----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 14 Jun 2005 20:03:15 -0700
From: Rob
Subject: Secret Adventures of 2004
Creatures of the Night!
Once again I am amazed at how fast a year has gone by! Yes it's been well over a year since the last post to The Dreaming. Much like last year this year had amazing events for Secret Secret. So lets start this post out where things left off last time.
At the end of the year we were to play two shows in Tokyo. The first was of course was the Devil's Christmas event at Tokyo Dark Castle. Joining us on stage was an amazing band. Masami was feature on synths, Yuki on bass, and Gordon joined on guitar. We were also quite lucky in that this time we had Chihaya, Isora, and Michi join us as dancers. It was a full stage and one of our best shows. I made up corsets and skirts for the girls and Michi. I did some mods to one of my outfits and we had this great gothic christmas look. It was taking me a lot of time to make all the costumes so Chihaya came over to help me. She was amazing. But we still were not finished but we had to meet some people so off we went. Then at the show just before we were taking the stage we were still working on the costumes! Right up to the moment we were walking on stage we were still sewing things together!
http://www.tokyodarkcastle.com
Alamode Gig: White Christmas
We were invited to perform Christmas shows as part of Alamode's Christmas event. This was incredibly fun. We performed a few Secret Secret songs and several Elvis Christmas songs. D's Valentine joined us a our guest keyboard player.
http://gothloliheaven.com/alamode/
The Creation of a New Event
For my Birthday it was off to Kansi were I worked very diligently on lining up the future Kobe event. This was to be the most ambitious gothic event ever in Kobe. There had been big events featuring bands in both Tokyo and Osaka, but that was pretty much it. It was great visiting with my Kansai friends while we traveled about meeting people, inspecting the venue and putting things in place. I also got to hang out with Kazoko Ogawa, whom I've know for years but had never gotten a chance to see. For those that don't know, Kazoko is the one that invented the Gothic Lolita style. Also, while while in Osaka Minagawa showed me some more about what he's been doing with his band Satanyanko - Japanese Gothic Kitten. Please check out their site:
http://www.satanyanko.com/
Just before leaving Japan we did another show for our friend D's Valentine and his great event Artism Festa. Joining us on stage this time was the wonderful Masami Inabi on synths. Additonal featured acts were Syaoran, Plumbsonic, The Space Young, Custom Mummy, and the great Souyuz Project! This was at Club Hoop in Shinjuku on January 13th, a very magical event.
http://pe-web.net/artism/ae_lf01.html
Shortly upon return to America we were joined by a new member. His name is Dylan and he plays violin. He's added a fantastic element to Secret Secret. Our live shows are filled with much more excitement on stage. Off stage he is also a prized friend to have in the band. I cannot say enough great things about him.
PMX
Like a Pheniox Pacific Media Expo arose from Anime Expo, one of the biggest anime events in North America. We were invited to be a featured musical guest. Other guests included TM Revolution, Tamaki Nami, and Psyco le Ceme. This was a great honor for us and no doubt had to do with our other anime event presentations. This would be Dylan's first SS event. Joining us on synths was Amber who has played several shows with us. We were to play two shows at this event. The first show on Saturday went pretty well and the audience was very enthusiastic. Winter and I both had new costumes to present. I didn't have the new red one ready for the Saturday show so I came out in a modified Purple one. But by Sunday I had finished the hat and corset just in time to make the stage.
The second show due to some bizarre mixup where one of the bands tech team couldn't figure out how to run their gear we were bumped and PMX had us open the Masquerade. Now one would think that would be great. But it was really a death sentence. At anime conventions a Masquerade is not this great dance where people get dressed up and then waltz around. Where that the case we would have been in dreamland. No, these are cosplay events and the people attending are in amazing costumes that often are no fun to hang around in. So they want to get on stage do their act and get on with the show. They don't want a band eating up their time, and yet here we were doing just in that position.
We could sense that tension in the air. We went out on stage did Forgotten, apologized for being there, went into Nichiyoubi. As the song ended we just walked off stage. People were stunned, but the thing is we didn't want to get the cosplayers mad at us. They wanted to have their fun and we were put in the position of imposing on them. It would have been so much better if the other band's management just would have let us go on after them.
http://www.pacificmediaexpo.com/pmx/music/info.html
Kobe Underground Festival
The event that I had gone to Kansai in January to setup became a reality in June. Headlining with Auto-Mod, Secret Secret performed for the first time in Kobe Japan. There had never been a gothic event like this within the borders of Kobe. A new first for the Kansi district. Kobe Underground Festival Vol.1 featured an Na+H fashion show, Gothic Lolita Bible staff, plus top bands from Japan including Jubilee, and Agent Murder.
