Less than a month after the release of their latest album, アンテナ (ANTENNA), fidgety Japanese rock band GO!GO!7188 were on the road again with their first nationwide tour of the year. The so-called ヘンテナ グルメツアー09 (HENTENA TOUR 09) didn’t officially kick off until the 6th of March in Chiba, but fans lucky enough to be within easy access to Shibuya were in for a treat – a somewhat last-minute, one-off “pre-tour” gig on the 2nd dubbed the パラボラナイト (PARABOLA NIGHT). Needless to say, as a fan lucky enough to be within easy access of Shibuya, I didn’t miss it.

I’d seen GO!GO!7188 live once before – two years ago in rainy Yokohama – and it was an amazing experience (how could seeing one’s favourite band live for the first time be anything but amazing?). Not only was getting into the sold-out concert without a ticket an experience in itself (another story), but the band were fantastic and they were everything that the live bootlegs I’d watched had shown them to be – energetic, friendly and surrounded by tightly packed throng of loyal fans rocking their little socks off. This time around, I’m glad to say that not much had changed.

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Getting my well-insulated hands on a ticket this time wasn’t so much of a drama as I’m currently in the country (whereas I wasn’t last time). For the uninitiated, many (if not most) tickets to public events like music concerts and sports events can be purchased through one’s local conbini (convenience store). I got this one from one of my many local Lawson’s. A note to all the other convenience stores around the world – the addition of a ticket vending machine system to your chain will instantly grant you +100 convenience. They really are wonderful things.

Our hosts for the evening were the fine folk at Shibuya O-East, a famous live house run by the Shibuya-O group who also manage the far smaller Shibuya O-West venue right across the road. You can find it nestled snugly on a narrow street running through Shibuya’s amorous “Love Hotel Hill”, about five minute’s walk from Shibuya station.

The noticeboard outside the venue. The ticket itself cost ¥2,500 but in Japan it’s also common practice to have to fork over an additional ¥500 or so at the door for a “drink ticket”, which you later exchange for a drink that is not, no matter how anyone tries to justify it, worth anywhere near ¥500. I ended up choosing a can that had some kind of fizzy cocktail in it. Ugh. Also you may also have noticed the grandpa starting times – doors open at 6pm for a 7pm start – this is to ensure that the concert finishes with plenty of time to spare before the last trains leave the station. How considerate!

An explosion of flora and goodwill from the band’s record label for the “first” concert of their tour. How thoughtful!

Shibuya O-East, I must say, is one of the better venues I’ve been to. Thanks to some sensible architectural choices, it’s almost impossible to find yourself stuck behind a giant pole or illogically placed staircase. Everything is spaciously laid out over two floors and this, combined with the Japanese gigging etiquette of giving your fellow concert-goers adequate personal breathing/rocking out space, makes for a very comfortable experience. As you can see from the photo above, I managed to secure a fantastic spot somewhere in the middle of a raised section on the first floor.

At this point I should probably mention that taking photos at concerts in Japan is considered very bad manners, and is usually explicitly prohibited. This was also the case at Shibuya O-East. I snuck this first photo in before the band appeared on stage, which I chanced as being reasonably safe thing to do. For the most of the actual show’s duration, however, I refrained from snapping any more lest I risked being thrown out (or politely asked to leave, please, if it wouldn’t cause too much inconvenience) by security. What do you take me for, some arrogant foreigner with no respect for the local laws and customs of the country in which he lives?!

You bet.

Mind, I only dared to take one photo of them, and without the flash, and only when I was quite sure it was their last song and that getting thrown out at that point wouldn’t have been such a big deal. Luckily I managed to get a pretty good shot in, unobscured for a rare moment by the thrusting hands from the pit area down the front and finding the band clearly lit up on stage. Click the image if you want to download the unedited, original high-res photo.

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The performance itself was classic GO!GO!. For those who don’t know what classic GO!GO! entails, it basically refers to their tried-and-tested live formula of playing a few songs, then stopping for Akko to greet the audience whilst Yuu stands about looking nervous, then getting back into the songs before stopping again for more banter with the audience as they call out questions and vie for the band’s attention, and so on and so forth. They ran through all the songs on ANTENNA and all the b-sides from its two singles, including 片思いファイター  (Kataomoi FIGHTER)’s live recording of あしのけ (Ashi no Ke) from 569, the set’s only track not exclusively linked to ANTENNA. I originally had my reservations about how well they would be able to pull off their new “fuller” studio sound live on stage, but all fears were allayed as they successfully nailed one song after another. Maybe it was the well-tuned acoustics at Shibuya O-East, but the three of them sounded huge.

