A new cultural event EPOCHS – Music & Art Collective took place at Rising Field Karuizawa in Nagano Prefecture from September 30 to October 1. The recap for the first day is here (First day report of the new festival “EPOCHS” in Karuizawa). On the second day, 17 artists and DJs performed, including TOWA TEI, Yuta Orisaka, Campanella Wednesday, MIZ, Dos Monos, maya ongaku, etc. YOSHIROTTEN, who also produced artwork for Tempalay, projected images onto the trees in a sound visual installation.
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Legendary Taeko Onuki Takes the Stage
One of the day’s main attractions was Taeko Onuki’s stage performance. “I don’t really perform at festivals like this,” she said, “or I guess I just didn’t (laughs).” The reason why she chose to perform at “EPOCHS” this time was that she really wanted to come to Karuizawa, and doesn’t know how long she would be able to sing for. “I hope you can enjoy it while I still can,” she adds.
Four bands from Asia appeared in EPOCHS, and some of the sounds were influenced by city pop. The significance of having Taeko Onuki, a legend who has influenced not only Japan but also the world, perform here is tremendous. Onuki said charmingly, “I have collected songs that I think people would like to hear. “Peter Rabbit To Watashi,” “Shikisai Toshi,” “Happy-go-Lucky,” “SIESTA,” “Vegetable” and “Wonderland”. The band recently pulled the master tapes from the record company and imported the sound, so she can perform the old songs.
It was a truly luxurious time with a superb performance by Hotaru Fushimi (Gt), Masato Suzuki (Ba), Manabu Sakata (Dr), Shohei Amimori (Key), Fabien Reza Panet playing the grand piano, and Hisanari Matsui, who is also the manager, manipulating sequences.
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Hedigan’s Much Anticipated Debut
The first-ever live performance by Hedigan’s, whose sound source has not yet been released, was also overwhelming. The members are Yosuke “YONCE” Kawanishi (Suchmos / Vo, Gt), Shoji Kurita (Glider, Merchant / Gt), Yusuke Kurita (Glider / Key), Takuma Motomura (Yuranfune / Ba), Gaku Ouchi (Glimpse Group, AKOGARE, Burgundy, LAIKA DAY DREAM, The9Oz / Dr).
Hedigan’s was a rock and blues band. They had a dub style sound, and some songs were sung as “preachy old man’s rumba.” The band played six songs as if they were simply dedicated to the music, free of any greed or arrogance, the exact opposite of “world-weary.” Before playing the last song, YONCE said, “This is our first time playing live, and I’m not sure what kind of sound you guys are getting, but anyway, we enjoyed ourselves selfishly. Thank you Hedigan’s,” was all YONCE had to say.
Although there was no information other than the sound played on stage, or even it’s still unclear who wrote the lyrics, it sounded to me as if YONCE, who had spent a certain period of time in the chaotic place called “the glamorous world” by the public, had come to realize what he valued and wanted to live as a human being. I could hear it as if it was filled with what Yonce wants to live with as a human being now.
I was also impressed by the fact that Yonce’s singing had become even more elongated and deeper than before. The final song, “Logic is Lonely,” is a song about the cycle of thoughts surrounding “what is life,” “what is death,” and “what is happiness,” amidst a magnificent spread of clean, roaring sounds and Ouchi’s cymbal and bass drum. Is it my selfish sensation that HSU’s (Suchmos) face came to my mind? It was a live performance in which the music and soul were presented to the audience in such a bare state that after the sound stopped, I was unable to move for a moment.
