- Listen to me, they mustn’t guess, that you don’t know a thing here. Just bang your head like this three times when the tune goes like “pam-pam-pam” and do your hand like this twice than…
- Three times, twice…
- And never send hearts. Only I and that girl on the other end do that.
- Send what?..
Okay, I’m at the Visual Kei concert and I’m standing in the first row. Right in front of the stage. And I am not a fan with a respectable list of concerts (or “raibu” (live)) I went and I don’t even wear a gothic Lolita style skirt. Apparently, it appears that girls fight their way to the first row and write down their names on long waiting lists. But here I am – a foreigner who basically stands out from the crowd anyway and moreover doesn’t know the “furitsuki” (the movements to the songs), but somehow has got a place in the first row. And I’m all eyes and ears.
First, let me say a couple of words about what Visual Kei is. Visual Kei refers to a music genre with a particular sound that could be related to glam rock, punk and metal. However, one of the most important components is looks that usually involves striking make-up, unusual hair styles and elaborate costumes. Four out of five bands that took the stage of AREA Live House at Takadanobaba confirmed that statement striking the audience with their spectacular looks.
The name of the first band was NightingeiL – most likely a Japanglish variation of the word “nightingale”. The band had a really good deep heavy sound and pretty inventive torn beat made the songs quite recognizable and unique. However, NightingeiL’s costumes were kind of a disappointment – they wore white “blood-stained” shirts and it appeared that the vocalist claimed to cut his hands… and the results of this kind of promotion could be easily seen on the hands of a couple of fans. As naïve as it may sound, sometimes you wish musicians had thought of the consequences of their actions could have before doing something.
The next band called Brother remained in my memory mostly because of their looks. With their crazy hair styles with hairbands and kimonos they looked like some cosplay to an anime about Tokugawa period. Their music didn’t sound fresh however – it strongly reminded me of metal bands at the end of the 90’s with endless guitar riffs and high-pitched voice of the vocalist. Apart from not being original in the musical field, they obviously lack skill to perform the guitar riffs properly, but I have to admit that the vocalist’s voice was quite impressive.
The third band to take the stage was Deluhi. Their appearance can be called “classics” of Visual Kei – styled hair of various colours with long crazy bangs, tons of make-up and contacts of unnatural colours. Their sound seem to be slightly unfamiliar for the Japanese music scene, but it looks like they were considerably influenced by Scandinavian metal scene, so they would hardly surprise European audience, but it was actually nice to hear some growling vocal for a change.
During the pause after Deluhi I started noticing flashes of pink in the crowd, than I managed to make out fluffy pink fans in the hands of some of the audience. Five minutes later a tall woman in a red dress with a train and roses in her hair appeared on the stage. The pink fans started moving vigorously in the tempo of some kind of synth-gothic tunes that could be heard out of the speakers. With the first sounds of the woman’s voice I learnt that she was a man. Actually, it was cute in an odd way, because the singer whose name was Kaya created a really nice energetic feeling that reminded me of some French saloon singers as long as he addressed the audience in a really feminine cute manner accompanied by the sounds of some old chanson tunes. But apparently I’m not sure if it is something I want to see again anytime soon.
The last band called JULLY was the highlight of the evening (at least for me). They cannot be called a Visual Kei band as long as all their costumes consist of jeans and T-shirts, and they don’t wear any make-up. Another appealing little thing is that they don’t have “furitsuki” as the other bands – as the vocalist announced from the stage, they “just want everyone to enjoy the music whatever they are doing – leaning against the wall or jumping right in front of the stage”. JULLY’s music is a nice mix of nowadays indie-rock with good old punk crowned by the strong and rich voice of the vocalist. Their signature seems to be startlingly beautiful and unpredictable rhythm cadence that is rigorously performed by perfectly synchronized drummer and bassist. Moreover, it looks like all the members of the band know how to handle the audience and create a wonderfully energetic atmosphere. The tension just goes beyond the limit! JULLY was called to play the encore twice that evening.
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*As long as taking photos is not permited at the concerts images that are used in this article come from Google Images.
Homepages of the bands:
1.NightingeiL
2.Deluhi
3. Kaya
4. JULLY
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