Today it was time for Many Merry Days 4.

Merry, Japan and I have a special connection; I blame Merry for bringing me into the world of live music here. In 2003 while on my first tour of Japan I became introduced to this eroguro, modern avant-garde band by way of Ultra Veat magazine and CD samples in Tower Records. I was impressed and sought out more about them when I returned home. I had discovered early on that, despite being in Japan at any point, the internet is still the best way of finding information. The blend of jazz, metal, ska and retro rock ensured Merry soon became my favourite band: they were so fresh, so exciting and so very different from anything in either the European or even the Japanese music scene at that time.

Fast forward to 2005, March. Together with a friend we were debating whether to go on holiday to Japan at some point. Originally we thought perhaps 2007; give us some time to save for it. Then we found out that Fatima (an old visual band that she loved) were disbanding whereas Merry were being promoted to a major label. This meant a disbandment live for Fatima and a ‘Last Indies’ live for Merry. Somewhat irrationally and spontaneously we decided to go to Japan for a month in order to encompass both concerts with a few more concerts and a bit of regular sightseeing thrown in for good measure. It seems rather childish on reflection that I spent almost £1500 on a holiday essentially see Merry. Because Japan is expensive, this £1500 became £3000 making the endeavour seem all the more reckless. It was great fun though.

Now it is 2008. I have been living in Japan for 3 months and have tonight attended my second Merry concert. This time while I at least came to Japan for the sake of Japan and for the sake of attending concerts in general (since I have a particular disposition for Japanese rock) when I stood in Shibuya O-East this evening I still felt reminded of that impulsive time in 2005.

Merry however deserve that impulsive attitude; they are one band who never fail to impress. Tonight’s concert was slightly lacklustre compared to the Yokohama concert in December but a lacklustre Merry is still miles above any other band I have ever had the pleasure of watching.

I had met a friend earlier that day for some pre-gig browsing in Harajuku. She showed me where Closet Child CDs are in Harajuku – hidden down an alleyway off Takeshita Dori. I fear that despite useful this could be more pain for my wallet. They stocked the limited and rather rare Gold version of Haikarasan ga tooru, Merry’s earliest single. We arrived at Shibuya O-East at 6:20, the doors having opened at 6 and to my utter shock and surprise, everyone was already inside. East have become more efficient! This did mean that merchandise was within easy reach. They had some interesting items including a wallet chain, a lighter set, a mock-leather pouch in addition to the usual towel and t-shirts. The design of the red t-shirt was very attractive using a curvy retro font like the Coca Cola font with a large black stamp of the ‘cute’ Merry sheep.

O-East was rammed full with the crowd herded into small pens defined by sturdy black barriers. It was not a violent gig thankfully but I felt a little irked that reaching the front would be fairly impossible. My friend and I stood chatting as we waited patiently for 7pm when, in keeping with the general efficiency blue spotlights began to dance over the large MERRY sign to thudding techno music. Nero was first to walk on and the screams began: ‘Nero! Tetsu! Kenichi! Yuu!’ and then an almighty roar of ‘Gara’. Merry took their positions calmly and Gara held his mic stand aloft as they tore into the first song. I am a little ashamed to say I don’t entirely remember the name of the song although I have a feeling it was Modan. Dekiai no Suisou came next though, a song I always find particularly memorable song to dance to followed by Kubitsuri Rondo. I had not before seen this song played live but it is paired well with Dekiai no Suisou.It was interesting that Gara draped the mic cord around his neck echoing the PV. Gara is an interesting if crazy frontman who is always fun to watch due to his various stage antics. Unlike Kyo he does not self harm rather he does things like, wear his usual schooldesk stand around his neck. He was dressed beautifully too; in a bright red top hat that hid his eyes and thus his slightly drawn, odd looks gave the singer a strangely sexy appearance.

This heavy first section was finished by a an energetic rendition of Seinen himitsu and Mado, the former with a fantastic built up introduction as Tetsu’s dark and heavy bassline was joined by Nero’s drums. As for Mado, the crowd reaction was too subdued and as a result the song was a little disappointing live, considering it seems as if it deserves a more energetic reaction. I felt the crowd were quite quiet all night actually.

