I’m sure everyone has already seen the exciting announcements from last night’s oneman, but for anyone interested here’s my report of NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST’s tour (is three dates really a tour, guys?) final at Shinjuku BLAZE. The full setlist is also included. For anyone who cares, this will be an JROCK NEWS exclusive as always.
On a wet evening in Japan’s rainy season, the fans gathered outside the entrance to Shinjuku BLAZE were let in one by one and descended into the lobby area and on into the spacious underground live house. Once they had filled up the venue the lights dimmed, the opening SE played through the speakers, and the curtains drew apart, revealing NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST standing dramatically in position on the darkened stage. The band launched into the first song DESPERATE made up in that single’s outfits, vocalist Hiro topless and drenched in blood and gore. The fans were immediately caught up in the energy the group brought to the stage, and continued into Sphere.
The electronic opening signalled the next song Reverence, with Hiro’s growl of “Break Down” being followed emphatically by the crowd. Once this song was over, he announced The Beautiful Craze, which was followed up with VENOM. Next was the energetic song Liberation which helped name this tour. The high energy and fan participation continued through Puppet Creature and UNBREAKABLE before everyone was finally given a break and the lights dimmed.
Guitarist Daichi played a brief solo that led into the opening SE for Libra, the band’s most recent single. This powerful song had the crowd standing in appreciation even through the harder segments and as it ended they applauded the performance. Now it was time for the other guitarist Cazqui to take the spotlight. The talented musician played in a variety of styles, beginning with shimmering chords and then a calm slap rhythm. Next he took his microphone and ran it along the guitar, causing strange distorted sounds to work up the crowd. Finally he played the telltale opening tune of Empty glass and the concert resumed.
After following up with Obligation, the band played the final single from their recent three-month release campaign, Strike in fact. This energetic track had the crowd jumping up and down with the catchy riff. The end of the main set remained on a high with A Bullet of Skyline and finally, announced by Hiro, V.I.P. This song had quickly become a fan favorite and was a lot of fun live with the fans knowing exactly when to add their calls and really giving it their all.
Immediately after the band had left the stage, the crowd began calling for an encore. A few minutes later the curtains parted once again, but this time a soft piano tune echoed around the venue and Hiro heartfully sung out the ballad Aster. Again the crowd was left in silence as NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST showed their more emotional and powerful side, continuing with FATE. Finally after rousing the fans with Vanilla the brief SE track announced the recent re-recording of their demo single, Dysphoric Torment. Perhaps the most brutal track the band has produced to date, the crowd eagerly put their energy into headbanging along with the harsh vocals and forceful guitars.Most of the band took their leave once again and it was time for drummer Natsu’s chance to have his way with the crowd. As his drum solo reached its conclusion bassist Masa came out on stage and the two performed an exciting rhythm duet, the bass finally having its time to shine. After their brief rest, the others returned to the stage for Domestic Crisis, including Hiro’s calls to the “ladies” and “gentlemen” of the crowd for their voices. Finally he announced the last song, A Day to Re:member, and both band and fans gave their all to end the show. With picks and drum sticks thrown out as NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST left the stage, it seemed like the night was over, but still the crowded live house remained dark.
After more encore calls, a projector started up and exciting news was shown on the back wall. A new eight-stop tour across Japan was announced, with fans who had traveled to Tokyo for this show cheering as their own home towns flashed briefly on the screen. Then, news fans all around the world would be excited to hear: NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST would be releasing their second full length album in the winter.
To cheers and applause the band returned one last time. Hiro gave a brief MC thanking everyone for their support and reiterating the new announcements, before calling everyone to the final song of the night, a repeat of the energetic V.I.P. This time the concert was really over, and each member took some time to throw out gifts to the excited crowd before leaving the stage.
Setlist:
DESPERATE
Sphere
Reverence
The Beautiful Craze
VENOM
Liberation
Puppet Creature
UNBREAKABLE
-Daichi Solo-
-SE Gravity-
Libra
-Cazqui Solo-
Empty glass
Obligation
Strike in fact
A Bullet of Skyline
V.I.P
Encore 1
Aster
FATE
Vanilla
-SE améthyste-
Dysphoric Torment
Natsu solo performance
Masa Solo performance
Domestic Crisis
A Day to Re:member
Encore 2
V.I.P