toKYOTOsaka pt 2
2011/12/18 - There were a few shows I wanted to see tonight.Charan-po-Rantan were playing at Shimokita Garage
and うさぎさんの片耳ちょんぎったろうか were playing at Shimokita ERA
So ideally I could hop between ERA and Garage to see both bands schedule permitting.
スカートの中 were also playing at Shinjuku Red Cloth.
By the way they made a PV for "逆立ち女"
There were 3 shows in Tokyo I wouldn't mind seeing but since I bought a JR Pass I figured I'd make the most out of it and watch Veltpunch in KYOTO!!
It was OUTATBERO's record release party at Kyoto Club Metro and Veltpunch were the special guests for a 2-man show.
Naturally Veltpunch went on first and it seemed most of the crowd were here to see them even though it was the local band OUTATBERO's event.
The main reason I went all the way down to Kyoto to see Veltpunch is because I am considering them as a potential band for NMFT vol 4. I had seen them perform once before 2 years ago at Yokohama FAD. There were barely 20 people in the audience at that time but Veltpunch tore it up and put on an amazing show. Since Vish and Ryotaro had a blast at their recent one-man at Shindaita FEVER I figured I should check them out again and see if they were still as good as I remembered.
The verdict?
Veltpunch are an AWESOME band.... if you're 13 - 20 years old. Even though the band-members themselves are in their 30s they seem to play arena rock music that caters to the teenaged demographic. I'm still a teenager at heart so I love a lot of their music but too much of their discography sounds like an edgier, metal-HC tinged version of Base Ball Bear which is actually kind of cool but not what I want I want for NMFT.
Setlist:
1. Killer Smile 2. Dance Dance Dance Don’t Dance 3. The panty makes me crazys 4. The sweetest 5. CRAWL 6. Cheap Disco“13 steps” 7. Fighting Pose 8. クライマーズ ハイ 9. KAION 10. HINOIRIのテーマ 11. CRASH CRASH CRASH 12. Your Corolla
The first ten songs were solid with moments of brilliance warranting a score of 7.5/10. But the last two songs "CRASH CRASH CRASH" and "Your Corolla" were INSANE!! Off the meter with a score of 11/10, giving an over-all rating of 8/10. Hidenori's emcee banter also plays a huge part of the entertanment factor. The guy really has a lewd sense of humor as does Seiji who admits to being a sukebe. Hilariously uninhibited toilet humor that'll have you chuckling on the inside since you know you shouldn't be laughing outright. Both Hidenori and Seiji were also extremely dynamic on stage and played right up to the crowd.
But yeah, the highlight was the nutcrushing chaotic rendition of "Your Corolla" :
I wish I got all of the song and much better angle/lighting. Notes: 1. You can't due to the darkness but Hidenori fell backwards onto us @ 1:07 mark and crowdsurfed while playing guitar then continued to perform on the floor right in the crowd before handing out his guitar for audience members to play as he screamed the lyrics. 2. Seiji has his shirt off with some crazy anime character design taped to his chest/abdomen.
If Veltpunch cut out the fluff and play a short set with killer songs like "Crash Crash Crash" "Sports" and "Your Corolla" they put on a show that very few bands can f*ck with.
I talked to Hidenori about coming to Canada in May but I think the chances are slim Veltpunch will be part of NMFT vol 4. They're interested but can't commit to participating for two reasons: 1. All 4 members work strict office jobs that are stingy with vacation time 2. Next year is their 15th anniversary and they plan to release a "Best of" album with lots of touring within Japan that may conflict with a Canada tour in May.
Interesting trivia: - I have two paternal uncles named Hidemori and Seiji - Hidenori has an uncle in Vancouver - Hidenori once did a one-year homestay in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada - Veltpunch has played in the US before at SXSW
BTW, OUTATBERO were amazing. Super-tight like a cross between Zazen Boys and Rin Toshite Shigure. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011/12/19 - Back again in Tokyo. Susquatch were playing a show at Shimokita ERA curated by the band he with guests Fed MUSIC and Half-Life. The show had been sold-out for weeks and since Susquatch were only guests, Kenta couldn't get me into the show.
FRESH! were playing at Akiba GOODMAN and they would have been killer to watch.
BUT I got a text from Lana to hang out with her and Charlotte (Merpeoples) in Shimokitazawa. Even if Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Buckley were back from the dead playing a special 2-man show at Shinjuku LOFT, I'd choose Lana and Charlotte over any damn concert. :)
We ate an izakaya called とりとんくん (Tori Ton Kun) which was Charlotte's pick. This was actually the first time I went to an izakaya in Japan where the staff were as lively and boisterous as the workers at Guu (Vancouver/Toronto). The food was pretty good with my favorite being the potato salad pizza. Ikuko (Merpeoples, bass) and Ryotaro joined us afterwards as we hung out at 3rd Stone Cafe (one of my favorite hangouts).
We had some hilarious conversations on the subject of dating and the funniest line of the night was when Ikuko interjected in super-shy Engrish with "Will you be my steady?" So "moe" you would have crapped your pants laughing.
We headed over to Shimokita ERA for the he/susquatch/Fed MUSIC/Half-Life uchiage but the show had just ended and they hadn't started the after-party yet. Lana and Ikuko were in danger of missing their last-trains so we called it a night. I was supposed to go back to ERA and drink with Kenta but decided to head home as well. There was no live show but it was still a fun Sunday night with friends. :)