Japan 2000
RA
Home Biography
Catalog
Concert
Dates
links E-mail List Order Form Music Gallery
Photo Gallery 1 Photo Gallery 2 Photo Gallery 3
Here are my images and impressions from the RonRuins tour of Japan November of 2000.
Four of us traveled all over the Island of Honshu in a small white mini van, 10
concerts in 9 cities. Thanks to everyone who put
us up for the night, performed on stage with us and all those who came to the shows. We had a tremendously
good time.
It will take me a while to get all the photos up on the site, so you might what
to check back from time to time over the next month. The last update was on
1/10/01.
Dinner after the show in Nagoya, with members of Acid Mothers Temple who's house
we stayed at, and arrangers of the tour van. They are real cinema aficionados and have
an unbelievable large collection of video tapes. To my left is Akiko who
sold CDs at the Nagoya and Tokyo shows.
Here is Haco who open the show at the Big Apple in Kobe. There was a Haco
Ronruins all improvised set. I first meet Haco in Rome in 1997. It was nice surprise
to see that she was on the bill for the Kobe concert. I only knew her work with the band After Dinner,
and had no idea what to expect performing with her. Her singing was intense and
the music just took off. We fell into a long four part vocal piece, very rhythmic and precise. She also had
with her some kind of home made looking
electronic device. It made some incredible sounds, beeps from space, electronic
growls, whirls.
The futuristic skyline of Kobe.
Hot and sweaty in the packed room at Pepper Land in Okayama.
Sasaki Hisashi at Pepper Land
RA at Pepper Land
Yoshida Tatsuya and our massive tour vehicle.
We drove to Omijima Island near the city of Nagato on the far western end of
Honshu, before the gig that night in
Yamaguchi. The Sea of Japan was clear, very warm, very beautiful.
Ichiraku Yoshimitsu open the show of us at Yamaguchi. You can see on the table
to his left many effect peddles, samplers and drums machines, that he used
during his solo. With these he created large array of samples from percussion,
noise, classic rock riffs, that gave the feeling of live editing. Very quick changes
between textures and styles. Hard to say if this music was completely improvised
our partly composed, because changes and Ideas were very tight. So, my guess
would be that it was very planed out. Either way some great music.
RonRuins in Yamaguchi
First impression of the Dome at Hiroshima.
This Photo of the Dome of Hiroshima was taken by Yoshida. It's usually all laughs and
smiles when I'm on tour with Yoshida and Sasaki, not this day. Walking around
the Dome was dismal. The impact
of this place hit me alot harder than I was anticipating. Even on a warm sunny
day the wreckage of the building left standing after the atomic blast created a somber atmosphere. Hard
to explain this feeling because the dome is surrounded by a lush garden of beautiful
tress. Surreal to see this skeleton in the midst of a vibrant city. Across the river is
the Peace Park, maybe someday the people of the world will heed it's message.
Please, don't hold your breath waiting.
The Peace Park filled with school children from all over Japan.
Box loads of paper cranes, regularly arrive at Hiroshima from schools all over
Japan. Inspired by the story of Sadako, who survived the atomic blast only to
develop leukemia at age 10. She decided to fold 1000 paper cranes, in the hope
that this goal would help her recover. The crane being a symbol of longevity and
happiness in Japan. She made it to 644 before she died, the children from her school
folded the finale 356.
This is
Himeji-jo Castle also know as Shirasgi, (the White Egret). This Castle has survived
in it's original form, from when it was built in 1580.
In walking around Himeji, we came across a ceremony to bless young children at a
local temple. This girl is dress in a traditional Kimoto, behind her are barrels
of sake.
On the drive from Himeji to our gig that night in Osaka, we stopped off to see
the strange statues of Houiyou-Gohyaku Rakan located in Hyogo-ken, in the town
of Kasei. Hundreds of statues between three and four feet in height, each one unique.
Some of the faces on the statues had very serious expressions, others were quite comical. The
figures are only between two and three hundred years in age. Why they were made and by
whom has been lost to time. Art
Brut?
