THE MICRO HEAD 4N’S began “the second act” at Quattro

Ricky (vocals), kazuya (guitar), SHUN. (guitar), ZERO (bass) and TSUKASA (drums) are here to stay with their fast-growing band THE MICRO HEAD 4N’S. After a hot first oneman at Shibuya O-WEST, it was time to ignite the infamous CLUB QUATTRO with “the second act.” Dark walls and narrow, dimly lit stairs led to heavy black doors behind which awaited rocker’s paradise. Like an underground cave, QUATTRO invited a casual and familiar atmosphere that allowed the band to display their showmanship at yet another level.

The packed venue stirred at the sound of the band’s dramatic intro. The music started slow but soon sped up, electronics blasting loud and defiant. Drums strong, TSUKASA kicked open “HELLO MY CLONE,” the bass tones racing along. THE MICRO HEAD 4N’S were off to a thunderous start and the crowd responding zealously as they danced and sang in unison. After a slow vocal solo that Ricky delivered flawlessly, instrumentals were set free for “GLORIOUS BLAZE.”

“Are you ready, Tokyo? Let’s go!” the vocalist demanded and a loud wave of shouts came crashing through as the crowd pumped their fists to the beat. Under red lights, two smoke jets came to life, rising fast and covering the ceiling to give the set an infernal characteristic. Sweet yet fierce, the number mingled electronic sounds with rapped bits sections while the five men moved constantly in example for the crowd.

With a yell, Ricky asked the audience to jump for the fierce “Photograph” and the ground started shaking. Jumping and waving, the crowd seemed to be having a blast. Their shifting hands seemed to engulf the vocalist as he danced drowsily.  “We are home, Tokyo!” he yelled. “This is awesome, thanks for coming! It’s the final of our first oneman tour and we have completed one year of existence! What a year it has been!” The crowd warmly teased the vocalist with shouts of “Fuu!” as he continued the emcee with straight-forward emotion. “Let’s go to our own white place,” he solemnly invited, opening “WHITE SOUL.” A steady and confident ride under white lights got bodies moving to the defying drums and steady riffs. Vocals echoing between up-tempo raps made a positive impact and TSUKASA’s drumming stood out in particular as he punished the cymbals with fierce strikes. The song ended with the hall singing as one in a touching moment.

No time to waste, drums blasted for the new “UN-CONTROLLED.” Unruly and wicked, the song was packed with fast, distortion-filled guitar riffs and strong bass lines. As the string trio headbanged fiercely through the number, SHUN.’s braids thrashed back and forth like whips.

“Is it hot? Really? We will make it even hotter! It’s been a year! We came up with the band at an izakaya and we couldn’t imagine we would have so many fans so quickly!” Ricky confessed before announcing the recent release of the band’s first album A BEGINNING FROM THE END which was released on August 1. “A beginning from the end this was… and what a beginning! We made number three on the indies ranking and the tour was great! Please keep following us!” he requested before moving onto the sweet ballad “Yume no tsuzuki.” It was the guitar’s turn to speak with a haunting solo that brought kazuya to the front, fingers skillfully caressing the strings while SHUN. swayed to the guitar’s ruminating plea, face hidden behind the long braids.

A slow and mournful piano intro eased the transition for “Calling,” instrumentals gaining strength as the rhythm built and a heavy cry took over the hall to racing drums. “How was that? We have some nice songs, don’t we?” Ricky grinned. “You know, all the members like to write songs. ‘UN-CONTROLLED,’ for example, was written by SHUN.!” he pointed out before looking as the guitarist and asking, “Is your voice back?”
“Yes! For those who don’t know, I lost my voice during the tour. Some of the yells today were painful and didn’t come out exactly how I wanted,” he added with a laugh.

Funky, loud and heavy, “New Song” got the job done, the hall jumping and singing while the band moved around and thrashed heads. It proved a bit unruly though, excessive yelling muffling the instrumentals. However, the crowd were amped and the electronics hardened for the contagious, “I surrender.” “Let’s dance!” the vocalist yelled and at once the towels were brought out, twirling dangerously while the crowd jumped. ZERO twirled across the stage, knees almost touching the floor as he crouched, plucking some ardent notes from the strings. The two guitarists took the front for a blazing duel while Ricky danced – not so smoothly – to the tune.

The electronic rock came off well for the fast and funky “BREAKIN! and SHOUT OUT!” Mirror ball twirling under flashing, colorful lights, the hall seemed to become a disco, smoke curtain returning. ZERO was particularly energetic, twirling at high speed across the small stage while the guitarists played face to face, seeming more than pleased by the crowd’s effusive reaction. Drums pulsing like a pounding heart, the band dove into “MONSTER’S ROAR” and bass took the lead for the instrumental intro while the crowd shouted along. Placing his hands by his ears, kazuya seemed to say, “I can’t hear you!” and the crowd grew louder. Ricky stepped in and the rhythm slowed and hardened through powerful instrumentals and clear vocals, turning into a memorable number that combined sweetness and determination.

“Tokyo, this is awesome!” Ricky stated once more with a wide, child-like smile before turning to kazuya and adding, “Thank you for inviting me to the band!” The crowd laughed at casual atmosphere and following in one of the night’s strongest numbers, “Kono saki zuto,” the band and fans grew even closer through the haunting and strong-willed music. The instrumentals eased and the hall sang in one voice, emotion palpable.

The encore call came right away, unique as the crowd clapped and sang the chorus of “Kono saki zuto.” Clad in their tour t-shirts, the band returned. “I can’t stop saying it, this is awesome! I don’t want it to end!” The vocalist smiled. “We are very happy to have been brought together by kazuya. He had a dream and made it come true and for that we are truly thankful! Thank you all for supporting us. We came out of darkness and reached this amazing point of light. We want you to see the light with us with this next song: ‘Hikari no sekai!’”  Like the title (“World of light”) suggested , the song submerged the venue in white light, overcoming darkness through clear vocals and impeccable guitars.

“What, me again?” came SHUN.’s voice as he was asked to take over the following emcee.
“You don’t want to talk?” Ricky casually asked.
The guitarist replied, “It’s not that. It’s that the others are more fun!” The crowd laughed, encouraging the guitarist to talk on, his fans seeming particularly interested in his new hair color. “OK, so I made my hair lighter but many people tell me it looks the same!”
“You do plenty of crazy things with your hair, don’t you?” the chat between the two continued “Well, in my previous band I kept the same hair style for ages so now I want to explore with it! I would love to have dreads but then I would have to cut it short afterwards and I don’t think the bald look will suit me. Now, I think the others have had time to think about things to say!” SHUN. Concluded, passing the word to ZERO.

The crowd yelled excitedly, making it difficult for the bassist to be heard and with a somewhat annoyed expression, he confessed “When you shout ZERO, all I hear is Ero! What will people think?” The crowd teased him, shouting Ero over and over as he continued dryly, “Many people congratulate me for the bands anniversary and although I’m pleased, it makes me slightly frustrated because it’s actually next month… I can’t help but think, “You are too damn early!”

TSUKASA brightened the mood as he took over in a joyful and energetic fashion, kazuya following and stating once more the band’s strong will to make good music and create a bright place for them and fans. Having been made the night’s official announcer, TSUKASA took the spotlight once more, adopting theatrical poses and a deep voice tone that got the crowd giggling as he introduced the venues for the upcoming tour.

The mood was well set for “I surrender,” the crowd spinning towels and jumping with the band. ZERO and SHUN. headbanged fiercely while kazuya interacted with the crowd between fierce riffs. TSUKASA surprised everyone as he abandoned the drums and came to the front, jumping with the crowd and singing backing vocals. It was a contagious atmosphere and one more encore followed, this time with the crowd singing “Happy birthday Mi-pho” (abbreviation for MICRO HEAD 4N’S). “I don’t want it to end but this is the last one! Can you keep up? Come on, you asked for it!” the vocalist fired up for “Photograph.”

It was the perfect way to end a phenomenal night. The hall was unified by music, ground shaking under the energetic movement. Confident and warm, THE MICRO HEAD 4N’S will surely make people talk, the five ready to conquer new ground with their vibrant performance and unique sound. ROKKYUU have high expectations of the band’s upcoming releases and many more oneman shows!  Stay tuned!

Set list

1. HELLO MY CLONE
2. GLORIOUS BLAZE
3. Photograph
4. WHITE SOUL
5. UN-CONTROLLED
6. Yume no tsuzuki
7. Calling
8. New Song
9. I surrender
10. BREAKIN! and SHOUT OUT!
11. MONSTER’S ROAR
12. Kono saki zuto

Encore

1. Hikari no sekai
2. I surrender

Encore 2

1. Photograph

There are 38 photos in this visual kei exclusive.

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