Us Scene Not Herder’s are usually an unassuming bunch of gig-goers; satisfied with the promise of flowing beer or strong vodka, a half decent sound-system or set-up, booking fees of less than 2 quid, and a modicum of inventive musical tomfoolery.
We like to take the occasional risks and when the mood takes us we venture out to see bands or acts that we've scarcely heard of or listened to before. More often than not this ends up with us huddled in a sweaty pseudo-dungeon listening to pale-faced boys trying to kill each other with reverb, and everybody else trying to drink through the aural pain; but sometimes... SOMETIMES... random ticket-buying splurges result in us seeing an artist so fantastically, brilliantly, wonderful that it all becomes worth the previous misjudgements. Shugo Tokumaru's gig at Cafe OTO, London, in April was a fine example of this.
It's fair to say that Shugo Tokamaru is not exactly unheard of. A quick search of You Tube is enough to reveal a healthy handful of quirky and twisted videos supporting numerous well-received albums to date. Outside of his home-country Japan he is loved by a growing fan-base, most of whom probably have not got a clue about what the lyrics are about (myself included) yet are open-minded enough to accept that good music and a finely crafted song can be all you need.
And boy, Shugo Tokumaru can craft a song! His style is somewhat schizophrenic in that his songs often fall in somewhere between ballads and outright pop songs, but also come incorporated with such invention and unorthodox instrumentation that you can't pin them down to any genre. He plays guitar beautifully, the challenging nature of the fretwork never showing on his face, but he never appears ostentatious - sat onstage quietly in barefeet and seeming almost apologetic throughout. The candle-lit, intimate interior of Cafe Oto was perfectly suited to this musician.
Talking to a few more experienced Shugo followers before the gig I found there was a buzz about the fact that Mr Tokumaru was performing with a band. He has previously visited these shores as a solo act, playing smaller venues such as The Betsey Trotwood. His supporting musicians really did not disappoint either; the drummer a constant source of entertainment, and a second musician creating a beautiful and wacky range of noises with various toy instruments, toy xylophone, and keys. It's only on reflection, and after repeated listens to his albums, as I try to recapture some of the magic of that evening, that I've come to realise how true to the spirit of the recordings this performance actually was.
The effect was mesmerising and enchanting and made the more energetic pieces in the set, such as the breathless melodic summerpop of songs like "Rum Hee" and "Parachute" irresistible. Just as impressive were the couple of songs where Shugo played and sang unaccompanied. His voice frequently accents the rhythmic changes of the song and sounded wonderfully pure in unison with the guitar.
You didn't need to turn around to know that everyone in the room was smiling simultaneously. The mirth and delight reached dangerously potent levels when Shugo broke out the Ukulele and performed a ludicrously endearing version of Buggles' 'Video Killed the Radio Star' for an encore. We were his. Completely and totally at his mercy.
This video should give you a rough idea of what put the smiles on our dials:
Honorable mentions: The Antlers playing "Burst Apart", The Screen on the Green. Tune-Yards at The Haunt, Brighton. True Widow at The Macbeth. - DF
No comments:
Post a Comment