International Arts and Culture Fest 2008

A few weekends ago I had a performance with a few friends for this International Arts and Culture Fest, hosted by the city of Kawanishi and JET Programme(the company Erin teaches for). I took part in this event last year as well, with some dear friends who no longer live in Japan. So, this year, was a new "band" we put together to perform 4 songs.

The players were Jack G. on electric guitar and backing vocals,
Gillian H. on piano, guitar, mandolin(and bass drum), and backing vocals,
Craig S. on lead vocals and acoustic guitar,
and me on bass, mandolin, harmonica, bass drum, piano, and backing vocals.
*pics taken by Arthur Lim Banes

So, my very good friend Chetan from Cape Town South Africa, took this candid shot of me while we were playing our last number, Let it Bleed by the Stones.
I vaugely remember being in eye shot of Craig, and, as we slowly built up the intensity of the song, I gave him a look and stuck out my tounge in a fun, carefree gesture, as I'm often moved act while performing. You can see Gillian in the foreground concentrating on playing the mando and bass drum simultaneously, a feat that's not very easy to do, especially if you haven't really played much mandolin or drums for that matter. This girl is a natural musician.

So, our whole set:
I Don't Like Mondays by The Boomtown Rats; Gillian on Piano, Craig lead Vox, me on bass, and Jack and me on backing Vox
Karma Police by Radiohead; Gillian on Piano, Craig lead Vox and acoustic guitar, Jack on lead/noise electric guitar, Me on bass and backing vocals
Black Country Woman by Led Zeppelin; Craig on Vox and open G acoustic guitar, Gillian on acoustic guitar, Jack on lead electric guitar, me on mandolin, harmonica, bass drum
Let It Bleed by The Rolling Stones; Craig on lead Vox and acoustic guitar, Jack on lead electric guitar, Gillian on mandolin, bass drum and backing vocals, and me on piano and shouting



*pics taken by Chetan Rama and backstage pics by Josy Audigier
It was a great performance and a lot of fun to share music with these guys. Unfortunately, Craig will be returning back home to Vancouver at the end of the summer, but Jack and Gillian will still be here to make more music. I'm glad we had the chance to all play together.