TOKYO HALLOWEEN 2010: NORWAY TV HOSTING JOB IN JAPAN! TAKASHI MIIKE’S 13 ASSASSINS & THE INVENTION OF DR NAKAMATS FILMS.
Dead men tell no tales… but Naomi and I can finally tell you about our latest pirate mission. A day after we unveiled our La Carmina & The Pirates coolhunting and TV fixing business, we received an email from NRK (Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation). The deal’s now complete: meaning we’ll be flown to Tokyo at the end of October to host and arrange a show for Norway TV. Yes, we’ll be celebrating the most important holiday of the year — Halloween — in spooky Japan!
One of the best aspects of TV hosting / Cool Japan consulting is meeting and working with film crews from all over the world. So far: American, Japanese, French, Australian, Dutch, Norwegian. I’ll have behind-the-scenes photos and video clips for you, so get ready for those… as well as Tokyo Halloween 2010 coverage.
The Vancouver International Film Festival is currently taking place, and I received passes for Takashi Miike’s new film, 13 Assassins. An old-time samurai recruits a team to kill a flaky, blood-loving lord. The “basket-head” soldiers hugely outnumber the assassins, but with strategy and the help of a monkey-like bandit, the samurai put on a fight worthy of Kurosawa. But this remains a Miike film, and he splatters his signatures — creepy girls, missing limbs, torrents of blood — all over the frames. Fans of 1960s samurai movies, you won’t be disappointed by 13 Assassins. (Also check out Miike’s Ichi the Killer and Audition.)
Today, I had passes for The Invention of Dr. Nakamats, a highly amusing Danish documentary about the oddball “world’s greatest living inventor.” I’ve been intrigued by Nakamatsu ever since we appeared in the same episode of Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre Foods (my clip is here). The mad scientist refers to himself in the third person, sleeps four hours a night, and eats “the 32 best foods” to prolong his life. His 3000+ patents include the floppy disk, fuel-cell-powered karaoke, Love Jet spray, a life-extending tea, boingy shoes…
Is Dr. Nakamats a world-changing genius, or a loony creator of chindogu (infomercial-like “useless” inventions)? Only in Japan can a scientist be revered (Nakamats won the Nobel Prize for Nutrition, and his technologies are used by NASA) — and also appear regularly on wacky game shows. Win win.
This year’s Vancouver International Film Festival has an impressive lineup of indie films, especially in the Asia New Wave genre. It runs until October 15th, so there’s time to get tickets.
† I’m very happy with my latest CNNGo article about Tokyo cooking school lessons and reflections on shufu (housewife) expectations in Japan. Please take a moment to read it. You can see more photos from the Japanese home cooking classes here.
† Tokyo friends: the Synthesizer Festa is happening this weekend in Shinjuku. Sebastian writes: “All the major synthesizer companies are doing demos of the gear, and there will be a few concerts plus a flea market!”
† He also recommends the Tokyo Vegefest, October 16-17th in Yoyogi Park. “Two days of Vegan Delights! Getting bigger every year. Don’t forget to bring your plates and cutlery.” (Remember our coverage of the Tokyo Earth Day and Vegetarian Festival?)
† Saturday, October 23: both Midnight Mess and Tokyo Decadance are hosting blockbuster Halloween parties. Shinjuku Club Marz and Christon Cafe are near each other, so you can attend both. For directions, info, maps and more, please pass along my Japan Goth Cyber Nightlife Guide.
The fates are smiling upon our pirate ship… so excited for Halloween in Tokyo! Do you have plans for celebrating this year? What are your costume ideas?
Japanese Word of the Day: Chindogu = Useless inventions
Song of the Day: rice – Rain
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X JAPAN CONCERT 2010 REVIEW & LIVE PHOTOS: NORTH AMERICAN TOUR, VANCOUVER. YOSHIKI, TOSHI, SUGIZO, HEATH, PATA, HIDE.
We are X Japan! When the Jrock legends announced their first North American tour, some naysayers raised their brows at Yoshiki’s ambitions. Did the Visual Kei musicians deliver in concert? Above and beyond and beyond. Fans walked away speechless, and as you can see in the photos — X Japan is in fine form and visibly having fun. (Thank you to the band’s management for the tickets and the photo pass.)
