Event: Peace and Smile Company 10th Anniversary Concert
Date: January 3, 2009
Venue: Nippon Budokan
Number of fans: 13,000 (all sold out in 1 day!)
Length: Approximately 5 hours. (4:00pm to 9:00pm)

Band order:
SuG
Screw
Kagrra,
Kra
alice nine.
The GazettE
Miyavi

Set list:
SuG
1. Vi-Vi-Vi
- MC -
2. LOVE SCREAM PARTY

Screw
1. Death's door
2. VEGAS

Kagrra,
1. Kotodama
2. Sai
- MC -
3. Shigatsu Tsuitachi (April First)
- MC -
4. Uzu
5. Utakata
6. Urei

kra
SE - Keiyuu piano solo
1. artman
2. Renjou philosophy
3. Mutaku to mutaku to
4. Amaoto wa shopan no suirabe
5. Buriki no hata

alice nine.
SE - Saga synthesizer solo
1. the beautiful name
2. Velvet
- MC -
3. RAINBOWS
4. RED CARPET GOING ON
5. Blue Planet

the GazettE
1. Filth in the beauty
2. LEECH
- MC -
3. COCKROACH
4. DISCHARGE
5. LINDA ~ candy dive pinky heaven ~

Miyavi
SE - Aishiteru kara hajimeyou
1. Kabuki danshi
2. Aho matsuri - ahho matsuri -
3. Shouri no V-Rock!!
4. Saki hokoru hana no you ni - Neo Visualizm -
5. As U r - kimi wa kimi no mama de -





It is only 3:30 in the afternoon but the Nippon Budokan located in Tokyo Japan is already buzzing with the sound of 13,000 individual voices. These voices belong to 13,000 individuals. The majority of which are young, female, and Japanese. But there are those from other walks of life--people who hail from faraway places like Australia, Britain, and France. I sit in my arena floor seat, quietly helping to represent the sprinkling of Americans also present. Outside, hanging above the main entrance is a long black banner which exclaims in bold white lettering, "Peace and Smile Company 10th Anniversary." It overlooks a walkway lined with expensive flower arrangements--some with names like Gackt attached to them are liable to turn your head. They are gifts from various well wishers who hope all of the best for the Peace and Smile Company and the seven bands it represents as the company celebrates its 10th year anniversary.

And what a celebration it will be. The fans waiting inside of the Budokan have a lot to look forward to as they are going to be treated to a five hour extravaganza of a concert featuring all seven bands on the company's label. The clock clicks to 4:00pm and a sense of manic anticipation fills the hearts of all of the fans who turn their eyes toward the large platform situated at the back of the circular stadium. Minutes pass and then, without warning, every single light goes out. An ear-splitting cheer, the sound of 13,000 throats screaming all at once, pierces through the darkness.

The circle of television screens above the stage responds with a blast of music and an introduction video looking back on the 2005 PSC celebration that occurred 3 years before. The stage lights explode to life and opening act SuG shoots onto the stage like multicolored firecrackers. Dressed in their costumes for their new PV Umbilical, the band sets to work getting the crowd warmed up. This up-and-coming band is new and still on the PSC indies label but they have charm and energy and certainly enough fans as made obvious by the cheers and frenzy of furitsuke that followed the band's entrance. They play two songs and then leave as suddenly as they appeared.

The stage swarms with people in black rushing to change the set while above them the screens play the band's newest PV: Umbilical. Minutes after this PV finishes, the second opening act, SCREW takes the stage. SCREW's sound is harder than SuG's so called "heavy positive rock." Vocalist Byou clad in leopard print fur shrieks and screams while the band rocks us with two songs. Their exit is followed by their PV, Gathering Roses, which the audience watches while they wait for the main acts.

The main act doesn't appear. Instead, a familiar voice comes on over the speakers. It is Miyavi, microphone in hand, accompanied by Keiyuu of Kra. The two take the stage dressed in hakama in an uncanny reprisal of their roles as co-MCs for the 2005 PSC concert. Miyavi, standing at 6'1, dwarfs the minute Keiyuu standing at 5'1 and they make a great comedic pair as they work the crowd. Eventually, after some comments on the New Year and poking a little affectionate fun at one of the foreigners in the crowd, the two exit to make way for tonight's first main band: Kaggra.

The band enters with vocalist Isshi bringing up the rear. Clad in a large black kimono, he is led by two attendants due to the fact that he cannot see through the mask he is wearing. The mask, a black demon-like affair, is removed once he reaches the microphone. There is a brief moment of tense silence and then the two attendants rip his kimono off to the first beat of the band's opening song. Beneath, he is dressed in a stunning red kimono adorned with golden cranes and plenty of glitter. The band plays six songs including old favorites like Utakata and new songs like Uzu. During a few songs, Isshi pulls out a fan and many of the people in the audience also produce beautiful fans which flutter across the stadium like storm of butterflies in a choreographed dance to match Isshi's.

Kaggra's distinctively traditional Japanese sound accented by guitarist Shun playing the koto live during the concert is both powerful and elegant. Occasionally, I find myself forgetting to join in the furi and instead staring transfixed as I listen to this enchanting band's music. When the band leaves, their Uzu PV plays and then a short backstage interview with Isshi is broadcast live.

Kaggra is followed by Kra who takes the stage to a beautiful original piano piece played by none other than vocalist Keiyuu himself! Like Kaggra, the band plays a few new songs and a few old ones. Keiyuu, small as he is, has a massive stage presence and he sings his heart out while Mai and Yuura scamper along the walkways set up around the stage which takes them close to the fans on the first level balcony--even those fans seated behind the stage. Yasuno on the drums takes advantage of the cameras to melt fangirl hearts with his trademark drumstick spin and grin.

