On April 11th, twin vocal visual kei band Mix Speaker's,Inc.’s held a pre-finale show for their 8th anniversary tour Ghost Town at Tokyo’s TSUTAYA O-WEST. It was Mix Speaker's,Inc.’s’s first nationwide tour with new vocalist NIKA, who joined the band last December. Over thirteen shows in twelve cities, NIKA succeeded in winning over fans as one of the band’s frontmen. With the release of new mini-album Hello Ghost House coming on April 22th, Mix Speaker's,Inc.’s were ready to take on the 12th show of the tour.
Black tread, an instrumental track from their new album, filled the venue with the atmosphere of a haunted mansion. Then, two human-sized dolls LUNA and SUNNY emerged on stage under a dim blue light. A narration by the dolls started to play, telling fans to be quiet as any noise would scare the ghosts away. One by one, the members emerged from the wings: NIKA as Exorcist, co-vocalist MIKI as Murder Doll, guitarist AYA as Mrs. ROSE, guitarist keiji as Evil Eye, bassist seek as Bone Collector, and finally drummer S as Candle Man. The band started by playing HELLO BAD COMMUNICATION, the opening song of Hello Ghost House. A jazzy rock number with a funky groove provided by seek’s upright bass. In the band’s signature theatrical style, the two vocalists danced like swaying puppets, as if they were welcoming fans to a Halloween dance party.
Wasting no time, MIKI and NIKA then put their microphone stands aside to get physical. The aggressive nature of the ghost house blasted out through headbang-provoking numbers THIRTEEN and Friday Night Busters. Ghost gate, another song from the new mini-album, evolved into a killer number; the catchy melody and beautifully harmonious twin vocals thrilled fans. In the midst of the powerful guitar riffs and edgy bassline, NIKA worked the crowd. The white-clad Exorcist sang alongside seek, his hand grabbing the bassist’s shoulder. Although it’s only been about five months since NIKA joined, the bond between the band and fans seemed to have already solidified by this early stage.
The band continued to exhibit its resourcefulness throughout the middle part of the show. The two frontmen utilized props, such as toy hammers and hand-written cue cards stating “Call”, “Head Bang” and “Jump”, to get the audience more involved. The fans enjoyed the band’s playfulness during the speedy hard rock number CRAZY TRAIN A GO! GO!. The vocalists actually started a contest among fans by dividing them into MIKI and NIKA’s sides. They then had one side swing towels while the other group headbanged and vice versa. The singers cheered fans on, urging them to get more aggressive by demonstrating moves themselves while the rest of band provided musical backing. In the end, NIKA’s side came out victorious, and the duo threw pocket tissues with the band logo to reward the winners.
Meanwhile, the band didn’t forget to showcase their fantastical side as well. Haru, Koishiihito is a spellbinding ballad that’s a perfect fit for the season of spring. This romantic love song. with its catchy melody and two singers’ sweet harmony, intoxicated fans with its overwhelming sweetness. All eyes focused on NIKA as he sang in his signature clear high tone. Later, the strength and confidence the band has gained over the tour became evident when they reached the show’s final stretch.
seek, AYA, and keiji revelled in unleashing their skills during the rampaging fan-favorites Pandora, No,5 COASTER, and MONSTIME ~long ver.~. “This is the last song. Please sing with us”. NIKA lead fans into the closing number Shiny Tale, and as instructed, fans sang along the song of a hopeful new beginning.
Later, during the encore, each member took time to speak to fans. S, who gave fans surreal amazement by playing drums in his Candle Man outfit, was the first to speak: “You know, nervousness usually goes away after I play few songs, but today, I still feel very tense. I think it is because this is the very stage I played Kobukuro’s song one year ago for keiji’s birthday. I still remember nervously playing a piano with everyone watching. Please help me cast away that haunting memory” – this remark made fans laugh. Then, AYA spoke: “The tour strengthened our confidence and solidarity. Please give us everything you’ve got without worrying about tomorrow.”
seek was next to share his heart. “This is our 8th anniversary year. Thank you for your support, in spite of us not being in the mainstream and you guys being looked at strangely by your own family for following a band like us. I believe our future is bright”, said the bassist. Then, it was keiji’s turn: “I think keeping the band going is really difficult, but we will do the best to be the band you guys want to continue journeying with.” MIKI, the band’s longstanding frontman, joked about the clumsiness NIKA had showed during the tour. “Please keep entertaining us”, the senior frontman teased. Finally, NIKA spoke to fans: “I actually had a feeling of aloofness during the shows where I wasn’t able to connect myself with fans. One time, I actually said on the stage that I felt distant, and all of a sudden, fans got very supportive. It’s great to be with fans like you guys with whom I can be honest”.
During the encore, the band embraced their faithful followers with their new song Last hours. However, an accident happened during SCREAM go AROUND ~long ver~ that seek actually fell to the floor while crowd-surfing. An anxious MIKI kept glancing down to where the bassist had fallen, but seekmanaged to crawl back on stage, although he lay down on the stagefloor for a while, Fortunately, he stood up again, and the show had a great finale, with everyone in the venue singing along during the last song YOU♪ AI♪ MESSAGE ~long ver.~.
“Let’s make tomorrow’s finale even greater than tonight. Thank you!” said NIKA as he bade the audience farewell.
Set List
1. HELLO BAD COMMUNICATION
2. THIRTEEN
3. Friday Night Busters
4. Ghost gate
5. GREEN
6. 約束の森 – Yakusoku no Mori
7. 春。恋しい人 – Haru. Koishiihito
8. PINKY ADVENTURE
9. ロミオのメロディー – Romeo no Melody
10. CRAZY TRAIN A GO! GO!
11. Pandora
12. No,5 COASTER
13. MONSTIME ~long ver.~
14. Shiny tale
Encore
15. Last hours
16. うらめし屋敷 – Urameshi Yashiki
17. SCREAM go AROUND ~long ver.~
18. YOU♪ 愛♪ メッセージ ~long ver.~ - YOU♪ AI♪ MESSAGE ~long ver.~
In summer, Mix Speaker's,Inc. will hold the tour Bukimina Mori ~From dusk till dawn~. You can check tour dates at Bukimina Mori ~From dusk till dawn~. Below you can watch an official trailer for the new mini-album and tour:
