散る青
16.holy
——————————
17.melt
18.再生の朝

THE NOVEMBERS - 「To Two( )melt into holy」- Osaka umeda AKASO - 11/19/11

Setlist:
set list
01.永遠の複製
02.瓦礫の上で
03.はじまりの教会
04.小声は此岸に響いて
05.アマレット
06.こわれる
07.ニールの灰に
08.夢のあと
09.pilica
10.sea's sweep
11.終わらない境界
12.日々の剥製
13.dysphoria
14.dnim
15.彼岸で散る青
16.holy

01.melt
02.再生の朝
http://milltank.jugem.jp/?eid=2

Sekaiichi - Shelter - 11/14/11

THE NOVEMBERS - 「To Two( )melt into holy」 - Hiroshima Namiki Junction - 11/13/11

OverTheDogs - Club Quattro - 11/11/11

LUNKHEAD - Club QUE - 10/23/11

Sekaiichi - 「おめでとうセカイイチ! Another Second Hand Release Party」 - O-West - 10/19/11

THE NOVEMBERS / People In The Box / tacica 「TOMOE」 - Saitama HEARTS - 10/16/11

Setlist:


１　永遠の複製
２　瓦礫の上で
３　ブルックリン最終出口
４　夢のあと
５　こわれる
６　she lab luck
７　彼岸で散る青

THE NOVEMBERS / People In The Box / tacica 「TOMOE」 - Nara NEVERLAND - 10/09/11

People In The Box / THE NOVEMBERS / tacica 「TOMOE」 - Okayama IMAGE - 10/08/11

THE NOVEMBERS / People In The Box / tacica 「TOMOE」 - Tokushima Grindhouse - 10/06/11

TOMOE - THE NOVEMBERS／People In The Box ／ tacica - Kochi X-Pt - 10/05/11

THE NOVEMBERS／People In The Box ／ tacica - TOMOE - Matsuyama Saloon Kitty - 10/04/11

THE NOVEMBERS／People In The Box ／ tacica - TOMOE - Utsunomiya HEAVEN'S ROCK - 09/26/11

art-school / your gold, my pink - Shelter - 09/18/11

OverTheDogs / The SALOVERS / SuiseiNoboAz / Tokyo Korankoron - Shindaita Fever - 09/16/11

killing Boy / group_inou - Shindaita Fever - 09/12/11

Tsubaki Friends - Isshiki's Birthday!!! - Shinjuku LOFT - 09/11/11

THE NOVEMBERS - Kobayashi Yusuke - Tower Records - 05/27/12

THE NOVEMBERS - Hamamatsu FORCE (08/25/11)

OverTheDogs / Sekaiichi / CreepHype - Shinjuku LOFT (08/24/11)

andymori / analogfish - Shibuya Club Quattro (08/19/11)

OverTheDogs / Lyu:Lyu - Koenji WARPS (08/17/11)

THE NOVEMBERS - Shibuya Tower Records (08/16/11)

OverTheDogs / Sister Jet - Tachikawa BABEL (08/10/11)

Art-School / Plastic Tree / back number - RockInJapanFes 11 (08/07/11)

OverTheDogs / Sister Jet - Hachioji RIPS (08/03/11)

THE NOVEMBERS / tabaccojuice - Quip&5 - Shimokitazawa Shelter (07/18/11)

Lyu:Lyu / the storefront / BARICANG - Club 251 - 07/17/11

The Challenge - Shinjuku LOFT - 07/16/11

The Novembers / Sister Jet - Club Quattro - 07/14/11

New Songs, Old Bands - Tsubaki, The Novembers, Lunkhead

So.... THE NOVEMBERS will be releasing their new album soon!!!

SOOOOO SUPER STOKED!!!

Well, actually, I'm a little scared they'd disappoint. But.... Yesterday, I went for their shows and it was the first time they played quite a few number off their new album, they were really good!! (I wouldn't say FANTASTICALLY AWESOME OUT OF THIS WORLD though). The first song they played was really, REALLY, REALLY amazing... The other two songs that had a lot of the usual The Novembers screaming, I thought, were not as powerful as their previous angry screaming songs (oh but I oh so love Kobayashi-san). The customary slow track was, not as melodious as their previous customary slow song track (Like "Mer" off last year's album) BUTTTTTTTT it was a MUCH MUCH MUCH MUCH better, well crafted song.


ANYWAY, that aside.

Was just thinking about all the bands (Japanese) that I like and their new songs. I often listen to the new songs and think "Hmm... How good is this?"

And I gotta say that of all the new songs/new albums I've heard, it's very sad to say but Lunkhead had the WEAKEST release.

Weakest, in the sense that... the one that attracted me the least.


I went for Lunkhead's Tour Final one man live show for their latest album on Sunday...

Actually, AS ALWAYS, Lunkhead's songs are incredibly MUCH MUCH MUCH MUCH more amazing live than the album versions.

So actually, live, the songs off their newest albums are actually REALLY quite good.

But for the album itself, it is... VERY WEAK, compared to the other bands.

Kobayashi Yusuke (The Novembers) Solo - 07/12/11

hmmmm...... I think................................................ I've chosen my loyalties!..... and I think NOVEMBERS is beginning to win my heart more and more..... Or well, at least, their brilliance is!


So...... this show COMPLETELY TOTALLY clashed with not just LUNKHEAD but also Sekaiichi's performance together at Studio Coast. I really couldn't decide which one I wanted to go for... I mean, DUDE!! it's Mr. Angel's band AND LUNKHEAD playing together man!!! It's sure to be a once in a lifetime thing!!!!

But dammit!! It's also Kobayashi's solo!! And I have NEVER seen his solo!!! Dudeeee okay... well maybe I am secretly in love with him haha!

OverTheDogs \ caroline rocks \ The Flickers - Shelter - 07/11/11

Lunkhead - Tour Final - Liquidroom - 071011

Riki Kinoshita (木下理樹) / the chef cooks me - Shibuya O-Nest (07/09/11)

This was my first time going to O-Nest.
Shibuya O is a whole massive block of 6 or 7 venues meshed into a corner of a blackalley in Dogenzaka. There's O-East, O-West, O-Crest, O-West, O-Nest, Duo Music Exchange and Shibuya 7th Floor (I think there's one more venue there, but I'm not sure and I only found out yesterday that Shibuya 7th Floor was on the 7th Floor, one floor above O-Nest... CONFUSING! )

So it was my first time going to O-Nest.

O-Nest is split into two.
On the 6th floor is the bar and lounge space, where you wait to line up to get into the live house. The live house is one floor below, on the 6th Floor.

It's actually really nicely set up. I really like the atmosphere of the bar, and I also like that the live house is downstairs. The live house floor itself also has a really nice atmosphere. However, not a good one for viewing if you're standing behind. The stage is totally not that high. There's no barricade between the floor and the stage. At the back there is an elevated platform, which is good to stand for short people lol.


So anyway, today, I wasn't too sure which side of the stage to stand. My ticket number was quite a nice one "12". So I knew I could get in front. But Kinoshita changes sides.
I think with Art-School the takes the middle of the stage and killing boy he usually takes the left side of the stage, when he does acoustic shows with Toddy, he takes the left, a little in the middle.
So I was thinking, the best place to plant myself was perhaps somewhere between the left and the middle.

When I got in, there was a gap in the front row down in the middle, but I was too shy to stand there... So I stood in the second row, selfishly occupying a biggggg space so that I could either move further left or further middle, depending on where Riki set up (he was the second to play).


When he DID set up, he took the middle of the stage, and was WAYYYYYYYYYYYY too close!

For some reason, the two girls in front of me left quite a gap in the middle, so on the second row, i filled in that gap and it was RIGHT IN FRONT of Riki.

DUDEEEEEEEE

TOO DAMN CLOSE FOR COMFORT!!!

And I was thinking to myself, "sooooooooooooo incredibly close but I couldn't be more worlds apart."


SO ANYWAY, it was ONLY Riki on an acoustic guitar. Not even an acoustic electric... It was just an acoustic guitar.

Hmmm thankfully I am a fan, otherwise I'd have been bored!

BUT IT WAS REALLY GREAT!!!

Surprisingly, Riki played A LOT of songs... He kept shuffling through his song sheets trying to find a song. It was funny. He was so disorganized, couldn't find the song he wanted, the sheets were falling all over. lol.


The live house was REALLY silent.
So after the first song he cracked some jokes and asked us if we were sleepy.

Then after the second song, he said that he was expecting to be the first one to open and was shocked that he was slotted for second, after the chef cooks me, and the chef cooks me was DAMNNNNNNNNNNNNN crazy.. So he said the atmosphere has plundged. And everyone laughed.


It was really cool though, Riki talked a lot more... Maybe coz he's the only one on stage and he has to defuse the silent atmosphere!!! So he cracked a lot of jokes. He said his fingers was hurting... WTH!!!!!! You're a guitarist!!!! But his fingers were hurting from playing the acoustic!! Which means... HMMM! He's not played the acoustic in years!! (I think since he was 24 or 26)...!! Wth!!!
Anyway he was joking with the people. He said his fingers REALLY hurt. And he told the audience to please write in the blog that he had tried hard that night. LOL.

And because the vocalist of the chef cooks me was there and he was screaming things to Riki.
After Riki said he was trying hard, the vocalist screamed back "gambatte ne!"
and Riki was like, "Omae dare da?!" (Who the heck are you?!")
Then the vocalist responded, "Fan desu." (I'm a fan)
Then there was a pause, then Riki replied, "O, arigatou"

ahahahahaha!


Then after a few songs Riki asked for the time and how long he had.... A LOT MORE... haha..

Then he asked for requests.
Then the vocalist of the chef cooks me screamed "Skirt".
And Riki replied "Muri!" (Impossible!)
Then Riki said it was really difficult to play the song because it's an electric song and it really requires a lot of strength and energy on the guitars. Lol! So with his fingers and errrr... the acoustic guitar it was MURI!
Then another fan requested another song, to which Riki took a few moments, thinking, looking at his song sheets before concluding... "Muri!"

lol.


