Concert Review: NOCTSCURE @ Ikebukuro Black Hole (Tokyo)

Kanade (gt.), Teika (ba.), Kai (vo.), Nagisa (dr.) & Rio (gt.)

On the evening of Halloween I was lucky enough to attend the first one man live of NOCTSCURE at Ikebukuro Black Hole in Tokyo. I had never heard of the band before, but they caught my attention with their promotional flyer. In Japan they usually give you a bunch of flyers when you buy CDs.

The venue itself was pretty easy to find thanks to the instructions of the venue site. (Only a 1 minute walk from the station exit!) While waiting there was a Black Hole staff member to keep the waiting line in order. Doors went open with a 20 minute delay. Once you got in you had to take the stairs to the basement. The walls were covered with signed posters of bands that had once played there. What was new to me was the fact that you had to buy a drink ticket for ¥500. I was pleasantly surprised by all the flyers of upcoming performances I got though. 

When I finally entered the stage room I was a bit disappointed by the size of it, but it was actually very cozy. I also noticed a lot of differences. People sat themselves on the floor and put their bags (with valuable things) on the sides of the room. In Europe we keep our bags with us and wait standing. They may be small differences but I did notice them.

With a loud blast it was announced that the members of NOCTSCURE would come on stage. Immediately everybody got up and took their places in front of the stage. I was lucky enough to be in the third row. As soon as the band started playing the fans went wild. The girls in the front row even took a hold of the fence in front of them so they could headbang with all their might. When the music got softer everyone started to do some hand moves. They were pretty simple so you pick them up with ease and enjoy "dancing" along with the rest of the fans. It surprised me that everyone knew the exact movements and when to use them. I really had no clue whatsoever so I simply looked at the girls in front of me. One tip I can give you if you attend a concert in Japan, make sure that you leave enough space in front of you. The headbanging and dance moves can get pretty wild.

The band members were as energetic as their fans. They jumped around the whole stage with a smile on their faces. It was no effort to get the crowd pumped up. Everyone had been excited since the moment they took the stage. Vocalist Kai also talked a lot with his audience. He was very outgoing but he also had a very soft side. He thanked everyone multiple times for celebrating Halloween with them and for being a fan. Kai made clear that they would be nothing without them. The room always went silent after those little speeches. The interaction with the other members was also great. You could see that they really enjoyed what they were doing.

At the end of the encore bassist Teika started throwing water bottles in the audience, Kai drenched the first rows with his leftover water and guitarist Rio was throwing around some of his picks. At one point I caught Rio's attention and he asked with gestures if I also wanted a pick. I nodded and he threw one right at me. For me it was a great ending to an amazing performance.

I can't tell you a lot about the songs since I didn't know the band before this, but I recommend to check them out if you're into heavier music.

Official Website 

Live report: G.L.A.M.S. @ Lr6, Brussels (Belgium)

It's been a while since we've had the chance to go to concerts, but we've kicked off the summer with one we both had high hopes for: G.L.A.M.S.

This project by Dio - Distraught Overlord's Mikaru and Syu, supported by bassist Tetsuto, is hitting Europe square in the face with the enthusiasm and heavy rock performances we have come to expect from them.

Upon arrival at the Lr6, which has hosted most of the Japanese rock concerts we've been to in Belgium, it struck us that there weren't that many people present who looked like they'd be joining us later on for the gig. However, that changed quickly after the band members showed their faces outside and soon after that the VIP event took place.

30 minutes before the actual concert would start, fans who bought a VIP ticket were given the chance to hang out with Mikaru (and of course Syu and Tetsuto), and each person had the opportunity to have their photo taken with the band. We've seen some lovely results, so these tickets certainly seem worth their money.

After all of that, the time came to start rocking out. We expected awesomeness, and we got it; Mikaru's rather unique voice goes right through your soul. It makes your body rock back and forth and there's nothing you can do about it, both very creepy and very satisfying at the same time. I had never heard him perform live before, and was very pleasantly surprised. 

The show featured Mikaru's solo songs, as well as songs from previous projects:

The Other Side of the Moon

Call My Name
God forsaken
SHOW TIME
GLAD EYE
-MC-
12:00 A.M.
-MC-
Foxy
Shagaderic
-MC-
GIRA-GIRA
CALLING ME
BLACK RAINBOW
Wanderer
~en~
Syu(DJ Time)
Carry dawn
The Light of My Life

(Setlist courtesy of Râmen Events)

As you can see, this show provided a wide variety in songs and even genres; from heavy rock to softer, almost floaty songs. Of course, some humour was included, some running gags were made and kept up, and we learned that Syu really likes potatoes.