Joining Dylan and I on stage was zAkro. She played synths and electronics. She was a great help and very fun to have in the band. On bass was Yuki from Spider Lilly. Yuki has played with Secret Secret so many times now I think he's got to be more then a guest member! :) Both of them were great, and for Dylan this was his second show ever with SS! Our friend Michael was a great help to us on this adventure. He came along as the SS support person. He did such a great job too!
Yuki's band:
http://sound.jp/spider-lily/
zAkro's site:
http://darkness.under.jp/hades/
The event itself was amazing. I put the major things in place, but then my friends picked up the ball and did the rest of the organizing. They did a fantastic job too. Over 300 people showed up. It was huge! People from all over Japan had come to this event. During our performance I even had the audience hand dancing. This was a new experience for us, but most enjoyable.
The Magic Bus
From Tokyo to Kobe and back we charted a bus. It carried the bands from Tokyo and Tokyo residents that wanted to go to the show. It was a total party bus. No one slept on the way down. It was all about exchanging stories and hanging out. Exploring the bazaars where the bus stopped for breaks. A whole lot of fun. We also stopped in Osaka the morning of the event to do a bit of shopping in America Mura. This is the part of Osaka where the cool fashion stores are located. We hung out for a short time with Rie pun at Sexy Dynamite London from the band Satan Yanko. The trip back was so different. We were all exhausted. Two nights of no sleep, a fantastic show, and so much excitement. We were all very tired. We pulled into Tokyo late at night, unloaded took some group photos and it was off to find a train.
http://www.kobeundergroundfestival.com
Photos:
http://www.tokyodarkcastle.com/kufgallery/index.html
http://www.tokyodarkcastle.com/kufbackstage/index.html
Kiki Banner
Other then the adventure to Kobe Dylan and I spent the month of June enjoying Tokyo. It was pretty fantastic. Lots of time going to fun places like Harajuku with our friend Shisen. Doing the photo thing on the bridge by Oyogi Koen. We had planned to hang out there during a Sunday so we went to Nippori to by some fabric to make a banner. I found this great velvet. We bought some paint and I went over to see the girls at Kikirara Shoten. Kiki let me use her sewing machine to hem up the ends so that we could put curtain rods through it to give it shape. Then we went outside to paint Secret Secret on it. Kiki saw that we were floundering so she offered to sew some letters on it. I was speechless. Her work is incredible. I knew that meant we wouldn't have the banner for our Sunday affair, but that was okay because we'd have this amazing Kiki banner!
http://www.kikirarashoten.com/
Gothic Lolita Bible Street Snap
I got a call from Shisen saying "meet me in Harajuku, the gosurori is doing a street snap." So Dylan and I grab the costume suit case and head off to Harajuku. Once there it's time to get dolled up. I'm in this co-ed bath room getting dolled up. People keep coming in, both men and women. I applogise each time. It was really quite comical. But I get dressed up and we walk over to the meeting place. Now Harajuku is where everyone dresses up. Because of this people don't really give more then a passing glance to anyone out because lots of bands and cosplayers hang out here. But as Dylan and I are walking to our arranged meeting place people are looking and saying Sugoi!. This was so cool. But of course I couldn't let on that it was! :)
We get to our meeting place and Shisen isn't there. I ring him, but there is no answer. Which mean that he's on his scooter in transit. So we have to hang out. People start asking for our photos. Lots of them! Then Shisen shows up and his hair is in total knots. Takes us about 15 minutes to untie them. Then people starting asking to get photos with all three of us. This goes on for a while and then we go to where the GLB people are taking street snaps.
