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Please let us present to you the last concert in 2021 of The THIRTEEN!
A concert that made your neck hurt from watching!
If you’re interested in more information about their last two EPs, please read our interviews about ICY and GLITTER!
On the 29th of December, The THIRTEEN held their last concert for the year at Takadanobaba CLUB PHASE. Before the concert began, the band hosted a talk event and another concert where they exclusively performed all new songs from their upcoming release GLITTER. For the band’s thoughts about their new work click here for our interview with them.
The THIRTEEN was formed 5 years ago by Mao (Vo.) and Mizuki (Gt.) (ex. SADIE). The duo band held onto their hard, heavy sound and added their own personal touch. Over the past years they’ve voiced their interest in going overseas, so fans can be hopeful!
The concert kicked off with a dramatic and loud intro. While Mizuki wore a red jacket with matching red pants and a black shirt, Mao entered the stage in black leather pants and a glitter jacket, a red skirt, topped by a military hat with studs. The first song of the evening was cockroach from their very first album PANDEMIC, followed by HANKOUSEIMEI (犯行声明). One could only hope that the audience did warm-up prior to the concerts, because both songs had very heavy growling parts that made them headbang from the very beginning. Even from the last row you could see Mizuki being in high spirits with a bright smile on his face. During ugly duckling and FRIDAY NIGHTMARE Mao made use of the stage and danced enthusiastically whenever he wasn’t singing. Even though FRIDAY NIGHTMARE wasn’t as hard as the prior songs, the audience weren’t able to take a break – the song simply implores you to jump and move your body to the beat. During a short MC Mao mentioned that this was already the last concert for the year and how cold it is outside.
As soon as the first beats of LIAR.LIAR resounded, the audience began clapping their hands. By the time Mao instructed everyone to headbang and jump, the whole club was giving their all! Without even a few seconds of a break The THIRTEEN directly resumed with STUPID, where Mao leaned against kazu (Ba.) for a moment. The best concerts are those where not only the audience, but the bands too can enjoy themselves to the fullest. That everyone had a lot of fun was especially visible during GAMUSHARA where Mao and Mizuki couldn’t stop smiling. Mizuki also rewarded the audience in the first rows with a cute wink.
Even though the main members of The THIRTEEN are only Mao and Mizuki, their support members Ryo (Dr.) and kazu have been with them since the beginning. Just by seeing them perform together it’s obvious to what extent they are integrated in The THIRTEEN. Not only do they interact with each other during the show, they also have their own solo; for example during HUSKY and THE DIM LIGHT OF DUSK.
After 14 hard and intense songs, The THIRTEEN switched to a few melodic ones such as CINDERELLA (シンデレラ) and starry night. But even then Mao urged the audience to keep going by shouting “More! More!”. The short breather ended with MR.BRAVEMAN, and the band and audience headbanged to the powerful song like there was no tomorrow. As soon as Abnormal Bullets started, the audience jumped with joy. Understandable seeing how the song is already amazing on CD but on a whole new level when experienced at a concert! It’s just impossible to stand still and keep yourself from headbanging or clapping your hands. Before KILLER MAY Mizuki stole Mao’s hat, who thanked the audience for coming tonight. During the song Mizuki also suddenly had problems with his guitar which he luckily could fix quickly. To everyone’s surprise the last song was daydreamer from their upcoming release GLITTER – a very fitting song to end the concert. While Mizuki played his solo Mao came over and leaned against his back. After playing 21 breathtaking songs back-to-back, you could see that the band had given all they got, though Mao still took his time to thank the audience for attending their last concert for the year and hoped they would see each other again next year. Mizuki also bowed down for a long moment before finally leaving the stage.
The concert was a full success on many levels. The THIRTEEN delivered an incredibly powerful show. Even though the band seemed to be exhausted by the end of their performance, Mao’s voice was as powerful and Mizuki’s guitar-play as precise as in the beginning. The band and the audience enjoyed every minute of the 1 ½ hour-concert to the fullest. We can highly recommend TheTHIRTEEN to everyone who loves hard rock and just wants to have a good time.
Report: Chris
English Edit: Franzi
It would be great if you could support us with a small donation.
It might not be much for you, but it would help us providing more and better interviews in the future.
With a little bit of your support we might be able to realize even more!
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