Anyway, the vocalist of the chef cooks me asked him about his trip to Berlin and Riki went on to talk a lot about it. He was talking mostly about the nuclear energy and the energy conservation work being done there that made him really not want the kind of life over here in Japan. But he spoke really long, for like at least 3 minutes... I guess Riki talks after all :)

Sekaiichi - Daikanyama Unit - 07/06/11

Shimokitazawa Indies Fanclub 2011 - Arukara (アルカラ) / cero (06/26/11)

THE NOVEMBERS - Shibuya Club Quattro (06/25/11)

The Challenge / Yumemiteru (夢見てる) - Shimokitazawa Garage (06/25/11)

Czecho No Republic / Shinku Horou (真空ホロウ) / White White Sisters - Shibuya Tower Records (06/23/11)

OverTheDogs / Tokyo Karankoron (東京カランコロン) / Mitsu (蜜) - Shimokitazawa Basement Bar (06/21/11)

This was my first live at Basement Bar...
Kinda... terrible, no? Basement Bar is such a prolific Shimokita livehouse and yet this was the first time I had been there... Terrible.

Anyway, Basement Bar is next to Shimokita Three.. They're run by the same owners... It's one of those usual Shimokita live houses but I think it's a little bigger than Shelter but of course, smaller than Que. The stage seems quite high, compared with Que.. Kinda like Shelter's...

Anyway, tickets don't seem to have numbers in Basement Bar, so it's first come first served basis. Which is good... and bad, I suppose!


Anyway! Of course, I went to this show because of OverTheDogs, my Tsubaki-love replacement band. Hmmm...


Tokyo Karankoron (東京カランコロン)

Actually I had been wanting to check their songs out. By chance they were playing with OverTheDogs so that was cool! ^_^

An eccentric band that plays very quirky songs.

Actually, I think their vocalist, guitarist and drummer seem normal enough but their bassist is whacked and their female keyboardist is cute but weird.

Their songs translates into very quirky tunes but which utilizes a dual, female/male vocals very well.. The keyboardist also brings in other instruments like triangles, xylaphones, etc, that adds to the eccentricity of the songs.
They're not the experimental indie type, but more of like those indie female vocalist kind of groups.

Verdict:
I'll pay the 105 yen for a song or two on iTunes, but overall not my cup of tea.
Probably won't go to see them for a show, specifically, but don't mind seeing them with another band I really like.


Mitsu (蜜)

They're an Osaka duo, female vocalist and male backups and on guitar.

The girl is really cute, a wonderful singer with a very husky voice (sometimes the guy seems to sing in a higher pitch), and a natural performer. She dances around stage and completely puts on a role and does a really entertaining performance.

Their songs are, of course, acoustic based, so if you ever need a cool acoustic band to listen to, this is definitely a go.

I would pay for a CD, but... I forgot to buy :( Sorry.


OverTheDogs!

Wooo! It's the first time I've stood so close to the stage for an OverTheDogs show.. Although I got a good ticket for the previous show at ShibuyaWWW, I chose to stand further away to get a better view and not be killed by the speakers.

Anyway, this one I got killed by the speakers, but was okay. Seems like I think Basement Bar has better sound system than both Que and Fever, coz at least even though you're standing near the stage away from the speakers, the guitar amps on stage don't drown out the vocals.

Anyway, as again, they did NOT play any songs off Starlight in my Life (why did they bother to release those songs then anyway?!)... I think they have a whole throve of live-only songs, so they went through those. They're all really awesome... Sorry I don't know the track titles, but they're all very danceable and rocking at the same time. I think that's why I like OverTheDogs so much... They manage to skim the thin line between indie/pop and yet be rocking enough.
Great job!

Oh Tsune-san did not wear a hat today, but his shirt had an incredibly biggggg collar and I'm sure if girls could have boners, one or two must have been turned on by the look of his naked shoulder blades and... whatever muscle he has on his arm (surprisingly, for a thin dude like him, his arm looked quite well toned lol!)

Tsubaki Friends (つばきフレンズ) - Shimokitazawa Club Que (06/19/11)

Ropes - Shimokitazawa Three (06/18/11)

Ropes is a duo headed by Achico-san, formerly KAREN, and Art-School's guitarist.

She's been going around a lot doing a lot of shows with HINATA and Kinoshita Riki/The Novembers/Lostage & co. (They're all the same group of friends).

Also, I was interested in checking their show out after seeing their set on the HINATA UStream show... She had really cool tunes.


So it was my first time at Shimokita Three... For some reason, I've never been here for a show, I wonder why..

They were playing with another band Ilama.. But yeah.. I only went for Ropes haha!


So the set!


They played about 6 songs...

Being a duo most of their songs are guitar based, and apparently, although they started out wanting to play this show as an acoustic, the guitarist felt better playing the electric guitar. haha!

Achico-san has a really, really, really amazing voice that she controls perfectly and uses it to carve the textures of the songs. Amazing!

Of all the female vocalists' I've heard, Achico-san has the best voice.

Being just a duo on a guitar and synthesizer, naturally a lot of these bohemian-type bands would fall into an experimental-indie sound, but not so with Ropes. They maintain a nice balance between indie-vocals-pop-rock... sorta... Very radio friendly, of course, a band which is very accessible which I am sure anyone listening would definitely like.

I'm looking forward to the release of their first record in the Fall.

Today's Bands:

コンビニマンションテクニカラー - 名前もなくて / コンビニマンションテクニカラー
(Combini Mansion Technicolor - Namaemonakute)




Not bad at all, this band. Totally wouldn't mind checking them out live and buying their album.
Unfortunately, I think they are from Okayama, so they don't play in nor around Tokyo much.
Hope to catch them when they get here.


嘘つきバービー
(Usotsuki Barbie)



They've got weird beats. Not my cup of tea. Not weird beats in a catchy way like Andymori. Just weird beats.
They're here on the list because an American indie rock girl in Tokyo that I follow on Twitter was going to their show today and then I saw their name again when I was looking for bands. So decided to check them out.
It's a "no" tho.


NUMBER VOGEL - NAMIDA-no-HERO



Quite a nice band. Indie rock but more indie than rock, so, a little not my taste exactly.
Hmmm don't think I'll go for their show specifically but if they play with someone else, that's okay.


Best for Arch



Very, very, melodic "american" pop rock band, ala those 2004-onwards American pop-rock bands that came after Blink-182/The Starting Line/Armor For Sleep.. etc.. and the likes.

Sings in English.

Quite cool but.. ahe... I don't listen to Japanese-English bands... and also, I'm sick of those 2004-onwards American pop-rock bads cause they all sound the same.

The Novembers / Stan - Beat Happening - Shibuya LUSH (06/11/11)

THE NOVEMBERSSSSSS!!!!

I'm absolutely in love with the Kobayashi guy although he has such an ordinary name, Yusuke. (OH WHAT!!!! aaaaaaahhhhhh)

Gosh, he's so weird and intense!!!

Anyway, yes, the Novembers' set, as always, was intense as ever!!! Now I got to see them upclose, they're even more powerful and intense as ever! I love the way how everyone in the band is just in their own world and so immersed in the song when they're playing.

They're not like crazy as some bands go crazy on stage but they ARE DAMN INTENSE.

They didn't play either of the songs I was hoping they would play but it was a great set nevertheless.

Kobayashi-san didn't talk much again this time and basically just went through "arigatou", all the way till the last song, when they had to stop because there was a problem with the bass amp. So they had to get that fixed and Kobayashi-san had to entertain the crowd.
He first attempted to do so by singing a new song by himself. But stopped halfway.
Then he went on to introduce two CDs he bought. One was tobaccojuice's new album, the other was an English band which he kept repeating and told us not to forget, but opps, I forgot.
But it was really cool that he used the time to talk about other bands instead of his own. As the bands would usually take MC time to promote CDs or tours. I think he did mention a new CD release or something of that sort but see, it was so brief that i can't even recall. But I can recall his recommendations. Which was really cool he did that.


I was really disappointed with the crowd though, because despite all that intensity, no one moved. Or just a few did. No one was going crazy, no one was screaming, no one was going wild.
I would equate The Novembers' tunes to the likes of Thursday or even Thrice but The Novembers crowd are a failure. Seriously. I think it's because there are too many girls in this scene. Sometimes I wonder if they like the band for the music or like the band for the band.

I mean if a band gave their best and put their everything into the songs, which The Novembers did, the least you could do is RESPOND by bobbing your head, AT LEAST. AT LEAST move your head! or tap your feet. AT LEAST. I mean if you saw the intensity of this band, SERIOUSLY, that is the VERY LEAST you could do! Seriously.

Yet, I would say that 80% of the crowd, even the kids in front, were BARELY moving.

How saddening.

I mean clapping for a band is one thing, but letting their music drown you and take you over and get lost and lose yourself lose who you are in it... I believe THAT is the greater thing. Something which the scene I am in here in Japan sorely lacks.

And I really think it's because they're all mainly girls, the fans.

sigh.

People in the Box - Shibuya Parco (06/07/11)

I actually once liked People in the Box ALOT.
In fact today, I actually woke up with that song they had with "tatta ichido dake", acoustic song in my head.

I remember when I was taking the CELTA back in 2008, I had their songs on constant play.
In fact I think I can still recall going up the KLCC LRT station while listening to their songs. So their songs are a marker for that period of my life.

However, subsequently I had not checked out their newer albums.
A bad habit of mine. For some reason, once the band becomes famous or suddenly releases too many albums on short succession, I stop listening to the band. It's sooooooooooooooooo tedious to check out their new stuff when you haven't even processed in the first album entirely.
Same thing happened with D.W二コロズ, LOVELOVELOVE, Any, Androp... Hmm.. I guess all the newer bands... They had REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY good songs, actually! But like suddenly there's an explosion of 5 Albums and mini albums and a flood of 20 30 songs..
Forget it, am not gonna check them out.


SO thus it was in this atmosphere that I went for their One Man Live at Parco, a movie theater, no less. WHY?!


So anyway, the set.


Acoustic.

They started with an acoustic set.
It was INCREDIBLY quiet.
I mean these Japanese indie rock shows are already usually incredibly quiet. Couple that with having an acoustic show ANDDDDD in a frigging seated movie theater, it was beyond pin drop silence. I swear there was more buzz going on in the crowd in my History of Ancient Civilization hall room back in college, than in this show.

Because it was so quiet, I think, so the vocalist and the drummer really overcompensiated by trying to talk more and more and more and more.. I mean they were funny and all that but all I was thinking was "Dude, get on with the show already!". So that's not good.

However, as for the songs, they did a very good rendition of their sets! I think of so many rock bands, I think People in the Box translates their songs the best into acoustic versions. It was very well done! Well.. I guess if they're confident enough to play a dual set, one of which was completely acoustic, I guess they are damn good with an acoustic arrangement of their songs to begin with.
So on that note, the vocalist played his parts really, really well! You can see his skills shine through the techniques. Incredibly well done!
The drummer too was incredible in translating percussion into an acoustic arrangement and stood as a very strong backbone for the rest of the band to build on acoustically. Well done!

