Sparks at Ex Theater Roppongi, June 12th 2025

 

In the Edgar Wright documentary The Sparks Brothers, there’s a scene that shows a concert at a small venue here in Tokyo, maybe Club Quattro, and the warm reaction of the crowd, implying that in Japan, Sparks has a strong dedicated fanbase. It is true. I remember they coming here almost annually for a while. Not for nothing they chose to do some of the initial promotion for their new album Mad! here as well. You can’t help but draw the similarities between them and Cheap Trick. The quirkiness in the contrast between the sort of goofy oddball looking member and the adonis type one is an obvious one, but also both bands have delivered powerhouse pop material. The difference, in my opinion, is that unlike Cheap Trick, Sparks had the ability to evolve and adapt their sound with the times without ever sacrificing their personality.                         

It is fascinating how throughout their five decades in the music industry they went from glam to disco, from new wave to electronic music and always kept their unique sense of humor, that what makes them stand out from the rest, that makes them uniquely Sparks.

Their world tour started in Japan with dates in Kyoto. I went to the first show in Tokyo. When it comes to sound and facilities in general, Ex-Theater Roppongi is one of the best venues in the city. Even though it was a sold out crowd and I managed to get very close to the front, it didn’t feel overwhelmingly tight, it was a very relaxing atmosphere. I also think in part because Sparks fans that catch them at concerts in Japan are not like the average concert type of fan. It’s hard to explain, or maybe it is because I go mostly to rock shows that lean more towards a heavier sound, but this felt a lot more comfortable, at least around me.

The show started promptly at 7:00. The accompanying musicians came out first followed by the Mael brothers. It started with their now iconic song from the movie Annette, So May We Start. Setting up the mood for what I thought they were going to use as a setlist opener, the first song from their latest album, Do Things My Own Way. I think this song in particular is a bit more hard hitting on the record that it is live. They played one song from their classic album Propaganda and that was the third song on the set, Reinforcements, which was followed by what it is basically my favorite Sparks song.

Yes, I’m a huge Academy Awards fan, I’ve watched the ceremony every year since I was about nine, but that’s not the main reason why I love Academy Award Performance. That song has such an infectious disco beat that even a log like me couldn’t help but bust a move right there. To me the melody prowess mixed with Giorgio Moroder’s euro disco production made a song for the ages. Experience it live, which was totally unexpected, was a huge treat and by far the best moment of the show.

They managed to keep the momentum going and they brought up one amazing song after another. Among them Beat the Clock, also from the Giorgio Moroder produced album Number One in Heaven. Ron Mael took lead vocals for Suburban Homeboy. Three other songs from the latest Mad! were performed: Running Up a Tab at the Hotel for the Fab, Drowned in a Sea of Tears and JanSport Backpack. Each one of those I thought sounded better live than on record. I think that by then Russell Mael really hit his stride vocally. His energy and vocal abilities on stage were a sight to behold.

Music That You Can Dance To was followed by the also house leaning When Do I Get to Sing “My Way”. After that their two most recognized songs were played back to back, The Number One Song in Heaven, including Ron Mael’s dance interlude, and This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us. The set closed with the last song from their latest album, Lord Have Mercy, which served as unannounced eulogy for the two music genius, also from California, that the world lost that week of the concert, Sly Stone and Brian Wilson.

The encore closed the hour and forty minute show with songs from later outings, The Girl is Crying in Her Latte and All That. Shout out to the wacky guitar player behind Ron MaeI and his awesome dance moves. Actually the whole band sounded really good. They laid down some Link Wray guitar tones in there, straight out of a David Lynch movie. Russell Mael on vocals was the VIP of the evening. If you see a YouTube video and think his vocals are not up to the task, just go see him live. He’s basically a powerhouse. I was really happy to finally got to see Sparks live and with such an amazing setlist, I’m glad I waited.
 
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