I couldn’t take photos of the opening band, Vampires Everywhere!, so here is Sugizo in motion. My friend Bo writes: “I approached the opener with some trepidation after hearing tales of their rather abrupt departure from the stage in Los Angeles (X Japan fans apparently threw objects and booed). However, I found them to be a whimsical romp through the world of Screamo and actually quite enjoyed their song, though it was a bit on the long side… Oh, I just found out that they actually performed multiple songs and they just all sounded the same. How awkward.
Vampires Everywhere! was an energetic maelstrom of sound that somehow managed to find monotony amidst chaos. Perhaps they were trying to produce the musical equivalent of being bitten by a real vampire: first things are frantic and intense, but very quickly you begin to feel nothing at all.”
Snark aside, I urge concertgoers to be respectful during the opening performance. The group was invited by X Japan, and while their sound may not be to everyone’s liking, I don’t think that ever warrants cat-calls or launched tomatoes…
Not long after, a chorus swirled and the stage illuminated in blue… and there he was, Yoshiki, standing above his drums. Toshi, Sugizo, Pata, Heath. They took their positions, held up their arms and hammered into Jade (a new song). From start to end, the audience was hysterical, screaming out their names and waving X-shaped glowsticks.
And then: Rusty Nail. Silent Jealousy. Drain. X Japan’s classic songs, resurrected and fired out of a cannon (like the flames on either side of the stage).
Yoshiki’s live drumming was on fire. His years of headbanging messed up his vertebrae, which is why he wears a neck brace (as he explains in an interview with Kirsty Evans).
X Japan, so famous for their range of sound, transitioned from speed metal to a sweeping violin interlude by Sugizo. It was one of my favorite moments of the show.
Yoshiki’s piano playing is more urgent and expressive than ever. He can’t help but throw in Visual Kei flourishes — sweeping back his long coat-tails and ending a tremulous run with a bang — and crumpling to the ground. (I was only allowed to take photos for the first three songs, so unfortunately this moment isn’t captured.)
Toshi has one of the fullest voices I’ve ever heard in concert. We all held our breaths when he sustained a note… and kept it ringing… and ringing…
Bassist Heath. Solid. Hard. Icy.
Rhythm guitarist Pata. Sweeping. Flowing. Harmonic.
In place of the departed Hide: lead guitarist Sugizo. Glam. Resonant.
Yoshiki speaks: “I signed his band a long time ago, Luna Sea. So I’ve known him, it’s almost twenty years we’ve been friends. We’re not really replacing Hide, Sugizo is like a sixth member of the band. Hide is still there.”
Kurenai. Born to be Free. I. V. “As pioneers of the genre, X Japan certainly puts on a great visual show. Musically, they stand alone at the top,” says Bo.
We are X! We are X! We are X!
Yoshiki spoke in English. About how they’ve been waiting a long f-ing time to be here in North America. How it’s a dream come true. How we made it happen.
The climax. The encore: the unmatchable Endless Rain. Yoshiki’s gentle chords… then nothing but the voices of the fans.
My friend Bo only recently started learning about Visual Kei, and has this to say: “Musically, the intensity behind every note was palpable even from my seat in the back of the theatre; instead of blasting the audience with a wall of noise, they took the audience on a real journey through the ups and downs of each powerful song. I didn’t understand the lyrics, but I didn’t have to; the music said everything. Yoshiki’s beautiful piano runs, Sugizo’s chilling violin, and the piercing tone of Toshi’s voice would repeatedly draw us in before the full band would take us on a wild ride. By the time the night was over, this neophyte was a convert, standing at my seat, my hands in the shape of an X above my head, singing along to a song I had never heard before in my life.”
The last song, The Art of Life. “We never replaced Hide,” said Yoshiki. “He’s still performing with us in our hearts.”
For many of us, this is the first time we’ve seen X Japan live. Did the band meet your expectations? Floor you? What were your favorite moments in the show?
Japanese Word of the Day: Hisshou = Victory
Song of the Day: X Japan = Endless Rain (in Vancouver, appropriately)