BLACKMORAL in Japan 2014 part 1: Ruido K3 Ikebukuro 16102014

It all started when BLACKMORAL’s drummer, Hoho, sent out his band’s demo via e-mail to several live houses in Japan. One live house, Shibuya REX, was interested and contacted them back with offers. So that’s, in short, how BLACKMORAL scored two slots in different live houses in Tokyo, one of them as the opening band for one of the popular bands in VK scene nowadays, LOST ASH.

Source: BLACKMORAL (official)

The first event was CrossingxPoint!! at Ruido K3 Ikebukuro on October 16th. This is a multiband event for bands that are still trying to make their way to the upper tiers in VK scene. Some bands came from other parts of Japan, as far as Okinawa. Here, BLACKMORAL shared stage with the likes of ChamberLain, DiMind, Novice Crime, LAZYis, LieLuck, and HuV.

Soundcheck in Ruido K3.

Guitarist Hanzo and bassist Aga relaxing backstage before their performance.

Vocalist Yaro having his cheki taken.

The audience was admittedly small, but this was a good chance for BLACKMORAL to ‘test the waters’. Coming from a country where their metal background caused them to have more male than female fans, the female-dominated VK audience in Japan surprised them. The band members had to find out how to act and react to the girls, but they’re quick learners! Watching other bands perform also helped them learning. And the warm welcome by the audience surely boosted their confidence!

The bigger challenge was the next day, October 17^th: a bigger live house with a bigger audience (it’s full almost to the brim!) who were all waiting for the main performer.

Can BLACKMORAL win the audience’s hearts this time? Find the answer in the next part of our report from their Japanese tour!