1) 突然少年 (Totsuzen Shounen)

Rocking the Red Marquee like it was a stadium, and possessing the humility of a school boy who discovered the cure for a rare disease, comparing Totsuzen Shounen to “a breath of fresh air” would seem trite and inadequate. These fearless young men took the lessons of their musical grandfathers (Nirvana, Sonic Youth, et. al.) and made them relevant, like the rush of adrenaline one possesses in moments of crisis; the strength a mother is inexplicably given to pull her child from under an upturned vehicle. One hears of many efforts made by the Japanese music industry, or the Japanese government, to promote domestic artists overseas. However, as the western entertainment industry truism goes, they should, “Give’em what they want”. This is what western audiences want; rock that actually ROCKS, and ROCK that actually kicks ass!

2) Kotori

Yet another Japanese band, and yet another band that kicks ass. These young men dealt it like they owned it, and they did. If they don’t win the Rookie à Gogo competition – or at least come close – I will be both disappointed and surprised. Mastering the styles of fellow Fuji Rock bill-mates like Death Cab for Cutie and American Football, while being steeped in the lessons of Japanese indie legends that preceded them (like Freezer Noize) Kotori also possessed the hidden ace of being able to shift into peerless grind-core while hardly breaking a sweat. They also flowed through all the aforementioned musical genres seamlessly, and tied them together with exemplary musicality. Like Totsuzen Shounen, this is another band that is entirely deserving of the support of any person – or organization – looking to act as a patron.

3) Death Cab for Cutie

Having followed this band since their second album (2000’s We Have the Facts and We’re Voting Yes) as a fan who was there at ground zero, I can attest to the unmitigated beauty of the flower into which Death Cab for Cutie has blossomed. While they performed their Pet Shop Boys-tinted new single “Gold Rush” on Fuji Rock’s massive White Stage, it was clear that DCFC is a band that has fully arrived as a world-class pop act. With a huge LED screen behind them projecting a bespoke video show synchronized to their every move, and as they dished out hits such as “Soul Meets Body,” “ I Will Possess Your Heart,” and the heart-wrenching solo acoustic love song that is “I Will Follow You into the Dark,” it became amply clear that Death Cab for Cutie unquestionably deserved the heights to which they have ascended.

4) The Cure

The absence of integral bassist Simon Gallup mitigated their sound ever so slightly, just enough to make it slightly uncomfortable at times. And, even despite his valiant efforts, Eden (Simon’s son) could not fill his father’s shoes. However, thanks to that young man’s courageous efforts, thousands of Cure fans – like your humble author – finally got to fulfill a long-cherished dream of seeing The Cure live. And, nothing could make that experience less precious. For those who get it – like the thousands standing in that mud-soaked field on Fuji Rock’s last night – hearing tracks like “Close to Me,” “Just Like Heaven,” and “Plainsong,” live, reclaimed pieces of our souls that we feared were lost with our youth. And, truth be told, most of us would have stood in a torrential downpour just for a chance to see the legend that is Robert Smith; perhaps the truest surviving Rock God of outcasts and misfits.

5) The Food! The FOOD!

The food! The FOOD!! It would have been literally impossible to sample the dizzying array of culinary splendor on offer at Fuji Rock 2019 without incurring a serious tummy ache. However, this author did his best, and felt both fulfilled and rewarded for his efforts. In this category, my two favorites were Mumbai (an Indian food stall) and 1066 (a British Pub food stall). Both being entirely authentic – with the owner of the former hailing from Mumbai itself, and the owner of the latter being a native of Sussex – they both offered fare that was reasonably priced, and, entirely delicious. Extra points went to 1066 for offering two kinds of British draft beer, and bonus points were accorded to Mumbai for their excellent Vegetarian Set; the latter consisting of two different full-sized servings of curry, one delicious samosa, and a scrumptious full-sized nan.

Great food, beautiful nature, wonderful people. But of course a music festival wouldn’t be complete without the music! There were so many good shows to choose from this year. The Cure brought back emotions I have repressed since my mid-teens. Chemical Brothers gave me flashbacks to a much different time in music (and made me want to watch The Matrix), Sia fought against the rain and gave one of the most artistic and inspiring performances of the festival. While the Green Stage is where all the big hitters swing, I have to admit I am partial to the smaller stages. With that in mind, here is my list of the top five shows of the festival, in no particular order.

1) GEZAN
I have been a fan of GEZAN for quite a few years, and tracking their rise and seeing them make it to the White Stage made me proud. Putting these personal sentiments aside, this show was also undeniably unique and engaging. It was one of the hardest-edged shows I saw over the course of the weekend, and my only personal spotting of crowd-surfing. It was also one of the most artistically creative and playful sets I saw, GEZAN being willing to do things on stage that other bands would question the sense in. And the crowd was absolutely into it, myself included. They are just a band that, on paper, shouldn’t work. But absolutely, 100% do.

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2) Shibusashirazu Orchestra
I have wanted to see them perform for years, but every time the chance came up it somehow slipped through my fingers. In a way, though, I am glad this was my first experience, because I don’t think I could have asked for a better one. Before the set I managed to grab a great craft beer and snap the coveted highest spot on the bamboo trellises at the back of the Field of Heaven area. I was all set to just sit back and take in the show. When the band hit the stage and started wailing, however, I knew I just watching this set wouldn’t be enough, I had to be a part of it. Within 30 seconds I had downed my beer, abandoned the perch and thrown myself head-first into the crowd. Boy was it worth it. Then partway through the set something special happened, that made me scream and pump my fist (and get some confused looks for it). Makigami Koichi, lead singer of the band Hikashu, joined the group. Now I am a really big Hikashu fan. Here is was, Makigami freaking Koichi and Shibusa freaking shirazu. It was an amazingly weird and engaging and inclusive set, and it was well worth the years of waiting.

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3) Mitski
To be honest, before the festival I wasn’t too familiar with Mitski. I had heard a few tracks, and I did a little research into her. I liked her songs, I thought her lyrics were witty and endearing. I wasn’t expecting the show I was treated to, though. I have seen few performers in my life be able to control the stage the way she did. Every move seemed deliberate without seeming over-rehearsed. She performed like a burlesque dancer with a degree in semiotics, and did it to great effect. If the rumors are true, this may have been one of the last chances to see her perform live. I just hope you were as lucky as me to have seen it while you had the chance.

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4) Susumu Hirasawa + EJIN
I have always been a fan of P-Model. Actually let me clarify, I have always been a fan of early P-Model, when they were a weird new-wavey post-punky kind of group. In all honesty I kind of lose interest when their catalog starts getting more electronic, and I never really listed to any of Hirasawa-san’s solo work. Now I think I need to go back and reappraise a lot of his music, because this performance was jaw-dropping. Susumu-san has the kind of charisma only a veteran real like him can have, and he really knew how to perform like a mad-professor in a musical laboratory. He basically strummed lasers as his primary instrument, for the love of pete. Add to that EJIN, the birds of death in white suspenders flanking him, to really set the theatrical mood. Then have one of them use a Tesla coil as an instrument. I honestly have never seen a show quite like it, and if you weren’t there than neither have you.

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5 The Buskers!
I must admit, I am a big fan of the busking crew that comes to Fuji Rock. Their leader has been a staple at the event for 20 years, and the retinue he brings with him is diverse. I think one of the things that appeals to me the most is the busking model itself. Basically if you like it, you pay. If you don’t, you don’t. If it rains and they can’t perform, they don’t get paid. This is much different than most of the performers on the stages, who have their contracts all worked out regardless of how things go. It might sound like I am focusing on the money here, but I’m actually more interested in how it informs the art. These performers need to learn how to be individual, engaging and charming in a unique way. Their paycheck depends on it, it leads to some truly interesting art, and the festival would feel a lot more bland without it. While magician Masato Moja, one-man-band EPPAI and avant-garde mime Kano Mami may be my personal favorites, each of the 11 performers who came to the festival this year added to the flavor of the fest in crucial ways.

While I may be happy right now to have taken a shower, eaten some vegetables and taken a nap on a real mattress, I can’t help but wish the weekend could have gone on forever. If I didn’t see you there this year, I’ll be sure to in the next.

Kicking off their set at the Field of Heaven with a fantastically dirty rendition of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs”, toe started off well, but their choice to contrast this chuggy classic with some incongruously high-pitched vocals marred things a little. For this listener at least, the effect was jarring and detracted from the overall kick-ass rendition. But I didn’t hear anyone else complaining about these vocals, so maybe it’s just me.

