A whole lot of folks on the White Stage during Mono's gig

A whole lot of folks on the White Stage during Mono's gig

To mark their 10th anniversary, Mono played shows in New York and Tokyo in 2009 backed by an orchestra.  During their 2011 Australian tour, they paired up with an orchestra again.  Widely recognized as the top post-rock act in Asia, when Mono were first added to the Fuji Rock ’12 bill, I thought, “Man, wouldn’t it be awesome if they did an orchestra gig in Naeba.”  When Smash  announced on July 5 that the Tokyo quartet would be backed by the 20-piece Holy Ground Orchestra for their White Stage concert, I kid you not – I actually shouted “Yes!” out loud in my living room.

With The Holy Ground Orchestra set up at the back of the White Stage, Mono walked out and took a bow before beginning their afternoon set.  Offering Fujirockers a sneak preview of their upcoming “For My Parents” full-length (scheduled to be released on August 22 in Japan), Mono started their too-short 55-minute performance with the disc’s first three cuts, “Legend,” “Nostalgia,” and “Dream Odyssey.”  Mono’s songs are already strong and beautiful.  But with the orchestra on-board for all numbers, the band’s music became much more powerful and had an even greater emotional impact.  Yasunori Takada played a timpani drum on the stunning “Legend,” and when a member of the orchestra played two more thunderous timpani drums at the same time, it was nearly impossible not to be swept away by the sheer strength of the band’s sound.

As good as Mono’s new material was, the band were at their best on “Ashes in the Snow,” the brilliant opener from 2009’s “Hymn to the Immortal Wind.”  A glockenspiel ushered in the track before guitarists Takaakira “Taka” Goto and Yoda began to build the song up.  “Ashes in the Snow” already has a very symphonic feel to it.  And hearing it played by Mono and an orchestra was nothing short of brilliant.  When the song exploded into its noisy climax of guitar, strings and crashing cymbals my jaw literally dropped.  As the number ended, I turned to fellow blogger Jamie, said “Fucking wow” and then told him that I thought “Ashes in the Snow” would be the single best song I heard all weekend long.  And you know what – I was right.

Setlist:
1. Legend
2. Nostalgia
3. Dream Odyssey
4. Ashes in the Snow
5. Everlasting Light

Photo by: 森リョータ.  For more photos, go here.