Can NMFT kick it?

Yes we can! Six times, bay-beh!

NMFT6 is just a month and a half away which means I'm quietly stressing out making preparations for the tour and wondering how I'm going to fill the venues. Last year's turnout was fantastic with the Montreal and both Toronto shows selling out easily. But this time the 2nd Toronto show will be at Lee's Palace with a capacity more than twice the size of the Rivoli.

Luckily, this year's line-up is pretty sick! I'm disappointed group_inou and tricot bailed because they brought a lot of fun and energy. However, Kinoko Teikoku and Uchu Conbini may make a more profound impact with the power and soulfulness of their music. Nayuta were a last minute addition because I wanted more of an edgy, underground flavour. Kinoko Teikoku, UchuCon and jizue bring polish and skill while Happy!Mari and nayuta are unpredictable, raw and badass.

Each year I also try to think of ways to make the tour more interactive and fun.

At NMFT4 we started taking photos of each band with the audience directly after performing and we'll continue the tradition this tour.

This time two professional photographers from Japan are tagging along so we'll be able to take these photos more efficiently in all three cities.

Last year in Toronto while Kinoko Teikoku was playing the song "Taikutsu Shinogi" my friend Vish started singing along to the chorus which encouraged about a dozen others to do the same. Kinoko Teikoku's frontwoman Chiaki Sato was visibly moved by this almost to the point of tears. Sadly, I wasn't one of the fans singing because I didn't know the lyrics. Well this time I'm going to be prepared and I hope other fans in all three cities might do the same. Honestly, for a band coming all the way from Japan the last thing they would expect is for a Canadian audience to know the lyrics to some of their songs. So doing this will definitely blow them away and they'll greatly appreciate it.

The lyrics to "Taikutsu Shinogi" are found here.

However, the only part you really need to memorize is the following refrain which is repeated 6x throughout the song:

Heikōsen no enchōsen ga Kussetsu shita seishin-sei (Chiaki sings it as Kasse shita seishin-sei) Shūkan to kashi kesenai Hibi o monogataru (Chiaki leaves off the '-ru' and sings: Hibi o monogata)

If you guys manage to memorize these four lines we are guaranteed to sway Chiaki Sato's heart into loving Canada forever! lol.

Another Kinoko Teikoku song worth learning the chorus to is: "Paranoid Parade" I'll translate and write the romanized lyrics soon in another post!

Jizue are an instrumental band so obviously no lyrics to remember;however, one of their best songs is called "dance." Not many people know this but in Japan it is actually ILLEGAL to DANCE after-hours. Jizue wrote this song to bring attention to and protest this silly and archaic law that prohibits the benign act of dancing after midnight. Jizue usually perform "dance" last and I thought it might be fun for just this one song for people to climb up on stage and boogie down to their heart's content while the band is performing. It's a fantastic song that has an infectious beat so hopefully, fans can overcome their shyness (beer helps!), bumrush the stage and get their "dance" on.

After playing two shows in Toronto we'll be travelling to Montreal the following morning. Since our stay in Montreal is very short I was wondering if any Montreal fans would like to help organize a house party for Sunday, May 18, 2014. We can make it a potluck and I will definitely help pay for alcohol. It doesn't necessarily have to be held inside someone's home, we could hold it at a pub, bar or condo party-room. Too bad my friend Martin (Alexei Martov) will likely be out of town touring with his own band because he would have the perfect pad for something like this.

Keep checking this blog for contests, giveaways and other ideas to make this tour more fun and interactive. And please help spread the word about NMFT6 on Facebook, youtube and twitter!! Thanks! and see you all in May!