Artists list for Musicfest

[kyo_kun0675]

Ok, I've seen the list of the bands performing at Fanime, and I must say I'm not impressed. In fact, I'm a little dissapointed. This is an Anime Convention and there's only one Jrock/Anime band on the list, and they played Fanime last year. I even saw an Emo Rock band on the list. WTH!!! I have nothing against Akai Sky. I saw them play at Ani-Magic. They were awsome. But seriously, I would love to see more Anime/Jrock cover bands at Fanime. Random Ninjas are really good. Why can't we have more bands like this? And I thought the fans wanted "new blood" to play this con. Was that overlooked? Or was it just ignored? If anyone agrees with me on this, please post on this thread please.

Kyo
A long time Anime Fan

[Tony]

Wow.

Hundreds of hours of work... tens of thousands of dollars... sacrifice, blood, sweat, and tears. I'm sorry you're disappointed, and I'll take what you said into consideration... but I tried.

All I can really say is that MusicFest isn't all about anime--it's about Japanese music in general. That's the theme that links all of the bands.

Trust me, I would love to have The Black Crystals, or Random Ninjas, or Stephanie Ynez, or Piano Squall, or Ramen & Rice, or the Blind Pianist, or any number of the anime cover bands that are out there. I haven't found a group I didn't like, but there's a lot, a lot of factors that go into who gets on stage. If I had my way, everyone would get some time up there... but it's just not possible. Especially when it's costing thousands an hour.

If it's any consolation, RothChilde will be covering some Luna Sea and X... and of course, Chisato from PENICILLIN is coming with Crack 6. So you will be getting some JRock.

[Pimpstress Rei]

It's because of members like this that make me feel like I shouldn't put my all into this VOLUNTEER position in Fanime. Members have no idea how hard it is behind the scenes and instead of offering constructive criticism, all they can do is complain and tear down someone else's work.

People need to understand that it takes money to bring in popular bands. We don't have unlimited funds to offer to bands to come. We aren't a money machine that can afford to bring in Asian Kung Fu Generation or other big names. We do the best that we can with the limited resources that we have. Sometimes we even are able to contact those bands, but because of scheduling conflicts or their disinterest in playing for an anime convention keeps them from playing at Fanime. So we move on and find other bands that we believe the members will enjoy.

If anyone wants to complain, then do something to change it. Join staff and help institute that change. There's no point in complaining to make the already hardworking staff feel bad. We know you want bands that play anime music. Ok, we got it. We're working on it. The least you can do is try to acknowledge that maybe you're not seeing not even a bit of the backbreaking work that goes on behind the scenes. Maybe you don't agree with the bands, but at least go see the concert before you judge it.

Please note this isn't directed just at the original poster. It hurts to hear things about a project that you worked so hard on all year. And you're not even getting paid to work on it. You put yourself into the work and when you get judged before anyone even sees it, then it's even more hurtful. If you want to offer opinions, then be constructive so we can improve things. Just saying saying "What the hell, they aren't even playing anime music, what are they doing???" doesn't help us change things. Give us suggestions that can actually take place so we can make it a better convention for everyone.

[Tony]

And this new band called The Black Crystals are amazing. I saw them at AX and at AnimeLA. These new guys are great. Why can't we have more bands like this?

Funny. It looks like you were talking about your own band.

Do you usually talk in the third person about yourself? Because in this context--pretending you're just "A long time Anime Fan"--that's pretty deceitful.

It actually looks like you're just upset because we didn't book you.

[Long]

And this new band called The Black Crystals are amazing. I saw them at AX and at AnimeLA. These new guys are great. Why can't we have more bands like this?

Funny. It looks like you were talking about your own band.

Do you usually talk in the third person about yourself? Because in this context--pretending you're just "A long time Anime Fan"--that's pretty deceitful.

It actually looks like you're just upset because we didn't book you.

Oh man. That's sad. D:

Besides what do you mean only one Jrock band? ]= ZZ, MECHANiCAL PANDA, Karma Shenjing, and Crack6 are all Jrock bands. AND OOOOH. I JUST SAW THE UPDATED BAND LIST! D:<

OMG, Lemon Drop Kick and ArtBeat are coming! !___!

I saw ArtBeat already, but they're still worth seeing a... um.. third time. >__> (Jrock Con, SacAnime). I heard Lemon Drop Kick on Myspace and they sound really good, and I was hoping to see them sometime.

[YoureMyHiro]

KyoKun06456046406blahblah, now Im not bombing on you and yours Im sure youve put alot of effort into your music if what staff says is true but come on, youve got to give credit where credit is due.

I appreciate all the planning and involvement it took these staffers and volunteers to pull off not only this years musicfest but the convention in general. Sure we all want to see big names now and again but money and scheduling are always big factors. Next year I hope to get involved with Staff so that I can stop ranting and start helping, actions speak louder than words.

This year's lineup looks very promising and I really think they did listen to the people and their suggestions, I know my rants were heard as I recall suggesting that they stick to a certain genre of music to keep the flow moving (i.e. rock oriented, pop oriented, etc) and the energy high because last year the flip flop between experimental electronica, alternative, rap and soulful rock kinda threw me and others.

