Despite having been active making music for over six years as STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION, musician RON’s sound-making project had not performed live outside of appearances during large events. For his first one-man performance on February 16, RON and his support musicians definitely had a lot of expectations to meet, and meet them they did.

Though the weather outside was less than favorable, fans packed out Shibuya WWW from front to back, squeezing into every available space. The lights dimmed and the sound swelled as the intro song #01 played over the PA system—the first track off debut album STEREO DIVE—getting the crowd hyped up before RON and his support members even set foot on stage for the sold-out show.

They were welcomed with thunderous applause before immediately launching into the high energy electronic-rock track PULSE, perfect to kick-start the evening. Not a body in the audience was standing still, hands and voices raised. The transition into Renegade, the opening song for anime GANGSTA., was met with a cry of excitement from the audience who continued to groove along. Right after, seamlessly transitioning to Genesis which was almost powered by the audience clapping along with the beat.

Placing his handheld microphone into a stand, RON picked up his guitar and we launched into the drum and bass-heavy, No replacement, continuing the high-energy onslaught before changing the pace with AXIS. The audience raised their voices as one to sing along.

After a brief MC, RON moved to the piano for Chronos, his most recent single after more than a three-year gap in releases, the crowd bobbing their heads along. Remaining at the piano, we transitioned into the more laid-back Linde, and the instrumental Sprinkle, allowing everyone to calm down a little before upping the tempo with Two divided Rainbow. Both the band and the audience really got into the happy atmosphere, waving their arms side to side in unison.

We were then treated to Handling—a high energy jazz and electro mash-up instrumental, which really heated up the floor! The groove was infectious, you really couldn’t stand still! Changing the energy yet again with the uplifting Don’t let me down, the audience gladly lent their voices to the chorus. Continuing in the realm of bright songs, Spiral led into the dynamic instrumental PRISM FLAVOR, before slowing down for the heartfelt Dropping melodies, and soothing Yellow.

Following Yellow was the instrumental track Fabiana where the audience was informed that taking pictures was okay—a rare occurrence at a live show in Japan! As well as the memory of the music that night, it was possible to take home a picture of the show itself. ODSD (One Day Some Day) got the room moving with its danceable beat before the airy, futuristic instrumental Push me into circles. In a drastic change of style, Blackout brought a heavy, industrial atmosphere, really turning up the heat on the floor.

As the night was drawing to a close, the gathered fans roared in delight for the opening bars of STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION’s debut single Daisy. Though it didn’t feel like much time had passed, Coda brought the night to a fitting close, with RON and the audience clapping and singing loudly together.

Though he had played every single song in STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION’s discography, RON and the support members returned to the stage for a two-song encore—oneXone, a tie-in track for mobile game A3! and a second rendition of PULSE, which was welcomed once again by dancing and fists pumping the air.

STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION has a lot of instrumental songs but there was no disconnect in RON’s performance. RON is a truly multifaceted performer with a warm and energetic stage presence—switching effortlessly between singing, playing guitar while singing, piano and using samplers.

The ebb and flow from high energy to more relaxed numbers, from songs with a harder rock sound to more mellow electronic tunes made for a dynamic atmosphere during the whole performance. This is definitely a night that fans won’t forget!

Make sure to also catch STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION’s show in Germany by the end of May if you get the chance!

Setlist

  1. SE #01
  2. PULSE
  3. Renegade
  4. Genesis
  5. No replacement
  6. AXIS
  7. Chronos
  8. Linde
  9. Sprinkle
  10. Two divided Rainbow
  11. Handling
  12. Don’t let me down
  13. Spiral
  14. PRISM FLAVOR
  15. Dropping melodies
  16. Yellow
  17. Fabiana
  18. ODSD
  19. Push me into circles
  20. Blackout
  21. Daisy
  22. Coda

Encore

  1. oneXone
  2. PULSE

Support musicians

Bass: Hiromitsu Kawashima
Guitar: show.yanai
Drums: Nozomu Kitamura

[試聴動画] STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION 1st Album - STEREO DIVE -

STEREO DIVE

CD

  1. #01
  2. PULSE
  3. Renegade
  4. Coda
  5. Don’t let me down
  6. Blackout
  7. Spiral
  8. Linde
  9. AXIS
  10. Genesis
  11. ODSD
  12. Daisy

Buy at CDJapan

More info:
Official Website (VERYGOO)
Official Website (Lantis)
Twitter

Photo: Hannah Eto (SHERPA+)

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