Fuel injected fun.
Leading off the second day of Metal Matsuri was AYA1000RR and she added another different flavour to the festival’s eclectic line-up.
She takes her stage-name from the CBR1000RR, of Honda’s famous Fireblade series of bikes, and the motorcycle mad musician labels herself a ‘singer-songrider’, reflecting her twin passions in life. She’s a multi-media mash-up of motorbike journalist,
musician, TV personality and actress.
Being the first act up is never easy going but the Metal
Matsuri crowd was in early so AYASEN had plenty to work with to generate an atmosphere. Like a biker blasting away as the lights change to green, she got the show off to a fast start with Let
It Go! It might not be the sort of music that the assembled metalheads would normally seek out, but the high-energy, old school rock had an infectious sense of fun about it.
After I’m a Youtuber! (yes, you can add
that to her CV too!), she took a moment to greet everyone. “Lovely to see you guys. My songs are about motorcycle riding”, just in case her custom guitar in the shape of a pink motorcycle hadn’t clued everybody in. There was a quick plug
for her latest CD Take it Easy, which was released just a couple of days prior, before she hit the road again with the title track. It was more of a Harley-Davidson cruiser than a Fireblade racer, but she was straight back on the gas afterwards with Speed Things
Up and the crowd picked up the energy too.
AYASEN took another breather for a quick chat about what she got up to on her first trip to London. Japan might be home to the biggest motorcycle manufacturers on the planet but British brands still carry a strong reputation. She took the
opportunity to arrange a test ride of a Triumph around the British countryside and to check out some biker cafes along with bass player Mariko. She then gave some quick intros to her support band,
Mariko on bass, Chohei on drums and Velatria guitarist Kabaya, who cranked out some impressive solos during the set.
AYA1000RR finished with BunBunBun before riding off into the sunset, cheered as she goes.
Maybe the thought of trying out a Norton will bring her back to the UK again.
Set List
01. Let It Go!
02. I’m a YouTuber!
03. Take it Easy
04. Speed Things Up!
05. BunBunBun
