ROCK DAY (6/9, 2012) Showdown! Punks 'n' Skins! Nagoya meets Tokyo @ HEAVY SICK

Way back in December when I making my rounds with THE SPITFIRES from Perth, we met a bunch of punk bands down in Nagoya and Hammamatsu. One of them being a Cali-style street punk band (think bitter Rancid-esque ska with a punch of punkabilly by way of Social D) called RADiXTAR. At the after-party we were talking about playing shows in Tokyo and I said it might be possible to do a punk show in at Heavy Sick in Tokyo. The next day RADiXTAR met up with us in Hammamatsu where another Nagoya band was supporting Aussie indie band THE SPITFIRES. They stormed the stage with blaring harmonica and chugging blues punk which sounded heavily rooted pub rock and also had the raw anger of British Oi! They were called THE SHOCKTROOPS and the latest thing in the Japanese skinhead scene. I was sold. When RADiXTAR frontman U-Key contacted me about a show for their new demo EP, I had to have THE SHOCKTROOPS on board as well.

I decided to throw together a Tokyo/Nagoya punk/skin showcase and was able to book Rock Day, June 9th (it's an unofficial party day for rockers of all kinds in Japan), at Heavy Sick and billed it as a punk rock showdown! Representing Tokyo, I got pogo jumpers THE ERECTiONS and bootboys ROUGH STUFF, as well as melodic street punk band TIMELESS TIMBER to even out the event. TIMELESS TIMBER warmed up the crowd with their poppy hooks and Chisato's bright vocals. With spikes, studded leather and patches flailing, THE ERECTIONS built up the momentum with their rabid chant, "Noise for the Boys!" RADiXTAR hit the stage with a ska pulse havocked by punk intent. Appearing for the first time in Tokyo, THE SHOCKTROOPS whipped up a pub rock concoction for skins and punks alike, and, on one of their last shows ever, ROUGH STUFF brought so much violence from the steets right into the basement venue that I had to keep the DJ station from toppling over!

Wild and weird punk & new wave party tunes were provided by DJ MILKY (from the sadistic all-girl punk rock band JIM JAMS), DJ Setsuko & Yours Turly, The Stately DJ Wayne Manor. It all happened at Heavy Sick. It all happened on Rock Day, 2012, the night House of Mystery went street punk!