Fujirockers: The official Fuji Rock Festival blog

Kaisokutokyo Flying High At 3 a.m.

Hanging out in the Palace Of Wonder late Saturday gave me a chance to check out much of the night’s Rookie A Go-Go roster and see what the newbies are up to. Continue Reading…

Go Chic

Or so they  claim. The three gals from Taiwan (and a drummer guy that smacks out their straight ahead rock beats) opened Saturday night’s Rookie A Go-Go stage with an energetic dance pop set that had more than a few people braving the rain to see them. People like me. Continue Reading…

Rookie A Go-Go openers Zioooubachi definitely get high style points for their late Friday night showing.

Dressed in drag, their front man was covered in body glitter and wore a black marching band jacket, a blue mini skirt, and a purple boa.  Not to be outdone the male guitarist’s face was painted completely white and he had on a white blouse and silver pants with one leg rolled up to reveal a pair of shiny tights underneath.  The female half of the group were equally dolled up.  Both wore sparkly face paint and the drummer was clothed in an oversized white nightgown and had a metallic blue and silver party hat perched high on her head.

Much of the act’s 30-minute set focused on a high energy mix of noisy rock and punk.  They were at their best near the end, though, when the singer started crooning away in a high pitched, girlish voice while his band mates bombarded the crowd with short blasts of chaotic metal.  Bounding around the small stage in high heels, the scorching singer was so hot that steam was literally rising from his body.

A really fun concert, whether you dug their sound or not, one thing is certain – they were definitely entertaining.

Photo report here.

Well the others have summed it up pretty succinctly, I think. Not much more to say, other than don’t listen to anyone on what you should like.

But we don’t go for the music. Nope. If it were the music we went to see, then we’d shell out like the rest of you do. Then we could actually relax and enjoy said music. I remember a few years beck, our esteemed leader commented that he was having a near perfect weekend, catching up with old friends, and if only the bands would shut the fuck up and give them some peace it would have been truly perfect! Continue Reading…

Go Zen

It goes without saying Fuji Rock presents some serious logistical challenges to those people that want to see all their favorite bands, but my first recommendation for folks is something like this: go zen. Continue Reading…

Go Chic, a band of three Taipei girls and one guy in their early 20s, this year becomes the first ever non-Japanese band to compete successfully against 1,500+ applicants and make the FRF Rookie a-Go-Go stage. Mostly former high school classmates, they blast out electro dance songs with riot grrrl energy, and the stage shows kick into full on party mode. It’s no wonder that at this moment, they can boast one of the biggest followings in Taiwan’s indie scene, but lately they’ve been pushing that envelop as well, earlier this year playing SXSW, getting ready for gigs in China, and now they are also no doubt busy shopping for neon rubber boots for FRF 2010. This all comes with the released of Go Chic’s debut album this spring, I Am Confused! (2010), which got a thumbs up from the Taipei Times for its “catchy beats, punk verve and a sassy, irreverent wit.” The members are Sonia Lai (Guitar/Synth), Sarah Wen (Bass), Winston Li (Drums) and Ariel Zheng (Vocals). Ariel recently answered some of our questions by email. Continue Reading…

Go Chic

And by this, I mean bands, not attendees or virgin Fujirockers like Clay.

One of the things myself and fellow Fujirockers really look forward to each year is getting a chance to see which new (or near new) bands get to give it a shot on the Rookie A Go-Go stage late in the evening at the Palace of Wonder. Continue Reading…

Auditions for Fuji Rock’s Rookie A Go-Go stage are now being accepted.  More after the jump.

Continue Reading…

We’re now live from the fest at: http://www.fujirockexpress.net/09e/

follow us on twitter, as well.

Flickr and Vids to come.

jinki

Here’s something to divide the masses:

Jeff wrote about the line-up for Rookie-a-Go-Go, and as usual I’d never heard of any of them. And as usual, I checked out only the ones with the goofy names.

Continue Reading…