Toe is at their best when showing off their instrumental complexity. The math-rock rhythms and drum flourishes are the kind of thing that send listeners into reveries, and there were plenty of folks in the Field of Heaven audience who were getting high off time changes and tremolo, warm guitars layered up over shimmering arcs of riffing. As the Field of Heaven mirror-ball threw circles of light about the arena, toe were running circles around their audience, taking quiet-loud-quiet-loud alternations to the extreme. A bit like John Cages “4’33”, it felt like the drawn out silences were not just a pause, but a consideration and part of the whole. Each pause built up the tension until it reached a bursting crescendo of distortion sending the crowd into whoops of delight.

Indulgent and sometimes trying by nature, but rewarding and nourishing in equal measure, toe’s brand of math rock may not be smooth listening all the way through, but one comes away feeling like some sort of musical spell has been cast on the evening mists.

As Robert Smith slowly ambled onstage like aging royalty emerging from a deep slumber, the crowd gave him a welcome fit for such a Rock God. When he finally started singing, the huge stage-side screens revealed the drummer’s hair fluttering in the wind, as if by perfect design; matching the music videos of the era from which this song hails. Young Eden Gallup stood in for his bassist father, Simon, and went to great pains to reproduce the formers’s tone and movements.

As the song came to an end, Robert Smith bellowed “Thank you! Hello again!”. Then, as The Cure dove into “Pictures of You” the bass tone was slightly different than usual, and it became apparent that the band was actually jamming out to a live-version intro. Eventually, it became apparent that the whole song seemed reworked, however, in a bit of a remix, and it worked; feeling relevant to 2019. Seeing The Cure in this context was really a once-in-a-lifetime experience with dozens of floodlights overhead in this semi-cloudy mountainous night. The crowd gave them the applause and the cheers these legends deserve. As they performed “Love Song” (once again from 1989’s Disintegration) one was acutely aware of being in the presence of the Rock Gods of the outcasts and misfits. Eden leaned into his playing in the same manner that his father would; wearing it low on his body and delivering his parts with mindful respect of the majesty of the song at hand. When “Love Song” ended, the audience applauded like they knew they might not get to see The Cure again. This is 2019, and Robert Smith has outlasted many legends whom, logically, should have died after him. The band then delivered “Last Dance”, with Reeves Gabrels holding tightly to stage right; ever the wizard, producing what each song requires. Robert Smith paced the stage, telling the story of the song’s lyrics, as if speaking to their inspiration. As the music stopped, the crowd applauded like they couldn’t wait to hear the next song, and Robert Smith quickly said “thank you”.

One hour into The Cure’s set, Robert Smith pulled on a black acoustic guitar bedecked with a white star, and the band tore into “In Between Days” from 1985’s The Head on the Door. Huge floodlights projected large circles of white light onto the forest opposite the stage; as if adding extra moons to this night, and making it even more romantic. A few songs later, as yet another song came to an end, the audience applauded as if asking for an encore, but the band was nowhere near packing it in. The band then dove headlong into “A Forest” with projection mapping simulating walking through a forest on the huge screen at the back of the stage. Ninety-four minutes into their set, the band tore into “Disintegration” – the title track from the album of the same name – but there was something terribly wrong with the mix, and a nasty crackling emanated from the PA speakers. An hour and forty minutes into their performance, The Cure put down their instruments and left the stage without saying goodnight. Most members of the audience clapped above their heads, hoping for an encore. Given the fact that Robert Smith seemed disappointed in tonight’s young substitute bassist, it was unclear as to whether the band would re-emerge.