Highlight of the acoustic set was their cover of Nirvana's All Apologies.... Well, the vocalist nearly ruined it by going on and on and on about something.. He started by talking about when he first heard Nirvana when he was in Junior High School. After that he went to talk about something that happened in the recording studio which I couldn't follow and didn't bother to follow because it was just too long (kinda like this sentence).

But it was really cool they covered Nirvana.

It's true... If you were born anywhere between 1978 - 1985/6, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Oasis, Radiohead and the likes will always be part of your music history. Hell yeah.


Anyway, they had an intermission and played a video at that time. It was about their drummer being dragged from Tokyo to Nagoya to Osaka to try out Ramen. It was really funny.

And FINALLY, the real electric set started with the vocalist screaming: Don't just sit!

And so everyone got up but yeah.............

that was about as much moving as Japanese audiences would give their bands.

Standing up.

C'MON people!!!


I don't understand Japanese crowd.

This is a One Man Live.

A SOLD OUT One Man Live.

And YET! No one moved =_=

In fact, there was probably only 4 people in the whole entire theater who were rocking out.


Fucking Japan.

Yeah..

AREN'T YOU FANS?!

Geez..

side bands.

I really like side bands.. hahaha... I find it so damn weird/funny/cool coz basically it's like 3 different bands coming together to be another different band. haha. And I find it so weird/funny coz when you see the merch and equipment, it has the original band's writing on it. Haha..

Like when The Challenge plays, I think it's so cool.. There was one time Ryo was using a LUNKHEAD towel... and then Sawada-san made a joke out of it.. like "WHAT THE HELLLLL...". And in their Shinjuku LOFT show, cutie TJ was using a hare-brained unity towel... SO WEIRD!!!
And then at the killing boy show, at the killing boy merch table, they were using art-school's money box (it had a BIGGGGGGGGGGGg art-school sticker on it). And even the container used to put the merch was art-school's because there were LOADS of art-school stickers stuck on it.
And equipment, on the enclosure, it's written the original band's name... Like in killing boy, the drum set had "Nothing's Carved in Stone" written on the casings.

WEIRD!

060411 - Kei Iwasaki presents "もうガマンできないよっ！ Vol.4" - Shibuya Duo Exchange

I was thinking, if Ucchi hadn't helped me out last year, if I'd be going for so many Sekaiichi events..... Actually, probably not. Although, I must say, they can sometime have really, really incredible sets. For a band that's not entirely rock, a little more folkish, I think Iwasaki Kei really, really heats up and energizes the lives a hundred folds.


Anyway. So I wasn't sure what kind of event this was going to be.

It was like Kei Iwasaki event with Sekaiichi as supporting band. And I was like "wha-? Isn't Kei Iwaski Sekaiichi?? If he plays with Sekaiichi, how... how are they the 'supporting band'.. Together the 4 of them ARE the band... right...?" Confusing.

Anyway.

Yeah, so it turns out that what it is is that Kei invites 5 vocalists from other bands to perform OTHER BANDS' songs, and Kei doesn't sing, he just plays with the other members of Sekaiichi (so doesn't that still make it Sekaiichi????) and the other vocalists sing.

Confusing.

Very cool though.


Anyway, so yeah. He had 6 people come out to play.

He first started the set with an English song, and then the first person who sang was the vocalist of A Flood Circle. He sang about 5 songs and covered a Sekaiichi tune (NOTE: Not a Kei Iwasaki song, although the song was written by Kei Iwasaki, so which is it??? Confusing. haha).
Second guy was a little crazy. I think he's the vocalist of mono..
He too covered a Sekaiichi song, or was it two??

Anyway, then they took a break, because as Kei said it "All of us are of an average of 30 years old... so.." haha!

OLD.

Then after the intermission, they had two more vocalist who came up to sing.

The night was wrapped up by Kei who did covers of songs he liked..
They didn't play any Sekaiichi song cause as Kei said it, we (the fans) were not there to hear Sekaiichi songs.



Anyway, it was quite a nice night. Something different from the usual Sekaiichi.
And I thought it was very, very cool of Kei Iwasaki to feature other bands.
That they're musicians, they're not just a band.
Which I think it's awesome.
Especially in Japan where in this industry, you're always identified by your band.

060111 - SF - Tsukimiru Kimi Omofu

So!! I FINALLY checked out SF!!!!

They're the band I stumbled across when I went into (note: went INTO but did NOT stay for) STaN's show to buy the tickets to the The Novembers/STaN show.

SOOOOO ANYYYYYWAYYYYY...

Tsukimiru Kimi Omofu is a really weird livehouse! Actually, I really liked the atmosphere there. "Tsukimiru" is like... See the moon? So behind the stage there's a backdrop of a HUGEEEEEE moon.

Anyways, it has a nice laidback atmosphere.. But it's also really weird.
I was in the gallery above before SF's set and someone upstairs like dropped an ashtray on the floor. He went down to the mosh pit and looked for the vocalist of the first band that had played.
Subsequently, the vocalist came up with a dustpan and cleaned up the mess!
WTH!!! So it's like... he's the club staff or what?!
It was so weird.
Also I saw the vocalist of SF serving a bowl of noodles to an elderly man at a table.
SO WHAT NOW?!

Weird.


Anyway, SF's set was quite short. About 6 songs. I was hoping they would play EO, but they didn't. They did play that song that first totally blew me away and caught my attention at the STaN show. So that was kick ass!!

That one song and EO is actually very unlike SF's usual songs. Those two songs were very rock-based, with driving basslines and a catchy melody.

In actuality though, SF seems more like those Japanese indie-pop-rock type of bands. Keyboards, guitar and jazzy-pop tunes. Still good though, but usually not something that I normally listen to. Good nevertheless. Might probably check them out again.


Oh, and the female vocalist/guitarist of SF is married to STaN's guitar/vocalist!!!

When I was going into the live house, they were in front of me and kinda talking back and forth discussing something and I was trying to get past them. I thought he looked familiar. At first I thought he was the drummer of SF, but then after that, I thought he might be the drummer of STaN or maybe the vocalist....

Turned out to be the vocalist.

He seemed really proud of her. He was taking a lot of pictures and stuff and waving to her.

HOW CUTE!

haha.

(he's damn weird in his own shows though!)

053111 - killing boy / Lostage - Shindaita FEVER

Ok, I totally take back what I said about Kinoshita Riki and his guitar parts in killing boy!


So, today, I got a "close enough" ticket number of 36 to get in the second row of the mosh pit and promptly planted myself on the left side of the stage which is Kinoshita's side. For killing boy's line-up, his side of the stage is on the left.

Today's event was a two-man live with Lostage. Actually, it was announced quite last minute and I already had tickets to the Lyu:Lyu and the storefront show at Shibuya O-Crest. BUT.. of course, I am absolutely in love with killing boy and have a *shhhhhh* secret *hush* *hus* crush on Kinoshita (sometimes, depending on my mood and if his picture looks cute ha!). So yes, OF COURSE I'd go for killing boy's show instead!! Plus, they were playing with Lostage, who's a very close friend to Kinoshita, and whom I knew and really like ONE of their song, Kodomotachi.

Anyways, I was really, really happy too because Kinoshita had replied my tweet earlier that day. I hadn't expected him to reply. He would be going to Germany the day after this show and was tweeting in GERMAN. So I tweeted him back and asked if he was practicing for Germany and asked him not to get lost in Germany. HE ACTUALLY REPLIED.

so happy~~~ *bliss*


ANYWAYS.

LOSTAGE:

So Lostage played first and HOLY HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLl I couldn't believe my luck but they actually played KODOMOTACHI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I mean what were my chances?! I knew only ONE of their songs and that ONE song was played!!!

Here it is, check it. I missed the opening riffs cause I didn't think they'd play anything I knew to record the entire set (and I was running out of space on my iPhone ha!)

But it was really funny during one of the MC... They said that they were gonna play a new song but then added "well every song is probably a new song to everyone" hahahaha because everyone was there to see killing boy ^_^;; haha...



ANYWAYS:

killing boy.

So this show was broadcasted over UStream and I am sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo happy that my friend, PEARLY, actually checked out the ENTIRE show!!!! AWESOME FRIEND, I tell ya!!!


Anyways, yes, killing boy.

They played a total of 11 songs plus one (or is it two?) new songs.

They left their "most famous" song, Call 4 U, last, as an encore.

But according to Pearly, the response on UStream was wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more enthusiastic than in the actual show.. hahahahaha..

Actually, I think so too... The clap for the encore was really weak, almost customary. But I think maybe it's the composition of killing boy fans and their songs?

Their songs aren't really like ROCKING OUT, you know what I mean? OF COURSE the band was like frigging cool just jamming it, especially the bassist but... I think maybe the fans are there because they're all fans of the various bands represented in killing boy, and not ACTUAL killing boy fans themselves.
And maybe it's the arrangement of the set list that didn't build up to a climax before the encore. The last two songs before the encore was intense but, maybe 2 songs weren't enough to pull the energy up.
Also, wellllllllllllllllllllllllll.... I wouldn't exactly call Kinoshita nor any other of the band really ENGAGING with the audience, if you know what I mean! I don't think Kinoshita is known for energizing the audience by engaging them... making them laugh, yes, but energizing the audience through sheer showmanship, a definite NO.

So I guess that's why the encore was less than.... stimulating. ha!


BUT ANYWAY, as I mentioned earlier... I DO take back what I said about Kinoshita's guitar playing because FINALLY I could hear his parts, being plunked right in front of his amp and since he was RIGHT THERE, could see him play the guitar parts ^_^ And I must say, he's a damn good guitarist!


Anyway, I thought Kinoshita was going to cry when he was doing his MC at the encore... Hmmm is he known for being teary-eyed??? But I swear he was going to cry, he was very touched by the 2600 people who were watching on UStream, and he was very thankful... But he also talked about how he's also thinking of all the people who can't be there because of the earthquake and nuclear disaster and things like that... I REALLY thought he was gonna cry!!!! And the bassist even asked if he was okay!!!

Oh, and also, after the show, I saw the lead singer of The Novembers there too ^___^
Well they had mentioned over twitter that they were going to be there.. But it's nice to see him. He cute. lol.

Sekaiichi / sleepy ab - Daikanyama Unit - 05/27/11

051911 - The Challenge - Shinjuku LOFT

EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. I'm going for a lot of The Challenge shows, aren't I? hmmmmmm.

BUT I DO SO DAMN LIKE THEM VERY MUCH!!!!!!!

lol~~~

Seriously, they play very cool songs and Sawada-san is ALWAYS REALLY REALLY funny. Like the village clown. And their shows are always, always very energetic.


So anyway, this is one of their rare lives outside of Shimokita! In fact the first live in other than Garage. haha. Completely stoked!

First time I've seen their name on a kombini ticket too!! Wow!!!



ANYWAY.

So yes... They played their usual set that includes Onegai Music, Playboy, Twitter, Live House, etc... The only songs they left out this time were Wedding Song and... I think they left out Mr. Children ni Naritai.

The crowd, like the Garage show, was completely stoked when they played Aitai Aitai Cho Aitai!! This HAS TO BE their signature, first single (although, technically, Onegai Music was their first single). Everyone was really up and moving and grooving along with this one, even those who didn't know the song nor the band coz well, it's a damn easy chorus and incredibly catchy haha!
And, as always, *phew* thankfully for my pleasure, they ended their set with Ogenki Desu ka. I totallllllyyyyyyy love this song!! haha!


I thought Sawada-san wasn't at his ABSOLUTE most hillarious though! He's usually damn funny, he was still very funny today, of course, but I thought he actually cut down on his jokes!!! He was joking a lot about Super Beaver's vocalist having very, very thin legs though! haha...

051511 - OverTheDogs - ShibuyaWWW

HMMMM... I made sure I was back in time for this show!!!!!

Anywayyyyyyy... This was my first show after coming back to Japan. Yesssss~~~ What a great way to end the first half of Japan with The Challenge and start the second half with OverTheDogs... I think!

Anyway.

It's at ShibuyaWWW again. Hm. The last time I saw them was also at ShibuyaWWW.

But this time, I got like a ticket number of below 10, SOOOO i could chose a nice spot ^_^


撃鉄 (Gekkitetsu)

Ok. This is the reason why Japan is frigging weird.

So the vocalist came out half naked on nothing but a tight leather leotard, totting a hugeeeeee tiger stuff animal on his shoulder.

Kinda, urm, a foreshadowing of things to come.

Anyway, he was really rocking it out. Some part of the show, he reminded me of Anthony Green of RHCP... well only his LOOKS, NOT the music.

There were a lot of guitars, some screaming, and a lot of WTF???

And to end the set, wow, he TOPPED Adam Lazzara of Taking Back Sunday, by climbing up 30 feet into a crane hanging over the live house, then climbed 15 feet up onto the speakers totting a WHITE tiger soft toy on his shoulder and JUMPING DOWN.

Set end.

wtf.


Cure Rubbish.

Hmmmm.... Zenzen obotenai... I can't remember their set at all.....

But, I am sure they were a guitar rock band... Their songs were probably.. erm... normal, and just blended into the craziness of the previous band and my love for OverTheDogs next.

SORRY!



OverTheDogs

They lauched straight into their set after Tsune-san finished sound checking without bothering with the usual introductions and all.

Cool.

I think they probably played only 1 or 2 songs from their "debut" album, Starlight in my Life... The other songs I think were off a previous album or live-shows only songs... Which is really surprising...
I would think that most of their fans are newer fans, than from their previous years of playing shows... But I wonder...

Tsune-san was, as usual, incredibly weird, but cool.

I guess I like OverTheDogs because of their songs. I also like OverTheDogs because coupled with good songs is a vocalist that's different and usual, wrapped up in his own world.

042911 - The Challenge - Shimokitazawa Garage

ouhhhhhhhhhh!!!

My last show before going back to Malaysia (: :)

Actually, I thought I'd have to miss this show, coz we were trying to get flight back on the 28th but couldn't get it. So 29th was the next earliest... But coz I procrastinated, I ended up going back on May 1st earliest!


Anyway, I didn't wanna miss The Challenge. I've been to all their shows since their third show!! So I don't wanna miss any!!!

Plus, I really like their shows and I'm in love with TJ-san.

And I think this was their first show since their UStream broadcast.
Oh and that girl I always see at Tsubaki shows was there too! First time I've seen her at a Challenge show.

Anyways. Yessssss...

Garage is The Challenge's usual trawl.


I don't know who's the first band that played but it was a conglomeration of like lots of people, including the vocalist of DW Nicols (Yes, they're alllllllllllll friends).


In The Challenge's set today, they premiered a NEW SONG!!!!!!!1


AITAI AITAI CHO AITAI (I wanna meet, I wanna meet, I really wanna meet you)

HOLY COW! It's a damnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn catchy song!!!
Once you hear it, damn! The song will be stuck in your head!!!!!!!!
A definite winner!!!!!


I guess that's why I like this band. Even though this is like a side band for 4/5 of all their members, they actually come up with really really good songs! Sometimes songs that are actually better than those new "REAL" bands out there.. Their songs are very catchy guitar rock styled. Awesome to dance and rock out to.. haha!

Aitai Aitai Cho Aitai!


I'm looking forward to their next show when I come back!

Thank you, The Challenge.

Thank you, Japan.

Mata ne!

042311 - セカイイチ (Sekaiichi) Folklore Tour Final One Man Live @ Shibuya O-West

SF- EO

Holycow!!!! This was a totally unexpected find!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


So I went to Shibuya Yaneura today to BUY A TICKET. wth...

YES, because I missed the ticket sales yesterday for the STAn/The Novembers Shibuya LUSH show in June. For some unknown reason, the show sold out. WITHIN 10 hours. I mean what are the chances of that??? For some reason, on their own, neither bands sell out, but put them together, they SOLD OUT!

So I couldn't get the ticket. Lawson, online and in the stores, sold out. I even called Shibuya LUSH to check and the shop tickets are sold out and so was Lawson.

So, in desperation, since The November's HP didn't say anything, I checked STAn's page to see if STAn's page listed another way to get the ticket and LO AND BEHOLD!!! There was ONE LAST option left! Apparently, the tickets will be sold at their shows!

SO YES, my DESPERATE plan, was to try to go to a STAn live and check to see if they sold the tickets for the The Novembers show in June. KINDA roundabout!!! wth.... I want to see The Novembers.... all tickets are SOLD OUT... So I check out the OTHER band that will be playing with them to see if they have tickets.... And apparently they might have, but that requires me to go for the other's band's show, just to check to see if they do... GEEZZZZZZZZZ... Do I even like The Novembers that much???


BUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT....... LUCKY (Or UNLUCKY) me, STAn had a show the very next day!!!!!!!!!

EXCEPT that it CLASHED with Sekaiichi's show :(


BUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT Luck has it, for some odd reason, Sekaiichi's show started REALLY early, at 5p.m. and since it was a One Man Live, it would end by 7 or 7:30... probably...

ANDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD Lucky me, fate has it, both shows were in SHIBUYA!!!

STAn's show started at 7, so I would be able to make it to the STAn show to check to see if they really sold the tickets, after the Sekaiichi show.

So that's exactly what I did!!!

Sekaiichi ended at like 7:20, and I got to Yaneura by 7:30ish....


And fate would have it... I was JUST IN TIME for the LAST SONG of the opening act, SF.

THE SONG WAS GREAT!!!!!

It was one of those heavy mellow post-rock kind of sounds, but the last song had very, very catchy English bits, and it was more heavy and rocking than it was mellow and depressing, was like INCREDIBLE!!!!

I really wanted to buy their CD but unfortunately, there were like 3 CDs, and each CD was 2100 yen and above... I wasn't sure which disc to get (based on just ONE song I heard) and as good as they may be, I wasn't ready to shell out 2100yen blindly just based on 1 song..

BUT MOST DEFINITELY WORTH CHECKING OUT!!!!!!!!!!!! TOTALLY AWESOME!!!!!

Which I DID check out!!

Will definitely buy their 2nd album and when they have other live, will definitely go!!!!


AND MOST OF ALL TOO...


THEY SOLD THE THE NOVEMBERS/STAn TICKETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So I got my tickets!!!!!
3000yen more than the usual.
Coz I had to get into the show.
BUT OH WELL!!! I found a good band!!!! SF!!!!


(Yes, I left right after I got the ticket. I really DID literally go in for the show just to get a ticket... I like STAn, but not enough to stay ANOTHER show just to see them... Plus, I was with my friend! YES! I went to a show (Sekaiichi) with a friend!!! WOAH!!!!!)

042211 - The Novembers - Shindaita FEVER

I'm absolutely in love with The Novembers. nuff said.

haha ok actually no..

It's surprising how many The Novembers songs I actually recognized in their set!! Seriously! I wasn't able to sing to the songs but I actually knew the songs, WOW!

BUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

what clenched my heart was that... They played AMULET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Actually, I was hoping they play chernobyl (I like this song better, actually) coz they seem to play that song more often, but surprisingly they actually played AMULET!!!!!!!!!!!

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh BLISS!

Ima go their shows from now on!!


Anyway, I don't know many of The Novembers' song coz... their songs are a quite post rock. Muffled vocals drowned in grungy loud guitars with overflowing bass and crazy drumming... So, basically, not completely my cup of tea.

BUT.

The Novembers were one of those bands that I had been listening to on a continuous loop in the few months before I left Malaysia. I got hooked to their songs Amulet and Chernobyl, which is kick ass awesome. I can still see the road driving to Nilai where I taught in Ichikoh (a company) and listening to Amulet and Chernobyl. So, their songs still color my memories of the time before I left Malaysia.


SHOW:

So anyway, the show... The Novembers were the second band to play after this instrumental guitar band, that was just incredible with their driving guitars and crazy ass riffs.

It's my first time seeing The Novembers. Always failed to go for their shows and ACTUALLLLLLY, I also missed getting the tickets for THIS show and it sold out.. However, actually, this show was originally suppose to be on MARCH 11, YES, the day of the BIG EARTHQUAKE. So, the show was cancelled and postpone. SO, in the postponement, some people canceled their tickets so there were still a few tickets left and HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL I dragged my lazy ass to Shindaita Fever and lined up for a ticket!

SO there I was!

Anyway, their set was quite short. 7 - 8 songs.

BUTTTTTTTTTTT

oh man... If I thought Riki Kinoshita doesn't talk at live shows, The Novembers beat them hands down.

NONE of the members spoke at all the whole show. They rolled from one song to the next just pausing for "arigatou" and tuning. I think at the END, the vocalist FINALLY introduced the band's name,said his thanks to everyone and to Dip for the invitation to play together in the event and that was it.

AMAZING.

They didn't bother to talk about merch, tours and all those customary subjects bands should cover in their MCs.

WONDERFUL.

I'm smitten!


Anyway, I digress.