Another photo of the statues of Houiyou-Gohyaku Rakan with
Sasaki taking a digital photo.
Another face.
Here is a photo from after the show at Bears in Osaka. That's Ryo (the second
bass player of The Molecules) in the ripped-up
jeans. I'm not sure if you can tell from this photo, but he is becoming a mussel
man. "I play in classic rock band" was the answer that Ryo gave to my
question concerning his newest musical projects. To my left is
Seijchi Yamamoto the guitar player of the Boredoms. I just gave him a copy
of the Anything is Possible CD. Track 3 is a live vocal improvisation
with Seijchi, Tatsuya Yoshida and myself that was recorded in Osaka
back in 1995 when I tour there with the Molecules. Hey, Seijchi when do we
record something together again?
This is taken in front of the famous Kinkakuji - (the Golden Pavilion) located
in Kyoto. The original temple was burn down in 1950 by a Zen Buddhist
student, and fictionalized in a great book by Yukio Mishima.
We had traditional tea and some small cakes on the ground of Kinkakuji. The tea
is a was thick and frothy, similar in consistency to hot milk.
Sonoe Nakatsuka was our driver and shot a video documentation of all of the
concerts. She did a great job driving, (I put a bit of time behind the wheel
just for the experience of
driving on the "wrong side of the road") especially the night journey
from Kyoto back to Nagoya. At night, all of the highways in Japan are
filled up and ruled by the trucks who tail gate each other by a few feet in rows of ten
to twenty in all lanes. Cars are trapped in this tail gating party. No escape,
very dangerous. One night back in Tokyo we saw on a TV news-cast how a car was completely crushed in
between two trucks. Maybe what save us from this kind of disaster, was Heavy Metal
Syndicate, a radio
show that we were listening to during the drive.
Riding the subway after the tour, dead tired.
This is one of
Yoshida Tatsuya favorite places to eat in Tokyo; Akaten. In fact he loves this place so
much that he named on of his bands after it. What do you get at Akaten?
Homemade dumplings, very delicious. The place is extremely small, sits
only four, but of course you can get take out at the window.
Here is the owner of Akaten preparing the dumplings from his secrete recipe . The dumplings
go best
with a cold beer.
This is a cuisine called Okonomiyaki. Something like an Omelet or Pancake,
you get to chose from a vast amount of ingredients.
Ruins
After the performance at 20, 000 volts in Tokyo, Yoshida with Hayakawa Shunsuke
the drummer from Kirihito.
A band the I like very much, The Molecules did a gig with them in Tokyo back in
95.
Sonoe and I went for a stroll on a rainy day in Tokyo.
Umbrellas at a shop in Tokyo.
I went north for a couple of days to Yamgata-ken with
Sasaki to visit his family, to enjoy a hot springs and visit buddhas craved out
of a lava flow that runs right into the sea of Japan. This Torii (arch) marks
the entrance to the base of Mt. Haguro-san. Up a path is two large (15ft
- 20ft) Nio guardians, a 14 century pagoda and nice water fall.
One of the Nio at the base of Mt. Haguro-san.
Temple at the top of the mountain. Note the snow, the weather as very different from
the beginning of my trip.
Eight hundred craved wood Buddhas. The one in the middle seems to know a good
joke.
The next day we drove further North into Akita-ken. To see these Buddhas on the
coast.
The rock that these are carved from is very soft, you can see that erosion
has taken it's toll. Maybe in one hundred years or less the faces will be
gone.
After the Buddhas I took a walk across a near-by bridge. And saw this Torii connected
by a rope to a large boulder. Knowing that this was marking some kind of shrine
or sacred place, I walked down a steep path to take a look.
At the base of the Boulder was a small cave.
In the cave, a small phallus statue, use as a fertility rite. Women come to this
place to make an offering and a pray, in the hopes of becoming pregnant.
A side street in the Koenji district in Toyko.
Click the photo to see Girls with Big Shoes.
Photo Gallery 1 Photo Gallery 2 Photo Gallery 3Festival Fruits de Mhere
RA Home Biography Catalog Concert Dates
links E-mail List Order Form Music Gallery