MIYAVI's New Style at Shinagawa

For his last live in Japan before going to the US and then beginning a tour in live houses of Tokyo, MIYAVI appeared at Shinagawa on May 29th. This tour, named Neo Tokyo Samurai Black World Tour– Japan circuit –, was a big turn in his career as he had been signed by EMI MUSIC JAPAN. JaME was there and introduces you to his rebirth.

It was raining in Tokyo when silhouettes arrived on the stage lit in red. Those two silhouettes were MIYAVI, on guitar and Bobo, on drums. Bobo was a member of the band 54-71 and was hired by MIYAVI to take this place in his new concept. MIYAVI nowadays is only surrounded by a drummer and sometimes a keyboard player. Though that was a bold move, it gave him the possibility to make the most of his special way of playing the guitar. The atmosphere was electrifying as the audience screamed his name. MIYAVI jumped on the stage and started his performance with the new track SURVIVE, which was one of the first composed since his rebirth. He shouted a "Hello Tokyo" and played his guitar with his own style, beating and slapping his strings while Bobo pounded his drums which simply consisted of a snare, a bass drum and some cymbal elements. The drummer was awesome with his loud strikes and wide range of playing. MIYAVI and Bobo were a very close pair.

MIYAVI went from song to song from his previous albums that were rearranged for his new concept. His tunes, such as Coin Lockers Baby or Ossan Ossan Ore Nanbo, sounded dirtier, louder, but surprisingly less electric than the former recordings. However, the songs performed with the keyboard player Coba84 were even more original, like BOOM-HUH BOOM BOOM HUH, since the keyboard added alternatively a jazzy and a funky touch. The new version of the song was less strong than before, but had more swing. MIYAVI's remixed songs were great, but that was not the case for all the songs played that night. For example, 21st Century Tokyo Blues was way more interesting before. While the song began, MIYAVI performed some dancing moves such as the moonwalk and robot. The introduction was still sung by the KAVKI BOIZ, as could be heard in the former recording. But, with the new version, the spirit of the song was lost, which was marked by all the raps and the turntable from the “Kabuki Rock” era, the best period in MIYAVI's discography until now. Even if the keyboard was nice, Ame ni utaeba wasn't performed well by MIYAVI since his voice appeared to be weak and not so in tune.

Between each set of songs, MIYAVI casually stretched and warmed the audience up in both English and Japanese or encouraged fans to scream his name. This laid-back and cheeky attitude was also the mark of his song called, in a self-obsessed way, What's My Name?. The genius slapped his guitar while his fingers ran on his guitar's neck, and then stopped to let people shout out his name again. He egged them on, saying "What the fuck is my name?" This song was just a big ego trip, but that's how the fans liked MIYAVI. Just after Kimi ni Funky Monkey Baby came the time that he chose to launch the main event of the live: a mini set of four new songs. First, REVENGE started with Bobo beating time on his snare and a repetitive guitar riff. But Bobo's drumming was far from his dynamic playing and MIYAVI's voice reached its own limits. UNBREAKABLE was way better, with a drum solo as the introduction and Bobo using musical silences cleverly. The two musicians followed each other until the chorus when MIYAVI screamed. Then came S.M.F.B., Super MotherFucker Bitch. This song, somehow, had a bunch of stereotypes. The title and its vulgarity sounded really teenage and the music was a punk rock that was quite common. Fortunately, the next song, GRAVITY, was a nice one. MIYAVI explained to his audience that he composed this song after Michael Jackson's death, while he was questioning himself about the themes of death and life; which was a duality that he has claimed to have thought about since his daughter's birth. Rain that was falling outside the venue seemed to be falling on the stage as well, giving the song an eerie ambience. The rhythm was slow, his guitar was grim, and the lyrics were rather deep and personal. The audience stayed silent as MIYAVI's screams sent a chill through them. The drums started beating only at the very end of the track. This mini song set ended on a delightful, melancholic touch.

MIYAVI then went back to the basics with Kimi no negai wo, ARE YOU READY TO ROCK? and, in between, Shouri no V-ROCK, which was always well received by his fans. Coba84, followed by the audience, did the official towel spin above his head throughout the song. The end of the show was nearing and the encore was approaching. MIYAVI introduced his musicians who started their solos. Bobo's part was impressive as he hit his cymbals by holding his sticks as a samurai would have held his katana. The finale was Girls be ambitious.

This new concept that MIYAVI decided to follow, by changing his record company and gaining more independence, enabled him to dive into the core of his music. MIYAVI still has a long road ahead of him. After this era of “Kabuki rock,” which was a successful period music-wise, it would be a shame to regress to what he called the miyavizm back in 2005. MIYAVI must confirm with his next releases that he really has found the very best of his music because failing is certainly not an option after all these changes he has made in his career.



Set List:

01. SURVIVE
02. Coin Lockers Baby
03. Ossan Ossan Ore Nanbo
04. BOOM-HUH BOOM BOOM HUH
05. 21st Century Tokyo Blues
06. Ame ni utaeba
07. What's My Name?
08. Kimi ni Funky Monkey Baby
09. REVENGE
10. UNBREAKABLE
11. S.M.F.B.
12. GRAVITY
13. Kimi ni negai wo
14. SUPER HERO
15. Eccentric Otona Yamai
16. Shouri no V-ROCK
17. ARE YOU READY TO ROCK?

ENCORE

01. Subarashiki kana, kono sekai
02. Sakihokoru hana no you ni-Neo Visualizm-
03. Girls be ambitious