JapanSylvian.com

Feb. 29th, 2008, Meguro Persimmon Hall, Tokyo.

The attendees at the Osaka show were given a flyer, I assume at Tokyo as well. No info about other shows.

Oh wow! That sounds amazing! Wish he made something here too!

Information about the solo concert (and possible others) now up on Samadhisound.

http://www.stevejansen.com/news/steve_j ... _2008.html

I wasn't quite excited enough about the album to merit a trip to Tokyo (I am only two hours away) for the show, but now that the nature of the show is being explained, and with the contributions from Cornelius and Masakatsu, it sounds interesting. I think I am going to check it out. Too bad I am clueless on the lottery, I think I already have to have an account with Lawson's or Seven Eleven. Am I wrong? I guess I will wait and get a ticket on Dec. 2nd.

It will be the start of a nice weekend in Tokyo!

Natsume, could you please tell us the name of the website for tickets? I'd love to go

Bridget wrote:Natsume, could you please tell us the name of the website for tickets? I'd love to go

Gosh Bridget you have caught the Travel Bug haven't you? How many concert dates (and cities) have you been to now? I've lost count??

On the website Steve says that if that concert works then he'll tour with it, so here's hoping it's a big success as he'll bring it over here.

I've lost count too, Steerpike
I've also caught the Drum Bug and Flu..

I hope Steve will tour many dates around the whole world because everybody should be able to see him play.

Bridget wrote:I've lost count too, Steerpike
I've also caught the Drum Bug and Flu..

I hope Steve will tour many dates around the whole world because everybody should be able to see him play.

I agree too Get well soon by the way.

http://www.bls-act.co.jp/news2/event/_slope.html

I can"t really read Japanese, all I can figure out is that there is a lottery, and it lasts until Wednesday. It looks like you already have to be registered with one of two companies/convenience stores that sell tickets to join in on the lottery, but I am not sure. Any help?

General tix are on sale on December 2nd. I am not terribly worried that it will sell out automatically, but I will go and get a ticket on that day.

fabulous. since i had vague plans to go to japan when sylvian played i might go in february instead. what is the weather like in late february? is it decent in tokyo? i'd like to go to hiroshima as well and probably naoshima, it seems amazingly beautiful.

Yikes Bridget, if Steve sees you there...

i've got a ticket! so it seems like i m going to japan in february.

Oh well, Steve Jansen was brilliant. Very unique experience. No singers present, however it really worked out with them on the screen. Loved the string quartet.
Might get you a better review when I get home from Japan in a few weeks.


For those hardcore fans; yes, he looked great.

Thanks Sylvie! Good to know it was good!

Meguro Persimmon Hall is a very beautiful, new, mid-size facility, and one thing about the show that was just awesome: perfect sound.

It was Steve, Cornelius, Takagi, and a string quartet. Essentially, after a very slow lead in, pulsing electronic strings that were eventually joined by the quartet, the full band broke into Grip, and they played the entire album, start to finish. All of the vocals were the recorded versions, although they may have been different takes, in some cases. Sylvian's Playground Martyrs sounded like it might have been. The lack of vocalists was addressed, in I think a very satisfactory way, by videos of each singer projected, with the rest of the evening's visuals, on a giant screen behind the band. After the album, the band briefly left the stage, and they came back to do Swimming in Qualia, about a 25 minute version. Steve introduced the musicians, I think right before Ballad of a Deadman. And he also indroduced Swimming, saying something about it being far darker than the first part of the show, and hoping we liked it.

It was very professional, as one would expect. The guitar, keys, and strings fleshed out, made "live", the essentially digitized skeletal structure of the music. I have some reservations about this, the same I had for the use of the prerecorded music on the World is Everything tour, and there as well it seemed to mostly be used with Steve's Nine Horses stuff. I guess, given the talent, I would probably be happier with skeletal versions of the songs using just the musicians that are there. Given that, I was most happy with this show when Steve was focused on percussion, his hybrid kit of pads and cymbals, and the music openned up and felt more like a live band. December Train and Deadman were both the standouts for me, for these reasons.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the show, it was a treat, and really made the new work come across very strong. Steve was lovely, and his usual modest and quiet self.

The crowd was almost entirely Japanese. I think I saw Masami Tsuchiya. If it was him, he was wearing a dress. Missed Sylvie, although we tried to hook up.