All in all I have no regrets at all for going to this show, and I think I can speak for both of us when I say we'll be there again next time!

PS: Do you know what else really made our night? The extra light! The Lr6 has been a bit of a challenge for taking photos during concerts, due to the lighting being very scarce. Now with this new light, Kelly was able to take some amazing photos! Check them out here!

Concert report: HITT @ Liège

So HITT paid our country a visit again, this time in Liège, inside a refurbished cargo ship. The entire interior was rebuilt to accommodate a bar room (supposedly there would be tables and chairs in there on a normal day), with a smaller space in the back where a full band could perform comfortably.

A small section of wall on either side of the room divided these areas, creating a very snug jazzy/bluesy/rock'n'roll environment. Before the actual concert, many people just took a little time to look around the inside of the ship. After all, you don't get to go inside one every day, much less for a Japanese rock concert.

After the usual announcement by Râmen Events' founder Aurélie, it was HITT's turn to take his place at the microphone.

The concert itself was pretty much what we've come to expect from HITT: a lot of eccentric dancing, lots of smiles going back and forth between him and his HITTERS, passionate performances at his keyboard..

There was a very warm atmosphere throughout the whole show, whether he was rocking out or being very delicate. That's the good part about seeing a solo artist in a small venue: you feel very cozy, very close and very snug. What I particularly like about HITT's concerts, is that it's pretty much the same people coming every time, so you kind of get to know each other and recognize people.

HITT himself certainly does, he's starting to recognize faces and picks out different people to dance with every time. Speaking of dancing, besides his own choreography he traditionally invites people on stage during his Flamenco-sounding song "Lalilalulalola" (I was one of those people at Made in Asia last year). Although this time around they got a bit more.. .. ..manic. HITT doesn't care if you're a girl or a guy, he'll dance with anyone who wants to have a good time, and did the frantic Lalilalulalola dance with 3 guys in total. Another guy, whom we've seen at every concert so far, was pulled out and placed on HITT's keyboard stool.

This guy was a bit taller than HITT, but on top of that stool he really towered above everyone, and HITT had to take several steps back in order to properly communicate with him. It should be noted that this stool isn't particularly stable, so getting on and off it was quite an ordeal..

Of course, this makes a lot more sense if I tell you HITT announced that it was "Boys night"..

It was a rather eventful evening, but I do feel that everyone left there happy and satisfied, so that's always a good thing.

Please find the rest of our photos of the night here.

To top it all off, we were granted an interview with HITT after the show, so stay tuned for that!

Report by Marjan Van Esbroeck
Photos by Kelly Govers
Concert courtesy of Râmen Events

Concert review: Calmando Qual @ Lr6 (Brussels)

On Sunday 12-05-2013, the blues/jazz bistro "Lr6" once again hosted a Japanese music act in their basement. This time, it was Calmando Qual's turn to fill the small but atmospheric space below the bistro. And they weren't going to wait for everyone to look up, for as soon as vocalist Hibiki opened his throat, all eyes and ears were on them.

It wasn't their first European Tour, so they knew how to captivate a European audience: loud bass, louder drumms and a very passionate guitarist. Seeing this guy play his instrument was truly a feast for the eye, it's a shame the light is less-than-wonderful down in that basement.

Of course, a lack of light creates a perfect atmosphere for a heavy rock band like Calmando Qual, but makes it a lot harder to take decent photos. Thankfully, the guys seemed to be aware of this, and some tried to make the light work with them, but the bassist apparently chose to remain shrouded in shadows.

The concert itself was pretty much what one would expect from them: loud music, loud vocals and an interesting dynamic between them and the crowd. The small basement allowed for rather direct interaction, and created a rather cozy and intimate feeling to the whole event. Their slightly aggressive performance was perfect for the acoustics of the place, sound bouncing off the walls and ceiling, creating the perfect heavy rock experience.

At the end of the day I didn't feel like I'd missed anything from their act, and I have to say these guys are even better live than on CD.

Previous "Band of the Week" article on Calmando Qual: Click Here.
Photogallery of this concert: Click Here.

Concert Review: PLUNKLOCK & Calmando Qual @ Tivoli (Utrecht)

Sunday, May 19, was the final day of touring for both PLUNKLOCK and Calmando Qual. They performed together three times in total. Roubaix, Cologne and Utrecht were lucky enough to see two great bands perform in one evening. We went to the “Tivoli Spiegelbar” in Utrecht.