Kra ends with Buriki no Hata. Near the end of the song, the band falls silent and Keiyuu tilts his microphone towards the audience, handing us the song like a precious gift. The stadium fills with the warm and honest sound of thousands of heartfelt voices singing. We sing the same verses over and over and then let the band take over once more to finish the song.

Kra fades backstage as their upcoming PV, Marry begins to play. The PV is one of the happiest, funniest PVs I have seen in a while and I look forward to its eventual release. The screens flicker over to a feed from backstage where Keiyuu and Yasuno offer up a message to the audience. Keiyuu makes silly faces and goofs around while Yasuno admits that he loves the camera which zooms in on his face as the fangirls sound their approval in screams.

Next up is alice nine. clad in their costumes for their newest PV, The Beautiful Name which is also the song they open with. The band plays a total of five songs: three old ones, and two new. Their new song Rainbows is especially impressive this night as the setup sparkles with rainbow-colored lights. The band's trademark enthusiasm is shared by the audience which intersperses its crazy furitsuke with occasional bouts of mad headbanging. Tora and Hiroto work the crowds along the balcony into a frenzy as they rush heedlessly about on the catwalk around the stage and Saga takes some time to climb a speaker and give us a brief bass solo at the end of Rainbows.

The band disappears from the stage and their new PV, The Beautiful Name has a moment in the spotlight. This comes to an end and the expected interview with Shou and Tora backstage lights up the screens. Tora, looking slick in sunglasses, is his usual silly self and Shou looks stunning despite the fact that minutes ago he was flailing around the stage like a shiny windmill.

The audience sets up a roar like primal thunder when the name of the next band flashes across the screen: The GazettE. It is by far the loudest cheer of the night. The band starts off with a bang--setting the entire place awash in red light as they open with Filth in the Beauty. Girls roar like blood thirsty animals, widening their stances and thrashing their heads. Some of them headbang so hard that they must grab the seats in front of them or even get on the ground to keep from injuring themselves. On stage the scene is similar and I wonder how the band even manages to play with their heads thrashing so violently.

The entire set is one of sweat and noise and wild abandonment. We rock. We rock so hard that the floor vibrates to the sound of our noise-emotion. The GazettE caps their set off with the song Linda which is one of their lighter songs. And by that I mean it involves clapping as well as headbanging. At the end, Reita throws his bass up into the air and catches it, wowing the audience with his stunt before the band leaves. Unlike the other bands, no PV follows and the interview consists only of the interviewer chasing Kai down a hallway. There is no audio and it is cut short when Kai puts his hand over the camera.

The GazettE may be wildly popular but they are not the last band to play. The artist who has been saved for last is a special one and he is the one who has been chosen to put the musical icing on this wild party of a cake. The hall goes dark and a soft, gentle song that is in stark contrast to the anger and noise of The GazettE trickles through the speakers. It is an instrumental version of Miyavi's Aishiteru Kara Hajimeyou or Let's Begin With Love. It plays over a video of fans from Miyavi's 2008 world tour which contains a special message played in both Japanese and English subtitles. The video laments the fact that even in this age we suffer painful things like war and poverty and strives to remind us of the importance of happiness, peace, music, and above all love.

Suddenly, a soft voice soars up out of the darkness and a spotlight in the center of the stage reveals that the man himself has entered unnoticed while his video played. It is Miyavi, guitar slung over his shoulder as he sings the simple words of love that make up Aishiteru Kara Hajimeyou. The audience is silent, spellbound. As the last notes die away, Miyavi greets us and then launches into his song Kabuki Danshi. The catchy, funky song is a theme for the rest of his set as his fun, danceable beats get the audience moving. Joined by beat boxer TYKO, two dancers, and DJ Teddy Loid, Miyavi gets into the business of bringing the party. He woos the audience, playing us like an instrument as he slinks around the stage, sliding down the catwalk ramp on the floor and gyrating his hips.

One of the most memorable moments occurs about halfway through his set during the song Aho Matsuri. As Miyavi bounces about the stage, waving a ridiculous pink feathery fan, he is joined by band members from Kra, alicenine., Kagrra and SuG. True to the song, they dance like silly fools and basically have a good time. Miyavi ends with As U r and thanks to him the night's music ends on a high note with smiles and good feelings all around.

Finishing up, Miyavi calls out all of the bands to the stage and calls them, "PSC All Stars." With all seven bands now on stage, two staff members roll out something covered in a black cloth. After a false start by Miyavi who forgets the order of things and tries to unveil it early, Keiyuu reminds him that they should ask the bands what they thought of tonight. Miyavi laughs at his mistake and allows Keiyuu to interview a member of each band. Most of the bands' messages are fairly similar: They had a lot of fun and they want to thank everyone involved.

When Keiyuu gets to Kra he makes a show of interviewing himself by switching positions and voices. He is slightly undermined by Miyavi who begins talking to Shou of alice nine.. Eventually everyone has had their say and Miyavi pulls the cover off of the mystery object to reveal that it is a large drum filled with sake. One member of every band is given a mallet and Miyavi tells them to pound the drum together on his count. The audience he tells to clap their hands as the mallets fall.

The mallets hit the drum and send an explosion of sake into the faces of the band members on stage while the audience is treated to an explosion of silver streamers. As they settle, all of the band members on the stage line up and take each other's hands. Miyavi asks the audience to do the same. 13,000 people plus 30 band members join hands and on Miyavi's count we leap into unison and cheer.

Music begins to play again and the bands file off the stage, waving goodbye as they go. As Miyavi, the last to go, recedes into the darkness backstage I take a moment to catch my breath. I realize I am smiling as are the faces around me. Peace and smiles indeed.