Author: Ali Watson

A-Kon 25: GEEKS & Ra:IN

Published by Ali Watson

For A-Kon’s 25th year anniversary, they pulled in some pretty heavy weight when it comes to music. GEEKS, a punk-esque band, opened the night with a hard rocking drive that had fans jumping throughout their performance. Many fans might not have been previously unaware of this band, yet before the night was over, they undoubtedly won quite a few new ones. When one thinks of punk shows in the 90s, high energy comes to mind. A passionate and alive crowd that’s a hair shy of moshing, fists in the air and fans moving in the kind of turbulent tide that promises violence but doesn’t deliver savagery. Even the sounds were reminiscent of ‘old school’ punk with a modern flair that drew one in without hesitation. Each member demonstrated skill and the same kind of energy the crowd gave until the last note where screams sounded for more. GEEKS OHP: http://geeks.co.jp/ GEEKS Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/geeksjapan The headliner for the evening was none other than Ra:IN; Rock and INspiration, a band formed by Pata, and includes Michiaki, DIE …

Japanese rock in Rock Band

Published by Ali Watson

Why Rock Band? Get ready for a little tl;dr. Since Rock Band came out in 2007, it has been a pioneer of the music video game genre. Other titles have come and gone with varying degrees of popularity. What made Rock Band great was its ability to license great songs by great artists for inclusion in the game. They also listened to fans on who else they could ask to be included in the game. In 2008, Harmonix announced a Rock Band: Japan game. In association with Q Entertainment, a developer in Japan, the game would feature Japan venues and include Japanese artists and their songs. Ultimately, issues with licensing prevented the game from being produced. What this means is that the rights holders for those songs would not, or perhaps were leery of, licensing their songs internationally, which is the license required with Rock Band. Thus, those songs would be able to be played or downloaded anywhere in the world. Back in 2008, this was a very major concern. Not everyone knows that not …

HIZUMI at Naka Kon Convention 2015

Published by Ali Watson

In 2015, Ali has expanded into artist representation, securing an invitation for HIZUMI, ex-D’espairsRay, to the Naka Kon Convention. The convention is held in Kansas City, KS and marks the first time that HIZUMI appears in the U.S. since D’espairsRay’s last tour in 2010. The convention takes place March 13-15, 2015. This entry will be updated after the convention. ========================================= From JRockRevolution.com: The Japanese fashion and music industries will have some representation with the appearance of designer HIZUMI (ex-D’espairsRay), Jin (vocalist, Youtaite singer), and Ali Watson (JRockRevolution.com) at this year’s Naka-Kon Convention in Overland Park, Kansas this March 13-15. With over 12 years of working as the vocalist, lyricist, art director, and designer for D’espairsRay, HIZUMI has visited various parts of the world, including the Wacken Open Air festival in Germany, Jrock Revolution in Los Angeles, California, the Taste of Chaos tour in America and Canada, and the Human-Clad Monsters tour in Japan, North America, and Europe. Now a designer with his own company, UMBRELLA, HIZUMI works with numerous bands on design and development of …

Japan Night: Move with the Music 2014

Published by Ali Watson

Move with the Music of Japan. This was the theme and focus of Japan Night, a two-night festival held on May 28th and 29th in National Olympic Stadium (Kokuritsu Kyogijo), which closed its doors for good on May 31st. But it’s not only a celebration to the National Olympic Stadium’s finale that Japan Night celebrated. The first night, May 28th, was titled, “Yell for Japan” and showcased well known bands in Japan: IKIMONOGAKARI, UKASUKA-G, Kaori Kishitani, The Gospellers, KAZUYOSHI SAITO, SukimaSwitch, Naoto Inti Raymi, FUNKY KATO, and YUZU. The second night was titled, “Japan to the World” with artists SEKAI NO OWARI, Perfume, MAN WITH A MISSION, and L’Arc-en-Ciel. On seemingly rare occasion, events have provided international ticketing options specifically for overseas fans. Japan Night offered the opportunity for international fans to see this historic event. On each night, an estimated 50,000 fans filled the stadium, each armed with a LED glow stick that lit up in various colors during performances that made the audience an additional member to the artists who performed. The energy …