There were a lot more people than I expected. When I went to BLACK LINE last year, at the same venue, there barely 35 people. Now the crowd had been almost doubled, which meant that it got super hot real quick. The merchandise table was near the entrance again. Calmando Qual sold T-shirts and three CD's. PLUNKLOCK sold CD's and a poster but they also had signed “special edition” T-shirts. A poster featuring both bands was also available.

Before PLUNKLOCK could kick off the evening there were a few announcements by two staff members. The female staff member was Dutch and the male staff member was German. The man was constantly joking around and said that if anyone tried to get on the stage he would kiss them, and that nobody would like it. Near the end they told us that there was a lottery to win signed stuff like a male mannequin torso. After all the announcements it was time for PLUNKLOCK to get on stage.

The first one to enter the room was Pinky, the drummer. Haruka, the bassist, and Seishou, the guitarist followed. Once the guys had taken their place they gestured that we needed to encourage vocalist Halo to come out. When Halo came on stage the crowd got even louder than before. As soon as the song “Breakout” started playing, most people were screaming, headbanging or jumping around. PLUNKLOCK really got the crowd going from the first few notes.

During the second song, “Ai'iro Regret”, even more people started to jump around. It was all so energetic that the floor was literally shaking, but all that moving around made it even hotter than before. At one point I saw Haruka subtlety sighing and waving his hand before his face to cool down at least a little.

Somewhere in the middle of the concert, Halo gave a female fan an “oh my god” moment. The girl had been standing on the front row and had turned herself a couple of times to say something to her friends behind her. What she didn't know was that Halo had noticed her turning around. As soon as she turned around again Halo ran over to her an turned her head back to the stage playfully while smiling. The girl was so happy and in shock that she didn't know what to do anymore.

Near the end of the setlist, Halo suddenly went backstage and Pinky gave a little drum solo. Seishou then took place behind his microphone and sang the intro part of “≠(not-equal)”. After Seishou was done, Pinky wanted the crowd to continue with the “whoa oh oh”. During the chants Halo ran on stage in his altered PLUNKLOCK T-shirt. He was still as energetic as before.

After the last song Halo thanked the public, staff and Kanzen Music with a screaming voice. He also screamed that Europe had been fun. During the last pose someone threw a white fan signed T-shirt near the drums. Pinky was the first one to get his hands on it so he put it over his outfit before leaving the stage.

PLUNKLOCK gave a great performance. They were very energetic and you could tell that they members themselves enjoyed it too. Pinky and Haruka were usually singing along happily. As far as I've seen there was only one “accident” with the mirror balls on the ceiling. Haruka had hit one of them when he lifted his bass in the air.

Before Calmando Qual took the stage there was a small break and an announcement of the head of Râmen Events. When the Calmando Qual members entered the stage, people were still excited but I think the PLUNKLOCK show had tired some of them out. There was a little less energy than before, but Calmando Qual also got he crowd going from the first song.

Vocalist Hibiki was even more energetic than Halo. He was constantly running all over the stage and leaning close to the public. Guitarist Tak also had a habit of going closer to the crowd. Hibiki also liked to let the fans sing along and he grabbed the whole mic stand so he could reach more people than just the ones in the front row. Bassist Kenka seemed to enjoy the whole concert. If he wasn't singing along then he was playing quite passionately.

Somewhere in the middle of the concert someone threw a signed white underpants on stage. Some of the things written on it: “Kaas is baas”, “arigatou”, fan names, the date and place. Hibiki took the pants, showed them to the audience and hang them on the speaker next to drummer Maya. After that the show went on and Maya got some attention. He had to motivate the crowd but he ran out of things to say and started laughing.

Before the last songs, one of Kenka's strings snapped. A staff member went backstage and Haruka came on stage to lend his bass to Kenka. Both Calmando Qual and the audience thanked the savior for his help before CQ resumed their show. After the last song all the members quickly shook hands with fans in the front rows. Maya also gave away some of his drum sticks.

Calmando Qual also gave a great performance, and I was surprised that they were even better live. They made quite an impression, but it was sad that near the middle of their show, more people got tired. Overall it was a fun evening.

Concert review and Interview: DJ SiSeN

For those who weren't there last weekend, DJ SiSeN played everyone off their feet at Coalescaremonium in Brussels. He was one of two J-music artists (the other was Gothique Prince Ken) to perform at the event, and after the performance we were granted our very first interview!