Im definitely looking forward to Lemon DropKick, they've played PMX and AX, theyre definitely worth checking out. Mechanical Panda too, Im stoked to catch their show as well. ZZ, always a favorite and the rest will be an adventure. Nice job Staffers, keep up the good work, there are people out there who appreciate your work.

[Pimpstress Rei]

KyoKun06456046406blahblah, now Im not bombing on you and yours Im sure youve put alot of effort into your music if what staff says is true but come on, youve got to give credit where credit is due.

I appreciate all the planning and involvement it took these staffers and volunteers to pull off not only this years musicfest but the convention in general. Sure we all want to see big names now and again but money and scheduling are always big factors. Next year I hope to get involved with Staff so that I can stop ranting and start helping, actions speak louder than words.

This year's lineup looks very promising and I really think they did listen to the people and their suggestions, I know my rants were heard as I recall suggesting that they stick to a certain genre of music to keep the flow moving (i.e. rock oriented, pop oriented, etc) and the energy high because last year the flip flop between experimental electronica, alternative, rap and soulful rock kinda threw me and others.

Im definitely looking forward to Lemon DropKick, they've played PMX and AX, theyre definitely worth checking out. Mechanical Panda too, Im stoked to catch their show as well. ZZ, always a favorite and the rest will be an adventure. Nice job Staffers, keep up the good work, there are people out there who appreciate your work.

And it's because of people like you that I do this work and put such care into each of the things that I produce. Thank you so much for the appreciation. We really need that pat on the back at times, especially now that the con is less than a month away. Things are kicking into high gear!

I would also like to apologize for my initial snippiness in my post. I was finishing up our absolutely gorgeous program guide last night so it could be ready for the printers this morning and things kept going wrong. Suffice it to say that I stayed up almost all night getting things polished so the program guide would look its best and I got it to the printers just in time. I hope you guys like the MusicFest pages! Tony put extra care into his pages and they came out so well!

I hope you all enjoy the con this year! There's a lot to see and do!

[Tony]

...I recall suggesting that they stick to a certain genre of music to keep the flow moving (i.e. rock oriented, pop oriented, etc) ...

That's true! I wanted it so that each day, MusicFest had a theme. I knew that was inspired by someone!

It was supposed to be Friday: VK, Saturday: Rock/Pop, Sunday: Anime/locals, Monday: free for all. You can still kinda see that in the schedule, but things got mixed up...

[kyo_kun0675]

I apologize for my post. I did not mean to insult the any of the staff. I understand that you all work very hard to prepare for this even all year. For those of you who felt insulted by my post, I'm so sorry. But the reason I posted was because I was under the impression that people wanted more Anime Cover bands to play at Fanime. So, I expected there to be a bigger listing of these bands. When I saw the list, it wasn't what I expected. I meant no disrespect towards the staff, I was just curious why another route was taken. Since you've all explained it in this tread, I now understand the situation. Please forgive my outburst, but I tried to keep it as neutral as possible with as little negativity as I could. Obviously, I'm not too good at this. I don't think I can apologize enough for my post. Please accept this apology and I will watch what I post from now on.

[Pimpstress Rei]

I apologize for my post. I did not mean to insult the any of the staff. I understand that you all work very hard to prepare for this even all year. For those of you who felt insulted by my post, I'm so sorry. But the reason I posted was because I was under the impression that people wanted more Anime Cover bands to play at Fanime. So, I expected there to be a bigger listing of these bands. When I saw the list, it wasn't what I expected. I meant no disrespect towards the staff, I was just curious why another route was taken. Since you've all explained it in this tread, I now understand the situation. Please forgive my outburst, but I tried to keep it as neutral as possible with as little negativity as I could. Obviously, I'm not too good at this. I don't think I can apologize enough for my post. Please accept this apology and I will watch what I post from now on.

See, now we know that there's a few out there who want anime cover bands. We didn't know this before. In the past years we asked the members on the forum who they wanted. We try to work within the suggestions but we can only do so much. And if you look at past MusicFest threads you'll see that the members have specifically requested a few of the bands playing this year. We really do try to listen to your suggestions.

Ask nicely and we'll do our very best to make you guys happy.  :P

[Lizchan33]

I'm excited to see ArtBeat coming!!!!!
And when I first heard about Karma Shenjing I screamed ~<3
I personally am wanting more jrock than anime cover bands because I like listening to stuff that isn't always related to anime.... xD

[FanFicGuru]

Kyo- Nice apology. That's the kind of angle you should take from the start, always taking the staff's hard work and dedication in mind, while politely bringing up possible points for improvement.

Anyways, to contribute to this thread, I also would like to see some Anime cover bands for 08. After all, Play! won't be playing two years in a row, will it? lol

It really is unfortunate the hits that Musicfest took, but I'm sure it'll still be a huge event. RAWK ON!

[Kazuhide Aeiji]

The only disappointment I feel is that Metal Phyzix isn't performing and also I can't see anyone on Friday because I'm not going that day :(

Other than that, I'm surprised they got Crack 6 to play here.

