The headlining band that rounded out the day as the last band that I saw was Quruli. The hugely famous rockers from Kyoto capped off the day with a big ‘rock’.

Kishida Shigeru (vocals and guitar), Sato Masashi (bass), and Omura Tasshin (guitar) come together to form the drummerless trio (there’s no “official” drummer though one is always present). Quruli put on an expectently stellar performance that was fun and enjoyable.

Quruli was sure not to disappoint the 7,000 or so audience members. The guys couldn’t have played a better live set. The song selection was perfect for a fan such as myself. With each song that I recognized, my enthusiasm rose to a new high.

        An official shot of Quruli performing, courtesy of the COUNTDOWN JAPAN quick report

Among the songs which Quruli performed were the newer “Baby I Love You” and “Bus to Finsbury” as well as “Amagasaki no Sakana”, “Go Back to China”, and “Tokyo”.

Before the show started, I jokingly turned to Teruyo and said something to the effect of, “We can leave after Quruli plays “Baby I Love You” and “Tokyo”. “Tokyo”, the band’s first ever single released in 1997, is by far my favorite song by Quruli. “Baby I Love You” is a close 2nd though and is Teruyo’s favorite. I said this expecting them not to play “Tokyo” since it is pretty old.

Amazingly enough, the song that Quruli finished with was “Tokyo”! I was utterely suprised. They didn’t just play it, they saved it (the best) for last. It was a truly perfect way to finish off one of the most incredible days I’ve ever had.

One odd and funny note about Quruli’s performance was how lead singer Kishida Shigeru talked to the crowd. He spoke in-between almost every song. At the start of his one way conversation with the audience he always said, “お前は。。。” (Omae wa, similar to “Hey you”). This isn’t a neccasarily nice way to address someone. It can actually be percieved as rude (“Hey you” is isn’t it?). He said it with a light heart though and was humorous about it. It was funny since his body was very rigid as he looked ahead and down while talking.

After watching Quruli live and in-action, it comes as no suprise as why they’re so famous. Somehow, they can compose music that sounds both grainy and rough all while being catchy like pop. Of course, their show as well as their music wasn’t as action-packed as other bands that I saw that day. Yet they used their famous persona and humour to have a laid back good time that rivals the experience of a more intense performance. I had the same amount of fun that I did at The Back Horn or Acidman minus the perspiration and out-of-breath status. This allowed me a little more time to savor the moment and bask in the rays of Quruli’s glory.

COUNTDOWN JAPAN 06/07 official site, rockin’ on Japan
Quruli’s official site