We get there and they recognize Shisen and I. I have met them at the various Dark Castle events. I introduce Dylan. They give us some ankeyo forms to fill out. This includes what we are wearing, and we also get to draw an image. It's quite fun, but neither Dylan nor I can read these things! So I'm asking about each item and eventually we fill them out. Then they line us up and in just seconds a bunch of photos have gone off. That was it. Very quick. I handed out flyers to the other people getting snapped and then off we go to see some fun shops. Shisen is the best guide for Harajuku. He knows all the great stores, and the people that run them. He also knows great places to eat for a budget a musician can afford! :)
June Tokyo Dark Castle
Near the end of our stay in Japan was our Tokyo Dark Castle performance. For this show it was very much like our show in Kobe. The same line up, though we were a bit more cohesive with our stage costumes. The tie in was our the black and red striped tights. Dylan and I scoured the area looking for tights and some hot pants for Dylan. We did eventually find some shorts with the help of our friend Asato who went shopping with us. Having figured out our costumes it was off to the show. This all night event featured our friends Auto-Mod, Agent Murder, Despair, Destruct System, Shrine, and other bands such as Demons and Darkside Mirrors, whom I really wanted to see but missed, but Darkside Mirrors' costumes were great. As to be expected at a Dark Castle event the audience came dolled up. There were so many beautifully dressed people!
Photos:
http://www.tokyodarkcastle.com/tdc6/index.html
Day Book Presents Karakuri Kamakiri
The day Dylan left to go back to the states I received a call from Taro asking if we wanted to do a show with Rika chan, that night. So with no notice, and no support band I did another performance. It was quite fun, and Rika is amazing. A very special night and a nice way to wrap up the adventure.
Book of Secret Secret
Once back in the States I was able to get some time in on the Book of Secret Secret site. This is a site dedicated to the fans of Secret Secret. Mid July the site came online. There is still much to do with filling out all of the memorabilia that is planned to be show, but there are some photos up and an incomplete listing of magazine appearances, with images from the magazines.
http://www.bookofsecretsecret.com
phpbb
I am in the process of adding a BBS to the Book of Secret Secret site that will be up probably late as usual! I have it running, but I need to finish up the art, and then post it to the server.
San Diego Comic Con
This summer also brought the San Diego Comic Con. While Secret Secret didn't make an official appearance, as we have done in the past, I did wonder about in full dress most of the time. Plenty of photo opps this year. During this time I was fortunate enough to meet Ralphie and Abby of Order of the Fly. Super cool people. We hope to do a bunch of shows with them. The first was at TDCSF. Also this year at the Comic Con was a Gothic Lolita meet up. We met in an old fashion hotel in San Diego for photos, then wondered the streets all dressed up and eventually landed at the Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner.
Order of the Fly
http://www.theorderofthefly.com/
Tokyo Dark Castle - San Francisco
Halloween rolls around and to celebrate Secret Secret in association with Auto-Mod produced Tokyo Dark Castle to San Francisco. Friday October 29th the grand opening Halloween event featuring Secret Secret, a gothic waltz, fashion show, DJ Bat, DJ DŠch, Order of the Fly, Neither Neither World, Flatline Transmission (their premiere show), Spanking Machine, and Mute Angst Envy - yeah you read that right they are back! 18+ Doors 9pm - 3am Costume Contest with top prize of $100! The Pound SF 100 Cargo Way Pier 96, SF. It was a great success with many of our friends joining in the festivities. Thanks so much to the Pound for their help in pulling off an amazing night, and all the wonderful people that showed up in support of this one of a kind event.
http:/www.tokyodarkcastle.com
photos:
http://www.tokyodarkcastle.com/tdcsf1/index.html
Aborted Life
For November Aborted Life interviewed Secret Secret. Aborted Life is part of the gothic collective in the Philippines. It is quite a treat to be recognized by them, and we are very honored.
http://freepgs.com/cemgoths/secretsecret.html
SS was featured on Bear Naked Radio. Rather strange indeed but through our network of friends, again the SD comic con connection!, we were able to be heard on yet another radio show.
http://www.bearnakedradio.com/
Gothic Lolita Bible #14
Robert and Dylan were caught in the street snap section of issue #14 of the Gothic Lolita Bible with our good friend Shisen the organizer of Violet Trap! This is from the photo opp reported about previously.
Maison Vol. 1
There is a new Japanese gothic & lolita style book called Maison coming out and Secret Secret with zAkro will be featured in the first issue! Many big thanks to zAkro for making this happen!
Of course there's more, like our mad adventures at Yaoi Con, but we must leave something up to your imagination and I am ever so late in getting this post out. Months and Months and Months! So I'll wrap this up and get started on a new post with more exciting Secret Adventures for you my dear readers.
-Rob-
Secret Secret
http://www.secret-secret.com
http://www.bookofsecretsecret.com
------------------------------
End of Dreaming Digest V1 #92
*****************************
