INORAN’s birthday live at Tokyo’s Shibuya Kokaido.
September 29th is INORAN’s birthday. Well known as one of the guitarists of legendary J-rock band LUNA SEA, he has also made his mark on the rock scene for the past sixteen years with bands such as FAKE? and Muddy Apes, and as a solo artist. In the midst of a solo tour, he returned to Tokyo for his annual birthday show at Tokyo’s Shibuya Kokaido.
An hour before the doors opened, a long line of fans had already formed in front of a special booth at the venue. They were lined up to buy the limited single Something about you, which was only available for purchase by live attendees. After the doors opened, fans awaited the beginning of the show in a relaxed manner. Then, finally, came the start of a straight up rock’n roll show. Guitarist Yukio Murata, bassist u:zo, drummer Ryo Yamagata, and keyboard player Daisuke Kikuchi entered the stage, and fans welcomed them with loud applause, and a huge ovation rose up immediately after INORAN made his entrance. Dressed sophisticatedly in a black jacket, white shirt and red tie, INORAN lifted his Fender guitar and gave it a few strokes to start the opening song, Something about you. Seeming to love each solid sound his guitar produced, he relentlessly strummed it while singing in English. The groove of the bass and powerful beat of the drums drew fans into the song, while guitarist Yukio Murata supported INORAN with fueling riffs.
INORAN resourcefully adapts to a different style of music in order to fit each stage of his career, and he even changes the language he sings in accordingly. This year, he chose to celebrate his birthday in a full throttle rock’n roll style. Fans went crazy when INORAN began to play some rather familiar guitar riffs—riffs quite similar to those of his other band’s classic Tonight, but the second number actually turned out to be One Big Blue. Some fans looked at each other smiling, but the expressions on many of their faces clearly showed their surprise that it was not the LUNA SEA song coming instead. Still, INORAN got his fans fired up with an aggressive number, and he was also kind enough to check on Yukio Murata, who slipped on the floor during the song. “Hey Tokyo! How are you doing?!”, INORAN called out to the fans. “I have returned to Tokyo and this is the middle part of the tour. I had a great time at every place I went to, but today, I am in the biggest venue and this is the day the bad boy was born,” INORAN said with a teasing smile.
“1,2,3,4!”, he counted, cueing the band to kick into next number, No Name. Completely in control of the stage, INORAN’s heavy riffs, sometimes with a distorted sound, generated massive heat. No extensive guitar solo was needed for him to shake the venue with over 2000 fans moving along with him. White strobe lights illuminated the audience responding to the addictively undulating bass and the thunderous banging of the drums with fist pumps. After making his fans sway to the low end edge and heaviness of the mid-tempo song no options, INORAN once again spoke to the crowd. “I am amazed by how quickly the time has passed since my previous birthday show, but I guess it’s because I am living a good life. How many of you guys are at one of my shows for the first time? And how many of you guys were at my last birthday concert?” Many fans raised their hands for the latter question. “I will do a song I have not played for quite a while.” Changing his guitar again, he announced the title of the next song, Sennenka, a melodious number about peace and passing the torch to the next generation. He sang a cappella to close the song, and the fans showed their deep appreciation for INORAN’s vocals with loud applause. Next, he said “Please raise your lighter, if you have one. Let’s make it beautiful,” and fans immediately knew that he was about to play Joshua. The flames of the lighters put a warm glow on the two-storied venue. The tender sound of acoustic guitar and INORAN’s vocals created a very intimate atmosphere, and the fans sang along with him, feeling his heart and following his motions.
Shortly after, INORAN took a little time out of the set to play a few songs from the other bands his supporting musicians belong to. The band performed drummer Ryo Yamagata and bassist u:zo’s other group Sonz of Freedom’s fierce number (Until) Monday Morning first. Then came A Man of Loser, from Yukio Murata’s band my way my love. INORAN joined the session on guitar and backing vocals.
“I actually composed this song in three hours”, he said, introducing the coupling number of the aforementioned limited single, Black Velvet. Black Velvet’s powerful grunge riffs and suggestive lyrics combined to create a sexy atmosphere, and INORAN threw his guitar pick at the end of the song, igniting the show’s climax. The fifteenth song, smoke, seemed to cause an earthquake through the venue. Next, INORAN took his guitar off and stirred fans up with the microphone in his hand. Kicking an amplifier, throwing a microphone, and jumping off of the stage, he let himself perform completely unleashed during seventeenth song Right away. Fans rushed to INORAN and the security staff had to literally push some of them away from him. He eventually came back to the stage and grabbed his guitar. “Tokyo! Leave no regrets! Give me everything you’ve got! Are you ready?!” He screamed, and his voice grew a bit hoarse. However, he put an explosive finish on the show by closing with the two most badass numbers from his latest album, grace and glory and Get laid. 2000-plus fans shouting “Get laid!” at top of their lungs in response to INORAN’s call was definitely a highlight of the night.
Calls for an encore immediately followed, and INORAN returned to the stage with an acoustic guitar. “Thank you very much. It has been a fantastic day,” he greeted the fans. “I will continue with my tour and some more things I have planned, AND…I will release a new album next March! Oh boy, I just said it!” Fans cheered loudly after his sudden announcement. “The next song is my present to you,” he said, before gently starting the song I’ll be there. One by one, while he was playing, the band members also returned to the stage and joined him. The fans sang along, creating a powerful communal moment before INORAN and the other members took a last bow and left the stage.
However, the fans still had a surprise for the guitarist. They started to sing happy birthday to INORAN, in spite of a previous announcement from the venue telling them to leave. Suddenly, INORAN ran back onto the stage. “Thank you everyone! Could you sing it for me one more time? I am here to listen.” The fans gladly sang it again and INORAN, full of smiles, thanked his fans for the last time. “Thank you! This is the best birthday of my life!”
With so much activity for fans to look forward to from his solo band, as well as his other projects, INORAN’s next birthday live should arrive in the blink of an eye.
Set List:
1. Something about you
2. One Big Blue
3. Hide and Seek
4. No Name
5. SuperTramp
6. no options
7. Sennenka
8. Nine closets
9. Parallel Reality
10. HOME
11. Joshua
12. (Until) Monday Morning
13. A Man Of Loser
14. Black Velvet
15. smoke
16. Nasty
17. Rightaway
18. grace and glory
19. Get Laid
Encore
20. I’ll be there
