miyavi Live in Tokyo in September 2006

This particular live of miyavi's was the second in a series of five. The first date occured on miyavi's birthday (September 14th) and was attended solely by the lucky winners of a special contest. The live I attended took place at Tokyo Geijutsu Gekijou, which is in Ikebukuro and near the station. The concert hall itself is quite lovely and seats about 700 people. Outside, before the concert began, the audience started appearing in multitudes and it was obvious that most of the attendees were female and young, mostly around 20. The majority of them were cosplaying as miyavi from some of his previous "eras."

The small theatre was almost completely full yet despite this, there was an intimate feel to it. Before the concert, I noticed that the music being played was in English and there was some "rhythm-battle" style music as well. Most of it was not to hype the crowd up but instead, it was used to create mood and set the tone for the upcoming live.

This particular live was an acoustic one. The attendees were seated for all but three songs and stood only at miyavi's command. If the opportunity arises for anyone to see an acoustic live of any Japanese rock artist, I advise that you take it. The live styles are entirely different and reveal sides to the artist that are sometimes astonishing and amazing.

Incorporated into his performance that evening were various methods of visual and aural expression. His live included a tap dancer, a painter, a DJ working a turntable, taiko, percussion, and a beat-box as well as lighting. The projections also included the storyline featured on his website. Throughout the live, the set was cleared by people and instruments were moved around. Starting with the first song, miyavi had his audience's complete attention.

During all of his songs, miyavi did his characteristic "guitar dancing" where he either stands up and dances or enthusiastically bobs his head or moves around in his chair. During his solo parts, he would often play guitar, drums and tambourine at the same time, using his feet to operate the latter two instruments. Over the course of the live, miyavi also changed costume four times and would walk off the stage so that the tap dancer, percussionist or beat-box might have the spotlight. In the first MC session, he spoke about the purpose of the lives and about himself. In the second MC, he spoke about his plans and also directed attention to the two paintings that had been done during the course of the live and introduced the other people performing. It was then that he asked people to stand up and clap with him for the next few songs. The audience did not hesitate to comply and the rest of the live was concluded with the audience on its feet and applauding and cheering miyavi.

The dry facts never seem to cover the true performance, however, so I always enjoy sharing my impressions because everyone walks away from a live with something different based on his or her outlook and personality. The first thing I noticed is how different this acoustic live was from anything in America. In all honesty, I don't know of any other band or artist that's billed as rock that could pull off something like this. The set immediately reminded me of a very simplistic Broadway set because of the highly mobile nature of the instruments and the theatre itself. I was surprised to hear older American music first, but it was good music so I didn't really think much about it. But the closer it got to the beginning of the show, the more "rhythm battle" style music came on. The pre-crowd was much mellower than I am used to, and it provided a pleasant contrast for me. These people knew why they were here and they were ready to hear some good music performed by an artist they admired.

When the lights went down, a large screen had a word projected onto it - "Individualism." Then it was followed by a story, which, unfortunately, went by too quickly for me to understand it. When his newest PV, Selfish Love -Aishitekure, Aishiterukara-, began playing, miyavi played along on his acoustic. I really enjoyed this part, because of the differences and just because it was interesting to me. But all through the live, the word "Individualism" kept coming back to me. During the first few songs, there was a lot of light play; the lights would get brighter and darker and would also shift focus. I may have been reading too much into the whole performance, but it felt very loaded to me. I felt as if there were all kinds of messages being given and a lot of self-expression was happening.

Around the time Gigpig Boogie began, it was obvious that miyavi is a very talented performer in one aspect in particular. When he was playing, he managed to keep all eyes on him, despite the fact that there were other people on stage. I am not sure why this is exactly. miyavi is very lively when he's playing, much like in his videos. Seeing him dancing or playing three instruments at once but still giving the impression of goofing off a little bit creates a riveting point for captivating the audience's focus. He changed his clothes often, and I wondered why that was and if there was a connection to what I was taking away from the performance. miyavi clearly enjoys playing, and watching him actually reminded me of students at music schools because his acoustic live is very similar to a jam session. This is increasingly obvious the further into the live you get. My favorite performers are always the ones who do two things. They must be able to play well, but they also should be enjoying themselves. miyavi does both and in doing so, draws his audience in through his own enjoyment of the music.

The stage actually reminded me of some traditional Japanese values. During one of the songs, a plain brick wall with some moss was projected, in other songs it was simple colored light. Coupled with a concrete stage, the impression I got was of wabi-sabi, or beauty in the rustic, elegant simplicity. Each performer, I think, did something to further this impression, be it the tap dancer, painter or the beat-box. The contrast between tradition and modernism that I continually saw gave me a lot to think about.

After Boku wa Shitteru, there was something for everyone in this live. Kimi ni Funky Monkey Vibration had a rhythm battle and a tap dancing solo. There was also vocal percussion. All were talented performers who brought new dimensions to acoustic songs. In Please, Please, Please., there was a percussionist who had a solo on bongos, and then he and miyavi played together. Perhaps "jammed" is a better word. For the last three songs, a taiko drummer was used as well, giving another dimension of visuals to the performance. The last song had all of them at once, doing their own art, and a disco ball spun wildly above them.

I cannot iterate how different this live style is from what rock fans in America are used to. Calmly sitting down for two hours while the artist plays can be difficult. I had difficulty sitting still as well and trying not to dance to the music. Because of where I was sitting, dancing would have been ill-advised but it was hard to not be drawn in. It never ceases to amaze me at lives how the audience can all move their hands in unison. That doesn't happen in America though I wouldn't mind seeing this kind of live happen there. It's a very interactive and holistic experience and because you've got taiko, tap dancing, painting, vocal percussion, percussion and DJ-ing, as well as various telops and lighting, all of the senses come into play.

At one point, the screens said "People are all alone. From birth until death, you have one body. I know my weak points and bad points. The one who decides in my life is myself; life is a journey (by yourself). No one can live in my place. That's why, it's a question on how much I'll face it, and how much I will love myself. Even if I'm loved by someone who doesn't love me, I won't be happy. Don't be afraid of loneliness. You should enjoy the aloofness and love me, because I love you."

Setlist

----Opening Screen Image (an opaque projection)----
1) Jiko Ai, Jiganjisan, Jiishiki Kajou (Instrumental)
2) Selfish Love -Aishitekure, Aishiteru Kara-
3) Gigpig Boogie
4) How to love
5) Boku wa Shitteru.
6) Kimi ni Funky Monkey Vibration
7) Please, Please, Please.
8) I love you sae kikoenai
INTERMISSION
9) ~this song varied each day; for this live it was Senor, Senora, Senorita~
----MC Session------
10) Oretachi dake no Fighting Song
11) Fuminshou no nemuri hime
12) Jiko Shijo Shugisa no Nare no Hate (Instrumental)
13) Are you ready to love?
-----MC Session-----
14) We love you ~Seki wa kimi wo aishiteru~
15) "Aishiteru" kara hajimeyou
----Ending Screen Image (an opaque projection)----