I don't know if it was just the composition of the audience or what, since this is a Dip event, but I'm somewhat disappointed by the crowd. Here there was this band playing incredibly intense, heartfelt energy all encompassing song and EVERYONE was just standing there, like sticks.

sigh.

Japan.


Anyway, as mentioned, the highlight of the show for me was when they played Amulet. I couldn't believe that they played it. But it was really surreal to hear it live.
But, as mentioned, I was very very surprised that I actually recognized and knew a lot of the songs they played. Which was nice, because it meant that I was not bored! haha..

But seriously, I am totally smitten.
Gonna try my best to go for every The Novembers show in Tokyo, if possible.

Yes.

So my 2en:

CD-able: most definitely.
Show-able: most definitely..
one-man-live-able: yes, because it probably means they'd probably play BOTH Amulet and Chernobyl! haha..


Setlist: (WOW! I found it!)

Misstopia
New Song
アマレット
New Song
New Song
dysphoria
こわれる
白痴
ガムシロップ

ab initio / Good Morning America / Jimmyhat / Cherry Nade - Shimokitazawa Garage - 04/16/11

killing boy / 曽我部恵一BAND / the telephones - Shibuya O-East - 04/14/11

HMMM... I bought this ticket on Yahoo Auctions... It sold out and I did NOT know that killing boy had a show... Kinoshita really should announce shows in advanced instead of having to suddenly stumbled upon the shows a little too late =_=

Anyway!

I got a nice ticket, though! So I was able to choose a nice spot. I chose to stay at the back, because I was going to leave early, as I do have to wake up at 5am everyday for work, you know!!!


killing boy

HUHU!!!!!!

Well killing boy only has a limited number of songs, so basically they played only the songs on the album ^_^

But they did have a new song today, which was a completely instrumental piece with the band jamming like made! Awesome, awesome!!

It's quite sad no one in the crowd knew killing boy :( Save for 1 or 2 of us... :(


曽我部恵一BAND

It turns out I've actually seen this band before!!!!!
Well not the band, but just the vocalist.
When he played with Sekaiichi at Shinjuku Jam last year.

I remembered he had some really nice songs but there were 4 bands playing that night and a 50 minute acoustic set of ONE GUY on a guitar was wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy too much.

BUT BUT BUT BUT BUT I remembered this guy because that night, he played a really catchy song called "Telephone Love" and got the very bored crowd to actually sing along with him. And tonight with his band, he got the crowd to REALLY, REALLY rock out with the song "Telephone Love" as dedicated to The Telephones!! hahaha..

It's really uncanny and I can't believe that this guy is the same band!

Coz that night, it was really, really slow and mellow.

But it turns out that his band is actually like a PUNK ROCK band.. NOT melodic punk, mind you, but actually PUNK ROCK! And they had a bunch of fans in the pit that were just going crazy moshing.

WOAH!!!!!


the telephones.

what can I say but... "WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

It's the FIRSTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT time I've seen, in Japan, the ENTIRE CROWD in the rocking out with a band!!!!

Usually only the front would be moving about but DAMNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!! I think all 1000 people in the pit were just dancing, jumping, moshing and going wild!!!!!

IN FACT!!! This was the FIRST SHOW EVER in Japan that I've actually seen... A CIRCLE PIT!!!

WTH!!!!!!!!

A CIRCLE PIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOAAAAAAOAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!


The Telephone's songs are like a mix of rock and disco.. Not hare-brained unity type but like rock rock rock and lots and lots and lots of disco beats!!!

They also sing in English.

Very very catchy and I really loved the song they sang to unite the kids in lights of earthquake...

But...

Hmm..

I doubt kids there think much about changing this world. And probably more about clothing and fashion or something...

Why do I always think that Japanese kids are so shallow?

sigh.

sorry.

ha!

Freenote / Uranino (ウラニーノ) / Guest: Tsubaki's 小川博永（つばき）- Shimokitazawa Club Que - 04/07/11

SO! I went for my first ACTUAL Freenote Live! ^_^


Actually I went for this show coz Ogawa-san was making a guest appearance and with Okamoto-san supporting on drums for Freenote, well... this was the closest I could come to to seeing Tsubaki (; ;) How sad it is, how sad it is indeed...


ANYWAY!

Yes.

SO! Uranino played and FINALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLY I figured out where that guy who sometimes appears with Tsubaki Friend's was from... He's the vocalist of Uranino.

ANDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD FINALLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY I figured out where that CRAZYYYYYYYYYYY guy Piston was from. He's the bassist of Uranino. WTH. He's ACTUALLY a bassist. woah.

OverTheDogs - Shibuya WWW - 04/03/11

cathy lost one's apricot / shepherd / nano sound museum - Shimokitazawa club251 - 04/01/11

This is my second time at club251. The first time was during shimokita roundup3 for セカイイチ show. It seemed bigger back then! I didn't know it was so small. Seriously.

And actually tonight's show's headlining band was ROSARYHILL but I did not stay for their set. If I remember my checking them out years ago correctly, I think they're a punk rock band (but I might be wrong). They had their group of groupies tho. Seriously. Really cutely dressed group of girls who rushed over to the merch guy as soon as he showed up. Yes, every scene has its groupies.

Anyways, I found out about this show through cathy's lost's flyer (don't they have an abbreviation for their name?!) and I decided to check it out because they were playing with nano sound museum!! Which is Ogawa-san's side project!!! I had always wanted to check nano sound museum out because of Ogawa-san, ANDDDDDDDDDD if I remember correctly, I had wanted to check them out when I came here in 2009 because nano sound museum, if memory serves me well, is the band of the lead singer of the now defunct band, coin (pronounced co-in), which I really liked.


Anyway, Club251 has been having a 音Power (sound power) events kinda thing since the earthquake. Also, that day was April 1st. Which is not just April's Fools day but also, in Japan, it's the first day of the fiscal year and the first day where all the new graduates and freshies enter the great big scary world of WORKING.
Anyway I was thinking, while I was watching cathy lost's set and the lead was singing. He blogged a couple of days ago about graduating and how it was the end of 22 years of education. Seeing him sing there, so young, I can't help but feel "kudos" to these bands and to these kids... Here they were, on the first day of what was suppose to be for them and for kids their age, the first day of responsibility/adulthood/growing up/surrendering dreams... there they were, not joining the rest of the workforce, not following along the path that Japanese society has set out for the... But instead there they were, playing to a crowd of 20 people of which probably 5 people knew who the hell they were, but there they were, following their hearts, following their love, following their passion, doing what they love, carving out their own paths, following their own ways and not betraying nor giving up on that which they love.

I am really glad there are kids like that in this world.

And I am glad to be there to see them and to give them whatever support that I can.


Anyway! To the bands!



1) cathy lost one's apricot yesterday

This is the second time seeing cathy lost. Like their previous set during the wild gun crazy release show at ReG, they barreled through the songs one after another, without stopping much. I guess the whole band is not fond of MC. I guess this is one guy who actually talks LESS than kinoshita. HM! I think while the other bands got to cover like 5 - 6 songs, cathy lost bulldozed through 8 - 10 songs... INCREDIBLE. Coz they didn't stop playing, I suppose!
Anyway, I didn't think that their performance was as powerful today, as in the wild gun crazy set. But I really like it when I was able to recognize their song "annonymous", the title track off their most recent EP.

つばきラブScale: probably around a 4


2) shepherd

WOW. HMMM! I found a band I liked!
They played 5 songs, if I'm not mistaken. Their first song was the type of upbeat dancey rockish song which I like very much. And it didn't sound like those typical bands these days either, so I was really, really impressed!
The second song was more mellow though and so were the rest of their set. The slower songs were also those type of slow, mellow yet catchy and hauntings songs that I like too, but recently, I really do prefer a band that I can tap my feet to!

So they turned out to be quite a mellow songs kind of band instead of the upbeat rockish band I had innitially thought they were.
And although, I don't think I would normailly pay 2000円 for 12 songs on 2 CDs... I think this band definitely has potential.. And I took a chance and bought their 2 CDs anyway... Cause judging from their performance, I think this is definitely a band with the type of sounds that I like, so definitely, I think it'd be more of a hit than a miss.
Of all the bands, I definitely think this band has a great potential to make it, to hone their skills, to create further deeper sounds in the future. They can definitely come up with something I would most definitely love in the future. Yes, I totally believe that!!

So it's great! I found a new band :)


つばきラブScale: Around a 5.5 probably... or maybe a 6 (depends of if the albums are good!)



3) nano sound museum

hey whattttt Ogawa-sannnn!! Why are you sooooooooooooooooooo rocking out and enthusiastic with this band??? Seems like you were rocking out like a 20 year old!!!! With Tsubaki, hmmm you're like the wise one, controlled and cool! whaatttttt!
Anyway, the lead singer is REALLY SUPERBLY cute. He had his hoodie on so he looked WAYYYYYYYYYYY younger and INCREDIBLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY cute and cool. Woah!! TOTALLLLLLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY cuter than Johnny's boys!!! WTH how come these people don't get to bank on their looks! PLUS, they have WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY MOREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE talent than the whole of damn Johnny's groups combined!

Anyways, enough ranting. nano sound museum.

Holycow! HMMMMMMMMMM... I can only describe their songs in relations to hare-brained unity, because both bands are disco/electronic/rock.

Actually, if you take the two bands as they are, seems really like their songs are interchangable with one another. They really have very very similar compositions.

HOWEVER, there is ONE major difference between the two bands though is that, while hare-brained unity is disco/electronic infused with rock, nano sound museum is rock infused with some disco/electronic.

nano sound museum has CRAZY HEAVY guitars!!!!! Even the effect of the guitar is of that typical HEAVY ELECTRIC ROCK GUITAR sound. So infused into this is a disco beat and some electronics.
hare-brained unity, I think, for me, starts with disco and electronics, and work the rock into it.

Their album was a little pricey 1700円, wasn't sure if I wanted to get it for 1700円 but, well Ogawa is in there, overall their sounds are VERY CATCHY, so most definitely somewhere in time I'd probably see them again... So it would be nice to know one or two of their songs.

Oh, and they had a few fans in the crowd too, cheering with their well memories hands movements, and one DAMNNNN HEADBANGING hellokitty kind of girl right in front! (ahh every band has its groupies)...


つばきラブScale: well since Ogawa is in there, technically, it HAS TO BE at least a 3.3 rig5ht???? haha... Hmmm... Probably around a 5.5 maybe but with potential to rise?

killing boy - Liquidroom Ebisu - 03/30/11

No thanks to my iPhone calendar notification, I almost missed this show. Fail.

BUT I DID NOT AND THAT'S GREAT!!!!!!!!

