The honorable and amazing Audrey Benten brings yet another Japan Nite this year to NYC and as per usual she doesn’t fail to deliver. My third year attending and the first one at the Bowery Ballroom, as the classic old venue The Knitting Factory is now closed at its former location down in Tribeca. Seven great bands came over, many new, a couple making another appearance this year, all astounded each and every fan that came out to the event as there was a little bit of everything for everyone. I am sure many people became new fans of the other bands as well and I was surprise at the amount of people who stayed until the very end.

The Bands
Flip
This all female punk rock set started the show off and they sure were a neat surprise. They immediately got the crowd into their grow with lots of movement from the people watching. A band I feel needed a couple more songs to perform as they had a very short set, they really started to get into high gear in their last song and had the crowd starting to mosh!

Omodaka
How can I appropriately describe this one man show, how about absurdly interesting and entertaining? I think that really fits the performance very well, with a computer, a flat screen monitor, two nintendo DS lites and one fun getup Omodaka really surprised a lot of people who were bewildered at first. A dash of 8-bit synthesized beats with techno/house/electronica music and a good visual presentation albeit minor technical difficulties, this is one act I’m still trying to make 2cents of and will not forget anytime soon.

Sparta Locals
If you love punk then this is a band you will simply put into your ipod, put it on repeat, and listen to it so many times you’ll be able to sing the lyrics as an answer to every question given. Sparta Locals are punk redefined, with a modern upbeat sound but the deep heavy clogged sink grunge sound from the past that will have you head banging and moshing even if you don’t want to. I lost a few brain cells during this performance as well as getting a stiff neck, but it was well worth it.

SA
Outrageous hairstyles, personalities, and ultra punk funk makes this one band that really surprised me as their look is just like their music, a mix of many styles, but all in all it is heavy punk with a lot of ultra funk! I was digging and jiving into their music like a rockabilly kid who just discovered the Ramones for the first time and tried playing a 45 and a regular LP both at once. It was like the 50s met the 80s met the 90s met your face with a pair of brass knuckles, you wake up in the morning with a headache and an empty wallet.

Grapevine
Continuing on the night of new and astounding sounds came this band which not only rocked but rocked to the point where they put the crowd into a trance. In between songs it was so silent as the fans waited eagerly for the next audio blast that would take them on a trip far and wide with songs that lasted a good 5-7 minutes of pure awesome. This band reminded me alot of Tool with excellent vocals and composition and sounds that just made you groove out while at the same time not letting you forget that it was kicking your mental ass at the same time.

Asakusa Jinta
My second time seeing this band perform live and they quickly reminded me why I fell in love with them the first time around. An eclectic mix of instruments make this band a sight to see. Pyschobilly, rockabilly, orchestrated goodness the puts grooves down to your bones, makes your feet tap and in some rare cases put you in the mood to swing dance, this is one band that really puts on a show. The bassist does magic with his hands, thats all I can say

Detroit7
They are heavy but they aren’t metal, but a pure essence of rock that seems to feed from some deep animal instinct of rock beast. The female lead is a sort of anomaly, beautiful and elegant but at the same time haunting, deep, and ferocious like a black panther waiting to shred your mind with powerful licks and chords. This is heavy rock at its finest, be wary all who enter for ye ears shall be abused like a dog and its chew toy.