"(We Played It) For You!"
My evening seeing MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS perform live in Manchester!
With the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Palestine, I wish to dedicate this forward to the charities helping support those suffering under such painful occupation and oppression. Please consider donating to the UNRWA or WAQFOREVER to help the vital aid for Palestinians to continue.
It was announced in February 2020 that MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS would be making their UK live performance debut at ARCTANGENT Festival. The mere thought of such a special band playing in the UK was so exciting, even if I already knew I wouldn’t be able to attend due to the distance and cost, and my imagination began to wander as I listened to their music and reflected on the news:
“It would be so fun to speak to the band about their art!”
And thus my dream to interview musicians formed.
Sadly the announcement came just a few weeks before the pandemic hit, so the festival was postponed by two years until 2022. Even then, the wait made it even more special to watch the official livestream of the performance on YouTube. At this point I’d already conducted the first interview for my blog earlier that year, but MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS remained a kind of ‘end goal’ who I hoped to strive towards interviewing one day. Much to my surprise and gratitude, both of which endure to this day, I was able to speak to them just a few months later in early 2023, and I learnt that they were planning to return to the UK as part of a full tour!
I’ve always really valued the role that live music plays, both in the lives of musicians and also their fans. Of course, there’s a magic to hearing a studio recording of a painstakingly arranged song that will never wear off on me, but to witness those same songs performed in person feels like a one-of-a-kind phenomenon where the absolute synchronicity of the members’ performances is melded with the spontaneity of the moment. It makes the slightest of changes in live performances of songs feel deliberate and purposeful, thus the entire set becomes a layered mosaic of gracefully-balanced artistic intention. It’s impossible to not get swept up in the energy of live performances, but I think this graceful balance is my favourite aspect of live music to witness, and that quality was palpable all throughout the live show that evening.
I haven’t attended many live shows before, so it was always admittedly a little daunting to think about attending such a loud and intense experience, but I knew I couldn’t let myself miss out on an experience I’d been dreaming about for years. I found out on the morning of the live show that I’d been invited to attend the rehearsal before the show, which I was overjoyed to hear as I thought it’d be so interesting to see this side to live performances!
I arrived early that day and was greeted by Natsuko, Naoya, Isao, and their tour managers Yuji and Thomas, as they were setting up in the venue. After reminiscing on the interview we conducted a year prior and discussing how the tour was going so far, they diligently returned to arranging the stage and conducting the sound check. It’s a given that such testing is needed everytime a performance is held at a venue, but I’d never stopped to think about how much effort it takes, as the band and their manager Yuji painstakingly adjusted the volume levels of every instrument and vocal microphone to achieve the balance they wanted. Hearing the rehearsal in an empty venue felt otherworldly, as I’d never expected my first time seeing MOTFD live to play out in such a special manner! I was so interested in watching every element of the stage come together, and I cherished every moment of seeing how the spectacle of live shows is prepared.
After the rehearsal, In the wait before the evening’s show, I was able to speak to various different fans in the entry and merch queues at the venue. I realised how I’d never actually been in a place full of so many Japanese music fans at once, and it made every interaction feel like a special part of the evening as I was able to exchange stories with others about how excited we’d been for this tour, and how we’d all discovered MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS! I’d been fasting the entire day, so I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to have a balcony seat during the actual live show!
I got to hear many of my favourite Masudore songs that evening!! The set opened with ‘Sugar’, which I thought was a perfect way to start the set, gently easing into the louder later songs. I especially really loved the fact that ‘1960’ was in the middle of the setlist, and it gave me a chance to sing along with the unforgettable “Oo-aaaaaaaaa” vocalisation that I’m so fond of!
I’d been paying attention to setlists from their previous live shows, and I noticed that ‘Birds and Rhythm’ was very rarely included. I wasn’t expecting it to be played on the night, hence my immediate shout of “YES!!!!” when I heard the song’s opening guitar play after ‘1960’ ended! I’m so used to hearing the song play after its prelude ‘After The Rain’, so diving headfirst into the song in that kind of environment caught me off guard in the best possible way. My favourite moment of the entire show was being able to hear the guitar solo that follows the song’s beautiful chorus. I’d let myself be carried away by its emotional intensity an immeasurable number of times before, and this occasion was no different as I held on to every guitar note Naoya strummed. I knew it was impossible for them to hear me amidst the noise, but the song’s vulnerability spoke to me the same way it’d always done on my previous listens, and I couldn’t help but want to reach back out and respond with my own cheer of support for Naoya.
The end of the solo sounds like the scattering of cosmic dust in a trail following a shooting star, and it left me as starstruck on that evening as it does every time I hear it.
“My body still remembers that day.”
The moments in between songs when the band would interact with fans were also integral to the evening’s memory. ‘Asahinagu’ is the song that sticks out most in my memory, as the song opened with Natsuko encouraging everyone: “let’s daaaaance!”, which I think will echo in my head everytime I listen to the song from now on!
After the show I was able to quickly catch up with Natsuko and Naoya before they left the venue. I’d brought the covers and inserts from my collection of MOTFD CDs/cassettes, which they kindly signed just before they began to pack up for their following day of travel! I thanked them profusely for playing ‘Birds and Rhythm’, to which Natsuko responded: “we played it for you!”. I was stunned silent for a moment as I realised they’d remembered when I mentioned ‘Birds and Rhythm’ was one of my absolute favourite MOTFD songs during our interview last year!
This moment, in particular, has stuck with me since that weekend: just as the kindness in their words and actions were clear as day in our interview last year, this gesture highlights further just how considerate the band is. They’re a one-of-a-kind band for many reasons, but the reason that stands out to me most is their sincerity that’s reflected in their music.
MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS have been tied to, and represented, my personal dreams for many years now, and Saturday’s live was another dream fulfilment on my lifelong journey with music. Last year I described their music as representing “beautiful freedom” to me, and on that evening I was able to witness a grace to their art that shimmers even throughout their most intense songs: the grace of that same enduring spirit which inspired me years ago, and continues to do so to this very day.
-Mustafa
A sincere thank you to Natsuko, Naoya, Isao, and their managers Yuji and Thomas for the wonderful evening, as well as the incredibly kind invitation to the rehearsal!
Thank you to the staff of Gorilla Manchester for helping make the event a reality!
My interview with MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS can be read here! My gratitude goes to Ogushi for helping with interpretation and translation!
I’ve never been to one of their shows before, definitely hope I can do that one day since I love a ton of their music, I can only imagine what it must be like. So cool to see that you not only got the chance to watch them live but also meet and interview them, that’s so amazing, I can already tell they’re such cool people from the way you wrote about them. Also just have to say, Birds and Rhythm is such an amazing song, glad they played it for you!