LIVE (Photos): Tokyo Taboo @ Camden Fest, 29.11.18

GIHE faves Tokyo Taboo have long been blowing us away with their immense, riotous live performances and seething energy, and so we’re extremely excited that their new single ‘No Pleasure Only Pain’ is out today. Raging with the band’s trademark ferocity as whirring hooks race alongside tremendous beats, it’s the perfect example of the soaring power of front-woman Dolly Daggerz’ vocals.

To celebrate the single’s release, Tokyo Taboo held an immense launch party last night at Fest Camden, along with fellow favourites Thunder On The Left, Bugeye, HAWXX and newcomers Bled The Fifth. Our Jon Mo was there to capture all the action…

Bled The Fifth:

Bugeye:

HAWXX:

Thunder On The Left:

Tokyo Taboo:

Photo Credit: Jon Mo / @jonmophoto

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Introducing Interview: Tokyo Taboo

GIHE faves Tokyo Taboo have long been blowing us away with their immense, riotous live performances and seething energy, and so it’s with excitement that we heard they’re set to release their second album very soon!

Taken from the album, latest single ‘No Pleasure Only Pain’ rages with the band’s trademark ferocity as whirring hooks race alongside tremendous beats and the immense power of front-woman Dolly Daggerz’ vocals.

We caught up with Tokyo Taboo to find out more…

Hi Tokyo Taboo, welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
We are Tokyo Taboo – a punk, rocker duo with weird visual ideas, lots of energy and acrobatics on stage!

How did you initially get together and start creating music?
Dolly auditioned Mickey when she was in search of a guitarist for her solo project. There was an old guy who made up his only chords, a guy who couldn’t play guitar at all and Mickey. The rest is history!

Your new single ‘No Pleasure Only Pain’ is out this week – can you tell us what it’s all about?
Dolly’s lyrics came from her realisation that she was sabotaging herself with alcohol and lusting after the wrong kinds of things that cause only pain. The song is about when you know something or someone is wrong for you but you still can’t stop thinking about how good it would feel to have it/them. Animal impulses basically that drive addiction and bad behaviour!

You’ve been compared to the likes of Deap Vally and Juliette & The Licks, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
Madonna is a massive influence for Dolly along with Freddie Mercury and Bowie. Dolly is a big believer in the importance of commanding a stage and bewitching an audience! Any performers who are compelling to watch with that sense of unpredictable showmanship are going to be a massive influence on us.

How is your local music scene? Do you go to see lots of live music?
We put on a lot of shows with other bands (especially female fronted acts). When we are putting together a line up we like to choose female fronted acts over male as the industry is so male dominated. We love to go to see live music and performance of any kind. Dance, aerialists, acrobats – all art inspires us.

We’ve been blown away by your live show many times! But can you explain what fans can expect from your live shows?
Dolly likes to push herself to the max. The last show we did in Canada involved Dolly doing a bridge (one handed back bend) whilst singing the final two minutes of the last song, high notes and all. She likes to jump on things (she climbs a lot on the bar or on high tables). She also likes to climb up poles and hang upside down off them. Our set is high energy with a lot of audience participation so it’s not one you can stand back and be detached from.

As we’re a new music focused site, are there any other new/upcoming bands you’d recommend we check out?
We are big fans of Polly Pikpockets, Yur Mum and Healthy Junkies, and are planning another show with all three in 2019! Watch this space!

And how do you feel the music industry is for new bands at the moment – would you say it’s difficult to get noticed?
The music industry sucks and will always suck for bands starting out as there are so many sharks out there that you need to blacklist and so many lessons to be learnt that you only learn from going at it! It is, of course, difficult to get noticed but perseverance is everything!

Finally, what does the rest of 2018 have in store for Tokyo Taboo?
Our single launch night is on the 29th of November at Fest in Camden. We are then releasing our new music video the following week. We have been spending a lot of time at the moment booking festivals and planning for 2019. I don’t think we’ll stop working on music until Christmas Eve. But we love it so who’s complaining?

Huge thanks to Tokyo Taboo for answering our questions!

‘No Pleasure Only Pain’ is out 30th November, and you can catch Tokyo Taboo live at their single launch at Camden Fest on Friday 29th, along with Bugeye, Thunder On The Left and HAWXX and Bled The Fifth.

 

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Get In Her Ears Live @ The Windmill w/ Heavy Heart, 23.05.18

We were extremely excited to host our first night at legendary Windmill in Brixton on Wednesday. Having been a favourite London venue of ours for years now, to be able to put on some of our favourite bands there was really quite an honour.

The night kicks off in breath-taking fashion with London duo Scrounge. As front woman Lucy’s immense vocals rage alongside whirring, scuzzy hooks and Luke’s thrashing beats, the sound that the two of them create is truly impressive. One of the most exciting bands I’ve come across in a long time, I’m left completely blown away by Scrounge’s intense outpourings, and can’t wait to see what they have in store of us next.

Next up is another duo; this time in the form of Brighton’s Hanya. Treating us to their twinkling garage-rock sounds, front woman Heather’s impassioned, soulful vocals cast as all under their spell in an instant. As Hanya’s shimmering offerings flow with a subtle, gritty edge, it’s a simply dreamy set. And, as Heather shares with the crowd that this may be their favourite ever gig, I start to realise it may be mine too!

Penultimate band of the night, Tokyo Taboo, have wowed us more than once with their vibrant, energy-fuelled live set. And tonight is no different. As front woman Dolly Daggerz takes to the stage to blast out set opener ‘Make It Out Alive’, she starts out as she means to go on – dazzling the crowd, not only with an amazing amount of glitter and glowing heels, but with her unique, empowering charisma. Another unforgettable set from the band, Tokyo Taboo never fail to deliver.

Drawing the night to a close are Heavy Heart. As Anna Vincent’s luscious vocals flow seamlessly alongside spellbinding, multi-layered soundscapes, it’s impossible not to fall in love with this band’s captivating grace. Transfixed by their intricate musicality and majestic psychedelic haze, I’m left in awe of Heavy Heart’s totally dreamy offerings.

Huge thanks to the four amazing bands who played for us on Wednesday; to The Windmill for having us, and to everyone who made the trip out. It was a dream of a night, and we can’t wait to come back soon!

Mari Lane
@marimindles

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LIVE: Tokyo Taboo @ Jumpin’ Jacks, Newcastle, 09.02.18

The Toon was alive with the sound of Pussy Power last Friday night as cyberpunk-fuckery-on acid-with-a-load-of-glitter, Tokyo Taboo, took the stage at Newcastle’s Jumpin’ Jacks.

Sandwiched between a multitude of talented guys, the resounding message of the evening was brought up on stage by singer, Dolly Daggerz, early on in the set: “Are there any girls here?” She cried out as an opening to ‘Pussy Power’ — one of many tracks with a to-die-for riff – “There’s like four of us!” There weren’t many. But those who were there, well, we made it known.

Jumpin’ Jacks is a venue based upstairs from one of Newcastle’s best pubs, indie-rock haven the Dog & Parrot. It was my first time there, but as I rebelliously strolled towards the Centre for Life, cigarette in hand, seeing David Bowie and Prince staring at me from across the street was a sign from the universe. It was gonna be a good night.

Age-wise, the crowd was mixed. Flower crowns I hadn’t seen since the Evolution fest a few years ago have made a return and it touched my heart to see. Everything comes in circles, and thankfully, the return of bum bags didn’t last all that long.

Tokyo Taboo are Dolly Daggerz — Bowie and Wendy O. Williams blended with a clitterball — and guitarist, Mike. Dolly’s vocals hit the crowd from the back as Mike, dressed head-to-toe in the kind of astronaut garb the obnoxious Tim Peake could only wish to own, kicked off the set with a riff reminiscent of a young Jack White (if Jack White had dived head-first into a Manga and come out of the other side with a Telecaster and a reason for it to scream).

I’ve missed punk rock, and Tokyo Taboo have it in spades. Dolly Daggerz owns the stage more than anyone that night. She also owns the floor. And Mike’s guitar. At one point, she takes her place in the crowd, instructing everybody to sit and hold hands with each other as they play one of the more low-key tracks. Low-key, that is, as Tokyo Taboo get.

Inside, I feel the swell of joy in the four-other-girls’ hearts, remembering how fucking badass it is to be a girl, even in the days when the world seems against us… All right, it’s always seemed against us. You get it.

From the first second, the energy Dolly and the band bring to the stage is palpable. Though, regrettably, holding a camera prevents one of the most revered parts of a punk rock show: moshing. As I sit in the pit at one point, I dream of being kicked in the face with vintage silver knee-high platform boots (like the ones I covet in a shop on Portobello Road) and covered in water or vodka or the power of women.

Dolly Daggerz has show(wo)manship. She owns the stage, her songs, and the women that approach her after the show, tearfully, to tell her how much she rocked. She did. They did. Even the session bassist has a gold fucking blazer I’d chop off a leg for and, at times, I found myself moshing of my own accord, on the floor, beside the amp on the side I’ve already blown the hearing out of.

She brings a sense of pride, of femininity, of non-conformity; the energy of a big cat stalking its prey except the prey was already hypnotised by her ultra-violent eye makeup and notes half of us couldn’t reach if we stubbed our toes. It could have been easy to slay, but she gave her entire self anyway. That, if you ask me, is a fucking artist.

One last thing: Being the only person offstage to hear ‘I’m Afraid of Americans’ was trippy. But then maybe that was the cider, too. Or was it just Tokyo Taboo?

Do yourselves a favour and check out Tokyo Taboo as soon as you can, and in the meantime, give their latest record 6th Street Psychosis a listen.

Em Burfitt
@fenderqueer

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