Continued from LUNATIC FEST. at Makuhari Messe: Part #1.
LADIES ROOM — SHINE STAGE
LADIES ROOM, another great senior band to
LUNA SEA, appeared on stage. The band played
Sex Pistols’ classic
Anarchy in the UK first, which was the song
LADIES ROOM played together with
LUNA SEA and
X JAPAN back in 1992. The band’s signature style of very groovy rock ’n' roll was at its best during the third song,
SEX, SEX & Rock'n Roll. Vocalist
Hyaku sang the dirty lyrics with his powerful, high-pitched voice while fans rocked out to
NAO’s profound guitar technique and
GEORGE’s rumbling bass line. During the song, the band and fans enjoyed shouting the song title together.
Later on,
Hyaku invited
RYUICHI to join him on stage as a guest singer.
RYUICHI politely greeted his seniors and said, “I remember that
HIDE used to sing this song, and that memory stayed with me for a very long time.”
Out of the blue, 1970’s classic J-pop song
Sake to namida to otoko to onna started to play. It was a very unlikely song to be played at the rock festival, but two great singers melted fans' hearts with their sweet voices.
“
LADIES ROOM rocks!"
RYUICHI shouted at the end.
GEORGE greeted fans in his own way by showing his butt to them.
SIAM SHADE — MOON STAGE
SIAM SHADE was on fire from the opening song,
RAIN. Fans pumped their fists to the aggressive hard rock song while vocalist
HIDEKI passionately sung his heart out. In the next song
D.Z.I., he stirred up fans to shout. Driving guitar riffs and powerful backing choruses together with
JUNJI’s crystal clear drum sounds heated up the crowd further.
“How cool is that!”
LUNA SEA’s drummer
Shinya said, suddenly appearing on stage after the song. A mentor to drummer
JUNJI,
Shinya asked if he could sing
SIAM SHADE’s popular song
1/3 no Junjou na kanjou with them. Then,
DAITA started to play the introduction and
Shinya started to sing with the band while
HIDEKI seemed to wonder how he could politely remove his senior from the stage.
“Excuse me,
Shinya-san. Please leave it to us and save energy,”
HIDEKI interrupted
Shinya and nicely escorted him away. Following that, the band started again with
1/3 no Junjou na kanjou. The catchy melody and
HIDEKI’s high-pitched voice had fans swaying and singing along.
“Our good senior
LUNA SEA told us to liven up you guys. Are you ready?!”
HIDEKI yelled. Living up to his words, he sang the band’s killer numbers one after another. During
Black,
DAITA's guitar tapping and vocal interlude of guitarist
KAZUMA thrilled fans. Finally, the band closed their show with bursting rock number
Don't Tell Lies.
Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas — FATE STAGE
Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas, who will head towards their first ever one-man show at the prestigious Nippon Budokan next January, brought their cutting edge style of music to the stage. The mixture of different musical styles, such as metal, screamo and dance unleashed chaos on the floor from the onset with opening song
Rave-up Tonight.
Up next was
Thunderclap. The twin vocalists continued to show what they do best,
So’s clear, auto-tuned voice and
Minami’s intense scream bursting forth from the stage.
Minami actually played a shoulder keyboard in the midst of heavy guitar riffs, a slap bass line and thunderous drum beats, giving a progressive taste to the song.
Later,
Minami organized fans together in such a way that he could stand on them. He then urged the fans to dance and shout with the band in the middle of crowd. Finally,
Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas caused their fans to rave for one last time with the closing song,
Love at First Sight. The well-calculated song structure that was actualized by the member’s profound musical skills made a strong impression on those who saw the band for the first time.
DIR EN GREY — MOON STAGE
The haunting melody of
and Zero made a theatrical start of
DIR EN GREY’s show. Fans saw the band members through the scrim between the stage and the floor while gazing at apocalyptic images projected on it. Heavy guitar sounds and vocalist
KYO’s ominous voice led fans into
SUSTAIN THE UNTRUTH.
KYO frequently switched his voice between high pitch, falsetto and deep whispers.
The stage scrim was lifted during the next song
Hageshisa to, kono mune no naka de karamitsuita shakunetsu no yami, but
KYO’s scream and the relentless drum beat of
Shinya deepened the sinister atmosphere on the stage. Fans responded by headbanging to the guitar strokes of
Kaoru and
Die. The band next played
saku as if the song was a musical portrait of the mind of a serial killer. The uncensored version of the music video of the song was actually rolled out on the stage screen during the performance.
Loud screams from fans literally filled the floor when
SUGIZO suddenly appeared on stage with his violin.
DIR EN GREY and
SUGIZO started to play
Kuukoku no kyouon, which is about an unexpected visitor who delivers joy to a lonely person in an isolated place. The title said it all.
SUGIZO played a graceful melody as if he was giving comfort and deliverance to
KYO’s lost soul.
KYO sung out his inner journey of finding hope with all his heart.
SUGIZO responded to fans' ovations after the song ended and left the stage. While
Kuukoku no kyouon had been slow and graceful, the band turned the atmosphere around by closing their show with violent number
Rasetsukoku, in which
KYO’s growl and shout robbed fans of their sanity.
DEAD END – SHINE STAGE
DEAD END, recognized as the band from which J-rock had originated, gave fans a pleasant surprise by starting the show with catchy song
I Want Your Love. However,
DEAD END very quickly introduced those who watched the band for the first time to its dark side with the following song,
Psychomania. Iconic vocalist
MORRIE sung in his signature deep, glamorous voice whilst his transcendental stage presence allured fans.
Later,
MORRIE took the time to speak. “We have special guests tonight.
SUGIZO and
RYUICHI!” he announced, causing fans to erupt with excitement.
Then,
SUGIZO and
RYUICHI appeared on the stage, and shook their hands with their icons. “It is my honor,”
RYUICHI said whilst
SUGIZO took up his acoustic guitar. One of
DEAD END's classics,
Serafine, was selected for the dream session of the legends.
SUGIZO played alongside
YOU, whose guitar produced a haunting melody, while on the other side, two of the most glamorous vocalists sung together at the center. During the song,
RYUICHI’s vocals and
MORRIE’s falsetto created an ecstatic harmony. After the song,
SUGIZO and
RYUICHI hugged
MORRIE and left the stage.
“We have two songs left. Are you ready?!”
MORRIE shouted.
Then, yet another classic,
Dress Burning, started to play. During the song,
YOU’s captivating guitar riffs,
CRAZY “COOL” JOE’s firm and edgy bass line and
MORRIE’s vocals stirred up enthusiastic responses from fans. Finally,
DEAD END closed the show with violent number,
Devil Sleep.
Part #3 of JaME's
LUNATIC FEST. report will be coming soon, so stay tuned.
