About six months ago, my wife discovered a Japanese indie band called 超☆社会的サンダル (Chō shakai-teki sandaru) and became obsessed with them. We thought it would be cool to see them live while we were in Tokyo this winter. Unfortunately, the band didn’t have any scheduled gigs, but their vocalist, Onizawa Mashiro, suddenly announced an acoustic solo concert. We were supposed to meet a friend that day who coincidentally lives in the same district where the venue is, so we invited him to join us. This entire story almost didn’t happen because all the tickets were booked immediately. Our friend only managed to book a single ticket for himself, and he hasn’t even received a confirmation for it.
We met in Shimokitazawa one hour before the show, and everyone was bummed that we can’t get in. While having drinks, I insisted that we should try our luck anyway; small venues often reserve a few tickets to sell at the door. When we reached the club, we saw a discouraging “Sold out” sign.
Without losing hope, we went inside and asked about leftover tickets, but the staff told us they were full. Our friend showed them a screenshot of his booking, but since he lacked a confirmation, they couldn’t find it in the system. He explained the situation, and after the employees talked for five minutes, they told us that all three of us could get in if we stood behind the seats. That was fine by us, as I didn’t expect a seated concert anyway.
The hall was cramped and dim; there were two chandeliers above the stage instead of the usual stage lighting. Approximately 20–25 seats were arranged in four rows. No wonder it sold out so quickly! In another pure coincidence, three people didn’t show up, so we actually ended up with seats. Onizawa Mashiro was excellent as a solo artist. She mostly sang songs from her band along with a few other songs we hadn’t heard before.
After her set, there was the main acoustic performance by a duo from 愛しておくれ (Aishite Okure). We didn’t know the band, but we enjoyed them regardless. When they finished their set, they started covering one of Onizawa’s songs. She eventually joined them on stage to sing together. That evening I had my camera loaded with HP5 film, which I was exposing at EI 800 while photographing flamboyant streets of Shimokita after sunset, so I managed to take several photos at the concert despite the dim light.
When we got back home, my wife was looking at the photos and realized that the face of the guy on the left looked very familiar. A minute later she shouted, “OMG! This is the guitarist from I’s!” And yes, that is Nakayama Takuya.
I’s is the disbanded punk band with Ano-chan that I actually listen to. They are quite raw and don’t sound as polished as Ano’s solo work. Her voice back then wasn’t as good as it is now, but the band is still fun and I love several of their songs. We started digging deeper and discovered that Nakayama Takuya also produced her first solo album Nyang Nyang Oeeee! He was sitting on a chair right next to me during the first half of the concert, but I didn’t recognize him. Now I need to send both of them the photos I made.
