“Are you with the band?”

That was the question asked of me at will-call when they couldn’t find my press pass.  “Errrr, I dunno.  I was invited by one of the promoters to write a review of the concert tonight.”  As it turns out, I WAS on the band guest list.  Wow, I wasn’t aware they even knew me!

I started getting excited as I drove my AKB-Mobile across the SF/Oakland Bay Bridge through that brand new hairpin curve.  No, Glay isn’t usually the type of band I go for.  But I do recognize how huge they are in Japan.  I mean sheesh, they just played a huge concert at Nissan Stadium less than a month ago.  And here they were playing at the comparably tiny Fillmore Auditorium in the shadow of Japantown San Francisco as part of their 2009 “The Great Vacation” tour.

I have been to Japanese rock showcase concerts in San Francisco before.  But as I turned the corner toward the theater I knew this was going to be different.  A huge line…predominantly Japanese, mostly female stretched all the way down the block.  And this was 90 minutes before showtime.  As I scanned the line, a profound question came to mind…

What’s better, sitting in an audience full of guys watching a bunch of cute girls performing?  Or sitting in an audience full of cute girls watching a rock group perform?

It is something I noticed when I saw Ketchup Mania in Tokyo last Spring, and it was even more glaring at this show.  Japanese rock bands have tons of cute female fans.  I don’t mean to betray my favorite cutie girl pop idol groups.  But let’s face it, the audience at an H!P or AKB show is a virtual “sausage fest”.  While watching Glay I was mesmerized by the hawt Japanese girls I was surrounded by!

First Impressions

I didn’t have time to change clothes after work.  As a result I was probably the only person in the building wearing slacks, a shirt and tie.  I got many curious glances as I took notes during the show.  Was I a reporter?  Perhaps a narc???  When the band finally took the stage at 8:10pm (10 minutes late, a Japanese band?) the main floor of the ballroom quickly filled up.

Here is a famous group that is used to playing in front of 50-75 thousand people per show standing on this small stage in what amounts to a large club.  But they seemed authentically excited to be there.  I have said this before, but I think most Japanese artists are fascinated when they experience fans from overseas.  It’s like they didn’t know we existed or something.  Not that Glay hasn’t been to the U.S. before.  In fact they have played The Fillmore before.  And what a treat for the fans to get a chance to be this close to the band.  I’m sure a ticket this close to the stage in Tokyo would cost plenty.

Teru is the unquestionable leader of the band.  He has great charisma, the girls love him, and I must admit he is pretty hawt!  His singing style sort of reminds me of Ian Astbury of The Cult, only he is much better looking and not an A-hole!

The Setlist

The fact is that I don’t really know Glay’s songs by name.  I tried keeping track by taking notes of the lyrics…an exercise I abandoned about halfway through the show.  After watching the concert I am still not sure how to classify them as a band.  Their promo pics hint at Visual-Kei.  But on stage they look more like a classic rock act.  Musically they are mainly straightforward rock.  But midway through the set they shifted to power ballads, which was a relief to me as I was beginning to sweat.  After that the next two songs shifted to gothic metal.  Actually that was my favorite part of the show.  That and the singalong during “Starless Night”…one of the few songs I actually knew the name of!

The rest of the band are great musicians, especially lead guitarist Hisashi.  He did some amazing effects on his guitar.  I couldn’t believe it was him playing!  And I was so surprised this band is just about my age.  Hisashi and Jiro the bassist look like they are in their 20′s, and they are all pushing 40!

I got it, I got it…DOH!

My personal golden moment came when Takuro launched his guitar pick into the audience.  As it flew skyward I realized it was coming directly at me!  Now I played baseball when I was younger.  In fact, I was an outfielder!  And before I injured myself I was scouted by the Cardinals and the Angels.  But for some reason instead of just catching the pick I decided to jump and swipe at it…knocking it 10 feet to my left.  Uggghhhh, what a moron!  Perhaps if I had brought along my baseball glove…

The audience kept the intensity while waiting for the obligatory encore.  It was great to see the rest of the band take center stage and really jam.  Jiro did an amazing Bass solo that was reminiscent of Lemmy Kilmister from Motorhead.  They ended the show with the sentimental “I’m in Love”

In retrospect…

I am so happy I went to this show.  I left the theater liking Glay a hell of a lot more than before.  They are so much fun to watch live.  And their core audience was a lot of fun to share space with.  Everyone had a great time, including the band.  Would I see them again?  Definitely!!!  Maybe next time I will know the names of more of the songs!

And if you are in the Southern California area there is still time to catch them at the House of Blues in Hollywood Friday and Saturday Night!