Get a Kick

"So I said to Imai, I get such a kick out of being onstage..."

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"...that I thought I'd go into standup comedy."

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"And he said...whatever you say, Acchan-chan."

Inter Raptor the First

The first ever publicly available video of Buck-Tick performing "Inter Raptor" live is up on YouTube!  Surely not for much longer, but I invite you all to watch it now, while you can.  This was filmed at Dedicate to Gang 451 at Zepp Namba in Osaka on February 11th.  Enjoy.

We Love All

From the Not Greatest Site updates page:

2013-04-04 Update! We have posted a live report of "We Love All," the special extra final show on the Cosmic Dreamer tour, which was held as a charity event to support relief for the victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake on the two-year anniversary of the tragedy, March 11th, 2013.  Needless to say, this will be our last live report of this tour, so savor it!  I feel like I've been doing nothing but write live reports since last June.  I'm developing carpal tunnel syndrome and I've used up all my jokes!  My brains are fried, like brain tempura!  I think it's about time for me to cut off to Hawaii.  But don't worry, I'll be back in June for a review of BUCK-TICK: THE MOVIE.  Starring Johnny Depp and John Hamm as Atsushi Sakurai, Ken Watanabe as Hidehiko Hoshino, Russell Brand as Toll Yagami, Peter Dinklage as Yutaka Higuchi, and Tilda Swinton as Hisashi Imai.  See you at Shinjuku Wald 9 on June 15th.

Please leave your comments here.

B-T Data

B-T Data, a book published by the magazine CD Data in honor of Buck-Tick's 25th anniversary, has just been shipped.  Fans who ordered it through the fanclub received it with a special plastic slipcover, but even without the slipcover, it's a handsome book, paperbacked and pocket-sized, sturdy and portable.

As for the contents, it contains a small original photoshoot and a shall collection of photos from CD Data's archives, as well as photos of a selection of band goods, including staff passes, staff jerseys, and all the covers of all the issues of the Buck-Tick Club and Fish Tank newsletters.  However, there are actually relatively few pictures.  Most of the pages are taken up by long personal interviews with the band members, as well as interviewers with some of the key players in supporting Buck-Tick's professional existence over the years, including Yokoyama Kazutoshi, the keyboard player and programmer; Hayashi Wataru, the video director; Tanizaki Takayuki, the makeup artist; Yagi Tomoharu, the stylist and costumer; Sakaguchi Ken, the art director; and Akita Kazunori, the designer of many of the album covers, among other people.  I look forward to reading these interviews and I hope to post some highlights, though if you want a full translation, I'll require compensation.

But if you are wondering whether, as an overseas fan who doesn't speak Japanese, you should buy this book, my answer is, seriously, do not bother.  The appeal of this book is the text, not the photos.  The photos are nice but there are very few of them, get someone to scan them for you.  If you are primarily an Acchan fangirl, this advice goes double. There are no fanservice-type photos. You'd be wiser saving up your money for the forthcoming Yumemiru Uchuu live DVD.

Or better, yet, save it for a case of wine, and join us and the band in our alcoholism.  It's a known fact that everyone speaks Japanese better while drunk, even Japanese people.  In fact, a lot of them are too polite/shy/laconic to talk while sober. Especially the men.  That's why the getting-to-know you drinking party is an integral element of Japanese culture.  You don't truly know a man till you've gotten him drunk.  The Britons on here know what I'm talking about.  So too, no doubt, do the Australians, the Irish, and the Russians.

Cosmic Dreamer Tokyo Area Highlights

I've written a lot of live reports about this tour already, but I posted a new article about the highlights from the Tokyo area stops of the Cosmic Dreamer tour over at Not Greatest Site, so go check it out if you want to read about Sakurai's pre-birthday hissy fit.

Leave your comments here!  I love to hear your comments!  They give me the motivation to write more live reports!  So please comment, and perhaps Kim Kardashian will like you.

Alcoholism

Just to get the record straight.

The Buck-Tick members love getting wasted drunk.

So do the fans.

In fact, between them, they are responsible for a full third of the yearly alcohol consumption of the Greater Tokyo Metropolitan Area.  Statistical fact!!!!11

It's also quite true that here in Japan, an alcoholic beverage called shochu is very popular.

It can be made with rice, barley, sweet potato, or in some cases, shiso leaf, or even weirder ingredients.

One of the most popular ways of serving shochu is mixing it with green or oolong tea.

We like to call it an "oolong highball," or "oonlong-hi" for short.

We drink it in fine bone china teacups.

So does Lady Gaga.

Now repeat after me: I AM TEA TOTAL.

Don't Stop Wining

An update from the Buck-Tick Vineyards, otherwise known as Imai's Winehouse.

The wine can be purchased here.

If you hire a shopping service or a Japanese person to buy it for you, you can buy it from overseas, too.  Be aware that drinking while underage is a crime and they won't sell it to you if you look less than a third of Acchan-sama's age.  Also you can't cancel the order once you place it so you had better really mean it.  Or send it to me, because I mean it.  The wine will be delivered to your supremely Epicurean doorstep sometime in April.  Devil, Angel, and Epicurean, let's go.

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The copy on the wine page reads:

"The Buck-Tick members have always enjoyed their wine.

This time, after a wine-tasting,
In which numerous options were presented to them,

All the members together selected and named these:
The red 'Diabolo,' the white 'L'Ange.'

The band members themselves selected the taste,

And produced the appearance of the label and the box

For this wine set, which is forever one-of-a-kind.

As fitting decoration for their 25th anniversary

We urge you to taste a drop of their world."

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Details on the wines:

Diabolo is a dry blend of Cabernet and Syrah, and is described as, "A beautiful deep garnet-color, almost black, this wine is redolent of violets and black fruits. Its rich, thick flavor leaves a beautiful, elegant, lingering finish."

L'Ange is a dry Chardonnay, and is described as, "Perfumed with scents of ripe peach and vanilla, this crisp Chardonnay has a gentle, rich and creamy touch.  Hand crafted with old-world aplomb from harvest to fermentation."

Both wines hail from Chile, and both are about 15% alcohol.

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Fun fact #1: Toll's favorite kind of wine is the kind of wine that comes in a box.  With a spout attached.  This wine does come in a box though so I guess it technically counts...

Fun fact #2: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu has recently got her own wine production deal with Yellow Tail, for limited edition Kyary-brand Yellowtail Pink Moscato.  Who will win in the War of the Wines?  It remains to be seen.  But I can tell you that until a secret admirer sends me a case of Buck-Tick, I Cayce, will be drinking Kyary.

Fun fact #3: Cayce can't afford that damn wine but does own an awful lot of really cool red glasses.  More like, rose-colored glasses, I suppose. Or maybe, pink moscato colored glasses.

Fun fact #4: Pink moscato is Acchan's favorite color.  He'll be drinking Kyary too.