Mado ended with Nero customarily throwing his drumsticks into the air and the playing of the first BGM segment while Merry turned to organise their instruments. This second segment consisted of four quieter songs that could be classified as Merry ballads. Quiet songs are welcomed by the crowd as a rest for the arms, too many though and you risk leaving the crowd agitated and bored. 4 was just right, one more however would have pushed it. The slow songs chosen were from the more recent releases so not a single ‘Kuroi Niji‘ nor ‘Soshite tooi yume no mata yume‘ in sight. The section begun with Lulululalala, a stunning song from M.E.R.R.Y followed by the French inspired, Hi no demachi machikado cinderella ~ 2 ban home ~ a song that really shows the variety and inventiveness of Merry’s music. The quiet section further included a beautiful slower version of Blind Romance, a song for which I remember some dancing at Yokohama and finally Komorebi ga boku wo sagashiteru. The performance of Komorebi was not as memorable as Yokohama but Merry rarely put a put wrong when performing this song.

Merry finally spoke after this section with an MC from Nero. Gara took a backseat again to the chatty drummer who regaled us with some short babblings about cherry blossom season before introducing the next set of heavy songs. As a few of the indies era classics such as Aikoku Kyoushinkyoku and Seishun Noiroze were played, the crowd went crazy with dancing and singing along. Yuu and Gara together were quite animated on stage as they screamed the lyrics together. In addition to these old favourites were Charlie, Sweet Powder, Poezy and Coq D’or Mama from the latest material. I also think Oriental BL Circus was thrown into the mix. Charlie has fast become a fan favourite despite only being released last year for the Komorebi single. Coq d’or Mama is another delight with its dark, grungy 70s riffs. The live finished on Mousou Rendezvous; a great singalong track from nu chemical rhetoric that had everyone swinging their arms in the air. Merry walked off triumphantly with Yuu and Nero hanging around a bit longer to mess about. Nero has a new favourite word, ‘good’, judging by the number of times he used it. He strode off stage after telling the crowd ‘Anata wa good, watashi wa good’ .

It took a while for the crowd to begin the calls for encore but eventually the room started to shout in one voice. After a 5-10 minute interval (which always feels longer than it is) Merry reappeared. The encore began with Gara’s writing segment where he does calligraphy for the fans to read out loud. I was wondering where that had gone and because he did it during the encore the familiar shamisen music that usually accompanies this was missing. With a Japanese ability that failed on me mid-sentence all I managed to pick up and remember was Gara’s final sentence: ‘Omae wa No.1′ or ‘You are No.1′. With that Merry kicked off into this first encore containing an incredible performance of Ringo to Uso from Peep Show. Merry played this poppy jazz metal number perfectly although the real treat was Yuu’s solo at the end. The CD version closes with a piano playing the outro; Yuu played it on his guitar and it was stunning. I was quite shocked into awe by this and have forgotten the other two songs from this encore as a result!

Encore 2 was a medley of the hard old hits starting with Atama ga Zakuro. The room became a mass of furiously moving hair trying to keep time with the frenetic pace of the music. Atama ga Zakuro is Merry’s fastest song, a furious angry metal track with a clashing melee of sounds that somehow works with a sense of ordered chaos. It is credit to Kenichi’s composing ability. There was no rest as with a roar of appreciation from the audience, Merry played Haraiso and then finally the classic Violet Harenchi, which was accompanied by loud singing from all in attendance. Merry then left again. It is a habit they have; the triple encore, although not a habit I want them to break as Merry are one band you never want to see leave.

After a few minutes they returned for this third, and final, encore. Every member except Tetsu wore tour shirts. In Yokohama, Kenichi had seemed loathed to change out of his live outfit and now at O-East the honour had fallen to Tetsu. Nero chatted a bit more to the audience first, instructing us all to go to Ueno koen because the cherries have blossomed and are looking rather attractive. He was a little obsessed with the blossoms that night. Then with a volley of ‘good good good’ from Nero, Merry began to play the final songs. Hi no ataranai basho – a very old indies track from their first single offering a reminder of the raw olden days with strong eroguro themes and then the brightly positive Karappo no Uta closed the live for good. Merry enjoy playing this song as their final song; it was the final song at Yokohama and throughout Many Merry Days 3. A recent favourite but a growing trend and indeed the next single will contain as it’s c/w ‘Karappo no Uta ~final version’. Yuu and Nero stuck around again to talk to the crowd and take pictures on their cameraphones, the result of which can be seen on Yuu’s blog

I was surprised that Japanese Modernist did not feature in the setlist but to be honest I didn’t miss it. Obviously only Violet Harenchi is their ‘must play’ classic despite the popularity of Japanese Modernist. It was a great live, much better when I look back now although not as good as Yokohama. I just need time off now for the Akasaka Blitz and Yokohama concerts!