OBLIVION DUST at AnimeNEXT 2017

For their return live to America OBLIVION DUST chose AnimeNEXT that took place at the Atlantic City Convention Center in New Jersey as their comeback stage.

Inside the live hall there was a big stage with screens on each side. Before the concert began, the screens showed the logo the band is using for their 20th anniversary celebration in black letters and white background. When the start of the show was announced, the lights dimmed and the hall became a mix of blue, green and pink lights. Instrumental music accompanied the entry of each band member to their respective positions on stage.

The first song In Motion put the spotlight on bassist Rikiji with fast riffs that contrasted with the calm yet deep and entrancing voice of vocalist Ken. Most of the members joined in during the chorus, singing “In Motion” together. It is a fun song, and it showed with all the movement happening on stage. Although each member had a totally different style, they all found a common ground in their sound and their reactions and interactions with each other. This energy was reflected in the audience as well; fans formed their own mosh circles and went around to the beat of the song. If anyone attending the show had no idea what OBLIVION DUST was about, they were oblivious no more.

With no words in between came Evidence, a part of their new mini-album Dirt. As the song began with a techno start that faded to rock, Ken strutted around the stage until he settled on the riser and raised his microphone stand with it as well. Rikiji followed for a while before going to play by drummer Arimatsu. Arimatsu sang along to the chorus while playing energetically, clearly having fun as shown by his constant smiles. Guitarist K.A.Z strummed his guitar with his fingers and jumped at the right moment. The song reached its peak with the high notes from Ken, accompanied by smoke enveloping the stage.

The next song Syndrome came from the album 9 gates For Bipolar. K.A.Z moved back and forth while Ken tilted the microphone stand back and forth before screaming and taking on the chorus. Ken got on the riser in the middle of the song, looked around the crowd and stayed there for the remainder of the song.

It was finally time for an MC. Introducing the band as OBLIVION DUST, Ken let the audience know they had to get crazy and enjoy themselves that night with "No Regrets", which was also the name of the song that followed.

Second guitarist Yuji headbanged along with Rikiji while everyone else bounced to the rhythm. Ken got on the riser and sang in a squatting position just to jump off the riser in a whip-like movement and keep dancing around the stage. No Regrets had fast vocals, including rapping that went along with its rhythm, accompanied by a deep riff by K.A.Z and was closed with a melodic shout by Ken.

The band went back to their new mini-album with Under My Skin, a fast-paced song that had K.A.Z standing on top of drummer Arimatsu’s riser at one point in time during the song to be later joined by Rikiji in front of it. All the members seemed to be having fun and the camaraderie was refreshing to see in a band.

For the next song, Ken instructed the audience to shout “save” when he raised up his fist the first time and to shout “me” when he raised up it up the second time. After a training round they were ready for the song Remains, a treat for old OBLIVION DUST fans since it’s from their 1997 album Looking for Elvis. During the song Rikiji shook his bass and moved towards Arimatsu, K.A.Z jumped with his guitar and Ken went over to Arimatsu’s riser. The training served the audience well because “save me” was chanted along on cue.

Microchipped came next, from the band's eponymous album released in 2000. It was Arimatsu’s turn to start the song with an energetic drum intro. Ken and K.A.Z exchanged places on the stage to be later joined by Rikiji who took turns with K.A.Z to be on the center riser. The soft chorus part contrasted with the pace of the song but the members on the stage never stopped moving. Fans clapped and jumped along while Ken twirled the microphone in the air.

Taking a break after that display of energy, Ken took the opportunity to drink water before addressing the audience for the second MC of the night. “Hey AnimeNEXT, who here can speak Japanese?” Many shouted back, to which Ken replied in a teasing tone, “Yeah? You lying piece of shit!” He then went to explain how in English the word “fuck” can be used for different situations involving different sentiments. In turn in Japanese he said the word “maji” con be used for anything as well, depending on how the word is said. He asked the audience if they knew this and when some replied "yes" again he said "you lying sack of shit" which brought laughs from the audience.

No Medication came after the MC. K.A.Z leaned forward at the edge of the stage and smoke filled the stage again while fans moshed in the audience. As if giving the fans a chance to rest, the next song was All I need from 9 Gates for Bipolar, a rock ballad that let each band member highlight their own instruments and showed the versatility of the band. The lights went from blue, green and purple to pink, yellow and red. The guitar and drum solos guided the feeling of the song. Fans followed the pace by swinging their hands from one side to the other.

After that emotionally charged ballad came Nightcrawler from Dirt, a heavy, fast-paced song where K.A.Z shone the most. The sound was like a back and forth between K.A.Z and the rest of band members, demanding they keep up with the intensity of it both in sound and movement.

It was time for another MC, with Ken telling the audience “AnimeNEXT, you are maji-awesome!” this time. Then he said it may be the first time for many present to hear of OBLIVION DUST at all since they haven’t played in the US for over 15 years.

The next song, Gateway, had the stage covered in orange lights. K.A.Z and Ken shared the middle riser throughout the song while making hand signals to the audience to dance along the beat. Never Ending followed, providing interactions between K.A.Z and Yuji while Ken played around with the microphone stand and jumped towards Arimatsu.

YOU began with a explosion of sound and Ken dancing around while singing a mix of Japanese and English lyrics. Fans were encouraged to sing along the chorus, backed by Ken's screams.

Arimatsu began the next song, Lolita, from Dirt. It kept the previous song vibe going on, this time the lyrics more elegant and alluring. The set of red and white lights on stage faded to pink. K.A.Z twirled his guitar around, a trademark of his, and followed it with a high jump from his raiser. With this song Ken announced the main set was over and saved the audience the time of asking for an encore by announcing one right then.

The encore began with green lights and the excited claps of the audience. Haze was the first song and had K.A.Z performing another high jump right at the start. Rikiji jumped up and down to the beat of the song. Ken tossed his tie away before the song came to an end.

Sail Away was the second song of the encore. Ken clapped at the start of the song and moved to the rhythm as the other members bobbed their heads to the beat while playing. Rikiji put one foot on Arimatsu’s riser while K.A.Z twirled around with his guitar.

The music stopped and Ken told the audience “We will see you sometime soon”. The show closed with Sink the God, a fast-paced song that had people both on and off the stage going crazy and craving for more songs that were not to come this time.

The US comeback by OBLIVION DUST took over 15 years, but is safe to say that both old and new fans alike hope they return way sooner this time and are awaiting more news and new material from them!

Set list

SE
01. In Motion
02. Evidence
03. Syndrome
MC 1
04. No Regrets
05. Under My Skin
06. Remains
07. Microchipped
MC 2
08. No Medication
09. All I need
10. Nightcrawler
MC 3
11. Gateway
12. Never Ending
13. YOU
14. Lolita
MC 4

Encore

01. Haze
02. Sail Away
03. Sink The God

Read JaME's interview with OBLIVION DUST at http://www.jame-world.com/us/articles-125944-interview-with-oblivion-dust-at-animenext-2017.html.