San Francisco Music Blog

Kirsty Evans

OMODAKA

​Japan Nite Special Girls Rock Explosion! 

August 16, 2009  at Yoshi's

Better Than: The previous day's outdoor performance by the same bands. By a long shot. 


Sunday night's invasion by the The Japan Nite Special: Girls Rock Explosion tour brought both a crowd and a sound that you wouldn't normally expect to find at Yoshi's.

Opening act OMODAKA were just plain weird. With a sound that's a mix of techno and ambient, complete with a masked man who carries around a chair with a laptop on it, on which is displayed the face of a woman singing traditional Minyo music...did I mention that they're a little odd? And then there were the dancers. OMODAKA is working with the clothing label 6%DOKIDOKI, which is where the dancers are from, but why they're doing something that's half Japanese traditional dance and half burlesque is a mystery presumably known only to the dude in the mask.

Red Bacteria Vacuum

Kirsty Evans

​Red Bacteria Vacuum were far more impressive - in fact, they almost stole the show. This punk band from Osaka is one to watch out for. It's odd that with so many Japanese bands touring the US in the last few years so few of them have been punk, because punk is something Japan has always excelled at. Loud and aggressive, but with an excellent ear for melody and an ability to write catchy choruses, Red Bacteria Vacuum are a perfect example. Standouts included a great bass player and a singer who made me nostalgic for the Riot Grrrl era. They were so much fun that the crowd didn't want them to leave, and though they were clearly willing to play an encore they clearly weren't allowed to, which was a shame, because it would have been cool to hear more from them. They were an odd fit for this event in a lot of ways, because there's nothing "Harajuku kawaii" about them - they look like the awesome punk band that they are (in fact singer Ikum! asked people to please buy their t-shirts so they could get money for gas and beer - can't get more punk than that). With their melodic yet hard driven sound, an irreverent approach and a genuinely gifted bass player with awesome stage presence in Ranran, the only thing wrong with Red Bacteria's set was that it wasn't longer.

Kirsty Evans

TsuShiMaMiRe

​Noodles were a huge change of pace. Led by sweet-voiced vocalist Yoko, Noodles are a gentler kind of punk band, very much in the tradition of inspirations The Pixies and The Breeders. Soft and melodic and irresistibly catchy, it makes perfect sense that they've found a home on the label run by Pillows . Their performance was solid, and they had a lot of fans in the audience, but it did seem a little unfair to wedge them in between two bands that were so much louder and more high energy. Singer Yoko is ridiculously charming, and she has a thoughtful air about her that made me wish I could understand what she was singing about. When Noodles come back again for another solo outing (and they will - apparently they've been here at least once every year for the past six years) they're highly recommended - they really were impressive, and it would be interesting to see them playing to their own crowd.

Kirsty Evans

TsuShiMaMiRe

​Headliners TsuShiMaMiRe were a revelation. Watching the band walk around waving to the crowd as they set up their equipment, they seemed so down to earth and free of ego that the opening bars of their set were just jaw dropping. Let me explain - this band looks like they should be making the sort of overly cutesy music that puts a lot of people off the idea of going to see Japanese bands. You could see that expectation building up in the audience members who weren't familiar with them, and then when bassist Yayoi hit her opening notes the crowd audibly gasped. Yayoi is quite possibly the best bass player I've ever seen live, and it was fascinating to see the men in the audience (a contingent not normally inclined to take the musicianship of female artists very seriously) just stand and gape at her in awe. Guitarist/vocalist Mari and drummer Mizue were impressive too - both Mizue and Mari can really play, and no one who hadn't seen them before could have been expecting everything from gruff growls and sweetly catchy choruses to come out of the tiny woman in the cutesy dress.

Kirsty Evans

Red Bacteria Vacuum

​The really startling thing about TsuShiMaMiRe was how much energy they had. Right at the beginning of the set Mari announced that "we have a lot of energy, and we want to share it with you!", and she wasn't kidding. Who would have expected to see a crowd jumping and almost moshing at Yoshi's? Though moshing doesn't seem like quite the right word, because the atmosphere was too happy and positive for that. Take one part raucous punk band, one part ska, one part classic jam band and one part PowerPuff Girls, and you have TsuShiMaMiRe live. One song about Kirin beer was immediately followed by another about Mari's mother. The band were incredibly tight, which was all the more startling given that Yayoi spent the whole set dancing and Mari kept jumping up into the audience (she was crowd surfing at one point).

It's a mystery how TsuShiMaMiRe have stayed relatively unknown in America while far less talented Japanese bands attract a lot more attention, because seriously, these girls can really play. They and Red Bacteria Vacuum were the big discoveries of the night (Red Bacteria Vacuum also impressed with their willingness to come out and mingle with fans after the show, always a sign of a band that have the personality and commitment to go places). When you add in Noodles, already somewhat of a presence in the US, the audience got a truly diverse group of bands for only $20. I call that a bargain. TsuShiMaMiRe singer Mari summed up the vibe of the whole show when she said "Japanese girls are very strong!" Yes, yes they are.

Critic's Notebook


Personal Bias: I tend to gravitate towards bands with great bass players, so to get three of them in one night? I was a happy girl.

Random Detail: Observant fans who had been at the previous day's NewPeopleWorld opening event could have spotted (and chatted up) multiple VIPs associated with the new stores, including the designer for 6%DOKIDOKI.

By the way: The Japan Nite Special: Girls Rock Explosion tour continues tonight at the Roxy in LA.