But first, a bit more about the performance itself. I had never been to a goth/cyber/industrial happening before, but I have to say, these guys know how to party. Alongside DJs like Chavakiah and Alchemy, SiSeN did not underperform by a long shot.

At first there was a small crowd of curious party-goers, but that number grew quickly when the sounds of this DJ's party started to fill the surrounding hallway and the smaller concert patio. The rhythms and beats made sure nobody even tried just standing still, transforming the crowd into a bizarre ocean of excited movement.

From what I could tell on the spot, DJ SiSeN was having as much fun as his crowd, which is something I always appreciate in an artist, be it traditional or other kinds of music.

When his own party was over, DJ SiSeN followed us into the smaller patio for Gothique Prince Ken's show, and was asked by GPK to join him on the little stage.. (photo below at the bottom)

He proved to be a very warm personality, with a genuine interest in the European goth scene as well as in the party people roaming the different areas of Coalescaremonium.

1. Can you describe yourself with a color?
Today it's black, but normally I like green and violet purple. I like nature, and purple is mysterious, I like strangeness, and strange atmospheres.

2. Why did you choose to be a DJ?
I didn't study any instruments, nor did I have any vocal training, so I couldn't be a traditional musician. However, I still wanted to write and make music.

3. Who or what are your big influences?
Mostly 90's Visual Kei, my style is not only gothic and cyber, industrial because lately I've started incorporating Noise elements as well. I like to make a strange atmosphere.

4. Name something you are particularly proud of.
When it comes to Japanese music, I'd have to say projects like Malice Mizer make me proud. It shows as well in the gothic scene all over the world, like in London you have Camden Market. They have a lot of gothic shops and cyber shops, like Cyberdog. My first overseas gothic party was in London, and it was very good for me.

5. What is your most memorable performance so far?
I'm now living in Germany, so I guess it would be my first gig in Germany. The goth scene is much larger here in Europe than in Japan, or maybe more socially accepted.

6. Do you remember the first time you played as a DJ?
It was in 2003, at “Aram Outo night” in Tokyo, a gothic lolita crowd party. It was my hometown, (laughs) so that was nice.

7. How do you feel you have evolved since then?
Well, my clothes haven't changed that much, I just wear what feels right to the occasion. Today it's more of a gothic style, but I also have very industrial and harajuku looking clothes as well. As for music, I'm mixing more mainstream and industrial sounds with noise. My image is cyber, but I like many kinds of strange styles.

8. Was it your dream to be a DJ?
I'm not really interested in becoming famous, I just mix Japanese subculture with with overseas cultures, and to grow in that as a DJ and as a person, that's my dream.

After the interview DJ SiSeN, his interpreter and I shared a casual chit-chat over the hamburgers they served at Coalescaremonium. This proves once again that he is rather sociable and very much approachable, and, I feel, a very decent start for JRB when it comes to interviews.

Concert Review: BLACK LINE @ Tivoli (Utrecht)

On Wednesday, December 19, I saw BLACK LINE perform at “Tivoli Spiegelbar” in the Netherlands. The venue changed on the day of the concert from “Tivoli de Helling” to Spiegelbar. After asking a lot of directions, me and my friend arrived at the actual concert venue. I was very excited to see BLACK LINE because I had already seen vocalist Mikaru and drummer Syu (formerly known as Denka) in 2008 with “Dio - Distraught Overlord”.

The line of people waiting outside was very small, but luckily more people joined once we got into the venue. I think there were around 35 people in total. The first thing that caught my eye as we entered the room were all the mini mirror balls hanging from the ceiling. I finally knew why they called the place “Spiegelbar”, and I have to say that it created a very nice and unique atmosphere. Before we went and claimed our spot in front of the stage, we checked out the merchandise. Sadly enough the T-shirts were sold out, but they still had tote bags, posters and two photo sets. Merchandise of the opening act “Klink Clock” was also available.

When the French opening act, Klink Clock, took the stage there weren't a lot of people that seemed too interested. The band only got the crowd going a little during their last songs. Everyone in the room was excited to see BLACK LINE, but there was one person who came to see Klink Clock play, and he got a round of applause.

As soon as Klink Clock left the stage everyone got hyped up because it meant that BLACK LINE would soon take the stage. When they finally got on stage everyone started cheering and clapping. They got the crowd going from the first song and that was a nice thing to see and experience. Mikaru usually stood on a higher platform so he could be seen properly, but he didn't watch out at first and accidentally hit some of the mirror balls in his excitement. His surprised face was kinda cute but that made way for what he does best...making sexy faces. He licked his lips and loved to tease the female fans by looking them in the eye and smile at them.

After a couple of songs Mikaru talked a little with us. He was telling about the weird smell hanging in some of the streets. Of course he was talking about the distinctive smell of marijuana. He continued that he actually bought and smoked some, but he experienced a bad trip and said he wouldn't try it anymore.

The band started playing again and this time guitarist Yudai and bassist Jun changed places a couple of times. When Yudai got on the higher platform he also hit the mirror balls in his excitement. Unlike Mikaru, Yudai laughed and hit the ball again like a cat. Later someone threw white underwear with words and drawings on it on stage. The band had noticed it and started to study what was written on it. Some things that were written on it: “Kono pantsu wa dame da you!”, “BL = Boys Love <3”, “Oranda” and “Ecchi”. I can tell you that Mikaru wasn't too excited about the “Boys Love”. He kept shouting “No boys love! No, no, no!”. Mikaru hung the pants in the front of Syu's drums and started singing again.

Somewhere before the encore Mikaru did an introduction for each members. The first one to be introduced was Yudai. He went to the front of the stage and was introduced as a funny super samurai. When someone shouted that he was also super sexy, Yudai turned red and Mikaru played along by saying “Super sexy indeed!”. After some silly poses, cheers, hand gestures and saying “Nin nin!” Yudai went back to his place. The second member to be introduced was Jun. Mikaru told us that he was walking in the park and found Jun all alone in a box. Jun said “Nyan nyan~” and did a cute cat girl pose. Mikaru then pointed out that Jun's strongest point was his big hips. Jokingly Jun started to shake his ass. Next up was Syu. Mikaru started with the fact that he and Syu used to be in Dio - Distraught Overlord, and that both of them couldn't stop making music. Syu was called BLACK LINE's super leader and “Chihuahua Boy”, so he made puppy ears with his hands. Mikaru then said that Syu had a big smile and that he shouldn't take it off tonight. Syu looked a bit confused and pointed at himself a couple of times. When someone shouted “Mikaru too!”, Syu nodded  to Mikaru to say “Only if you do it too”. They shook hands and smiled brightly. Mikaru also got a short introduction from Syu before they began to play again.

For the encore Syu was the first to get on stage. He got a drum solo and the other members got back on stage one by one. When Mikaru appeared shirtless on stage there were a lot of happy shouts. The music of Dio's “GOD forsaken” started playing and Mikaru didn't even have to ask the crowd to jump along. During the song Mikaru also came closer to the audience. He started to touch hands and moved around a lot so everyone would have a fair chance. When the final song started Jun and Yudai also got closer to the audience, but Mikaru was taking it to the next level. He petted a girl of the front row on her head before he “bit” her neck. After that he started to lean on the shoulders of front row people to reach out to the third and fourth row. When the song was over Jun & Yudai did the same as their vocalist and started to give fans hands and depended on the support of the people in the first row. They had some trouble with balance but seemed to enjoy the attention they got.

Before the guys went backstage my friend saw her chance to throw her cute modified panda plush on stage. Luckily she missed Mikaru's head but he made a "what the fuck"-face when he nearly stepped on it. Syu was rather quick to pull the panda out off Mikaru's hands and said "Arigatou gozaimasu!" with a cute voice while pretending it was the panda who was speaking.

For people who are doubting to go to a BLACK LINE concert in the future, I recommend that you give it a try! The band members are really nice and give a great performance.

Concert report: An Cafe @ Melkweg (Amsterdam)

On Friday 09 November 2012 An Cafe performed at the "Melkweg" hall in Amsterdam.

There was a little confusion as to whether or not photos were allowed, but turns out they were. I didn't have my good camera with me, but my mobile phone camera took decent photos (considering it's a mobile phone).

What stood out first of all is how small and cozy the Melkweg is, perfect for concerts like this. I was told it wasn't even sold out, so that meant there would be a lot of breathing space. Boy, was I wrong. The band almost literally pulled the entire crowd to the stage with their energy.

Kanon

They got the crowd's full devotion from the first note until the last, whether it was hard rock loud noise, rapping or a very touching song, these 5 know how to convey their thoughts in music.

The members even learned a few Dutch phrases by heart to read from little memo papers on stage, which got reactions varying from "awww!!" to "hahahaha!" because it was sweet and hilarious at the same time.

It was brilliant to see them enjoy their own performance as much as they did, things like that show why the band decided to continue playing after their hiatus. Their joy is not only contagious, it also lingers for days after the concert!

I had never seen them live before, but will certainly be there when they come back as promised by vocalist Miku.

Additional photos:

Kanon, Takuya, Miku, Teruki and Yu-ki

Miku and Teruki

Concert Review: Kazha @ Abunai (Veldhoven)

From left to right: Zen Takamura (Ba.), Rui Anarai (ex-Dr.),  Kazuha Oda (Vo.) &  Hideki Matsuhide (Gt.)

On Saturday, 25 August, I went to see the band Kazha (pronounced Kazuha) at the convention Abunai in the Netherlands. I hadn't heard about them before, but they've only toured Japan & America so far. This was their first performance in Europe.

The day before the concert I had a chance to see the band members, with the exception of the bassist. They were selling their merchandise and would sign the CD if asked. All of the members were sweet people and made some small talk. I was surprised by the fact that all of them spoke English quite well, but after I got home I learned that most of them either grew up in America or live there now.

The evening of the concert there were more people than I expected since Kazha is not a well known band. When we got to enter the performance room we had to wait yet an other half hour, and when the band finally got on stage there were problems with the microphone. The rest of the band kept playing while vocalist Kazuha tried to make the best out of it until the equipment worked.

Kazuha had no problem to get the crowd going. The biggest part of the crowd participated and kept cheering. That was until a tear-jerking song started. “UNMEI ~運命~” was a song written for the band's Japanese friends who had lost their lives during the Tohoku disaster on 11 March 2011.

A little later Rod, the drummer for this tour, got a solo. He got the crowd going and every one was even more excited when the rest came back on stage. Kazuha talked to the crowd and said that they had been searching for a popular Dutch song to cover but that they couldn't find one. So they chose to cover “Don't stop believing” by Journey, to the crowd's great pleasure I might add. They pulled 7 people on stage to dance with them. It was fun to watch the energy coming from both the band and the audience.

Before the other members got their solo, Kazuha talked to us about the pronunciation of the band name. “It's not Kazha or Kazja, but Kazuha! It was taken from my name. Let's say it all together! KA ZU HA, KA ZU HA!” The bands name was screamed a couple of times before they moved on and bassist Zen got his solo.

Right before the encore Kazuha said that they wanted to come back to Europe to do a tour. If they come back, I would really recommend to go. Kazha is a great band with an amazing energy, and they love to interact with their fans.

• http://www.kazuhaoda.com/index.html
• http://www.facebook.com/kazha.official

I took also some pictures at the concert:

And someone uploaded a small part of the performance on YouTube:

          

Concert Review: HITT @ LR6 (Brussels)

Japanese artist HITT has a love for Belgium, and that's good news for us! He's been here for 5 years in a row (if I'm not mistaking?) and isn't thinking of skipping our country any time soon!

Last Sunday he was in Brussels, at LR6, a Jazz bar. The concert itself took place in the cellar, haha!

I seriously don't think there were more than 30 people in there, it was so cozy and lovely to just be there with those few HITTERS (that's what he calls his fans) and HITT. It was the kind of concert that you'd expect from an unknown band: cozy, very intimate and still full of energy. We had already seen HITT at Made in Asia in Brussels, on April 1st, but this was something totally different.

Made in Asia was a Japan-related event that just so happened to have live concerts, so HITT was seen by many people, not just the fans. At the LR6, it was just the fans, who knew all the songs, screamed along, did the dance moves.. I'd never experienced anything like this before, and was very pleasantly surprised!

He attempted to speak French, failed and switched to English, failed that too and just continued in Japanese, luckily someone knew Japanese and was able to translate for the rest of us.

Among the songs played were "My Punks", "Crazy for You", "Kakkotsuke Man" and "Sexy Galaxy", four songs that I think sum up HITT's general attitude and music style: a bit of everything. Although the jazzy groove is a constant in his songs, his style ranges from blues over rock to neo-rock, with happy hyperactive beats and tunes over the groovy bass line.

After the concert he did a photo/signing session and since the audience was so small, we got to "hang out" with him, sort of. He is a really nice guy, everyone got a hug and his smile was very contagious.

He is what I call a truly versatile musician and person.

Sorry there aren't any pictures..