Montreux Jazz Festival Japan: Day 1 – Yoko Kanno Set (2024)

MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL JAPAN: DAY 1
Music composed by Yoko Kanno
Piano & Keyboard: Yoko Kanno
Vocals: A-sha Mai Yamane
Vocals: Ilaria Graziano
Vocals: Origa (R.I.P.)
Choir: The Little Singers of Tokyo
The Seatbelts:
Drums: Yasuo Sano
Bass: Keisuke Torigoe
Guitar: Tsuneo Imahori
Percussion: MATARO
Trumpet 1: Koji Nishimura
Trumpet 2: Sho Okumura
Trumpet 3: Reiya Terakubo
Alto Sax: Masato Honda
Tenor Sax: Shuuichi Kuwata
Tenor Sax: Yoshiki Okazaki
Baritone Sax: Kei Suzuki
Trombone 1: Yoichi Murata
Trombone 2: Azusa Tojo
Bass Trombone: Katsuhisa Asari
Mnp: Takashi Nakayama
December 6, 2024
Pia Arena MM
Yokohama, Japan

PART 1: WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT?

BOOM.

There just aren’t enough superlatives to describe last night’s tremendous first day at the Montreux Jazz Festival Japan with Herbie Hancock, Terence Blanchard, Yoko Kanno and the Seatbelts.

Yep, you read that right – Herbie Hancock, Terence Blanchard, Yoko Kanno and the Seatbelts.

Never in a million years could I have imagined a live performance from this incredible line up of artists in one evening on the same stage.  But sure enough, that is exactly what happened last night, and as expected, EVERY soloist was on fire. And EVERY member of the audience went home satisfied and feeling cool.

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The first set had Kanno and the Seatbelts performing selections from her eclectic soundtrack catalogue including the iconic COWBOY BEBOP and GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX.

This was followed by the legendary Herbie Hancock and his band who are all legends in their own right.

For this report, I will focus on the first set with Kanno and the Seatbelts.  My report on the Hancock set can be found here.

PART 2: A FAN FAVOURITE

Pia Arena MM in downtown Yokohama was the stage for this unforgettable night of music.

Upon arrival I was shocked to see the line – not the one to enter the venue, but for the Yoko Kanno merch line. It was HUGE!

“TANK!” t-shirts and towels had already sold out before the intermission, highlighting Kanno’s huge following.

In response, Kanno’s X account posted an online purchasing link for the merch during the concert. This is where I ordered my goods, which I’ll post pics of when they arrive.

PART 3: GIVE ME AN “A”

Needless to say, Yoko Kanno and the Seatbelts graced the stage to rapturous applause.

Then without uttering a word, Kanno lent toward the audience and coerced them, in the most adorable way, to help tune the band.

We happily obliged by calling “ahhhhhh” in unison.  But it wasn’t enough.

Kanno playfully pranced across the stage gesturing for each section of the audience to call out an “A” note with all their might.

When she finally became satisfied with the sound, she positioned herself on stage to get the party started.

PART 4: OKAY – THREE, TWO, ONE, LET’S JAM!

It was a foregone conclusion that “TANK!” from COWBOY BEBOP would open the set, and boy, did it bring the house down (and every building nearby).

Despite missing that iconic opening dialogue, everyone in the audience immediately got up on their feet and rocked along to the music like madmen.  During those killer two-note stabs throughout the piece, a handful of people were even jumping with arms raised.

Kanno herself could be seen swaying her arms, jumping up and down, and prancing across the stage to the beat and mood.

It was impossible not to smile and be totally swept away.

PART 5: THE BEST OF BEBOP

This was followed by five sensational selections from COWBOY BEBOP.

“Rush” instantly impressed with its big band sound and killer brass (trombone?) solo.  The Bond theme riff made a brief appearance, marking a shift towards swinging jazz with even more show-stopping solos.

I was in a state of pure ecstasy when the ska transition of “Bad Dog No Biscuits” made its appearance, stamping my feet along like my life depended on it.

“Car24” was as fun and playful as the original. A real earworm.

Opening with some catchy acoustic guitar strumming, “Time to Know ~ Be Waltz” progressed into a fun and breezy flute and sax-led piece. It reminded me of something Lalo Schifrin would have written in the ‘70s.

Guest vocalist Ilaria Graziano, who has recorded many times with Kanno over the years, then came on stage to give a lovely wordless vocal performance of “Elm,” which had originally been recorded with a male vocal.

PART 6: GHOST IN THE SHELL & KIDS ON THE SLOPE

After the pizzazz of BEBOP, the mood abruptly changed with a haunting performance by Graziano of “I do” from GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX.  With Kanno providing delicate accompaniment on piano, many were moved to tears.

“Un Soffio Di Vento” came next.  I’d never heard this piece before, but was immediately enchanted by Graziano’s soothing vocals and Kanno’s lilting piano accompaniment.  

KIDS ON THE SLOPE, an anime about high school kids that bond through their mutual love of jazz, featured a beautiful theme on trumpet that evoked feelings of a growing and resilient friendship. 

After a cool and fast-paced reading of “Ride on Technology” from GHOST came a stunning performance of “Rise.” Origa, the vocalist on the original recording who tragically passed away at the age of 44, was brought back to life through a recording of her voice that was projected on screen in the form of an audio waveform. It was an emotional and fitting tribute to Origa.

PART 7: ENDING WITH MORE BOP

For the final leg of the concert, we were treated to more show-stopping pieces from COWBOY BEBOP.

As soon as the percussionist called out “What Planet Is This!?” the audience went into an absolute frenzy!

With that killer repeating theme driving the piece forward, we all raised our arms as we joyously chanted that famous line, “What Planet Is This!?”

For the iconic “Blue,” a very special guest was brought out onto the stage: Mai, the song’s original vocalist.

She gave a deeply emotional performance, rising to a truly transcendent climax as she sang the line, “Free… wanna be free.” 

The crowd-pleasing “Space Lion” came next. Opening with long synth lines and that darkly romantic theme on sax, I just couldn’t contain myself when that iconic girls’ vocal came in while a barrage of percussionists lined the stage to accompany the latter half of the piece.

The night ended with a smoking performance of “The Real Folk Blues,” with Mai, its original vocalist, returning to the stage to perform.

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Despite deafening applause and an extended standing ovation, no encore was performed. Kanno did come back out though, only to cheekily wave at the audience and skirt across to the other end of the stage into darkness.

A reprise of “TANK!” really would have made everyone’s night, but alas, it was not to be. Maybe next time 😎

PART 8: FROM CASUAL FAN TO DEVOTED FOLLOWER

I am embarrassed to admit that prior to this concert I was pretty much a casual fan with only a handful of Kanno’s most popular scores in my collection.

So impressed was I with the concert that I promptly added a handful of Kanno scores to my Amazon cart and hit order on my way home. I’m looking forward to discovering the rest of her catalogue in the days ahead 🎶

PART 9: CONCERT MERCH & VIP PRIVILEGES

The following merch was on sale at the venue:

For those with VIP tickets, you were given seats in the first few blocks of the arena as well as a limited edition festival t-shirt and VIP card.

VIP tickets holders were also provided access to a small lounge serving booze and snacks.

PART 10: OVER TO YOU

Did you also go to this concert? How did you like it?

And what did you think of my report? Feel free to comment below or reach out to me directly in the “Contact Me” section.