Saturday, July 28, 2007

Gorgeous Racket

Fuji Rock 2007: Part 10
Bo-Peep


Heading for home we could easily have missed the ferocious grrrl-punk of Tokyo’s Bo Peep if we hadn't decided to stop by The Palace of Heaven. We heard their gorgeous racket emanating from the Rookie a Go Go Stage.

Bo Peep are wild girls with an enervating, edgy sound and there were plenty of admiring boys - including me - at the front of the stage. As my Aussie pal Andrew sez, there’s nothing like outtacontrol Japanese girls playing rock 'n' roll. I must say, he's got a point.

I loved the full-on antics of vocalist and guitar player Mika, she's wild. She's a good guitarist too. In fact all the members of the band are tight musicians. Bass player Junko had a contentedly manic smile on her lips while she was attacking her instrument and my friend said, “Whatever she’s on, I want some”." Drummer Ryoko is in the back, but you can't miss her aggressive wallop. As their sound hit me head-on, I began fantasizing about becoming a Bo Peep groupie.

There's not much that could blow away Bo-Peep, but Infernal Varanne’s Globe of Death came close. This kara-zy motorbike show had three riders circling a spherical cage which then separated in half with two riders roaring around the top part while their buddy rode in the bottom. Unbelievable!

Thanks, Fuji Rock. We had a blast. See you next year!


Supper: Absinthe, tequila, two pints of Guinness. 10 out of 10.

Bo Peep MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/bopeepjapan
Globe of Death: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8-EDcpZrMw

4 comments:

かおり said...

thanks for the comment. nice. had fun reading your fuji rock blog.

Shiffi Le Soy said...

Thanks Kaori. More coming!

Anonymous said...

Hi Shiffi, sorry for my late posting. I have now read all your comments about Fuji Rock. I haven’t been to such a music festival and don’t know the atmosphere. All I can do is just imagine what it would be like. Then your comments enhance my imagination and make me feel as if I had been there. As always I was impressed by your penetrative observation not only on performers but also on audiences. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Thats quite a mega-overview of Fuji Rock. You captured the variety and feel of the festival very well and I enjoyed reading your blog, very professional. I agree with your view of the Cure and they played for far too long. Too bad I missed Iggy Pop. See you there next year, Shiffi.