The brother and sister duo mesmerised all with their unique wall of sound.
The Gallery Cafe in Bethnal Green, East London, is part of a charitable organisation which helps the local community. On 16th April it played host to a fundraiser for a cause considerably further from home: Music for Japan. Post-rock and ambient band YANEKA played no small part in the organisation and promotion of this collection of European concerts to help their disaster-stricken home country. Making full use of their contacts from several years of performing and touring on the continent, they enlisted the help of musician friends to raise money for Japan.
Tickets for the event were sold out, so it was unsurprising that the little venue was jam-packed and newcomers were spilling out of the door. The cafe window, which was also the backdrop for the stage, was adorned with hanging lights and many origami peace cranes, which were to be sold to a company for $2 each. Since 13,000 were made the amount raised was not to be sniffed at. Ross Wilson from Caledonian folk group Blue Rose Code, taking the dual role of host and performer for the night, kicked off proceedings with a bit of soulful acoustic folk. The dulcet tones of Samantha Whates followed. Unfortunately much of her set was drowned out by some inconsiderate attendees at the back, but she played on unfalteringly. During these performances YANEKA would appear in the crowd from time to time to listen and to greet acquaintances.
Since Eliza Wren Payne couldn't attend, it was YANEKA's turn next. An array of loop-pedals, effects and sampling equipment lined the floor in front of vocalist Chiyako and guitarist and programmer Yuichiro. All of this gear proved integral to the band's sound as soon as they began with Yuichiro playing and recording loops on his electric guitar. Layer upon layer of loops gradually built up throughout the song until it was impossible to tell that it was merely one performer producing such a sound. Utilising all possible effects from his instrument, he was capable of producing anything from ambient drones as with their first song, to the percussive beats prominent in their second piece, Tricky Moment. Similarly the vocals, which would begin light and breathily, grew so powerful by midsong that all the chatter and cutlery jingling from noisy audience members was simply drowned out, rendering vehement shushing from the staff unnecessary. Reverb was added or removed by the means of controls at Chiyako's feet, so that in some songs the haunting vocals merged with the backing instrumentals to create a hypnotic shoegaze sound. Chiyako's vocal training in the traditional Japanese nagauta singing style was very apparent despite the modern alt rock influences: she jumped octaves with ease and sustained both high notes and the characteristic vibrato with amazing control and power.
Halfway through their set, Chiyako took a moment to give the audience a little background to themselves, and to explain their motivation for the concerts. A brother and sister duo, "not a couple!" as she hastened to inform, they are from Osaka, which was for the most part unaffected by the earthquake that struck in March. However the news of the disaster and the thousands of victims which reached them whilst they were in Sweden affected them deeply. Realising that in their position they were able to do something to help and "not only just cry", they asked some friends across Europe to lend a hand and thus the Music for Japan concerts were born. Afterwards Yuichiro, in an unusual move for him, took the mic to express their sorrow at being able to do what they enjoyed while others were suffering elsewhere. He also talked about their next song, Black Coral. This "black coral" could be seen as the embodiment of their reactions to catastrophes in the world. It is an old classic of theirs, having appeared on both of their albums. This version retained the exotic nature of the recorded versions, but in addition it had a raw, primal feel to it due to the heavier bass and extra distortion effects. The vocals were at times smooth and flowing and at others staccato and rough, but always handled with great skill creating a mesmerising performance. It led straight into the gentle finale, All in the air, a track from their new album of the same name, which is due for release in May. With its simple and peaceful overtones it washed over a silenced crowd. The delicate repeating riff from Yuichiro led the way through the whole song and hung in the air after it was over.
Despite such a short performance, YANEKA had clearly gained some new admirers of their unique sound and many went to get hold of their CDs at the door. Having given London just a taster of their music, hopefully it won't be long before they return to give us a bit more.
