Top 5 Concerts of 2022

 


This year felt almost like a pre-pandemic year. It seemed like shows went on in a similar vein as in the recent past. With a few exceptions, like the lack of international artists at Blue Note or almost non-metal shows, the second half was pretty much stacked, it was actually quite exceptional. 

My show-going year started in June with the sole Classical concert I attended (I had a ticket for the Kronos Quartet by then canceled their Japan tour altogether). All the artists I saw at the eleven shows I attended I saw for the first time and each show was special in its own way. It was not easy to rank them, but I’ll try it with my five favorites.

5. Otoboke Beaver at Liquidroom.

Showcasing their whole catalog with an encore -or should I say several encores- unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, this was a memorable energetic and fun show that also managed to say something original with incredibly musicianship and stage presence. It was the closest to a metal show I saw this year.


4. Little Simz at Kanda Square Hall.

When it comes to stage presence it sure is hard to match Little Simz. Caught off guard at first by the traditional nonchalant attitude of the Japanese audience, she was able to adapt, turn it around and deliver an amazing set with the whole auditorium in the palm of her hand. The fact that she accomplished this with just a mic and a DJ is even more astounding, but truly not that surprising given the number of jewels in her catalog.



3. Fishbone at The Garden Hall.  

One for the bucket list and it didn’t disappoint at all. A longer set and better sound would’ve catapult it to the first spot. What we saw was a legendary live band living up to its reputation. At the same time being spontaneous and in command. The fact that Fishbone haven't achieved  mainstream success is probably one of the biggest mysteries in the music industry.



2. Billy Woods at WWW.

It felt like you were in the presence of a true visionary. The man by himself, not even a DJ, pressured by time in an opening spot, delivered one of the best sets in Tokyo’s recent history. To me the weight of his material is unmeasurable, beat-wise, lyric-wise and flow-wise. Quite possibly the most moving hip hop show I’ve witnessed.



1. Norah Jones at Budokan.

The combination of incredible talent, unbelievable band, amazing songs with unique forward thinking live arrangements, and an intimate jazzy setting at an epic iconic venue couldn’t result in anything other than the best show of the year. The closing night of Norah Jones’ 2022 Japan tour was my favorite show of last year.  



Thank you for reading. Please follow me on Twitter for updates at @ConcertTokyo. You can also click the Like button and get notifications at The Tokyo Concert Experience on Facebook.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fishbone at The Garden Hall, August 19th 2022

Image
  Less than a year before the pandemic started I saw Angelo Moore walking in Shibuya. I checked, it was May 2019, the last time Fishbone came to Japan. I was on my way to work and saw him in front of Don Quijote. He was wearing a red fez hat just like you will see him wear in a video. I thought about approaching him, asking for a picture, but I was too shy. Not only was I not going to their show that evening, the truth is that I was not at all familiar with his band's output. In the nineties MTV Latin America had their collaboration with Los Fabulosos Cadillacs on heavy rotation. That was the extent of my knowledge of that band’s music. For some reason I wrote them off due to what I felt was an overwhelming hyper expressive frontman. Was I wrong; probably not about the hyper expressive frontman, but about writing them off as a novelty act. I corrected this wrong during the lockdown. First with the self-titled EP and then with the documentary Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbon
Read more

Mr. Bungle at Toyosu Pit, February 28th 2024

Image
  I think I already mentioned that I used to host a couple of radio shows more than twenty years ago when I lived in Los Angeles. They were on KXLU, a station that broadcasts from the campus of Loyola Marymount University, my alma mater. One of them was a jazz show that went on the air on a weekday, I think Wednesday or Thursday. My co-host Joseph came up with the title ’The Gift of Jazz”. It followed an instrumental show that was hosted by DJ Ned. Ned’s show was one of my favorites, he introduced me to a ton of music. Two releases in particular, that he personally recommended while music played between the end of his slot and the beginning of mine, ended up being among my favorite albums of all time. One was the Ethiopiques 4 compilation with music from Mulatu Astatke -we’re talking years before the movie Broken Flower exposed these songs to the world. The other was a new release at the time, the album The Director’s Cut by Fantomas. That album, a four-piece rock band reinterpretat
Read more

Colin Currie Group plays Steve Reich at Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall, April 21st 2023

Image
  Music for 18 Musicians is quite possibly the most accessible avant-garde piece of music ever. That doesn’t diminish its impact nor its complexity. It’s not accessible because it’s simple, it’s accessible because it connects with the listener on a primal level. The comings and goings of the bass clarinets and voices are like breathing, while the rhythmical throbs of the marimbas feel like the pacing of movement. This Pulses , as each of the sections are called, paint a complete and fascinating picture of human movement. It never ceases to engage through its one hour length. The ECM premiere recording, with the participation of the composer Steve Reich himself among the 18 musicians, is a classic. It’s perfect for relaxing, studying, as background music or for deep listening. I’ve been a fan of that recording for many years but I’ve only seen it performed live once. It was as a contemporary dance production. Rain , choreographed by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker at Palais Garnier in Pari
Read more