PROMPTS - Gig Review 20th March @ CLUB Asia, Tokyo, Japan
PROMPTS
CLUB Asia, Tokyo, Japan
March 20, 2024
Supports: KNOSIS, Annalynn and Defying Decay
During their Australian tour back in January, Japanese/Korean metalcore sensation PROMPTS dropped the news of their ‘Rites of Passage’ Japan tour. Three dates in three of Japan’s biggest cities, with support from Greyscale Records labelmates Annalynn from Thailand and fellow countrymen KNOSIS.
After witnessing all three of these bands live over the past year, let’s just say in moments, my flights were booked.
While I was also in attendance at their shows in Osaka and Nagoya, this recap focuses on the monster tour finale at Shibuya’s Club Asia in Tokyo that saw post-hardcore act Defying Decay, also from Thailand, added to the bill.
Packed into the nightclub that doubles as a music venue in the heart of Shibuya, it was hard to believe it was not sold out. Kicking off the festivities was Defying Decay. Delivering a brand of nostalgic post-hardcore that threw me back into 2006- I could almost feel my fringe shift to the side. Mic tricks reminiscent of screamo vocalists and a strong stage presence from both the singer and bassist quickly won over the crowd.
It can be hard to get a Tokyo crowd to let loose, especially so early, but Defying Decay did their best. Powering through their top tunes ‘The Law 112: Secrecy and Renegades and ’21 Stitches’ they truly put the hardcore into emotive hardcore. They particularly shone with their single ‘Clouds’, adding a little change of pace. Fun and bright, giving us an insight into how versatile they can be. After though, they dialled the heavy right back up, finishing the set with a wall of death.
In a switch-up from the previous nights, Annalynn took to the stage next. For those who caught them with Void of Vision last year in Australia (check out our review), you will understand just how underrated this band is. Taking the stage with ‘Closer To The Edge’, their enigmatic almost mathcore-inspired metalcore is addictive. Frontman Bon wasted no time engaging the crowd. ‘Deceiver Believer’ was next, pushing up the intensity even more. Guitarist Pob came down from the stage, enticing a rowdy Tokyo audience into a wild karate pit. Their roots in the more metallic hardcore realm on full display. ‘Disappear’ was up next, giving that melodic switch-up they do oh so well but for those worrying that they may be getting “softer”- never fear, they gave us a taste of their new material. Believe me. They are not dialling down the heavy any time soon.
Addressing the crowd in a mix of Japanese and English, there weren’t a lot of words truly needed for the Annalynn frontman to express what the band was feeling. Thankful for the crowd and their love, there was only thing that was needed more from him- which was violence. The call was answered. ‘Leveling God’ and ‘Damage Control’ turned the room feral. The icing on the cake of what can only be considered a few nights of almost show-stealing performances, their last song was ‘Holy Gravity’ featuring a guest appearance from KNOSIS’s Ryo Kinoshita.
The brutality did not stop there, as KNOSIS were up next. For those out of the loop, KNOSIS is the experimental metalcore project (read a little more here) from former Crystal Lake frontman Ryo Kinoshita. It was hard to ignore the plethora of KNOSIS shirts in the crowd and the feeling in the air that this place was about to get the room torn off. With the infamous Ozark line, “if you want to stop me, you have to fucking kill me”, the first track ‘Naraku’ was met with a wild reception. Matching Ryo’s energy onstage is no easy feat, but his bass player/DJ Kosuketano and drummer Moro Kazma deliver. On this tour, they were also joined by coldrain guitarist Kazuya “Sugi” Sugiyama. Between the four musicians and those in attendance, the intensity went from a small storm to a cyclone. Ryo grabbed people from the crowd to scream into their faces, stage divers swimming their way to the front and launching themselves into the sea of bodies. The dank club vibes of the rooms became a hindrance, as limbs started to fly.
Pummelling through originals, the group launched into their cover section, playing a snippet of ‘Davidian’ by Machine Head and an absolutely ripper version of Nine Inch Nails ‘March of the Pigs’. More than just a heavy metalcore set, like all the other bands on the bill, there was a refusal to stick to one genre. Incorporating nu-metal vibes, 90’s grunge, post-hardcore and even an experimental noise music section, by the time they hit their final track, the latest single ‘Yakusai’ there was no doubt in anybody’s mind just what a force KNOSIS is.
Taking the stage after the chaos that the support acts had unleashed on this Shibuya crowd would intimidate many, but if there was any band that could back it up, it was the men of the hour- PROMPTS. Pumping up their production from the other two shows, a countdown blazed across the back screen. As the timer ticked, the crowd squished in and as the lyrics to ‘FACE ME’ replaced the numbers- mayhem started. The sound was massive, hitting through you like you were standing inside the speaker. All gas, no breaks- next up was ‘Mobius’ and as the crowd chanted back the lyrics, it truly felt like they were getting a hero’s welcome. ‘Suneater’, their latest single followed, having the room turn from a pit to a rave and back again.
By the time they came to ‘Locust’ technical difficulties seemed to pop up, cutting the song in its opening stages. After brief confusion, a ‘Happy Birthday’ song took over the speakers and members of the support bands appeared onstage with a cake for guitarist Matsuno. The brotherhood between these bands was evident, the love in the room off the charts. Between a face full of smooshed cake, Matsuno thanked everybody, and it was back straight into the heaviness.
The set flittered between brutal breakdowns and soul-satisfying melodic sections. Entering the home stretch, Ryo Kinoshita once again joined the stage to perform ‘Asphyxiate’, well should I say joined the room, as he walked onto the stage and straight into the pit- choosing to sing his section on the floor and the shoulders of fans. There was only one way to take it up even more for the finale- the sludgy-nu-metal metallic hardcore track ‘Empty Sandglass’. Truly bringing the house down straight into the final seconds, it is wild to see just how much this band has elevated in such a short time.
One thing is for sure, PROMPTS, along with all the bands on this bill, are part of something special.
Make sure you are ready for them.
Review by Kayla Hamilton @kaylazomboid
Header Photo by @vagabond_51
