Words by Steve Crawford / Pics courtesy of Ikon Gallery
On Wednesday 6th December, Kushikatsu Records in collaboration with Orion Live present Japanese power-pop, power-rock trio Touch My Secret at the Hare and Hounds, as part of their December 2017 UK tour. Last seen at the venue as support act to all girl J-Punk group Mutant Monster in November 2016, Touch My Secret now return as headliners in their own right with support from Einstellung and Exotic Pets.
Doors open at 7:30pm, with tickets priced at £11.00 +bf. For direct gig info, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.
Kushikatsu Records are a Birmingham based label whose frequent trips to Japan have been spent emerged in the Japanese music scene seeking out bands such as Touch My Secret which they promote in the UK to ever growing and appreciative audiences.
The opening act for the evening are Birmingham’s Exotic Pets – a lo-fi, indie, garage trio and no strangers to the Hare and Hounds (and other local venues) having this year supported the likes of Ghosts of Dead Aeroplanes, Soeur and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam. Their current single ‘Hot Boys on Campus’ is available as a download from Bandcamp.
Following Exotic Pets will be another Birmingham band, Einstellung – formed as an “outlet for its members to blend their record collections”, and a fusion that inspired the creation of what the band have called ‘Powerkraut’ (a name they originally gave to their studio). Citing influences from Neu!, My Bloody Valentine and Black Sabbath, their first release was a 28 minute single entitled ‘Sleep Easy Mr Parker’ in 2006 and have since released three albums: Wings of Desire, The Rest Are Thunder , All and Nothing. Described live as ‘repetitive, hypnotic with a pulsing beat… that climbs towards a thunderous noise freak out’… it might get loud? “Big earplugs!” we’re told by the band in a recent post. You have been warned.
Our headliners for the evening, Touch My Secret formed less than 3 years ago and played their first gig on the 5th March 2015 at the Shibuya Take Off 7 in Tokyo. Since then, the band have recorded and toured across Japan, China and the UK – but also gained a fan base from as far afield as Russia, Mexico and Brazil. Touch My Secret’s debut album, nil, was released less than a year after the band formed – followed by their sophomore mini album, GET YOUR WORLD, which came out in April of this year, featuring the theme from the smartphone game ‘God Eater Online’.
Fronted by vocalist/guitarist Anne, with Chloe on bass and Louie on drums (who’s surnames are kept curiously clandestine) the musically-tight trio play a driven and dynamic guitar based rock with fast but melodic rock-pop hooks and licks. Touch My Secret should prove to be a potent and formidable act to experience live.
‘Revenge’ – Touch My Secret
For more on Touch My Secret, visit www.touchmysecret.com
For more on Einstellung, visit www.einstellung.bandcamp.com
For more on Exotic Pets, visit www.ex0ticpets.bandcamp.com
For more on Kushikatsu Records, visit www.kushikatsurecords.com
For more from the Hare and Hounds, including full event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk