Stars + Ogre You Asshole

january 10th, Shibuya Quattro

I didn't know quite what to expect from this gig judging from the last time I saw Stars at the Hove Festival in Norway last summer. They played early at the biggest stage (too big for them), the teeny boppers that had showed up were all waiting for the Kooks, and the band seemed to be uh, less happy. I enjoyed the concert because it was my first time seeing them, but in retrospective I've sort of realized that it was kind of terrible... But I do like their music, so I decided to give it another chance. This time indoors at a smaller venue. And hey, even if it wouldn't turn out good they still had the best support act.

I don't think anyone in the audience were familiar with Ogre You Asshole, but they seemed to like them (considering the fact that it was a japanese act warming up for a foreign act). Towards the end of the set people were clapping more than at your average Ogre gig. Not that that means a lot... They did a short set:

Coinlaundry
Flag
JN
shiranai aizu shiraseru ko

katappo
hitori nori

They had a new intro before "Flag" which was quite cool. I'm glad they played "katappo", off the new EP, because I really like that song. It's soft and mellow.

I actually saw Ogre the next day as well. They did an instore live at Tower Records Shibuya together with the Novembers. The Novembers were headbanging like crazy as always, even in the slower songs. It was quite a sight to behold on the tiny stage, but more about them later. I'm seeing them again later in February. Ogre played the exact same songs except that they added "Advantage" as well. The crowd was dead again. During Novembers the dude next to me was actually sleeping through the entire thing, standing upright. That takes some skills, I guess.

Anyways, back to Stars. They were so much better this time. First of all they covered the entire stage with white, pink and red roses, many of them which they threw out to the crowd (I managed to catch two!). Pretty~. Secondly, they seemed to be in a good mood, especially Torq.

Also, I could hear his voice a lot better now than last time. Amy's voice is always amazing, especially on the slower songs. I've read some japanese blogs about the gig, and litterally all of them commented on her weight. I guess she has gained some, but I don't really see that as an issue..? The rest of the band didn't make too much out of themselves.

They played many tracks from their latest album, but also from "Set Yourself On Fire" and "Heart". They also did one or two tracks off their latest release, the "Sad Robots" EP (which is more or less download only). I loved hearing "Elevator Love Letter" and "Look Up" from "Heart". "Your Ex-Lover Is Dead" was also great. They did a long encore, but I can't remember the setlist.

I had a good time, but there still something about Stars' attitude which puts me off. I can't explain it properly, but they seem to be a bit...conceited? I don't want to decide whether or not I like a band judging from their perosnalities, but this has kind of bothered me since the last time I saw them, and I'm still thinking about it now...

I'll never get tired of this song though: