REPORT ｜ Michael Kaneko Daydreams One Night Only Live

Text by Yuka Ishizumi
Photo by ADAM WALKER

Micheal Kaneko held a special one-night-only live performance with his 3rd album “Daydreams”.

This album is an album that he created by himself, freeing himself from trends and commercial-based theories and focusing on the music he truly wants to make, as he has built up his career.The songs have a wide range of nuances, from personal bedroom R&B, 80’s taste, AOR and alternative pop. It entertained me. This live performance with this confident work is a new step for Micheal Kaneko, and how will he arrange the live performance with his new band? is also attracting a lot of attention. The buzzing floor suggests high expectations.

Mikey appears alone on the darkened stage and plays “The End” with an electric piano accompaniment, an opening reminiscent of the “JAPAN & ASIA TOUR 2023” Shibuya WWW X performance before the album’s release, where last time he played an acoustic guitar. I thought it was a performance in which a song that was composed by one person was added to the interpretations of his friends, but what do you think?

At the end of the first verse, the current members Keity (brkfstblend / Ba., Cho.), Daiki Matsuura (She Her Her Hers /Dr., Cho.), Genki Ishida (Key., Sax, Cho.), Saito. Yuya (yonawo / TRIPPYHOUSING / Key., Gt., Cho.) joins the performance, and Ishida’s saxophone immediately shines, and The E Street Urban rock’n’roll similar to Band begins to play. At the end of the song, he called out to the audience, “Are You Ready?” at the very beginning, but when the low-key “Yeah” came out, he unusually cheered, “I can’t hear it at all!” yes. Even the stylish “Atmosphere” suddenly becomes heated when it comes to live performances. This time, his ears were captivated by the deliciousness of the twin guitars, including the unison riffs with Saito, who joined in as support for the first time.

Furthermore, “Daydreams”, which had the sound source of a closed room and had the feel of a daydream, began to sway the audience with the addition of Keity’s bassline, which resonates with the body with its raw bass. Also, in this song, Mikey and Saito’s intertwining and insertion of guitars amplified the real thrill of the live performance. “Goodlife”, which suddenly changes the scene with the sound effects of the speech, has a melancholy sound unique to a minor tune, Mikey’s speaking vocals express the urgency, and the overflowing emotion is conveyed to a short guitar solo. There is no doubt that the sound of the guitar that speaks louder than words is Micheal Kaneko’s philosophy, and even the audience who are concentrating on the performance are paying attention so that they don’t miss it.

After performing four songs at once, he declared that although it’s been about 10 years since he started performing live as an MC, this is the most fun he’s had. This is clear from the band’s performance. Up to this point, I had been performing new songs from my album, but when I was 23 years old, I changed my taste and no label asked me to.I uploaded a video of me singing on YouTube to the boss of my current label, origami PRODUCTIONS. It is said that someone caught his eye and called out to him. The song “Separate Seasons” was played on an acoustic guitar as in the video at the time, and the band quietly joined in. The song has a warm and relaxed tone, but it also has an equally sad feel to it, and I realized once again that this is his unchanging characteristic as a singer-songwriter.

Returning to the selection of songs from the album, “rebel” creates an intimate nighttime mood, and “Heartache” has a beautiful synth line and chorus that resembles particles of light, enlivening the long tone of Ishida’s saxophone at the end. The members played neatly and passionately, and Mikey was on his knees strumming his guitar. The setlist feels like a sad feeling gradually clearing up, but when I see the members’ expressions of joy as they play, I can’t help but smile at the deliciousness of the ensemble and tone.

In the middle of the performance, there is a “one mic corner” surrounding a single condenser microphone, which is becoming a standard at his live shows. Five people gathered together to control the acoustic guitar and saxophone sounds based on their distance from the microphone. First, he will perform “SHIGURE”, a collaboration song with Sarasato, from the album “THE NEIGHBORHOOD”. Since the lyrics are in Japanese, there is a sing-along, but the way the five people gather around the microphone is humorous, and it goes beyond the meaning of the song, which is unique to a live performance.

The second song was a cover of Billie Eilish’s “BIRDS OF A FEATHER,” and she said, “I’m going to do it without introducing the song,” and delivered a live arrangement of Billie Eilish’s “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” with an impressive keyboard harmonica sound. The ending is in a second-line style, and it is perhaps unique to these members that they are able to drastically reconstruct the original song. Returning to the band set, “Lovers” highlighted the brightness of the saxophone and the vivid bass line.

In the member introduction, Mikey talks about how Keity really wanted to participate in Mikey’s solo after brkfstblend, but Keity didn’t want to reveal it. It was an episode that showed how well-matched Keity is as a musician and as a person (out of respect for Keity’s wishes, I’ll omit the details).

Also, Saito from yonawo, who is participating this time, said that they met at an event where his TRIPPYHOUSING and brkfstblend were both performing. I felt that the addition of the sensibilities of people in their 20s was quite significant. Although Mikey doesn’t have an academic background, the members laugh and agree with Mikey, who emphasizes that the vibe is the best.

As the members were introduced and the audience became more familiar with the band, the live performance accelerated towards the end. The positive mood of “long island iced tea” has the impression of the MC from earlier, and Keity’s groovy bass line conveyed the joy of the ensemble to the audience, which continued into “These Nights” which started with a session-like intro. It will be connected. The day reached its peak with each individual’s highlight, the deliciousness of Mikey and Saito’s twin guitars, and their all-out guitar solo.

Next, the song seamlessly transitions into “Best Part Of Us” with a refreshing cut. This is a collaboration number with AmPm, but it was an arrangement of the original with a synth pop image, and updated with a fresh performance that organically intertwines the saxophone and the saxophone.

Amid loud applause and lots of smiles, before the end of the main story, he expressed his gratitude and announced that he would be making another album next year, and cheered the floor with “Strangers In The Night,” which represents the 80’s feel that is one aspect of “Daydreams.” The mood is overflowing. Each of these songs became a smash hit, and since the summer has passed since the release of the album, these songs have completely integrated into the daily lives of listeners, so it became clear that this day’s live performance was long-awaited, and the 90 minutes passed in the blink of an eye. Ta.

In response to the audience who didn’t seem to be listening enough, Mikey appeared alone for the encore and played “maybe” with the rich tone of the SG. Just when I thought they were showing off the universality and inclusiveness of an oldie, and the courage of just playing the guitar and singing, they charmingly introduced goods borrowed from the floor.

“It was fun. Let’s meet again somewhere!” – Just like the album, “Field of Heaven” was set at the end. The light-filled melody gives a sense of the beginning, and in the middle of the song they switch from SG to acoustic guitar, creating a bouncy groove. It’s a love song that vows to overcome hardships, but I took that message to be the intention of singer-songwriter Michael Kaneko.

[Event information]

“Daydreams One Night Only Live at Daikanyama Unit”
Date: Wednesday, November 6, 2024
Venue: Daikanyama UNIT, Tokyo
Cast:
Michael Kaneko

■Michael Kaneko Official Site