VAMPS Heat Up ZEPP Tokyo

Bursting at the seams, the floor of ZEPP Tokyo was littered in red, white and black VAMPS paraphernalia. To the right of the hall shone a neon sign featuring 'VAMPS' and to the left, 'Sex blood rock n’roll' beamed down upon the crowd. Meanwhile, a digital clock lit the stage curtain. Cheers rose across the floor as the clock ticked not to 7:00 but to 6:60… 6:61…6:62…6:63….6:64…6:65. The background music rose in volume and hands raised into the air. 6:66.

The curtains opened upon a screen flashing with digitalized animation, soon blacking out to reveal the silhouettes of a pair of pole dancers which were then replaced by the band’s silhouettes, larger than life. Eyes dropped several feet as the screen disappeared along with the massive shadows, the members themselves seeming small as mental scales re-adjusted. The stage itself was just as fascinating, decked out like a post-apocalyptic saloon with everything from a saloon style ‘VAMPS’ sign to a devil’s head to a digital screen behind guitarist K.A.Z.

The first number, DEVIL SIDE, truly set the scene, the crowd roaring over the music as HYDE went all out on guitar whilst perfecting the guttural rock sound in his vocals. A huge cheer rose from them crowd, the excitement only exacerbated by REDRUM as the support bassist, Ju-ken, dug into the music and played up to the crowd and the stage and hall were washed in red to match the title. A wild mosh spread throughout the instrumental and HYDE spun about, throwing his whole body into each powerful strum – and almost losing his shirt in the act. Following on smoothly, the wicked instrumental rhythm of DOLLY raised pulses all around as HYDE journeyed to stage left and K.A.Z greeted the fans at the centre of the crowd. Holding his guitar over his shoulder, HYDE drew out the feedback, the crowd loving every moment, not missing a beat as heads and hands flew constantly throughout the number. He then cued applause by thanking the crowd in a smooth Americanized accent.

After a short break, HYDE then led the crowd into Life On Mars?, a sinister opening shifting into a wildly dark version of the cover song filled with eerie blue and green lighting and ending with numerous bright green bars lighting up on the final drum beat. A cheer of appreciation then greeted TIME GOES BY which began with an acoustic feel via K.A.Z. As HYDE resumed on guitar, the pace picked up and the band’s hard, electric rock sound filled the hall.

Slow, deep chords and a rain-like smatter of high tones made up the piano introduction to SWEET DREAMS. When the rest of the instruments came in along with HYDE, it was with a much lighter sound than the previous songs, the vocalist singing in a falsetto deeper than the standard. Every so often, he slipped into a deep guttural sound, the contrast sending shivers down the spine. Meanwhile, hands waved slowly to the music, the rock ballad’s popularity verified with shouts and applause. Instantly, the atmosphere altered in response to the heavy introduction of IT’S SAD, the vocal line of which was dampened by sound effects. The instrumental break saw the crowd commence headbanging without restraint, the band moving about the stage for variety of viewing. On cue, fans raised their voices to spectacular effect and K.A.Z went down on his knees, digging into the music. VAMP ADDICTION’s cool, simple verse opened up into a typical rock chorus and offered a view of HYDE and Ju-ken leaning towards each other, bent down into the music.

Another break preceded the highlight of the set, SAMSARA, a performance that would have been quite at home in "Queen of the Damned," a film adaptation of Anne Rice's 1988 novel. The introduction was a creepy instrumental infused with all sorts of sounds from guitar, to laughter, to chimes, to heavy breathing. “Let’s go together,” HYDE rasped. As he sang the word 'Samsara,' a torch lit up on stage left. A short while later, this was repeated with a torch at stage right, guitar and piano continuing loosely throughout as two more torches flared into life on the occasional lyric of 'Samsara.' Tribal drums kicked in with torch number four, green lazers fanning out from behind HYDE, now in silhouette to form a highly mystical image. The piece continued with a constant rise in tension as instruments and chords increased and the volume and pace crawled steadily higher and faster. The drum riff climax was accented by the ignition of pinprick lights clustered about the stage.

Set in all the mystery of a smoky, dusty temple, MY FIRST LAST featured wailing guitars and a laid back vocal line. The whole number was driven by the drums, yet somehow maintained a relaxed feeling as shifting light threw shadows onto the set. The opening guitar solo of MISSION drew excited screams from the crowd, blowing away the previous mystical air and replacing it with a retro feel thanks to orange and purple lighting and the splash of a yellow-lit disco ball.

A blackout rang with voices, all blending into one another, to which HYDE eventually responded with “Okay, okay, okay.” He launched into an MC, joking about how he expects to put on weight in America but is sure the fans will follow him anyway. The set eventually resumed with a cry of “Let’s go Hunting!” Soon after, HYDE was spotted up among the second floor fans, occasionally holding his guitar out or spitting water over the balcony. One lucky fan received a pick straight out of the vocalist’s hand. Meanwhile, down below, fans were moshing and crowd surfing and generally going crazy. Back onstage, HYDE surveyed the outbreak of towels as soon as ANGEL TRIP began, complete with hundreds of jumping bodies. At the end of the chorus, all of the towels were tossed into the air at various heights. Pausing, HYDE directed a peace sign at the crowd, waiting for it to be returned before the song could resume. He then started clapping to the instrumental as colourful bars of light began flashing all over the stage. Throughout the dance beat, bottles and the like were thrown to or emptied over the fans who never ceased clapping.

Riling the mass up further with teasing taunts of “You can do better,” HYDE then proclaimed, “There’s no tomorrow!” leading the crowd into reckless screams that opened up TROUBLE, a harsh rock version of the 90’s pop song. Next, the crowd prepared to march in protest, crying “Bang on stomp everybody,” the war cry of REVOLUTION. The digital portions of the backdrop lit up with all sorts of images, from scantily clad dancers to a stampede of animals ranging from ostriches to rhinos, with the occasional Roman Soldier thrown in. The crowd’s enjoyment could be heard in their loudly raised voices, continuing the theme of the song right until the end. Finally, SEX BLOOD ROCK N’ROLL kicked off with HYDE’s distorted voice as if the sound system simply couldn’t handle it. The whole crowd once more shouted the lyrics as one as HYDE ran all about the stage and underwear pinup girls flashed on the digital backdrops and ‘VAMPS' scrolled across the screen behind K.A.Z.

The completion of the song saw the band exit swiftly, though ‘VAMPS’ continued to scroll and the saloon sign flashed weakly like a burnt out motel light. Meanwhile, the crowd cried “Vamp-us” and jets of smoke started puffing out onto the stage along with the occasional crawl of lightning across the screens. At last the lights came up with a “Whooo!” A lengthy MC followed, featuring details of VAMP’s world tour and further performances in Japan. There was plenty of joking with the crowd who weren’t afraid to speak their mind and HYDE even made reference to the band that made him famous, scolding “Save that for L’Arc.”

Then came MEMORIES. With a wide, bright melody and a strong drum line, MEMORIES was a new sound for the set and crowned with plenty of applause. In response to the opening guitar riff of LOVE ADDICT, the fans instantly broke into rhythmic clapping. Voices raised in the interludes and HYDE bounced around cheerfully as various bodies were passed towards the stage in waves of celebration. Continuing the chaos, the deep, wicked sound of SWEET VANILLA had heads thrashing dangerously. After the short, but hot outro, the vocalist screamed “Do it Tokyo!” as he and K.A.Z played MIDNIGHT CELEBRATION up on raised boxes. Executing a barely controlled spin, HYDE arrived at the mic just in time to resume singing. Even the ceiling lamps were swinging like mad as if propelled by the music and the energy from the crowd. “Thank you, Tokyo! We’ll be back for you, so bare your necks!” HYDE cried.

After the band took their leave, every light used on the stage began flashing along with the resounding feedback until everything went black. A recording of SEX BLOOD ROCK N’ROLL began to play as a projection announced a completely secret live scheduled for the very next day, inviting everyone back for another night of wild excitement.


Set List

01. DEVIL SIDE
02. REDRUM
03. DOLLY
04. Life On Mars?
05. TIME GOES BY
06. SWEET DREAMS
07. IT’S SAD
08. VAMP ADDICTION
09. SAMSARA
10. MY FIRST LAST
11. MISSION
12. HUNTING
13. ANGEL TRIP
14. TROUBLE
15. REVOLUTION
16. SEX BLOOD ROCK N’ROLL
17. MEMORIES
18. LOVE ADDICTION
19. SWEET VANILLA
20. MID CELEBRATION