On Friday May 29th, through the organization of JSHOXX,
ALSDEAD performed for their first time in America at the oldest anime convention in the U.S., A-Kon. They were given a huge concert space which was quickly filling up before their show, mostly by fans familiar with visual kei but who were unfamiliar with
ALSDEAD. Despite some technical problems with the sound system, the band took the crowd by surprise with their energy and music, and
MAKI impressed everyone with his seamless blend of singing and screaming. Though they were the opening band for
Camino, they played as though they were the main event, and the crowd received them as though they needed nothing else.
The group started out with the aggressive
Violent of Reason, which had the fans headbanging along to the fast beat while strobe lights cast the hall into an alternate reality.
Setsua especially went all out, beating the drums as though he wanted to tear them apart. After this song,
MAKI announced in English, “We are
ALSDEAD! We are so happy to be in Dallas for you.” His words sent the audience into a frenzy of cheers.
The audience fell into a trance during the following
F99, mesmerized by the atmosphere created by the slower song.
MAKI was especially dramatic here, putting all of his energy into his singing. In the following song, bassist
Reito showed the fans an impressive crazy solo, and during the heavy parts he and guitarist
Shin threw their whole bodies into their movements. The crowd went wild for
Kizu, punching the air from the first chords as the lighting changed from red to black and then purple. They jumped excitedly to the beat in the chorus and both members and audience went all out during the headbang section after the chorus.
The next song was a heavy, screaming number with a fast beat.
MAKI led the crowd in clapping, and they continued clapping throughout the song. In the following number,
Shin took over, playing the dominant melodies. The beat increased and the strobe lights began flashing again. Despite the loudness of the number, the chorus was melodious while heavy.
Reito gave another crazy solo and
MAKI was headbanging through the end. Next came the fast and heavy
S.a.g.A., during which
MAKI’s screams and
Setsua’s beat had everyone punching the air and headbanging enthusiastically, and
Shin gave off a taste of his speed playing during his solo. It seemed to be a fan favorite and at the end after
MAKI’s final scream, the audience echoed his scream back at him.
MAKI then did a call and response of screams with the fans, saying in English, “With a loud voice I wanna hear you scream!!”, to which he received an enthusiastic response. While the fans seemed to grow restless in his following announcements which were in Japanese, they were more than ready to scream again when he let loose another yell at the end.
For the next ballad, the background was lit with a red glow, and the fans raised their hands in the air, waving them slowly from side to side, pumping their fists during the more powerful parts of the song. At the start of the next song, with music playing under his voice,
MAKI addressed the crowd in English: “We’ll come back to see you soon. Dallas, we love you!” The audience let out a deafening applause before
MAKI continued, announcing “Last one!”
Setsua then launched into a heavy beat, and
MAKI called out in time with the drums, “Oi! Oi! Oi!” The members headbanged along to the aggressive number, then at one point the music stopped completely and
MAKIwaited until everyone screamed loudly, after which the music resumed. With red lights flashing on him,
MAKI directed the crowd in punching the air, then moved to sing back to back first with
Reito and then
Shin on the other side of the stage. The song had a heavy finish with all the members and fans headbanging.
When the song ended, instead of exiting immediately, the band members lined up at the front of the stage, joining hands and bowing as everyone cheered them on. The fan response was so positive, it was clear they would have been calling for an encore if
CAMINO were not following.
ALSDEAD seemed to be soaking in the victory of their first American performance, enjoying the relentless screams from the audience, eventually exiting the stage as the lights dimmed.
While most of the crowd had not known
ALSDEAD before that night, the band gained many new fans after their amazing performance. The show was a success in every way, and we hope they will return soon for another performance in the states.
Setlist:
V.O.R.
PM Insistence
F99
Kizu
Nounai Ranbu (Unreleased Track)
S.a.g.A
Eternal Insanity
Kairi
JaME would like to warmly thank JSHOXX.