[Moonbug]

I posted was because I was under the impression that people wanted more Anime Cover bands to play at Fanime.

Isn't the real deal always better then the fake?  

I'd like Fanime to go back to the bands a few years before where there was an awesome mix of Jrock, Jpop, and anime soundtrack-ness what with Duel Jewel, Nami Tamaki, and Beautiful Losers.  BLOOD was always fun too.  

Or how about enlisting the peeps at Jrock Revolution which is having a concert May 25-26 with superb bands, like (frickin-amazingly) Miyavi.  Or Despairs Ray which were here before and, yay, an old fave, Duel Jewel.  (Offer them a bribe and fly them down for our sun-mon days...*hintHINT* I'm sure the fans would gladly pay for their flight and stay....)

[Long]

I posted was because I was under the impression that people wanted more Anime Cover bands to play at Fanime.

Isn't the real deal always better then the fake?  

I'd like Fanime to go back to the bands a few years before where there was an awesome mix of Jrock, Jpop, and anime soundtrack-ness what with Duel Jewel, Nami Tamaki, and Beautiful Losers.  BLOOD was always fun too.  

Or how about enlisting the peeps at Jrock Revolution which is having a concert May 25-26 with superb bands, like (frickin-amazingly) Miyavi.  Or Despairs Ray which were here before and, yay, an old fave, Duel Jewel.  (Offer them a bribe and fly them down for our sun-mon days...*hintHINT* I'm sure the fans would gladly pay for their flight and stay....)

That would be pretty much impossible. One, they're probably going to be extremely tired after the concert, flying back home on their probably scheduled flights, or meeting up with each other for hangouts. Two, that would have to be a PRETTY BIG bribe. These aren't guys that would ever just settle for playing at a con. These are serious music artists, who are more interested in getting their music out to straight on music lovers, and not anime otaku who just like it because it's Japanese, and their schedules are totally booked. They're extreme professionals. Not some starter band you can get to come for a few thousand dollars.

[Acid_Android]

I'd like Fanime to go back to the bands a few years before where there was an awesome mix of Jrock, Jpop, and anime soundtrack-ness what with Duel Jewel, Nami Tamaki, and Beautiful Losers.  BLOOD was always fun too.  

...oh it breaks my poor heart that there's not even a mention of camino on that list when they played that same year, lol. ^__^ They were just as awesome!!! [/totally unbiased opinion that has nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that they're one of my favorite bands], LOLLLL.

and btw, they've now got solid ties to anime by doing the opening theme song for "kotetsu sangokushi" with their totally awesome song, Nostalgia. lol [/shameless plug]

In any case, Duel Jewel is starting their tour in Japan almost immediately after Memorial Day weekend, so I don't think any bribe can keep them here because they probably wanna get back to Japan to rest up for that.

[soakrates`]

They're extreme professionals. Not some starter band you can get to come for a few thousand dollars.

Err, if you could drum up that kind of cash, you'd be hard-pressed to find many artists who wouldn't play for it.* Although, in all likelihood they'll require upfront payment.

Anyway, just wanted to say kudos to the staff for booking God of Shamisen. They're an awesome, unique band and everyone should check them out, even if they are not ostensibly "Japanese". I think they could surprise a lot of the people in attendance.

*unless, of course, they're super famous or something.

[zoupzuop2]

Uh, in terms of next year, would you guys take a band that has, um, Japanese influences? ^^;

I'm starting a band that has some of my original pieces, and it's got some Japanese-influenced bits. Mayb's it'll be ready in time next year.

[Pimpstress Rei]

They're extreme professionals. Not some starter band you can get to come for a few thousand dollars.

Err, if you could drum up that kind of cash, you'd be hard-pressed to find many artists who wouldn't play for it.* Although, in all likelihood they'll require upfront payment.

*unless, of course, they're super famous or something.

That's the whole problem. We don't have oh, an extra $50,000 just laying around to pay for plane tickets for the band and their entourage this close to con. Also to pay for the extra equipment, union fees - not to mention having to rearrange the schedule of every other performance we already have scheduled. It's really too much a headache to, no offense to the band(s), get some more performers for an already packed schedule.

There's always next year.

Anyway, just wanted to say kudos to the staff for booking God of Shamisen. They're an awesome, unique band and everyone should check them out, even if they are not ostensibly "Japanese". I think they could surprise a lot of the people in attendance.

Tony aims to please. =)

[soakrates`]

That's the whole problem. We don't have oh, an extra $50,000 just laying around to pay for plane tickets for the band and their entourage this close to con. Also to pay for the extra equipment, union fees - not to mention having to rearrange the schedule of every other performance we already have scheduled. It's really too much a headache to, no offense to the band(s), get some more performers for an already packed schedule.

I completely agree with you here, it just seemed that Long was saying the bands wouldn't play for that kind of money, when in fact most marginally popular underground bands probably would. Hell, they'd be stupid NOT to, since trying to make a living as a musician is already extremely difficult. And I would know. :P