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.
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Haruy Opened Day 2
The first performer of day 2 was singer-songwriter Haruy, who made his debut as a singer-songwriter produced by HSU. She and TAIHEI (Suchmos, Sai / Pf) sang beautifully in the relaxed atmosphere of the “ROOTS” stage surrounded by trees. When they finished playing “Snake,” she asked “Is the tempo too slow? which TAIHEI answered and “How is everyone feeling? They also performed a cover of “Tango” by Taeko Onuki and Ryuichi Sakamoto.
Live Performances from Asia
From overseas, Daniel Wang (Berlin, Germany), White Shoes & The Couples Company (Jakarta, Indonesia), and the special unit of Leo Wang Leiqing L8ching Yundan Shiqi CLOUDRIVER (Taipei, Taiwan) performed.
White Shoes & The Couples Company, making their long-awaited first visit to Japan, is a band influenced by Indonesian movie soundtracks from the 1970s, Indonesian pop music from the 1950s and 1970s, classic jazz, disco pop, and more. The ensemble and vocalist Aprilla Apsari’s free-flowing dance to the sound released a sense of euphoria that brought a smile to the faces of the audience gathered in front of the stage.
In the set by Leo Wang, Lei Ching, L8ching, and CloudDriver, Leo Wang’s strong beat and emotionally rich storytelling rap mixed with the drums of Lei Ching, who profiles himself as “the Anderson Park of Taiwan,” created a powerful and heartbreaking performance that transcended language and meaning. The music was powerful and moving, transcending language and meaning.
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Tempalay Closed the Festival
Tempalay performed on the main stage “GRAVITY” on the second day, supported by Shun Enomoto (ODD Foot Works / Ba) and OCHAN (NIKO NIKO TAN TAN / Syn). GRAVITY stage has a semicircular roof with a mirror ball in the center of a doughnut-shaped set suspended from the ceiling, which looks like both an eye and a universe, and the lighting design, which is perfectly operated to match the music while making the most of the set, is Tempalay’s The lighting design, which was perfectly operated in accordance with the music while taking advantage of the set, perfectly complemented Tempalay’s psychedelic, spacy, and sometimes divine sound.
Tempalay’s Ayato Obara (Vo, Gt) mentioned several times that the festival staff seemed to be enjoying themselves. When you visit various festivals and events, you can smell more adult affairs than respect for the music, but EPOCHS is a good quality lineup that takes the context of the music and the space and stage design with Jiro Endo, who is usually in close contact with the musicians. The Space Shower Music team’s deep respect for “live” music and commitment to creativity were evident at the festival.
Not only was the festival easily accessible from Tokyo and the clean air and temperatures pleasant, but it also created a sense of comfort. I sincerely hope EPOCHS, held for the first time this year, will continue next year and beyond.
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Photo Gallery
EPOCHS～Music Art Collective～
<September 30 (Sat) >
iri / ELLI ARAKAWA / Kaoru Inoue / Sound’s Deli / JUMADIBA / CYK / Skaai / STUTS / Stupid Kozo / Daichi Yamamoto / DJ NOBU / DOUDOU from Fukurokuju FloruitShow / BIM / Petrols / Mayurashka / yonawo / YONLAPA / kZm
<October 1 (Sunday)
Taeko Onuki / Yuta Orizaka / Kikiorix / Campanella Wednesday / DANIEL WANG / CHIDA / Tempalay / TOWA TEI / Dos Monos / Haruy / Hedigan’s / White Shoes&The Couples Company / maya ongaku / MIZ / Yuka Mizuhara / Leo Wang Lei Chin L8ching Unbata Tsukasa CLOUDRIVER / WONK / DANIEL WANG
Key visual designer & Sound Visual Installation: YOSHIROTTEN
EPOCHS Official track : STUTS
Scenographic art director : Jiro Endo
Art curator：JIN Qiuwu 【From Shanghai
https://epochs.jp/