But if it wasn't for Riki, I think I would have most definitely skipped this show for being tooooooo lazy...

HOWEVER, I AM SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SUPER GLAD I didn't miss it!!!!!


So this was the second time I've seen Riki perform at Liquidroom in 2 months. The layout of Liquidroom this time was more like what I remembered it to be when I came to see Lunkhead here 3 years ago. They closed off the side of the hall with black curtains, so there was just the mosh pit in the middle.
However, a few minutes before the show started, they opened up the black curtains by the side so people could stand on the steps, thus widening the pit.
I wonder if this is why they call it Liquidroom ahahaha... Coz the layout changes as the crowd size changes!

Anyway!


killing boy

Hmmm... I thought it was very cool that Riki came out FIRST on stage, which I thought was very, very cool and like "whatever I don't need a ceremony" for him. I don't like how vocalists are always the last to come out, as if the other band members are less important and just supporting this one dude. So I liked that Riki came out FIRST and everyone cheered for him one and the same as for everyone else in the band. That was really cool of him or he probably just didn't give a damn, really.

So anywa, Riki, as ALWAYS, was very, very, very quiet. He didn't say anything except "arigatou" at the end of each song. The highlight of the show was probably when he asked the technicians to set up another mic, but for the guitarist to speak and do the usual "thank you everyone for coming" MC. hahaahah.... And it was so Riki when the technician was going to give him the mic when he went " X " no. ahahahahaha... Riki, Riki....

Anyway, they came back on for an instrumental encore and then Call 4 U... Which was brilliant!! ANDDDDDDDDDDD... BEFORE Call 4 U, Riki FINALLY spoke and thanked all the bands that played that night. I thought he was eating his words again, and perhaps a little stuttering. HA! Oh... Riki!!

Oh... by the way I mentioned the killing boy show to a client who works at a UK Label the next day. He didn't know killing boy so I asked if he knew art-school. Then he said "Yeah, I know Riki-kun." ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!! Then he said that Riki is very good but "he's a very nervous guy." and went on to stress, good but "very nervous" again!! ahahahahaha... WOAH!!! He said Riki is very nervous when he talks... HMMMM.... I guess that explains the whole no MC thing.. I guess if he's nervous around a closed group of people, what more an audience of a thousand!! What a TOTALLY UNLIKELY candidate for a lead vocalist!!!!


ANYWAY. Killing Boy live is AWESOME. Actually, their SONGS are AWESOME live.

I don't particularly pay attention to instruments because I know jack shit about them. HA! But, this band really caught me. The lead guitarist, to me, is just plain awesome. Wonderful riffs weaving so seemlessly to join in with incredible bass, coupled with spot on drumming. With such awesome parts, actually, sadly, sorry Riki, but I really thought that perhaps the most ordinary member of this band was Riki. I think the pure talent of the other members just shines through in their parts and their composition and performance. I am usually, totally not a bass person, but seriously, I was very, very impressed by Hinata's bass. His playing makes you NOTICE the bass lines, not just the way bass is usually drowned out and over-spotlighted by the rest. He made his bass STAND OUT. Jumps out out you. Makes you notice it. Makes you go "woah! wow...". The guitarist just blew me away with his parts, so silently playing in his corner of the stage, but his parts just flowed in like water washing over the songs giving them its waves and texture. And why I say perhaps HINTO has a better guitarist is because he his riffs courses through the song, carving it's lines in and out through the flow of the song and melody. And he plays it so well, so well composed, so well performed, silently but its presence felt. sears an impression through the skin of the song. And then there's the drumming. Ah... I think I am a closet drummer lover. haha! Srsly. Plain COOL, in his world, drumming so effortlessly, where every beat followed the next, rolling the band onwards, onwards. Damn. He was cool. Cool. So seriously, of all, sorry Riki, seems like his part was the simplest. His guitar parts seem simple too. I swear he held on to ONE CHORD throughout the entire verse. ONE! But to his credit, I think Riki's part is the base on which all the rest build their sounds upon. While everyone's parts stood out, Riki's stayed in the background, unnoticed in its presence but perhaps, definitely incomplete without.

I feel as if killing boy is where all these members that are usually buried in other's compositions in their own main bands actually come out in these songs to strut their feathers, spread their wings, and show the world, show their fans, their actual, own stark talent and brilliance. This is where they shine from their own.


andymori

Oh yeah, killing boy played with andymori today too...

Kinda weird... The first time killing boy played in Liquidroom, they opened for Andymori... Second time they played, andymori opened for them...

Oh well, maybe in Japan it doesn't matter.

Andymori has some very rocking out songs! And damn, their vocalist is INCREDIBLY CUTE. INCREDIBLY.INCREDIBLY.

lol.

Anyway, it was cool to see like a 50-year-old obaasan rocking out to this cute young boy's rock tunes! Hell yeah, rock on!

Live: Wild Gun Crazy Vol. 6 Release Live - Shimokitazawa Reg - 03/20/11

So I didn't think of going for the show, actually.. Didn't know it was the release show.. The Wild Gun Crazy guy always posts a lot of things on twitter, so I knew there was some kind of show going on, I didn't know it was the release show.

Anyway, it turned out to be like a festival kind of thing. 32 bands that were on the CD playing in 3 different live houses in Shimokita: Reg, Mosiac, and Cave-Be. (I didn't know that, I thought it was only Cave-Be).

And alsoooooo, the thing that bought me though, was that they gave away the compilation with the ticket for the show. SO! That's a great deal! 2000 yen for a show (or THREE if you went to all three venue), from 2pm to 10pm and you get a free CD on top of that! Great deal no??


Anyway, I chose Reg because........................... maybe it's the only live house of the 3 that I've not been to before, but there was no specific band I was going to see. Besides The Masahiko, Flight Egg, and Hot Cake, I didn't know the other bands.... Though I missed all three of those bands' set, actually, coz I didn't know the show started so early, and even if I did, I think I'd have been too damn lazy to wake up to get to the shows on such a rainy day.


Band 1

Jazzy rock.. If I remember correctly. I actually quite liked them and wanted to buy their CD (but I didn't in the end).. Maybe I didn't buy the CD coz their sound fluctuated too much from the power rock I like to funky sounds... Actually, they sounded like The Masahiko (whose guitarist was rocking out at the front).
Their lead guitarist was really, really into the whole show, though. He was definitely rocking out, and actually, in retrospect, of all the 4 bands I saw, this band pulled in the largest crowd.
So I guess, I have no taste. ahaha!


Band 2

I actually wanted to leave for the second band to buy some stuff in Shimokita. I actually left the livehouse when the band was sound checking because they suddenly turned really, really like HARD PUNK ROCK... But then suddenly, the second song they sound check was really cool... So I decided to go back in check them out.

And really, their set was like that... The first song was instrumental, very funkish. Second song was TOTALLY punk rockish, third song dropped into those mellow driving haunting rock tune and third was back to a mixture of funk and rock.

I was sold for this band because the drummer was damn cool (mannnn... If singer/guitarist weren't song writers, I'd totally go for the drummers, hands down!). And also, they announced that their CD was 300 yen.

300 yen for anything is awesome enough for me.


So yes, I went to get the CD after their set. The vocalist said I could have a sticker of any of the band members and asked me which one I wanted. Of course I wanted the drummer, but you can't say that to the vocalist, right?? It's gonna hurt his feelings! ahahaha... So I said "Dare de mo ii.".. And he gave me the bassist's... And I asked him why the bassist, he laughed and said that's coz the bassist is a kick-ass guy.

Nuff said! hehe... Let's see if the CD grows on me.


Band 3

Hmmm... Of the 4 bands, I thought this band was quite the weakest of the 4.. They also looked like they're barely out of high school, though!!!

They had some good rock tunes. Very Japanese rock tunes.
They were cool in the sense that they had girls on drums and keyboards. I think with time, this band can definitely grow their sounds and come up with something unique to offer the scene.


Band 4

HMMMM!!!

Actually I wanted to go for this band's show a few weeks ago because Kinoshita was DJing for their show at Shimokitazawa Garage. But I never made it because I had classes scheduled that night.
They have one of those band names that conjure the image of a jazzy rock band, but they were totally not like that!
They had very, very low, driving rock tunes, and the band didn't waste time in talking, haha.. They just dove into one song after the next. The bassist was quite cute, and it was nice buying the CDs from him, though he asked me "which band did you come to see?" and I said "no one in particular". But actually, I did stay to see their set because I had wanted to check them out since the whole Kinoshita thing.
But they had very nice songs live. Not TOTALLY power packed, but definitely very driving songs, which I hope, translates well in the recorded version.

But anyway, when they were playing, I said to myself that I'd definitely pay 1500 for their songs, maybe 1800...

So when I went to check the CD out, they had 3 CDs out... all three were demos, two of them were 500 yen each, and one was 300 yen. Hell yeah!!!!!! So I bought all 3, which, actually, totals to less than 1500.

Rock on!
Anyway, I thought of the 4 bands

Tsubaki Friends - Shimokitazawa Club Que Charity Event update!

BANNER CHANGED ON CLUB QUE'S SITE! woah! That was fast!!!

Apparently, we collected quite a large sum of money from the show!!! As Ogawa-san reported in Tsubaki's blog, from the donation of the audience we managed to get 384,373円!! That's about 4000 dollars!!! Yay to everyone!! Here's to everyone up north in Tohoku!!

But I really hope our money would make a difference... sigh...

Tsubaki Friends - Earthquake Acoustic Charity Show - Shimokitazawa Club Que 03/19/11

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO many bands played this day, I have no idea who was in which band. srsly.

Here's the people:

つばきフレンズ
［小川博永＆岡本奈穂子（つばき）+ 秦千香子＆坂本昌也（FREENOTE）+
小高芳太朗＆山下壮（LUNKHEAD）+渡會将士（FoZZtone）+大迫章弘（e-sound speaker）+
高森ゆうき+上野啓示＆成瀬篤志（カミナリグモ）+青木拓磨＆岸部大輔（パウンチホイール）+
岩崎慧＆中内正之（セカイイチ）+ナガオタツキ（nano sound museum）+
関谷謙太郎（UNDER THE COUNTER）+グローバー義和（Jackson vibe）+
大平伸正（ghostnote）+菊地佑介（plane）+山岸賢介＆ピストン大橋（ウラニーノ）］

But actually, Tsubaki did not play at all. Since it WAS an acoustic show, Ogawa-san could not play his bass, so there was actually no actual Tsubaki set.
It's sad, I'd love to have heard Iwasaki-san sing a Tsubaki song... I think I am secretly in love with him, ahahaha!