Highlights included the disco rock antics of 食わずギライ (KuwazuGIRAI), which saw the stage drenched in pink lights and the disco ball called into action;  YOMEとして2008 (YOME toshite 2008)’s highly amusing and very cute YMCA-style spell-out, which made everyone in front of me look like they were participating in an aerobics class; the confirmation of ちんとんしゃん (Chintonshan) and ANTENNA as live tracks to watch out for; and Turkey’s crowd-pleasing vocals on songs like ばりぶり (Bariburi) and set closer 雨の日だけの恋 (Ame no Hi Dake no Koi). But by far the most impressive and downright coolest moment came with the performance of their metal rocker on the まゆ毛 ～切りすぎて～(on the Mayuge ~Kirisugite~). Akko swapped her Thunderbird out for a black and white Flying V. Yuu’s trademark starry Telecaster was tagged out for a black Les Paul. This one-off instrument swap was an indication that they were about to do something out of the ordinary. Something… special. Well, they delivered. Turkey revved up the audience in preparation for the metal to come and then, suddenly, it began. The stage lights flashed epileptically and Turkey’s double-kick pedal exploded like a rapid-fire machine gun straight to the heart – with each bullet containing the apocalypse. I’d never seen or heard or felt GO!GO! like this before. It was like watching another band entirely. It was awesome.

The rest of the set was hammered out very tightly, with Yuu even managing to get through it all without her usual endearing slip-ups on the guitar. Her voice did sound a bit nasal though, as if she had a cold, but she acknowledged the fact during one of the rare moments in which she actually spoke to the audience. Akko was her usual bubbly self and Turkey, though looking on in years these days, didn’t miss a beat. The crowd was a mixture of old fans sporting towels and t-shirts from long-gone tours and, surprisingly, a lot of younger faces which I suppose is a testament to the band’s ongoing appeal… or the fountain of youth which I suspect is somehow connected to Japan’s water supply.

The only downside to the night was that the set went for all of just 90 minutes. No encore, though the crowd bayed for it and wouldn’t stop until the house lights came on to gently shoo us away. But what do you expect for the bargain price of ¥2,500, considering all the other dates on the proper tour would set you back no less than ¥4,000 a pop? If this was just a warm-up for things to come, I for one can’t wait for the main event.

… and yes, I’ve got my ticket booked for their next (and last) show in Tokyo, an agonising two months away on the 31st of May…

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Setlist
GO!GO!7188
パラボラナイト (PARABOLA NIGHT)
Live @ Shibuya O-East, 02/03/09

00. Intro
01. 地球最後の日 (Chikyuu Saigo no Hi · The Earth’s Last Day)
02. ちんとんしゃん (Chintonshan)
03. 片思いファイター (Kataomoi FIGHTER · Unrequited Love Fighter)
04. 食わずギライ (KuwazuGIRAI · Food Aversion)
05. 飛び跳ねマーチ (Tobihane MARCH · Hopping March)
06. YOMEとして2008 (YOME toshite 2008· As a Daughter-in-Law 2008)
07. on the まゆ毛 ～切りすぎて～ (on the Mayuge ~Kirisugite~ · on the Eyebrows ~Overcut Hair~)
08. あしのけ (Ashi no Ke · Leg Hair)
09. 満天の星　春の庭 (Manten no Hoshi Haru no Niwa · The Whole Sky’s Stars, Spring’s Garden)
11. ハモリエヴリデイ (HARMONY EVERYDAY)
12. ふたしかたしか (Futashika Tashika · Uncertain Certain)
13. ばりぶり (Bariburi)
14. コミュニケーションギャップ (COMMUNICATION GAP)
15. アンテナ (ANTENNA)
16. 雨の日だけの恋 (Ame no Hi Dake no Koi · Rainy Day Only Love)

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GO!GO!7188 – HENTENA TOUR 09 Information Page