Hitsujibungaku brings Japanese alt-rock to Manila
By Brontë H. Lacsamana, Reporter
Concert Review
Hitsujibungaku Live in Manila
July 6
Eastside Events Place
MANY people who enjoy Japanese music temper their expectations of ever seeing see their favorite musicians perform live outside Japan. After all, Japan’s music industry has long been self-sufficient, a large one catering to its own citizens and not much to outside fanbases (with the exception of J-pop groups).
What’s more is that the vast majority of people associate the genre with animé, for better or worse. J-rock bands usually get famous enough to perform overseas if they’ve made a song for an animé. It’s how they expand their reach to a global audience, making an Asia (or world) tour more likely.
For Japanese alternative rock band Hitsujibungaku, this exact path led them to hold concerts in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and the Philippines this year.
With “Hikaru Toki” as the opening song of The Heike Story in 2022, and “more than words” as an ending theme for Jujutsu Kaisen in 2023 (this was their breakout hit), and the recent “Burning” as an ending theme for Oshi no Ko this year, it’s safe to say the three-piece band is now growing its audience at a rapid pace.
Their performance in the Philippines was held at Eastside Events Place at Sumulong Highway, Marikina, on July 6 — and the crowd was a delightful mix of longtime fans and those excited to hear the three songs plus more.
PREMONITION OF SUCCESS
For this tour, guitarist and vocalist Moeka Shiotsuka and bassist Yurika Kasai were joined by drummer Miku Onuki (from another J-rock band The Peggies), since their usual drummer, Hiroa Fukuda, went on a health break in May.
The three women started the concert with the gritty instrumental of “Yokan” (Premonition), the closing song of Hitsujibungaku’s 2022 album our hope. It’s a great track to encapsulate the band’s brand of nostalgia and shoegaze sensibilities, filled with dreamy vocals and hazy guitar feedback.
Perhaps the biggest highlight of the show was the phenomenal setlist. “Addiction” from their latest album, 12 hugs (like butterflies), kicked the heavy instrumentals into a more upbeat energy.
Then “Sabaku no kimi he” (To you in the desert) presented a more laidback, heartfelt melody, dedicated to those lost in the deserts of their life. A memorable moment is when it intensified into Ms. Shiotsuka and Ms. Kasai rocking out on their guitar and bass.
After the emotive “honestly” and the fun “GO!!!” from their recent album — which audiences sang along to at times — the two Hitsujibungaku members greeted the crowd.
“Salamat, Manila (Thank you, Manila)!” was enough to charm Filipinos. Then the soulful “Burning” began, which further excited the crowd.
The first animé song of the night (and the grittiest of the three) saw the venue bathed in red light as Ms. Shiotsuka launched into the high-pitched tune amid heavy guitars.
In a previous interview, the band said that they never expected to gain success from providing music for animé, with those sorts of tie-ups usually requiring a mainstream J-pop sound over more alternative music.
“If anything, I thought we’d be picked up by live-action [shows] or movies instead,” said Ms. Kasai in a 2023 interview with Crunchyroll. “Animé has a lot of cool songs that get the adrenaline pumping. We produce a lot of low- or mid-tempo songs. It’s not something I’d imagined we’d be doing.”
But through their tour, the band would find that they can be celebrated for both their animé tie-ups and their alternative sound.
MORE THAN WORDS
Unbeknownst to many, Hitsujibungaku did a song for an animé film in 2021 called The House of the Lost on the Cape. Unlike anime series, only a handful of films of this genre become popular, but their songs are often wonderful.
“Mayoiga” was this song, and longtime fans in the crowd prompted the band by singing the opening notes while Hitsujibungaku took a short water break.
“Bikkurishita (I’m so surprised),” Ms. Shiotsuka later said, though they obliged and were delighted to play the song for their fans. With soft vocals and steady beats that later grew into a moving chorus, it was easily one of the night’s standouts.
(It was also this writer’s introduction to the band, when the track popped up in a Discover Weekly playlist on an April morning in 2022.)
After that, the band kicked into full gear and churned out fan favorite hit after fan favorite hit. The stage lights switched to a smattering of cool hues, which meant it was time for the powerful track “Eien no Blue” (Eternal Blue), another of this writer’s favorites.
Then came “more than words,” causing a collective gasp and cries of joy from Jujutsu Kaisen fans in the audience. Ms. Shiotsuka and Ms. Kasai were all smiles as they performed their crowd pleaser. It was followed by “Hikaru no toki” (When You Shine), another animé song that kept everyone pumped as the stage lights bobbed along with the upbeat tune.
The set ended with “FOOL,” a more recent, mid-tempo track that made for a great closing song — but everyone knew that wasn’t the end.
FULL OF WONDER
The band returned for an encore, as expected, with the audience hyping them up and cheering for them to come back to the stage.
Ms. Kasai held up a fluffy keychain in the shape of a sheep — one of the band’s merchandise. Hitsujibungaku literally translates to “sheep literature,” in the tradition of rock bands having nonsensical names. The fans have fully embraced the sheep imagery.
She threw the keychain into the crowd, with a lucky fan towards the back catching the prize. Then a few fans jokingly called out for the band to sing their cover of the theme song of children’s show, Shaun the Sheep (they did, in fact, release an official cover a month prior).
Their discography, now large and varied, has more gems to offer for a live show, but it made sense for the band to play more recent stuff.
“Aimai de iiyo” (It’s okay to be vague) and “Wonder” were the last two songs of the night. The former, with its beautiful, earnestly sung vocals and tight instrumentals, was this writer’s third favorite of the night. The last song ended the night on a melancholy note, as Hitsujibungaku is wont to do.
The Rest Is Noise PH and Gabi Na Naman Productions are known for giving more indie local and Asian musicians a platform to perform in the Philippines. If this concert is any indication, they’re going in the right direction, pleasing listeners of certain niches, who definitely look forward to more in the future.
