Natsumen vs 385 and a change in the itinerary?
Since my last vol 3 tour update a couple things have happened.First of all, I just got off the phone with 385's manager and learned that they are experimenting with changing the sound entirely. For now they've gotten rid of the keyboards and replaced it with guitar. Currently the guitarist is Noda Kouhei from URBANフェチ. When I heard that I thought to myself "DAMN!" b/c: 1. I always thought 385 could benefit from a guitarist to add much more variety in terms of sound (though not at the expense of the keyboards, I was thinking more as a 4th member) 2. Noda Kohei is an incredibly charismatic singer and a SICK guitar player.
I saw URBANフェチ play at Shinjuku JAM just before Swan Song Council and they really impressed me with their intricate and ferocious brand of "straightforward" rock. They're almost a mirror image of tenguinvaders (female drummer, sick bassplayer and crazy Gt/Vo frontman) but with some Zazen math thrown in:
Jun's manic keyboards and charismatic chorus singing was one of the highlights of 385's music. Switching from keyboards to axe changes the sound drastically but it was definitely a good choice picking Noda as the guitarist as he brings with him a variety of talents.
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The other huge issue is the cost of airfare. 2 weeks ago booking flights on October 11 was a non-issue but in the interim something changed and prices on that day have increased by over $300 ($1550-->$1890) If I shift the the itinerary to starting on October 12 it's much more affordable (same price as 2 weeks ago). The only problem is Montreal gets screwed again since I'll have to hold their show on a Tuesday night instead of Friday:
Oct 13 Vancouver Oct 15 Toronto Oct 16 Toronto (all ages) Oct 18 Montreal
Theoretically I could keep the schedule as originally planned with a MTL show on Friday, Oct 14 but to do that the bands would have to play the Vancouver show on Oct 12, the day they arrive in Canada with zero time to sightsee in arguably Canada's most scenic city.
So to recapitulate, it's looking like Natsumen are back on the roster and I'll have to change the tour schedule so that the Vancouver show is on Oct 13. Unfortunately for Montreal, their show gets switched to Tuesday the 18th. I really hate to do this to you guys but changing the schedule saves me ($330 x 22ppl) $7260 on airfare.
thoughts?