Mayohk sakaba 2

 I missed the last Mayohk bar event in January since I was in Sweden at the time and I mourned it bad (getting a 2shot with Közi is a bit of dream since I’ve listened to him since my high school days and it’s so rare for him to do that). I was very happy they shortly after announced yet another event though and I made sure to be free on that day so I could go. Honestly, these kinds of ”talk events” are usually not worth the price IMO but again, cheki opportunity with Közi made it worth it (don’t get me wrong I want pictures with Hora too but Schwarz Stein always offer that so not as rare). Also maybe I’m too old but sometimes they feel very money grabbing XD I’m a fan because I love their music, so going to an event without music feels kind of strange…

My original plan was to wear a suit to match them but it’s too hot, I bailed out the day before my departure to Tokyo and just went with something airy and comfortable.

They said from the start that they didn’t have anything planned for the talk so it was free styled. I felt like most who came were Közi’s fans. The talk started with Közi explaining the event and said they’d be bartending later, like Tom Cruise and then he imitated throwing bottles around. He asked if anyone had seen the movie (Cocktail) and it was dead silent XD I’m surprised, it’s a classic XD he also noticed Hora was sweating and he said he wanted to remove his jacket but it would feel weird, someone from the back yelled ”take it off” and he gesticulated to a lady at the front row and said ”we’ll start from you” and everyone laughed. They, for some reason also began talking about blood pressure, Közi asked Hora about his but Hora doesn’t know so again he went ”we’ll start from you” and gestured to a lady at the front. Hora had glasses one which is a bit rare and he said he can’t see very well without them, bow he could see the old lady all the way in the back (ババ). 

The talk was very short, around 30 minutes and then they started making the drinks. Since they were a bit expensive (2000yen) I decided to only get one drink from Hora. When they announced this event I immediately remembered the Madness Hora cocktail from a 2-man live Schwarz Stein did around the release of Sleeping Madness and decided I’d gather the courage to ask for it. I found an old picture I took of the sign (and recipe) and showed it to him and he went ”What’s that?”, read the recipe and Közi then said they don’t have milk… so I did an omakase, left it up to him. He made me a beautiful green cocktail instead. 

Other points I remembered from the talk:

•Hora’s leg/foot still hurts from an injury 2 months ago. Közi joked that he was cursed.

•Közi doesn’t go to the gym but enjoys going for walks.

•When he goes on said walks he doesn’t listen to music but just listens to the surroundings. He even said he doesn’t play music when he’s driving but listens to the radio and he can discover new songs.

•Közi pointed out that Hora mainly listens to metal.

When there were no more orders for drinks they came back to stage to say a final goodbye and then it was time for chekis. The chekis were also a bit more expensive than normal, 3000yen each, but since it’s so rare for Közi to do these kind of things I wanted one chekis solo with each of them and then one with all three of us.  

I never know what to say and again it felt a bit rushed so I didn’t say anything special to either of them. What made me a bit happy was that Közi had his arm around my shoulders for the 2shot :3 sounds silly but I’ve followed him for so long but I’ve never spoken to him or taken pictures with him, to him I’m just another random fan but we go way back xD so I’m glad it wasn’t stiff and awkward.

I’m a bit sad they didn’t mention any new release, there are still two songs that haven’t been released that they play live and both are great. Maybe for their October gig?

After the event I went to an Hawaiian restaurant with my fellow Hora friends in his honor. 

Schwarz Stein Reincarnation Tokyo

 Earlier this year they made the remix album Reincarnation and a coupling gig. Then it was announced that they would make a mini tour (Tokyo and Osaka) and they also made a survey asking what song fans would like to hear remixed for this tour. 

Yesterday was the first gig of the tour and there were some things that surprised me. First was that they played the DEMIGOD version of Addictive Epicurean (I prefer the new regular version so I was happy though) and second was which song made it to become a new remix; Current. I was hoping people would vote for a more rare song (I voted for the alternation of generations since that’s the only song by now that they haven’t played live since their reunion at least).

Before the DEMIGOD release Current was played quite a lot at lives. Another thing about the remix, there were very subtle changes (a friend said she didn’t even realize it was a remix at first). I was hoping for a bigger change and for a different song.

Since the set list didn’t change much from earlier this year I’m also curious what songs people voted for to hear (I’m gonna ask Kaya and Hora at the next live). 

There were also no new merch despite that being included in the questionnaire and prices had increased (1 cheki with them now cost 3000yen and a random cheki was 1500yen) not sure if that was because they didn’t have any afterevent and that’s comes with a 3shot cheki. 

Kaya mentioned he had a cold last week and that he still has a bit of a cough but he pulled through. I managed to get a front row place this time so he took my hand during Succubus when he leaned in, I wasn’t knocked in the head this time (might not have mentioned that but last year i got kaya’s elbow in my head xD it’s ok, i don’t mind it getting rough). Like always I had so much fun and it’s sad going back home having to deal with every day problems. 

Points from the mc

1. There will be another anniversary live next year . 
2. The event in December is a ”no plan”, meaning they don’t know what they’ll do then yet. 
3. Kaya suggested Hora also make a calendar, he suggested he make a ”fireman” calendar (apparently Kaya is into that xD, doesn’t surprise me)
4. Kaya also suggested Hora stagedive. He said no and during Succubus when Kaya leant down on us I saw Hora pushing him a bit. Some of us waved at him to stage dive during succubus when he got close but he didn’t.
5. Kaya said they’ll probably change the setlist a bit for Osaka. 

MAYOHK Showcase #4

My second MAYOHK live. A unit with Közi and Hora really is a dream come true. They are my favorite artists and kind of made to collaborate in my opinion xD since their album release I’ve been very eager to see them live again. I was running late today, all the way from Osaka. I got stuck in traffic and ended up on the 13:00 train. Then in Tokyo i took the wrong train to my hotel making me even later but i managed to come right when they were about to call my number! There were no new merch however there was a new song! (Or 2 I wasn’t aware of but I think they only said one new). According to the set list ウドゥラドゥウポォフト was their new song, Hora did death vocals , I really liked it. A song called MODO was also new to me. It sounded a bit more synth, a bit Depeche Mode feel to it. Really like it too so I hope they'll release them. Hopefully they’ll release them soon, I want to hear them again. Hora had shared on Twitter the day before that one of his teeth was cracked and that it hurt. The minute he stepped on stage tonight you could tell he was really swollen. He had done his black make up a bit higher on his right side, probably to cover the swelling a bit. Közi joked about Hora complaining about the pain before the gig and that he was popping pills (he said he was like a junky xD). He seemed to be in a lot of pain and he mentioned Közi’s accident earlier this year and Közi revealed he still feels something (違和感) in his elbow. 

As Közi unfortunately said by the end that they don’t have any one-man gigs planned for the moment and that they probably will perform at different events instead. 

Hora and Közi is a really good combo, not just musically but I think they complement each other so well on stage. Közi is so playful and I think he can bring out the best in most people (he really is one of those artists I think are hilarious to be around). 

Also I finally realized which Hora song セフィボン is! I’ve been scratching my head since I heard it and it’s Spine from Icebound!

I usually don’t like when Schwarz Stein takes Hora’s solo songs and just adds lyrics, mostly because I think it undermines Hora’s solo, like it’s just an empty library and I see his work as HIS. However, I have to give it to Közi I guess because I think they’ve really rearranged the Hora songs they’ve used well. Both セフィボン and Planeta are favorites of mine. 

For the encore they played Sexy music again xD seems to be a fanfavorite (it’s catchy but not in my top 5).

I’ll see them again tomorrow in Osaka but after that i don’t know when the next time will be so I’m a bit sad. 

After the live a friend took me to Seth's bar/cafe. 

Schwarz Stein 23rd Anniversary Live (2025-8-30)

It feels like a long time since the last Schwarz Stein live but compared to when I lived in Sweden and I could see them every other year it's really not ^^'

It's been 5 months since the Remix live and they just finished their South American tour (Chile, Brazil and Mexico)so I guess they don't want to exclude their Japanese fans and threw a 23 anniversary live (aren't anniversaries usually done when there's an even number?? I'm not complaining, let's have an anniversary live every year XD)

On my way on the Shinkansen I was speculating about the setlist, being an anniversary live I thought they might try and play songs from all of their career, I imagined Kuroageha maybe, I was hoping for Queen of Decadence, Syphilis and Disorder and Creeper. Creeper is one of those songs that has been a guarantee but since the release of DEMIGOD they haven't played it at all. I saw that they played it in South America so my hopes were high and my prayer was answered. (side note, I realised a couple of years ago that they change the furi for Creeper overseas. Not to offend maybe??)

Creeper is usually part of the last segment of Schwarz Stein lives since it goes into the "hard songs" category and yesterday's they opened with it :O The songs they added from their previous lives were Lilith, Queen Leech and Creeper. Unfortunately they didn't play Corroded Cage :( I really like the new remix of that.

They tried to keep the Mcs short since they had an after event and they will also have a special talking event with the other participants of the South American tour next Monday (Kaya kept saying they shouldn't reveal too much). What did they talk about? These are the point I remember:

They had issues with visas, they had been told they didn't need any but they did after all which made them split up because everyone couldn't board the plane. Kaya ended up going first, alone and he got stuck again as well. 

Hora got locked up in a bathroom in Chile while Közi was rehearsing, he panicked when he realised no one would hear him or come for him since the rehearsal was going on so he kicked on the door trying to get it open. He did manage to get out eventually.

Hora said he has to take medication before flight to not get panic attacks, if he doesn't he can't fly. So he was sleeping the whole flight. He had been feeling unwell and didn't eat much saying he lost weight whereas Kaya said he gained.

During the Chile rehearsal both Kaya and Hora felt that Schwarz Stein is really good and Kaya said they would like to sell more
CD's but both of them think Schwarz Stein is good enough to just keep doing what they're doing even if they sell little. Kaya said he really thinks Hora does great music and Hora said he also thought in Chile that Kaya's lyrics are really good <3

Kaya said it felt different coming from the the South American fans who has a lot of passion (Hora started imitating his way of saying it so it sounded like he sneezed) and in Japan the fans are more silent. 

Hora keeps joking about Kaya being an old lady (baba), don't remember how it ended up on us but he also said the fans too are only older women with a lot of free time  XD (not true, this old lady has to take time off work to go to Tokyo unless they play Sundays).

Included in the after event ticket is a 3shot cheki, they also sold more 3shots for 2000yen, since last year I've started buying 2 extra so I get 1 3 shot and then 2 2shots. 

They has new merch, a shopping bag I really wanted to get (I got lost on my way to the club of course, I got there 15:31 and was told they closed presale at 15:30 XD) the bad was sold out as I was standing in line for it before the live, but I did get the stickers, both Schwarz Stein and Kaya solo (super cute, Kaya's look like Line stamps). They also had cheeks from the South American tour, the ones from Brazil looked almost untouched so I decided to get one and I managed to draw a Hora one :) 

Next they will play in November, they will redo the Remix live in Tokyo and Osaka. Kaya mentioned people requesting Nagoya too so I'm hopeful they'll add that too.

Mayohk Showcase#1

I think a lot of people are curious about this project. As a Hora and Közi fan this was such good news when they announced it! I went to the venue very excited about what they would end up playing and if there would be any cd for sale. 

Unfortunately no cd but Közi hinted that it will be coming in the future. 

It was my first time at this venue, it was really nice and they had s good selection of drinks. The drink ticket was a bit expensive though, 700yen…

Hora stood on the right side of the stage like always. He came in first to the intro song and Közi came after. They had a projector showing the logo and their names as they entered the stage. Their suits were really cool too, I noticed some of the paint glowed in the dark! The first songs were originals and then all of a sudden Synthetic Anthem starts playing! As soon as I heard it my arms flew up xD It was awesome to finally hear Hora songs played at a live house!!! They had added lyrics to it though so Közi sang over it.

In the middle Hora had his own time where he just played music by and Közi wasn’t even on stage. It really was a dream come true. I’ve told him before that I’d love to see a Hora solo live, and he smiled a lot so maybe this showed him that there are many of us who’d love to hear his solo songs live. 

The whole live was about 90 minutes, it felt really short, after they left stage we kept calling for them to come back. The light were turned on but no one left, then finally the staff announced that it was the end. 

Overall, the new songs sounded like Hora's lighter songs, the ones that are more pop (like Anima) but there were some heavier songs too. In the middle, efter Közi's break, when he came back they did a kind of instrumental guitar-noise piece but most songs were pretty danceable. Hora both did death vocals and sang though! This is a first time, on his solo he's always used a filter over his voice so it was nice to hear what he actually sounds like. I was impressed! He should definetely sing more. I've always felt the closest we've got to him singing is Ignition, in the verses you can somewhat hear what he sounds like. However in general Közi is the vocalist and Hora is more of a support vocalist.

I’m really sad I can’t go to their next gig, hopefully they’ll come to Osaka or have the live after on a Sunday.

For the merch, this time I actually didn’t get the t-shirt but I got 3 acrylic stands and stickers. i managed to get all the ones I wanted (I traded a double Közi for a Hora with my friend and a sticker as well <3)

Now I’m really sad about having to go back to Osaka. I haven’t left Tokyo yet and I already miss it. Until next time. 

EDIT

Közi updated his Twitter saying the day before the gig, during rehearsals, he had fallen off stage and hurt his arm. Thinking it was probably ok he just took some painkillers but the day after the gig went to the doctor and it was confirmed he had broken his elbow/arm! I didn't notice anything weird during the performance, either he took some pretty strong painkillers or he's super strong to pain. 

Moi Dix Mois Mana sama birthday tour 2025

I feel so lucky! I don’t think many people understand how hard it is to live in japan and yet barely ever being able to do what I enjoy the most; go to live shows, because I live in Osaka and I work Saturdays. 

This week was heaven sent, i had work off Wednesday to Sunday so I could go to 3 gigs in one week!!

First up was Moi Dix Mois, Mana’s birthday gig, first out of two. 

I’m not well enough rounded when it comes to Moi Dix Mois, I have attended a birthday live in 2017 so that’s my only reference, but I think they usually do one day standing and one day sitting also implying harder and softer songs. At least that’s what it was like last time i went and the set list yesterday was pretty hard. 

My last Moi Dix Mois gig was in 2022 November in Osaka. I thought i had a bad number then (88) and yesterday i got 135…

I haven’t had a good spot for Moi Dix Mois in many years. I also feel like it has to do with that they play smaller venues. 

I aimed at going to the pre-sale for merch but i messed up at the station and took the wrong train… so I missed that. I only wanted the pendant anyway so I got it after. By the door we were handed these postcards of Mana, I love to get stuff like this. I was a bit surprised to see that only Kamijo had presented flowers though, I assumed Schwarz Stein would too… maybe today? Mana even mentioned them in the message mid-live. He talked about Takadanobaba(the place where the livehouse was at), that it was here he scouted Schwarz Stein, or as he corrected yesterday, Rudolf Steiner at the time. They also played with early Malice Mizer here. He had written that he had been to Big Boy to eat (it’s a hamburger restaurant, as in meat patty) back in the days. For those who do not know, since Mana doesn’t speak he always had a written message read by one of the members at every live, this time by Sugiya. He sometimes comes with comments by whispering in their ear, like when he corrected him that it was Rudolf Steiner. 

As it was Mana’s birthday Seth instructed everyone to light up their Moi Dix Mois lightsticks a d then Mana would blow out the candles, so everyone who had one lit it and then turned it off when Mana ”blew them out” ( he just moved his atm from left to right xD). I don’t have a light stick, I considered buying one because I have this vision of how I want to decorate my future home with my music collection and the light stick could be a nice thing to have with the Moi Dix Mois stuff , but I still haven’t got one. Anyway Seth was sweet and said that everyone who don’t have one, it’s ok just use your hands :) so those of us without light sticks just put our hands up during Peagent.

My highlights for the evening was:

The Sect

Dispell Bound

Mad ingrain

Night breed

Monophobia

Since they are making this a tour I’m considering going to one of the Sendai gigs. I’ve actually never been to northern Japan so it could be nice to see that as well as see Moi Dix Mois again.

Schwarz Stein DEMIGOD Tokyo

 Because I so seldom go to live shows anymore 1 month in between felt close in time! 

I’m so happy they did it on a Sunday so I could attend. I took the Shinkansen around noon and came to the club at around 4. This time I didn’t have a vip ticket so I didn’t manage to get a very good spot but it was alright. The  setlist was almost the same as in Osaka but they exchanged some of the older songs, so today we got to hear Transient and Lapis Lazuli! Two songs I really like so I was satisfied.

Kaya mentioned that there were a lot of foreigners attending and implied that the audience was a bit wilder than usual (Japanese fans tends to not respond that much unless the band initiates movement). Which was funny because all of a sudden when they started playing Succubus it felt a bit nostalgic; people half threw themselves forward during the chorus. I haven’t seen that since pre-covid. 

The after event was over pretty quickly. Some points that were mentioned:

• Kaya wrote Lapis Lazuli lyrics after an acquaintance had past away so he doesn’t want to perform it that much because it makes him remember.
• They mentioned Corroded cage again and Hora said he’ll try an recreate it for the next live.
• They might do an remix live and a remix cd. Hora said he’d like to remix New Vogue Children and I think it was Current…
• Originally they had planned on doing a fan trip again but they couldn’t decide on the destination so it never happened and during spring is very busy. Kaya said people can come with suggestions.

Hora released a new t-shirt last month (I think it was). I planned on buying it at the live but it was sold out pretty quickly. During the cheki photoshoot I asked him to make some more >_< 

They announced that there will be an outstore event in January. I’m happy about it but I really wanted to get my Queen of Decadence demo tape signed and I don’t have it with me…. Maybe I’ll settle with something of the new merch or I’ll ask my sister to ship it to me xD

Schwarz Stein 22nd Anniversary Live 2024-07-31

 I haven’t updated here in such a long time it almost feels like i should’ve kept it abandoned. 

I stopped updating because there were so many things going on, mostly bad, that i just didn’t feel motivated nor did i feel like i had the time. When covid hit a lot of bands started the live streaming too so it didn’t feel necessary for me to write live reports when everyone could see it themselves. 

However, that has changed and part of me also feels like i need to get back into my bangya era instead of just digging myself deeper down this hole I’ve been in. 

So for my comeback I will present to you the Schwarz Stein 22nd Anniversary live!

Recently Schwarz Stein has scheduled some lives on weekdays which makes it impossible for me to go. For those who don’t know me I live in Osaka, currently I also work 6 days a week so unless the live is on a Sunday or a holiday I can’t go. 

Unfortunately this happened with the anniversary too, it happened on a Tuesday but that Tuesday seemed like a very slow day at work so I asked if I could take the day off and I got an ok so of I went to Tokyo on Tuesday morning!

I’ve stopped taking the highway buses, I guess I’m too old but it hurts too much xD so going to Tokyo for a live only will result in at least a 30,000 yen train fee x_x I also hate stressing so to be able to participate in the after party, as they decided to call it this time, I actually stayed the night making it even more expensive x_x

I used to always wear the same outfit for Schwarz Stein, the original Hora t-shirt, but I feel really nostalgic for it so i don’t want to overuse it xD therefore I’ve left it in Sweden and have been dressing up a bit more for their lives. BUT Hora announced a new t-shirt for his birthday live in May which a friend kindly bought for me, so I decided to restart the Hora t-shirt dress fashion once again. Also Japanese summer is like walking around in a sauna so didn’t really feel like getting dressed up just to sweat through layers of clothing.

This time the live was at the 二万電圧, a club I’ve never been to before. It was very small, even though there can’t have been more than 80 guests it was full. 

My ticketnumber was pretty bad, 30, despite reserving my ticket within 5 minutes of the release (I now have the theory you get the number based on when you pay because I waited until around 9p.m that day to pay, if anyone knows how it works please leave a comment).

There were some new merch, a Hora keychain, compact mirror set and a signed photo included in the new Hora release Anima. I had already ordered Anima from his online store but i wanted to photo so I bought one more. I actually also got the keychain but I resisted the mirrors despite Hora’s cat being very cute. I just don’t have space to buy endless of merch anymore and i don’t use compact mirrors. This time they sold extra cheki tickets for the after party (since a couple of years back one cheki with the band is included in the afterevent/party price and they stopped selling tickets for it but it made a comeback this time). So i got an extra photo >_> because I feel like the risk of me closing my eyes or doing something else stupid is too high….

Being an anniversary I hoped they’d play a lot of the old classics. The setlist started with 黒揚羽 so I was pleased. I was even happier that they continued with Fester Love, Queen of Decadence and Apocalypse.  For Hora’s birthday live they played a new version of Addictive Epicurean, this made me so happy because it’s one of my favorite songs and I’ve mentioned that it would be nice to hear  a couple of times <3 and fortunately they played it this time too! It felt a bit slower than the original but i liked it.

Kaya mentioned in one of the short MCs that they’d keep it short and talk more during the after party. They had already announced there would be news so that came during the last MC. As I had thought, the news were that they will release a full album containing 11 songs in October. The new songs they have performed live will be included and then he said there will be new songs, at least that he grant sung before so i guess that’s a hint that there will be more remakes from Hora solo songs. The album will be followed by one live in Osaka and one in Tokyo. Then in December there will be a live with Közi as guest. Kaya had made a new flyer for this and had accidentally written that it would be Közi’s project E//+Z xD

They did keep the Mcs shorter but what surprised me was that the afterparty literally was them asking if people would be interested in a fan trip again and then discussing where to go, and they also played Perfect Garden. That was it. No question corner so it felt very short. I never ask questions but this time I actually wanted to. 

When it’s time to take a picture with them I never know what to say so it’s usually one thanks and bye xD Kaya complimented me on my shirt when I came in :p

I immediately checked my schedule and
realized I can attend all the planned lives so I’m really looking forward to both the album and the gigs ^^

Corona in Japan -is there a pandemic going on?

 I've been in Japan, Osaka to be more specific, for almost 3 weeks now and although it's different from the other times I've been here, it is nowhere as different as Europe is at the moment. TV still promotes going out to eat and there seems to be no social distancing. I went to the supermarket the other day and one lady even cut the line because she didn't seem to get that I was keeping distance to the person in front of me.

I went to Umeda the other day to meet a friend and was kind of shocked by the amount of people going out shopping. I know I also contributed by going there but in my poor defence I haven't seen my friend in over 1 year and he's not from Osaka so I don't know when or if I'll be able to go see him in Tokyo. I also made sure I didn't go during the rush hours.

Back in Sweden though I felt much more aware of the virus and all the safety precautions, people would stare their eyes out if someone sat next to them on the train and here people don't seem to care how close you are. I guess many think they're safe because basically everyone uses a mask, but maybe half of everyone in a mask as a high quality one and wear it properly. The thin polyester masks seems very popular and those don't even filtrate.

I work part-time at an eikaiwa and the first child arriving on my shift shows up with her mask half way down her face, coughing and sneezing. But she didn't have a fever and it seems that it's the most important thing here. No wonder the virus is spreading like crazy I thought.

Then the other day it is announced that Tokyo has declared state of emergency, but everything remains open and the limit of people who can assemble is 5000. Not sure what they think this will result in. I really hope the numbers will go down soon and that we can all go back to a more normal life.

Nabe every evening