LIVE REPORT ~ Head Phones President: November 11 2007
PMX Los Angeles, CA
Writing this live report was difficult. Only after seeing Head Phones President live did the realization strike that it would be. All my words were taken away. My ability to speak was practically destroyed. That stuttering, grasping for words moment when all reason has been replaced with shock? That was Head Phones President’s doing. It was a daring performance that dropped the jaws of many.
Dark. Quiet. Only one red spotlight filtered down on a broken, fragile creature. This creature was not broken or fragile at all. She was Anza, the tell-tale mistress of Head Phones President, and she was silent, as if in meditation. On her knees one minute and crawling back into herself the next. Shadows lurked behind her, those of her band mates, bassist Narumi, guitarists, Hiro and Mar. The air was stifled with mental question marks wondering what this was all leading up to. She was whispering. What, no one was sure of, but she definitely had a story to tell.
Head Phones President rips into grinding, unapologetically decibel-breaking metal that often takes the shape of soft, withered, broken melodies, so innocent in its gloominess but always on the verge of exploding. The result is a creepy view into the mind of what appeared to be a shattered, disturbed young woman. Like watching the paintings of a mental patient unfold, Head Phones President gave a deep glimpse into thought processes usually avoided.
The vivid performance of former Sera Myu actress Anza was what opened the gateway to these whimsical horrors. Shaking with rage and screaming vulgarities (yes, lots of S-words, lots of F-words, lots of swear words in general!) with a vigor and thrust that might scare the trepid roars of tigers back into their lairs, she moved beautifully with the music whether she was lost in the ancient beats of What’s or wildly flapping back and forth like an uncontrollable doll in Inside. No matter what way she moved, she was mesmerizing to watch. At times it felt like an invitation to watching something so personal that there was an aura of taboo about it. She had completely arrested the attention of everyone in the room, and still, we couldn’t help but wonder what was next. She was an erratic wild child, flailing around in her silken, floaty dress, the perfect wardrobe for this wraith-like performer. It moved as she moved, gracefully and unpredictably.
The other musicians set the perfect backdrop to the role of Anza’s fallen angel, the bassist hinting away at underscores of suspense while the guitarists plucked away at unusual notes while at the same time heavily crunching out the volume when the songs called upon it. Even the drummer, not an official member of Head Phones President, committed to the performance, pumping out wave after wave of intense beats while sinking back into mysterious foreshadowing on the cymbals. Everything committed to the music and harmonized in its own way. They faded into sleep and woke up into a violent rage again. It was clear Narumi, Hiro, and Mar were made for metal, with Anza as their muse, and like a muse, when she was inspired, it inspired a stirring in us all.
The last song, I will stay, erupted with nothing more or less than a chilling climax of emotional strength on the part of all the members. By now the jaws of the audience had become very familiar with the floor, but nothing could prepare for the intense shakings of Anza as she flailed and kicked, screamed and shrieked, the other musicians playing strikingly against their instruments as if in a trance, but the final notes cost everyone’s energy as all the members fell to the floor, like lifeless puppets. The red light still shone eerily against them, as the moving and twitching on stage stopped completely.
As mentioned earlier, the aftermath of the Head Phones President’s live was limited to “Uh…” “I-I-…” the occasional “Wow…” but mostly stuttering and mouths agape at to what was just witnessed. I’m finding my words now, and among them I choose phenomenal and thought-provoking, but mostly my line of thought after seeing them live is filled by images that I’d never seen before. A shaking, sobbing girl, a lone red light, a trio of metal-infected musicians… These images may never come again, but they stay and throb in the minds of the audience who viewed this particular live. It was, in every way, unique and indefinable.
Those T-shirts that say “I survived ____” Well, usually they’re reserved for bad things only, but in this case, we can make an exception. Really, it was so unreal that I need a shirt like that to remind me that it was.
set list
Outside
What's
Inside
Snares
I'll treat
Chain
Cray Life
Refine
F's
Palam Ya-Da
Wandering
I will stay
photos and report by Sarah
Thank you to Pacification Records and PMX for making this possible.
Head Phones President's music is available for legal download on JapanFiles.com.
links
Head Phones President Official Website
Head Phones President Official MySpace
PMX
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