Anyway, everyone played one song. Most didn't know what to play... haha.. but I think a lot of the defaulted back to their own song...

Except one guy, I have no idea who he was but he's not in any band, apparently... So, in his set, he came out with Mr. Angel... We were like "eh? Dis not Sekaiichi" ahaha.. Anyway, he was really cool coz he jumped into the pit and sang there instead... and the song he chose to perform, actually, was a cover of Sekaiichi's Step On... I swear, so confusing... Sekaiichi's guitarist playing Sekaiichi's song but, no this is not Sekaiichi's set, it's another guy's set.. hmm.. wha?

Anyway, Sekaiichi played next... Well not much of "Sekaiichi" played next, it's just that Iwasaki-san came out instead. He's funny, I like him.. hmmm ehehe.

They did Time Machine.

The other set that was VERY VERY incredibly notable was FREENOTE, whom, I think decided to just go with the set they've been practising, which is Tsubaki's Haru no Arashi.
I tell you, it is NOT NOT NOT NOT NOT NOT easy to take Isshiki's song and do the song better than Isshiki but DAMN, sorry Isshiki but FREENOTE wins HANDS DOWN. I mean Isshiki watching the DVD MUST think so too!!

She was just AWESOMELY FANTASTIC in her cover and rendition of Haru no Arashi. She turned it into a Jazz/Rap version which I must say, is just frigging AWESOME!!!!! C'mon, seriously, Isshiki watchign the DVD must feel like "DAMN! She got me beat!!!" seriously. I was in awe!!!

Anyway, for Lunkhead's set, since it was an acoustic set, I was wondering which song they may play... Few choices maybe... I was hoping for Tsuki to Tenohira, of course... But I thought, more, most likely it would be Sangatsu because it's a really encouraging slow song, and I think Yoshitaro being Yoshitaro would probably choose a song with more meaning and REALLY! I was right!!! They played Sangatsu!!! They played it with a much quicker tempo, though, but just 1 guitar and Yoshitaro singing, so that was great!

After that, Yoshitaro launched into a longgggggggggggggggg depressive monologue about the earthquake but ah, it's him after all.
Then the Lunkhead duo did one more Tsubaki song, Kuru Asa Moeru Mirai.


For the final song....... ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLL the bands came on stage.
Even those that didn't get to perform (since it was cut into an acoustic set) and friends from other visiting bands (D.W. Nicols)... So they all came up on stage and sang Tsubaki's Taiyou, which has, since the Nagoya show, been dubbed the Tsubaki Friend's theme song, hahaha.. Coz everyone has their parts...

They did the song a little different this time. Yoshitaro sang all the verse parts and EVERYONE ELSE joined in for the chorus.

But seriously, there were at least 20 people on stage, singing... Like 4 people to a mic!!!

Iwasaki-san was reallllllllllyyyy funny.. a frontman will always be a frontman :)
He and Yoshitaro was standing side by side, reallyyyyy awkward.... AND THEN SUDDENLY Iwasaki-san just grabbed Yoshitaro and hugged him, like buddy-buddy... HOW CUTE!!!!! Yoshitaro said Iwasaki-san looked like Choppa of One Piece.. hahahaha.. Yeah okay, with his hat and stuff, kinda! But Iwasaki-san is Iwasaki-san and that's him... hehe... ^_^

killing boy - killing boy (03/09/11)

Track List:

01. Frozen Music
02. Call 4 U
03. cold blue swan
04. xu
05. Perfect Lovers
06. 1989
07. black pussies
08. Confusion
09. sweet sixteen


Call 4 U absolute win. Reminds me of old art-school, actually. Light guitar riffs, repeating catchy lines in the chorus, definitely like art-school's Paradise Lost/Missing years, except that killing boy's sound, especially this song, is more refined and grown up and grown wiser. Nostalgic, yet removed and detached, learned and grown from the past. More guarded, less wild and free. Still a young boy grown more sophisticated, less impulsive. Or a grown up sophisticated boy reminiscing an impulsive past where everything was now and all. Definitely. That's how the song sounds, as compared with similar sounding older art-school songs from a decade ago.


killing boy is art-school's guitar/vocalist Riki Kinoshita's new side project band with members of other bands from Straightener (also ex-art-school), HINTO and Nothing's Carved in Stone. However, seems like killing boy is definitely getting more attention and time from Riki than art-school is. I wonder if Riki is bored with art-school. They barely toured for their latest album last year, and this year, killing boy has really been making waves and A LOT of appearance recently (don't the other member's bands have their own band stuff to do??).

Anyway, I like art-school's guitarist, but seeing Riki's new band live and watching the live stream of their acoustic show, I think... maybe HINTO has a better guitarist! Or at least, a better composer.

But seems like this band, judging from the live shows and the album, is definitely composed of very, very talented individuals from various bands coming together together to make a bunch of awesome songs.

The songs struck me though, as being much less charged and much less driving than the live version, which of course, is quite a usual thing. I thought the sounds of these songs, while great, is a little more subdued in the album as compared to the live version. But I guess that's the appeal of live renditions! :D

Sekaiichi - Shinjuku VACANT - Space Shower TV (03/04/11)

shinsei kamattechan - sekai no owari - amanzarashi - plenty - any - galileo galilei - androp - love love love - Dirty Old Men - S.R.S

Is it just me or are these bands suddenly becoming damn big suddenly, like out of nowhere???

SERIOUSLY.

I'm lumping them all together because I basically checked out all the bands around the same time in Winter 2009 when I came to Japan for a holiday.

I think Shinsei Kamattechan is like the biggest shock of all... From not being able to even check out anything online one month (I think this was March 2010) to suddenly every tom dick and harry knowing them in October 2010 is just a frigging WTF???

Second up is Sekai no Owari... second only coz they're still not as famous (YET!) as Shinsei Kamatttechan but really, also another shocker!!!! Back in just APRIL 2010, it was almost impossible to get their stuff online... and then SUDDENLY, when I got here in Japan in October 2010, blooooody hell! They're EVERYWHERE!!! Like MAINSTREAM kind of EVERYWHERE... what the hell happened????

And let's not forget to mention Galilieo Galilei, Plenty and Any.... While not commercially as well known as Shinsei Kamattechan and Sekai no Owari... they still suddenly, SERIOUSLY, like popped up from NOWHERE... and gained a sudden mass following within the J-indie-rock scene.

And then there's of course, Dirty Old Men.... Actually I don't know Dirty Old Men much because they NEVER EVEN hit my radar BUT DAMNNNNNNNNNNNNN!! SUDDENLY, like OUT OF NOWHERE, they are now like TOTALLY propelled into the limelight! There's TONS of coverage of them from mainstream-indie music media. Seriously. Like wth?! Where did they come from?!

And of course... from what I predict, Love Love Love and ANDROP too!!

You should see the over-the-top promotion of androp's album in Tower Records.. it's ridiculous! Shameless even!! Seriously androp... from nothing, to a SUDDEN release of THREE elaborately designed CDs???

it also seems like the scene is skipping the whole middle part of "becoming big"... Jumping from ZERO to signed to frigging ONE MAN LIVE all within the span of months.

I guess it worked for Shinsei Kamattechan, and you're seeing more bands like androp and OvertheDogs following suit too...

Seriously... from NOTHING to ONEMANLIVE within months..

what the hell happened to the whole HARD WORK building up a fanbase?!?!?!?!

Seems like all you need is pump the market with LOADSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS of your albums, TONS of concentrated publicity, with a One Man Live show lined up already, so all your new found fans can just hop in the bandwagon and check out the One Man Live...

yeap that's definitely what the music companies are doing these days.

Except one wonders, seriously, doesn't that fuck up your music quality? If you release 1 EP in three years and then suddenly within the span of 6 months of the release of your debut EP, you release 3 albums.

Seriously.

And what does that make of the industry? What happened to the whole tradition of actually having to work hard and prove yourself to true fans for years at small clubs like those in Shimokita... ?

Instead you frigging jump right into the deep end of all glory at Shibuya O-West.

Seriously.

makes it so sad.

So sad because there are so many other "older" bands (hehe... TSUBAKI)... that WORKED VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY hard and have songs a hundred folds better than these music business generated bands and YET, they're stuck nowhere... with their 1000 faithful fans that follow their coat tail as if touching it would bring them closer to heaven.

Yes, where's all that?!

Album Reviews: Good Morning America - GOOD ON THE REELS - Mondaysick - Butterfly inthe Stomach

So today I had a longggggggggggg break and was feeling rather depressed... But for some reason Good Morning America's 空ばかり見ていた was playing in my head and somehow... I just felt so motivated to get their album, uncharacteristically of me...! CDs in this country is WAYYYYYYYYYY to expensive, and to buy CDs as a means of checking out a band is WAYYYYY tooooooo expensive and can be rather dissapointing. I rather pay the 2500 yen for a show and check out 3 - 4 bands at the same time.

Anyway, so I dragged my fat ass to Shibuya's Tower Records to get the album and check out some music meantime...

I should, actually, go to Tower Records more often... They actually have quite good recommendations most of the time :)

Bands that Didn't make the 2000/1800yen cut:

Actually there were quite a number of them.....

1) Fleet
2) Yuey (I'm so sorry! I actually liked these guys!)

Bands that ALMOST/MIGHT make the 2000/1800 yen cut:

1) GOOD ON THE REELS
Actually... this band was NOT BAD.
They had those typical Japanese-indie-rock band kind of sound that I quiet like EXCEPT for that one fact: their sounds were too typical.
Where have I heard those same tunes before? In the countless other J-indie-rock bands of recent times.
So, really unfortunately, the album, while good, offered nothing of a fresh breath nor a fresh take of the scene, and thus, I don't think I'd pay 1500yen for their 7-track EP. Actually, the CD purchase came with a 500 yen voucher but even then, I don't think it's worth 1500 yen.

Bottom line: 800円 is okay...

2) Mondaysick - School
This is a 6 track EP.
Apprently, this band is also from Hokkaido, like Galileo Galilei.
They actually had really good sounds. NOT typical, like GOOD ON THE REELS.
However.... They had those mellow and depressing kind of tunes.
Actually I like those kind of sounds a lot... low, slow, depressing, mellow, with strings and rock blended together, like intermittent strays of light gliding through the thick fog... Yes, those.
HOWEVER....... SIX, SIX, SIX tracks of those kind of sounds just drives you to suicide.
It's good, my dears, if you had TWO or at most THREE, of such kind of tracks in an album of perhaps, 12 songs... But seriously, SIX BACK TO BACK is REALLY a downer.
Please be careful when you choose your tracklist!

