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TOE AT SHIBUYA CLUB QUATTRO IN 2006
In my last post I wrote about a couple of bands who, although being fantastic at what they do, are in my opinion still quite derivative in terms of their sound. The band I am lucky enough to be writing about today, toe, are anything but that, and have ingeniously crafted a style of music I think they can truly call their own. Yes, toe are sometimes lumped into the post rock genre (probably because almost all their songs are instrumental), which is a pretty loosely bound categorization anyway, but their music is completely unique. They formed in 2000 as a four piece with 2 guitars, bass and drums. And what a drummer he is. Being somewhat of a drummer myself, listening to Takashi Kashikura play his drums either on an album or live is like being intoxicated with rhythm, with his incredible speed, precision and power he is anything but your typical drummer and gracefully mixes rock, jazz, bossa nova and african flavors into his rolling beats.
It is not just Takashi who is a maestro at what he does, each member of the band plays their instrument with incredible finesse and skill. Not hiding behind layers of distortion, their music is clear and flowing, as if they are able to capture a purity of sound within their respective instruments that other musicians often search for but never discover. I have seen these guys play live on several occasions and they never cease to impress, and for me they are without doubt one of the best bands in Japan. They play in venues around Tokyo regularly but their shows are usually sold out and this is a very special opportunity to see them on the massive Green Stage which will hopefully only work to amplify the majesty of their music.
I got in touch with guitarist Yama from the band and he was kind enough to provide this message to toe fans both in Japan and around the world. This is the English translation of the message (the original Japanese text follows below):
“We are very honored to be able to play at this year’s Fuji Rock Festival, the most famous music festival in Japan. Even though we will be playing on the huge Green Stage, we will do our best to play in the same way we always do. If you have a chance, please come and check us out. Lastly, say NO to nuclear power. toe.”
「今年もFujirock festivalという日本で一番有名な音楽フェスに出演させてもらうことをとても光栄に思っています。GREEN STAGEという大きな舞台ですが、いつもの僕たちの演奏が出来たらいいなと思ってます。気が向いたら観に来てくださいね。よろしくお願いします。あと原発反対。toe」
Just a couple of weeks ago, on June 20th, the band released their first CD in around 2 years and yet again, it is excellent. What makes “The Future is Now EP” even more special is that it that all the songs were made to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the March 11 earthquake last year and all the money that is generated from the sale of the disks will be donated to charities involved in helping those who were affected by the disaster. You can read more about the wonderfully generous idea behind the EP as well as see some live footage of the band here. I cannot think of a better way to donate to such a good cause and get some brilliant music in the process, so I think all of you should go to the site and do what I did, download the EP.
*Photo by saya38 and used with the permission of Smashing Mag.