After a few minutes of clapping, the audience had their wish granted, as the drummer resumed his seat behind the kit, and Robert Smith emerged, smiling. After making an unclear comment about things going wrong for him “in this idiot world,” The Cure dived into “Lullaby”, from the 1989 album Disintegration; with Robert Smith doing a crazy little spider dance during an instrumental section. The Cure played seven encores in all, with the audience seemingly applauding and cheering more for each additional number. The band tore through classics like “The Caterpillar”, “The Walk”, “Friday I’m in Love”, “Close to Me”, “Why Can’t I Be You,” and “Boys Don’t Cry”. During “Friday I’m in Love”, hearts and eyes from the artwork of the Wish album floated across the screen at the back of the stage and, despite the late hour, despite the mud, and in spite of the rain, thousands of people danced, jumped up and down, waved their arms and sang along happily to this heartwarming classic. At the end of the last encore, Robert Smith looked exhausted and placed his right hand over his heart as the audience delivered heartfelt sustained applause. Mr.Smith then returned to center stage and said, “Thank you! We hope we will see you again.” After a deep sigh, he wiped tears from his eyes. Then, as he walked towards backstage, he stopped and turned to look at his adoring audience a few times – like a shy child – before finally disappearing, as the applause continued unfailingly.

The group was born out of the ‘Paradise Bangkok’ regular club nights that started in 2009. DJs and collectors Chris Menist and Maft Sai, would flip through stacks of vinyl, playing everything from African, Caribbean and of course rare thai grooves. In many ways that melting pot, global vibe is still very much alive through the sound of the band with a firm footing also in traditional Thai music and heritage.

The band encompasses many genres of music, but the North-Eastern style of ‘Molam’ with it’s pulsating rhythms and psychedelic scores, brings much of it’s soul. From funk to rock and traditional Thai to dub, the group cooks up a mean tye-dye pad thai of sound. In many ways its a sound that can be enjoyed anytime, but really it should be served fresh and consumed immediately in the live setting.

That fine, sunny setting was the Field of Heaven Stage at Fuji Rock, Sunday afternoon at 1:40 pm. The Band eased into some smooth funk numbers before diving into the more rapid fire psychedelic crowd pleasers. Traditional Thai elements sat neatly within the beefy sound of the bass guitar and snappy drums. Kammao Perdtanon playing the traditional phin lute, brings the group a great deal of it’s personality and instantly amicable flair. Happy playing his stringed instrument he effortlessly laces the airwaves with wafting notes of nostalgia and nature. the veteran Sawai Kaewsombat on the khaen (which is a large pan pipe instrument) added yet another dimension of traditional thai sound, completing the balance of classic and contemporary.

As they veered into their last track ‘Lam San Disco’ they had the crowd throughly vexxed with their unique blend of Thai fusion and irresistible uplifting stage presence. They are definitely a group that has to be enjoyed live, and if you ever get the chance, then get ready for a refreshing splash of paradise.

The legendary troupe founded in 1988 by Daisuke Fuwa started their set as strong as any group could ever hope to- with an epic, anthemic jam accompanied by Day-Glo orange dancers twirling bananas and…. a giant puppet wailing on the saxophone. Almost every band in the world would foam at the mouth merely at the thought of closing a set like this. Shibusashirazu opens with it.

Without letting the tension drop, they moved into another huge jam, this one supported by a head to toe white painted ballerina butoh dancer. But to leave the things to see to the side for a moment, there are also things to hear.

The thing that really makes Shibusashirazu work is the fact that the band doesn’t even need these theatrics to be amazing. Conductor at the front, cigarette dangling from his lips, orchestrating a group of impeccable musicians as they blended free jazz, no wave noise, funk grooves, shredding guitar solos, in short expertly done kitchen sink genre madness.

About fifteen minutes into the set a very special guest joined the madness- Makigami Koichi, lead singer of none other than legendary band Hikashu, who threw down some crazy caveman scat. My goodness, match made in heaven right here. He stayed on throughout the set to play the world’s smallest trumpet.

They assured us mid set that, 30 years into their career, they are still doing it how they want it done. They slept in tents last night too. They too suffered through the rain. As wild as they may be, we are part of the same family.

Toward the end of the set the band offered up their mellowest fare, still epic and driven by wailing guitar, but less frenetic and accompanied by what appeared to be a dancing god of death in a lovely dress. All supported by Makigami’s vocal approximation of a theramin.

Things finally ended with another slightly somber song, which saw all the cast of characters reassemble on stage, our butoh friend now painted chrome silver. The music swelled, the vibes crescendoed and went wild. At the end of it all it truly felt like we were all cast members in Shibusashirazu’s grand performance.

If everything up until this point has sounded like the ravings of a mad person you obviously haven’t seen Shibusashirazu before. I assure you this has been a blow by blow account. Unless I, too, have lost my mind.