Bottom line: hmmm... mayyyybe 600 - 800 yen


3) Butterfly inthe Stomach - deadstock
Actually, this band is mostly a BUY had it not been 2500 yen for the album. What's this damn you Japan. Just coz a band is signed doesn't mean you should jack their damn CDs up past 2000 yen. SORRY. Cheap ass like me just won't buy your CD even though your band is damn good.

Actually, I see the lead singer of this band perform a lot, when I go for The Challenge's live. He plays in the band as a side project and I really like The Challenge.

I quite liked Butterfly inthe Stomach a lot because after checking all the other bands (especially after GOOD ON THE REELS and Mondaysick), this guys offered a very, very fresh new sounds and their album and the band had an edge in their music that doesn't mimic anyone buy their themselves. I think this is what differentiates REAL BANDS from crappy ones. Srsly.

Unfortunately, as I have mentioned... 2500 yen is just a definitely NO WAYYYYYYYYYYYYY for me.

Unless you're Tsubaki.

heh.

Bottom Line: hmmmm maybe 1800 yen! heh

Tsubaki Friends - D.W. Nicols - Nagoya Ell Fits 2/25/11

Quip roundup6 @ koenji clubliner (02/22/11)

I FINALLY got Quip magazine the other day and checked out their sampler. In their sampler they had a band, noom, which I really liked and wanted to check out more but there wasn't anything online.

So I thought I'd check the magazine to see if I could find a website or something and LO AND BEHOLD!! To my luck!! I saw that Quip was having a show at Clubliner for all the of FOUR bands that were featured in their sampler, including noom, and it was on Tuesday which I so happened to to have work!! (coz the studio was full and I couldn't even put in hours for any classes!).. And the live was actually TWO DAYS AFTER I found out about the band! WHAT LUCK!!!

So I decided to check the bands out!! (how unlike me!)



1) Wow.. I'll pay 800yen for their trying. They were the opener. I was thinking during their set that out of pity, I'd probably buy their CD (if it were 800 or less!!!) because I was thinking of already buying the CD of the band I came to see (the third band, noom).
The band was quite good, but a little funkish!! The lead doesn't talk much and the "leader" of the band seems to be the lead guitarist who is very, very expressive on stage with his moves. His antics were really hillarious. However, I think he lacks the strength of an orator in fronting the band during the MCs... I think he was nervous or something but he was very jumpy with his MC, so quite weak in engaging the crowd (speech wise) in that sense and did not really properly introduce the band (considering that this was a show where people weren't familliar with the bands, it would be good to introduce yourselves properly, no???!).
So while he is a good performer and I think overall the band's songs are pretty cool, I thought he lacked the presence of a frontman in his MCs. Masuzawa-san was there!! He should go get some tips from Masuzawa-san!!! haha!

2) Hmm.. This band started with an instrumental song, then lauched into a second song that was semi instrumental. The frontman was cute, so they had that going for them. He was really good in fronting the band too. He went through all the formalities of annoucements during the MCs. Introduced the band's name CLEARLY, said all the customary lines annocing thier CDs and next lives, very proper, very "major" and "professional"
they also had a good style which I think would appeal to a larger audience, combining instrumental, with math rock, with funk and all that jazz... I think they definitely have potential to make it...

Although, unfortunately, they're not my cup of tea.

So, sorry, no 2000yen from me... SORRY! I should have checked to see their album was like 500 yen... I might go with the 500 yen EP or something! lol

But actually, I think they have solid music, VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY different from the garden variety sound of the newer rock bands that are out there these days (and there are loads of them). So I think they can potentially work out.

But as i have mentioned, unfortunately, their sound isn't just the kind I like, so that's why they didn't particularly appeal to me.


3) noom

I actually came to see this band because they had one kick ass track off Quip's sampler.
I was very impressed with that song and I had hoped the rest of their songs would be in the same vein, of the same mood, with the same power chords and riffs.

I was a little dissapointed.
They fluctuated between a great riff emerging, waiting to rear it's rock-out head, but unfortunately never does... to tunes that were just.. well... "meh". So-so. まま。Cool, easy listening, make you bob your head and tap your feet, but that's about it.. doesn't move you to swing your body and move and jump to the beat.

I was dissapointed.

You guys were good, in that one song.

I was willing to fork out 2000 if all the tunes they played, or even 2 more tunes they played, were of the same feel of the one in the sampler.

Unfortunetely not.

sigh.


4)
I'm sorry to say, maybe I am old fashioned but seriously, I don't think slurrrrrrring words and mumbling is a form of singing.. Kurt Cobain may have been incomprehensible, but at least he fucking had energy (or high on something)
This guy, the frontman, was just frtting mumbling his lines. WTH.
I;m so dissapointed.
They had good tunes too!!
But coupled with that slurrrrrrrrrrred vocals and mumbling baratone, that just killed it for me.

Sorry.

No... MAYBEEEEEEEEEEEEE 500yen.. probably.



SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

In the end I ended up getting the CD of the first band!!!!!

geez...

I was willing to fork out 800 (MAX) for their songs..

But lo and behold, surprise!, it was only 500 yen for their EP!

so good job! Great bargain. Good buy good buy!

Lets hope the record's good.

Until then, no, i don't think I;d check these bands out again on their own.. Maybe if they're playing with another band I would, but just for their shows, no I don't think I'd go.

SORRY!.\\\

back number - あとのまつり [2010/06/02]

Holymoly!

I did NOT expect back number to be so good!! wth!!

I remembered I checked out their E.P. and didn't have much of an impression of it... But woah! This album was good!! Well at least, the first half of the album was really pretty solid. Has those typical Japanese rock sounds that I like... energized yet nostalgic, not too loud, nice catchy tunes, and some heart-capturing guitar riffs at the beginning of songs... yeap... it has all that!

The later half of the album went back to ordinary though, just when i was wondering how many songs they'd be able to write that's kick ass... 8 apparently. But still, a good album! was very, very, very surprised and a DEFINITE loop-able album (at least for the first 8 songs anyway). Pretty solid for a first album, back number!!

Good thing they're playing a show today in Chiba! ahahahaha... I think I'll go catch them if it's not sold out and I'm not too lazy! heh.


Here's a song off the album: stay with me.


Verdict:


live-able: most definitely.
2000円-able: hmmm... perhaps. likely.

クリープハイプ「左耳」(CreepHype - Hidari Me)

Music is quite nice, those typical Japanese rock band style of recent... however, I don't like the vocals... So I don't think I'll be checking this band out anytime soon.

Sorry!

Verdict:
Live-able: maybe.
2000円-able: no.

Sekaiichi / STaN - Shibuya O-West (02/17/11)

Urm yes... For some reason, I DO go for A LOT of Sekaiichi lives, huh!!! wth... Seriously... Too many... But to support Mr. Angel, I'll go.. Although I think he's feeling more like either why the hell am I at all their shows or why the hell am I emailing him so much. Sigh... Sorry, Mr. Angel... But I really don't care if you're in Sekaiichi or not... Sometimes I wish you weren't... Maybe then, you'll treat me normally then...

Band 1

WTH.
That's all I have to say.
They're like this... I don't know... those Akiba bands that have their own hand movements and all... Seriously. It's was friggign weird. And in one of their last song, they had two "okaku-ish" guys come on stage to perform those crazy idol-fan dances... HOLY COW.. I was just like "WTH?"
And he kept trying to get the crowd to do the hand movements with him. To some extent, he worked...
But he should've also known that they were playing to a crowd who's fans of bands like he and..

Band 2
After the first... group... DAMN! This band truly sounds like a TRUE REAL BAND.
Band 1, please take note: this is how a real band should be.

geez.

Band 3

Well well well! It was quite wonderful seeing this band finally. I didn't really get into their music when I checked them out a few years back because they're quite loud and their music is really banging crazy, very weird arrangement too. But the show was great! The performance was great! They and their fans were tight.
There were two guys behind me, drunk, but like real fans of the bands, and they would scream stuff, and the vocalist would respond. The vocalist was really cool, like in the "whatever" kinda way... awesome..
Not really my cup of tea but I definitely wouldn't mind checking them out again with other bands next time :)


SEKAIICHIIIIIII~~~~
Short set, loads of new songs this time, which surprised me. They usually play mostly old songs.. (but then again, I don't know sekaiichi much to know what's new or old!! FAIL)

They didn't play capsule this time, which was a little disappointing!!! Not much of a build up this time either, much more laid back and mellow compared to their previous packed sets~! But, it was a good set anyhow... Perhaps, more Sekaiichi-ish (if there's such a thing!).

Highlight of the set was The Kids Are Alright.
I thought they played it really beautifully, and it really touched my heart.

Quip 63

Hmmm... Kinda late getting this issue... But it was really cool (AND HEARTBREAKING) because it had a lot of pictures of shimokita roundup3 in it....

I WISHHHHHH i had never seen the picture of Odaka and........ ISSHIKI in Garage!! damnnn!! I did NOT know that Odaka played with Isshiki and with Ryo too!!!! wthhhhhhhhhhh!!! And summore Isshiki sang Utaitai!!!!!!!!!! DUDEEEEEEEEEE!!! I'd kill to hear Isshiki say "Kimi ni aitai yo"...

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

* kills self *

ok nuff said...

Here's a song from the Quip sampler that I liked very much...

I'm REALLY pissed off that OverTheDogs was suppose to be on the sampler but somehow... IT'S NOT THERE!!! A song that's not on their album too!!! WTHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

gah...

maybe this issue was more frustrating than it was fun.

damn.

Anyway, song from the sampler:

noom - 幻聴レディオ

I thought it was a really, really, really good song!!!!

art-school MUSICA presents VALENTINE ROCK――愛のロックを鳴らそう acoustic set @ Liquidroom Ebisu (02/14/11)

LIVE：andymori / 木下理樹＆戸高賢史from ART-SCHOOL（acoustic set）/ SISTER JET（acoustic set）/ 長澤知之 / 高橋優

Sorry, no pics this time! LOL...

But I do have audio ^_^

Art-School - HEAVEN’S SIGN




Anyway, as always, Kinoshita-san didn't talk much. He never talks, I'm under that impression. But he was very cute. ahahaha! Seriously, so awkward!! He was totally disengaged, mumbling most of the time when he DID talk... But I guess that's his appeal... He's not THAT un-talkative on Twitter though! So... what gives?! Is he really shy?? I mean he's been singing for YEARSSS, he shouldn't be shy with crowds!

I think he just doesn't like talking.