Yoshiki at the Qui Restaurant at SXSW 2014

Published by Ali Watson

Following his appearance at the SXSW showcase at St David’s Bethell Hall on March 14th, YOSHIKI held an intimate party at the Qui Restaurant off of 6th Ave. in downtown Austin. Incredible food and drinks were served as guests eagerly awaited the anticipated YOSHIKI vs. hologram that was to take place that night. The hologram appeared almost discreetly from the feet up to the excited and hushed whispers of those in attendance. Once the full image appeared, the apparition of YOSHIKI announced the commencement of the night’s event beginning with Art of Life. In a surreal and ethereal show, the image sat at the waiting piano and began playing the familiar song. Almost halfway through, the flesh and blood YOSHIKI took the stage without introduction and began to play as well. Watching the two play was an experience perhaps never to be seen again. For those lucky enough to witness this epic event, it will not soon be forgotten. For the most well known, and, perhaps, the most beloved, rock star in Japan, such events seem …

Tomoyasu Hotei in NYC 2013

Published by Ali Watson

On November 14th, Tomoyasu Hotei took over New York City’s Highline Ballroom for a sold out performance. Hotei, whose roots include the band BOØWY (pronounced like ‘boy’), has been part of an influential movement in the Japanese music industry, which continues to this day. Over the years, he’s furthered his skill and shared his talent with various sources, collaborating with artists and performing around the world. Arguably, his most well known achievement in the Western world is the theme “Battle without Honor or Humanity” from the Quinton Tarantino motion picture Kill Bill. The occasional theme song is just a taste of the talent and expertise of this guitar virtuoso. He’s sung in many tracks, as he did during his performance in New York City. Complementing his music were musicians: Zachary Alford- Drums Tony Grey- Bass Toshiyuki Kishi- Keyboard/Programming Steve Eto- Percussion Over the years, Hotei has produced albums that sell millions, cultivating an international fanbase and demonstrating time and time again why he’s one of the top guitarists in the world. That night in New …

Interview: Die of Dir en grey

Published by Ali Watson

We had the honor of speaking with Die over the phone prior to their Seattle, WA show, one of the last three stops on their North American tour. Please enjoy. [Originally posted to JRockRevolution.com in this article.] Dir en grey seems to be a band that does not do things without reason, from your lighting to the videos you have chosen for this live tour, everything falls into place effortlessly and is usually something we would only see at Japanese lives. Is there a particular image you had in mind when choosing the lighting or videos for your sets? Die: Basically, on all of the different shows that we do, depending on what kind of songs, and the images behind the songs, there is always a certain message we try to put across. When it comes to presentation, such as lighting or visuals, that has a lot to do with the band manager who helps judge what is best for us, because we’re on the stage facing the audience, so we can not see what …

Cell at Anime Expo 2013

Published by Ali Watson

JRockRevolution.com had an opportunity to speak with CELL following their activities on Saturday. Enjoy! Members: Vocal:  紺 (Kon) Lead Guitar:  Nao Guitar: Shin Bass: Yuki JRR: How was the concert last night, and the crowd? Kon: I was very excited over the unexpected reactions of the American fans. It’s my first time here, so I didn’t know what to expected, but I was overwhelmed. JRR: What did you think of the crowd and how they reacted? Kon: Overwhelming. JRR: Have you encountered anything that was kind of a culture shock while here in America? All: Everything is so huge compared to Japan! Kon: The food portions are huge, I expected the food portions to be bigger here, but when I saw it, it was double the normal amount in Japan. I was very culture shocked. Yuki: For Shin, it was perfect, because he eats a lot. Nao: It’s almost perfect for me; I can’t finish it, because I feel like I’m going to explode. Kon: You eat traditionally, so you eat everything. Nao: That’s right. [Note: In Japan, it’s not good …

A look at Lost Vector

Published by Ali Watson

There are times when people have said ‘try out this band!’ For many of these great bands, trying out is as far as I go. With Lost Vector, their story and music were very intriguing. For a few weeks, I paid attention to the band’s activities and their path as a new emerging band in a world where it seems thousands are born daily. While many bands that travel overseas do so at risk, most are at least well established enough to take that leap of faith. All artists start somewhere. This is where Lost Vector begins. This year, the final location of the Emergenza Festival will be held in Germany. The Emergenza Festival is an annual competition of newer and unsigned bands that number over fifteen thousand from various locations around the world. In each participating country, bands vy for top positions in elimination rounds before moving on. Lost Vector made it to the finals in O-EAST at the end of July. Unfortunately, they were not selected as the band to continue onto Germany.  Their accomplishment up …