Reliving the behind-the-scenes and hard-to-replace memories from the mind-blowing [Warped Tour 2015]!
The globe-hopping members of Crossfaith pen their own reports on their tours and events!
Written by: Hiroki Ikegawa (bass, Crossfaith)
For those who read what Tatsuya wrote in the previous article or those simply quick on the uptakes, you’ve got it by now… Yup, from here, we’re talking about our world tour AND so that you know, we’re taking turns in writing! So here I am, Hiroki telling you all about what awaited the band after pulling out of the 2-months recording in California, -all the challenges, hardships, oh and did I say parties?! Be prepared for the fully dogmatic editorial!
Hometown, Osaka, -that was place we all headed back to after proudly completing the album “XENO” in the US. We were to perform as guest acts for the Osaka Jo Hall gig of our good mates, ONE OK ROCK (alternative/post-hardcore/heavy metal band).
The venue was the very stage where I once saw Rage Against the Machine play, and I can’t deny feeling a little ‘knot’ inside on arrival, but once seeing the faces of the good old friends, all that tension suddenly loosened up. The ONE OK ROCK members are Taka-kun (Taka, lead vocals), Ryo-chan (Ryota, bass), Toru-kun (Toru, guitar/backing vocals) and Tomoge (Tomoya, drums). Members of the two bands frequented each other’s dressing rooms, each asking and hearing about what they’ve learnt and seen, happily sharing their gains abroad while both parties were overseas. The members of ONE OK ROCK are definitely the few friends we have whom we can enjoy such a steady relation, as well as the kind we can truly call rivals. But then, we need to happily watch out for Toru-kun suddenly getting all mean, picking on us like a baddie, “What the hell you think you’re doing?” (lol).
After a fugitive moment of rejoicing the reunion with them with our jet-lagged heads still spinning, lying ahead of us was a hall packed with a huge audience of over ten thousand. Kazuki who also came back together from the US was also there at the wings, of course with the members of ONE OK ROCK, and from thereon, it was simply a series of magnificent scenes as if every single blink was snapshotting the views in front of my eyes. I may have been on the tense side, yes, but I found myself acting perfectly in concert with the beautiful view I had in front of my eyes, and the distance I found myself looking into was so much farther than I could imagine. The stage prepared for us by ONE OK ROCK is something that I am grateful for full-heartedly, and what I hope to demonstrate my gratitude to through our dedication to the works in our future paths.
The takoyaki (octopus dumplings, a specialty dish of Osaka) stall that was set up in its entirety in the backstage. For us who were pining for Japanese food, we thought we were seeing things…
Enjoying the fantastic 2 days performance at Osaka Jo Hall with ONE OK ROCK, we set for the US again, - to the land of the free, Ameeeericaaaaa~~~.
For me in the old days, the US, especially the West Coast/California was a place I longed to be. Holding a surfboard under your arm, you hop on your skateboard headed to your friend’s house, knocking yourself out with your favorite instrument in his garage, really getting knocked out with your friend’s sister washing the home Cadillac, and finally making your way to the sun-setting beach to catch a wave or two. The 14-year-old me in the midst of puberty would very often image-train myself with those fantasies. Though much of it had to do with being exposed to West Coast punk music, elements such as the fashion of the West Coast, the skateboard culture and badass attitudes represented in “South Park” would all come together forming a surging wave that so easily swept to me to ‘that’ side.
In the West Coast punk scene back in those days, Blink-182 was one of the bands who were at the center of those kids riding skateboards and whose agenda was to show off their badassery. A team of three with attitude, who looked like they simply jumped out of a cartoon world. And in one of their songs, there is this reference to the [Warped Tour] we are about to talk about.
Hanging out behind the club on the weekend
acting stupid, getting drunk with my best friends.
I couldn't wait for the summer and the Warped Tour
I remember it's the first time that i saw her there
[Warped Tour] is place regarded as the sacred spot, not only for the American kids, but even for myself raised in Japan separated by so many borders.
But then again, for many people in Japan, the question is “So, what is this [Warped Tour] at the first place??” Let me quickly explain.
The [Warped Tour] is a music festival originating in the West Coast of the United States, showcasing the music and culture of the skate (punk) scene. Artists who have performed there in the past include punk bands such as NOFX, Rancid or Blink-182, which expands to indie or hip hop acts such as Beck, Weezer, Eminem, or Jurassic 5. The lineup in recent years shows an increased number of metal or loud rock bands too, and the history of the event is constantly updated with various bands that reflect the trend of the times.
The footage shows how even Eminem who was brought up in a different ‘field’ is all hyped up crossing musical borders, and clearly excited with the expectation towards the future of the culture of the event. Includes rare footages of the event featuring The Black Eyed Peas and Ice-T, that, depending on the person watching, may be slightly confusing of what this is all about.
Crossfaith has taken me to various music festivals in various continents, but what makes this particular festival so outright different from others is the way it is operated and done. From California in the west to New York in the east with Toronto (Canada) to the north, the entire event, -the over 100 bands and their crew, as well as the physical stage the performances take place on – make the trip together to the more-than-40 locations, just like one pack of a circus. From young upcoming bands to highly-acclaimed dons, each and every person uses communal showers and line up for the same meals, -which usually takes about an hour to get to the front of the line.
At first, to be honest, I was grumbling to myself “What the heck!? Such a long queue!!”, but it was here that other bands would come up saying, “Hey, your show was absolutely awesome, bro (fist bump here)!” And I’d reply, “Yeah, thanks, we’ll be coming to see you guys play too. But before that, see you at tonight’s BBQ, bro (fist bump again)!” And this goes on for a good long 7 weeks, which ends up with so many new friends, and the ‘bros’ we drank with the previous day would so often already be there at the wings of the stage of our performances the next day with a glass of whiskey in their hands.
Apart from the nightly BBQ parties held after the curtains are brought down each day, because so much time is shared with so many people, eventually some club-like groups are formed, enjoying skateboarding, playing cards, roleplaying, working out, wrestling or even outdoor movies. Though the frequency of each activity may differ, it was a pretty sight to see band members enjoying themselves in the vast, rambling venue.
In the case of myself, I used to hang out in the cozy format of myself and the two grizzly bears, Koi-chan (Ken) and Caleb from Beartooth. Rather than stapling ourselves to one place, we would roam around from one place to another, showing up in random ‘clubs’ or tour buses, and that’s where we got to know various types of people. Feeling and experiencing the different behaviours and personalities in person helped me learn the different selection of words and expressions among people, even when trying to convey the same message. The Americans who are more expressive in communication, would show ways of expression I had never seen in the UK that I had visited numerous times before. For instance, the people at the West Coast would have these sunshiny ways and personalities like the baddies I used to admire, which I got to witness in the many people I talked to and saw during the tour. To reaffirm my own personality through the interaction with others in the same world by taking what is good and leaving what is bad, and introducing the goods to my own, - that was a process just like putting flesh on the skeleton I was, being thrown out into the world of English. This is what it’s like, to go on tour, and acquire English there, -so I learnt.
We spent a large amount of time with Caleb during this tour, so let me explain how we first met. It was when we were watching the performance of While She Sleeps on the first day of the [Slam Dunk Festival] in UK which we flew in for right after finishing the recording, that we met him. We found him at the wing of the stage, and since we knew him even from when he was in his former band, Attack Attack!, we went up to have a chat with him, and we hit it off in an instance. We opened a bottle of Jägermeister together, and before we knew it, we were into our second day, then the third day devoting every spare moment drinking and making the other drink. The tour in the UK closed with us parting saying “See you at Warped.” On our way back to the US to check the mixing of the new album, there was a time we were discussing guest vocals, and that’s when we came up with the idea of having Caleb on the album. It was a mere two days until we had to hit the road for the Warped event, but he accepted our offer with absolutely no hesitation, and that’s how the last piece of the most ass-kicking heavy track in the album fell in place.
During the summer, Caleb showed up on our stage numerous times to sing for “Ghost In The Mirror”, and in the meantime, Ken was there on Beartooth’s stage singing “Body Bag”. There were times that Teru and I would be there to boost the mood… (laugh). Those who were there at the [Red Bull Live On The Road] held in Kawasaki the other day would have witnessed Caleb singing on a Japanese stage for the first time.
Now, as we approached the final phase of the [Warped Tour], a major event was waiting for us. We were nominated for the [Alternative Press Music Awards] for the second time, - an accolade by the highly-acclaimed authority magazine of the US rock music industry, ALTERNATIVE PRESS, and we were also appointed to make a speech on stage as one of the presenters. Being nominated for this award itself has a significant meaning to us of course. Although in the meantime, there were so many highlights for us throughout the event. We were thrilled to see Corey Taylor of Slipknot or Rivers Cuomo from Weezer right in front of our eyes, enjoyed live performances by Sum41 and Taking Back Sunday, crisply dressed up in suits to walk the red carpet, talking in an interview with the one and only MTV and savoured the wonderful drinks with great company. For the bands who spent the fun yet pretty relentless summer at the [Warped Tour], it was a sheer moment for a good back-patting of each other.
The flow of the event for us was to read out the template speech prepared by the publisher, and matter-of-factly let the event roll on to the next award, but hey, what would that mean to us then?! So, Ken and I put our heads together the previous day to come up with something that would properly entertain the audience, that too, mixing in some Japanese. Of course we made sure that the whole thing would make sense in English in the end, and with it being the very first speech in English for us, we ran rehearsals over and over again. We ended up with unofficially having Beartooth’s Caleb on the stage too, and though we found ourselves doing the same speech in an amped up mode completely different from when were rehearsed, we were glad to receive great and loud responses from the audience and other bands who were at present. We didn’t win the award we were nominated for, but the speech seemed to have served as a trigger for many bands to come and chat to us in later tours, leading to us getting to know more bands and people than ever.
And this is how the final big-party closed the curtain for the long [Warped Tour 2015] of our summer.
Our album “XENO” came out in September after we came back to Japan, and although we still have a long road ahead, for now, I shall rest my pen. From the beginning of the new year, we shall be on the road headed to shows to be held in about 80 cities across the globe, and rest assured, the latest album will be duly loaded up in the set list of the shows, and we look forward to showing you how Crossfaith’s performances have evolved. The lucky ones to be the first in the world to experience the tour are those here in Japan, and from there starts another road for us to keep moving, learning and gaining. So, stay tuned for more thrills-and-chills we all hope to deliver in the very near future.
See you in the pit :)
Hiro
